National

Mookie Betts punctuates Dodgers NL-West clinching win with stunning catch, celebration

The Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the NL West on Tuesday with 21 games left to play.

Mookie Betts made sure that they did so in style. The five-time Dodgers Gold Glove winner robbed a would-be hit with a catch-of-the-year candidate in the Dodgers' 4-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

With no outs in the seventh inning, outfielder Jake McCarthy skied a Clayton Kershaw pitch down the right-field line that looked destined for extra bases. Betts had other ideas. He sprinted from left-center field, slid feet-first on the warning track, then plucked the ball from the air inches from the ground.

When he got up from the slide he stood face-first and shared the moment with the Dodgers bullpen. He then tossed the ball back to the infield, flashed a smile and signaled to an appreciative Kershaw on the mound.

With the win, the Dodgers improved to 98-43, 21 games and out of striking distance of the second-place San Diego Chargers. It's not like the Dodgers — or anyone else in the NL, were going to catch them for home-field advantage anyway. Now they'll play out the rest of the season knowing they're NL West champs.