“Mookie Betts Bounces Back: Can His Remarkable Recovery from an 18-Pound Loss Ignite a Stellar Opening Day?”
Mookie Betts is back on the field, and while he may have shed a few pounds, it seems he’s on the mend. The former MVP made his return to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, rejoining the lineup as he continues to navigate the challenges posed by a mysterious ailment that recently led to dramatic weight loss. Betts reported shedding a staggering 18 pounds due to an illness that rendered him unable to keep solid food down without discomfort, and the entire baseball community held its breath in concern for one of the game’s brightest stars. After missing crucial spring training games and the Tokyo Series against the Chicago Cubs, there was palpable relief to see Betts back in his familiar shortstop position and batting second during the Freeway Series against the Los Angeles Angels.
Despite a less-than-stellar performance at the plate—going 0-for-3 with a lack of hard contact as noted by Baseball Savant—Betts expressed optimism, declaring he felt “great, awesome, normal” as he completed his warm-ups. In light of his recent struggles, that positivity is significant. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had some encouraging news as well, indicating that Betts had begun to put some weight back on and was managing to consume solid foods once again. With the Dodgers set to face the Detroit Tigers on Thursday for Opening Day, fans are eager to see how Betts’s condition evolves and what it means for the team’s ambitions this season. The anticipation surrounding Betts’s health underscores his crucial role for the Dodgers, especially as he attempts to tackle the challenging transition back to shortstop.
For those closely following the story, it’s clear that Betts is a warrior, grappling with an ailment that has knocked him sideways. But with every upswing comes the hope of a successful season ahead. To dive deeper into Betts’s journey and understand what’s next, be sure to check out the full details of this unfolding narrative. LEARN MORE.
He might still be down a few pounds, but Mookie Betts is apparently doing better.
The former MVP returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ lineup on Tuesday, playing his usual shortstop and hitting his usual second, only two days after revealing to reporters that he lost 18 pounds due to an unidentified illness that made him incapable of eating solid foods without vomiting.
Betts missed the Dodgers’ Tokyo Series games against the Chicago Cubs, as well as every spring training game after that, but he was on the field before and during Tuesday’s Freeway Series game against the Los Angeles Angels. He went 0-for-3 with no strikeouts while playing five innings of defense. None of his three balls in play was hit harder than 81.6 mph off the bat, per Baseball Savant.
More encouragingly, he said “I feel great, guys, awesome, normal,” to reporters as he came in from on-field warm-ups. It was the second straight day of good news, as Betts also worked out Monday while Dodgers manager Dave Roberts reported that he was keeping solid foods down.
Roberts said before the game Tuesday that he hoped Betts would get three at-bats and four or five innings of defense and that, assuming all went well, the superstar would be assessed Wednesday while taking some light at-bats.
The Dodgers face the Detroit Tigers on Opening Day on Thursday.
When asked if there are lingering concerns about Betts’ weight loss and dehydration, Roberts said Betts has already put some weight back on:
“[Being concerned about weight loss] was kind of the thought, but he has put weight back on in the last couple days, which we feel good about. The strength testing that he’s done speaks to his strength, where it’s at, which is a good thing. We’ve managed the dehydration piece of it, he’s holding food down the last couple days, so all signs point toward turning a corner. We feel good about where he’s at for tonight.”
Betts was a bit more confident after the game, telling reporters “Once I step foot on the dirt, I’m ready to go.” Roberts later concurred.
The condition, as Betts described it Sunday, sounds brutal. It’s still not known what exactly he has, as tests of his vitals and blood have reportedly come back normal, but this ailment has been afflicting him since March 11 and made him absolutely miserable during travel for the Tokyo Series. Betts was a late scratch before the Dodgers’ season opener last week.
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As he told reporters, his body simply didn’t know what to do with food:
“My body’s just kind of eating itself,” he said. “It’s hard to not fuel it. And so every time — literally, every time — I fuel my body, I throw up. … I don’t know what to do.”
Betts is entering his 12th season and is one of the Dodgers’ most irreplaceable players, not just because of an eight-time All-Star track record. For the second straight year, he is attempting a move to shortstop, a position that has vexed the Dodgers since Trea Turner left in free agency after the 2022 season.
Without Betts, the Dodgers would likely start one of Tommy Edman, Miguel Rojas or Kiké Hernández at short, hurting their relatively shallow depth at center field and second base.
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