Mookie Betts was clearly not happy about the way the recent Red Sox road trip went. He was dealing with an injury and couldn’t do as much as he wanted to help. The whole lineup had gone pretty stagnant aside from a nice week long rip form Devers.
So starting in the final game of the Yankees series, Mookie said enough of this shit, hop on guys because the trains leaving. Now the Mookie locomotive is steamrolling pitchers en route to solidifying his first MVP award.
Mookie Betts' last 13 at-bats:
2B
1B
2B
K
HR
2B
1B
HR
2B
K
K
K
HR— Jason Mastrodonato (@JMastrodonato) September 24, 2018
Mookie has shouldered this team to clinching the division and the best record in baseball in the matter of three games played this week. That’s nothing new, though. He and Martinez have been doing it all season as they ran battled each other for the MVP. It’s been an embarrassment of riches and the most fun I’ve ever had watching a Red Sox team.
Betts success on the field isn’t what makes him so great. It will win him the MVP of course, but the lasting impact it has is much greater. Mookie is the new face of the MLB. And thank God for that. Mike Trout is a great baseball player, you won’t hear me say otherwise, but the guy is a wet towel. And as for our friend in the Bronx Aaron Judge, nobody wants to root for a Yankee. It doesn’t matter if their team has all the history and a nice new young team. The Yankees are still the Yankees and they’re no fun to root for. Mookie, on the other hand, is the MLB marketing team’s wet dream.
Mookie Betts is mic'd up for today's spring league game and had a ball hit his way during an interview 😂pic.twitter.com/Ov6IwCww0Q
— Adam Forsythe (@adamforsythe) March 27, 2018
He’s funny, he has character and he’s incredibly interesting. The man is a professional bowler in his free time for fucks sake. He has everything going for him and, on top of all of it, he’s a bit of an underdog. Judge and Trout are athletic specimens. They should be as great as they are. Mookie came up a second baseman and fits the mold of one well. But instead of manning the infield, his way in was the outfield and he said ‘no problem, I’ll just be the best at that’ and will likely collect yet another gold glove this year on top of the MVP and batting title.
It doesn’t get better than this for not only Red Sox fans, but the league as a whole. Mookie is the man this league has been looking for since the steroid era and this season has made that incredibly clear. Now he needs to put a bow on the whole thing and ride this tsunami straight to a World Series title.
P.S. If you didn’t notice, this was against the Yankees best option to start the wild card game. Oof.
Feature Image via Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Mike Trout is a wet towel??? Trout will win his 3rd MVP. Betts and Martinez will split the vote for those who think it needs to go to a Red Sox