Mookie Betts hits longest homer as a Dodger in rout over A’s
The ball seemed to explode off the bat of Mookie Betts in the second inning Wednesday night, the Dodgers leadoff man crushing his 29th home run of the season so high and far that Oakland left fielder Tony Kemp didn’t even bother to move or turn around as fans scrambled for the souvenir.
It was that kind of the night for the Dodgers, who steamrolled their way to a 10-1 victory before a crowd of 47,711 in Chavez Ravine to maintain their 2½-game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West, and the Athletics, who seemed helpless in the face of an onslaught that dropped them to a major-league-worst 30-79.
“Every game is hard to win, but a team that is rebuilding right now with players who don’t have a lot of major league service, these are games we expect to win,” manager Dave Roberts said after his team’s second straight win over the A’s.
“When you’re running out the guys we’re running out there, trying to win the division, we have to win games like this at home. These first two games, we’ve shown the ability to control the strike zone, stress the starter, get deep into their bullpen … we’re taking care of business. That’s the sign of a very good ballclub.”
Betts’ 436-foot blast was one of four homers hit by the Dodgers, who racked up 13 hits and went five for nine with runners in scoring position.
Freddie Freeman singled and doubled twice in the first three innings, giving him hits in seven straight plate appearances over two games, a streak that ended with his sixth-inning strikeout.
J.D. Martinez will continue to sit out in the series against the Oakland Athletics because of an injury suffered against the Texas Rangers in July.
The Dodgers first baseman was pulled after six innings with a .338 batting average, an NL-best 1.002 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, 21 homers, a major-league-high 38 doubles, 75 runs and 93 RBIs, a stat line that plants him firmly in the race for his second NL most valuable player award.
“I know [Atlanta outfielder Ronald] Acuña is doing his thing over there, which is really impressive, but if you look at Freddie’s ability to post, drive in runs, hit for average, slug, he’s definitely in the MVP conversation,” Roberts said. “And Mookie is not far behind.”
Dodgers starter Tony Gonsolin delivered five rather pedestrian innings, giving up one run and five hits, striking out three and walking two to earn the win and improve to 6-4 with a 4.11 ERA on the season.
The right-hander, whose average fastball velocity of 91.9 mph was down from his 92.5-mph season average, navigated through traffic in his final two innings, getting Jordan Díaz and Ramón Laureano to fly out to center field with two on to end the fourth and JJ Bleday to fly out to the wall in right-center with two on to end the fifth.
Reliever Yency Almonte gave up one hit, struck out three and walked two in two scoreless innings, left-hander Alex Vesia threw a one-two-three eighth, and Ryan Brasier added a scoreless ninth, the game ending with shortstop Miguel Rojas and second baseman Amed Rosario turning their third double play of the game.
Rosario, a shortstop acquired from the Cleveland Guardians last week in hopes of improving the Dodgers’ offense against left-handed pitchers, had not started a big-league game at second base until Tuesday night.
“I think he’s doing great,” Rojas said. “He’s getting more comfortable in that position. I know from my experience that it’s not easy to move from one position to another in the middle of the year, but he’s doing whatever he can to get ready for the challenge of second base.”
Rosario, who has made 718 of his 740 career big-league starts at shortstop, has been working extensively with Dodgers third-base coach Dino Ebel and special assistant Chris Woodward before each game.
“I feel really good, mostly because of the confidence they’ve put in me,” Rosario said through an interpreter. “I haven’t had any difficulties with the transition. I’ve played shortstop, so it’s a little easier. I know it’s a new position, but I’m here to help the team win.”
Betts sparked a three-run first with a leadoff double to center, and Freeman followed with an RBI single to left-center. Will Smith and Max Muncy walked, and Chris Taylor (infield single) and James Outman (fielder’s-choice grounder) drove in runs.
With one out in the second, Betts hit his longest home run as a Dodger, the ball traveling about halfway up the left-field pavilion for a 4-0 lead. Back-to-back doubles by Freeman and Smith made it 5-0, and Rosario bounced his first home run as a Dodger off the top of the right-field wall for a 7-0 lead.
Shea Langeliers hit a solo homer to left off Gonsolin to pull the A’s to within 7-1 in the top of the third, but the Dodgers got that run back in the bottom of the inning on Rojas’ first homer of the season and first since June 26, 2022, with the Miami Marlins, snapping a string of 549 plate appearances without a homer.
The Dodgers knew they needed to make some moves to improve the roster, but with nearly all of their intended trade targets they encountered issues.
“It’s not my first one,” said Rojas, who is hitting .217 with a .545 OPS and 13 RBIs on the season, “but it feels like it.”
The Dodgers gave Rojas the silent treatment when he returned to the dugout, a tradition usually reserved for rookies after their first home runs, not 10-year veterans with 39 homers. Rojas simply danced like no one was watching.
“I knew the guys were gonna play a trick on me and do the silent treatment, but I didn’t care,” Rojas said. “I told Dave when I got to the dugout that I’m gonna dance by myself right here. I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long.”
Jason Heyward, who replaced Betts in right field to start the fourth inning, led off the sixth with a homer to right-center, his 11th of the season and first off a left-hander since 2021, to give the Dodgers a 9-1 lead. Outman doubled and scored on a single by Kiké Hernández to make it 10-1 in the seventh.
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