Shohei Ohtani's balky knee isn't the Los Angeles Dodgers' only concern.
The FBI seized a phone from Dodgers owner Mark Walter last year, according to Bloomberg, and this week attorney Robbin Itkin read with unique perspective about a financial investigation targeting Walter.
Itkin represented Dodger season-ticket holders in 2011 after Frank McCourt, the team's former owner, took the franchise into bankruptcy.
“I love the Dodgers," Itkin told USA TODAY Sports this week. “My husband and I are huge Dodgers fans. We're season-ticket holders, and I want nothing more than the Dodgers to succeed.
“I don't know what, if any, effect this may have on the team at this point."
By this, Itkin was referring to the investigation being led by U.S. prosecutors in Manhattan into potential financial improprieties at two insurance companies controlled by Walter and at Guggenheim Partners. Guggenheim Partners bought the Dodgers in 2012 out of bankruptcy for a then-record $2.15 billion.

Last year, Walter bought a controlling stake in the Los Angeles Lakers. He also owns Chelsea in the English Premier League, as well as the Professional Women's Hockey League.
But now the focus is on the Dodgers and, as the Aug. 3 MLB trade deadline approaches, their pursuit of a third straight World Series.
“Well, there's always concern when you see an investigation going on with an owner of a business that you care about,’’ Itkin said. “And the Dodgers are a business. So it's unclear at this point what it is, but I'm certainly following it and hope that it's not going to be something that adversely affects the team.’’
Los Angeles has endured sports owner sagas
Major League Baseball accused McCourt of “looting" $190 million from the Dodgers and using the money to pay personal debts and for personal distributions, the Los Angeles Times reported.
That sports owner saga was not the first for Los Angeles.
In 1988, Bruce McNall gained full control of the Los Angeles Kings, then a long-underachieving NHL team. That same year, the Kings acquired Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers. The city grew enamored with the team, and Gretzky delivered.
In 1993, the Kings reached the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in franchise history.
The next year, McNall admitted to having defrauded banks, the Kings and other entities out of more than $230 million. He served 13 months in prison and had to sell the hockey team that hit hard times.
Attorney Richard Wynne, who represented McNall when McNall filed for bankruptcy in 1995, said he is not involved in Walter's situation but has insight into what can go wrong financially for sports owners.
"Broadly in sports, liquidity is often the constraining factor," Wynne told USA TODAY Sports. "When you look at when people have gotten into financial troubles, it's been more liquidity than asset value."
McCourt, for example, fell behind on payroll demands.
'At this point, I'm not concerned'
John Eiden, secretary of the Dodgers booster club, was preparing to head out to Dodger Stadium for the game Wednesday night. He said he attends almost 30 regular-season games a year and that the booster club has about 100 members, down from approximately 300 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“But the spirit and the camaraderie and all of that has never flagged, at least among the loyal ones..." he said. “Plus the prices have gotten so expensive."
During Walter’s tenure as owner, the Dodgers have extracted more money from team's fans and invested heavily in the team. They’ve had one of the highest payrolls in baseball and spared no expense while acquiring the likes of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and other stars, while signing a $7 blllion local TV deal.
Walter, who helps oversee and manage more than $300 billion through Guggenheim Partners, is a visible public figure. During the team’s recent visit to the White House, where the Dodgers celebrated winning the 2025 World Series, Walter presented a World Series ring to President Donald Trump.
Eiden, the longtime Dodgers fan, said he is focused on the team’s quest to win a third straight World Series title, not the investigation into Walter.
“I'm not terribly concerned with what has been put into the public record at this point," Eiden said.
David M. Carter, founder of The Sports Business Group and former USC sports business professor, said for the vast majority of L.A. sports fans it's about "unfurling championship banners and attending championship parades."
"Fans want to know that ownership is doing everything it can to remain competitive on a consistent basis – and they have come to expect this of both their local college and pro teams throughout Southern California," Carter told USA TODAY Sports in an email. "So, whether due to financial malfeasance or just an owner’s decision not to invest in payroll, anything leading to being a basement dweller in the standings will not be tolerated for long.
"Fortunately, the extent of goodwill enjoyed by the Dodgers given their avid fans and quest for a threepeat will buy them additional time if needed, and this will be bolstered by the massive amounts of revenue the team has on the books as far as the eye can see.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Should Los Angeles Dodgers be worried about investigation into owner?