Dodgers News: Mookie Betts Was Open to Playing Second Base Full-Time to Get Aaron Judge to LA

The Los Angeles Dodgers had an usually quiet winter. They let the big name free agents pass them by, and instead elected to sign some former All-Stars to relatively inexpensive contracts.

The biggest name on the market was the reigning home run champ in Aaron Judge, and the Dodgers were reportedly among the teams trying to lure him out of New York. The one big issue with adding Judge, however, was that he played the same position as their Gold Glove outfielder, Mookie Betts.

On Monday, however, Sports Illustrated released a story in which Betts confirmed to Tom Verducci that he would have considered a move to second base if it meant bringing Judge to LA. Here’s the excerpt from the SI story, including his quote.

“While speaking with Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci recently, Betts confirmed the rumor about him proposing to move from right field to second base to make way for Judge.

‘Yes, that sounds probably like something I said,’ Betts told Verducci. ‘But hey, that was going to be a tough get.'”

While Betts is likely going to play some second base this season, a full-time move to the infield would have been a bit odd considering Betts is coming off a Gold Glove season in right field and is one of the best fielders at his position in all of baseball.

Betts is a six-time Gold Glove Award winner, and has been made one great play after another in his right field spot in the Dodgers outfield. It wouldn’t make a lot of sense for the Dodgers to bring him into the infield, unless of course he said he wanted to. And to be fair, in a recent interview on MLB Network Radio, he did talk about his love for the infield.

“I’ve been having that conversation for probably the last three or four years. It’s just my desire to get back in the infield because that’s my home, but they pay me to be out in right. And I definitely enjoy being out in right for sure… but you only play the game for so long and I would like to get back to my roots before it’s all said and done. But if I gotta stay in right, I gotta stay in right.”

So, it does sound like Mookie would actually prefer to get back to the infield at some point in his career, and his career, of course, should end with the Dodgers considering he’s in year five of a 12-year deal. So maybe, at some point in the future, the Dodgers could add another marquee outfielder, and allow Betts to move back to his infield spot. And for whoever’s keeping record, I know one superstar right fielder who’s supposed to be on the open market at the end of 2024, and the Dodgers would love to poach him from their division rival San Diego Padres.

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