Dodgers News: Where Is Mookie Betts? Dodgers’ Star Shortstop Still Absent From Cactus League Action
Manager Dave Roberts says Betts’ absence is “intentional” as the team follows a carefully planned spring schedule.
GLENDALE, AZ—As the Los Angeles Dodgers continue Cactus League play with Game No. 7 this afternoon, one name that has continued to be absent is All-Star shortstop Mookie Betts.
Betts has yet to appear in any Cactus League game this spring training, and that is by design, per Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, when asked about Betts’ whereabouts.
“It’s load management and I wanted Mookie to kind of start a little bit later as far as not getting into spring training ready to go and use spring training to build up given it’s six weeks, so he’s building up nicely, so he’ll be in the lineup soon.”
Roberts also stated that Betts won’t be in a lineup before Sunday, which could be the day he makes his 2026 debut, but it’s a stark contrast from how the Dodgers have managed Betts in years past.
It’s no secret that Betts had the worst offensive season of his Major League career in 2025, where he saw multiple metrics across the board dip, along with him dropping down in the batting order during the postseason.
However, for Betts, the 2025 season was always about the 2018 American League MVP looking to play catch-up after missing the first two games in Tokyo, Japan, due to a battle with norovirus, which forced Betts to lose significant weight.
By the end of the season, Betts started to get in a groove, posting an OPS of .828 from August 1st until the end of the regular season, but that was not enough to save his regular-season numbers overall.
As for the plan in 2026, Betts is set to continue his full-time move from right field to shortstop, where he ranked No. 1 overall in Defensive Runs Saved last year and was a finalist for the National League Gold Glove Award.
Offensively, Betts will undergo yet another change with the addition of left-handed hitter Kyle Tucker. Betts will likely bat third on an everyday basis behind Ohtani and Tucker and in front of Freddie Freeman, who is set to bat cleanup.
In Betts’ career, he has only played 66 games in the three-hole hitting .267/.348/.453 with a 111 wRC+, but the Dodgers hope a new opportunity will help Betts rebound in 2026, with Roberts going further earlier this spring, stating he’d be in the MVP conversation.
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