SAN DIEGO -- All of a sudden, Mookie Betts is back to looking like a real threat in the heart of the Dodgers' order.
The star shortstop continued his recent surge by driving in a pair of runs in a three-run fifth inning that keyed a 4-2 Dodgers win -- and sealed a series victory -- over the Padres on Sunday afternoon at Petco Park. Betts has hit safely in a season-high five straight games after his 2-for-4 showing.
Betts came through once the Dodgers had taken a 2-1 lead on a bases-loaded walk from Freddie Freeman. Betts got ahead 2-1 against Padres starter Michael King before getting a sinker over the heart of the plate, which he knocked into left-center to drive in a pair of runs that ended up being the game-winners in the series finale.
Coming off a down offensive season that he hopes will one day be viewed as an outlier in his playing career, Betts got off to an even slower start at the plate to open the 2026 campaign. His season was disrupted from the beginning, when he sustained a right oblique strain after he had played only a handful of games.
The month-long stint on the IL made it difficult for Betts to build off the progress he had made with his swing during the offseason and Spring Training. He scuffled through early June, posting a .591 OPS that was the worst mark through his first 35 games of a season in his career.
That's when Betts turned a corner. He broke out for a three-hit game on June 13. The next day, he raised his average above .200 for the first time since March 27. And then he just kept hitting, slashing .368/.410/.684 in 14 games since.