Mookie

Betts

The exact timeline for Betts to make it back to Los Angeles from an oblique strain that put him on the shelf earlier this month remains a bit murky. The fact that he’s swinging a bat again is an extremely encouraging development. The 33-year-old fantasy stalwart is probably going to need a minor league rehab assignment to get his timing back before he’s ready to return.

Betts remains without a definitive timetable to return from a right oblique strain that he suffered while running the bases over the weekend, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts estimated it would be somewhere in the 4-6 week range. The fact that he’s back participating in baseball activities in a limited fashion is an encouraging sign, but fantasy managers shouldn’t expect him back until at least early-to-mid May in a best-case scenario.

Dodgers’ skipper Dave Roberts was hesitant to put a timeline on Betts’ potential return to action, but said he was hopeful that it would be less than the 4-to-6 weeks that is typically seen with an oblique injury. Hyeseong Kim was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City to take his place on the active roster.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts called the injury more “moderate than significant” but it sounds like Betts will miss at least the next couple of days. Whether or not this will require a stint on the injured list will largely be determined by the results of the imaging. Miguel Rojas will likely get the starts at short as long as Betts is out.

Betts must have experienced pain while crossing home plate on a run-scoring double by Freddie Freeman. The 33-year-old will miss the rest of Saturday’s contest with Miguel Rojas taking over at shortstop. Betts likely won’t be in the lineup Sunday, either, but his status is one that should be updated prior to that contest.

Miguel Rojas took over at shortstop in the bottom of the first frame after Betts scored a run on a Freddie Freeman double. There should be an update on why Betts needed to leave the game in the coming innings, but logic suggests there was some sort of injury for the 33-year-old while rounding the bases.

Betts smacked a 388-foot (99.5 mph EV) three-run shot off of Ryne Nelson in the third inning that gave the Dodgers a 4-2 lead. That would wind up being his only hit on the night, but it played a key role in the come-from-behind victory. The 33-year-old shortstop is now 2-for-8 (.250) with a homer and four RBi through his first two ballgames.

Throughout the spring, the second base position had been framed as a platoon situation between Santiago Espinal and Alex Freeland, so naturally it’s Rojas who gets the start there on Opening Day. It’s likely just manager Dave Roberts respecting and giving the nod to the 37-year-old veteran for Opening Day. Here’s the full lineup against Zac Gallen on Opening Day: Shohei Ohtani (DH), Kyle Tucker (RF), Mookie Betts (SS), Freddie Freeman (1B), Will Smith (C), Max Muncy (3B), Teoscar Hernandez (LF), Andy Pages (CF) and Miguel Rojas (2B).

It was a 414-foot shot off Jameson Taillon. Betts, who missed two days last week for the birth of his child, is 6-for-19 this spring.

Betts worked a one-out walk off of Grant Taylor in the sixth inning and ultimately scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Alex Freeland. He bounced into a double play and struck out in his other two plate appearances. For the spring, the 33-year-old shortstop is hitting a solid .313 (5-for-16) though he has just one RBI and has yet to hit a home run or steal a base.