Sports
Dodgers' Mookie Betts ruled out of Tokyo Series vs. Cubs because of stomach virus
TOKYO — Mookie Betts’ return to shortstop will have to wait until the Dodgers return home from Japan.
Betts will miss both of the Dodgers’ season-opening games at the Tokyo Dome this week against the Chicago Cubs, manager Dave Roberts said Monday, as he continues to recover from a stomach virus that has kept him out of action since last weekend.
Betts is expected to be ready for the Dodgers’ domestic home opener on March 27 against the Detroit Tigers. But in the meantime, Roberts said the Dodgers are “contemplating” sending him back home to Los Angeles early, before the team departs following Wednesday’s second game against the Cubs.
“He’s still trying to find his way [physically],” Roberts said. “I think the question is, what’s best to get him ready for opening day? We’re still talking. That’s on the table.”
Betts first started feeling sick before the team left for Japan last week. He made his final Cactus League appearance on March 9, continuing to transition back to a shortstop position he is slated to play full-time this year after a three-month stint there last year. But after reporting his symptoms to the club the next day, he was held out of the team’s final two games in Arizona.
Roberts said there wasn’t much initial consideration to having Betts miss the trip to Tokyo; nor concern that his illness, which Roberts said doctors didn’t believe was contagious, would spread to others on the team.
However, over the course of his sickness, Betts lost almost 15 pounds, according to Roberts, and looked noticeably slimmer when he arrived in Tokyo. Though he finally began feeling better in recent days, he was still battling lingering effects of dehydration and fatigue.
“The thing is when you lose a lot of weight, when you’re dehydrated, that’s what opens a person up to soft-tissue injuries,” Roberts said. “We’re very mindful of that. So to take the next week, call it, to build him back up, his strength, do some baseball activities to get ready for the home opener.”
Betts didn’t play in either of the Dodgers’ exhibition games against Japanese teams this weekend. During a pregame workout on Sunday, the 32-year-old former MVP looked visibly tired while taking ground balls, resting his hands on his knees several times between drills.
Betts was scheduled to participate in an off-day workout Monday, but ended up scrapping the session.
Roberts said the added toll of Betts’ move back to shortstop contributed to the team’s decision to hold him out of Tuesday and Wednesday’s season-opening games.
The manager also acknowledged that, if the Dodgers had known Betts wouldn’t be able to play in Tokyo, they likely would have had him stay back from the trip.
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Philadelphia Eagles star Jalen Hurts reportedly made a decision on whether he would attend the team’s Super Bowl celebration at the White House with President Donald Trump on Monday.
Hurts will not attend due to “scheduling conflicts,” Fox News confirmed.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts speaks to the media after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, Feb. 9, 2025. (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
The word of Hurts’ decision came hours before the celebration was set to take place. Hurts raised eyebrows last week when he dodged a question on the red carpet for the Time100 Gala about attending the celebration.
Hurts didn’t give a glowing review of the president’s decision to attend Super Bowl LIX, which saw Philadelphia defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22.
“He’s welcome to do what he wants,” Hurts said in February.
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Honoree Jalen Hurts attends the Time100 Gala, celebrating the 100 most influential people in the world, at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 24, 2025, in New York. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Meanwhile, running back Saquon Barkley was seen with Trump at his golf course in New Jersey on Sunday. He rode back to Washington on Air Force One with the president.
Barkley pushed back on the criticism he received on social media for his interactions with Trump.
“lol some people are really upset cause I played golfed and flew to the White House with the PRESIDENT,” Barkley wrote on X. “Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand. Just golfed with Obama not too long ago… and look forward to finishing my round with Trump ! Now ya get out my mentions with all this politics and have amazing day.”
President Donald Trump talks to Philadelphia Eagles’ Saquon Barkley before boarding Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in New Jersey. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Eagles team owner Jeffrey Lurie and head coach Nick Sirianni have both expressed their excitement to head to the White House.
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With a 12-2 win over Loyola on Saturday, Venice’s baseball team improved to 21-1 and is positioning itself for a high seeding in the City Section Open Division playoffs.
While the winner of the West Valley League, either Birmingham or El Camino Real, is the likely No. 1 seed, Venice has a good argument to be right behind. The Gondoliers are 14-0 in the Western League and own wins over Valley Mission League leader Sun Valley Poly and have a win over El Segundo, which is 17-6-1.
Coach Kevin Brockway has a senior-dominated team that includes Noel Moreno, who is 8-1 with an 0.58 ERA. Sophomore Jace Lindblom is 5-0 and senior Canon King is 6-0. Having three quality pitchers is a must to win a City Open Division title.
King leads the team in hitting with 30 hits. Venice has six games left on its regular-season schedule, with matchups against San Fernando and San Pedro set to be the toughest.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
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Shedeur Sanders was not the only person in Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders’ household to have a significant fall during the NFL Draft over the weekend.
Shilo Sanders, the defensive back who also played for the Colorado Buffaloes, failed to be selected at all. He was a bit of a long shot to be drafted, and experts predicted he would become an undrafted free agent once the event wrapped up on Saturday.
Colorado Buffaloes safety Shilo Sanders (Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
Sanders did find a time after the seven rounds finished. He signed a deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will now embark on a quest to make the 53-man roster before summer is over.
He said on Saturday afternoon that he needed to fire his father as his agent.
“Dad was our agent, but that hasn’t been working out too good,” he said during a Twitch livestream. “So today I had to sign with an agent. So, we’re going to see what happens.”
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Colorado Buffaloes safety Shilo Sanders (Dylan Widger-Imagn Images)
Sanders transferred to Colorado once his father took over as the head coach of the Buffaloes. He initially went to South Carolina.
He played in 21 games for Colorado between the 2023 and 2024 seasons. He had 137 tackles, one interception and one sack during his career. The lone interception was returned for a touchdown.
Sanders making the roster will be a tough journey.
Colorado Buffaloes safety Shilo Sanders (Troy Taormina-Imagn Images)
Tampa Bay selected cornerbacks Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish in the draft. The team already has Zyon McCollum, Jamel Dean, Josh Hayes, Tyreek Funderburk and Bryce Hall as corners; Antoine Winfield Jr., Christian Izien, Kaevon Merriweather and Marcus Banks are listed as safeties.
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