LAS VEGAS — Mookie Betts made the transition from elite right fielder to elite shortstop look seamless this past season, but his ability to shift from ballplayer to entertainer may come even more naturally.
Swap out his glove for a microphone, the diamond for a stage. He’s used to the bright lights, but there are moving parts everywhere, from following teleprompters and cues to knowing when the time is right to stray from the script. The common element is feel, and Betts has that in abundance.
“Somebody puts me on the spot with a mic,” Betts said on Wednesday, “I figure out what to say. I don’t know why or how, it just kind of comes.”
Oh, and he showed that he can swing a golf club nearly as well as he can swing a bat earlier in the day during the Capital One MLB Open.
Just a day in the life of a four-time World Series champion.
It was only a week and a half ago that Betts was playing on baseball’s biggest stage, turning the double play that secured back-to-back championships for his Dodgers. He’s set to take the stage again this week, in a more literal sense.
Betts is co-hosting the third annual MLB Awards presented by MGM Rewards alongside comedian Roy Wood Jr. in front of a live audience at the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Thursday night. The show will also air live on MLB Network from 9-11 p.m. ET/6-8 p.m. PT.
“I was telling my boys, it seems like I’m less nervous doing this than playing in Game 7,” Betts said. “In Game 7, I was way more nervous than thinking about doing this.”
Several current and former Major Leaguers are scheduled to attend the 2025 MLB Awards, including Ronald Acuña Jr., Corbin Carroll, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Dexter Fowler, Adam Jones, Cal Raleigh, CC Sabathia, Gary Sheffield, Will Smith and Juan Soto.
The All-MLB First Team and Second Team presented by MGM Rewards will be announced on Thursday, as well as the Hank Aaron Awards, the Comeback Players of the Year, the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter of the Year, the Mariano Rivera American League Reliever of the Year and the Trevor Hoffman National League Reliever of the Year.
There will also be recognition of the AUSL on the heels of the league’s inaugural season, with players and executives including Erin Coffel, Georgina Corrick, Hannah Flippen, Ana Gold, Jennie Finch and Kim Ng in attendance.
Betts has received plenty of awards in his decorated career, but presenting them is new territory. As he went through more than an hour of rehearsal for the big night, he seemed to pick up the ins and outs of the production quickly, ad-libbing with Wood when the moment called for it as if he were a seasoned pro.
Even Betts can’t quite put a finger on why all this comes naturally to him. He wouldn’t have imagined himself doing this in the past, as he poured himself into athletics from a young age.
“This is something I never, ever wanted to do,” Betts said. “Growing up, I didn’t want to give speeches. I didn’t want to do any of those things. … Sports, that’s all I did. It’s just really weird that I’m good at this, because this is not even really close to how I grew up.”
Perhaps it comes with the territory of being one of baseball’s biggest stars, or it’s just one of the many skills for which Betts seems to have an almost preternatural talent. Betts is baseball’s renaissance man, seemingly finding ways to succeed at everything he sets his mind to.
The way he sees it, it all comes from his competitive drive. In everything he does, he tries to be a little bit better with every additional repetition.
“Because I was an only child, everything I did,” Betts said, “I was competing with myself over and over again because I didn’t have anybody to play with. … I just think that just carries into everything. Just learned behavior.”
And with Betts serving as co-host, he could help make this year’s MLB Awards the best yet.
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