Mookie makes up for slow start

Mookie’s fine. He’s more than fine. In Saturday’s game against the Chicago Cubs, he was the offense.

Reports of his demise were extremely exaggerated.

Mookie Betts carried the Dodgers to a 6-2 win in the nightcap of a doubleheader against the Cubs in Chicago on Saturday. He drove in five runs, hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning and extended his hit streak to eight games.

The Dodgers meanwhile, after downing the Cubs 5-1 on Sunday, ended the week with a six-game winning streak, swept the San Francisco Giants in a two-game series and the Cubs in three games, while moving into first place in the National League West standings.

The Dodgers have a game-and-a-half lead over those pesky San Diego Padres. The Giants and the surprising Colorado Rockies are tied for third place, four games behind the Dodgers.

But what might be the most impressive stat of the Dodgers after the first 26 games of the season is run differential. The Dodgers are outsourcing their opponents by 74 runs. The New York Yankees have the second best run differential in MLB at 48 runs. 

The Dodgers outscored the Giants 12-2. The Dodgers outscored the Cubs 20-3 over the weekend. In the past five games, the Dodgers have outscored their opponents, 32-5. 

But back to Betts.

He went 2-for-5 in Sunday’s game against the Cubs and extended his hitting streak to nine games. He has hit three home runs during that streak and has his batting average up to .263. 

Betts is more than alive. He is one of the hottest hitters in the league.

The Dodgers offense is humming, but the starters deserve some credit too.

Clayton Kershaw (4-0) pitched seven shutout innings in the first game of the doubleheader against the Cubs on Saturday and lowered his ERA to 1.80.

Walker Buehler improved to 4-1, pitching seven innings against the Cubs on Sunday, giving up one run on four hits, and lowering his ERA to 1.96.

Tony Gonsolin improved to 2-0, giving up one run in five innings against the Giants on Wednesday, and lowering his ERA to 1.64.

Julio Urias pitched six shutout innings in a 3-1 win over the Giants on Tuesday. He lowered his ERA to 1.88.

Four Dodger starters have ERAs under 2.00. 

Most impressive.

Dodger starter power rankings:

1. Clayton Kershaw
2. Julio Urias
3. Walker Buehler
4. Tony Gonsolin
5. Tyler Anderson

The Dodgers (19-7) head to Pittsburgh to start a three-game series against the Pirates on Monday, then return home to start a four-game weekend series against the Philadelphia Phillies on  Thursday.