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From Gary Klein: During the offseason, Cooper Kupp co-founded a coffee company.
And when the veteran Rams receiver returned to the lineup Thursday night after a four-game absence, the recently moribund offense anticipated a welcome jolt.
What it got was an unexpected double shot.
Receiver Puka Nacua also returned to the lineup and the two stars helped the Rams defeat the Minnesota Vikings 30-20 before 72,127 at SoFi Stadium.
Kupp caught a touchdown pass and Nacua amassed 106 yards receiving as the Rams won their second game in a row and improved their record to 3-4.
Matthew Stafford tossed two touchdown passes to receiver Demarcus Robinson, one to Kupp and one to running back Kyren Williams, and rookie edge rushers Jared Verse and Byron Young sparked the defense as the Rams followed last Sunday’s victory over the Las Vegas Raiders by handing the Vikings (5-2) their second consecutive defeat.
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DODGERS
From Jack Harris: The Dodgers might be getting some reinforcements on the roster for the World Series.
Left-hander Alex Vesia, who missed the National League Championship Series after suffering an intercostal injury in Game 5 of the NL Division Series, said he is “90% sure” he’ll be active for the Fall Classic, having completed bullpen sessions over the last week and a 15-pitch live batting practice session Wednesday.
“I’m very confident that with how I felt [Wednesday] night, I’ll be even better when I go out with some adrenaline in my system facing some Yankees,” Vesia said.
Shortstop Miguel Rojas is also in line to be active for the World Series after missing the NLCS with a nagging adductor injury, one that had sidelined him since Game 3 of the NLDS.
‘Most satisfying’ year: How Dave Roberts changed narrative, got Dodgers to World Series
Plaschke: ‘He’s gone through hell.’ Charley Steiner’s brutal but winning battle with cancer
Jaime Jarrín on Fernando Valenzuela: ‘He was so smart. … He was a marvel, really’
Five most iconic moments in Dodgers-Yankees World Series history
99 problems but a Dodgers pitch ain’t one. Aaron Judge hits L.A. like no one else in history
1981 Dodgers say they never doubted they would beat the Yankees, win the World Series
Shaikin: Yankees versus Dodgers: Can MLB seize this dream marketing moment?
Dodgers Dugout: Remembering Fernando Valenzuela
WORLD SERIES SCHEDULE
All times Pacific
All games on Fox
All games at 5:08 p.m.
Dodgers vs. NY Yankees
Friday at Dodgers
Saturday at Dodgers
Monday at New York
Tuesday at New York
*Wednesday at New York
*Friday, Nov. 1 at Dodgers
*Saturday, Nov. 2 at Dodgers
*-if necessary
LAKERS
From Chuck Schilken: Hours after they became the first father-son duo to share an NBA court together, LeBron and Bronny James were sued for their alleged involvement in a 2022 car crash in the desert town of Littlerock in the Antelope Valley.
A lawsuit filed Wednesday morning in Los Angeles County Superior Court claims the Lakers teammates “negligently owned, controlled, repaired, entrusted, maintained and operated an automobile as to cause it to, and it did, become involved in an accident or collision” that caused injury to the plaintiffs and damage to the vehicle they were in.
According to the complaint, plaintiffs Kiara McGillen and April Lopez were in a car on Pearblossom Highway at or near the intersection of 87th Street on Nov. 13, 2022, when the alleged incident occurred. McGillen was the driver, but the vehicle is owned by Lopez.
CLIPPERS
From Terry Castleman: Kawhi Leonard’s tenure with the Clippers has been marred by numerous injuries, and his status for this season remains in doubt.
As the organization plays its opening season in the newly completed Intuit Dome, a new complication has arisen: A lawsuit filed Thursday by a former trainer alleges unsafe treatment of the franchise’s star player.
Randy Shelton was the strength and conditioning coach at San Diego State and worked closely with Leonard during the player’s time with the Aztecs. The lawsuit says the Clippers began their pursuit of Leonard — using Shelton as an intermediary — in 2017, two years before Leonard joined the team.
KINGS
From Kevin Baxter: The NHL season turned three weeks old Friday, just hours after the Kings played at home for the first time.
“It’s definitely odd,” captain Anze Kopitar said Thursday, before the Kings returned to Crypto.com Arena for the first time in 175 days to beat the San Jose Sharks 3-2 before a sellout crowd of 18,146. “End of October. So a little different.”
The Kings were forced out of their building for the first seven games of the regular season by the third phase of a multi-million-dollar renovation of their home arena, which turned 25 this month. If you count a preseason spent partly in Utah and Quebec, the roadtrip lasted more than a month, making the Kings the last team in the league to play at home this season.
Six others have already had five games on their home ice.
And there’s no doubt that put the Kings a disadvantage. Not only were the players away from their families, but the home team puts their sticks down last on face-offs, improving their chances of winning the drop, and gets the last change on substitutions after a whistle, allowing it to exploit match-up advantages.
“That’s huge,” said Kings TV analyst Jim Fox, who played nine seasons in the NHL.
That’s not the only advantage of coming home however.
“The fans,” Kings president Luc Robitaille said “make the home-ice advantage.”
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1947 — In front of a capacity crowd of 35,000 at Columbia’s Baker Field in New York, the Lions end Army’s 32-game unbeaten streak in a 21-20 upset. An interception in Army’s final drive seals the win, the first over an Army team that had not surrendered a point all season until the loss to Columbia.
1964 — Cotton Davidson of the Oakland Raiders passes for 427 yards and five touchdowns in a 40-7 rout of the Denver Broncos.
1980 — Mike Weaver knocks out Gerrie Coetzee in the 13th round to retain the WBA heavyweight title in Sun City, Bophuthatswana.
1990 — Evander Holyfield knocks out Buster Douglas in Las Vegas to become the undisputed heavyweight champion.
1998 — Jerry Rice sets an NFL record for receptions in consecutive games with his 12-yard catch from Steve Young on San Francisco’s first offensive play. Rice has caught passes in 184 straight games, breaking the mark set by Art Monk from 1980-95.
1998 — Denver’s Jason Elam kicks a 63-yard field goal, tying Tom Dempsey’s 28-year-old NFL record. Elam’s kick, which came at the end of the first half, matches the record Dempsey set for the New Orleans Saints against Detroit on Nov. 8, 1970.
2003 — Trainer Richard Mandella wins a record four races at the Breeders’ Cup, capping perhaps the greatest day in racing history when Pleasantly Perfect wins the $4 million Classic at Santa Anita. Mandella wins the $1 million Juvenile Fillies with Halfbridled, the $1.5 million Juvenile with long-shot Action This Day and the $2 million Turf with Johar, who dead-heats with High Chaparral.
2003 — Florida’s Josh Beckett throws a shutout to lead the Marlins to a 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees to win the World Series. Pitching on three days rest, Beckett gives up five hits in Game 6 and captures MVP honors.
2006 — Joe Sakic becomes the 11th player in NHL history to reach 1,500 career points with an assist during the first period of Colorado’s 5-3 loss to Washington.
2008 — Raven’s Pass wins the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic in an upset, stunning defending champion Curlin on the new synthetic surface at Santa Anita. Raven’s Pass, ridden by Frankie Dettori and sent off at 13-1 odds, posts a 1 3/4-length victory in his first race on such a surface.
2014 — Trevone Boykin throws a school-record seven touchdown passes and No. 10 TCU scored the most points in its history in an 82-27 rout of Texas Tech.
2015 — Kirk Cousins throws three second-half touchdown passes, including the go-ahead score with 24 seconds left, to lead the Washington Redskins to the largest comeback in franchise history, a 31-30 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa Bay was up 24-0 in the second quarter, before Cousins runs for an 8-yard TD to get Washington on the board.
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, and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.