The fraud scandal involving Ippei Mizuhara — the interpreter who had worked beside Shohei Ohtani for years — became one of the most shocking stories in sports during 2024.

Mizuhara stole a massive amount of money from Ohtani, and for a time, the situation even threatened Ohtani’s career and reputation. Because Mizuhara initially made statements implying Ohtani may have known about the gambling activity, suspicions briefly spread toward Ohtani himself.

On June 4, 2024, however, United States Attorney Martin Estrada of the Central District of California announced that, after a thorough federal investigation, Ohtani had no involvement whatsoever in the illegal gambling scheme.

Major League Baseball soon followed with an official statement recognizing Ohtani as a victim of fraud and declaring the matter resolved.

That same day, Mizuhara appeared in federal court in Santa Ana and formally pleaded guilty to bank fraud and tax fraud charges.

Following these developments, Ohtani publicly thanked the people who had supported him through the ordeal — including his family, agents, lawyers, the Dodgers organization, and his teammates.

Then he said:

“I think it’s time to put this behind us, move forward, and focus only on playing baseball and winning games.”

The statement reflected Ohtani’s ability to regain focus after months of emotional strain.

Normally, Ohtani believes that superior preparation and skill can overcome mental pressure. But even for him, the betrayal by someone he had trusted for years — combined with public suspicion over crimes he did not commit — was deeply painful.

He later admitted that during the first half of the season, there were nights when he simply could not sleep properly.

Only after Mizuhara agreed to a plea deal and officially admitted guilt did Ohtani finally feel able to sleep peacefully again.

From that point forward, both Ohtani and the Dodgers began an extraordinary run.

The quote reveals something important about Ohtani’s mentality:

He does not stay trapped in resentment, scandal, or distraction forever.

Once the truth was established, he chose to move forward.

Not toward revenge.

Not toward self-defense.

But toward baseball, competition, and winning.

Source

This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.

SHO—TIME 3.0: Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers’ First World Series Championship p.113