Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts said all the right things after one of the more bizarre incidents in World Series history took place at Yankee Stadium in Game 4. And really, he didn't say all that much after some overzealous fans manhandled him in equal parts comedic and troubling fashion.
“When it comes to the person and play, it doesn’t matter," Betts told reporters after the Dodgers lost Game 4, "We lost. It’s irrelevant. I’m fine, he’s fine. Everything’s cool. We lost the game, that’s what I’m kind of focused on. We got to turn the page and get ready for tomorrow."
After helping Los Angeles make history by becoming the first team to claw back from a five-run deficit to clinch a World Series crown, Betts was asked by FOX's David Ortiz about the incident and could finally speak freely.
— The Comeback MLB (@thecomebackmlb) October 31, 2024
'That was wild, man," Betts said. "That was really wild. I’ve never experienced anything like that. I was telling my wife, that was like the second time in my life I’ve ever wanted to fight someone. I get it, man. I get it. I don’t know if he was trying to get the ball, I don’t know what he was really trying to do but he had to do what he had to do and it is what it is."
Winning is the best because no one can say anything about it and you can finally say how you really feel. Betts wanting to respond in the moment highlights just how ridicuous the situation was. These two fans were—and still are—being treated as fun new celebrities whereas Betts would have had his career altered forever had he grabbed them back. And that's why it was so ridiculous it took so long for adults in the room to come out and say they wouldn't be welcomed back for Game 5.
All is well that ends well, though. Betts is a champion and the interferers get to be on podcasts. A win-win for all involved, except the Yankees.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mookie Betts Revealed He Wanted to Fight Fans Who Grabbed Him.
