Althouse: "While it’s somewhat hard to believe Ohtani could know so little about the man he seemed to spend 20 hours a day with..."

March 21, 2024

"While it’s somewhat hard to believe Ohtani could know so little about the man he seemed to spend 20 hours a day with..."

"... folks around Ohtani — the ones who actually know him, not the P.R. folks — say they believe he’s a one-track ballplaying genius, a genius who’s oblivious to things off the field, including money. That’s the preferred storyline, at least for today. Ohtani certainly doesn’t seem very interested in money, which supports their contention that he didn’t know what was going on, that millions were removed from his account without his knowledge. If he cared about money, would he have played for pennies for years? Or more to the point, if he had a gambling issue, would he have deferred 97 percent of his contract — $680 million — for 10 years?"

Writes Jon Heyman, in "Shohei Ohtani’s camp wants you to believe he’s a baseball legend and a financial dimwit" (NY Post).

18 comments:

Leland said...: Rhymes with "Show me the money".; 3/21/24, 1:15 PM
Narayanan said...: Or more to the point, if he had a gambling issue, would he have deferred 97 percent of his contract — $680 million — for 10 years?"
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I see it as : he is self-aware and taking steps to avoid retirement bloodbath?; 3/21/24, 1:42 PM
Mary Beth said...: People commenting on the NYP article page seem to think Ohtani is guilty of something. I don't follow baseball and don't know anything about him, but I'm not so sure. Maybe it's because I've watched too many Asian dramas where someone is being manipulated/betrayed by someone close and trusted who seems to have access to everything in their life.

It's not unbelievable to me that he could become that dependent on a translator who was his key point of access to everything around him. It also is not unbelievable that his PR team would pick that excuse because it is a drama trope and if it didn't save his career here, might still salvage one in Japan. I'm going with didn't know anything about it until there is evidence he did.; 3/21/24, 1:51 PM
PM said...: Deckchair off the Titanic.
And one buddy.; 3/21/24, 1:56 PM
mccullough said...: The guy’s main job was to translate for Ohtani’s communications with the players and coaches.

No way a bookie gives $5 million credit line to an interpreter who makes $500,000 a year.

Ohtani was filthy rich before he signed his Dodgers contract. He lost less than Jordan did. Jordan was a degenerate gambler. The NBA looked the other way.; 3/21/24, 2:10 PM
Static Ping said...: "Shohei Ohtani’s camp wants you to believe he’s a baseball legend and a financial dimwit"

I am not understanding. Is there a context that I am not getting? Given how many professional athletes end up penniless because they are terrible at managing money, it sounds like the author is baffled by the obvious.

Or is it because Ohtani is Asian?; 3/21/24, 2:55 PM
Skeptical Voter said...: Or maybe Ohtani deferred all that money to a time when he wouldn't need an interpreter. No interpreter, no stealing. QED; 3/21/24, 4:00 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: "I am not understanding. Is there a context that I am not getting? Given how many professional athletes end up penniless because they are terrible at managing money, it sounds like the author is baffled by the obvious."

I am also confused. This seems the rule not the exception.; 3/21/24, 4:18 PM
Cogitor said...: "If he cared about money, would he have played for pennies for years?"

Ohtani has played six seasons in the US and has been paid approximately $68 million dollars, and he makes an additional $60 million ANNUALLY in endorsements.

"If he had a gambling issue, would he have deferred 97 percent of his contract — $680 million — for 10 years?"

Why not? It's possible a heavy gambler thinks that having a guaranteed deferred income down the road allows him to risk a bunch of his current income while keeping his financial future secure. Also, I think it's unlikely that he expects that his current cash flow of $60 million annually will all be lost gambling. Gamblers tend to think they're going to win.; 3/21/24, 4:30 PM
Oh Yea said...: Baseball has a problem that they want to go away. You need to read the whole story on ESPN or The Athletic. At a minimum, Ohtani knowingly paid the illegal gambling debts of his interpreter with having any financial dealings with gambling is a violation of MLB rules. It gets worse from there. The interpreter gave a 90-minute interview to ESPN and after it was published, the story changed and he was fired. More to come.; 3/21/24, 4:45 PM
Yancey Ward said...: I can easily believe that Ohtani is a rube with money and friends- lots of people are. Degenerates are drawn to people like Ohtani as flies to shit.; 3/21/24, 5:26 PM
Shoeless Joe said...: "If he cared about money, would he have played for pennies for years? Or more to the point, if he had a gambling issue, would he have deferred 97 percent of his contract — $680 million — for 10 years?"

Ohtani makes $40 million a year in endorsements, so he's hardly playing for pennies. And the deferred money in his contract is a genius move, as it will allow him to pay California taxes on his comparatively small wage while playing for the Dodgers but avoid those taxes after he retires to some tax haven when the bulk of his contract gets paid out.; 3/21/24, 5:31 PM
Tom said...: His interpreter stole the kind of money that lands someone in prison for 10+ years. That’s 10+ years of incarceration and being sexually assaulted - and running the risk of being murdered for simply existing. If his interpreter really stole millions, he needs to go to prison. But will he be willing to continue to take the fall for Ohtani when he’s facing this sort of future? Is any payoff worth the 10 years he’ll most certainly lose? Or will he talk about that was Ohtani’s gambling money and the games best player gets the Pete Rose treatment.; 3/21/24, 5:32 PM
Tom said...: His interpreter stole the kind of money that lands someone in prison for 10+ years. That’s 10+ years of incarceration and being sexually assaulted - and running the risk of being murdered for simply existing. If his interpreter really stole millions, he needs to go to prison. But will he be willing to continue to take the fall for Ohtani when he’s facing this sort of future? Is any payoff worth the 10 years he’ll most certainly lose? Or will he talk about that was Ohtani’s gambling money and the games best player gets the Pete Rose treatment.; 3/21/24, 5:32 PM
Bart Hall (Kansas, USA) said...: Ohtani has to live in Californiafor ten years. It seems like he's deferring his truly huge paydays until he live in a jurisdiction with sensible taxes. That doesn't seem dumb to me at all. Long-term, he'll be saving tens of millions, AND avoiding both a wealth tax and an exit tax, both of which are coming in California.; 3/21/24, 5:37 PM
whiskey said...: What does he do for the other four hours a day?; 3/21/24, 6:20 PM
Zach said...: "Shohei Ohtani’s camp wants you to believe he’s a baseball legend and a financial dimwit"

Many such cases.

Although ironically, his last piece of financial dimwittery might help him out here. He's deferring almost all of his $700 million contract over a long term at low interest.

Which is bad if you want to earn interest. But good if people around you are stealing your money.; 3/22/24, 1:10 AM
Birches said...: Is betting on baseball legal in Japan?; 3/22/24, 8:32 AM