Rob Manfred discusses Ippei Mizuhara, David Fletcher investigations

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred spoke to reporters regarding the league’s ongoing investigations into allegations of illegal sports betting against Ippei Mizuhara and David Fletcher, via Evan Drellich of The Athletic. Mizuhara had worked as Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter during his time with the Angels and joined him in heading to the Dodgers this offseason but was fired on Opening Day amid reports connecting Mizuhara to an illegal gambling operation in California, while Fletcher was connected to that same operation by reporting last week.

As noted by Drellich, MLB’s department of investigations has largely been deferential to federal authorities over the course of the investigations. Manfred suggested that this deferential approach was a necessary one, noting that federal authorities have “a lot more tools” at their disposal than the league does with which to conduct investigations in this situation. Drellich explains that while league investigations regarding legal gambling can be assisted by regulators and alerts received by the league’s central office, no such avenues are available in cases of illegal gambling.

“We have no way to know what an illegal bookmaker is doing,” Manfred said, as relayed by Drellich. “By definition, in most cases we’re going to be chasing, usually a press report or a criminal investigation.”

Manfred went on to suggest that a more proactive approach to the investigations could risk “interfer[ing] in an unproductive way,” prompting the league’s decision to move slowly in its investigations of these cases while following reporting based on investigations from the news media and federal authorities. Reporting earlier this month suggests that Mizuhara is pleading guilty to charges of bank fraud and subscribing to a false tax return in relation with his alleged theft of more than $16M from Ohtani to fund his gambling habit.

Aside from his comments on the ongoing investigations, Manfred also discussed the impending relocation of the Athletics from Oakland to Las Vegas and their temporary move to Sacramento following the 2024 campaign while they await the construction of their new stadium in Nevada. Manfred notes that Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, which is the current home of the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, is set to undergo significant renovations in preparation for the A’s arrival next season. Per Manfred, an entirely new home clubhouse will be constructed for the A’s while the visiting clubhouse will be renovating, the field will have new artificial turf installed, and the stadiums cameras will be upgraded to accommodate big league broadcasts.

In addition to discussing the upgrades being made to the club’s temporary ballpark in Sacramento, Manfred noted that the timeline for construction on the club’s permanent ballpark in Las Vegas is a relatively tight one if the club is to begin playing there in 2028, as previously expected. According to Drellich, Manfred indicated that the A’s would need to break ground in Las Vegas in April 2025 if they’re to be ready for Opening Day 2028. That gives the club less than a year to gather private funding for the stadium project, of which they are reportedly seeking $500M, and reach an agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority regarding a plan for the club to meet its $1.1 billion in commitments toward the construction of the stadium.