Mookie Betts plays shortstop in ‘dream come true’ moment after race to get to Wrigley Field
CHICAGO — The Dodgers arrived at Wrigley Field on Thursday with Yonny Hernández as their backup shortstop.
By the time the Dodgers needed one, however, it was Mookie Betts who came trotting into the game.
Such was the conclusion to a whirlwind day for the Dodgers star right fielder, who began the day in Los Angeles on paternity leave before hopping on a plane, flying to Chicago, and battling traffic to simply get to the stadium in time to be activated for the game.
“I was, like, three miles away for 40 minutes,” Betts joked. “Freddie [Freeman] called me and said, ‘As soon as you get here, hurry up and get dressed because you’re going to play.’ He told me to get my mind right. So I did.”
Betts wasn’t in the starting lineup, with Luke Williams instead slotting in at short while Miguel Rojas (hamstring) on the injured list and Chris Taylor (oblique) still not cleared to throw. But with the score tied in the seventh, Roberts elected to pinch-hit Betts for Williams.
Then, in the bottom half of the inning, he had no other option but to put the six-time Gold Glove winning outfielder at the infield’s most difficult position.
“I just told Doc, I just want to win, so I’ll play wherever,” Betts said. “I grew up doing this. So it’s nothing new to me.”
Roberts had hinted earlier in the week that Betts might see time at shortstop, the position he was drafted at in 2011 but hadn’t played professionally since the 2013 developmental Arizona Fall League.
It was a decision born out of necessity, with few other healthy shortstop options available on the roster; but one the manager expected Betts, who came up as a second baseman and takes grounders at both middle infield spots almost every single day, to happily embrace.
“He looks extremely natural,” Roberts said. “The guy can play anywhere on a baseball field.”
That much was clear in the bottom of the eighth, when Betts helped the Dodgers escape a two-on, no-out jam by leaping over a baserunner on a crucial double-play.
“That was like a dream come true,” Betts said. “I know it’s work and it’s a job. But getting to play short is a lot of fun.”
And there might be more of it in Betts’ future, with Roberts saying postgame he was already considering whether the former MVP should more looks at shortstop, perhaps as soon as Friday.
“I just give Mookie a lot of credit tonight,” Roberts said. “Getting off a plane, having a baby, being willing to come into a ballgame and take an at-bat and then go out and play a position he’s never played before at the big league level. Made a really nice play. It just speaks to his athleticism. It was a big boost to us.”
Dodgers win thanks to James Outman’s grand slam
CHICAGO — A year ago, James Outman was hardly on the Dodgers MLB radar, a solid but overlooked prospect who’d spent years reworking his stiff “caveman” swing.
A month ago, he wasn’t certain to make their opening day roster, despite a breakout spring performance and an open spot on the team.
But with every new opportunity he’s received this season, the 25-year-old rookie has risen to the occasion.
And in the biggest moment of his young career Thursday— facing a bases-loaded, full-count, ninth-inning at-bat in a tied game between the Dodgers and Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field— Outman took another giant step forward, putting an explosive final touch on his most signature game yet.
Gifted a down-the-middle cutter that was begging to be squared up, Outman delivered a no-doubt grand slam to give the Dodgers a 6-2 win.
It was the exclamation point on a two-homer, five-RBI game for the left-handed slugger, who also added an outfield assist with a fourth-inning dart that got an out at home plate.
Shortstop Mookie Betts makes nice double play to derail threat
Eighth inning
Dodgers: Right-hander Brad Boxberger now pitching. James Outman flied to left. Freddie Freeman walked. J.D. Martinez struck out looking, with the first strike coming on a pitch clock violation. Freeman stole second and took third on the catcher’s throwing error. Max Muncy was walked intentionally. Trayce Thompson flied to left.
Cubs: Seiya Suzuki walked. Left-hander Caleb Ferguson replaced Yency Almonte. Cody Bellinger was hit by a pitch for the second time tonight. Neither of them intentional. Patrick Wisdom grounded into a 6-3 double play. No problem for Mookie Betts. Nick Madrigal lined to right.
Score after eight: Dodgers 2, Cubs 2
Mookie Betts pinch hits in seventh, stays in game at shortstop
Seventh inning
Cubs: Right-hander Michael Tucker now pitching for the Cubs. Miguel Vargas struck out looking. Mookie Betts, batting for Luke Williams, singled to right. Austin Barnes grounded into a 5-4-3 double play.
Dodgers: Right-hander Yency Almonte now pitching. Nico Hoerner grounded to third. Dansby Swanson flied to right. Ian Happ flied to left.
Score after seven: Dodgers 2, Cubs 2
Michael Grove has a strained right groin, score still tied after six
Sixth inning
Dodgers: Brandon Hughes struck out the side (Max Muncy, Trayce Thompson, David Peralta).
Dodgers starter Michael Grove left the game with a strained right groin.
Cubs: Left-hander Justin Bruihl pitching for the Dodgers Nick Madrigal, batting for Eric Hosmer, grounded to third. Trey Mancini struck out swinging. Tucker Barnhart struck out swinging.
Score after six: Dodgers 2, Cubs 2
Still tied after five
Fifth inning
Dodgers: Left-hander Brandon Hughes pitching for the Cubs. James Outman struck out swinging. Freddie Freeman grounded to second. J.D. Martinez hit a grounder down the third-base line. He was called safe at first after a great throw by Patrick Wisdom. On appeal, he was called out. He was out.
Cubs: Seiya Suzuki grounded to third. Cody Bellinger flied to left. Patrick Wisdom lined to left.
Score after five: Dodgers 2, Cubs 2
Cubs tie it in fourth inning
Fourth inning
Dodgers: Adbert Alzolay came in to pitch for the Cubs. David Peralta singled off the second baseman’s glove and was out trying to stretch it into a double. Miguel Vargas doubled to left-center. Luke Williams struck out swinging. Austin Barnes flied to center.
Cubs: Eric Hosmer walked. Trey Mancini doubled to left, Hosmer to third. Pitching coach Mark Prior came out to visit Grove, and then the trainer came out. And then Dave Roberts came out. A replay showed his leg sliding unnaturally during the previous pitch. Grove is coming out of the game. Phil Bickford replaces him. Tucker Barnhart struck out swinging. Nico Hoerner singled to right, scoring Hosmer, with Outman throwing Mancini out at home. Nice play by Austin Barnes to catch the ball and make the swiping tag. Hoerner took second on the throw. Dansby Swanson walked. Ian Happ grounded to second.
Score after four: Dodgers 2, Cubs 2
Dodgers retake lead on James Outman’s home run
James Outman led off the third with a home run to right-center, his fourth of the season. Freddie Freeman flied to left. J.D. Martinez grounded to second. Max Muncy walked. Trayce Thompson flied to center. It’s 2-1 Dodgers.
In the bottom half, Nico Hoerner grounded to third. Dansby Swanson walked. Ian Happ grounded to second, forcing Swanson. Seiya Suzuki singled to left-center, Happ to third. Cody Bellinger was hit by a pitch, loading the bases. Patrick Wisdom grounded to short.
Score after three: Dodgers 2, Cubs 1
Dodgers take lead on Max Muncy’s homer, Cody Bellinger answers with homer
Max Muncy hit a ball up in the jet stream and it carried over the fence in right for a home run. His seventh in the last 10 games. Trayce Thompson struck out swinging. David Peralta walked. Miguel Vargas struck out swinging. Luke Williams hit a bouncer up the third-base line and just beat the throw. He thought the ball was foul for a brief moment and didn’t run at first, almost costing himself a hit. Peralta, going on the pitch, ended up at third. Williams stole second. Austin Barnes flied to right.
Cody Bellinger (remember him?) homered to center to start the bottom of the second. Where was this the last couple of years? Patrick Wisdom popped to second. Eric Hosmer grounded to second. Trey Mancini singled. Tucker Barnhart popped to short.
Score after two: Dodgers 1, Cubs 1
No score after first inning
James Outman popped to third to lead off the game. The wind is whipping around the stadium, so every pop up and fly ball will be an adventure. Freddie Freeman grounded to second. J.D. Martinez struck out swinging.
Nico Hoerner led off the bottom of the first against Michael Grove by lining to center. Dansby Swanson singled to center. Ian Happ grounded to first. Freeman tried to throw Swanson out at second, and the umpire initially called him out. But a review overturned the call. Seiya Suzuki grounded to third.
Score after one: Dodgers 0, Cubs 0
Max Scherzer suspended 10 games by MLB for foreign substances violation
New York Mets pitcher Max Scherzer was suspended for 10 games and fined $10,000 on Thursday for a violation of Major League Baseball’s rules prohibiting the use of foreign substances to aid in the grip of the ball. The three-time Cy Young Award winner and future Hall of Famer plans to appeal the suspension.
Scherzer was ejected in the middle of the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game in Dodger Stadium after being inspected by umpires and told to wash his hands after the second inning and to replace his glove and wash his hands again after the third inning.
Dodgers-Cubs start delayed by an hour because of rain
The start of Dodgers vs. the Chicago Cubs was delayed until 5:45 p.m. PDT (7:45 p.m. local time) because of rain.
The game was originally scheduled for a 4:40 p.m. PDT first pitch. The game is now in progress.
Mookie Betts races to Chicago in time to be activated from paternity list tonight
CHICAGO — Yonny Hernández started the day on the Dodgers active roster for Thursday night’s game against the Chicago Cubs.
By game time, however, Mookie Betts had made an unexpected return from the paternity list to replace.
Betts, who has missed the last two games following the birth of his second child, traveled to Chicago on Thursday afternoon and hustled to Wrigley Field just in time to be active for the game.
It was a race aganist the clock, with not even manager Dave Roberts knowing Betts’ status at the time of his pregame media scrum.
“If he gets in here in the next hour and a half, something like that,” Roberts said a couple of hours before the first pitch — which itself was delayed an hour because of rain in the forecast.
“We just want to make sure he touches the ground before [making a roster move],” Roberts added. “So we’re going to be butting up against that timeline to make that decision.”
Betts was originally expected to come off the paternity list for Wednesday’s game, when he might have been needed at shortstop.
However, Roberts said Betts elected to take an extra day (players can spend up to three days on the paternity list) to spend time with his family.
Today’s starting lineups
The starting lineups for today’s Dodgers-Cubs game.
Q&A: Umpires discuss decision to eject Max Scherzer
When Max Scherzer was ejected for having what umpires deemed a foreign substance on his glove and pitching hand in the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game against the Dodgers, the New York Mets right-hander claimed the sticky stuff was caused by a combination of legal rosin and sweat.
Plate umpire and crew chief Dan Bellino and first-base umpire Phil Cuzzi thought otherwise, so much so that Bellino called Scherzer’s hand the “stickiest” he has ever felt in the three seasons umpires have been conducting more thorough checks of pitchers.
Times baseball writer Mike DiGiovanna served as the pool reporter to speak to the umpires after Wednesday’s controversial ejection of Scherzer, a future Hall of Famer who has racked up 203 victories and 3,210 strikeouts in his illustrious 16-year career.
Max Scherzer is ejected, but Dodgers can’t take advantage in loss to Mets
Noah Syndergaard didn’t feel any extra adrenaline or emotion as he took the Dodger Stadium mound on Wednesday for his first-ever start against the New York Mets, the team he came up to the big leagues with in 2015, won a World Series game for that October and walked away from after the 2021 season.
“There are a lot of new faces over there,” said Syndergaard, who signed a one-year, $13-million deal with the Dodgers in December. “Guys like [Brandon] Nimmo, Pete [Alonzo], Drew Smith … I’ve had the luxury of playing with them and wearing that Mets jersey with them. But other than that, it was just another day at the yard.”
Well, not quite, unless your idea of a typical day at the ballpark includes the ejection of a future Hall of Famer for having a foreign substance on his pitching hand, a transgression that will likely net Mets right-hander Max Scherzer a 10-game suspension.
Dodgers vs. Chicago Cubs: How to watch, start times and betting odds
What you need to know: The Dodgers, who lost two out of three games to both the Chicago Cubs and the New York Mets on their last homestand, get a rematch against the Cubs when they open a four-game series Thursday at Wrigley Field.
The first game will feature a pair of right-handed pitchers — Michael Grove of the Dodgers who is 0-1 with a 9.00 earned-run average, and Jameson Taillon of the Cubs (0-2, 7.00 ERA). For Grove, it will be his fourth start of the season.
The Cubs are coming off a three-game sweep of the Athletics after a 12-2 win on Sunday at Oakland that moved Chicago to within two games of the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers.
The Dodgers, who trail the Arizona Diamondbacks by two games in the NL West, called up infielder Yonny Hernandez from the minors after shortstop Miguel Rojas was put on the injured list with a hamstring injury. The Dodgers might also be without Chris Taylor, who has been out with an injury to his left side.
Radio: 570 (KLAC), 1020 (KTNQ) Spanish
Betting odds: at Chicago -120 / Dodgers +102