Dave Roberts confirms unpopular Mookie Betts decision upon star's return

Dave Roberts was mean to tease us when he hinted that the Dodgers might be moving Mookie Betts off of shortstop when he returns from injury, which could be as early as next week. Roberts was taking into account the fact that the Dodgers now have two Gold Glove shortstops on the roster — Nick Ahmed and Tommy Edman, who is well on his way to a rehab assignment — who could relieve Betts of his duties at short.

But they couldn't do that, because it would make too much sense, wouldn't it? They couldn't possibly move one of their most valuable players away from a position he's been unfamiliar with throughout his career, even though there are better options waiting in the wings.

Roberts confirmed on Tuesday that Betts is most likely to be headed back to short upon his return (he'll also bat second in the lineup behind Shohei Ohtani), because apparently we can't have nice things. We can still hope that things might change when Edman does return, but it might even be hard to get our hopes up for that, after seeing how staunchly the Dodgers have stood by this decision throughout the season.

Mookie Betts expected to return to shortstop upon his return to the Dodgers

This continues to make zero sense. By the time Edman and Max Muncy return, the Dodgers will have a surplus of infielders and a relative deficit of outfielders. Betts is a Gold Glove outfielder. Edman is a Gold Glove shortstop. One plus one equals two.

If fans can put that together, then there's no way Dodgers management hasn't as well. If they're holding back tangible evidence that having Betts at shortstop is the best thing for the team, then we're begging them to share it with the class. How can they possibly justify having a -4 OAA defender instead of a +9 defender at one of the most difficult positions on the field?

We're running out of ideas as to why the Dodgers have been so stubborn about this. Is it about preserving Betts' feelings, maybe? Not wanting one of their highest-paid players to feel that his contributions as a shortstop and the time spent learning the position have been a waste? If that is the case, it would be the worst possible explanation, and we'd recommend getting over it and making the executive decision to do what's best for the team.

Again, let's hope that this will be temporary, and that Edman will come in and finally put the nail in the coffin of Betts' time at short. Let's be brave now, Dodgers.