The Los Angeles Dodgers have dealt with a rash of injuries of late, and for a brief moment on Saturday night, it appeared Mookie Betts was likely to join the growing list.
Betts hit a two-run double in the fifth inning and as the ball rolled to the wall in center field, he looked to advance to third base. However, Betts slipped as he began to round second and went to the ground.
His left arm appeared to absorb must of the impact with the ground, and Betts immediately hunched over in pain upon getting back to second base. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and a trainer checked on the 29-year-old before he remained in the game.
Following the Dodgers’ comeback win, Betts said he believes the shoulder pain was caused by a stinger and it quickly dissipated, via SportsNet LA:
“I just hit a ball in the gap and it seemed like it kind of rolled around a little longer than I expected, so I tried to turn on the jets but I soon realized that I don’t have the jets anymore. So I slipped on the base and I put my arm down, and I don’t even know what happened really. It was like a little stinger or something and it was fine a minute or two after.”
Betts certainly didn’t appear to show any lingering effects as he pulled a single into left field his next time up at the plate. Then in the bottom of the seventh inning, Betts caught a sinking line drive and threw a strike to home plate for key a double play.
The outfield assist was Betts’ third of the season and he also enters play Sunday with a 10-game on-base streak.
Betts, Freeman driving Dodgers lineup
The Dodgers lineup during their winning streak has been led by Betts and Freddie Freeman helping set the table or provide run production between themselves.
“I want to score a lot of runs, and if I was going to have somebody behind me to help me score runs, it would be him,” Betts said of Freeman last week.
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