Mookie Betts proves why he’s the face of baseball in Game 1

Dodgers superstar RF Mookie Betts is taking over the World Series

The Los Angeles Dodgers had found themselves in this situation before. They had taken a 2-0 lead over the Tampa Bay Rays before Kevin Kiermaier’s home run off Clayton Kershaw brought the deficit down to one. All across Los Angeles, the feeling was the same: here we go again.

Then baseball’s best player decided to take over the game. The World Series is a stage for stars to shine. And in Game 1 on Tuesday, no one shone brighter than Mookie Betts.

Betts is the rare player who can change the game in any number of ways. In the fifth inning, after drawing a leadoff walk, he earned America a free meal by stealing second. He then stole third. The only other player to do that in a World Series inning—draw a walk, and steal two bases—was Babe Ruth 99 years ago. Betts scored the Dodgers’ third run by beating out the throw following a groundball, rounding the bases without the ball leaving the infield.

He defines the term ‘five-tool’ player, with his combination of speed, power, fielding, awareness, and intelligence. Betts turned the momentum of the game with his feet in the fifth inning; in the sixth he did it with his bat, sending a ball over the wall in right-field for a leadoff homer. In the Dodgers NLCS victory over the Atlanta Braves, Betts waited until there were two outs in the bottom of the eighth of Game 7 before recording his first extra-base hit of the series. But it hardly mattered. He had already made his mark on the series with two highlight-reel catches. If Betts doesn’t stay on his feet after a shoestring catch, perhaps the Dodgers don’t even get to Game 7 or the World Series.

Betts is just 28, already with an MVP award, World Series ring, and a $365 million contract that will keep him in Dodger blue through 2032 to his name. He’s three wins away from winning his second championship in three years. He plays with an enthusiasm that rubs off on his teammates. He’s constantly studying the game, trying to find any weakness in his opponent. It’s a trait that’s endeared him to his manager. “He’s old school, man. He loves to talk baseball. Talk to his teammates, watch the game. I just love it,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said following Game 1.

He’s a marketable superstar in a sport that’s crying out for one. His influence extends off the field. Betts is the only African-American player in this World Series. He’s a member of the Players Alliance, a group of current and former Black players that promotes the game among minority youth. Following the death of George Floyd, he took part in a video with other African-American players promoting the cause of racial justice.

Betts is a role model off the field. On it, he’s the game’s transcendent player. The thing that separates him from Mike Trout, the other contender for the label of best player in baseball, is his success on the game’s biggest stage. For all of his regular-season accolades, Trout has gotten the Angels into the postseason just once; he’s yet to even win a playoff game in his career. There’s a reason why television commercials and endorsement deals follow rings. When a player performs on the game’s highest level, it just means more.

All those things await Betts if he can get the Dodgers to the finish line, something he admits is his sole focus right now. “I did a good job tonight. But my main responsibility is to win a World Series, and that’s all I’m trying to do,” he said.

Baseball isn’t the only thing Betts excels at. He’s also an accomplished bowler, having pulled off three perfect games in his career. Is there anything he can’t do?

It’s a question the Rays are asking themselves right now. And all of America is a witness to the emergence of Markus Lynn Betts.