Howdy, I’m your host, Austin Knoblauch, filling in for Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.
From Jack Harris: Defensive miscues cost the Dodgers two runs on Monday. Stellar defense from the Washington Nationals prevented two, if not more.
In the Dodgers’ 6-4 loss at Nationals Park to open a three-game series, that proved to be the biggest difference. And, with the team having lost three of their last four games, it reinforced what is fast becoming a disconcerting early-season theme.
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As was the story in this past weekend’s series defeat to the Philadelphia Phillies, when defensive breakdowns and baserunning blunders ended the team’s 8-0 start to the season, the Dodgers continued to struggle with the fundamentals on Monday, digging an early hole from which they never fully recovered — even on a night Shohei Ohtani came up a double short of the cycle.
With two on and one out in the top of the second, Mookie Betts let a hard-hit one-hopper blaze by him at shortstop, misjudging a low bounce on an error that allowed an unearned run to score.
“I missed it,” Betts said. “Whether it hopped up or stayed down, doesn’t matter.”
With two outs, Miguel Rojas booted a more routine grounder at second base, resulting in yet another error and unearned run.
“Defensively today, we gave them a lot of chances for them to score some runs,” Rojas said. “So we gotta clean that up.”
The Nationals’ defense, on the other hand, twice took away hits that doused potentially dangerous Dodgers rallies.
ALSO: Dodgers celebrated at White House for 2024 World Series title by Trump
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GOLF
Two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer plays on the 14th hole during a practice round at Augusta National Golf Club on Sunday. Langer is playing in his final Masters.
(Augusta National / Getty Images)
From Sam Farmer: The yips — the sudden inability to make even short putts — have ended careers of professional golfers.
For Bernhard Langer, they brought him to his knees.
“Those were the hardest times in my life, in my golfing life, I should say,” said Langer, 67, who this week will play in his 41st and final Masters. “I’ve had the yips on four different occasions. It seems like every seven years for some reason, just not lately, thank goodness.”
The depths for him came in 1989 at the Buick Invitational in Detroit, after his first of two Masters victories, when he missed the cut despite hitting 17 greens in regulation on Thursday and 16 on Friday. His putting was so shaky, though, that he was a forehead-slapping 11 over par.
“I went back to my hotel and literally got on my knees,” he said. “I was already a believer at the time, and said a prayer like, ‘God, if you want me done with this game, I’m ready to give it up. Just show me what you want me to do and I’ll pack it up, no more golf.”
A friend was praying with him and said, “I don’t think he’s done with you yet.”
ALSO: The Masters top golfers to watch, TV schedule, odds and weather
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Florida guard Will Richard celebrates after the Gators’ 65-63 win over Houston for the NCAA men’s basketball championship on Monday.
(Brynn Anderson / Associated Press)
From the Associated Press: Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. came up with the perfect going-away present for that spirit-crushing Houston defense that bullied, battered and bedeviled him all night.
It was a defensive gem of his own. Right before the buzzer. For the win and the national title.
The Gators and Clayton somehow overcame Houston’s lock-down intensity Monday night to will out a 65-63 victory in an NCAA title-game thriller decided when the Florida senior’s own defense stopped the Cougars from even taking a winning shot at the buzzer.
Clayton finished with 11 points, all in the second half, but what he’ll be remembered for most was getting Houston’s Emanuel Sharp to stop in the middle of his motion as he tried to go up for a three-pointer in the final seconds.
Clayton ran at him, Sharp dropped the ball and, unable to pick it up lest he get called for traveling, watched it bounce. Alex Condon dived on the ball, then flipped it to Clayton, who ran to the opposite free-throw line with the buzzer sounding and tugged his jersey out of his shorts. Next, the court was awash in Gator chomps and orange and blue confetti.
“Our motto is, we all can go,” Clayton said. “We’ve got a team full of guys that can go. It ain’t just about me. My team held me down until I was able to put the ball in the basket. Shout out to them boys.”
KINGS
Seattle Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord stops a redirected shot by Kings forward Warren Foegele during the second period the Kings’ 2-1 loss Monday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Alex Gallardo / Associated Press)
From the Associated Press: Matty Beniers and Brandon Montour scored 54 seconds apart late in the first period and the Seattle Kraken held off the Kings 2-1 on Monday night.
Beniers scored his 19th goal of the season when he went hard to the net to put home a rebound into an open net to tie it at 18:35. Montour scored with 30.6 seconds left in the period, beating Darcy Kuemper on the goaltender’s glove side to set a career-high with 17 goals.
Joey Daccord made 28 saves for Seattle.
DUCKS
Edmonton Oilers forward Corey Perry, left, controls the puck in front of Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier during the Ducks’ 3-2 win Monday at Honda Center.
(Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Associated Press)
From the Associated Press: Cutter Gauthier scored two goals in the second period and Lukas Dostal made a season-high 47 saves in the Ducks’ 3-2 victory over the shorthanded Edmonton Oilers on Monday night.
Mason McTavish also scored for the Ducks, who took three of four from Edmonton this season.
The Oilers played without stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl because of injury.
NBA
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1935 — Gene Sarazen gets a double eagle on the 15th hole to erase Craig Wood’s three-stroke lead, then goes on to win the Masters.
1941 — In his 4th title defense in 9 weeks Joe Louis beats Tony Musto by TKO in the 9th round.
1943 — The Detroit Red Wings beat the Boston Bruins 2-0 to win the Stanley Cup with a four-game sweep.
1956 — Jack Burke, Jr. comes back from eight strokes behind to beat Ken Venturi by one and win the Masters.
1966 — American Football League votes in 36 year old Al Davis as commissioner after Joe Foss resigns. Appointment lasts 3 months when AFL merges with NFL.
1968 — Major League Baseball decides to postpone Opening Day because of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
1969 — MLB expansion teams Royals, Expos, Padres & Pilots win their 1st games
1971 — The first legal off-track betting (OTB) system in the United States opens in New York City.
1974 — In the home opener in Atlanta, Hank Aaron breaks Babe Ruth’s career record by hitting his 715th home run, connecting off Al Downing of Los Angeles in the fourth inning.
1975 — Frank Robinson, the first black manager in the majors, debuts as player-manager for the Cleveland Indians. Robinson hits a home run in his first at-bat — as a designated hitter — to help beat the New York Yankees 5-3.
1989 — Alex English scores 26 points to become the first player in NBA history to score 2,000 points in eight straight seasons, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Utah Jazz 110-106.
1989 — 1-handed pitcher Jim Abbott makes MLB debut.
1990 — Nick Faldo becomes the second player to win consecutive Masters, beating Ray Floyd on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff. Faldo joins Jack Nicklaus as the only repeat winner.
1991 — Major league umpires & baseball reach a 4-year agreement after strike.
1995 — Oliver McCall beats Larry Holmes in 12 for heavyweight boxing title.
2001 — Tiger Woods claims the greatest feat in modern golf by winning the Masters, giving him a clean sweep of the four professional majors in a span of 294 days. Woods, with his winning score of 16-under 272, sweeps the majors with a combined score of 65-under.
2003 — 22nd NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Connecticut beats Tennessee, 73-68.
2007 — Zach Johnson hits three clutch birdies on the back nine of Augusta National, to close with a 69 for a two-shot victory over Tiger Woods at the Masters.
2008 — Candace Parker, playing with an injured left shoulder, scores 17 points and grabs nine rebounds to help Tennessee capture its eighth women’s NCAA championship with a 64-48 victory over Stanford.
2012 — 76th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Bubba Watson wins on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.
2013 — Luke Hancock makes all five of his 3-pointers and leads Louisville to its first NCAA men’s basketball championship since 1986 with a 82-76 victory over Michigan. Coach Rick Pitino adds this title to the one he won at Kentucky in 1996 and became the first coach to win a championship at two schools.
2014 — 33rd NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Connecticut beats Notre Dame, 79-58.
2017 — Damian Lillard scores a franchise-record 59 points and matches his career high with nine 3-pointers to help the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Utah Jazz 101-86.
2018 — 82nd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Patrick Reed wins his first major title.
2019 — 81st NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Virginia beats Texas Tech, 85-77 OT.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
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