The San Diego Padres missed out on an opportunity to nab Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts, prompting a series of "what if" scenarios.
In a prior World Series, Mookie Betts showed his greatness, leading Boston to a World Series win over the Dodgers.
The Dodgers managed to nab Betts in a trade with the Boston Red Sox, who were looking to offload the outfielder to shed payroll, giving Los Angeles a wonderful opportunity on the trade market.
However, before the Red Sox ever got a hold of Betts, the Padres were highly interested in drafting him out of high school in the 2011 MLB Draft.
"You know what's crazy is the Padres were actually the team that was most in on me," Betts said on a recent episode of his podcast with Padres star Jackson Merrill.
" I remember I will never forget I remember thinking that I was gonna be a Padre and I remember the scout.
"I remember everything about it. I remember multiple days meeting this guy. I mean, I remember having just special a special workout, just hitting BP, I'm like I'm Padres.
"This is it, and then comes draft day. Obviously, you know things change, but yeah, it's wild that I feel the Red Sox is alright though. Yeah, it worked out, it worked out."
Betts became the face of the Dodgers franchise, giving the organization a building block that would lead the team to two World Series victories and attracting franchise stars like Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman.
These moves would not be possible without Betts' selflessness in sharing the spotlight in Los Angeles and his willingness to recruit these great players.
Betts possibly could have never ended up ever playing for the Dodgers if he had been drafted by the Padres, potentially enjoying his own dynasty down south.
Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Jackson Merill, joined by Betts, would be a tantalizing batting lineup, likely taking place in an alternative universe.
In the real world, Betts is positioned to go down as an all-time great player, potentially winning another couple of titles with the Dodgers before he hangs up the cleats.
