7/13/2025

MoOKie?


After playing 88 games in the first half of the 2025 season, Mookie Betts, who’s an 8-time All-Star and the 2018 AL MVP award winner, now hits .246/.316/.386 with 11 home runs and 45 RBI. In the 2025 season, Mookie Betts’ OPS is below .800 thus far.

Well, Mookie Betts made his MLB debut in 2014. From 2014 to 2024, he never finished a season with an OPS below .800. Looking at Mookie Betts’ stats in the 2025 season, it doesn’t look great. And his hitting performance in the 2025 season doesn’t look like the MVP award winner as we know.

So, is there anything wrong with this former MVP award winner? To solve my doubts, I decided to check on the statcast website.

 

Statcast Batting Stats (Mookie Betts)

 

2024

2025
(~07.12)

Exit Velocity

89.9

88.5

xwOBA

.356

.327

Hard-hit%

39.5

35.7

K%

11.0

10.6

BB%

11.8

9.1

 

Firstly, looking at Mookie Betts’ exit velocity, the average exit velocity was over 89 mph in 2024, but in the 2025 season, the number drops to 88.5 mph. Moreover, his xwOBA declines from .356 to .327. Also, his hard-hit rate decreases from 39.5% to 35.7%. Meanwhile, his BB% goes down as well. Furthermore, his strikeout rate doesn’t change much.

 

Statcast Batting Stats
(Mookie Betts, Fastball)

 

2024

2025
(~07.12)

BA

.327

.290

xwOBA

.414

.371

Whiff%

7.6

8.1

 

In addition, let’s look at his performance against each pitch type. Against fastballs, Mookie Betts’ batting average was .327 in 2024, but in 2025, his batting average drops to .290. Well, a batting average of .290 isn’t bad. However, his performance isn’t as good as it was in 2024. Moreover, his xwOBA against fastballs drops from .414 to .371. This is a huge drop. Also, his whiff rate against fastballs doesn’t change much.

 

Statcast Batting Stats
(Mookie Betts, Breaking)

 

2024

2025
(~07.12)

BA

.250

.156

xwOBA

.265

.265

Whiff%

23.8

24.5

 

And let’s look at Mookie Betts’ performance against breaking pitches. Last season, Mookie Betts owned a batting average of .250 against breaking pitches. Nonetheless, in 2025, it’s below .200. Clearly, it’s not good. Nevertheless, interestingly, his xwOBA against breaking pitches doesn’t change. However, his whiff rate against breaking pitches increases to 24.5%.

 

Statcast Batting Stats
(Mookie Betts, Offspeed)

 

2024

2025
(~07.12)

BA

.217

.325

xwOBA

.286

.298

Whiff%

26.3

29.9

 

Furthermore, let’s look at Mookie’s performance against offspeed pitches. Mookie Betts has a batting average over .300 against offspeed pitches. Last season, he had a .217 BA against offspeed pitches. Meanwhile, his xwOBA against offspeed pitches goes up as well. Hence, this looks like good news. Nonetheless, his whiff rate against offspeed pitches increases 3%.

 

Plate Discipline (Mookie Betts)

 

2024

2025
(~07.12)

Chase%

21.1

23.4

Swing%

40.4

42.7

Whiff%

14.9

16.8

 

Finally, let’s look at Mookie Betts’ plate discipline. As we can see, Mookie Betts’ chase rate grows from 21.1% to 23.4%. At the same time, his swing% increases from 40.4% to 42.7%. Also, his whiff rate goes up. Well, the difference isn’t huge. Nonetheless, the trend is clear.


So far, the 2025 season isn’t a great one for Mookie Betts. He didn’t play the Opening Series in Tokyo due to illness. In the meantime, his hitting performance hasn’t been as good as it was. As the stats show, his batting average against fastballs and breaking pitches drops. In particular, his performance against breaking pitches isn’t ideal. Well, there must be some reasons behind his hitting performance. During the All-Star break, the Dodgers front office and Mookie Betts will have to find a solution and help the former MVP award gradually heat up in the second half of the 2025 season.

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