Pete Rose Chimes In On Ohtani Drama, Wishes He Had Interpreter To Blame For His Troubles
Pete Rose was exposed for placing bets on his own teams, while active in the majors, while Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and his ex-interpreter are under investigation for general sports betting.
Now that we've addressed the clear distinction, let's get to the fun.
Rose, a baseball legend in Cincinnati, has chimed in on this recent Ohtani betting scandal. While he may be blacklisted in baseball circles, not to mention that whole lifetime ban and omission from the Hall of Fame, he is still free to sound off on the latest news and events.
In today's new landscape of rampant sports betting and legalization, Rose can't help but feel wronged, and even offended, by the benefit of the doubt Ohtani receives. Rose poked fun at Ohtani's expense during a brief video interaction, admitting that he wished he had also used an interpreter during his heyday.
Ohtani claims he was swindled out of $4.5 million by his ex-interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, and blamed the language barrier for some of the gaps in logic with his claim.
Frankly, it was a perfect response by Rose. Some might even call it a Hall of Fame reply.
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The discourse around whether Ohtani did or did not place $4.5 million in sports bets through his interpreter highlights the uneven standard Rose faced and begs the question: if Pete Rose had an interpreter to blame all his bets on, would his fate have been different?
Shohei, of course, also happens to be the face of baseball, so that could explain any favor he may be receiving and it could also be the reason for his likely emergence out of this controversy scot-free.
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 14: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers swings the bat during workouts at Camelback Ranch on February 14, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
As for Rose, there's no telling whether he could have avoided the backlash he faced if his drama unfolded in today's bet-on-everything free for all. One thing's for sure though, I'm sure he'd have been thrilled to step in front of a room full of "Big J" journalists and not face a single question because his team didn't allow them to ask any.
(Original Caption) 3/22/1989-Plant City, FL-Cincinnati Reds' manager Pete Rose reacts to a reporters question 3/22 in the dugout prior to their contest against the Cards. Rose is under scrutiny by the baseball commissioners office for gambling.
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