Rereading the ESPN article. . .this does seem bad. To reorder some sentences (and a couple of clauses) to make this more chronological:
Payments (Based on Mizuhara's first interview with ESPN):
Mizuhara told ESPN he met Bowyer at a San Diego poker game in 2021 and started betting with him on credit later that year. Mizuhara estimated his losses mounted to more than $1 million by the end of 2022 and ballooned from there. Sources close to the gambling operation told ESPN that Bowyer dealt directly with Mizuhara, who placed bets on international soccer matches and other sports -- but not baseball -- starting in 2021.
Mizuhara told ESPN that [in 2023] he asked Ohtani to pay off his gambling debt, which multiple sources said had ballooned to at least $4.5 million. After Ohtani agreed to pay the debts, [in 2023] Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months. They added "loan" to the description field in the transactions. "We had to add a description for the wire," Mizuhara said. "I think Matt [Bowyer] might have told me to just put 'loan.' You had to put something."
Wire-transfer payments were sent from Ohtani's account to an associate of Bowyer's, according to multiple sources and bank data reviewed by ESPN. ESPN reviewed bank information showing Ohtani's name on two $500,000 payments sent in September and October [2023].
A source said Bowyer was aware of the name on the wire transfers but chose not to ask any questions as long as payments came in; however, the source said Bowyer allowed people to believe Ohtani was a client in order to boost business. Bowyer's attorney, Diane Bass, told ESPN: "Mr. Bowyer never met or spoke with Shohei Ohtani." She declined to answer any other questions.
Investigations:
Multiple sources told ESPN that Bowyer's operation is being investigated by [a] U.S. attorney's office. Bowyer's. . .home was raided by federal authorities in October [2023], according to multiple sources and documents reviewed by ESPN. In January [2024] Federal authorities learned of Ohtani's wire payments as part of their investigation into Bowyer's bookmaking operation, a source told ESPN.
Recent ESPN statements:
Initially, a spokesman for Ohtani told ESPN the slugger had transferred the funds to cover Mizuhara's gambling debt. The spokesman presented Mizuhara to ESPN for a 90-minute interview Tuesday night [March 19, 2024], during which Mizuhara laid out his account in great detail.
Mizuhara said on Tuesday [March 19, 2024]: After Ohtani agreed to pay the debts, Ohtani logged onto his own computer and sent the wire transfers under Mizuhara's supervision in installments over several months last year. They added "loan" to the description field in the transactions. "We had to add a description for the wire," Mizuhara said. "I think Matt [Bowyer] might have told me to just put 'loan.' You had to put something."
Asked why Ohtani didn't simply give him the money instead of paying Bowyer's associate directly, Mizuhara said Ohtani didn't trust him with the money. "He didn't want me to gamble it away," Mizuhara said. Mizuhara said he told Ohtani he would pay him back.
Changed Story:
When an ESPN reporter asked Ohtani's camp about the allegation from Mizuhara that Ohtani was present, helped move the funds and was going to be paid back, the spokesman contacted Ohtani's attorneys, who then issued a statement:
"In the course of responding to recent media inquiries, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft, and we are turning the matter over to the authorities,"
The spokesman declined to answer any further questions, and the statement did not specify whom they believe perpetrated the alleged theft.
On Wednesday [March 20, 2024] afternoon, Mizuhara walked back much of what he had said late Tuesday, stating that Ohtani had no knowledge of his gambling activities, debts or efforts to repay them. "Obviously, this is all my fault, everything I've done," he said. "I'm ready to face all the consequences." Mizuhara said he did not have legal representation but was "working on it."
So what I'm seeing here is this.
1) ESPN investigated a story that potentially involved Ohtani/his interpreter in gambling, including viewing bank transfer statements from Ohtani's account, with Ohtani's name on them, and the word "loan," for $1 million to an illegal bookie's associate.
Where ESPN got this info (i.e., who tipped them off to the story) is an open, unanswerable, but interesting question. Possibly someone involved in the Bowyer investigation. Maybe the associate to whom the funds were sent? Mabye the feds? Who else would have those things?
But Bowyer had let some people assume Ohtani was a client of his. And somebody told ESPN the feds had the same wire transfer information - a million dollar "loan" to a bookie from a superstar athlete. So how that does not put Ohtani in the crosshairs? I mean, I'm sure there's just not going to be a "well, that's weird, shrug and move on" response from the investigation.
2) ESPN prepared the story, and probably reached out to Ohtani's camp for comment. (Reasonable given the detail, and the fact Ohtani's camp agreed to come in at all.) And here's where it gets weird. "A spokesman for Ohtani" tells ESPN that Ohtani had payed this gambling debt for his friend. So that's Ohtani's agent (in the legal sense, whomever they are) speaking
for Ohtani. Which means Ohtani knew. Ohtani's agent then produces Mizuhara for an interview. Mizuhara lays it all out, including corroborating details like why the transfers for $1M says, "loan."
3) And then this is weird. ESPN then reaches out to Ohtani's camp again (why ?), within, I'm guessing 12 hours of Mizuhara's interview. Specific questions are asked about what Ohtani knew, what he did, and whether he was going to be paid back by Mizuhara (or possibly the bookie?). Then Ohtani's camp folds in his attorneys. The attorneys issue a statement, and then Mizuhara completely recants his story. Mizuhara is not represented by these attorneys, but he's told not to talk. The Dodgers immediately fire Mizuhara, which means they entered the loop at some point and acted quickly, or were ready to go earlier.
So here's the thing. I cannot imagine that if the Dodgers knew, or Ohtani's attorneys knew, the full facts of this they'd encourage Mizuhara going off the leash with ESPN for a free-for-all 90 minute interview. (That impression is corroborated by them immediately taking a different course once they're (presumably) looped in.)
So who exactly produced Mizuhara to ESPN on behalf of Ohtani? Someone on Team Ohtani (whatever that is.) Now it's possible ESPN kind of sucker-punched here by omitting some of what they had, but those transfers were discussed during the interview. And perhaps those transfers, paired to Ohtani's agency in sending them, create some kind of liability for him. But that's so obvious any attorney would vet that liability before agreeing to produce anyone for any interview. To say nothing of getting the interviewee's story ahead of time.
To guess, someone (not an attorney) in Team Ohtani thought ESPN might do a story connecting Ohtani to illegal gambling (or gambling in general) and they tried to head that off by serving up Mizuhara to either give a truthful explanation or to cover for Ohtani. Then when the attorneys were looped in and made aware of what ESPN had, and what Mizuhara said, they decided within 12 hours to make Mizuhara a complete sacrificial lamb.
And that's where things begin to get very very dicey. I say that because whatever the outer orbit of liability was (established by Mizuhara's first interview), they could have just eaten that. (And as a PR matter, that's what they clearly intended to do in the first place.) But something caused them to think it was better to put out a passive voice statement about theft, fire Mizuhara, and have him take the entire burden. Which means instructing him to lie. To me, that suggests something beyond recalibrating PR. It suggests they put their foot in something. Something very squishy. (Whether or not whatever that is was actually reported in the article.)
It's almost a certainty when the attorneys were informed of this whole thing, they asked followup questions about adjacent issues. (You'd be stupid not to.) And so there's a non-zero chance they learned that ESPN does not know everything. Hence the reaction.
