Los Angeles Dodgers have a knack for turning their fans’ excitement into nervousness. After sweeping the San Diego Padres, their next series was tied against the worst team in MLB: the Colorado Rockies. Now, after sweeping the Cincinnati Reds, they lost game one to the Arizona D-Backs, who are 10 wins behind the Los Angeles team. It is therefore impossible to determine whether the reigning champions have emerged from their slump and are still under siege from the San Diego Padres.
However, this latest debacle may be due to the absence of Mookie Betts who, by attending off-field commitments, are wasted at-bats and are more alarming when the Padres are once again two games away from snatching the lead in the National League West. This was demonstrated in their last game against the Arizona Diamondbacks where the Dodgers were blanked without any offensive power when they came to the plate. That is why the fans have asked Mookie to focus more on baseball and less on off-field exhibitions.
Mookie Betts’ activities outside of the Los Angeles Dodgers
From “an inconvenient day off”, now the cause of his absence in his game against Arizona was to attend the fun “Mookie Betts’ paddleball charity event”. Regardless of the cause, the lackluster energy was in stark contrast to the team’s recent scoring streak. On the “Dodgers Nation” program they commented on how the Dodgers’ offense might have failed because of Mookie Betts: “My main takeaway is that this was one of the most boring games we’ve seen from the Dodgers this year. The seventh time they’ve been shut out this season. The absence of the shortstop perhaps caused this offensive shortage we saw today.”
The Dodgers’ 3-0 loss to the Diamondbacks has been labeled as one of their dullest outings, largely because the offense produced nothing memorable. The fans witnessed their seventh shutout of the season, with rallies fading before momentum materialized. That loss had a much greater impact than a single missed opportunity, as the pressure in the standings continues to intensify in the National League West.
The Dodgers’ chances of winning the National League West
A win would have given Los Angeles separation from San Diego and the momentum to reclaim the crucial second spot in the National League. Instead, they squandered the opportunity to extend a fragile lead in the division, leaving the door open for the Padres. Consistency has defined the champions, but this Dodgers team instead has dealt with constant streaks of feast and famine.
The offensive inconsistency is not new, and without correcting it, October could end sooner than expected. Writers such as Kerry Miller have even predicted that the San Diego Padres will overtake the Los Angeles Dodgers in the divisional title race. This belief is due to San Diego’s easier schedule and its ability to pick up wins that the Dodgers squander. If Los Angeles fails to regain reliable bats, its decade-long dominance in the West could finally loosen.
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