Mookie Betts has established himself as one of the best players in baseball since his MLB debut for the Boston Red Sox in 2014 and he has continued to play at an elite level for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Betts was named to his sixth career All-Star Game selection this season and although offensive numbers are down across the league, the 29-year-old is having the third-best offensive season of his career by wRC+ (145), trailing his 2018 MVP season (185) and shortened 2020 campaign (147).
Since being acquired by the Dodgers prior to the 2020 season, Betts has hit .271/.355/.524 with 73 doubles, 74 home runs, 252 runs scored, 178 RBI and 32 stolen bases through 310 games thus far.
All those numbers put him among the game’s best players, but that hasn’t stopped David Price from needing to remind Betts just how good he is, via Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times:
“He still doesn’t think he’s very good,” Dodgers pitcher David Price said. “I got to tell him every day how good he is, but that’s just the type of player, type of person Mookie is.”
Price witnessed Betts playing every day for four years with the Red Sox before the trade sent both players to L.A., so he has now been teammates with the superstar outfielder for six seasons and watched from home for a seventh season in 2020 when he opted out of the season due to the coronavirus (COVID-19).
Over that time, Betts has produced at an elite level offensively and also remained one of the game’s premier defensive players. His ability has allowed the Dodgers to occasionally play Betts at second base.
Betts is on the path to a likely Hall of Fame induction one day, and when that happens, maybe Price’s message will finally set in with him.
Price considering retirement
The 2022 season marks Price’s 14th in the Major Leagues and second with the Dodgers, but he’s in the final year of his contract and turns 37 in August.
When asked if he has considered retirement after the season, the five-time All-Star noted it will depend on his children.
It was then reported that Price made the decision to retire after the 2022 season, but he said that was not accurate.
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