Ever since baseball was invented, scandals have been a part of Major League Baseball’s history. From purposefully throwing games to stealing signs to using performance-enhancing drugs, the MLB has had its fair share of issues.
The most recent of these events has been the Los Angeles Dodgers star player Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter Ippei Mizuhara being accused of stealing over $4 million from his balance to gamble illegally. While Mizuhara was fired by the Dodgers and is currently facing trial, many wonder whether he is simply the fall guy for Ohtani.
Ohtani and Mizuhara met each other back in 2013 when Mizuhara was working with American player Chris Martin in Japan. Since then, Ohtani and Mizuhara have worked together through Ohtani’s playing time in Japan, as well as in the MLB. The two have developed a relationship well outside of work, being described as “peanut butter and jelly” by former Angels manager Joe Madden.
Although Ohtani is extremely close to Mizuhara on a personal level, the idea of the latter having access to Ohtani’s bank account is tremendously sketchy. Having your best friend’s bank account info is suspicious no matter what, and millions of dollars being withdrawn raises even more eyebrows.
Despite these odd facts, not much more information has been made public about the scandal. Mizuhara admitted to stealing the money and has been fired from the Dodgers, but the MLB has brushed the entire story under the rug to keep Ohtani’s image intact, which makes sense from a financial standpoint.
Ohtani is currently the most well-known baseball player, drawing in countless fans to see him perform as both a pitcher and hitter at the highest level, as well as millions of Japanese fans supporting somebody from their home country. Ohtani had upwards of 17 endorsements in 2022, earning him over $40 million each year from that alone. Why would the MLB want to tarnish the reputation of their biggest moneymaker?
The MLB originally planned not to investigate Ohtani for the situation but eventually did shortly after. Much was kept quiet about it, and recently the investigation officially ended.
Because Ohtani faced no punishments for his involvement in these affairs, fans are outraged at the double standards the MLB is giving out.
In 2022, Dodgers star pitcher Trevor Bauer was accused of sexual assault by a woman, and he immediately was put on the restricted list and not permitted to play until a decision was made. In April of that same year, Bauer was suspended for 324 games – the longest suspension in the sport’s history. The suspension was reduced to 194 games, although later Bauer was reinstated. Despite being allowed to play again though, no MLB team has signed him, leading him to sign overseas in Japan in 2023, then being unsigned in 2024.
On his YouTube channel, Bauer constantly criticizes the MLB for various reasons, including their rule changes and restrictions on foreign substances. His personality is extremely harsh and is often seen as a nuisance to clubhouses and the general public.
Bauer has spoken out consistently since he was accused, denying the claims. He was never arrested or charged with a crime. Many baseball fans are in full support of Bauer and push for their favorite teams to sign him.
Besides Bauer, a multitude of other players have been excommunicated from MLB, with Pete Rose being perhaps the most well-known.
Rose played 24 seasons in the MLB, gathering 4,256 hits to lead the sport by a wide margin. After retirement, he managed his former team, the Cincinnati Reds, for five years. During this tenure, Rose was banished from the sport due to gambling on baseball games.
As a professional baseball player, gambling is permitted as long as where it is taking place is legal and the bets aren’t on baseball or softball. Rose was gambling on baseball games, but all of his bets were on his team to win when he was either playing or managing. Even though Rose technically broke the rules, fans see his ban from the MLB Hall of Fame as unfair due to the circumstances of his gambling.
Unlike Rose and Bauer, Ohtani presents himself as a much more marketable personality. He doesn’t speak badly about the commissioner, use banned substances, get involved with assault cases or involve himself in many other issues that hurt the reputation of players. Both Rose and Bauer have spoken out against the controversies they’re involved in, but Ohtani has kept quiet and been out of the spotlight as much as he could.
Finishing the first month of the season, Ohtani has faced no punishment for possibly being involved with his interpreter using his money to illegally gamble. While he continues to play and be the face of the MLB, others face a more unfortunate fate because they don’t act how the league wants them to.
