Mookie Betts’s prolonged ordeal with a perplexing illness, which resulted in a nearly 20-pound weight loss, appears to be nearing its conclusion. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts informed reporters on Monday that the star shortstop is expected to participate in Tuesday’s exhibition finale against the Los Angeles Angels, the team’s final preparation before their home opener against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Mookie Betts Turns The Corner On Illness
This positive development suggests that Betts is on track to play in the highly anticipated home opener. “I do think Mookie’s turned a corner,” Roberts told reporters Monday, offering an encouraging update that contrasts starkly with Betts’ recent struggles.
Over the past few weeks, Betts endured an undiagnosed illness that caused significant weight loss and made it difficult to consume food without vomiting. The condition worsened while the team was in Tokyo for their season-opening series against the Chicago Cubs, leading to Betts being sent back to Los Angeles for recovery.
“I mean, I feel great,” Betts told reporters Sunday, despite being a late scratch for an exhibition game 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, whose blood work and other medical tests have returned normal results, participated in workouts on 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.”
This illness struck at a particularly inopportune time for Betts, who dedicated his offseason to transitioning to the Dodgers’ primary shortstop role. Prior to his health issues, he had shown significant improvement at the position during spring training. Betts, who hit .289 with 19 home runs and 75 RBIs last season in 116 games, returning to the lineup would be a significant boost for the defending World Series champions. The Dodgers also saw Freddie Freeman, who missed both games in Tokyo due to rib discomfort, return to the lineup.