Dodgers Shift Mookie Betts to Shortstop – Will it Pay Off?

The Dodgers have found their shortstop once more, but rather than it being an impact signing or player they traded for, they have shifted a star player back to the infield.

After winning the World Series, Dodgers General Manager Brandon Gomes said that “the assumption right now is that Mookie Betts will move back to the infield in 2025, where needed”.

That need has come, and it’s at shortstop. With Juan Soto off the market, the thought that Betts was moving away from right field to accommodate Soto is off the market too.

Betts, 32, spent the majority of last season playing at shortstop, playing in 65 games, starting 61 of those. He’d play 18 games at second base, the position he came up playing as a prospect with the Red Sox, and 43 games in his more recent position in right field.

Moving Betts to the outfield was a necessity after he broke his hand when struck by a pitch in June. It made sense given that the club had Miguel Rojas and Tommy Edman to help out with the position. Both players are expected to be on the roster in 2025, but will offer no competition to the team’s preferred starting shortstop: Betts.

With an entire offseason to prepare for the position, the team feels confident that the struggles he had a season ago in the outfield will no longer be an issue.

Other options the Dodgers had considered were free agent Willy Adames, who signed a seven-year, $182 million contract with the Giants, and the Cubs’ Nico Hoerner.

Betts moving to shortstop also nearly assures that Michael Conforto will be an everyday player at one of the corner outfield positions. The other corner outfield position will likely be filled by a free agent signing from a list of players that includes: Teoscar Hernandez, Jurickson Profar and Anthony Santander.

Your Turn: Why do you think Mookie Betts will shine or struggle at shortstop? Tell us below in the comments!