BOSTON — Mookie Betts admitted before the game he wasn’t sure if Boston fans would look at him as a bad guy when the former Red Sox MVP and World Series Champ returned to Fenway Park as Los Angeles Dodger.
His concerns were unfounded. Red Sox fans greeted him warmly at every possible turn on Friday. They cheered when his name was announced during the Dodgers’ starting lineup and gave him an ovation when he came to the plate leading off the first.
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Betts tapped his heart, took off his helmet and waved it to the crowd and pointed to his ring finger in recognition of the World Series he won with the Red Sox in 2018. Alex Cora, his former manager and Rafael Devers, his former teammate both cheered for him.
If there were any boos, they were indistinguishable from anyone calling out “Mooookie” like they did during his six seasons in Boston.
He then stepped in and fouled a 2-1 pitch to Triston Casas at first base.
The Fenway fans, many of them wearing Red Sox jerseys with Betts’ 50 on the back, cheered again as the Red Sox played a tribute video before the start of the second inning, welcoming back Betts and fellow 2018 champion reliever Ryan Brasier, who is in the Los Angeles bullpen. J.D. Martinez, a third member of that team, who is also on the Dodgers, didn’t make the trip with an injury.
Betts is playing in Boston for the first time since being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2020 season after unsuccessful contract negotiations. He came up with the Red Sox and won both a World Series and an MVP in 2018. He’s in his fourth season with the Dodgers, who arrived in Boston in first place in the National League West.
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