Mookie Betts Bio And Facts

Mookie Betts

Mookie Betts is one of Major League Baseball's most dynamic, well-rounded superstars. He started with the Boston Red Sox in 2014 but became a Los Angeles Dodger in 2020, the team he plays for currently. 

Betts is considered one of the league's premier "five-tool players;" he hits for average, hits for power, has exceptional speed, defends well in the outfield, and has a strong and accurate throwing arm. Who else can hit 32 home runs and steal 30 bases in a single season, and then next year throw a runner out at third with a missile from the right field warning track? At his modest height of 5'9," not many players have the strength and power that Betts does.

Read on to learn all about Mookie Betts, including his career, net worth, the titles and awards he's achieved, and some fun facts about his personal life.

• Birthdate: October 7, 1992 (7-10-1992)
• Birthplace: Smyrna, Tennessee
• Education: John Overton High School, University of Tennessee
• Net Worth: $50 million
• Occupation: Professional baseball player, professional bowler
• Height: 5’9” (171 cm)
• Weight: 180 lbs (81 kg)
• Position: Outfielder (usually center or right field)
• Years Active: 2014-Present
• Teams: Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Team USA

Social Media:

• Twitter
• Instagram
• YouTube

Net Worth

Mookie Betts’ net worth is approximately $50 million. His huge salary of around $30 million per year over 12 years ($365 million total) represents the largest contract the LA Dodgers have ever handed out. His popularity on both the East and West Coast has also netted him lucrative endorsements from brands such as Red Bull, Rawlings, and New Balance, the latter of which is worth about $7 million per year.

Career

Though Betts is best known as a versatile outfielder today, when the Boston Red Sox drafted him in the fifth round of the 2011 MLB draft, they were planning on Betts being a second baseman. He played second base in college and through the minors, but when making it to the majors, he was moved to the outfield to keep Gold Glover Dustin Pedroia at second. Through his natural athleticism and work ethic, Betts was able to make the most of his new position, racking up six Gold Gloves on the outfield grass.

Not only is Betts an excellent fielder, he’s also one of the league’s most consistent hitters. Betts’ ability to square up to the ball has brought him up to a career slugging percentage of .520. Only three players 5’9” or shorter have ever exceeded that figure, and none of them played after 1947. 

Titles and Awards

Betts is a two-time World Series champion, once with the Red Sox and once with the Dodgers. A six-time All-Star, Betts has six Gold Glove and five Silver Slugger awards in his trophy cabinet, exemplifying his continued dominance on both sides of the diamond.

2018 in particular could be called the year of Mookie Betts. He won the AL batting title with a .346 average, .16 points clear of his teammate J.D. Martinez. That same year, Betts and the Red Sox defeated the Dodgers in the World Series, two years before Betts joined them and won the championship in Dodger blue.

Personal Life

Mookie Betts was born Markus Lynn Betts in Smyrna, Tennessee, in the Nashville metropolitan area. Both his parents, Diana Benedict and Willie Betts, are African-American. Willie served in the Air Force during the Vietnam War and later became a railroad superintendent, while Diana is an avid baseball coach and bowler who got her son into both sports. 

Growing up, Betts was more into basketball than baseball, and looked up to Kobe Bryant as his main influence. But when he made the switch to baseball, he took inspiration from Derek Jeter's defense and Manny Ramirez' swing. He's said that his mentality on the game has been shaped by a composite of athletes in different sports.

In 2021, Mookie Betts married his longtime girlfriend Brianna Hammonds, with whom he has a daughter, Kynlee Ivory.

Fun Facts

• Betts was born in Smyrna, Tennessee, and played college ball for the nearby Tennessee Volunteers.
• Betts is a switch-hitter, meaning that he can bat left or right-handed. He's consistent from both sides of the plate, hitting .292 as a righty and .295 as a lefty.
• Though Mookie Wilson was a Met during the 1980s, Mookie Betts' nickname came from an NBA guard: Mookie Blaylock, whom his parents watched a lot when he played for the Atlanta Hawks in the early 90s.
• Betts wears #50, because, in his words, "nobody else wants it." 
• Betts has also achieved two perfect games…in bowling. He rolled twelve straight strikes for a 300 score at the 2017 World Series of Bowling, then during the Dodgers' bye in the 2022 Wild Card Round, he scored 300 again.

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