Dave Roberts completely shuts down Mookie Betts possibility fans were hoping for

Mookie Betts has done what fans thought was impossible last season: he's become a really good defensive shortstop. Last year, he put up a -5 OAA at the position with 12 errors; this year, he has a +4 OAA and six errors. By those metrics, he's been better on defense than the likes of Corey Seager, Gunnar Henderson, Dansby Swanson, and Elly De La Cruz.

His offense may or may not have suffered for it, but there's no denying that Betts was able to cut through all the noise around his move to shortstop last year and just get better. The Dodgers' long-term gamble paid off.

However, Michael Conforto struggles at the plate and Teoscar Hernández's struggles in Betts' old home in right field have left a lot to be desired. If a lot of Dodgers fans had their way, the team would release Conforto, move Hernández to left, and reinstall Betts into right field, where he's won four Gold Gloves.

But with Betts' improving play at short and his hitting finally picking up in a career-worst season, the Dodgers are not compelled to move him. Roberts said twice for good measure, "Mookie will not go to right field."

Dave Roberts leaves no room for argument for Mookie Betts moving back to right field

The Dodgers have teased fans with a move back to right a couple of times, once when he made a brief appearance there as a substitute during the last Freeway Series, and again when he had a conspicuous meeting with Roberts and Andrew Friedman after a notorious Teoscar Hernández error against the Rockies. All parties involved shut down speculation, and said the meeting was about nothing more than Betts' progress with his swing.

There's no telling why the Dodgers are so adamant about Betts at shortstop or, more urgently, Conforto on the roster in any capacity. They have a built-in solution that would make the team stronger instantly — why not use it?

Betts welcomed the challenge of the position switch last year and could even really thrive there next season. Maybe the Dodgers don't want to insult one of their marquee players by letting him settle in there and then send him right back to his old position. They definitely have too much misplaced faith in Conforto, and they do have bench players (Hyeseong Kim, Kiké Hernández) who could take over there in the event that they actually do get rid of him. Teoscar Hernández may be one of the poorer defensive right fielders in baseball, but when have the Dodgers cared all that much about defense?

Fans probably saw this one coming, but Roberts' decision seems final. Mookie will not go to right field.