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Ippei Mizuhara

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Ippei Mizuhara
Mizuhara in 2019
Born (1984-12-31) December 31, 1984 (age 39)
Tomakomai, Hokkaido, Japan
CitizenshipJapanese
Alma materDiamond Bar High School
OccupationInterpreter
Known forInterpreting for Shohei Ohtani
Criminal chargesBank fraud, tax fraud
Criminal penaltyPending
Criminal statusGuilty

Ippei Mizuhara (水原一平, Mizuhara Ippei, born December 31, 1984) is a Japanese interpreter. Mizuhara served as the interpreter for Major League Baseball player Shohei Ohtani, translating Japanese to English and vice versa for Ohtani's media appearances and teammate interactions. He previously worked for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as an interpreter for several of the team's Anglophone players.

Mizuhara had gained popularity among baseball fans for his close association with Ohtani. He frequently aided Ohtani in non-interpreting contexts, such as catching his bullpen sessions or throwing with him during pregame warmups. During the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, Mizuhara served as Ohtani's catcher.

On March 20, 2024, the Dodgers fired Mizuhara after Ohtani's representatives accused him of "massive theft" of Ohtani's funds to repay debts owed to a bookmaker.[1][2] He was charged by the US government for bank fraud and tax evasion. On June 4, Mizuhara pled guilty to those charges, and is scheduled to be sentenced to up to 33 years in prison on December 20.

Early life

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Mizuhara was born on December 31, 1984, in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, Japan. His father, Hidemasa, is a chef and the family moved to the Los Angeles area in 1991 so that he could work there. Mizuhara was raised in Diamond Bar, a city in eastern Los Angeles County.[3] He grew up playing soccer and basketball and attended Diamond Bar High School.[4] Ippei falsely claimed that he was a 2007 graduate of the University of California, Riverside. In March 2024, in the wake of Ippei's 2024 gambling controversy, the school told the media outlet NBC Los Angeles that "there are no records of him attending the school."[4]

Career

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In 2013, Mizuhara was hired by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to translate for Chris Martin and other English-speaking members of the team. He first met Shohei Ohtani while interpreting for the Fighters as the two both arrived in 2013.[5]

When Ohtani was posted to MLB by the Fighters in 2017 and he signed with the Los Angeles Angels, the team hired Mizuhara to serve as Ohtani's personal interpreter.[6] When Ohtani was a participant in the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, Mizuhara was chosen as his catcher. He borrowed an extra set of equipment from Angels catcher Max Stassi and practiced with Angels infielder José Iglesias in preparation for the role. Mizuhara had also previously caught some of Ohtani's bullpen sessions.[7] During the 2021–22 MLB lockout, Mizuhara temporarily resigned from his position with the Angels to circumvent rules against players and personnel being in contact in order to continue working with Ohtani. Mizuhara returned to his official position as an Angels employee after the lockout was lifted.[8] Mizuhara remained Ohtani's interpreter after Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2023-24 offseason.[9]

It was previously reported that Mizuhara worked as an interpreter for pitcher Hideki Okajima with the Boston Red Sox from 2007 to 2011. However in March 2024, the Red Sox declared that "Mizuhara was never employed by the Boston Red Sox in any capacity".[10]

Gambling and fraud

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On March 20, 2024, the Dodgers fired Mizuhara. He was indebted to bookmaker Matthew Bowyer,[1] who was under investigation by the federal government in Southern California. At least $4.5 million (approximately 680 million yen) had been transferred from Ohtani's bank account to associates of the bookmaker.

Mizuhara was in Seoul for the Dodgers' season-opening series against the Padres and was present for the first of the two games.[11] Mizuhara admitted to having a gambling addiction in a speech to Dodgers players in the clubhouse following the March 19 game against the San Diego Padres.[1] That evening, he told ESPN that Ohtani had transferred the funds to Bowyer instead of Mizuhara, as he did not trust Mizuhara to not "gamble it away".[12] However, later that evening, Berk Brettler LLP, the law firm representing Ohtani, issued a statement saying that Ohtani was a victim of "massive theft" and that the matter had been referred to the authorities.[12]

Following Mizuhara's dismissal, team staffer Will Ireton, who had been an interpreter when Kenta Maeda played for the Dodgers, took over as Ohtani's interpreter.[12]

On April 11, 2024, the federal government charged Mizuhara with one count of bank fraud after determining that he had impersonated Ohtani in conversations with his bank and had stolen over $16 million.[13] He turned himself in the following day and was released on $25,000 bond.[14] On June 4, Mizuhara pled guilty to one charge of bank fraud, as well as one count of submitting a false tax return.[15] His sentencing hearing, originally scheduled for October 25, was moved to December 20 at his request.[16]

Personal life

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Mizuhara married in 2018, although he told the press in 2021 that he spent more time with Ohtani than his family.[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Arrellano, Gustavo (March 20, 2024). "Shohei Ohtani's attorneys accuse interpreter of 'massive theft' tied to alleged gambling". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 20, 2024. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  2. ^ 中央通訊社 (March 21, 2024). "大谷翔平翻譯水原一平涉簽賭 傳已遭道奇解雇 | 運動". 中央社 CNA (in Chinese). Archived from the original on May 26, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "大谷はクラブハウスガイ うれしかった初安打の「革手」". Sports Nippon (in Japanese). April 17, 2018. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Jeong, Helen (March 21, 2024). "The infamous interpreter for Shohei Ohtani has LA County ties. Here's what we know". NBC Los Angeles. Archived from the original on March 21, 2024. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
  5. ^ Bollinger, Rhett (July 10, 2021). "Ohtani's interpreter to catch in HR Derby". Major League Baseball. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  6. ^ McCauley, Janie (February 14, 2018). "Ohtani begins with Angels to great fanfare, expectations". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  7. ^ Bollinger, Rhett (July 10, 2021). "Ohtani's interpreter to catch in HR Derby". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  8. ^ "Ohtani aims for improvement even after MVP season". NBC Sports. Associated Press. March 15, 2022. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  9. ^ Downey, David (February 28, 2024). "Shohei Ohtani's interpreter gets cheers from his old school, Diamond Bar High". San Gabriel Valley Tribune. Archived from the original on March 20, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  10. ^ Baer, Jack (March 23, 2024). "Shohei Ohtani interpreter scandal: Major holes poked in Ippei Mizuhara's pre-Ohtani résumé". Yahoo! Sports. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
  11. ^ "水原通訳 解雇前日、ド軍選手たちに告白「私はギャンブル依存症」「すべて自分の過ち」米メディア報じる - スポニチ Sponichi Annex 野球". スポニチ Sponichi Annex (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 21, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  12. ^ a b c Ardaya, Fabian (March 21, 2024). "Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers keep mum in aftermath of interpreter theft accusation". The Athletic. Archived from the original on March 21, 2024. Retrieved March 22, 2024.
  13. ^ "DocumentCloud". www.documentcloud.org. Archived from the original on April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  14. ^ Blum, Sam (April 12, 2024). "Ippei Mizuhara surrenders to authorities, released on 25k bond". The Athletic. Archived from the original on April 13, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  15. ^ Andrejev, Alex and Dennis Lin (June 4, 2024). "Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani's ex-interpreter, pleads guilty to fraud". New York Times. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  16. ^ Hoornstra, Jon Paul (September 23, 2024). "Shohei Ohtani's Former Interpreter Gets New Date in Court: Report". Newsweek. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  17. ^ Saito, Nobuhiro (October 11, 2021). "Unmasking Ohtani Shōhei's Interpreter Mizuhara Ippei". Nippon.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
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