Mookie Betts at the plate for the Dodgers during spring training. Simpler times. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images)
The Los Angeles Dodgers traded for Mookie Betts this offseason, but the former Boston Red Sox star may never play a single game for them.
Mookie Betts will forever have been a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he might never suit up once for them.
Betts was traded by the Boston Red Sox in February to the Dodgers for outfielder Alex Verdugo, shortstop Jeter Downs and catcher Connor Wong. Los Angeles also received starting pitcher David Price and cash from Boston, while the Minnesota Twins were a third party in the trade.
Will Mookie Betts play a game for the Los Angeles Dodgers?
As for Betts, he’s slated to hit free agency after the 2020 MLB season, which is in jeopardy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Should the campaign be cancelled, Betts still accrues a year and will hit the open market.
Only 27 years old, Betts is in line for a massive payday, similar to what we saw Bryce Harper and Manny Machado get only a few years ago. While his bloated contract figures will certainly limit the bidding to a select few rich clubs — likely including the Dodgers — there’s a chance Los Angeles watches its prized outfielder leave without a single at-bat.
Unfortunately for the Dodgers, there’s little they can do. The trade won’t be reversed on any grounds pertaining to the season being scuttled. Should the season be played, Betts maybe puts in a half-season’s worth of time before testing free agency for the first time in his brilliant career.
Through six seasons with the Red Sox, Betts totaled a .301 average with a .374 on-base percentage. The youngster also amassed 139 home runs, 126 stolen bases, 470 RBI and the 2018 American League MVP award.