The Los Angeles Dodgers were dealt a brutal blow after star outfielder Mookie Betts was diagnosed with a fractured rib and placed on the 10-day IL. Losing Betts hurts, but there is actually a silver lining to the injury. According to Matthew Moreno, manager Dave Roberts revealed Betts is only dealing with a fracture in one rib, indicating that his stay on the IL may not be a long one.

Roberts compared Betts' injury to that of Cody Bellinger from the 2021 season, which would indicate a timeline of roughly two weeks for the star outfielder to make his return to the Dodgers' lineup. There were no guarantees from Roberts, who suggested the team will play it by ear with Betts and see how his body responds to the rest and treatment.

Betts was off to a red-hot start to the 2022 season, so losing him for any period of time is a big blow. The 29-year-old is slashing .273/.349/.535 with 17 home runs and 40 RBI, scoring 53 runs across his first 60 games this year, logging a 2.8 WAR.

His absence comes at a bad time for the Dodgers, who have seen their NL West lead shrink to just 0.5 games over the San Diego Padres. The Giants aren't far behind, either, just 3.0 games out of the top spot in the division. With their rivals breathing down their necks, the loss of Betts will hurt even more.

Fans should be encouraged by Roberts' update, however, as while they likely won't see Betts until some point in July, it doesn't sound like he'll be forced to miss too much time through the rib injury.