Ram Digest

Jalen Ramsey Describes the Childhood Bond he Shares With Dodgers Star Mookie Betts

Jalen Ramsey and Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts grew up playing in the same youth leagues.

Nicholas Cothrel

Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey has taken in his fair share of Dodgers games of late. He attended each of the Dodgers' two playoff games at home against the San Francisco Giants in the National League Division Series.

“It was packed,” Ramsey said of the historic venue that is Dodger Stadium. “It was live in there. It was a cool little atmosphere, cool vibe.”

Not only is Ramsey embracing the Dodgers as they make a push to reach the World Series for the second time in two seasons, he also shares a childhood bond with outfielder Mookie Betts.

Ramsey and Betts both grew up natives of Nashville, Tennessee. While there remains a slight age difference with Betts being two years older, he and Ramsey played in the same youth leagues growing up.

"Our people are close," Ramsey said of Betts. "Our people know each other really well. Me and Mookie, obviously we grew up in the same city. We played in the same youth leagues and stuff like that. We both played with the Una Bears growing up, little football. Mookie (is an) athlete. That's what people don't know. Mookie can do a lot of different things."

Ramsey said that people back in the Nashville area admire Betts as one of the greatest athletes to come out of their respective area. While Betts is known for his baseball achievements, Ramsey said people are well aware of how gifted he is as a bowler too. 

"Honestly, most people back home I feel like obviously talk about Mookie and baseball, but I feel like a lot of people talk about his bowling." Ramsey said. "I feel like everybody knows about bowling, Mookie and bowling. He’s a perfect bowler, honestly. Like he'll bowl 300 just fresh off of practice or fresh off of whatever. He's super talented.”

Ramsey's draw to attend local sporting events also goes beyond baseball. He and the defensive backs of the Rams took in the Los Angeles Kings' opening night game on Thursday.

Ramsey said going to local events with teammates is something he enjoys. As a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars he tried to attend sporting events in the area with teammates but mentioned it was difficult to do so with the Jaguars being the only professional team in the local market.

"When I got traded out here in L.A., I was just trying to get acclimated for that year," Ramsey said. "And then the next year was COVID, so with this year, I'm like, 'let's live a little bit.' You know, be careful. Mask up but live a little bit. Have a little fun and then build a little team chemistry and whatnot.”

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Nick Cothrel is the Publisher of Ram Digest. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickCothrel.

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Nicholas Cothrel
NICHOLAS COTHREL

Nick Cothrel covers the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated.

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