Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts says he is going to visit Donald Trump at the White House with his team next week, despite skipping the same trip in 2019 with the Boston Red Sox.
The Dodgers are going to meet with the President on Monday to celebrate their 2024 World Series triumph before they face the Washington Nationals. Given Betts rejected the chance to meet Trump as a Red Sox champion six years ago, there were question marks over him this time around.
But speaking to the LA Times, Betts says he will be there on Monday and the Dodgers now expect to have 100% attendance.
‘No matter what I say or what I do, people are gonna take it as political,’ he said. ‘This is not about me; I don’t want anything to be about me.
‘It comes with the territory, being Black in America in a situation like this. It’s a tough spot to be in.
‘No matter what I choose, somebody is gonna be p***ed. Somebody is gonna have their own opinion. But again, this is not about me. This is not about politics. This is about the Dodgers. It’s about my loyalty to these boys, this clubhouse. And that’s all it is for me.’
Mookie Betts says he will be at the White House Monday to celebrate the Dodgers
Betts added that he regretted his non-attendance for the ceremony at the White House in 2019.
His Dodgers manager, Dave Roberts, was also quoted by the Times as saying: ‘It wasn’t about putting pressure on any particular person. We still feel it’s a baseball thing for us. It’s tradition. And we’re doing it unified. So I’m excited about that.’
The Dodgers start a three-game series against the Nationals on Monday in Washington.
Betts, 32, was unwell before the start of the 2025 MLB season with a concerning mystery illness that saw him lose nearly 15 pounds in weight.
He missed the opening two games of the season with the bug, when the Dodgers started the season in Japan against the Chicago Cubs.
Betts said in late March: ‘I´m at 165lbs now, so another seven or eight pounds will help me a lot but 10 would be ideal.
As for his plan to regain the weight: ‘Keep eating. Just eating all day.
‘My chef and wife, both of them are doing enough cooking. I’m eating during the game.’
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