Shohei Ohtani's ex-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara reports to federal prison

Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News on Jun 16, 2025

Published in Baseball

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Hours before Shohei Ohtani’s first MLB pitching appearance in nearly two years, his scandal-scarred former interpreter reported to federal prison.

Ippei Mizuhara is in custody at the Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Low complex in Allenwood, Pa., the Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed to the New York Daily News.

He surrendered to the low-security facility on Monday, which was his deadline to do so.

Mizuhara was sentenced in February to 57 months — or nearly five years — in federal prison for stealing almost $17 million from Ohtani’s bank account to cover his own gambling debts.

A U.S. district judge also ordered Mizuhara to pay more than $18 million in restitution, including just under $17 million to Ohtani.

The controversy erupted in March of 2024 when the Los Angeles Dodgers fired Mizuhara and the Japanese-born Ohtani publicly accused him of massive theft.

“I’m just beyond shocked,” Ohtani said through another interpreter at the time.

Three months later, Mizuhara pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and another count of subscribing to a false tax return.

The scandal marked a whirlwind start to Ohtani’s tenure with the Dodgers, whom he joined in December of 2023 on a 10-year, $700 million contract featuring heavily deferred money.

Ohtani’s time with the Dodgers has gone practically as well as possible since then, as the 30-year-old slugger won National League MVP last season and helped lead Los Angeles to a World Series championship.

On Monday, the two-way sensation was scheduled to pitch in his first MLB game since undergoing right elbow surgery in September of 2023. Ohtani was set to serve as the opener against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium and pitch an inning or two.

“He’s ready to pitch in a major league game,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Sunday. “He let us know that.”