Dodgers

ORLANDO, Fla. — Coming into the offseason, the Dodgers signaled that they would be conservative when it came to pursuing help in the bullpen.

Turned out, they were quietly plotting one of the most surprising — and impactful — signings of the winter.

In a blockbuster move on Tuesday, the team agreed to a three-year, $69 million deal with top free-agent closer Edwin Diaz, according to a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly, snatching the three-time All-Star and three-time Reliever of the Year award winner in a move that will transform their previously shaky bullpen.

Diaz, 31, was the consensus best relief pitcher in this year’s free-agent class. Over his nine-year career, he has a 2.82 ERA and 253 saves. This past season with the New York Mets, he had one of his best campaigns, posting a 1.63 ERA with 28 saves in 31 opportunities, while striking out 98 batters in 66 1/3 innings.

That track record positioned Diaz to be the highest-paid reliever on this year’s market, with most projections pegging him for a five-year deal. Because of that, the Dodgers appeared to be long-shots to sign him, with the club believed to prefer a shorter-term contract after watching their big relief signings last offseason (namely Tanner Scott) struggle in a bullpen that ranked just 21st in ERA.

However, in recent weeks, the Dodgers’ approach had begun to subtly shift.

The team had strong interest in Devin Williams before he signed with the New York Mets, staying in the running even as his bidding reached the level of multi-year offers.

They were showing interest this week in Robert Suarez, another high-powered arm likely to sign a multi-year contract.

Then, on Tuesday morning, they stunned the Winter Meetings by making their surprise signing of Diaz — giving the right-hander the biggest contract, by annual average value, for a relief pitcher in MLB history.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

From Sam Farmer: All that talk about the left hand of Justin Herbert, and it’s the right foot of Cameron Dicker that made the difference.

Dicker kicked five field goals Monday night to lift the Chargers to a 22-19 overtime victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in a wild, turnover-filled game at SoFi Stadium.

On a night when the teams combined for eight turnovers — including a career-high four interceptions by Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts — the game fittingly ended with an interception. Tony Jefferson latched onto a pass that was tipped by fellow Chargers defensive back Cam Hart, snuffing out the Eagles’ last chance.

So Dicker’s 54-yard field goal with 6:24 remaining in the extra period provided the margin of victory, just as it was Dicker who forced overtime with a 46-yarder in the waning moments of regulation.

“What a team we have,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said, practically shouting at the postgame podium. “That’s my reaction — what a team we have. They refuse to lose.”

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Chargers-Eagles summary

NFL standings

DODGERS KNOCK DOWN RUMORS

From Jack Harris: It’s been an offseason of few acquisitions thus far for the Dodgers.

So much so that, on the first day of MLB’s annual winter meetings at the Signia by Hilton Orlando on Monday, the most intriguing rumor surrounding the team had to do with a potential subtraction from their big-league roster.

According to multiple reports, Teoscar Hernández has come up in the Dodgers’ trade talks with other teams this winter. USA Today went as far as saying the club was “shopping” the two-time All-Star, who is entering the second season of the three-year, $66-million deal he signed last offseason.

However, both manager Dave Roberts and general manager Brandon Gomes downplayed that notion while addressing reporters on Monday.

“Teo certainly fits [our roster still],” Roberts said. “He’s helped us win two championships. He’s one of my favorites.”

“That doesn’t feel likely,” Gomes added of the possibility of trading Hernández. “Obviously, you can never say never on those types of things. I know that’s come up [in reports]. But that’s not something we anticipate at all.”

The idea of the Dodgers trading Hernández has felt like a long shot from the start. Though the 33-year-old slugger suffered an inconsistent and injury-plagued regular season in 2025 — both at the plate, where he had 25 home runs but hit only .247, and especially defensively, where he had several notable lapses after moving to right field — the 10-year veteran has made crucial contributions in each of the Dodgers’ two World Series runs the last couple years, and has served in a mentor role to young players in the clubhouse; none more so than Andy Pages.

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MORE DODGERS:

A quiet Dodgers offseason has yet to heat up. Will winter meetings help them find a move?

From Ben Bolch: The eight remaining candidates met with UCLA’s search committee on Zoom, each answering the same set of questions.

When those conversations ended, Martin Jarmond, the athletic director who was presiding over the Bruins’ quest to find their next great football coach, asked everyone on the committee to prioritize which candidates needed to be seen in person.

Everyone’s list included the same name: Bob Chesney.

The James Madison coach had already wowed the committee by then, according to multiple people with knowledge of the search who spoke with The Times on condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the process.

Chesney’s experience building programs into winners, established track record of success at multiple levels, ability to develop talent and appreciation for everything UCLA had to offer were all selling points that made him an attractive candidate early in a search lasting 2½ months.

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From Ryan Kartje: USC will face Texas Christian in its first trip to the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 30, the night before the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff kick off. Throw in the fact that the Horned Frogs finished in seventh place in the Big 12, and you don’t exactly have a marquee, made-for-TV matchup.

But for USC’s coach, the Alamo Bowl should carry a certain significance — if only for the fact that it’s where his reputation as a budding offensive mastermind was born.

Sixteen years ago this December, Lincoln Riley was on his way to a team meeting ahead of Texas Tech’s bowl game, when defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill pulled him aside. Mike Leach, the Red Raiders’ head coach had been suspended for the bowl for allegations of player mistreatment — and would be fired days later. McNeill, the interim coach, wanted Riley to call plays for him.

Riley was 26, and reeling from the news about his mentor.

“An opportunity arose out of a not-very-positive situation,” Riley said Sunday.

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NOTRE DAME CFP FALLOUT

From Chuck Schilken: One day removed from learning that Notre Dame had been left out of the College Football Playoff’s 12-team field, Fighting Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua was still fuming.

In addition to reiterating his frustrations with the CFP ranking process, Bevacqua also turned his ire on the Atlantic Coast Conference during a Monday morning appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show.”

“We were mystified by the actions of the conference, to attack, you know, their biggest, really, business partner in football and a member of their conference in 24 of our other sports,” Bevaqua said. “And I wouldn’t be honest with you if I didn’t say that they have certainly done permanent damage to the relationship between the conference and Notre Dame.”

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HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

From Eric Sondheimer: Palisades, hoping to be a City Section basketball title contender, unveiled two 6-foot-5 twins from Detroit, EJ and OJ Popoola, on Monday night, but there was no stopping Windward shooting threes in its home gym.

The Wildcats made 14 threes and received a terrific performance from 6-6 junior Davey Harris in an 80-60 victory. Harris, who said he was “80%” several weeks ago in Windward’s season opener after recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for two seasons, now says he’s “85 to 90%.” If that’s true, wait until he’s 100% because he finished with 31 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

Palisades (0-3) is doing exactly what City Section football teams did during their nonleage seasons — play tough Southern Section opponents to prepare for league play. The Dolphins open Western League play on Wednesday against Venice and will be an Open Division title contender.

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MORE HIGH SCHOOLS:

High school basketball: Monday’s boys’ and girls’ scores

Prep Rally: A big high school basketball record could be broken this week

KINGS

Joel Armia scored twice, Adrian Kempe had a goal and assist, and the Kings beat the Utah Mammoth 4-2 on Monday night.

Anze Kopitar also scored and Kevin Fiala had two assists to help the Kings get their third win in five games. Darcy Kuemper stopped 19 shots.

Clayton Keller had a goal and an assist, and Dylan Guenther also scored for the Mammoth in their sixth loss in eight games. Karel Vejmelka finished with 23 saves.

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Kings summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1934 — The New York Giants wins the NFL championship by beating the Chicago Bears 30-13 in the famous “Sneakers Game.” With the temperature at 9 degrees and the Polo Grounds field a sheet of ice, the Giants open the second half wearing basketball shoes and score 27 points in the final period to overcome a 13-3 Chicago lead.

1938 — The Chicago Cardinals select TCU center Ki Aldrich with the first pick of the NFL Draft.

1939 — The Chicago Cardinals select Tennessee half back George Cafego with the first pick of the NFL Draft.

1949 — The All-America Conference merges with the National Football League. Three teams from the AAFC — the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Colts — join the 10-team NFL. The league is called the National-American Football League, but months later the National Football League name is restored.

1973 — Jim Bakken of the St. Louis Cardinals kicks six field goals in a 32-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.

1977 — Moses Malone scores 20 points and grabs nine rebounds in the second half to lead the Houston Rockets to a 116-105 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. The game s marred by a one-punch knockout of Rockets’ forward Rudy Tomjanovich by Los Angeles forward Kermit Washington.

1984 — Eric Dickerson of the Los Angeles Rams rushes for 215 yards and two touchdowns against the Houston Oilers, breaking O.J. Simpson’s NFL single-season rushing record of 2,003 yards. Dickerson ends the season with 2,105 yards.

1993 — Kevin Johnson of Phoenix becomes the 13th player to record 10 steals in an NBA game, during the Suns’ 114-95 win over Washington.

2000 — Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith rushes for a season-high 150 yards, putting him over 1,000 for a record-tying 10th straight season and joins Walter Payton and Barry Sanders as the only players in NFL history with 15,000 career yards.

2001 — Bode Miller becomes the first American since 1983 to win a World Cup giant slalom race. Miller, third after the opening leg, has an excellent second run to win in a combined time of 2 minutes, 36.02 seconds in Val D’Isere, France.

2007 — Peyton Manning of Indianapolis becomes the fifth quarterback in NFL history to throw 300 touchdown passes, getting four and going 13-for-17 for 249 yards in a 44-20 win over Baltimore.

2009 — Cassidy Schaub rolls consecutive 300 games and sets a Professional Bowlers Association 16-game scoring record, averaging 257.25 to retain the second-round lead in the Pepsi Red, White and Blue Open. Schaub had a 16-game total of 4,116 pins to erase the PBA record of 4,095 set by John Mazza in Las Vegas in 1996.

2016 — Russia’s sports reputation is ripped apart again when a new report into systematic doping details a vast “institutional conspiracy” that covers more than 1,000 athletes in over 30 sports and a corrupted drug-testing system at the 2012 and 2014 Olympics. This second and final report by World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren says the conspiracy involves the Russian Sports Ministry, national anti-doping agency and the FSB intelligence service, providing further details of state involvement in a massive program of cheating and cover-ups that operated on an “unprecedented scale” from 2011-15.

2017 — Jozy Altidore opens the scoring in the 67th minute and Toronto FC beats the Seattle Sounders 2-0 in the MLS Cup to become the first Canadian champion in league history.

2018 – New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady breaks Peyton Manning’s record for most touchdown passes in NFL history.

2018 — Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers breaks Tom Brady’s NFL record with his 359th straight pass without an interception during Packers 34-20 win over Atlanta Falcons; finishes game with streak intact at 368.

2021 – Chicago Black Hawks Marc-Andre Fleury becomes 3rd NHL goaltender to reach 500 career wins.

2023 — Japanese baseball two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani signs a North American pro-sports record 10-year $700m deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

ORLANDO, Fla. — It’s been an offseason of few acquisitions thus far for the Dodgers.

So much so that, on the first day of MLB’s annual winter meetings at the Signia by Hilton Orlando on Monday, the most intriguing rumor surrounding the team had to do with a potential subtraction from their big-league roster.

According to multiple reports, Teoscar Hernández has come up in the Dodgers’ trade talks with other teams this winter. USA Today went as far as saying the club was “shopping” the two-time All-Star, who is entering the second season of the three-year, $66-million deal he signed last offseason.

However, both manager Dave Roberts and general manager Brandon Gomes downplayed that notion while addressing reporters on Monday.

Dodgers right fielder Teoscar Hernández hits a sacrifice fly to score Dodgers’ Will Smith during the Game 7 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Nov. 1.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

“Teo certainly fits [our roster still],” Roberts said. “He’s helped us win two championships. He’s one of my favorites.”

“That doesn’t feel likely,” Gomes added of the possibility of trading Hernández. “Obviously, you can never say never on those types of things. I know that’s come up [in reports]. But that’s not something we anticipate at all.”

The idea of the Dodgers trading Hernández has felt like a long shot from the start. Though the 33-year-old slugger suffered an inconsistent and injury-plagued regular season in 2025 — both at the plate, where he had 25 home runs but hit only .247, and especially defensively, where he had several notable lapses after moving to right field — the 10-year veteran has made crucial contributions in each of the Dodgers’ two World Series runs the last couple years, and has served in a mentor role to young players in the clubhouse; none more so than Andy Pages.

Granted, moving Hernández could help the Dodgers get younger, which has been a goal for the front office this offseason as they try to navigate their aging and expensive roster. And his salary could be repurposed if the team were to make a splashier free-agent signing.

But for now, the Dodgers continue to express belief in their current core, with Roberts noting Monday that “we’re very confident with where the roster is right now” and that “there’s really no big splash we feel needs to be made.”

Plus, moving Hernández would also only further exacerbate the team’s pre-existing need for outfield help, as the club continues to evaluate both the free agent market (where players such as Cody Bellinger or Harrison Bader figure to be better, and more affordable, fits than a likely $400-million signing of top free-agent option Kyle Tucker) and trade possibilities (such as Brendan Donovan or Lars Nootbaar of the St. Louis Cardinals, Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu of the Boston Red Sox or — in a less likely scenario — Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians).

Roberts did leave the door open to potentially moving Hernández back to left field, where he spent the majority of 2024 for the Dodgers before shifting over to his more natural right field position last year.

Still, in Roberts’ eyes, Hernández’s defense was “at least average” in right after an August series in Colorado when he made a couple particularly glaring mistakes on fly balls. His career-long defensive metrics have also been stronger in right field than left.

“I do think that with the versatility [of our roster] and how we potentially shape this roster, there’s some options,” Roberts said. “But right now, he’s our right fielder.”

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: LeBron James needed to send this message.

He still sits on his throne.

The Lakers superstar scored 10 consecutive points late in the fourth quarter to seal a 112-108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, finishing with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists to help the Lakers (17-6) nab two wins out of a difficult three-game trip.

Philadelphia (13-10) crawled back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter and tied the score with 1:28 remaining on a shot by Joel Embiid. James answered with the fadeaway three-pointer over Quentin Grimes to put the Lakers up by three with 1:11 left. He all but iced the game with a 20-foot fadeaway shot over Grimes with 27.3 seconds remaining.

Running back up the court, James held both hands low to the ground in a “too small” signal. He placed an imaginary crown on his head. He soaked in the roars from the crowd and punctuated it with his signature silencer celebration.

“That was vintage Bron,” said Luka Doncic, who finished with 31 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists after a two-game absence for the birth of his second child. “We’re happy he was there to save us.”

James played in his 1,015th win, passing Robert Parish for the second most in NBA history. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record with 1,074. The Lakers won for the first time in Philadelphia since Dec. 16, 2016.

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Lakers box score

NBA standings

RAMS

From Gary Klein: There was no time for players and fans to send Rams coach Sean McVay get-well-soon cards.

A day after deciding not to travel with the team for fear of spreading stomach-flu symptoms, McVay arrived Sunday morning.

McVay fist-bumped players during warmups at State Farm Stadium, his trademark gelled hair spikes in full effect. And he looked none the worse for the wear while roaming the sideline sockless and calling plays against the Arizona Cardinals.

McVay and his players were feeling good after the Rams routed the Cardinals, 45-17.

Matthew Stafford passed for three touchdowns, Puka Nacua caught two touchdown passes in a game for the first time in his career, and Blake Corum rushed for a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns as the Rams bounced back from a loss to the Carolina Panthers and improved to 10-3, reclaiming the top spot in the NFC.

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FERNANDO DOES NOT MAKE HALL OF FAME

From Jack Harris: Fernando Valenzuela was once more denied induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Fourteen months removed from his death at the age of 63 in October 2024, and 27 years removed from the end of a pitching career measured by more than just wins, losses and ERA, Valenzuela failed to be elected for the 2026 Hall of Fame class by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee — a 16-person group that once every three years considers players from the 1980s or later who had not been elected to the Hall through the traditional media vote.

Needing 12 votes from that committee to attain Hall of Fame status, Valenzuela instead came up short by receiving fewer than five.

Because Valenzuela didn’t receive five votes, he will be ineligible to be back on the Contemporary Era Committee’s ballot in 2028. The next time the committee could review his case won’t be until 2031.

Until then, his name will remain among the most notable snubs from Hall of Fame induction.

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Former Dodgers slugger and noted curmudgeon Jeff Kent voted into the Hall of Fame

From Ryan Kartje: For the 11th straight season and fourth time under coach Lincoln Riley, USC finished its season on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff field.

But it will get to finish this football season with a first.

USC will face Texas Christian in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 30, a source not authorized to discuss the matchup publicly confirmed to The Times. The Trojans never have spent the bowl season in San Antonio, where the Alamo Bowl has been played since 1993.

Their opponent comes as somewhat of a surprise considering the Horned Frogs finished the regular season 8-4 in a tie for fifth in the Big 12. The Alamo Bowl gets first selection of Big 12 teams and could have chosen Brigham Young, which lost in the Big 12 title game and, like USC, finished within one win of the playoff field. But the bowl presumably passed on the Cougars because they took part in the game last season.

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USC BASKETBALL

From Ryan Kartje: Jazzy Davidson glanced at the basket with less than two minutes left in USC’s Big Ten opener and in a split-second’s time considered her options. Nearly nothing had fallen from three-point range for the Trojans. It took 25 minutes Sunday just to see one three-pointer drop, and the Trojans had made only two.

But the mere threat of the freshman pulling up from range, even on a night defined by defensive struggle, was enough to give Davidson the sliver of space she needed. After pausing she raced past her defender and toward the basket, lifting for a finger roll that propelled USC past Washington in a 59-50 victory.

The win wasn’t just a significant statement for USC ahead of its heavyweight battle with No. 1 Connecticut next Saturday. It was also a major mile marker for Lindsay Gottlieb, who became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 wins.

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USC box score

Big Ten standings

USC-NOTRE DAME RIVALRY

From Bill Plaschke: The ongoing discussions about continuing the expired USC-Notre Dame football rivalry should begin with one basic truth.

Notre Dame needs USC more than USC needs Notre Dame.

The Irish are reeling today after they were stunningly left out of the 12-team College Football Playoff, but they never would have been part of the playoff conversation without a win over Holiday Bowl-bound USC.

The 10-2 Irish lost their first two games of the season before embarking on their usual cupcake schedule.

Somewhere in the muck of forgettable games against the likes of Boise State and Boston College and Navy, they needed a marquee win.

USC showed up in October and gave them the opportunity for that marquee win. Every year USC shows up in the middle of the season and gives them a chance at collecting that marquee win.

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UCLA BASKETBALL

From Antony Solorzano: Any time UCLA built a significant lead in the first half, Oregon tried to slow the the Bruins’ momentum with a timeout. The first call came after a UCLA built a 10-point advantage in the first quarter, with the second timeout after UCLA pulled ahead by 19 points.

It didn’t work — the Bruins remained in control of the game.

The No. 4 UCLA women’s basketball team (9-1) earned an 80-59 win over Oregon (10-1) during their Big Ten opener at Pauley Pavilion on Sunday.

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UCLA box score

Big Ten standings

UCLA WATER POLO

Frederico Jucá Carsalade scored with one second remaining to cap a four-goal fourth quarter, and UCLA rallied to beat USC 11-10 to win the men’s water polo championship Sunday at the Avery Aquatic Center.

It was the 14th championship for the second-seeded and defending champion Bruins (27-2), winning back-to-back titles for the fifth time.

USC (23-4), the top seed, was aiming for its 11th title — all since 1998 — in a tournament that began in 1969. The Trojans won six in a row from 2008 to 2013.

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DUCKS

Leo Carlsson scored two goals and rookie Beckett Sennecke had a goal and an assist in the Ducks’ 7-1 victory over the road-weary Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night.

Jacob Trouba, Mason McTavish, Alex Killorn and Frank Vatrano also scored for the Pacific Division-leading Ducks, who have won three of four. The Ducks took charge with a four-goal second period that featured a franchise-record 27 shots on Chicago’s net, capped by Carlsson’s 15th goal on a fluttering deflection for a 5-0 lead.

Ville Husso made 19 saves for the Ducks, who beat Chicago for the first time in three tries this season. Ryan Strome, Cutter Gauthier and Chris Kreider had two assists apiece.

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Ducks summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1940 — The Chicago Bears beat the Washington Redskins 73-0 for the most one-sided victory in NFL Championship play.

1942 — Georgia’s Frank Sinkwich wins the Heisman Trophy. Sinkwich ends his career holding the Southeastern Conference record for total offense with 2,399 yards.

1948 — Southern Methodist junior Doak Walker wins the Heisman Trophy. Walker over three years scores 303 points, including 40 touchdowns and 60 points after touchdowns.

1961 — Philadelphia’s Wilt Chamberlain scores 78 points and grabs 43 rebounds in a 151-147 triple overtime loss to the Lakers. Elgin Baylor leads the Lakers with 63 points.

1963 — Cookie Gilchrist of the Buffalo Bills sets an AFL record with 243 yards rushing and ties a league record with five touchdowns in a 45-14 rout of the New York Jets.

1977 — Texas running back Earl Campbell wins the Heisman Trophy.

1987 — Ron Hextall of the Philadelphia Flyers becomes the first NHL goaltender to shoot a puck into the opposing goal in a 5-2 victory over the Boston Bruins.

2000 — Shaquille O’Neal sets an NBA record by going 0-for-11 from the free-throw line as the SuperSonics beat the Lakers 103-95. He broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record, who went 0-for-10 for Philadelphia against Detroit on Nov. 4, 1960. O’Neal had 26 points and 16 rebounds.

2002 — Oakland quarterback Rich Gannon sets an NFL record with his 10th 300-yard game of the season, throwing for 328 yards in the Raider 27-7 win over San Diego and breaking a tie with Dan Marino, Warren Moon and Kurt Warner.

2007 — Florida quarterback Tim Tebow becomes the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. He beats out Arkansas running back Darren McFadden, the first player since 1949 to finish second in consecutive seasons.

2011 — Three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols agrees to a $254-million, 10-year contract with the Angels on the final day of baseball’s winter meetings. Pujols’ contract is the second-highest in baseball history and only the third to break the $200 million barrier, following Alex Rodriguez’s $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas before the 2001 season and A-Rod’s $275 million, 10-year contract with the Yankees before the 2008 season.

2011 — The NBA and players union reach financial agreement to end a 161-day lockout, shortening the season by 16 games.

2012 — Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel becomes the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, taking college football’s top individual prize after a record-breaking debut. Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o finishes a distant second and Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein is third in the voting.

2013 — Zach Johnson rallies from four shots behind with eight holes to play and beats Tiger Woods, the No. 1 player in golf, at the World Challenge. Johnson holes out from a drop area for par on the last hole to force a playoff and wins when Woods misses a 5-foot par putt on the first extra hole.

2013 — Lydia Ko, a 16-year-old from New Zealand, rallies to win her first title as a professional. Ko, making her second pro start, wins the Swinging Skirts World Ladies Masters, closing with a 4-under 68 for a three-stroke victory over South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu. She won four pro events as an amateur, taking the Canadian Women’s Open the last two years.

2018 — Kyler Murray, Oklahoma, wins Heisman Trophy.

2022 — American basketball star Brittany Griner is released by Russian authorities in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout; Griner detained on drug smuggling charges since February 2022.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.