6:23 pm: Betts’ finger has some swelling, but x-rays fortunately came back negative, manager Dave Roberts told reporters, including Ken Gurnick of MLB.com (Twitter links). He’s day-to-day.
5:41 pm: Mookie Betts was lifted for a pinch hitter in the seventh inning of this afternoon’s game against the Diamondbacks. The club since announced (Twitter link) that he is dealing with soreness in his left middle finger.
There’s no indication there’s particular cause for alarm, but it’s eye-opening whenever a player of Betts’ caliber leaves a game for health reasons. The superstar hasn’t played at quite his typical level to start his Dodger career, but there’s no questioning his importance to the organization both short and long term.
For now, the hope is surely that Betts will return to the field in short order. The Dodgers are in position to exercise all due caution given the strength of their roster. Edwin Ríos replaced Betts in the lineup today, perhaps indicating he’d be first in line for extra playing time should Betts need some time off.
Looks like all Betts are off.
Afraid not. Once you put your money in you can’t take it back in the middle of a hand.
He homered post finger injury, if that helps anyone.
The finger is a heck of a long way from the heart! Get back in there! Just channeling my inner Herb Brooks…only kidding.
Omg. Where will they find another outfielder.
Well he signed a 365 M contract, can’t take any chances with a sore finger
Betts, out for the season, sore finger
Flipping off the Sox?
Bowling injury?
Hey at least Mookie, didn’t stick up his left middle finger up when it was sore. The way Yoenis Céspedes did to the Mets & all of baseball. Betts does have class.
His stats are actually pretty good so far this season.
His .301 lifetime batting average is carried by one season he hit 345. Otherwise, he’s only been above 300 2 out of 7 seasons. Definitely not worth the money.
You’re going by batting average to say whether somebodies worthy of a contract or not?
Would you pay a perennial .250 hitter the same money Betts received? Wild Bill says no.
Good one, Antifa. What a kidder!
Since batting average is so important to you, another way you can say that is, after 6 completed seasons, he has batted under .291 just once. But Betts isn’t a one trick pony. He doesn’t ONLY hit for a good average. He does it all.
Perhaps the reason batting average has fallen out of favor is because when you compare generations current players do not come off well. .
Of course a Giants fan is behind with the times and thinks batting average matters. His career OPS+ is 133. He is a top 5 player in the sport easily.
It was probably the middle finger that he gave to the Red Sox when he signed that contract extension with LA
Brain and Betts have to stop picking their noses during the pandemic.
The beginning of a terribly bad contract signing by the Dodgers. Honestly, Betts will likely be fine but he will fade and will not be worth what they paid him.
Likely?
He hit a Homer opposite field 2 pitches after the injury
Look at all the mad Boston fans on this thread. Laughable
Actually, I wanted to trade him. Been saying it since 2018 that we couldn’t afford him.
FYI You’d be laughing at us if we signed him and he failed (as had so many of our contracts), so there’s no validity to the laughing.
Mr. batting average should probably look at stats like OPS, 4 gold gloves, defensive player of the year, led the mlb base running 1st to 3rd….there is nothing he can not do……
…..but on a 12 year contract no one is worth the money the last 3 or 4 years whether it is A-rod, Puljos ….. it doesn’t mean that those players weren’t worth what they were paid during the contract as a whole in most cases
Mike Trout says hello.
Very easy to say a contract is worth it a year or so in. Tulos didn’t look so bad early on
Arod was worth his first contract (peds aside) on the right team
Dave Roberts needs to learn the same lesson Alex Cora did: Mookie is a leadoff hitter, stop batting him second
Dave Roberts should learn to stop listening to the front office.
3rd in the Majors in runs scored, 1st in the Majors in ERA. What’s the problem?
Okay I thought this was obvious but it seems I need to explain the point, which is: Roberts is not deciding to bat Betts second in some games based on his own gut instinct, he’s doing it on the basis on the data being produced by the front office. So if you have a problem with where he’s batting your problem isn’t with Dave Roberts, it’s with the front office. FWIW I don’t have a problem with Betts in the two-hole, it’s others who do.
The Dodgers led the NL in runs scored in 2018 and 2019. I’d say Dave Roberts knows more about filling out a lineup card than you do. In more than 50 years as a Dodger fan, he’s the best manager I’ve seen…and it isn’t close.
Do not disagree with you yet with the LO the Dodgers have fielded the past couple years it would be difficult to muck it up. Don’t forget his bewildering “Sunday Line-Ups”, boy those were fun.
And again, the point is these aren’t decisions made by Dave Roberts based on how he feels today. For better, for worse, or for whatever, the Dodgers dugout and front office are hard-linked, as much as they are on any team in baseball. If you do (or don’t) like the in-game decisions Roberts makes he should not get all the credit (or all the blame). And for the record, I like Dave Roberts. He deserves a lot of credit for the aspects of management that are under the waterline, the part that fans never see, which is most of it.
He’s been leading off most games.
He’s actually hitting better in the 2 hole than leading off thus far…
In the Dodgers lineup it doesn’t really matter purely from a hitting perspective if Mookie is at 1 or 2 given the level of talent around him. But he probably benefits more from leading off and the greater number of opportunities to take extra bases than any of the other options for that spot would (Seager, Turner, Muncy) so in the Dodgers lineup specifically he probably should stay at lead off.
Rsox- Yes, I agree if Mookie becomes the leadoff hitter for the Dodgers I definitely think he will be the MVP in the NL in this short season. If that finger is ok.
Yank4life.. In a short season, a lot of players could be the MVP.
Good luck this season Mookie don’t miss you at all in Boston.
He probably injured it getting down on his knee for the National Anthem………
Then lots of people will have sore fingers, myself included.
Tape your fingers up fella! Or just be a man