Mookie Betts

Betts was drafted by the Red Sox in 2011, and made his MLB debut in the 2014 season,[2] splitting time between second base and the outfield.[9] When Little League Baseball coaches refused to accept Betts because of his small size, his mother started her own team so that her son could play.[15] The Boston Red Sox selected Betts in the fifth round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft with the 172nd overall pick as a second baseman.[25] Betts was a second-team inclusion on the Baseball America Minor League All-Star Team for 2013, with the first-team selection for second base going to Marcus Semien, an infielder for the Chicago White Sox.On June 3, Betts was promoted to the Pawtucket Red Sox of the Triple-A International League,[27] batting .322 and reaching base in all 23 games with the PawSox.[36] Betts made his debut on June 29, recording his first major league career hit against Yankees starter Chase Whitley in the fourth inning.[40] On August 29, Betts hit his first career grand slam against Rays pitcher Chris Archer in a Red Sox victory at Tropicana Field.[53][54] Betts was named the AL Player of the Month for July, when he batted .368 (35-for-95) with five home runs, 15 RBIs, five stolen bases and a 1.068 OPS in 23 games.[58] With the Red Sox finishing the season 93–69, the team clinched the AL East Division, but succumbed to a three-game sweep by the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 ALDS.[59] Wilson Sporting Goods named Betts it's Defensive Player of the Year at right field and best overall among all major league fielders.[60] After the season, Betts was named a finalist for the American League MVP Award, alongside Mike Trout and Jose Altuve.[65] Originally chosen as a reserve, it was announced on July 3 that Betts will start in place of Mike Trout, who was out due to surgery on his thumb.On April 17, 2018, Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe published a column titled, "Mookie Betts or Mike Trout: Who gets the nod?[75] Betts broke the tie with Williams and set the franchise record on May 2, hitting three home runs in a 5–4 win over the Kansas City Royals.[78] He became the fourth Red Sox player to hit 100 home runs before turning 26, the others being Tony Conigliaro, Jim Rice, and Ted Williams.[78] On July 8, while batting .343 with 22 home runs and 44 RBIs,[79] Betts was named to the 2018 MLB All-Star Game as an American League starting outfielder.[80] In a game against the Toronto Blue Jays on August 9, he hit for the cycle,[81] becoming the 21st player in Red Sox franchise history to accomplish the feat.[82] On September 26, Betts stole his 30th base of the season, becoming just the second player in Red Sox history to join the 30–30 club (the first was Jacoby Ellsbury in 2011).[98] On February 10, 2020, the Red Sox traded Betts, David Price and cash considerations to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for Alex Verdugo, Connor Wong and Jeter Downs.[103] On August 13, Betts hit three home runs against the San Diego Padres, his sixth three-homer game of his career, tying Sammy Sosa and Johnny Mize as the only players in MLB history to accomplish this feat.[120] On August 7, 2023, Betts hit his fifth career grand slam home run as a lead-off batter, tying a Major League record.[122] Heading into spring training in 2024, the plan was for Betts to become the Dodgers full-time second baseman, as the team had more outfielders that they wanted to get playing time.[123] However, the plan changed as a result of Gavin Lux's poor defense in Cactus League games, and on March 8, it was announced that Betts would instead become the Dodgers starting shortstop.[124] In a game on June 16, Betts was hit in the left hand by a 97.9 mph fastball thrown by Kansas City Royals pitcher Dan Altavilla, fracturing it and necessitating a lengthy stay on the injured list.[2] He then batted .278 in the 2024 World Series against the New York Yankees[2] and was involved in a couple of key plays in the deciding fifth game, beating out an infield hit to drive in a run and set up the Dodgers big comeback in the fifth inning and then in the eighth inning driving in the eventual winning run on a sacrifice fly.[a] In 2004, Shumpert spent his final season of professional baseball with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds and worked extensively with Betts.[145] He continued wearing the necklace after being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers, a season which culminated in him winning a second World Championship.