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From Mike DiGiovanna: There was little mystery to Clayton Kershaw’s mastery of the Colorado Rockies Tuesday night. The Dodgers left-hander pounded the strike zone, was pitch-efficient and induced plenty of soft contact while allowing one hit in six innings of a 5-0 victory in Coors Field.
The real intrigue came after a game in which Dodgers slugger J.D. Martinez became the 156th major leaguer to hit 300 home runs, when manager Dave Roberts said Kershaw experienced considerable “fatigue” after losing a no-hit bid with two outs in the sixth inning and Kershaw demurred when asked if he was hurt.
“Well kind of see [Wednesday], I’ll give an update on how I’m doing,” Kershaw said after improving to 10-4 with a 2.55 ERA on the season and 4-1 with a 1.09 ERA in his last five starts. “For right now, I don’t think it’s too serious. I don’t think I’ll miss a start. I should be all right.”
Kershaw was holding one of his young sons as he spoke to reporters, so it appeared the lower back problems that sent him to the injured list twice last season were not an issue. The three-time National League Cy Young Award winner also missed the final two months of the 2021 season and the playoffs because of an elbow injury.
But when asked to be more specific, Kershaw again hedged, saying, “Let me get to [Wednesday] and figure everything out. I’m not trying to be sneaky. I’m just trying to get through [Wednesday] and see where I’m at. Maybe there’s nothing to report. That’ll be good.”
Kershaw faced the minimum 18 batters over six innings and threw only 79 pitches, but they were at high altitude on a 90-degree night, conditions that would tax any pitcher, let alone a 35-year-old with 2,676 career innings under his belt.
“I just didn’t feel great overall–that last inning kind of got to me,” Kershaw said. “I definitely should have gone deeper in the game and feel bad about making the bullpen cover three innings. I just needed to come out there.”
Trevor Bauer withdraws defamation suit after the Athletic amends story
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ANGELS
From Sarah Valenzuela: It was the Angels’ home opener April 7. Mike Trout blasted a 441-foot home run. He flipped his bat and trotted around the bases. Waiting at the top of the dugout steps for Trout was Brett Phillips, holding an ornate, navy-and-gold headpiece.
Trout recognized what it represented, took off his batting helmet and let the home run celebration helmet be placed on his head.
By now, fans have become familiar with the Angels’ home run celebration headpiece, a samurai warrior helmet, known as a kabuto. The Angels have taken it wherever they have gone this season and it has made a celebration appearance 109 times heading into Tuesday night’s 4-2 victory over the White Sox. The Angels have hit 116 home runs this season, seven predating the kabuto, ranking fourth in Major League Baseball and second in the American League.
LAKERS
From Dan Woike: Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka presided over a formality Tuesday — the introduction to the media of the team’s two draft picks.
Sitting with Maxwell Lewis and Jalen Hood-Schifino to his left in the center of the team’s El Segundo facility, Pelinka praised the duo’s character, their respect for the Lakers’ history and the team’s stars, and their short- and long-term potential.
“Super exciting day for us to try and introduce Jalen and Maxwell,” he said at the start of his comments. “Really, it’s the culmination of a lot of work by our scouting staff and by our front office to identify the top talent in the draft. … And came out of it with two players that we had ranked high in our first round.”
It’s what you do when you select players in the draft — you fly them into town, you say nice things about them and you pose for photos.
Lakers draft picks Jalen Hood-Schifino, Maxwell Lewis channel ‘Mamba Mentality’
DUCKS
From Helene Elliott: Let Greg Cronin tell the story of the unfettered and unscripted interview with Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek that led him, at age 60, to secure his first NHL head coaching job.
Keep in mind, while reading silently or aloud, that Cronin’s Boston accent is as thick as New England clam chowdah. Enough so that he marveled at Verbeek’s “fahm” upbringing and spoke of having driven his “cah” from Anaheim back home to Maine after the Ducks hired him a few weeks ago.
“Here’s a Western Ontario guy that did a little bit of pig farming as a kid growing up, and here I am, a Boston guy, and I grew up in the city and I never played in the league, but how did these two guys ever meet each other and sit down across a desk from one another in the Marriott hotel in Palm Desert for five hours and never open up a notebook?” Cronin said.
KINGS
The Kings acquired Pierre-Luc Dubois in a major sign-and-trade deal with the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.
The 25-year-old center was a restricted free agent but told the Jets this month that he didn’t plan on re-signing with them. Dubois agreed to an eight-year extension worth $8.5 million annually in agreeing to the trade.
“Pierre-Luc Dubois is an elite two-way center with a unique skill set, and we’re excited to have him join the organization and commit to us long-term,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said. “Over the last few seasons, he has proven the ability to contribute to all facets of the game, and we are thrilled to be able to add a player of this caliber into our lineup.”
SOCCER
From Helene Elliott: So much of this is new to Savannah DeMelo, and there are many more firsts to come for the Bellflower native and USC graduate as she settles in among the 23 women named to the U.S. roster for the World Cup tournament that will start next month in Australia and New Zealand.
So DeMelo had to share a laugh with teammate Casey Murphy on Tuesday, while traveling to a news conference for the U.S. team at Dignity Health Sports Park, when she found something familiar at the Carson complex where she had spent many hours training with youth national teams.
“It still smells the same,” she said, smiling. “We remembered that on our first day we’d get our gear. We’d be super excited, taking pictures in front of the crest. It’s so awesome because I’ve done that with a lot of girls…. I think it’s just awesome. It’s a full-circle moment.”
To come full circle, she had to take an unusual route.
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From Kevin Baxter: Every player who has played the game knows the sinking feeling that comes from seeing a referee stride purposefully toward you and reach into their pocket for a card. Will it be red or yellow?
In my case, it was plastic and of varied hues: Christina Unkel, a veteran FIFA official, insisted on paying for the coffee ahead of our hourlong chat last month, handing her credit card over the counter to the cashier.
That’s not exactly journalism etiquette but I wasn’t about to argue with a referee — especially one who is also a lawyer — since the two professions evoke fervor and fury.
“If you’re an official, you’re passionate about the game,” said Unkel, who is certainly that. “We wouldn’t be there for any other reason. Trust me, the verbal abuse, the toxicity in the referee world … it’s a zero-sum world to a certain extent.”
BOXING
From Chuck Schilken: Brick City Boxing was open for business Monday.
“There’s a big hole in the door, but I’m still having classes,” business owner Joe Hanks said later that day.
The former IBA Americas heavyweight champion had been through a lot during the previous 12 hours or so. Hanks said the gym he opened nearly two years ago for “Pasadena folks who wanted to have a safe space” had been broken into and robbed for the second time in less than two months at around 2:30 a.m.
“I’m just trying to run a business here,” Hanks said. “I do so much for the community, so much for the kids in the community, the adults in the community, the police, fire, everybody. I thought I would be in the clear.”
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1939 — Joe Louis stops Tony Galento in the fourth round at Yankee Stadium to retain the world heavyweight title.
1953 — Betsy Rawls wins the U.S. Women’s Open with a six-stroke playoff victory over Jacqueline Pung.
1966 — Ernie Terrell scores a unanimous 15-round decision over Doug Jones in Houston to win the WBA title, which had been stripped from Muhammad Ali.
1971 — Muhammad Ali wins a four-year legal battle to overturn his 1967 conviction for draft evasion in an 8-0 vote by the U.S. Supreme Court.
1992 — Connie Price-Smith, who earlier won the discus, wins the shot put at 62 feet, 6 inches, to become the first woman to win both events at the U.S. Olympic trials since Earlene Brown in 1960.
1992 — U.S. Dream Team beats Cuba in 1st exhibition basketball game, 133-57.
1994 — Oleg Salenko scores a World Cup record five goals as Russia beats Cameroon 6-1.
1994 — NHL Draft: Windsor Spitfires (OHL) defenceman Ed Jovanovski first pick by Florida Panthers.
1995 — NBA draft: Maryland power forward Joe Smith first pick by Golden State Warriors.
1997 — Evander Holyfield, bleeding badly from his right ear after being bitten by Mike Tyson, retains the WBA heavyweight championship when Tyson is disqualified.
2000 — NBA Draft: Cincinnati power forward Kenyon Martin first pick by New Jersey Nets.
2005 — NBA Draft: Utah center Andrew Bogut first pick by Milwaukee Bucks.
2006 — NBA Draft: Benetton Treviso (Italy) power forward Andrea Bargnani first pick by Toronto Raptors.
2007 — Frank Thomas hit his 500th home run to become the 21st major leaguer to reach the career mark.
2007 — Craig Biggio becomes the 27th player in major league history to get 3,000 hits in Houston’s 8-5 11-inning victory over Colorado.
2007 — NBA Draft: Ohio State center Greg Oden first pick by Portland Trail Blazers.
2009 — Mariano Rivera earns his 500th save, becoming the second reliever to reach the milestone, and the New York Yankees beat the Mets 4-2 for a Subway Series sweep.
2009 — Nineteen-year-old Joey Logano becomes the youngest winner in the history of the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, winning the rain-shortened race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
2012 — Kentucky becomes the first school to go 1-2 in the NBA Draft. New Orleans Hornets select Kentucky forward Anthony Davis with the No. 1 pick. Then Charlotte follows by taking fellow freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. The Wildcats join UNLV with six players drafted in the entire draft. UNLV had six players drafted in 1977 — but none in the first round.
—Compiled by the Associated Press
And finally…
Mike Tyson is disqualified after biting off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear. Watch and listen here.
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 [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.