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What Had Happened Was: 8/17/16

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    Boston Red Sox v Baltimore Orioles
    BALTIMORE, MD – AUGUST 16: Mookie Betts #50 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates hitting a two run home run in the eighth inning with David Ortiz #34 with Matt Wieters #23 in the foreground during a baseball game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards at on August 16, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. The Red Sox won 5-3. Mitchell Layton/Getty Images
    By Ryan Cortes Rhiannon Walker

    GAME. BLOUSES.

    He’s only listed at 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds, but Boston Red Sox right fielder Mookie Betts is a freak. Normally, when you think of the Red Sox and monster home runs, David Ortiz springs to mind. And while Ortiz, in his final season, is having a tremendous year, it is Betts who actually leads the Red Sox in home runs.

    Betts batted leadoff for the Red Sox for 108 consecutive games, hitting .310 with 23 home runs and an .896 OPS. Then this past Sunday happened, and holy hell. Betts was moved down to the No.3 spot in the lineup before crushing three home runs (!) and notching eight RBIs (!) against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Tuesday night, Betts was moved down one spot further in the lineup, and damn if he didn’t hit like a true cleanup hitter: two home runs and five RBIs Tuesday night against the Baltimore Orioles.

    “Freakish,” Red Sox reliever Robbie Ross Jr. said. “That’s unbelievable. It’s unreal. I got to see some guys like Nelson Cruz [with the Texas Rangers], and I was here actually when Josh Hamilton had those four home runs [in Baltimore on May 8, 2012]. But I’ve never seen anything like this, where it was like night and day — boom, boom, boom. It was pretty special.”

    As ESPN’s Scott Lauber pointed out, Betts’ all-around numbers this season are jaw-dropping:

    Betts leads the Red Sox with 28 homers, one more than David Ortiz. He either leads the league or ranks among the top 10 in multihit games (51), total bases (285), extra-base hits (67), batting average (.315), homers, RBIs (89), runs (93), hits (157), doubles (34), triples (5), steals (18), slugging (.571) and OPS (.926).

    BLESSINGS!

    Musical artists Monica and Missy Elliott participated in the #SoGoneChallenge, which was inspired by Monica’s 2003 single So Gone.

    SOCIAL STATUS

    Friendship goals. Everyone deserves to have someone imitate his or her routine the way U.S. Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez emulated her teammate Simone Biles’.

    https://twitter.com/mer_merr99/status/765749857869041664

    FOR THE CULTURE

    Singer PartyNextD0or spoke with Rolling Stone about the regret he still harbors over how his relationship ended with singer Kehlani.

    An appreciation of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore.

    Legendary hip-hop group De La Soul has a new album coming out Aug. 26, but until then — a new song featuring Usher is out.

    The black superhero that Baltimore needs.

    TOP THREE TWEETS

    Every morning we’ll hit you here with the best of what we saw on social media the previous night. Why? Why not?

    1. YES YES YES — NO NO NO

    2. MRS. EFRON

    https://twitter.com/freddyamazin/status/765696112875319296

    3. JERRYLAND

    #ICYMI

    http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=espn:17318751

    PICTURE PERFECT

    Ryan Cortes is a staff writer for The Undefeated. Lemon pepper his wings.

    Rhiannon Walker is an associate editor at The Undefeated. She is a drinker of Sassy Cow Creamery chocolate milk, an owner of an extensive Disney VHS collection, and she might have a heart attack if Frank Ocean doesn't drop his second album.

    This Story Tagged: What Had Happened Was Mookie Betts Simone Biles