MrPryck2U
ONE love, blood, life
So, the MLB regular season is under way in South Korea for the first time ever. Some dude on the Pads needs a to fix his glove.
He describes his relationship with Ohtani, whom he first met in 2013, as "brothers," and says he spends more time with Ohtani than with his wife.
Mizuhara's debt ballooned to $4 million by early 2023, he tells ESPN, and that's when he says he went to Ohtani for help. He says he feared losing Ohtani's trust, and he also feared for his safety, that someone might come to his house.
"I explained my situation," he says. "And obviously he wasn't happy about it, but he said he would help me."
Asked if Ohtani knew the person owed the money was a bookie, Mizuhara says his friend "didn't have any clue."
"I just told him I need to send a wire to pay off the debt," Mizuhara says. "He didn't ask if it was illegal, didn't question me about that."
Mizuhara says that, after Ohtani agreed to pay the debts, the two of them logged into Ohtani's bank account on Ohtani's computer and sent eight or nine transactions, each at $500,000, over several months. They added "loan" to the description field in the transactions. Mizuhara estimates the final payment was made in October.
Asked by ESPN if he thought he would be putting himself or Ohtani at risk by asking Ohtani to pay the debts, Mizuhara says, "I don't think either of us thought about that at the time at all."
Mizuhara declines to tell ESPN the full amount he lost gambling but confirms it's at least $4.5 million. He calls it "embarrassing."
"My wife doesn't even know about any of this until even right now," he says.
He says he felt uncomfortable and guilty for a few weeks after asking Ohtani to pay back his debts, but that Ohtani moved on. "It was hard to see him," Mizuhara says, "He's a great guy and pretty much he went on with his life like nothing ever happened."
Asked if he intended to pay back Ohtani, Mizuhara says he told his friend he would. He adds that Ohtani has never gambled and "thinks gambling is terrible."
"He sees that people, teammates would be gambling all the time, and he'll be like, 'Why are they doing this? Gambling is not good.' He would make comments like that. People would ask him to go to casinos on road trips, and he would never go. No, he's not into it."
Through his interpreter?Ohtani will speak to the media today, where he will say that it wasn't him who was gambling. it was Kim Mulkey.
Ohtani will speak to the media today, where he will say that it wasn't him who was gambling. it was Kim Mulkey.
10,624 seats, so the stadium will be 20% full rather than the current 4% on average.LIGHT THE BEAM!!!