Mizuhara, 39, became Ohtani's de facto gatekeeper, with even Ohtani's closest representatives routinely going to Mizuhara to relay information to the ballplayer because of the language barrier. Through Ohtani's six seasons with the Angels, Mizuhara gave no indication that he would violate the deep trust Ohtani displayed in him — although it was reported this week that the interpreter's bio in the Angels media guide was rife with errors.

Ohtani said in his statement that Mizuhara was not truthful to the Dodgers or to his representatives when asked about inquiries from The Times and ESPN.

"Ippei has been telling everybody around that Ippei has been communicating with Shohei on all of this account — to my representatives, to the team — and that hasn't been true," Ohtani said.

Why would Mizuhara and the Ohtani spokesperson recant their original version of events?

Mizuhara did an about-face after the team meeting and one-on-one conversation with Ohtani, telling ESPN: "Obviously, this is all my fault, everything I've done. ... I'm ready to face all the consequences," and the spokesperson said Ohtani is the victim of "massive theft."

Notably, Ohtani might have violated federal law if he paid off Mizuhara's gambling debts, according to I. Nelson Rose, a gambling law scholar and professor emeritus at Whittier College.

"There is a federal statute that says, in effect, that if you help an illegal gambling operator collect debts, you are in the business of gambling," Rose said. "Even if he was only doing this to help a friend, he certainly knew he was helping the bookmaker collect the debt."

Rose, who has served as a government consultant to the gaming control boards and lotteries in several states, said federal laws pertaining to gambling are stringent because they are designed to help prosecute organized crime and money laundering.

Individuals who pay off debts aren't often charged with a crime, he said, but the prospect of charges can persuade them to cooperate with authorities who are building cases against bookmaking operations.

What state laws or MLB regulations might have been broken?

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