Distractions are following Shohei Ohtani yet again.
The Dodgers’ two-way superstar is again the subject of controversy after a Hawaii real estate investor and broker filed a lawsuit against him and his agent, claiming the pair got him fired from a $240 million luxury housing development on the Hapuna Coast.
“I’m focused on what the team is doing and doing everything in my power to make sure we bring a W on the field,” Ohtani said, according to ESPN, after a 6-5 loss to the Angels on Wednesday night that completed a three-game sweep.
The lawsuit, which made waves Tuesday, involves Ohtani and his agent, Nez Balelo.
They are accused of taking over a massive real estate project after being used to endorse the project, which led to Kevin J. Hayes Sr. and Tomoko Matsumoto being fired.
“Balelo and Otani, who were brought into the venture solely for Otani’s promotional and branding value, exploited their celebrity leverage to destabilize and ultimately dismantle Plaintiffs’ role in the project — for no reason other than their own financial self-interest,” the lawsuit reads, per the Associated Press.
The lawsuit states Balelo “quickly became a disruptive force” and warned that he would remove Ohtani from the agreement if certain concessions were not agreed upon.
Kingsbarn Realty Capita reportedly fired Hayes and Matsumoto last month in what the lawsuit alleges was “a coordinated ambush.”
“This case is about abuse of power,” the lawsuit further notes.
“Defendants used threats and baseless legal claims to force a business partner to betray its contractual obligations and strip Plaintiffs of the very project they conceived and built.”
Ohtani has had a strange set of legal hiccups in the past, previously being embroiled in a gambling scandal that included his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara.
Mizuhara received 57 months in jail.
Ohtani spoke Wednesday after a mediocre start in which he could not prevent the Dodgers from falling into second place behind the Padres in the NL West.
While he threw a season-high five innings, he allowed four earned runs with seven strikeouts.
“Obviously, it doesn’t feel good to fall into second place and to lose a lot of these games,” Ohtani said per ESPN, as the Dodgers are just 12-21 in their last 33 games.
The Dodgers begin a three-game home weekend series with the Padres on Friday.