Mookie Betts Saga moves to right field
By Rick McNair
The box score line for Mookie Betts was nothing special. Betts went 0-2, but had two runs scored and two walks as the Pawtucket Red Sox defeated the Norfolk Tide 7-3 in picturesque Pawtucket – gateway to Attleboro, Massachusetts.
What the attention getter was is Mookie was station in right field.
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Mookie Betts has risen quickly in the farm system with the same level of speed he displays on the baseball diamond. In his short stay (22 games) Betts’ slash line is .330/.442/.455 with seven steals in nine attempts. Mookie also has two home runs and 14 RBI from his usual lead off slot.
The curtain is closing on Shane Victorino for 2014. Injury after injury has limited Shane to a series of medical bulletins instead of his usual positive game notes. Right field has become a mix and match for John Farrell and certainly a defensive downgrade from the Victorino standard. Mookie awaits.
Betts’ first option was center field where the Sox brain trust deposited Betts in hope he would adjust to the position and allow some leverage to the disappointing Jackie Bradley. Now, with Victorino in pain and Bradley having a .292 road trip so far, the model may change. Stamp that transfer paper to RF.
Mookie is the Sox number one prospect. Betts has met every challenge tossed his way – advancement in the system, defensive switches and the rising tide of publicity.
The diminutive Betts is a baseball version of the energizer bunny. Is he worth the quick risk up the corporate ladder? Simple fact is Mookie is making the case for himself and with the latest maneuver his time at Pawtucket may be coming to a close.