Mookie Betts is set to rejoin the active roster on Monday, and his return after five weeks on the injured list presents what Dodgers manager Dave Roberts calls a series of “good problems.”
Betts is expected to start at shortstop for Los Angeles in the series opener against the San Francisco Giants, marking his first game since being sidelined April 5 with an oblique strain. He went 2-for-5 during a two-game rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday and Saturday.
In eight games earlier this season with the Dodgers, Betts batted .179 with two home runs and seven RBIs. Despite the slow start, Roberts is counting on the usual spark Betts provides near the top of the lineup.
“It’s a good problem in a sense of where we’re at, but it’s a potential tough conversation,” Roberts said Sunday, acknowledging that the corresponding roster move could be complicated due to the three-man platoon deployed during Betts’ absence.
Hyeseong Kim saw the bulk of playing time at shortstop while Betts was out. Infielders Kim, Alex Freeland, and Santiago Espinal are all candidates to be moved off the roster. The Dodgers may option Freeland or Kim to the minors to ensure they get regular at-bats. Freeland, a switch-hitter who started the season on the Opening Day roster, has raised his average to .235 recently. Kim, who could shift to second base in a platoon with Miguel Rojas, is hitting .289 over 86 plate appearances.
Espinal, batting just .188, provides value as a utility infielder and late-game defender, but he is out of minor-league options.
Roberts has indicated that Betts will initially share time at shortstop before working his way back to everyday playing status.
“Who’s going to get the lion’s share (of playing time), how much is Mookie going to play, the value of somebody going to the minors and playing more vs. having some optionality with the roster. Opponent, off-days potentially and how much depth you need,” Roberts said, outlining the factors he’s weighing. “So there’s a lot of different ways you can go about it. We’re kind of in the process of having those conversations now.”
Infielder/outfielder Enrique Hernandez, who is recovering from an elbow injury, is also nearing a return. On a minor league rehab assignment, Hernandez is on the 60-day injured list but becomes eligible to return on May 24.
