LOS ANGELES — Mookie Betts made his fourth consecutive start in the infield Friday night, a move that Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said had more to do with second baseman Miguel Vargas’ month-long slump than Betts’ penchant for turbocharging his bat when he plays “in the dirt.”
But it’s getting impossible to ignore the correlation between Betts’ infield starts and his elevated production, especially after the leadoff man hit a pair of solo home runs and a two-run double to lead the Dodgers to an 11-4 victory over the Angels in front of a sellout crowd of 52,214 at Dodger Stadium.
Tony Gonsolin gave up four runs and seven hits in 62/3 innings and struck out five to improve to 5-3 with a 3.86 ERA, and he teamed with Julio Urías (six innings, two runs, three hits Thursday) to give the Dodgers consecutive starts of six innings or more for the first time since June 13-14, when Gonsolin and Clayton Kershaw did it.
