LOS ANGELES — Mookie Betts’ tenure as the Dodgers’ everyday shortstop lasted three games.
With the Dodgers facing a left-handed starter for the first time this season on Friday, their lineup changed with Betts moving to second base and Miguel Rojas starting at shortstop. Chris Taylor (left field) and Kiké Hernandez (center field) also replaced left-handed hitters Jason Heyward and James Outman in the outfield.
After starting six left-handed hitters in each of the first three games, the Dodgers sent six right-handed hitters to face St. Louis Cardinals starter Zack Thompson.
It won’t be a total platoon system, though, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“It’s definitely not a platoon situation,” Roberts said. “I want Mookie to get as many reps as possible while keeping Miguel Rojas involved.
“Even with James and Max, (they’ll play against) kind of every other left-handed situation from now on.”
The Cardinals will start another lefty (Steven Matz) on Sunday. Roberts said Max Muncy might take that day off and he hasn’t decided whether Betts will be back at shortstop with Gavin Lux or Hernandez at second base.
Over the winter, when Roberts talked to Betts about the possibility of becoming the Dodgers’ everyday second baseman, the Dodgers manager said he didn’t think Betts wanted to go through another season of moving between positions like he did between right field and second base last year.
“I don’t think that uncertainty is something he wants to replicate,” Roberts said at the time.
Things changed this spring with the Dodgers’ decision to drop Lux at shortstop and that no longer applies, Roberts said.
“No, it’s not,” he said Friday. “I think, as I’ve learned, there are some things that can’t be set in stone because they always seem to change. At that point (when he spoke with Betts in the offseason), with what we knew, Gavin was going to play shortstop. This is simply not the case. So this involves conversation, openness and understanding which Mookie demonstrated and demonstrated flexibility.
“That’s kind of where we are right now. There will be times when he moves to second base to get Rojas in there.
RETURN OF BUEHLER
Right-hander Walker Buehler will pitch for Triple-A Oklahoma City as part of a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment Sunday in Tacoma, Washington. This will be Buehler’s first game since a rehab assignment last September was cut short after a two-inning appearance with OKC.
The Dodgers are delaying Buehler’s return from Tommy John surgery into 2022. He is not expected to make his season debut until May.
Buehler pitched to batters and Roberts said he could make up to four starts while rehabbing.
“I don’t think it’s set in stone, but I think four is probably right, start or take. I think four is reasonable,” Roberts said.
“It’s about building. It’s about building and then refining his whole pitching mix so that once he gets here, he can go six innings and recover well and he feels equipped to go out there and consistently strike out major league hitters.
OHTANI THROWS
Shohei Ohtani played the outfield before Friday’s game, throwing about 50 short-distance throws.
Ohtani underwent elbow surgery last October and just started a throwing program earlier this week. He plays catch every other day.
The Dodgers said Ohtani would not pitch until 2025.
ALSO
The Dodgers signed veteran left-hander Drew Pomeranz to a minor league contract and added him to their Triple-A roster.
Pomeranz, 35, has not pitched in a big league game since the 2021 season due to a series of injuries and has only managed 10⅓ innings in the San Diego Padres’ minor league system over the past few years. last two seasons. He participated in spring training with the Angels this season, but was released last week.
FOLLOWING
Cardinals (RHP Lance Lynn, 13-11, 5.73 ERA in 2023) vs. Dodgers (RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 0-1, 45.00 ERA), Saturday, 6:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM
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