Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Mookie Betts

Mookie Betts To Return To Right Field When Reinstated From Injured List

By | at

Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts moved from right field to a middle infield role before landing on the injured list due to a left hand fracture in June. He is set to return from the IL on Monday but will be moved back to right field, per manager Dave Roberts. Juan Toribio of MLB.com was among those to relay the news on X.

Roberts explained that he and Betts had a conversation about the decision, citing Betts’ comfort level as well as the improved performance of Gavin Lux as part of the reasoning. J.P. Hoornstra of Dodgers Nation relayed video of the comments on X.

“Each player, wherever they’re playing, they’ve got to feel most confident,” Roberts said. “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. And so, you look at how Gavin’s playing and he’s earned the right to continue to play second base for us.” Betts said the conversation was mostly mutual, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register on X, saying that “you have to be real with yourself” and that he just wants to win.

Betts played plenty of second base as a prospect in the Red Sox’ system but was blocked by Dustin Pedroia and was moved to right field. He then spent the majority of the past decade becoming one of the better players in the sport, winning Gold Gloves in right while also hitting at an elite level, winning American League MVP in 2018.

He continued serving as an excellent right fielder after being traded to the Dodgers but did occasionally toy with his old spot at the keystone. He got into one game there in 2020 and then seven games in both 2021 and 2022. Last year, the experiment took off a bit more meaningfully. Thanks to some injuries to other players, Betts eventually finished 2023 with just over 700 innings in right field but also 485 at second base and 98 at shortstop, his first major league innings at the shortstop position.

The Dodgers were clearly pleased by the work Betts did there because, in December, Roberts declared him the club’s everyday second baseman. Lux was planned to be the primary shortstop but he struggled with his throws in Spring Training and the club decided in the first week of March to flip him and Betts.

It was a fairly unprecedented situation for Betts to attempt to become an everyday shortstop on a club with World Series aspirations during his age-31 season, but he didn’t seem fazed by it. He slashed .304/.405/.488 in 72 games for a 155 wRC+ before his injury. The reviews on the glovework were mixed, as he was credited with four Defensive Runs Saved but -5 Outs Above Average. But for him to be even passable at what is considered to be the sport’s most demanding position with so little experience and at this stage of his career was a testament to his incredible athleticism.

But without Betts for roughly the past two months, the picture has changed. As Roberts alluded to, Lux has caught fire at the plate. He was hitting just .207/.263/.282 through July 7 but has put up a monster slash of .377/.450/.638 since then.

The Dodgers could have put Betts back at shortstop next to Lux but it seems they prefer to roll with the duo of Miguel Rojas and Nick Ahmed there. Both are excellent defenders who haven’t hit much in their careers, but Rojas is having a decent season with a .270/.314/.403 batting line and 103 wRC+. The club also acquired Tommy Edman prior to the deadline and will have him around as another option but he is mostly going to be playing center field, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic on X.

The outfield mix has been a bit more shaky this year, with guys like James Outman, Enrique Hernández and Chris Taylor having rough years. The Dodgers acquired Kevin Kiermaier from the Blue Jays prior to the deadline, but he’s also having a tough year at the plate. Betts is a strong defender in right, 132 Defensive Runs Saved and 54 Outs Above Average in his career, but his move might be more about bumping those guys out of the lineup in favor of Rojas. The fact that the Dodgers even had that choice to make illustrates the value of Betts and why clubs crave versatility in general.

Once Betts is ready to be reinstated, he should be an everyday player in right as the club has Shohei Ohtani in the designated hitter spot. Teoscar Hernández will be in left field while Andy Pages, Jason Heyward, Edman and Kiermaier also pick up some time.

Though the Dodgers once had a nine-game lead in the National League West, it has tightened of late, thanks to a few stumbles from the Dodgers and some strong play elsewhere. The Padres are just 2.5 games back and the Diamondbacks are just one game behind the Friars, 3.5 games back of the Dodgers. Even the Giants are just eight games off the division lead at this point. The Dodgers’ roster is still strong and returning Betts will obviously be a help, though the club is trying to use its flexibility to optimize things for the stretch run.

Dodgers Notes: Rosario, Betts, Freeman, Yamamoto

By | at

TODAY: Chelsea Freeman posted the great news on Instagram that Maximus has returned home from the hospital.

AUGUST 3: For the second time in as many years, the Dodgers have acquired Amed Rosario ahead of the trade deadline. Coming off a down season in Cleveland last year that left him as a below-average hitter overall, Rosario was used almost exclusively against left-handed pitching during his time with L.A. last season. Despite the fact that he’s hit both righties and lefties quite well with the Rays this year, however, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register) that Rosario’s role with the club will be similar to last year.

“Honestly, to be quite frank, he’s not on this team, and we didn’t acquire him, to be an everyday player — he didn’t play every day in Tampa — and to hit righties,” Roberts said (as relayed by Plunkett) when asked about Rosario’s role this year.

Rosario has improved considerably in terms of both his overall slash line, which sits at .308/.332/.421 (116 wRC+) in 277 trips to the plate, and in boosting his slash against righties to a respectable .299/.324/.395 (107 wRC+). Even so, it’s worth noting that the 28-year-old is still hitting lefties better than same-handed pitching. With lefty-swinging Gavin Lux at second base, Shohei Ohtani locked into everyday at-bats at DH, and a trio of lefty-swingers in James Outman, Jason Heyward, and Kevin Kiermaier all part of the club’s deep outfield mix, it’s fair to wonder where exactly Rosario would fit into the club’s lineup against right-handed pitching.

Rosario has plenty of experience at shortstop and played a bit of third base for Tampa this year, but the club seems satisfied with Kiké Hernández at third base and Nick Ahmed at shortstop for the time being. Perhaps more importantly, each of those pieces are only stopgap options to begin with. Plunkett goes on to note that Roberts indicated the club hopes to see superstar Mookie Betts return to the lineup on August 12 or 13. Betts has been sidelined since mid-June after an errant pitch fractured his left hand.

Betts was in the midst of a MVP-caliber season prior to his injury, slashing an incredible .304/.405/.488 in 72 games that’s made all the more impressive by the fact that he was simultaneously making a relatively seamless transition to becoming the everyday shortstop in L.A. this season. While it seemed at one point that veteran shortstop Miguel Rojas had staked his claim to regular starts at short in Betts’ absence, a forearm issue sent him to the shelf as well and seemingly leaves the position for Betts to slide back into upon his return.

While third base figures to be an option for a while longer with Max Muncy still out due to a strained oblique, Freddie Freeman’s impending return from the restricted list could lessen opportunities for Rosario at the hot corner as well. Freeman has been out for about a week now as he tends to his family following the hospitalization of his son, Maximus, due to Guillain-Barré syndrome but Roberts notes that he could return to the club as soon as this week when they face the Phillies in a three-game set that starts on Monday. Freeman’s return to action would free up Cavan Biggio from regular reps at first base, giving the club a left-handed infield option with plenty of experience at third base the club may prefer to utilize over Rosario against right-handers.

Sticking with news regarding currently-unavailable stars, Plunkett notes that right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw a 20-pitch bullpen session today in his first time taking the mound since being sidelined with a strained rotator cuff back in June. Roberts told reporters (including Plunkett) that the bullpen was a “big step forward” and that Yamamoto is slated to throw another bullpen on Tuesday as the club angles for a return to action for the righty sometime next month. The right-hander received the biggest pitching contract in MLB history before throwing a single pitch in the big leagues this past winter and immediately made good on it with a 2.92 ERA and 2.68 FIP in 14 starts for the Dodgers before being shelved due to the injury. Injuries to Yamamoto and Walker Buehler led the club to fortify their rotation at the deadline by adding right-hander Jack Flaherty, but it seems possible that Yamamoto and Flaherty could join forces down the stretch and into the postseason at the front of L.A.’s rotation alongside Tyler Glasnow.

Dodgers Notes: Kershaw, Heyward, Betts

By | at

Dodgers fans received great news regarding veteran left-hander Clayton Kershaw today, as manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Jack Harris of the L.A. Times) this afternoon. The lefty pitched three innings without giving up a hit in a rehab start at the Triple-A level yesterday, striking out five while walking just one. According to Roberts, Kershaw is set to attempt to build on that strong outing on Friday with a four-to-five inning start. If that next rehab start goes well, the manager went on to suggest that the lefty could then return to the big leagues to make his 2024 debut.

A return to the Dodgers shortly after the All Star break would be a fantastic outcome for Kershaw, who had to be shut down from his rehab just three weeks ago due to lingering soreness in his shoulder. Last night’s start was his first since ramping back up after that shut down, and the fact that he’s already seemingly on the cusp of a return suggests that the soreness that had sidelined him has evaporated entirely. The future Hall of Famer’s return to action can’t come soon enough for the Dodgers, as the dire state of the club’s rotation mix has led them toward calling up right-handed prospect River Ryan just 16 1/3 innings into his season at the Triple-A level.

With both Kershaw and Ryan seemingly poised to join the club’s rotation as reinforcements in the aftermath of the break, the Dodgers are surely hoping the pair can combine with the existing quartet of veteran James Paxton and rookies Gavin Stone, Landon Knack, and Justin Wrobleski to handle starting duties until ace righty Tyler Glasnow is ready to return from the injured list. Walker Buehler and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are also both on the IL but expected to return to the majors at some point this season, while youngster Bobby Miller was sent to Triple-A recently despite the thinned-out rotation mix due to a brutal 8.07 ERA in seven starts this year.

Kershaw isn’t the only veteran help the Dodgers will be getting back from the IL shortly after the break, as Harris also relays that (per Roberts) outfielder Jason Heyward will be ready to return to action after the All Star break and will not require a rehab assignment before returning to the majors. The 34-year-old has taken a step back this year relative to his surprisingly strong 2023 campaign but has still been roughly league average at the plate with a .203/.299/.398 slash line in 42 games this season.

Heyward’s return should add depth to an outfield mix that has relied on struggling youngster James Outman in recent days. Outman entered the campaign likely to be a regular in the outfield for the Dodgers on the heels of an excellent 2023 season but struggled brutally in the early weeks of the season, leading the Dodgers to option him in mid-May. While he’s improved upon his previously brutal .147/.250/.266 slash line since returning earlier this month, Outman’s .273/.333/.273 slash line in six games since coming back to the majors hasn’t exactly inspired confidence in his ability to reclaim a regular role with the Dodgers, and the return of a steadier bat like Heyward’s should be a relief for the Dodgers team that has at times struggled to get production from the bottom of its lineup this year.

Heyward is joined in making progress towards a return by superstar Mookie Betts, who Roberts told reporters (including Harris) has begun to field grounders as he rehab his fractured left hand. Betts has been on the shelf since mid-June with a 6-8 week recovery time expected and isn’t expected back until sometime in August. He seems to still be more or less on track for that return, with Roberts noting (according to MLB.com’s Injury Tracker) that the 31-year-old is “excited” about the progress he’s making.

Betts was in the midst of a MVP-caliber season prior to his injury, slashing an incredible .304/.405/.488 in 72 games that’s made all the more impressive by the fact that he was simultaneously making a relatively seamless transition to becoming the everyday shortstop in L.A. this season. Miguel Rojas has looked good on both sides of the ball in an expanded role since Betts went on the shelf, however, meaning that the star might spent more time at a position more familiar to him such as second base or right field upon his return.

Dodgers Rumors: Stone, Crochet, Shortstop, Outfield

By | at

Several teams tried to pry right-hander Gavin Stone from the Dodgers in offseason trade talks, writes Bob Nightengale of USA Today, but Los Angeles held firm on the former top prospect and is now reaping the benefits. After yielding 31 runs in his first 31 big league innings last season, Stone has emerged as a vital member of manager Dave Roberts’ rotation.

Stone, 25, ranks second on the Dodgers with 89 innings pitched and is tied for second with 15 games started. He’s posted a terrific 2.73 earned run average through the season’s halfway point. While his 19.5% strikeout rate is below average and his .268 average on balls in play and 6.3% homer-to-flyball ratio suggest there’s likely some ERA regression in store, he has the look of a legitimate big league starter. The 2020 fifth-round pick has been a constant in the L.A. rotation while the team has navigated injuries for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Walker Buehler and others.

The Dodgers have a whopping six starters on the injured list, to say nothing of oft-injured arms like James Paxton and Tyler Glasnow healthy and in the rotation. Glasnow, in particular, is already 17 innings from his career-high at the MLB level (120 innings). He’s never topped 155 innings in any professional season before.

Unsurprisingly, given the wide slate of current injuries and the health histories of their current arms, the Dodgers have been exploring the market for pitching. Nightengale reported within that same column that the Dodgers have already made an offer to the White Sox for lefty Garrett Crochet, which has been rejected, and the latest report from Ken Rosenthal, Patrick Mooney and Will Sammon of The Athletic also touches on Los Angeles’ interest in Crochet.

Crochet isn’t an ideal fit for a team seeking consistent, bankable innings — as the Dodgers currently are. This year’s 101 1/3 innings is more than Crochet, a 2020 draftee, had thrown in his entire professional career combined prior to the ’24 campaign. There are questions about how the left-hander will hold up down the stretch, and The Athletic trio suggests he’s not a lock to spend the remainder of the season pitching in a regular rotation role if he is indeed moved — as the White Sox are reportedly planning on after extension talks with Crochet quickly stalled out. The Dodgers, however, view Crochet as a legitimate October weapon regardless of the role in which he’s used and could simply figure out the specifics of his usage down the line, depending on how the second half of the season plays out.

Rotation innings are just one of multiple questions the Dodgers will face over the next four-plus weeks as the deadline looms. They’re also staring down an absence of six to eight weeks for star leadoff man Mookie Betts, who in recent years has moved from right field to both middle-infield positions, playing virtually anywhere the team asks without seeing any real drop-off in his MVP-caliber offensive production. With Betts on the shelf, the Dodgers have plugged hot-hitting Miguel Rojas back into a regular role at shortstop, and the veteran’s play this season could make that a more permanent arrangement when when Betts is healthy.

“I would, I would,” manager Dave Roberts replied when asked by Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times whether he’d consider keeping Rojas his everyday shortstop when Betts returns. “I don’t think anyone can debate the level of shortstop play from Miguel Rojas. Some of it is contingent on the timeline for Mookie’s return and where Miggy is physically and how things are going. But to your question, would I consider it? Absolutely.”

Rojas, 35, is hitting .297/.344/.446 (126 wRC+) — his best career production outside of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. He’s playing his customary brand of high-end defense at shortstop, drawing lavish praise from both Roberts and Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel, who calls Rojas one of the five best defensive shortstops in the sport. (Statcast lists Rojas tied for seventh among all shortstops with six Outs Above Average in just 215 innings this season; every other name among the top-8 this season has played more than 700 innings).

Keeping Rojas at shortstop and sliding Betts back over to second base in place of Gavin Lux could deepen the team’s lineup and improve the defense. The Athletic report notes that adding an everyday outfielder would allow the Dodgers to use Betts at second base and go with a platoon of Andy Pages and Jason Heyward in the outfield alongside the new acquisition and Teoscar Hernandez.

Of course, that’s just one of many viable scenarios, and it’s not framed within that report as a clear objective so much as one of various possibilities that could be explored. Alternatively, if the Dodgers were to add someone who can handle second base on a regular basis — and do so at a higher level than in-house choices like Lux, Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez — that could push Betts back to the outfield.

As is frequently the case with the Dodgers, their blend of versatile defenders and a hefty lead in the division combine to create various trade avenues to explore while also reducing urgency to complete a deal. Los Angeles holds a 7.5-game lead over second-place San Diego in the NL West. They’ll surely upgrade in multiple areas between now and July 30, but the size of their lead likely reduces pressure on president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, GM Brandon Gomes and their staff to complete something in the short-term and gives them the luxury of taking a fluid approach to augmenting an already first-place roster.

Dodgers GM: Betts And Yamamoto Injuries Won’t Impact Deadline Plans

By | at

The Dodgers were recently dealt a couple of significant blows, with both Mookie Betts and Yoshinobu Yamamoto slated for lengthy stays on the injured list. General manager Brandon Gomes addressed the injuries recently, per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times, saying that the club was unlikely to alter their deadline plans as a reaction. “I actually don’t think it meaningfully changes anything at this point,” Gomes said, “With the expectation that those guys are gonna be back for the postseason.”

Betts was hit by a pitch on his hand and suffered a fracture, with an expected recovery time of six to eight weeks. Yamamoto has a more nebulous timeline with his strained rotator cuff, though the club is expecting him back at some point this season.

Those are obviously significant losses. Betts has more walks than strikeouts this year and has ten home runs as well, leading to a line of .304/.405/.488 and a 158 wRC+. He has done all that while essentially learning shortstop on the fly, having just been handed the job during Spring Training. Despite limited big league experience at the position, he seems to be doing a passable job. Outs Above Average has him at -4 this year but Defensive Runs Saved puts him at +4. FanGraphs has credited him with 3.5 wins above replacement so far on the season, second in the National League to his teammate Shohei Ohtani. Yamamoto, meanwhile, has an earned run average of 2.92 through his first 14 major league starts.

Subtracting those two players from the roster will undoubtedly have an impact on the club’s overall talent level, but it’s understandable that the Dodgers don’t plan to panic and completely change course. The club currently sports a record of 46-30 and the only club above .500 in the National League West. Each of the Diamondbacks, Giants and Padres are just below .500, with each of those three being either 9 or 9.5 games back.

That gives the Dodgers plenty of breathing room and pretty strong odds of winning the division, even with the injury challenges. The Playoff Odds at FanGraphs give them a 92.5% chance of taking the West while the PECOTA Standings at Baseball Prospectus are even more bullish at 95.8%. Both of those outlets give the club around a 99% chance of getting some kind of playoff spot.

With that comfortable position in the standings, the club is likely going to be focusing on whatever moves put their club in best position to win games in October, as opposed to the interim. Going out to grab an innings eater for the back end of the rotation might stabilize things for the next few months but such a pitcher wouldn’t be a big factor in a playoff series when clubs can shorten their rotations to three or four pitchers.

Even without Yamamoto and Walker Buehler, who also landed on the injured list recently with a minor issue, the Dodgers currently have a healthy rotation of consisting of Tyler Glasnow, Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone and James Paxton. They have Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May and Kyle Hurt as options to come off the injured list later this year, as well as Yamamoto. Landon Knack is on the 40-man roster and pitching in Triple-A, potentially coming up to replace Buehler. River Ryan, one of the club’s top prospects, was recently reinstated from the minor league injured list and is pitching in Triple-A as well.

With all of those potential starters, they should be able to find a way to get through the regular season. The larger question will be whether there’s enough for a strong postseason rotation. Glasnow has been great this year but has a lengthy injury history. He’s never topped 120 innings in a major league season and is currently at 93. Yamamoto is now a question mark. Buehler has a 5.84 ERA on the year and is now on the shelf. Miller’s ERA is at 6.00 and he just came off the IL. Paxton and Stone have respective ERAs of 3.65 and 3.01 but less impressive peripherals.

While that group is likely enough to get the club into the postseason, their deadline moves will understandably be focused on how it will play once they get there. In his article, Harris suggests the Dodgers will be focused on high-impact starters, with Garrett Crochet of the White Sox and Jesús Luzardo of the Marlins listed as hypothetical examples. Though as he points out, both of those pitchers have multiple years of control and their respective clubs will set lofty asking prices.

At shortstop, the thinking is likely similar, as the club can get by for now with Miguel Rojas taking over for Betts. Rojas is an excellent fielder who has normally been unimpressive at the plate, with a career slash line of .259/.312/.357. He’s having a strong season, however, with a .288/.333/.449 line in 2024. Perhaps that will regress a bit as he moves from a part-time role to a full-time gig, but he could still be a serviceable shortstop with a numbers a bit lower than that.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the club monitor the middle infield market in the weeks to come while Betts is out, as plenty of other players are struggling. Gavin Lux has received plenty of playing time at second base but is hitting .212/.261/.283 this year. Chris Taylor has moved between the infield and outfield but is sitting on a dismal line of .115/.211/.177. Enrique Hernández has also been in a multi-positional role and has better numbers than Taylor but his .201/.277/.309 line isn’t great either. Cavan Biggio was brought aboard for some extra infield cover with Max Muncy out of action but he’s hitting just .197/.325/.276 on the year between the Blue Jays and Dodgers.

Looking ahead to the postseason, it’s possible that Betts and Rojas could be the primary middle infield tandem if Betts is back and Rojas stays in good form, but the club may not rely on Rojas like that on account of his career numbers. Perhaps that will lead the club to make some kind of middle infield move between now and the end of July, but that was likely the case even before Betts got hurt.

Per the piece from Harris, the Dodgers are willing to put Betts back at shortstop later in the year but haven’t made a final decision. If they want a more experienced option at the position and want to upgrade on Rojas, it’s unclear who could be available. Harris lists Willy Adames and Bo Bichette as theoretical fits but also notes the difficulties in acquiring each. The Brewers have a healthy lead in their division, which likely means Adames is staying. As for Bichette, even if the Jays fall out of the race, there are reasons not to trade him. He’s having a down year and is currently on the IL, so the Jays may not want to sell low. With another year left on his contract, they may prefer to hold if they can’t get what they feel is fair value.

Other speculative shortstop targets may not be too appealing. The White Sox will certainly make Paul DeJong available and he’s having a nice bounceback year, but he still strikes out a ton and has been prone to long periods of ineffectiveness in the past. The Marlins would love to get something from Tim Anderson but he’s performing even worse than he did last year. Ha-Seong Kim is an impending free agent but the Padres are hovering in the playoff race and surely would prefer not to trade him to their division rival.

MLBTR Podcast: José Abreu’s Release, Betts and Yamamoto Hit The IL And Even More Injuries

By | at

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • Do the Giants have a chance of getting Pete Alonso? Or will the Mets make additions if they carry the power of Grimace into the deadline? (32:15)
  • How should the Nationals address their outfield surplus? And where did all these good pitchers come from? (42:35)
  • What are the chances the White Sox package Luis Robert Jr. and Garrett Crochet at the deadline? And if they trade Crochet and Erick Fedde, how will they fill the rotation after? (49:55)

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Roberts: Dodgers Expect Betts To Miss 6-8 Weeks

By | at

The Dodgers placed Mookie Betts on the 10-day injured list this afternoon, a formality after he suffered a fractured left hand yesterday. Miguel Vargas is back up from Triple-A Oklahoma City to take his spot on the active roster.

That alone didn’t provide much of an update, but skipper Dave Roberts outlined a loose timetable when speaking with the L.A. beat tonight. Roberts said the Dodgers anticipate being without Betts for 6-8 weeks (X link via Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). Miguel Rojas will draw into the lineup as the primary shortstop in the interim.

Betts was hit by a 98 MPH fastball from Dan Altavilla in yesterday’s win over Kansas City. The Dodgers revealed after the game that he’d sustained a fracture. It halts what could have been an MVP season. Betts is hitting .304/.405/.488 with 10 longballs through 331 trips to the plate. He has walked 14.5% of the time against a 10% strikeout rate.

On top of the customarily elite offense, Betts has logged 531 1/3 innings at shortstop (plus 97 frames at second base). Public metrics are mixed on his shortstop glovework — Defensive Runs Saved has rated him four runs better than par, while Statcast has him three runs below average — but the fact that Betts was able take over the position on short notice at the end of spring is itself a huge boost.

Rojas is at least a steady replacement. He remains a high-end defender at age 35. Rojas has turned in good offensive results in a utility capacity this year, hitting .278/.328/.444 with a trio of homers in 42 games. He’s not likely to continue hitting at that level in an everyday role, as he ran a .246/.299/.348 line between 2021-23.

The 6-8 week timeline means Betts probably won’t be back before the July 30 trade deadline. Roberts and GM Brandon Gomes told reporters that L.A. is open to reinstalling Betts at shortstop once he’s healthy (Harris link). With an eight-game cushion in the NL West, the Dodgers probably don’t need to change their deadline approach to the shortstop position. Yet middle infield help looked like a potential target before Betts went down. The Dodgers haven’t gotten much out of second base, where Gavin Lux is hitting .212/.262/.280 across 202 plate appearances.

There probably won’t be many significant shortstops on the market. The White Sox will almost certainly trade Paul DeJong for a modest return, but he’s not a clear upgrade on Rojas. Miami’s Tim Anderson hasn’t hit for a second consecutive season. The top impending free agents, Willy Adames and Ha-Seong Kim, are on contenders and unlikely to move. Second base offers a couple more possibilities. The Angels could deal bat-first utility options Luis Rengifo and Brandon Drury, while the A’s would probably entertain offers on Abraham Toro.

Mookie Betts Suffers Fractured Bone In Left Hand After HBP

By | at

Mookie Betts was hit on the left hand by a Dan Altavilla fastball today, causing Betts to drop to the ground in immediate pain and then leave the field.  Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) after the game that Betts has a fractured bone in the hand and will be out of action “for some time,” though the former AL MVP won’t require surgery.

More will be known about Betts’ status and a potential recovery timeline in the coming days, but this is undoubtedly a huge blow for the Dodgers.  As with any wrist- or hand-related injury, there is plenty of potential for lingering after-effects even after a player is officially cleared for action, given how any changes to grip or hand positioning on a bat can alter a swing.  The first order of business for Betts and the Dodgers is just to manage this injury and the recovery as well as possible, though the concern won’t go away until Betts is both back on the field and displaying his usual superstar form at the plate.

Heading into today’s game, Betts was hitting .307/.407/.493 with 10 homers over a league-leading 327 plate appearances, adding 16 doubles and nine stolen bases (in 10 attempts) to those impressive numbers.  In addition to that typically excellent offensive production, Betts has also been playing a key defensive role for the Dodgers as their everyday shortstop, a role Betts adopted during Spring Training after Gavin Lux was moved off the position.  While defensive metrics have been mixed at best on Betts’ glovework, simply the fact that Betts was willing to change positions and at least passably handled the shortstop role just added to his importance to the L.A. roster.

The Dodgers were still expected to pursue middle infield help at the deadline, both because Lux hasn’t hit much, and to potentially hasten Betts’ move back to second base if a new everyday shortstop was obtained.  Today’s developments probably make it even likelier that Los Angeles will look to add a shortstop regardless of how much time Betts misses, though it remains to be seen whether or not the Dodgers now look to make an acquisition sooner rather than later.  The team will first want to access Betts’ health, of course, and teams with available infield depth might suddenly raise their asking prices if they perceive the Dodgers are in any way desperate.

In the short term, Roberts said that Miguel Vargas will be called back up from Triple-A to rejoin the infield mix.  Miguel Rojas will get the bulk of regular shortstop duty, with Enrique Hernandez also factoring in at both shortstop and third base.  Max Muncy is still sidelined with a lingering oblique injury and Roberts said today that Muncy’s recovery has been “even slower than expected,” so it is anyone’s guess as to when the third baseman might be able to help a suddenly-depleted Dodgers infield.  Cavan Biggio was recently acquired from the Blue Jays to add to the depth mix, so Betts’ absence will open up more playing time for Biggio at second or third base.

Rojas has long been an excellent defender, and he has been surprisingly productive at the dish with a .278/.328/.444 slash line over 116 PA this season.  His 122 wRC+ would be the second-best mark of his 11-year MLB career, though it is obviously a reach to expect Rojas to keep this up for a lengthy amount of time, given that he isn’t making much hard contact at the plate.

Even though the Dodgers lineup is full of big bats, losing Betts also underlines the club’s somewhat top-heavy nature.  Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Teoscar Hernandez have all been raking and Muncy was hitting well pre-injury, but Lux, Enrique Hernandez, and Chris Taylor have all been ice cold, while James Outman was struggling so much that Los Angeles optioned the outfielder to Triple-A.

With a 44-29 record, the Dodgers have arguably built up enough of a cushion to withstand losing Betts for a bit of time, as there doesn’t appear to be any danger that Los Angeles would suddenly fall out of the playoff race.  However, it can’t be ignored that the Dodgers are now without Betts, Muncy, and more than an entire rotation’s worth of starting pitchers, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Michael Grove joining the long list of injured hurlers earlier today.  The Dodgers have been able to both withstand and even thrive despite heavy injuries in past seasons, yet if this missing personnel is enough to drop the Dodgers out of a first-round postseason bye, it will give the team an even more difficult path to a World Series title.

NL West Notes: Sandoval, Black, Grichuk, Dodgers

By | at

When veteran infielder Pablo Sandoval signed a non-roster deal with the Giants last month, it was reported that the deal was not meant to be a ceremonial end to the 37-year-old’s storied career akin to the deal right-hander Sergio Romo took with the club before retiring last spring. Rather, Sandoval hoped that the deal could be a stepping stone toward returning to the majors. After the Kung Fu Panda slashed just .250/.323/.250 without a single extra-base hit in 16 games with the club this spring, it appears unlikely that will come to pass for the time being. That still doesn’t mean that Sandoval has any intention of retiring, however. As relayed by MLB.com’s Henry Schulman, Sandoval has indicated that he intends to keep playing even if he does not make the major league roster in San Francisco to open the season. Instead, he intends to report to Triple-A Sacramento and play for the Giants in the minor leagues.

A veteran of 14 big league seasons who last played in the majors back in 2021, Sandoval is a two-time All Star who earned World Series MVP honors with the Giants in 2012 while also playing a key role during the club’s championship seasons in 2010 and 2014. Sandoval initially departed San Francisco to sign in Boston prior to the 2015 season, but that disastrous contract saw him released partway through the 2017 campaign. He returned to the Giants afterward and enjoyed a pair of resurgent seasons with the club in 2018 and 2019 as he slashed .259/.311/.466 in a combined 200 games. His most recent big league appearances came with the Braves, with whom he hit .178/.302/.342 in 69 games in a bench role three seasons ago.

While Sandoval clearly intends to continue his professional career into his age-37 campaign, it’s unclear what the Giants’ plans are regarding their World Series hero at this point. Indeed, Sandoval noted to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area yesterday that he has not yet discussed his plan to continue playing in the minor leagues with Giants brass. Even so, Sandoval emphasized to Pavlovic that he has no intention of hanging up the cleats at this point. “Everyone thinks I’m retired,” Sandoval said (per Pavlovic). “I’m not retired.”

More from around the NL West:

  • Sticking with the Giants, the club made a surprising move yesterday by re-assigning right-hander Mason Black to the minor leagues, as noted by MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado. While the right-hander’s 6.97 ERA in 10 1/3 innings of work with the Giants this spring certainly presents a clear case for the 24-year-old starting the season in Triple-A, the move came just over a week after manager Bob Melvin indicated to reporters that the club was likely to turn to Black as a member of their Opening Day rotation. Of course, San Francisco’s rotation plans were altered the very next day by the addition of reigning NL Cy Young award winner Blake Snell, but it’s still something of a shock to see Black sent to Triple-A given the club’s need for innings in the bullpen due to injuries suffered by Tristan Beck and Sean Hjelle this spring. Instead, it appears the long relief role will be offered to non-roster veteran Daulton Jefferies, who impressed with a 2.57 ERA in 14 innings during camp.
  • The Diamondbacks will begin the season without outfielder Randal Grichuk, who manager Torey Lovullo confirmed will begin the season on the injured list to reporters (including Alex Weiner of AZ Sports) earlier today. That’s hardly a surprise, as Grichuk did not make it into game action this spring while rehabbing from offseason surgery to remove bone spurs from his ankle. Upon signing with Arizona last month, Grichuk indicated that the issues wasn’t expected to cause a lengthy absence, adding that if he were to miss Opening Day due to the issue he may be ready to return as soon as a week into the regular season. The 32-year-old veteran slashed a roughly league average .267/.321/.459 in 118 trips to the plate in Colorado and Anaheim last year and is slated to act as a right-handed complement to the likes of Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas, and Joc Pederson in Arizona’s outfield mix this year.
  • While the Dodgers are set to turn to veteran superstar Mookie Betts and second baseman Gavin Lux up the middle this season, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) yesterday that veteran shortstop Miguel Rojas will get some starts at short as well, at least against left-handed pitching. On those days, Betts will slide over to second base and push Lux to the bench. While Robert emphasized that the situation won’t be a strict platoon, Lux’s career .586 OPS against same-handed pitching and Rojas’s strong defense at shortstop make sitting Lux against certain southpaws in order to improve the club’s infield defense a sensible strategy. Rojas, 35, hit a paltry .236/.290/.322 in 124 games with the Dodgers last year but slashed a much more respectable .286/.331/.406 in 145 trips to the plate against lefties.

MLBTR Podcast: Injured Pitchers, Brayan Bello’s Extension, Mookie At Shortstop And J.D. Davis

By | at

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • Who had the worst offseason and why is it the Angels? (25:15)
  • Fact or Fiction? The Red Sox are going to trade Masataka Yoshida. (28:50)
  • Considering the amount of effort the Tigers front office has put into fielding a major league team in the past 10 years, should Tiger fans feel slighted? “They can wait” seems to be the attitude. Should Tiger fans just stop buying Little Caesars pizza and encourage their friends to buy their pizzas elsewhere? I am sure franchise owners enjoy being associated with a cheap loser. (31:20)

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top