Mookie Betts emerged from his early-season slump with two home runs to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a win against the San Diego Padres on Friday night, but he regressed in the second game of the series at Petco Park.
Betts went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts and stranded a game-high five runners in the Dodgers’ loss. He had a particularly costly at-bat in the second inning, when Yu Darvish struck out the 2018 American League MVP to strand the bases loaded.
That started a string of Darvish retiring 13 batters in a row to get through six scoreless innings.
Following the game Betts took blame for the Dodgers losing in extra innings due to his empty at-bats that played a part in Darvish finding a rhythm, via SportsNet LA:
“He’s a pretty good pitcher, so once he settles in against anybody, he’ll be just fine. We just let him off every single time, especially me. I just didn’t come through. Anytime you don’t come through to at least score one, it kind of builds his confidence. At that point, once his confidence is up, he’s one of the best pitchers in the game. …
“It seemed like every situation I was up, I failed. I let us down but I’ve got to be ready for [Sunday].”
On the season Betts is now batting .189/.306/.340 with two doubles, two home runs and five RBI. He’s maintained health is not an issue after playing through a bone spur in his right hip, but acknowledged there’s not yet a feel at the plate.
Betts: teammates helped with confidence
Widely regarded as one of the best right fielders in baseball and a former MVP winner, Betts is unaccustomed to struggling at the rate he has this season.
After breaking out in the series opener against the Padres, Betts credited teammates for their support during a stretch in which he admitted to not being strong mentally.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
