Dodgers' Mookie Betts Breaks Silence on Oblique Injury

The big story around the Los Angeles Dodgers right now is the World Series rematch with the Toronto Blue Jays. However, Los Angeles is missing one of its key players in the series due to injury.

Star shortstop Mookie Betts is now on the injured list due to an oblique injury, and he may miss up to four to six weeks. Manager Dave Roberts refused to put a firm timeline on the injury for Betts, specifically due to the tricky nature of this issue.

But whatever amount of time Betts is out, Los Angeles will need to make sure that they can keep up the winning without him. Luckily for the Dodgers, the organization has the depth and resources to make sure that the unit doesn't skip too much of a beat.

Infielder Hyeseong Kim was called up to the Dodgers to replace Betts, and he will now be given a larger role. He'll split time at shortstop with Miguel Rojas, while Alex Freeland likely continues to get everyday playing time at second base.

While Betts would have loved to play against the Blue Jays in the rematch, the veteran does seem to be in good spirits. Betts opened up about the injury, giving a little more insight into how seriously hurt he is.

“I feel great. Honestly, I don’t even really notice that it hurts,” Betts said. “I mean, I’ll have to do, like, certain movements [for it to hurt], but it’s very specific movements. So yeah. I think we’re in a much better spot than originally anticipated.”

Betts has some experience dealing with an oblique strain, as he missed two weeks due to the injury back in 2018 with the Boston Red Sox. But the veteran has said that this injury is far less severe, even if he has to miss more than the two weeks.

Los Angeles is firmly all-in on going after a three-peat this season, and Betts is one of the more important players in that chase. Due to this, the team isn't going to rush Betts back any time soon, allowing him to fully heal before he gets back on the field.

How Did Mookie Betts Get Hurt?

Roberts has said that he believes the injury took place on a check swing, but Betts didn't feel anything until he was running the bases. Overall, it seems to have been a weird injury, but the Dodgers seem to have dodged a bullet with the level of severity.

“I just took off running. I’m not sure how or what happened,” Betts said. “Day was normal. Everything was normal. So I have no idea.”

On the season, Betts has hit .179 with two home runs and seven runs batted in. Like many other players in the Dodgers lineup, Betts started the year off slowly at the plate, only to break out right as he got hurt.

The hope is that the veteran will be back sooner rather than later, giving this team even more firepower. But the Dodgers don't seem too worried — nor does Betts — which is a great sign early in the season.