Mookie Betts is in the midst of his second season with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
His first year with the team was a smashing success, as he was a key part of L.A.’s run to the 2020 World Series title.
Betts’ strong 2020 season was one of the many reasons why Dodgers fans had very lofty expectations for him going into the 2021 campaign.
But to the surprise of many, Betts stumbled out of the gate this year.
It took him a little while to get things going.
He was producing; just not at the rate that we’ve grown so accustomed to with him.
For reference, on June 9, he was batting just .250 with a .792 OPS.
You can live with those numbers if you’re L.A., but you certainly expect more from a superstar like Betts.
Well, in recent months, the Dodgers have indeed gotten more from the former MVP.
Despite some IL stints, he has been crushing the ball lately.
And as long as Betts stays healthy, it’s going to be very hard to slow him down.
Recapping Betts’ Last Two Months
Betts has hit the injured list twice in the past two months.
Both stints were for the same injury—a hip issue.
Fortunately, neither of his IL stints seemed to faze him.
Let’s rewind a little bit.
Betts really started to turn around his season in the middle of July.
Over a five-game span from July 10 to July 19, he posted an insane slash line of .706/.727/.1471 (that’s a 2.198 OPS) to go along with three home runs and four doubles.
He looked unstoppable.
Mookie Betts Blast.
Will he have a big second half? 👀 pic.twitter.com/03xHmOooak
— MLB (@MLB) July 18, 2021
Then, Betts hit the IL for the first time.
He was on the shelf for a little under two weeks.
Some fans feared that his pre-IL hot streak wasn’t going to carry over upon his return.
But it did.
He batted .381 with a 1.244 OPS and three home runs over his first five games off the IL.
The five-time All-Star was looking like a force to be reckoned with, and folks in L.A. were more than happy.
But Dodgers fans had their excitement nipped when Betts’ hip issue resurfaced.
Los Angeles had to put him back on the injured list, and this time, the IL stint lasted almost three weeks.
#Dodgers Dave Roberts said Mookie Betts will be going on the IL. He is flying back to LA to meet with doctors, but Dave Roberts is hopeful that this will be a 10 day stint.
Edwin Uceta is being recalled.
— Kirsten Watson (@kirsten_watson) August 11, 2021
After taking some time off, he made his return roughly two weeks ago (August 26).
He has been active since.
It initially took him a few days to start producing consistently again, but lately, he has been fantastic.
Entering play on Saturday, he has managed a batting average of .304 over his last seven games.
Here’s the bottom line: Betts has appeared in 25 games since July 10, and over that span, he has posted an outstanding slash line of .349/.452/.674.
As long as he’s able to stay on the field, he’s going to be a massive weapon for the Dodgers the rest of the way.
Elite production is what L.A. signed up for when the team inked the Betts to a $365 million deal last season, and that’s what the Dodgers are going to get as long as the former fifth-round pick stays injury-free.
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