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Mookie Betts homers twice as Dodgers rout Rockies, but Kiké Hernández is headed to IL

Betts drives in five runs as a reshuffled lineup produces five home runs and 17 hits while Eric Lauer debuts with six strong innings in a 15-6 win, but the recently returned Hernández exits with an oblique strain

The Dodgers’ Mookie Betts hits a two-run home run off of Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland during the first inning on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium. Betts hit two of the Dodgers’ five homers in a 15-6 win. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
The Dodgers’ Mookie Betts hits a two-run home run off of Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland during the first inning on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium. Betts hit two of the Dodgers’ five homers in a 15-6 win. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
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Dodgers starting pitcher Eric Lauer throws to the plate during the first inning of a game against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at Dodger Stadium. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
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LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers hit the shuffle button on their playlist of popular jams, and the hits flowed on Tuesday night with a whole new tempo.

Mookie Betts moved into the cleanup spot for the first time since 2017 and contributed two home runs, including one in his first at-bat of the game.

Andy Pages moved into the No. 2 spot for the first time this season and hit a home run in his second at-bat, while finishing with four hits to tie a career high.

Kiké Hernandez joined the fun in his second game of the season. Hernandez hit his first home run of the season, and the Dodgers turned all that power into a 15-6 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

The only real sour note came in the fifth inning when Hernandez departed with a left oblique injury. He will go back on the injured list with infielder Alex Freeland expected to rejoin the team on Wednesday.

“It’s a bummer,” Manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s missed a lot of time and worked hard to get back. He was in great shape. He added that spark that we hoped.”

Hernandez said he felt the first twinge of discomfort in his oblique during batting practice before his return on Monday. The injury deteriorated to the point where he could not continue Tuesday.

“I thought it was just weird tightness,” Hernandez said. “Never done an oblique before, so I didn’t really know what I was feeling. Came in today, wasn’t feeling great. I got treatment, but I thought I could play. The homer swing felt awful. The next at-bat I went out there, I swung and missed on the first pitch and didn’t feel great. After that, I went into survival mode. … I don’t really know how bad it is. We’ll find out (after an MRI on Wednesday).”

The Dodgers also had another injury scare in the fourth inning when Shohei Ohtani was hit on the back of the right hand by a pitch from Rockies starter Kyle Freeland. The pitch mostly impacted the pad on Ohtani’s hand, although it also grazed his pinky finger. X-rays were not deemed necessary.

Ohtani still is scheduled to take his turn on the mound Wednesday, although a decision to also let him operate as the designated hitter remains undecided.

The Dodgers finished with five home runs on a busy evening while matching their season high in runs and hits (17). Will Smith also went deep for just the second time in his past 21 games.

Stop-gap left-hander Eric Lauer gave up one run on four hits over six innings in his Dodgers debut, while looking like a whole new pitcher after a 6.69 ERA for the Toronto Blue Jays in eight appearances (six starts) led to being designated for assignment.

Miguel Rojas moved from second base to third then to the mound in the ninth inning and coughed up home runs to both Brett Sullivan and Kyle Karros. It was the first Dodger Stadium home run for the younger Karros, whose dad Eric Karros hit a ballpark record 130 during a 14-year career, 12 of which came with the Dodgers.

While it was far from pretty, Roberts appreciated Rojas’ effort that “saved an inning from our bullpen.”

In the end, the Dodgers earned their fourth consecutive victory and 11th in the past 13 games.

The recent run of success has been led by a dominating pitching staff, especially the bullpen, with an erratic offense only starting to come alive of late. The Dodgers now have 10 double-digit scoring efforts this season, with four coming in the past 10 games.

Betts had just four home runs on the season, and one since returning from an oblique injury earlier this month, when he blasted a two-run home run to center in the first inning. He pumped his fist while hopping into the air between first and second base.

“Not as much with the home run as much as just the work (behind the scenes) worked,” Betts said of the emotion. “I think the work that we put in finally translated when the other days the work I put in didn’t necessarily translate. So it was more excitement from that.”

Hernandez hit his home run to lead off the third inning and Pages added his two batters later. Pages added a two-run double in a four-run fourth inning and the Dodgers were off and running with an 8-1 lead.

The run spigot continued to flow. Rojas and Hyeseong Kim each drove in a run in the fifth. Kim entered the game when Hernandez departed.

Betts hit his second home run in the sixth inning when his three-run shot cleared the wall in left-center. His sixth of the season gave him his first multi-homer game since May of last season.

Smith added a two-run shot later in the sixth.

“I have a directive and I know exactly what I need to do every day,” Betts said of his recent mechanical adjustment that led to success Tuesday. “That doesn’t mean it’s going to translate into hits, but I know exactly how to train my body, train my mind into letting it translate on the field now.”

Lauer (2-5) is getting his chance with the two-time defending World Series champions as both Tyler Glasnow (back) and Blake Snell (elbow) spend time on the IL. He was acquired in a cash transaction only after the Blue Jays designated him for assignment earlier this month.

“Overall, they kept it pretty simple for me this week where it wasn’t (working) on too many things,” Lauer said. “They said ‘Go out there, be yourself, you’ve had some rest so we want to see what you’re like then we’ll tinker after that. Will and I worked well together and I have no complaints.”

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