Shohei Ohtani will replace Mookie Betts as leadoff hitter

The Los Angeles Dodgers season is following a well-known script. Easily the team to beat in baseball, they are in a commanding lead in the NL West. But just around the mid-point in the season, injuries start to pile up and they find themselves facing a critical situation.

And so it is for 2024. First of all the star Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain and will be benched indefinitely. And then there is Mookie.

In a freak accident, Kansas City Royals pitcher Dan Altavilla threw a 98 mph fastball up and in on the leadoff man and it clipped his left hand, breaking a bone. This will have a healing time of six to eight weeks. The Blues were already limping a little from the losses of Max Muncy and pitcher Joe Kelly, and this adds salt to the wound.

Covering the loss of Mookie Betts

Shohei Ohtani has been bumped to leadoff hitter in this lineup when facing right-handed pitchers, while he will stay at second when facing left-handed pitchers, according to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. Miguel Rojas will come in to replace Betts at shortstop.

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So far this season, Mookie Betts has a slash line of .304/.405/.488 with 10 home runs, 40 RBIs and 9 stolen bases in 72 games.

For now the Los Angeles Dodgers remain at the top of the National League West with a 45-29 record, leading the San Francisco Giants with a 36-37 record and the San Diego Padres with a 37-39 record .