HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A Mid-Pacific alumnus has been making headlines lately as Japanese star Shohei Ohtani’s new interpreter for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Dodgers have tasked Will Ireton, a 2007 graduate of Mid-Pacific, to translate Ohtani’s words to the media — and the world.

It comes after the team fired Ohtani’s former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara for allegedly stealing over $4 million from Ohtani to pay off gambling debts.

Earlier this week, he translated for Ohtani during a news conference on the gambling allegations.

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Nicknamed “Will the Thrill,” Ireton has been the Dodgers’ performance operations manager since 2020, but he’s previously served as the team’s interpreter for Japanese pitcher Kenta Maeda.

He was born in Japan but moved to Hawaii as a teenager.

He attended Mid-Pacific and was on the school’s baseball team. He went on to play baseball at Occidental College and Menlo College. At Menlo, he became valedictorian of his class.