Mookie Betts won his second World series in October, but this weekend marks his first time reminiscent of a world Series victory with President Donald Trump.
Betts won a title with Boston Red Sox in 2018, the same year he was appointed American League MVP.
However, he chose to skip the team’s celebration into the White House in 2019.
That will not be the case this year.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Shortstop Mookie Betts celebrates after winning the World Series in 2024 against New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. (Wendell Cruz/Imag images)
“This is not about me; I don’t want anything about me. This is about dodgers. Because these boys were there for me,” said Betts via La Times.
Betts said he regretted not taking the trip in 2019, which manager Alex Cora and pitcher David Price also skipped and said he felt he was a distraction.
“Whatever I say or what I do, people will take it as political. But that’s definitely not what it is. This is about what Dodgers were able to achieve last year,” he said.
Cora recently admitted that he jumped into meeting Trump because he would prioritize his homeland Puerto Rico. When Red Sox visited the White House in May 2019, Puerto Rico was still recovering from the destruction of Hurricane Maria in 2017, and Cora was not happy with the federal government’s response.
Mookie Betts from Los Angeles Dodgers responds after (Daniel Shirey/MLB photos via Getty Images)
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Other dodgers had been asked about their status for the trip, but Betts’ decision was understandably top of the mind.
“That’s what it is. It comes with the territory, being black in America in a situation like this. It’s a tough place to be in,” he said. “Whatever I choose, someone gets cursed. Someone wants their own opinion. But again it’s not about me. This is not about politics. This is about dodgers. It’s about my loyalty to these boys, this clubhouse. And that’s all that is to me.”
Dodgers defeated Trump’s hometown of New York Yankees in five games last year.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman, Left; Shohei Ohtani, Center; And Mookie Betts poses with their rings during a ringing ceremony for the World Series before a game against Detroit Tigers March 28, 2025 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Philadelphia Eagles will visit the White House later this month, and the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers visited earlier this year.
