Dodgers Dugout: Mookie Betts at short: How’s he doing?

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and how is it we are almost one-third of the way through the season already?

The Dodgers surprised many people in spring training when they announced that Mookie Betts would be their starting shortstop. This came after a poor spring at short by Gavin Lux, who was going to be the starter before he was shifted to second base to make room for Betts.

Betts was a Gold Glove winner in right field and played second base in 70 games last season. But to move to shortstop, the toughest defensive position to play (well, maybe catcher)? And doubters (including this newsletter) pointed out that Betts, listed at 5-9 and 180 pounds, could wear down during the season, hurting him offensively.

But here we are, 52 games into the season, and he has played short much better than many imagined and is hitting .330, making him a leading MVP candidate.

Betts had almost no professional experience at short, playing 13 games there in the minors in 2012, one in 2013 and 16 games at short for the Dodgers last season.

So how is he doing? Depends on whom you ask.

Betts, after Friday’s win over Cincinnati, in which he made an error: “I think it’s been … not very good, but it is what it is. It’s a work in progress. It’s my first time doing it in a long time. You have to start somewhere, and at least with me, feeling like I’m on the lower end, there’s nowhere to go but up from here.”

Dave Roberts: “I think his defense has been fine. It’s probably never going to be to his standards, and that’s what makes him great. Taking this on, it’s not going to be linear. He’s his harshest critic, so I expect him to be frustrated. But I’m pleased with him.”

More from Betts, talking specifically about Friday’s throwing error that extended the inning for James Paxton: “Making errors really, really bothers me. Just have to be better than that. It doesn’t just affect me. It affects [James] Paxton, who has to throw more pitches. I just have to keep working.”

You get the sense that Betts could have played short flawlessly this season and still would find something to be critical of. That’s what makes some players great, the continual striving for perfection.

Betts certainly passes the eye test. Has he occasionally looked a bit awkward? Sure, but considering he’s learning the position on the fly while also batting leadoff, he is doing remarkably well. Anyone who wants to knock him at short needs to look at the big picture.

But how does he do, numbers-wise?

Fielding numbers aren’t as illuminating as hitting or pitching numbers, because it is an inexact science. Does one shortstop get a lot more assists because the pitching staff is filled with groundball pitchers or because he has more range? Does this player make more errors because he gets to more balls and has more chances for errors? I always go back to Yasiel Puig. He would get raves for his defense, because sometimes he would run half a mile, make a diving attempt and just miss the catch in foul territory. Standing ovation from the fans. However, Puig was actually out of position, not paying attention to the coaches. If he had been paying attention, he catches that same fly ball easily. No standing ovation. But the guy who pays attention and catches the ball easily doesn’t get noticed.

So, keeping in mind that fielding numbers aren’t perfect, let’s take a look at some, because they do shed some light on the matter.

There are 26 players who have started at least 30 games at short this season (Betts has started 41). Those are the players we will rank in all categories except of most errors. Here are the top five, and where Betts ranks (numbers courtesy of baseball-reference.com).

Most errors
1. Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati, 10
1. Oneil Cruz, Pittsburgh, 9
3. Ha-Seong Kim, San Diego, 7
3. José Caballero, Tampa Bay, 7
3. Masyn Winn, St. Louis, 7
3. Paul DeJong, Chicago White Sox, 7
3. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 7

Fielding percentage
1. Ezequiel Tovar, Colorado, .995
2. Orlando Arcia, Atlanta, .989
3. Willy Adames, Milwaukee, .984
4. Carlos Correa, Minnesota, .982
5. Nick Ahmed, San Francisco, .981
23. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, .955

Fielding runs above average
(The number of runs above average compared to others at his position. A league average fielder would have 0)

1. Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore, 6
2. Corey Seager, Texas, 5
2. Masyn Winn, St. Louis, 5
4. Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City, 4
5. Orlando Arcia, Atlanta, 3
5. Anthony Volpe, N.Y. Yankees, 3
T11. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 1

Defensive runs saved
(Indicates how many runs a player saved or cost his team in the field compared to others at his position. The best fielders at each position usually have at least 15 at the end of the year.)

1. Masyn Winn, St. Louis, 7
1. Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City, 7
3. Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore, 5
4. Anthony Volpe, N.Y. Yankees, 4
4. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 4
4. Brayan Rocchio, Cleveland, 4

Range factor per nine innings
(How many balls a player gets to per nine innings)

1. Nick Ahmed, San Francisco, 4.59
2. Ezequiel Tovar, Colorado, 4.55
3. Masyn Winn, St. Louis, 4.47
4. Jeremy Peña, Houston, 4.45
5. Javy Báez, Detroit, 4.22
12. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 3.78

Most errors made while fielding the ball
1. Oneil Cruz, Pittsburgh, 7
2. José Caballero, Tampa Bay, 4
2. Nick Allen, Oakland, 4
4. Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City, 4
4. Blaze Alexander, Arizona, 4
T26. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 1

Most errors made while throwing the ball
1. Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati, 9
2. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 6
3. Masyn Winn, St. Louis, 5
4. Paul DeJong, Chicago White Sox, 4
4. Tim Anderson, Miami, 4

Almost all of Betts’ errors have come on throws, including one during the third inning Wednesday, and while he grades out at the middle of the pack in the traditional fielding metrics (errors and fielding percentage), he is above average in the newer fielding stats. Considering everything, you have to say he is doing better than most expected on defense. I’m still not sure the Dodgers aren’t better off with Miguel Rojas at short and Betts at second, but you can’t criticize Betts, particularly when you consider the amount of work he has put in.

Offense is listless

The Dodgers’ offense has been listless for a little while now, like they think it’s the postseason. They still haven’t solved their problems in the bottom third of the lineup, which means that when a couple of players at the top of the lineup struggle, they don’t score runs. Andy Pages has stopped hitting, and he was the only one in the bottom third doing anything. Here’s a look at the Dodgers’ numbers the last two weeks:

Shohei Ohtani, .348/.412/.544, 3 doubles, 2 homers, 7 RBIs
Chris Taylor, .333/.333/.333, 2 for 6
Mookie Betts, .277/.359/.489, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 2 RBIs
Miguel Rojas, 3 for 11, 2 doubles, 1 RBI
Gavin Lux, .256/.273/.395, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 5 RBIs
Freddie Freeman, .239/.333/.413, 2 doubles, 2 homers, 8 RBIs
Kiké Hernández, .222/.300/.444, 2 homers, 2 RBIs
Will Smith, .205/.326/.359, 3 doubles, 1 homer, 6 RBIs
Teoscar Hernández, .188/.250/.313, 1 double, 1 triple, 1 homer, 8 RBIs
Jason Heyward, .143/.200/.357, 1 homer, 2 RBIs
Miguel Vargas, 1 for 7, 1 double
Andy Pages, .128/.180/.213, 1 double, 1 homer, 3 RBIs
Austin Barnes, 1 for 8
James Outman, .059/.200/.118, 1 double
Max Muncy, .046/.115/.046, 2 RBIs
Team, .213/.281/.358, 18 doubles, 4 triples, 12 homers, 3.69 runs per game

The Dodgers are 7-6 in that time frame, thanks to some excellent pitching.

Bottom of the lineup

We’ll keep track of this throughout the season, because I have a feeling this is going to be crucial when the postseason comes around. Here are the best and worst team batting averages for the Nos. 7-9 spots in the batting order:

1. Milwaukee, .281/.344/.450
2. Angels, .273/.340/.435
3. N.Y. Mets, .266/.316/.393
4. Houston, .265/.308/.401
5. San Diego, .253/.308/.366

26. Miami, .203/.252/.317
27. Chicago White Sox, .202/.246/.315
28. Minnesota, .201/.275/.337
29. Dodgers, .190/.258/.295
30. Oakland, .184/.281/.323

The Dodgers have dropped seven places since we checked two weeks ago.

Let’s look at the Dodgers in the Nos. 7-9 spots individually:

No. 7 (mainly Outman and Pages): .190/.254/.256
No. 8 (mainly Lux, Taylor and Pages): .170/.243/.302
No. 9 (mainly Lux, Barnes and Rojas): .210/.280/.330

These names look familiar

We’re doing something a little different this season. Instead of looking only at players who were with the team last season, we will expand it to include notable players from the past. Click on the player’s name for a complete look. Numbers are through Wednesday.

Yency Almonte, Chicago Cubs, 1-0, 3.45 ERA, on the IL

Tyler Anderson, Angels, 5-4, 2.52 ERA

Cody Bellinger, Chicago Cubs, .248/.327/.461, 122 OPS+

Michael Busch, Chicago Cubs, .242/.329/.450, 120 OPS+

Jonny DeLuca, Tampa Bay, .260/.362/.460, 137 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, N.Y. Yankees, 0-3, 5.29 ERA

Victor González, N.Y. Yankees, 2-1, 2.45 ERA, 2 saves

Bryan Hudson, Milwaukee, 2-0, 0.68 ERA

Kenley Jansen, Boston, 1-1, 3.24 ERA, 8 saves

Craig Kimbrel, Baltimore, 4-1, 3.63 ERA, 9 saves

Lance Lynn, St. Louis, 2-2, 3.68 ERA

J.D. Martinez, N.Y. Mets, .294/.333/.435, 126 OPS+

Zach McKinstry, Detroit, .197/.289/.242, 55 OPS+

Shelby Miller, Detroit, 3-4, 4.41 ERA, on the IL

Ryan Pepiot, Tampa Bay, 3-2, 3.98 ERA

David Peralta, 0 for 2, 1 RBI

Luke Raley, Seattle, .300/.330/.464, 131 OPS+

Amed Rosario, Tampa Bay, .294/.308/.412, 107 OPS+

Corey Seager, Texas, .253/.346/.404, 115 OPS+

Trayce Thompson, in the minors with N.Y. Mets

Justin Turner, Toronto, .225/.304/.373, 95 OPS+

Trea Turner, Philadelphia, .343/.392/.460, 145 OPS+

Alex Verdugo, N.Y. Yankees, .254/.325/.422, 111 OPS+

Up next

Friday: Dodgers (*James Paxton, 5-0, 2.84 ERA) at Cincinnati (Graham Ashcraft, 3-3, 4.25 ERA), 4:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ

Saturday: Dodgers (Walker Buehler, 1-1, 4.05 ERA) at Cincinnati (Hunter Greene, 2-2, 3.22 ERA), 4:15 p.m., Fox, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ

Sunday: Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 5-1, 3.17 ERA) at Cincinnati (*Andrew Abbott 3-4, 2.68 ERA), 10:40 a.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani buys La Cañada Flintridge mansion from Adam Carolla for $7.85 million

Shohei Ohtani meets Cameron Brink. His wife, an ex-pro player, wants to meet Sparks rookie too

Hernández: Freddie Freeman can still be great. He just has to do more to tap into it

‘He’s turned into a weapon.’ How Michael Grove became a high-leverage Dodgers reliever

‘Freak of nature’: Inside Shohei Ohtani’s career-best start to his first Dodgers season

Dodgers roster moves: Jason Heyward returns to lineup, Max Muncy joins injured list

Dodgers pitcher Emmet Sheehan has season-ending Tommy John surgery

And finally

The Dodgers take on the Oakland A’s on “Family Feud.” Watch and listen here.