UNDATED (AP) — Dodgers star Mookie Betts is headed to the injured list with a cracked right rib. Manager Dave Roberts announced Betts’ diagnosis after Saturday’s 7-1 victory over Cleveland.
The 2018 AL MVP is tied for third in the majors with 53 runs scored and has 17 home runs, which is tied for fourth in the NL. The Dodgers are 29-7 when he scores a run.
Betts was injured during the first inning of Wednesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Angels when he collided with Cody Bellinger in the outfield on a fly ball. Betts played the rest of that game but was scratched from the lineup the past two days.
In other news around the majors:
— The Milwaukee Brewers have designated for assignment two-time All-Star outfielder Lorenzo Cain on the same date he reached 10 years of major league service time. Cain hit .179 with one home run and nine runs batted in over 43 games this season. He is in the last year of a five-year, $80 million contract he signed with Milwaukee in January 2018. He’s helped the Brewers reach postseason play each of the past four seasons. He played a key role in the Kansas City Royals winning the 2015 World Series.
— The Miami Marlins beat Jacob Stallings in salary arbitration, and the catcher will earn $2.45 million this season rather than his $3.1 million request. Today’s decision gave teams a 9-3 advantage with just two cases remaining to be heard next week, involving New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge and Atlanta left-hander Max Fried. Stallings hit .246 last year for Pittsburgh with career bests of eight homers and 53 RBIs, earning $1.3 million. He entered Saturday with a .199 average, two homers and 21 RBIs. Richard McNeill, Gary Klendellen and Fredric Horowitz made the decision on Stallings, a day after hearing arguments.
— Ryan Zimmerman has become the first player for the Washington Nationals to have his jersey number retired by the club. Zimmerman was honored during an on-field pregame ceremony Saturday before Washington hosted the Philadelphia Phillies. Zimmerman was the first player ever drafted by the new-to-town Nationals in 2005. Zimmerman owns most major offensive career records for the franchise and helped the team win the 2019 World Series. Several former teammates were on hand to help celebrate the occasion.
— When Sandy Koufax joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955, he was in awe of being on the same team with Jackie Robinson. Now 67 years later, the two are immortalized in bronze at the entrance to Dodger Stadium. Koufax’s statue was unveiled on Saturday in the Centerfield Plaza before the Los Angeles Dodgers faced the Cleveland Guardians. It is the second sculpture the Dodgers have commissioned after Robinson’s in 2017.
