Dodgers officially declare they're ready to make Mookie Betts mistake again

When Brandon Gomes told reporters at November's General Manager Meetings that Mookie Betts would move back to the infield, he didn't clarify if that would be second base or shortstop. He took turns at both during the 2024 season before moving back to right field after he returned from rehabbing a broken hand, and neither worked out particularly well for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Although he graded out as perfectly average at second base, he posted minus four outs above average at shortstop, where the Dodgers threw him after Gavin Lux couldn't hack it during spring training. It looked like a failed experiment right from the beginning — as good of a player as Betts is, not everyone can excel at everything. But LA seemed to see the error of its ways when Betts came back from injury and had Tommy Edman, who also has a Gold Glove and a Fielding Bible Award for his work in the infield, in the fold.

However, Gomes followed up during Winter Meetings to reveal that the Dodgers had not, in fact, seen the light. He said that Betts was preparing to play shortstop in 2025, and that Edman would be taking over in center field.

Brandon Gomes confirms Mookie Betts' move back to shortstop for Dodgers in 2025

There's really no excuse for this to happen. Although the Dodgers lost out on Willy Adames and there aren't many great shortstop options left on the market, they could have moved Edman there full-time, moved Betts to second, and traded Lux. That would leave room open in the outfield for Michael Conforto, a potential reunion with Teoscar Hernández, and clear space to give Andy Pages more of a regular role in 2025, or even take another shot on James Outman after a year mostly spent in the minors.

It was always hard to understand the Dodgers' logic in the initial move, and it was hard to understand why they dug their heels in and kept Betts at second even though his numbers told them to move him back to right field. He made a career-high nine errors in 61 starts at shortstop.

It's a small consolation, but at least Betts will have more time to prepare for the role than he did last season when they switched Betts and Lux a week or so into spring training. If the Dodgers whiff on Hernández, it's easy to see plans changing, but for now, we're going to keep banging our heads into a wall about this one.