The Los Angeles Dodgers are planning for Mookie Betts to return to the infield during the 2025 season. Betts, who has spent the majority of his career playing in the outfield, was set to become a second baseman for the Dodgers in 2024.
The Dodgers originally experimented with Betts playing in the infield during the 2023 season, when injuries brought Betts to the dirt. Betts spent significant time at second base that season, and even played shortstop in multiple games.
In 2024, Betts was tabbed to become the Dodgers second baseman. Those plans changed when Gavin Lux struggled significantly at the shortstop position during spring training. The Dodgers decided to move Betts to shortstop, where he spent the first three months of the season.
Betts would return to the outfield after he was hit by a pitch in mid-June, which fractured his hand. Betts missed two months and the Dodgers saw good play from Miguel Rojas and Kiké Hernández during his absence. Once he returned, Betts began playing in the outfield again.
Though Betts finished the 2024 season in the outfield, the Dodgers are likely to move Betts back to the infield to preserve his body.
“I think it’s a lot of conversations with him,” Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said at the MLB GM Meetings, via Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic. “I know the toll on the body is less in the infield for him. So you can make arguments on both sides of it. But the beauty of Mookie is (he’s) the most selfless superstar we’ve ever been around. And that permeates through the team.”
Betts is one of the best right fielders in the game. He has won six Gold Glove awards for his play in right field. He has shown his versatility though. When he played multiple positions during the 2023 season, Betts won the multi-position Fielding Bible award. He has also won five Fielding Bible awards at right field.
Regardless of what position the eight-time All-Star plays, he is determined to succeed. When Betts was moved to shortstop, he worked with Rojas to learn the position better. When he originally moved to shortstop in March, Betts called it his goal to win a Gold Glove award at shortstop. It would be surprising to see Betts bring anything but that mentality to the infield next season.
