Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) in the dugout during the fifth inning against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium on June 5. Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Former Manager Accuses Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani of Gambling, MLB 'Protecting' Him

Originally posted on Los Angeles Dodgers on SI
By J.P. Hoornstra | Last updated Jun 6, 2025 4:30 PM ET

Ozzie Guillen is no stranger to making outlandish comments that he would soon come to regret.

In June 2012, as manager of the Miami Marlins, Guillen told Time that he loved Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. He quickly apologized, and the Marlins released a statement distancing themselves from Guillen's comments. He was fired at end of the 2012 season.

Now a Chicago White Sox analyst on the Chicago Sports Network, Guillen is still speaking without a filter — this time making an unfounded allegation against Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani.

"Everyone knows that Shohei Ohtani gambled and was protected (by Major League Baseball)," he told Fernando Ballesteros in a Spanish-language interview published Thursday.

Ballesteros wrote that Guillen "runs the risk of being fired" by the White Sox. Guillen, 61, is also a manager in the Venezuelan Winter League.

En conmemoración a los 6️⃣0️⃣ AÑOS de nuestra organización Tigres de Aragua, el presidente del equipo Victor Zambrano, le da oficialmente la bienvenida al estratega Oswaldo "Ozzie" Guillén quién será nuestro nuevo Manager a partir de la temporada 2025-2026
¡Bienvenido "Ozzie"! pic.twitter.com/KpSY3Fw2cw
— Tigres de Aragua (@TigresOficiales) May 16, 2025

The manger-turned-studio-analyst is the latest conspiracy theorist who managed to ignore evidence that spans thousands of saved text messages, Ippei Mizuhara's recorded impersonations of Ohtani, and the former interpreter's guilty plea in federal court. Mizuhara was fired by the Dodgers in March 2024 after confessing to using Ohtani's money to pay down his debts to an illegal sports bookmaker.

In February, a federal judge sentenced Mizuhara to 57 months in prison, and to pay $16,975,010 in restitution to Ohtani and $1,149,400 in restitution to the IRS.

Long after the Department of Justice and MLB cleared Ohtani of any wrongdoing, conspiracists theorized that the Dodgers and/or Major League Baseball had a hand in shielding the 2024 National League MVP from criminal repercussions.

None of the theories produced credible evidence to support their case; investigators for the IRS and Department of Homeland Security did.

For the most part, those with a major media platform have stopped short of indulging in making baseless claims.

Guillen, once again, has proven the exception to the rule.

Guillen was hired as an analyst for the Chicago Sports Network after working for seven years (2017-24) at NBC Sports Chicago.

Before his turn as the Marlins' manager, Guillen skippered the White Sox from 2004-11, winning the World Series in 2005. Chicago's surprising four-game sweep of the Houston Astros ended the franchise's 88-year championship drought, and remains the last title in team history.

Perhaps Guillen's role in the 2005 championship has allowed him to maintain a reputation among White Sox fans that transcends his latest foot-in-mouth comments.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Dodgers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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