Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani found another way to make his mark on the MLB record books Sunday, breaking Hideki Matsui's record for most home runs by a Japanese-born player.
Ohtani hit his 176th career home run in the third inning of Sunday afternoon's game against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium. He hit a 423-foot shot off Mets starting pitcher Adrian Hauser into the right-field stands, giving the Dodgers an early 2-0 lead.
Matsui performed at the highest level in his final MLB season in 2012, but since then there have been few serious challengers. Most of the Japanese players who transfer to the United States are pitchers, and many of the hitters are modeled after Ichiro Suzuki, prioritizing contact over power.
Ohtani is clearly an exception. The Dodgers superstar is known for being good at everything, but his power stands out like few others in the MLB world. He won the American League home run title last season, becoming the first Japanese-born player to lead the league.
Most MLB home runs by a Japanese-born MLB player
1. Shohei Otani, 176 years old
2. Hideki Matsui 175 years old
3. Ichiro Suzuki, 117
4. Kenji Jojima 48 years old
5. Motohito Iguchi 44
Despite the Ippei Mizuhara scandal, Shohei Otani continues to hit
Ohtani tied Matsui's record on April 14, and it took him just seven days to achieve sole ownership. That day happened to coincide with the day Otani's former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was arrested for bank fraud.
Reports about Mizu Ahara allegedly stealing $16 million from Ohtani have dominated reports about the star since the beginning of this season, when he first signed with the Dodgers after signing a record-breaking 10-year, $700 million contract in free agency. The Dodgers fired Mizuhara the day after the opening game after Ohtani's camp accused him of stealing $4.5 million.
The story was initially dominated by confusion over Otani's camp's claim that Ohtani himself had agreed to repay Mizuhara's illegal gambling debt, but later reports revealed that it was Mizuhara It turned out that this was due to the fact that he controlled all communication with the players. When given a new interpreter, Otani claimed to know nothing about Mizuhara using his own money to pay off illegal gambling debts.
As the government's criminal complaint meticulously alleges, Mizuhara took control of Otani's bank accounts in order to pay off more than $40 million in debts he owed with illegal bookmakers. stole more than $16 million. Mizuhara, who allegedly went so far as to impersonate Ohtani on the phone to maintain control, was first arrested after federal agents raided the bookmaker.
Ohtani reportedly remained in the dark about the matter until after the Dodgers' season opener, even though the team was formulating a response to the looming reports behind the scenes. is.
If Mizuhara is found guilty, he faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. His lawyer has announced his intention to reach an agreement with prosecutors rather than going to trial. Meanwhile, Ohtani and the Dodgers say they just want to move forward and focus on baseball.
