Just days after Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Mookie Betts would play shortstop upon his return from the injured list, the team changed course and will instead send Betts back to right field.
MLB.com’s Juan Toribio reported the news via X on Friday, August 9.
Betts was almost exclusively an outfielder in his days with the Boston Red Sox before the Dodgers started playing him at second base in 2023 and made him their shortstop to start this season. A six-time Gold Glove winner, Betts has made 9 errors at short in 65 games this season, among the lowest in the majors for full-time shortstops.
The eight-time All-Star has been on the IL since mid-June with a fractured hand. He’s expected to return to the Dodgers’ lineup on August 12 when LA kicks off a four-game series in Milwaukee.
“Each player, wherever they’re playing, they’ve got to feel most confident,” Roberts told reporters. “And you have to then, obviously, layer in what’s best for the ball club. And I think that, where we’re at, he is most confident, right now, in right field versus at shortstop.”
Dave Roberts said Mookie Betts will exclusively play right field when he returns. Here’s why:
It’s a quick reversal from earlier in the week, when not only Roberts said he expected Betts to play shortstop, but GM Brandon Gomes told reporters Betts was preparing for a return in the infield.
“[Betts is] continuing to take ground balls in the infield, and we have so much open right now with guys in the infield, it allows us to take some time to see where we’re at by the time he gets back,” he told the LA Times. “But he’s ready to go wherever we need him.”
Gavin Lux’s Resurgence Made It Easier to Send Mookie Betts to Right Field
Heading into their August 10 game, the Dodgers seem to have more flexibility than they did even a week earlier, and Gavin Lux is a major reason why.
Through July 19, Lux was hitting .211 in 79 games with an OPS of only .556. He could be forgiven for a slow start because he missed all of last season with an injury, but with the pennant chase heating up, there wasn’t much room for further patience.
It would have made sense, then, for Betts to return in the infield, allowing Miguel Rojas to come off the IL and play either second or shortstop.
Roberts and the Dodgers, however, now face a convenient problem. Over his last 18 games, Lux is hitting .396 with a 1.155 OPS and a .514 average on balls in play. If Lux can hit at his 2022 pre-injury level (.276 BA, .745 OPS), it lengthens a Dodgers lineup that already includes arguably the most imposing top third in the game of Shohei Ohtani, Betts and Freddie Freeman.
The Dodgers Are Getting Healthy at the Right Time
It’s not just Betts and Rojas coming back. Clayton Kershaw made his season debut on July 25 and has made three starts as he begins to find his footing. His most recent start, on August 6, was his best, going 4.2 innings and giving up 1 run and striking out 5 against the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Dodgers’ rotation will get another boost on August 15, when Walker Buehler is expected to return from IL, according to the LA Times’ Mike DiGiovanna. He made his final rehab start on August 8, pitching into the sixth inning and allowing 1 run on 1 hit with 5 strikeouts. After a leadoff walk to the first batter he faced, Buehler retired the next 13 before giving up a solo home run.
LA added some bullpen depth as well this week, activating Michael Grove from the Injured List. He pitched on August 7 for the first time in two months, giving up a run in 2 innings against the Phillies.
And while Betts and Buehler will return next week, third baseman Max Muncy may not be far behind. Roberts said on August 8 he would begin a rehab assignment in Triple-A Oklahoma City over the weekend. He has not played since May 15.
A little further down the line, Yoshinobu Yamamoto is inching closer to a return, but there’s no clear timetable yet. Roberts said he hoped the Dodgers starter could come back this season.
“He’s going to travel with us on the road to Milwaukee. He threw a ‘pen today, he’ll throw another ‘pen, and then he’ll throw a live session in Milwaukee at some point,” Roberts told reporters on August 7. So that’ll be a big step when he’s facing some hitters. And then hopefully if that goes well, you just keep building up from there.”
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Dodgers Change Course on Plan for Former MVP