Mookie Betts taking cue from Yoshinobu Yamamoto as he eyes rebound Dodgers season

Mookie Betts is one of the best players in the world and a future Hall of Famer. Full stop. He's earned that kind of praise with six Gold Gloves, seven Silver Sluggers Awards, eight All-Star nods, four World Series rings, an MVP trophy, and a Roberto Clemente Award lining his trophy case.

At the same time, it's fair to acknowledge that he's slipped a bit with age. Last year was the first time in a full season that Betts didn't make the Midsummer Classic since 2015, and his 104 wRC+ and .258 batting average were both career lows. After earning 4.0 fWAR in every season from 2015-19, he's fallen short of that mark twice in the last five years with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But if there's one thing more impressive than Betts' talent, it's his work ethic. After emerging as one of the best defensive outfielders of the 21st century, he made the move back to the infield, finishing as a Gold Glove finalist at shortstop in 2025. Even at 33, there's no reason to doubt his chances of making a comeback.

And he's taken his struggles to heart this spring. Per the California Post's Dylan Hernandez, the Dodgers' star is taking a cue from his World Series MVP teammate in his training programs and preparation for the regular season.

Mookie Betts altering training regiment in spring training in hopes of comeback campaign

Betts is working with Yoshinobu Yamamoto's trainer, Osamu Yada, extensively this spring, though their working relationship goes back to last year. The veteran shortstop is working on tightening up his swing and getting his hands moving faster, and he's even taken to less traditional workouts like Yamamoto's javelin-throwing routine in an effort to build up his shoulder strength.

The idea certainly comes from a good place — Yamamoto finished third in Cy Young voting last season before going on a rampage in the playoffs, ultimately earning the World Series MVP trophy for his heroic efforts in Games 2, 6, and 7. He may very well be the best player on baseball's best roster, at least if you're willing to ignore Shohei Ohtani for a moment.

Now, these changes haven't yielded any superlative results quite yet. Betts has a 60 wRC+ in his 11 spring training plate appearances thus far, but all fans should know by now that such a sample during baseball's exhibition period means very little for a superstar like him. With any luck, he'll turn things around at the plate before Opening Day, but the real test will come over the course of a 162-game regular season.