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Superstar Shohei Ohtani recently hit his first home run since signing a record $700 million free-agent contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers this past offseason. His first homer as a Dodger came during Wednesday night's win over the rival Giants: 

As Sam Blum of The Athletic reports, long-time Dodgers fan Ambar Roman caught the ball and, as is custom, met with team officials to discuss handing over the ball so that Ohtani could have it as a keepsake. Blum details what were, according to Roman, high-pressure tactics by the Dodgers to persuade her to hand over the ball.

Through interpreter Will Ireton, Ohtani said he "was able to talk to the fan, and was able to get it back. Obviously it's a very special ball, a lot of feelings toward it, I'm very grateful that it's back."

The problem is that Roman and her husband told Blum that they never met Ohtani, which puts the seemingly benign quote above in a different light. Let it be noted, however, that Ohtani said he "talked to" to the fan, while "met" is Roman's word choice in Blum's story. Hours after The Athletic's report was published, the Los Angeles Times' Dylan Hernandez, who is fluent in Japanese, said Ohtani "technically didn't say that he was the person who spoke to the fan, he made it sound as if he was."

Speaking of which, Ireton is quite new to his role as Ohtani's translator. That's because Ohtani's former translator, Ippei Mizuhara, is at the center of a still unfolding gambling scandal that has ensnared Ohtani himself. That, of course, is the necessary backdrop to any Ohtani story that goes beyond what he does on the field. 

The fan, Roman, also alleged that the team shorted her on what she would consider a "fair" exchange for the deal, sending her home with just two signed hats and a signed bat and ball. A spokesperson for the Dodgers said the team was "open to a further conversation with the fan about the transaction," but did not comment on whether or not Ohtani met or talked to her.