December 10th, 2024 at 9:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka Mookie Betts is good at baseball … Hall of Fame good.
What’s more, the 32-year-old Nashville, TN native and fifth-round draft pick in 2011 out of Overton High School in Nashville by the Boston Red Sox is a Hall of Fame-worthy outfielder and a Hall of Fame-worthy infielder, of which there have been very few in the 156-year history of the game.
When former (and extremely popular) Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner declined his option to return to the Dodgers following the 2022 season choosing instead to become a free agent, it forced newly appointed Dodgers Executive Vice President and General Manager Brandon Gomes to move (then) 31-year-old Max Muncy from the middle infield (and first base) to the hot corner which, in turn, forced Gomes to bring six-time Gold Glove-winning Betts back into the infield as his occasional second baseman and occasional shortstop.
During the 2023 season, Betts appeared in 107 games as the Dodgers right fielder, 70 games as their second baseman, and 16 games as their shortstop, where he posted alien-like 1,000, .991, and .935 fielding percentages respectively. (Did I mention that Mookie Betts is a future Hall of Famer?).
(SportsNet LA)
(Gregory Fisher)
As Dodgers fans well know, their beloved team signed All-Star outfielder Michael Conforto to a one-year / $17 million contract this past Sunday with the assumption that the 31-year-old Seattle, WA native and first-round draft pick in 2014 out of Oregon State University will serve as the Dodgers (near) every day right fielder.
So where does future Hall of Famer Mookie Betts go? A no-brainer; Mookie will be Dodgers manager Dave Roberts‘ (near) every day shortstop and will occasionally spell 27-year-old Gavin Lux at second base, with Muncy serving as his (near) every day third baseman. Not a bad problem to have, right?
“He’s ready for the challenge,” Gomes said of Betts on Monday from the MLB Winter Meetings currently underway in Dallas, TX. “He feels like, with a full offseason, he can go and tackle that. Like we’ve said before, he’s one of the guys that I certainly wouldn’t bet against.”
“Right now, as the roster is kind of where it’s at, continues to give us a lot of flexibility,” added Roberts. “It’s an easy bet to bet on him with the full offseason. … Obviously, there’s some things that can change, but all the confidence in Mookie.”
It is indeed easy to ‘bet on Betts’ as the Dodgers new (old) shortstop.
…or wherever he plays.
Play Ball!
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Posted in 
Am I the only Dodgers fan who is scratching his/her head over this move? Even with the tutelage of Miguel Rojas last season, Betts looked awful at shortstop and advanced metrics confirmed what we fans saw with our eyes. I don’t buy the team’s reasoning that this is a less physically demanding position for Betts. Perhaps this is driven by Betts wanting to play shortstop — but my goodness, this move weakens the team at two positions; right field and shortstop.
The Dodgers will still be the heavy favorites to represent the National League in the 2025 World Series, nonetheless a head-scratching positional change.
I still wish for a new centerfielder with Edman the every day shortstop.
In Mookie’s defense, he was thrown into the SS position at the last minute and had no time to prepare. Had to learn in the big show. I have no doubt Mookie can become a league average and most likely better than average defensive SS.
Moving Mookie to the infield makes it imperative that they resign Teo or an equivalent LF. I am OK with Edman and Rojas sharing SS, and Outman and Edman sharing CF. Conforto and Pages in RF. That puts Mookie at 2B and Lux is trade bait. The success of this configuration really depend on Outman. If we get 2023 Outman it will work out well. If we whiff on Teo how about Grichuk??
Mookie has the athleticism to make the transition — but why move a 32-year-old, six time Gold Glove right fielder to a more demanding defensive position with literally no one on the roster — including Teoscar — who comes close to the same quality of defensive play? And, at shortstop Mookie “might” one day be an average (or better) defensive player – but he is never going to be as good as Rojas and Edman. I just don’t understand the logic of this move unless it is to appease Mookie’s desire to play shortstop. According to the scouting reports I have read, Conforto does not have the range or arm to play right field. Pages seems like the best internal option (platoon with Outman?) for right field if Teoscar doesn’t re-sign.
Well, I am not a proponent of Mookie moving to SS. I would keep him in RF. The outfield is the Dodgers biggest hole right now. Lux can hold down 2B and Edman/Rojas can hold down SS. AF needs to get busy and strengthen the outfield. Resigning Teo should be his main priority.
Teo was our cleanup hitter throughout the playoffs don’t forget.
Could they be bluffing??
Really intending for Mookie to play 2b.
WSS
I could understand Mookie to 2b, If Lux was sent to Brewers for Williams the closer..
Muncy Rojas Betts Freeman
Edman in CF
Pages in LF with Conforto
Teo hopefully in RF
I am on board with Mookie at 2b and really like Lux for Williams.
big question?
what do we do if Teo is not signed ?
Santander less costly than Teo(should be)
Trade
Pray that Outman gets his 2023 mojo back.
Outman is the OF unknown factor. His OPS at OKC was over .900, but with lot of K’s. If Dodgers believe he can hit and field like he did in 2023 then the OF isn’t as concerning.
RF if no Teoscar? Pages and Outman platoon? Santander has huge home run bat, but his defense is worse than Teoscar. Kyle Tucker (Astros) rumor piques the “what ifs.” For Tucker in RF the Dodgers might trade a handful of top prospects along with Pages.
What about a trade for a guy like Suzuki from Cubs 280 bavg, 17 homers 73 RBI stole 16 bags. Put him in the mix with Conforto and Pages. Only costs about 35 mil for 2 yrs.
Terrific option. Reportedly, Cubs much prefer to trade Bellinger, but Suzuki is a possibility. Not the power of Teoscar, but better all around hitter and defensively.
I tried to match us up with Brewers sending OF and Williams no OFer of interest. We could sign Tanner Scott and have Suzuki for Teo money.
As I noted in my reply to Jesse in his ‘What’s Next’ piece:
Not gonna lie, I believe that Teo will not be re-signed by the Dodgers, this despite his excellend 2024 season and him being an outstanding clubhouse guy. I most certainly wish him well moving forward.
Back to shortstop, I predict that Mookie Betts will not be the Dodgers regular shortstop after the 2025 trade deadline — if not before
Agree.
I just hope that it’s a promotion from OKC and not another ridiculous long-term / bazillion-dollar contract that costs the Dodgers a bunch of top-tier prospects.
We might have our future SS at OKC. Let’s hope we give him a chance
Freeland may be ready by mid-season 2025. but he may be better suited for third base where Dodgers currently have no near-ready prospects. I believe Edman is the best regular option for the position, but team must find a centerfielder for him to move to SS.