Calls Mount for Dodgers to Make Mookie Betts Move After Roster News originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Shortstop Mookie Betts is in his sixth season with the Los Angeles Dodgers after making his debut for the Boston Red Sox in 2014.
The 32-year-old superstar won his first World Series title, American League MVP award and four consecutive All-Star selections in Boston, but was traded to the Dodgers before the 2020 season when Boston’s front office was unwilling to pay him a lucrative deal.
Betts immediately signed a 12-year, $365 million contract extension with Los Angeles and has since collected two more World Series championships in 2020 and 2024, as well as four more All-Star appearances.
Betts transitioned to shortstop before the 2024 season to help the team after Gavin Lux struggled at the position coming off injury. Now, in 2025, Betts is struggling through one of the worst campaigns of his career.
Ahead of Monday’s series opener against the Cincinnati Reds, the Dodgers announced they are calling up top prospect Alex Freeland.
Source: The Dodgers are set to call up infield prospect Alex Freeland to the big leagues. https://t.co/SNDKZEiWfW
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) July 28, 2025
Notably, Freeland plays shortstop. That has prompted Dodgers fans to call for the team to move Betts back to the outfield where he won six Gold Glove Awards.
One fan wrote, “It’s time to move Betts back to the outfield and have him focus on just hitting. Bench Conforto and have Alex Freeland play short. He can’t hit any worse than Conforto and will provide solid defense at the very least.”
“He should play short and let Mookie go find himself again in the outfield,” another added.
“So we moving Mookie back to outfield?” asked a fan.
Another also asked, “Mookie going back to the outfield?”
One more said, “Teo back in Left, Mookie back in right, Freeland at Short and Conforto gone.”
Over 96 games this year, Betts is batting .237 with a .678 OPS — the lowest marks of his 12-year career by a wide margin. He has hit only 11 home runs. Much of his lost season can be attributed to a mystery illness during spring training. A stomach bug that lasted multiple weeks caused him to miss significant preparation time and the season-opening Tokyo Series. He also lost approximately 25 pounds, and he has not yet regained his form.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 29, 2025, where it first appeared.