Mookie Betts becomes latest Dodgers player to skip White House visit, insists it's 'not political'
The Los Angeles Dodgers organization is the most successful current franchise on the field, and the most successful at finding ways to put themselves in the center of controversies.
All because they’re in a constant tug of war between making left-wing fans and sportswriters happy, and remaining apolitical because they are, of course, a baseball team. When they won the 2024 World Series, they faced a firestorm of criticism from left-wing sportswriters and some extreme fans for accepting President Donald Trump's invitation to visit the White House.
That continued almost immediately after LA won the 2025 title too, with pro-immigration groups like the National Day Laborer Organizing Network asking the Dodgers, a baseball team, to stand "on the right side of history." Writers for the Los Angeles Times were equally absurd, saying, "All in all, it’s hard to imagine the Dodgers agreeing to a celebratory photo op with the president right now. Los Angeles is not just Dodger blue, but Democrat blue."
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These criticisms were absurd, given that the traditional and ceremonial White House visit has nothing to do with politics. The Dodgers likely have players from all over the political spectrum. They have fans from all over the political spectrum. Yes, Los Angeles County is a Democratic Party stronghold. It also has more Republicans than any other county in the country, numerically. They also have a large national fanbase, with fans in states like Arizona, Georgia, and Texas who differ ideologically from those in LA County. Do those fans not matter?
But it’s clear that the team’s star players have heard them anyway, because shortstop Mookie Betts addressed them when saying he would not be joining his teammates on July 23.
The California Post reported over the weekend that Betts would be skipping the ceremony, though the 33-year-old said it had nothing to do with politics and more to do with spending time with his new baby.
"I’m not trying to make this a whole big deal," Betts said. "We just had a baby. You don’t get many days off. They’re coming [on the road trip]. And just want to hang out with the fam. That’s really kind of it. But people are gonna make it a whole bunch of other stuff."
He continued, telling Jack Harris that he knows his decision will be scrutinized regardless.
"If I do [go], people are gonna hate me. If I don’t, people are gonna hate me," he added. "So instead of trying to make everyone else happy, I’m gonna think about myself and my family."
He insisted that this decision was not politically motivated, and he did visit the White House after the team’s 2024 title.
"People are gonna try to drag me into politics, just because I am who I am. That’s just the cards I’m dealt," he said. "So it is what it is."
Therein lies the problem with making these visits into a political statement, as sportswriters do. Betts may have a legitimate reason for skipping the visit; it is a long and grueling season and off-days are few and far between. The White House trip takes up most of the day and requires formal dress. He also went just last season. Yet at the same time, the All-Star break starts on Monday and gives Betts three days off, before a travel day to New York to play the Yankees starting Friday night.
So if there’s ever a time during the season where skipping an off-day to go to the White House makes sense, it’s the week after the All-Star break. Still, Betts has been to the White House several times before, making the trip somewhat less appealing.
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Kike Hernandez also said he would not be making the visit, though he's scheduled to be on a rehab assignment when the big league team is on the East Coast. Still, he told reporters he would probably not have gone, likely out of protest that the Trump administration enforces immigration law.
All of this debate and disagreement could be avoided if supposedly impartial sportswriters just stopped forcing their ideology into every available corner. They would never make this ceremony a political statement with a Democratic Party politician in charge, because in their minds, any policy enacted by a Democrat is reasonable, justifiable, and obvious common sense thinking. Regardless of how absurd that view is to those on the right.
As manager Dave Roberts said, you should hope you get this invitation every season, because it means your team has won a championship. And these are athletes and coaches, not politicians. Especially not Hernandez, whose pro-illegal immigration stance does not make him a good person, no matter how much he wants it to.