Best – Mookie Betts OF Los Angeles Dodgers – 4-4 4R 5RBI 3HR 1HBP
Mookie Betts has been everything the Dodgers could have wanted when they traded for him in the offseason, which turned out to be perfect timing because their reigning MVP, Cody Bellinger, still has not picked up yet.
Betts carried the Dodgers offensively on Thursday night against the San Diego Padres. He had the first three home run game in the MLB this season. Betts made it to a base after all five plate appearances and pretty much single-handedly beat the Padres. After this monster performance on Thursday, Betts’s 2020 season is off to an excellent start. He has a .319AVG, 7HR, 15RBI, 14R, and 1SB over the last 20 games.
This win now puts the Dodgers at 13-7, which is good for a tie with the Colorado Rockies for first place in the NL West. The Dodgers have this record despite getting nothing from Bellinger. Hopefully, Betts’s hot start will only motivate Bellinger so the Dodgers can have two MVPs crushing baseballs.
Other Notables: David Peterson SP Mets – 5IP 1H 0ER 2BB 3K 1W; Tomas Nido C Mets – 2-4 2R 6RBI 2HR; Yu Darvish SP Cubs – 7IP 1H 1ER 2BB 11K 1W; Hunter Renfroe OF Rays – 3-6 3R 3RBI 2HR; Julio Urias SP Dodgers – 6.1IP 5H 2ER 0BB 3K.
Worst – Chris Paddack SP San Diego Padres – 3IP 6H 6ER 1BB 1K 52PC
The San Diego Padres have one of the best young core of players in the whole MLB, but the play they are getting from their second-year ace might be something to monitor. Chris Paddack’s record fell to 2-2 on Monday night when his Padres lost to the Dodgers and fell further behind in the race for the NL West.
Paddack got the opening day start for the Padres, and it was well deserved after his great rookie season (26GS 9-7 3.33ERA .98WHIP 140.2IP 153K 31BB), but something has not looked right this season. So far, he seems like he is deep into his sophomore slump(5GS 2-2 4.91 1.17 25.2IP 22K 4BB). Still, the Padres are staring up at two teams playing some excellent baseball right now, the Dodgers and the Rockies. They have little time for Paddack to turn this sophomore slump into a sophomore success.
Extra Trash: Jose Martinez 1B Rays-0-6 2K – Anthony Descalfini SP Reds – 2IP 9H 9ER 2BB 1K; Keston Huira 2B Brewers-0-4 2K; Marcus Walden RP Red Sox – 0IP 5H 6ER 1BB 0K; Carter Kieboom 3B Nats – 0-4 2K.