Was Shohei Ohtani a client of an illegal Orange County bookie? The bookie, Mathew Bowyer, reportedly encouraged that idea, according to ESPN.

Bowyer, the bookie at the center of the betting scandal surrounding Ohtani and his former translator, Ippei Mizuhara, “allowed people to believe” the Dodgers’ two-way star was a client as a way to improve business, ESPN’s Trisha Thompson wrote, citing a source close to the gambling operation.

Bowyer’s attorney, Diane Bass, told ESPN that Ohtani had never met or spoke to Bowyer. She did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Front Office Sports. Ohtani’s camp says he has been a victim of theft by Mizuhara and denies that he did anything wrong.