5:30 p.m. ET Monday (6:30 a.m. Tuesday in Seoul): A crisis-communications spokesman for Ohtani, who had just been hired, responds to ESPN. Over the next several hours, he and an ESPN reporter talk at various times as the spokesman says he is getting up to speed on information from the Ohtani camp.
8:30 p.m. ET Monday (9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Seoul): The spokesman for the first time says Ohtani paid the debts on behalf of Mizuhara. He says Balelo, the agent, went to Mizuhara, who "finally came clean to him and said that was the truth," and that Ohtani told Balelo he had covered Mizuhara's debts in $500,000 increments. It's not clear whether the spokesman is saying Ohtani communicated with Balelo through Mizuhara.
The spokesman quotes Ohtani as saying: "'Yeah, I sent several large payments. That's the maximum amount I could send.'"
This part here points to Ohtani willfully sending money to the illegal betting company, which would mean he’s guilty of breaking that rule.
Whether MLB decides to consider INTENT remains to be seen.