Betts, traded to Dodgers ahead of 2020 season, makes first Boston appearance
Betts receives standing ovation from crowd, Boston coaches and players
Betts’ Dodgers come from behind to win the game

Boston Red Sox fans gave Mookie Betts (Los Angeles Dodgers) a standing ovation as he was reunited with his former team after a 1425-day absence.

Betts was named to the starting lineup as a first baseman and second baseman for the 2023 World Series against the Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., on Monday (June 26).

In the first inning, as Betts took the field for his first at-bat, the fans in the stadium rose to their feet and erupted in applause.

As Betts prepared to bat, he stepped out of the batter’s box as the fans continued to cheer. He took off his blue helmet and circled the bases to acknowledge the fans.

Boston manager Alex Cora and the team, including Boston’s Rafael Devers, who was standing at third base to defend, applauded.

For Betts, Boston is a team he can’t forget.

Betts was drafted by the Red Sox in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft and made his big league debut in 2014.

He went on to become one of Boston’s signature players, leading the team to a World Series title in 2018 and winning the American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) award that year. He also won four consecutive All-Star and Gold Glove awards from 2016 to 2019.

However, his time with Boston ended in February 2020. The Red Sox made a three-way trade with the Dodgers and Minnesota Twins, sending Betts to the Dodgers as the centerpiece of the deal.

Betts continues to thrive as a Dodger.

He signed a massive 12-year, $365 million contract with the Dodgers in July 2020 and helped lead them to a World Series title that same year. He was named an All-Star for three straight years from 2021 to this year, and won two Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger.

On this day, Betts will return to Fenway Park in a Dodger uniform for the first time since September 30, 2019, against the Baltimore Orioles, 1,425 days after he started for Boston.

It was a special moment for Betts.

“Returning to Fenway Park, Betts felt like he was remembering a different version of himself,” MLB.com wrote in a pregame interview with Betts.

“It was a special chapter in my life,” Betts said of his memories in Boston, “and it makes it a little easier to look back from where I am now and look at that little kid and say, ‘Good job.

Betts struck out in his first at-bat on a foul fly to first base.

But in the sixth inning, with his team down 3-0, Betts led off with a double off the left field fence.

Betts, who hadn’t hit at Fenway Park in four years, stood at second base and waved with both hands. He came home on Will Smith’s RBI double to score the team’s first run of the day.온라인바카

The Dodgers tied the game on a Max Muncy grounder and an Enrique Hernandez single up the middle.

Betts drew a walk to lead off the seventh inning with the score tied 3-3. Freddie Freeman’s RBI double made it 4-3, and Muncy’s RBI double scored Betts.

Betts got a leadoff single and a fielder’s choice in the ninth, but the Dodgers added a run on a David Peralta sacrifice fly to complete the 7-3 victory.

Betts went 1-for-4 with a double, a walk and two runs scored. Freeman went 4-for-5 with a home run, one RBI and three runs scored for the Dodgers.