Ippei fired by Dodgers after being accused of theft by Ohtani’s attorney’s

[cals]

Just now, Blarg said:

Ohtani really needed to set up his bank phone alerts in Japanese so Ippei wasn't interpreting them. 

“Is problem?”

”No Shohei, BOFA just wanted to see if you wanted to get paperless statements, everything is cool.”

”ok, chank you, Ippei”

[Taylor]

2 hours ago, yamsi12 said:

They need to lock both of them up.

In the same cell?

[jsnpritchett]

 

[T.G.]

1 hour ago, gotbeer said:

2 times would mean $2.25 million.  How does a nobody get that much credit from a bookie, unless it was a somebody.  

2 X $500k.  Not all the 4.5 million was paid off, I believe 

[Tank]

I'm surprised we haven't heard or seen anything from TMZ. They've been scooping a lot of others sources for years. 

[katie]

[James]

22 minutes ago, katie said:

He wasn't going to say, yes I'm concerned. 

[katie]

17 minutes ago, James said:

He wasn't going to say, yes I'm concerned. 

Yeah but does this mean Ippei wouldn’t let Ohtani talk to anyone?!

[James]

9 minutes ago, katie said:

Yeah but does this mean Ippei wouldn’t let Ohtani talk to anyone?!

Of course he did! Ohtnai supposedly doesn't really understand English so not sure how he now is interacting more so. 

[yamsi12]

4 hours ago, Taylor said:

In the same cell?

Sure why not, saves space.

[Chuck]

Victor Rojas gave his take on the Ohtani gambling scandal on our podcast last night.

 

[Junkballer]

14 hours ago, nothing, Nothing said:

Yup no name yet but it sounds like Ohtani straight up hired a fixer, or sorry a ''crisis management spokesman''. And like everyone else in the timeline he never talked to Ohtani to get his side or iron out the next moves. Kind of strange since it was this fixer person who set up the large Dodgers in house meeting where Ohtani was attending as well. Guy supposedly never talked to Ohtani to tell him what was actually going to be said at the meeting (lol). Quite possibly the worst fixer in the history of fixers. But with the media on their side and Ippei probably getting paid under the table to take full responsibility and more than likely Ohtani not wanting to press charges for the theft it will all just go away. Or well at least until the Bowers guy is facing a long prison sentence and he wants to tell his side of all of this.     

There may be some unknowns, but at least in my mind, it is a known that there was no theft, and accusations of theft are an attempt to keep Ohtani from suffering the consequences of the federal crime of using the banking system to pay off illegal betting (doesn't matter who laid the bet) that he has admitted doing before changing his story.  

[Chuck]

Two major Japanese news networks (Fuji Television and NHK) have contacted me to use excerpts from our interview with David Fletcher. 

 

[Redondo]

Shohei Ohtani stands alone in spotlight amid gambling scandal

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39816463/shohei-ohtani-dodgers-interpreter-gambling-betting-scandal-ippei-mizuhara

[Jay]

30 minutes ago, Redondo said:

Shohei Ohtani stands alone in spotlight amid gambling scandal

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39816463/shohei-ohtani-dodgers-interpreter-gambling-betting-scandal-ippei-mizuhara

I always thought the Ippei thing was a little weird. I know you guys thought it was perfectly normal.

[Blarg]

4 hours ago, Chuck said:

Two major Japanese news networks (Fuji Television and NHK) have contacted me to use excerpts from our interview with David Fletcher. 

 

Until Hindistu Times calls you're still small potatoes.  

[jsnpritchett]

Excerpt:

“He was stealing money from my bank account…he was lying to everyone,” Ohtani said in Japanese, later adding, “I of course have never had anything to do with sports betting and I absolutely have never sent money to a bookmaker. Honestly, I don’t think shock is the right word. I’ve spent the last week in something beyond that, which I can’t express in words. It’s hard to put that into words right now.”

I can put it into several words.

I am queasy with the notion that Mizuhara could mastermind a heist of at least $4.5 million without Ohtani or his accountants or his bankers or somebody noticing the money was missing.

I am skeptical at the idea that any bookie would extend $4.5 million in credit to an ordinary gambler, and then collect that money without confirming its source to ensure that the money was not being stolen.

Above all, I am incredulous at the notion Mizuhara could give a completely plausible Ohtani-approved explanation of the payments in one interview, then, seemingly hours later, be called a liar and accused of theft by the same Ohtani representatives.

It doesn’t add up. Furthermore, it’s amazing that Ohtani’s crisis management teams — some of the same people who represented the likes of Harvey Weinstein and Danny Masterson — would not have realized it doesn’t add up.

By the way, why does Ohtani still employ agent Nez Balelo? If Ohtani truly felt he had been robbed by his interpreter and was truly unaware of the missing money, he should have already fired the guy who is paid to protect him, no? Hmmm.

Somebody is lying somewhere. Somebody is hiding something. I don’t know who is doing what, and I’m surely not alone."

[Taylor]

3 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

Excerpt:

“He was stealing money from my bank account…he was lying to everyone,” Ohtani said in Japanese, later adding, “I of course have never had anything to do with sports betting and I absolutely have never sent money to a bookmaker. Honestly, I don’t think shock is the right word. I’ve spent the last week in something beyond that, which I can’t express in words. It’s hard to put that into words right now.”

I can put it into several words.

I am queasy with the notion that Mizuhara could mastermind a heist of at least $4.5 million without Ohtani or his accountants or his bankers or somebody noticing the money was missing.

I am skeptical at the idea that any bookie would extend $4.5 million in credit to an ordinary gambler, and then collect that money without confirming its source to ensure that the money was not being stolen.

Above all, I am incredulous at the notion Mizuhara could give a completely plausible Ohtani-approved explanation of the payments in one interview, then, seemingly hours later, be called a liar and accused of theft by the same Ohtani representatives.

It doesn’t add up. Furthermore, it’s amazing that Ohtani’s crisis management teams — some of the same people who represented the likes of Harvey Weinstein and Danny Masterson — would not have realized it doesn’t add up.

By the way, why does Ohtani still employ agent Nez Balelo? If Ohtani truly felt he had been robbed by his interpreter and was truly unaware of the missing money, he should have already fired the guy who is paid to protect him, no? Hmmm.

Somebody is lying somewhere. Somebody is hiding something. I don’t know who is doing what, and I’m surely not alone."

Careful, folks here hate Bill Plashcke.

[T.G.]

5 minutes ago, Taylor said:

Careful, folks here hate Bill Plashcke.

You remind me of a jackal.

[jsnpritchett]

Just now, T.G. said:

You remind me of a jackal.

He reminds me more of a hide.

[T.G.]

I think many of us have questions and things don't add up. 

[cals]

36 minutes ago, T.G. said:

I think many of us have questions and things don't add up. 

Give it time. I'm sure Taylor will accept his real feelings some day soon and finally be happy. 

[T.G.]

This is a good summary to date...

https://sports.yahoo.com/saga-shohei-ohtani-interpreter-unfolded-100014884.html

I also stand corrected... there were indeed 9 wire transfers of $500K each.

[Duren, Duren]

I don't know if this was posted, but an expected reaction from Pete Rose. 

https://nypost.com/2024/03/25/sports/pete-rose-i-wish-id-had-an-interpreter-like-shohei-ohtani/amp/

[bruin5]

Meanwhile….
 

With the different versions of this story, and awaiting whatever law enforcement bureau is handling this, it should be an interesting summer…..

 

Edited March 27 by bruin5