Tim Donaghy, the former NBA referee who did prison time after admitting he bet on games while officiating in the early 2000s, does not believe Los Angeles Dodger star Shohei Ohtani’s assertion he did not know about his interpreter’s gambling addiction.
“I think Major League Baseball was smart to sweep this under the rug as quickly as possible,” Donaghy told OutKick’s Hot Mic. “You look at that guy and what he’s done for baseball globally and the fans he’s attracted around the world, the last thing they want is for him to be somebody who’s involved in betting on his own games and maybe doing things that he wasn’t supposed to do.
“I think they were very smart to get that under the rug as quickly as possible and say that he had nothing to do with it, and basically have this other guy take the fall for everything,” he added.
Michael Jordan, #23 of the Washington Wizards, talks with referee Tim Donaghy during the game against the Los Angeles Clippers on February 12, 2003, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Wizards won 108-104. (Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images)
Donaghy noted that investigators discovered Mizhuara had placed 19,000 bets between December 2021 and January 2024 (25 per day). Donaghy said he likely bet on baseball during that time.
“When you look at the amount of bets he was placing, obviously he had some type of addiction. It’s not like he could just turn it off when he had baseball seasons. There’s no doubt in my mind that he not only bet on baseball, he bet on Ohtani’s game, and I think Ohtani was right there with him knowing what he was doing,” he said.
As noted by Fox News, MLB great Pete Rose even suggested that Ohtani may have been placing bets through his interpreter.
“Well, back in the ‘70s and ‘80s, I wish I’d have had an interpreter. I’d be scot-free,” Rose, who had a history of gambling, said in a video posted to social media.
As Breitbart News recently reported, Ippei Mizuhara, the interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, allegedly stole $16 million from the famed athlete and wired the money to a reality television star.
Japanese baseball player Shohei Ohtani (C) poses with his agent Nez Balelo (L) and Japanese interpreter Ippei Mizuhara during a press conference on his presentation after signing a ten-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles, California, on December 14, 2023. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
“Ryan Boyajian, a current cast member of Bravo’s reality TV series The Real Housewives of Orange County, is the bookmaker’s associate to whom Ippei Mizuhara wired money to pay his gambling debts,” ESPN reported that sources close to the investigation said.
“Mizuhara is accused of stealing $16 million from Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani to feed what Mizuhara described to ESPN as a gambling addiction. His arraignment has been rescheduled to May 14,” it added.
Mathew Bowyer, the illegal bookmaker under investigation, allegedly told Mizuhara that he could help pay off his gambling debts by wiring money to one of his associates, who just so happened to be Boyajian. He had been using the account with Bowyer for real estate projects, and they have been business associates for 20 years. Boyajian’s criminal attorney, Steven Katzman, said the reality show star has been cooperating with federal authorities, with sources saying he will receive immunity in return for his testimony.
“Because there is an active investigation and Ryan is working with the authorities, he can’t confirm or deny what is going on,” Katzman told ESPN. “He is not a bookmaker or a sub-bookie.”
Several sources confirmed that Boyajian and Bowyer often gambled together in resorts and casinos in Las Vegas. They were such frequent customers that they even received high-end “comps,” including free food, cocktails, golf, show tickets, suites, and sporting events.
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