Ippei Mizuhara

Ippei Mizuhara (水原一平) is a Japanese interpreter. Mizuhara served as the interpreter for Major League Baseball player Shohei Ohtani, translating Japanese to English and vice versa for Ohtani's media appearances and teammate interactions. He previously worked for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as an interpreter for several of the team's Anglophone players.

Mizuhara had gained popularity among baseball fans for his close association with Ohtani. He frequently aided Ohtani in non-interpreting contexts, such as catching his bullpen sessions or throwing with him during pregame warmups. During the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, Mizuhara served as Ohtani's catcher.

On March 20, 2024, the Dodgers fired Mizuhara after Ohtani's representatives accused him of "massive theft" of Ohtani's funds to repay debts owed to a bookmaker. He was charged by the US government for bank fraud and tax evasion. On June 4, Mizuhara pleaded guilty to those charges, and is scheduled to be sentenced to up to 33 years in prison on October 25.

Early life
Mizuhara was born on December 31, 1984, in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, Japan. His father, Hidemasa, is a chef and the family moved to the Los Angeles area in 1991 so that he could work there. Mizuhara was raised in Diamond Bar, a city in eastern Los Angeles County. He grew up playing soccer and basketball and attended Diamond Bar High School. Ippei falsely claimed that he was a 2007 graduate of the University of California, Riverside. In March 2024, in the wake of Ippei's 2024 gambling controversy, the school told the media outlet NBC Los Angeles that "there are no records of him attending the school."

Career
In 2013, Mizuhara was hired by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to translate for Chris Martin and other English-speaking members of the team. He first met Shohei Ohtani while interpreting for the Fighters as the two both arrived in 2013.

When Ohtani was posted to MLB by the Fighters in 2017 and he signed with the Los Angeles Angels, the team hired Mizuhara to serve as Ohtani's personal interpreter. When Ohtani was a participant in the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, Mizuhara was chosen as his catcher. He borrowed an extra set of equipment from Angels catcher Max Stassi and practiced with Angels infielder José Iglesias in preparation for the role. Mizuhara had also previously caught some of Ohtani's bullpen sessions. During the 2021–22 MLB lockout, Mizuhara temporarily resigned from his position with the Angels to circumvent rules against players and personnel being in contact in order to continue working with Ohtani. Mizuhara returned to his official position as an Angels employee after the lockout was lifted. Mizuhara remained Ohtani's interpreter after Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2023-24 offseason.

It was previously reported that Mizuhara worked as an interpreter for pitcher Hideki Okajima with the Boston Red Sox from 2007 to 2011. However in March 2024, the Red Sox declared that "Mizuhara was never employed by the Boston Red Sox in any capacity".

Gambling and fraud
On March 20, 2024, the Dodgers fired Mizuhara. He was indebted to bookmaker Matthew Bowyer, who was under investigation by the federal government in Southern California. At least $4.5 million (approximately 680 million yen) had been transferred from Ohtani's bank account to associates of the bookmaker.

Mizuhara was in Seoul for the Dodgers' season-opening series against the Padres and was present for the first of the two games. Mizuhara admitted to having a gambling addiction in a speech to Dodgers players in the clubhouse following the March 19 game against the San Diego Padres. That evening, he told ESPN that Ohtani had transferred the funds to Bowyer instead of Mizuhara, as he did not trust Mizuhara to not "gamble it away". However, later that evening, Burke, Williams & Sorensen, the law firm representing Ohtani, issued a statement saying that Ohtani was a victim of "massive theft" and that the matter had been referred to the authorities.

Following Mizuhara's dismissal, team staffer Will Ireton, who had been an interpreter when Kenta Maeda played for the Dodgers, took over as Ohtani's interpreter.

On April 11, 2024, the federal government charged Mizuhara with one count of bank fraud after determining that he had impersonated Ohtani in conversations with his bank and had stolen over $16 million. He turned himself in the following day and was released on $25,000 bond. On June 4, Mizuhara pled guilty to one charge of bank fraud, as well as one count of submitting a false tax return.

Personal life
Mizuhara married in 2018, although he told the press in 2021 that he spent more time with Ohtani than his family.