Mookie Betts is looking for a way out of the playoff crisis

SAN DIEGO – Mookie Betts turned 32 on Monday and had a very specific plan for how he would celebrate. “Hit,” he said.

Betts went 0-4 in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 10-2 loss in Game 2 of the National League Division Series on Sunday. And while one of the outs was due to San Diego Padres left fielder Jurickson Profar reaching into the stands to deny him a home run, it was still a continuation of Betts' head-scratching struggles in the last playoffs.

Betts, an eight-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, is 2 of 31 in the Dodgers' last three postseason series, with the last two ending in an exit in the NLDS. He also went hitless in his last 22 playoff shots, which is the fourth-longest hitless streak in the postseason by a former MVP.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says he believes Betts' weaknesses in previous postseasons are starting to impact his current offense.

“I’ll have a conversation with him,” Roberts said of Betts. “The fact is, you can't change the last 'X' number of postseason games. I understand the stress a player might have. But everyone is concerned about the moment and how best to mentally prepare for tomorrow night and the first one.” So that's basically going to be my message.

Betts estimated he completed about 400 swings during Monday's practice, including several rounds in which he intentionally directed pitches from a high-speed pitching machine at Petco Park to right-center field. He left the field, saying he needed to take more swings inside. He is determined to work his way out of the crisis.

“If there is another way,” he said, “please let me know.”

Turning it off to clear your head doesn't seem to be an option.

“If I turn my brain off, it’s going to get worse,” Betts said. “I have to keep trying.”

Betts' performance is crucial for a Dodgers team constantly in the dark about the status of star first baseman Freddie Freeman, who suffered a right ankle sprain for nearly two weeks and was lost midway through Game 2 Had to be removed from the lineup on Sunday. Roberts doesn't know Freeman's status for Game 3 on Tuesday. But he knows others — especially Betts, who is behind Shohei Ohtani in the lineup — need to step up.

“He has to be Mookie,” Roberts said. “I don’t expect more than he has achieved in his eight or nine year career. And it's also up to the other players to do their part. My only wish is that the boys become what they were,” what they have shown throughout their careers.

Betts has performed really well in high-leverage situations during the regular season in the past, including this year, slashing .309/.370/.580 in this one. He posted an .871 OPS in the 18-game run that saw the Dodgers win the World Series in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, then posted a .782 OPS in 12 games of a 2021 postseason that ended in the NL Championship Series ended. But it's been a struggle since then.

Betts couldn't ignore it.

“It’s pretty impossible,” he said. “You people (the media) are doing your job, but you are asking me about it. So there is no way to escape it. The whole world knows it. It's not like it's a secret. I know. Nobody tells me anything.” I don’t know yet. Nobody can be harder on myself. The only thing I can really do is look forward, but I know it's there.