The Los Angeles Dodgers moved Mookie Betts from second base to shortstop to right field over the course of the 2024 season.
Now, after helping the Dodgers win the World Series at the position where he's won six Gold Glove Awards, Betts could be on the move again.
Brandon Gomes said the assumption right now is Mookie Betts will move back to the infield in 2025, where needed at second or shortstop. #Dodgers
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) November 6, 2024Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes told reporters Wednesday at the GM Meetings in San Antonio that the team expects to have Betts move back to the infield in 2025.
Betts was originally drafted as an infielder by the Boston Red Sox in 2011. But with Dustin Pedroia stationed at second base at the time, Betts transitioned to the outfield.
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Betts' glovework in right field was so spectacular, the Red Sox kept him there and did not move him before he was traded to Los Angeles in Feb. 2020. He's claimed Gold Glove awards at the position in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022.
The Dodgers tried putting Betts at second base, and Gavin Lux at shortstop, when spring training began in February. But Lux's defense was subpar after losing the 2023 season to injury and he moved back to second base, where his range was less taxed.
Betts took over at shortstop and showed considerable improvement during a four-month trial period, to the point where his defense was at least acceptable given his offensive production.
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But after fracturing his hand in June, and subsequently missing nearly two months rehabbing the injury, the Dodgers were forced to find a replacement for Betts at shortstop. When veteran Miguel Rojas hit and fielded capably, Betts returned from his injury as a right fielder and stayed there the remainder of the season.
Betts has stated his preference for playing the infield in the past, so it's safe to assume he'll be comfortable changing positions again. It is not clear how the Dodgers will configure their defense without Betts manning right field in 2025.
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The potential certainly exists for an infield logjam. Tommy Edman and Miguel Rojas are both under contract for next season and more than capable of playing shortstop. Lux is effectively locked in at second base.
It's possible the Dodgers view Edman as more of a center fielder. They already have one homegrown corner outfielder in Andy Pages who broke through in 2024. Another prospect, Dalton Rushing, saw time in left field in 2024 with little potential to stick at catcher (where he's blocked by Will Smith).
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Moving Betts back to the infield could be a sign the Dodgers have their sights set on signing a corner outfielder — either Teoscar Hernández or Juan Soto — in free agency this winter.
Whatever plans Gomes and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman have for the next few months, they apparently don't involve keeping Betts in the outfield.
More to come on this story from Newsweek Sports.
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