Shortstop Mookie Betts missed two exhibit games in Japan for the Los Angeles Dodgers due to illness, manager Dave Roberts said on Saturday.
Roberts said he still hopes eight All-Stars will be available for the team’s first regular-season game against the Chicago Cubs at Tokyo Dome on Tuesday. The Dodgers play the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers (two teams from Japan) in the Saturday and Sunday exhibition games.
Roberts said 32-year-old Betts began to experience flu-like symptoms on the final day of the team’s team in Arizona, but the team’s doctors said it’s okay for him to make a long trip to Japan.
“Mookie is here today, and he was really sick,” Roberts said. “We’ve lost weight so we’re trying to hydrate him. He’s going to do a little exercise today, but he’s not playing tonight or tomorrow.
“Then when we have our days off, when we have our training days, we’ll see how he’s going.”
Betts has made a full-time transition to shortstop this season after playing most of his career on right field and second base this season. The 2018 AL MVP helped the Dodgers win the World Series with 19 home runs and a .289 with 75 RBI last season.
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