Mizuhara pleads guilty; MLB calls case ‘closed’
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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
SANTA ANA, Calif. — Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani, pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud charges during a change-of-plea hearing in federal court on Tuesday morning, two counts that carry a maximum prison sentence of 33 years.
Sentencing is set for Oct. 25 at 2 p.m. PT. After Mizuhara’s guilty plea, Major League Baseball announced it was closing its investigation into the matter.
Mizuhara, 39, wore a black suit with a white undershirt while standing alongside his attorney, Michael Freedman, in the 10th floor of the Ronald Reagan Federal Building and United States Courthouse. U.S. district judge John W. Holcomb presided over the hearing.
Mizuhara stood behind a lectern alongside Freedman and repeatedly replied “yes sir” and “no sir” while Holcomb asked him questions about his knowledge of the plea agreement and the rights he was forfeiting by admitting guilt. Near the end of the hearing, which lasted about 50 minutes, a prosecution attorney outlined the bank fraud charges against Mizuhara.
When asked by Holcomb to describe what he did, Mizuhara said: “I worked for Victim A [Ohtani] and I had access to his bank account and I had fallen into major gambling debt, and the only way that I could think of was to use his money. I had access to Bank A. So I went ahead and wired money for my gambling debt with his bank account.”
Mizuhara walked out of the courthouse shortly thereafter and did not have any comment while mobbed by media members on the way to a car.
U.S. attorney Martin Estrada said Mizuhara is not a U.S. citizen and therefore faces “significant immigration consequences,” including “a risk of deportation.” Any consequences, however, wouldn’t apply until after Mizuhara completes his sentencing.
Ohtani also released a statement after Mizuhara’s guilty plea.
“Now that the investigation has been completed, this full admission of guilt has brought important closure to me and my family,” Ohtani said. “I want to sincerely thank the authorities for finishing their thorough and effective investigation so quickly and uncovering all of the evidence.
“This has been a uniquely challenging time, so I am especially grateful for my support team – my family, agent, agency, lawyers, and advisors along with the entire Dodger organization, who showed endless support throughout this process.
“It’s time to close this chapter, move on and continue to focus on playing and winning ballgames.”
The Dodgers also released a statement expressing their intentions to move forward.
“With today’s plea in the criminal proceedings against Ippei Mizuhara and the conclusion of both federal and MLB investigations, the Dodgers are pleased that Shohei and the team can put this entire matter behind them and move forward in pursuit of a World Series title,” the statement read.
Federal authorities formally accused Mizuhara of bank fraud on April 11 after he wired nearly $17 million from Ohtani’s account to pay off gambling debts with an offshore bookmaker named Mathew Bowyer, who is under federal investigation. Mizuhara placed somewhere in the neighborhood of 19,000 wagers from December 2021 to January 2024 without Ohtani’s knowledge, according to the complaint, winning more than $142M and losing more than $182M.
Bets were not placed on baseball. U.S. attorney Martin Estrada said Ohtani, who has vehemently denied involvement in or knowledge of Mizuhara’s bets, “is considered a victim in this case.”
Mizuhara pleaded not guilty to bank and tax fraud during his arraignment in federal court in Los Angeles on May 14, a formality ahead of a plea deal he negotiated with federal prosecutors. Bank fraud charges carry a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison and the false tax return charge — in which he allegedly owed an additional $1.15 million after filing a false return with multiple inaccuracies for tax year 2022 — carries a sentence of up to three years.
Mizuhara told the judge on Tuesday he “did not report that money on my taxes.”
The Dodgers initially fired Mizuhara on March 20 in the wake of media inquiries surrounding at least $4.5M in wire transfers sent from Ohtani’s bank account to a Southern California bookmaking operation run by Bowyer that is under federal investigation. Mizuhara initially told ESPN that Ohtani oversaw the wire transfers but later walked back his account and said Ohtani had no knowledge of his gambling activities. Ohtani’s lawyers then accused him of “massive theft.”
In a long, prepared statement in front of the media on March 25, Ohtani said he is “very sad and shocked that someone who I’ve trusted has done this,” later adding: “Ippei has been stealing money from us and told lies.”
The Carolina Hurricanes have reached a three-year, $9.5 million extension with forward Taylor Hall through the 2027-28 season.
The team announced the signing Wednesday, a day after the Hurricanes closed out the New Jersey Devils in their first-round playoff series. It marked the seventh straight year that Carolina has won at least one postseason series.
Hall, 33, acquired in a blockbuster January deal that included Mikko Rantanen‘s arrival, scored the first of Carolina’s four second-period goals that helped it erase a 3-0 deficit before winning in double overtime. He’s a 15-year veteran who won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP in the 2017-18 season.
“Taylor has proven to be an outstanding fit for our team, and we are thrilled that he is excited to make Raleigh his home for another three seasons,” general manager Eric Tulsky said in a statement. “He’s been a solid veteran presence in the locker room and a difference maker on the ice.”
Hall had 18 goals and 24 assists in 77 regular-season games between Chicago and Carolina, and also had two assists in the five-game series win against New Jersey. He had missed most of the previous season due to knee surgery and was making $6 million this year with free agency looming, then led Carolina skaters with four power-play goals in the regular season after his arrival.
The Hurricanes acquired the 2010 No. 1 overall draft pick on Jan. 24 in the three-team deal that snagged Rantanen from Colorado, though they later sent Rantanen to Dallas with forward Logan Stankoven as the primary trade-deadline return when it became clear Rantanen was unlikely to sign long-term to stay with Carolina.
Hall and Tulsky are scheduled to address reporters by Zoom later Wednesday.
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Greg Wyshynski
Utah Hockey Club officials wouldn’t confirm whether “Mammoth” was their new name after it allegedly leaked on the team’s official YouTube channel Tuesday night.
Fans and media noticed that the channel’s handle was changed from “@UtahHockeyClub” to “@UtahMammoth,” on both its landing page and URL. The channel was soon deactivated and remained so on Wednesday morning, but not before screenshots of the name change went viral.
Utah Mammoth was one of three finalists featured in a fan vote at Delta Center to help determine the permanent name of the team, which played its inaugural season in 2024-25 after SEG purchased and relocated the former Arizona Coyotes franchise. Fans voted with iPads located at stations around the arena that featured the names, logos and potential branding for each option.
Originally, the three names voted on were Utah Mammoth, Utah Hockey Club and Utah Wasatch, which was quickly swapped out for Utah Outlaws after the team saw early vote returns.
Mammoth made the final four in the initial fan vote last year.
Utah HC executives wouldn’t confirm or deny that Mammoth will be the team’s new nickname.
Mike Maughan, an executive with Utah HC owner Smith Entertainment Group, said on Wednesday that “progress continues on exploring all three of the name options that were chosen as finalists by our fans. We’re fully on track to announce a permanent name and identity ahead of the 25-26 NHL season and look forward to sharing that with our fans when we do.”
When pressed for an explanation on the alleged YouTube leak, Maughan would only say, “We’re fully on track to announce a permanent name and identity ahead of the 25-26 NHL season.”
One NHL source told ESPN that the revelation for the team’s new name and logo could come before the NHL draft in late June. This year’s draft is a “decentralized” event, meaning that teams will be making selections from their own sites rather than in one central location. That opens the door for Utah to have an event in Salt Lake City with team officials around the draft.
In other Utah HC news, the team announced Wednesday that Delta Center, home to Utah HC and the Utah Jazz, will be undergoing a renovation to optimize hockey sightlines while maintaining the proximity of basketball fans to the court using a state-of-the-art retractable seating system. It’s a multiyear project that will also create a new main entrance and outdoor plaza.
The first-of-its-kind seating system accommodates a nearly 12-foot variance in elevation between rink and court endlines to offer optimal sightlines for both the NBA and NHL. Every seat in the lower bowl will have a complete view of the ice at the start of next season — the team estimates that 400 seats currently can only see one goal net during games.
The new hockey configuration adds capacity behind the goals and above and around the event tunnels on the north and south side of the lower bowl and improves access to seating behind the boards.
When all renovations are complete, seating capacity for hockey will increase from 11,131 to approximately 17,000 — with every seat in the upper and lower bowls having full views of both goals — and capacity for basketball will increase from 18,206 to nearly 19,000 seats.
“Delta Center was built for basketball. When you come and put the size of an ice sheet in that venue with those sight lines, the geometry just doesn’t work. So that’s where you come up with the riser system configuration. You come up with raising the floor 2 feet,” said Jim Olson, president of the Jazz and executive representing SEG on all facilities projects.
“We are absolutely protecting the basketball experience, but then also creating a great hockey experience where all the seats can see all the ice,” he said.
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