When the Los Angeles Dodgers struck a trade to acquire Mookie Betts from the Boston Red Sox this past February, they knew they were getting one of the best players in all of baseball.
At the time of the trade, Betts was less than two years removed from being named the 2018 American League MVP — a season that culminated with him winning his first World Series championship.
His impressive resumé also included three Silver Slugger Awards, four Gold Glove Awards and four All-Star selections. Now with an excellent debut season with the Dodgers in the books, some began debating whether Betts has earned the title of baseball’s best player.
In a recent poll, many executives noted that Betts has closed the gap, but still believe L.A. Angels superstar Mike Trout holds the honor, via MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand:
Every executive lauded Betts for his incredible talent, and while each one of them would be happy to have the Dodgers superstar patrolling right field for their club, the results were nearly unanimous: Eight executives chose Trout, one took Betts, while the other one called it a draw.
One National League executive went as far as deeming Trout the best player in MLB history, while another American League executive opined that the 29-year-old has already punched his ticket to Cooperstown:
“He’s the greatest player in the history of baseball,” the NL exec said. “Mookie is getting a lot of deserved attention right now, but Trout is literally the best player ever.”
“Trout is the most consistent, best player on the planet,” one American League executive said. “He could retire before age 30 and you’d still have a strong argument that he is a Hall of Famer. I’m not sure many guys not named Ruth or Cobb fit into that category. Mookie is playing really well right now; I’m still taking Trout.”
For as talented as they are on the field, Betts and Trout also share a mutual respect for each other. The latter previously expressed his excitement that the former found a long-term home in L.A.
Betts loses to Braves’ Freeman for NL Outstanding Player
Despite exceeding lofty expectations in his first season with the Dodgers, Betts lost out to the Atlanta Braves’ Freddie Freeman for NL Outstanding Player honors — an award that is voted on by the players.
Betts hit .292/.366/.562 with 16 home runs, 39 RBI, 47 runs scored and 10 stolen bases in 55 games while also playing Gold Glove-caliber defense in right field. Freeman batted an impressive .341/.462/.640 with 13 home runs, 53 RBI, 51 runs scored and a league-leading 23 doubles.
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