Following a stellar start to the regular season, Mookie Betts has taken a step back for the Los Angeles Dodgers with both his bat and his glove.
His play at shortstop comes with a grain of salt because of the tough task of playing such an important position has its owns set of boxes to check, let alone playing the position for the first time. Betts has been learning on the fly since being named starting shortstop a week before the season.
Some questions over his extensive pregame defensive work he’s added being a detriment to his overall play have been brushed off as a reason for the downward trend.
“I don’t think so,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “I think if he’s not going to hit, I think that’s certainly what people are going to point to. Talking to him and talking to our guys, he says he feels strong and feels good. I think the work is going to be curtailed at some point, but I don’t think there’s any correlation.
“I really don’t. He’s been missing some balls, but I don’t think it’s a result of work pregame.”
Betts came out firing, batting .368/.477/.624 with six home runs, two triples and 10 doubles over 32 games in March and April. But since April 30, he has been far closer to a league-average hitter.
Roberts has been open with his grace period given to Betts, seeing him work hard to be a master of his craft on all fronts. However, Roberts did note that can sometimes be a detriment to a player.
“I think in the case of Corey (Seager), it was, ‘You’re not going to forget how to hit and we need you on the field.’ So managing that was important,” Roberts said.
“Mookie (Betts), I think he’s still learning to play the position. Even the double play that he had to get, hop over the runner and then throw it over to finish the play, those are things he’s got to get repetitions on.
“I’m sure when we get to Pittsburgh, he’s going to try to simulate that play. That’s where I’m more sensitive to trying to get a grasp on the position before we start talking about trying to manage the workload.”
Although there isn’t much data to reinforce Betts being a plus-defender, Roberts explained that he’s seen him improve since the start of the year.
The Dodgers have leaned on Betts at the position, making the concession for fellow infielder Gavin Lux, who experienced a great deal of issues when throwing to first base in Spring Training.
Although the ideal alignment may be Miguel Rojas at shortstop with Betts at second, the fear of health for their veteran infielder starting every day has deterred them from going that route.
How has Mookie Betts been at shortstop
To the advanced metrics, Betts has been among the lowest-graded defensive shortstops in Major League Baseball. His -34.9 UZR/150 is among the worst of qualified fielders, and he carries a -4 outs above average (OAA).
Betts’ 429.1 innings at short are a sizeable sample to see how his limited range is a factor, with his arm also making difficult throws, a tall order.
For reference, Franciso Lindor has a negative defensive runs saved, but is favored by UZR/150, because of his range and OAA.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
