Betts Makes Dodgers History With 10,000th Home Run

There have been thousands of home runs hit by the Los Angeles Dodgers since the franchise arrived on the West Coast. They have come from Hall of Famers, franchise icons, emerging stars, and players whose names have long since faded from baseball’s collective memory.

On Saturday, Mookie Betts became the latest player to leave his mark on that history.

Betts hit the 10,000th home run in Dodgers history during a 4-3 loss to the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park, reaching a milestone that had been building for nearly seven decades.

The result of the game ultimately became secondary to what Betts’ first-inning blast represented.

The Dodgers moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958, beginning one of the most successful chapters in the history of Major League Baseball.

Their first Los Angeles game came at the Coliseum, where they defeated the San Francisco Giants before a crowd of 78,672. Later that same season, they won the World Series, immediately establishing that the Dodgers’ success would travel with them across the country.

Since then, generations of Dodgers have contributed to an offensive history that eventually produced 10,000 home runs.

Duke Snider, Gil Hodges, Ron Cey, Steve Garvey, Eric Karros, Mike Piazza, Shawn Green, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Kemp, Cody Bellinger and countless others have supplied some of the biggest swings during the Los Angeles era.

Max Muncy, one of the most accomplished power hitters in recent Dodgers history, has also carved out his place among the franchise's all-time leaders.

Betts now has a milestone of his own.

The 2020 National League MVP connected against Miami starter Tyler Phillips with two outs in the first inning, sending a splitter into the left-center-field seats. It was Betts’ 20th home run of the season and the 10,000th homer hit by the Dodgers since their move to Los Angeles.

There was something fitting about Betts being the player to reach the milestone.

Since joining the Dodgers, Betts has become one of the defining players of the franchise's modern era. His versatility, production and postseason accomplishments have made him a central part of a team that has remained among baseball's elite.

He also arrived in Los Angeles during a period when the Dodgers had already established a remarkable tradition of offensive excellence.

That tradition stretches from the stars of the 1950s who helped establish the franchise on the West Coast to the sluggers who followed them through the decades. The milestone therefore belongs to more than just Betts. His home run represents the cumulative work of generations of Dodgers hitters.

And fittingly, the historic homer did not need to happen at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers' history is not confined to Chavez Ravine. It is carried by every player who has worn the uniform, every road game in which the club has competed and every home run that has added another number to the franchise's record book.

Betts' swing in Miami simply became the one that brought the Dodgers to 10,000.