Yankees fans will love Michael Kay ripping Shohei Ohtani over gambling scandal

When the Los Angeles Dodgers fired Shohei Ohtani's interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, after allegations of fraud linked to sports gambling, fans were waiting for the league to lay down the hammer. New York Yankees fans were all of a sudden thankful he skirted them back in 2017. No need for this drama.

But, then, there was no drama. Life continued on as usual. Ohtani wasn't suspended or placed on administrative leave, and the day he was supposed to answer questions about the situation, he ended up reading a long statement. And that was it.

Ever since? Ohtani's dodged the media. There's been radio silence from his camp, even as word if Ippei Mizuhara's guilty plea emerged on Wednesday night, implying that the Dodgers slugger's trust deserves examination, but that his conscience should be clean here. Fans have theorized via their own conspiracies that the league will protect Ohtani, the face of the sport, at all costs, while almost any other player would've been disciplined in some fashion, whether justified or not.

Should Ohtani's peers be frustrated about him getting what seems to be a free pass? Think about every other player that's dealt with any sort of spectacle, whether on or off the field. They've only been subject to more scrutiny.

Michael Kay, the voice of the Yankees, said on his ESPN radio show that stars such as Mookie Betts, Aaron Judge, Ronald Acuña and others should stop talking to the media and see how MLB likes it.

Yankees fans will love Michael Kay ripping Shohei Ohtani over gambling scandal

And you know what? He's got a point. Players are obligated to face the media in some capacity, though we're unsure of the specifics. Why is Ohtani the exception, especially when the allegations in his realm have to deal with baseball's biggest no-no: gambling?

Though Ohtani claims he doesn't gamble, that's beside the point. His bank account was allegedly involved in the wire transfers to an illegal bookmaker, which means Ohtani (allegedly) didn't know who was handling his money or where it was going. Why wouldn't he have to answer to any of that?

The fact of the matter is Ohtani signed the largest contract in the history of the sport and he's a revenue machine for both the Dodgers and the league. This was always going to be handled as carefully as possible as to not draw more negative (international) attention at the onset of a brand new season.

But the season is well underway and the longer the silence ensues, the more questions and conspiracy theories will arise. Perhaps most of all, though, this simply isn't fair to the many other players in the game who do right by the media and stay out of trouble, whether it's their fault or not.

That's the point Kay seems to be trying to make, and it's hard to disagree with it.