"When he's hot, he picks up the team and carries them for several games" - 6x Phillies All-Star declares Mookie Betts the best player in baseball

The Dodgers offense didn’t feel the same without Mookie Betts. The Los Angeles Dodgers' All-Star shortstop has been sidelined since mid-June after fracturing his hand with a hit-by-pitch.

However, Betts is ready to make a comeback and is expected to join the lineup next week, against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Philadelphia Phillies' six-time All-Star Chase Utley joined The 6-1-1 podcast by Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins. In their latest episode, all the former MLB stars revisited their playing days and talked about the new generation of stars. This included the Dodgers superstar Betts, whom Utley thinks very highly of.

“I mean Mookie is to me the best player in baseball. We've seen it multiple times and now I pay much more attention to the Dodgers. Literally, when he's hot, he picks up the team and carries him for several games,” Utley said of Betts. [Time stamp: 58:16]

“He's one of, I think in my opinion, the best players in all the baseball.”

Utley also picked between the Yankees' trio and the Dodgers’ trio to win a championship for him.

“If I'm trying to win 162, I'm probably leaning toward more balls in play, so I would lean towards the Dodgers' big three,” he added. [Time stamp: 57:53]

“There's more power on the other side with Stan [refers to Giancarlo Stanton] who hits the ball 175 miles/hour, same with Judge who hits moon shots and Soto is a fully complete hitter. So, I mean you can't go wrong with either of them but over 162 games [I would pick Dodgers’ trio].”

The Dodgers are 67-49 after their latest win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday. They’re the third-best team in the NL right now. Meanwhile, the Yankees are 68-48, only 0.5 games behind the Baltimore Orioles (69-48), as the second-best club in the American League.

Mookie Betts will adjust for Shohei Ohtani

Mookie Betts' joining date is drawing closer. However, he’ll have a slight change in position.

Betts has been the Dodgers’ long-time leadoff batter, and the team added more firepower by pairing him with fellow MVPs Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman. However, when Betts was sidelined with an injury in mid-June, Ohtani replaced him as the Dodgers’ leadoff batter.

The Japanese baseball unicorn shows exceptional results, despite being in a new position. Because of that, Dave Roberts, Dodgers’ manager, intends to make Ohtani play as leadoff, while Betts will be the new second batter, coming after him in the lineup.

“I mean, I can’t say I’m better than Shohei,” Betts said, per Jack Harris of Los Angeles Times. “There’s nothing really you can say. Whatever Shohei says goes, and after that we kind of fall in line.

"When the lights turn on, it doesn’t matter,” he said. “You gotta be ready to go. And I’ll be ready to go.”

The Dodgers will play the Pirates on Saturday, aiming to secure their playoff spot with more wins.