UPDATE (July 20, 11:25 a.m. PT) Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the team plans to have Mookie Betts as their new leadoff hitter at least until Max Muncy returns from the injured list.
Mookie Betts has excelled defensively at shortstop for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he is in the midst of the worst offensive season of his likely Hall of Fame career.
Overall this year, Betts is hitting .241/.311/.377 with a 93 wRC+, and he has the second-lowest on-base plus slugging among qualified Dodgers batters at .688.
Things have also continued to trend in the wrong way for Betts. After starting the season with a 112 wRC+ in March and April, that number has dropped in each month. So far in July, he’s posted just a 50 wRC+ while hitting just .188.
The ongoing struggles prompted Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to give Betts a day off Saturday that he hoped would be mentally beneficial. Roberts added there is the possibility of Betts sitting more games moving forward as well.
But even with that under consideration, Roberts is still unlikely to move Betts out of the second spot in the Dodgers’ lineup order.
“I’ve thought about that, but in talking to Mookie, I just don’t know if hitting him first or ninth, or anywhere in between, changes where he’s at mechanically,” Roberts explained. “I think he’s very sold on he’s got to clean some things up mechanically, so where he hits in the order isn’t going to change that.”
Roberts would be open to moving Betts down in the Dodgers lineup if he felt a change would help.
The batting order typically does not affect a player’s production, according to the numerous studies done on the topic. And for those who believe lineup production is beneficial, there arguably is no better spot to hit than between Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman.
“I think ultimately it’s more of, if I felt that a change, a different look in the lineup would help performance, I would do it,” Roberts said. “I’d be all-in.
“But where he’s at, I just don’t think moving him down, I don’t think it would affect the psyche but I don’t think it would be beneficial. So to move him down in the lineup, I just don’t see the benefit of it right now.”
If Betts is unable to turn his production around before August or September, the Dodgers may need to consider a change at that point.
But for the meantime, just moving Betts in the lineup is unlikely to change much at all.
Mookie Betts’ struggles date back to 2024
The much larger concern for the Dodgers should be that Betts’ struggles date back to early last season, and aren’t just because of the stomach virus he battled this year. After beginning 2024 with a scorching hot stretch in April, Betts hit just .258/.329/.440 with a .769 and 113 wRC+ through the end of the season.
In his last 760 plate appearances, Betts is hitting .249/.320/.407 with a .727 OPS and 103 wRC+. That is a significant enough sample size to call his overall issues more than just a slump.
The main issue has been a significant drop in Betts’ bat speed, which has fallen from 71.3 mph in 2023 to 69 mph in 2024, and now 68.8 mph in 2025. While the decline may not seem significant, it has taken Betts from about league average to near the bottom of the league, and bat speed is important for generating power.
Betts has maintained elite contract rates and continues to square up the ball better than anyone. But without the power he once had, the ball just isn’t coming off the bat like it used to.
That also creates larger concerns for a player who hits the ball in the air at a rate greater than most players. Betts only hits the ball on the ground about 33% of the time, which 11% below league average. His current profile without much pop in his bat may benefit more from hitting fewer fly balls.
In the short term, it’s likely there is some decline to his offensive game, and at the same time, Betts also going through a slump.
Some improvement should be expected, but the question remains, how much of a rebound?
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
