Mookie Betts’ long ordeal with a mystery illness that has caused him to shed nearly 20 pounds might finally be nearing its end. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Monday that the star shortstop is expected to play in Tuesday’s exhibition finale against the Los Angeles Angels, which is the Dodgers’ final tune-up before hosting the Detroit Tigers in Thursday’s home opener.
If he can take the field for Tuesday’s exhibition, Betts could be on track to play in the home opener.
“I do think Mookie’s turned a corner,” Roberts told reporters Monday.
That encouraging update stands in contrast to Betts’ last few weeks, during which the manager said Betts shed 18 pounds due to an undiagnosed illness that made it difficult to eat food without vomiting. The condition seemed to worsen last week while the team was in Tokyo for its season-opening two-game set against the Chicago Cubs.
As the team opened its season, Betts was sent home to Los Angeles to recuperate.
“I mean, I feel great,” Betts told reporters Sunday, when he was a late scratch for an exhibition against the Angels. “Like, my body feels great. I’ve been able to work out. I’ve been able to do pretty much everything but eat, which is strange. So the symptoms have kind of gone away, I just have to figure out how to get my stomach to kind of calm down.”
Betts, who said his blood work and other tests have come back normal, worked out Monday.
“It’s just hard to fathom not eating and going to play a game,” Betts said. “So it looks like I’m just going to be light for a little bit. Maybe I play uphill a little bit for the beginning of the season. But no, I just want to play, man. I’m tired of sitting, tired of throwing up, tired of doing all this. I really just want to play.”
The mystery illness came at an inopportune time for Betts. He had spent the entire offseason putting in work to become the team’s primary shortstop after previously playing in right field and at second base. Before being slowed by the condition, Betts had opened eyes in camp, showing a level of comfort at the position where he struggled last spring while trying to undergo a similar transition.
Betts hit .289 with 19 homers and 75 RBI last season in 116 games. Getting him back would be a boost for the Dodgers, the defending World Series champions. Freddie Freeman, who also missed both games in Tokyo, has since returned to the lineup after battling rib discomfort.
(Photo: Kiyoshi Mio / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
