advantage

Tre’ Harris watched as Oronde Gadsden II burst by him, the 6-foot-5 tight end chugging over the turf at Golden West College’s football field.

Months before Harris and Gadsden suited up as Chargers rookies, the duo were catching passes from Jaxson Dart — now the starting quarterback for the New York Giants — during pre-NFL Scouting Combine training sessions at the Huntington Beach community college as the trio took advantage of sunny weather in Southern California.

“I saw his talents immediately,” Dart said of Gadsden. “Skill set-wise, I thought he was a very unique athlete, being, you know, the stature that he is. I thought his footwork was some of the best that I’ve seen.”

Over the past two weeks, the footwork that Harris said separates Gadsden from the rest of the NFL, has been on display.

Gadsden, 22, ranks fifth in NFL tight end receiving yards this season (385) despite not playing in the first two games. Two weeks ago, against the Colts, the son of former NFL wide receiver Oronde Gadsden emerged for 164 receiving yards and a touchdown. Against the Vikings last week, the former Syracuse standout, who set the program record for receptions in a season with 73 catches, recorded another 77 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Those accomplishments — which he credits to studying the likes of Chargers teammates Keenan Allen and Will Dissly — earned Gadsden earned NFL Rookie of the Week honors in Week 7, the first Charger to claim the award since Asante Samuel Jr. did it twice in 2021.

“It’s been good, getting in passes with Justin [Herbert], whether it’s a practice, and then following up in the game,” Gadsden said. “It feels good to see all the hard work that I’ve been doing, all the hard work that the whole team has been doing, come forward and translate into the game.”

Chargers tight end Oronde Gadsden II (86) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings on Oct. 23.

(Gregory Bull / Associated Press)

Jim Harbaugh can’t help but smile when talking about Gadsden. Asked about the Chargers’ rookies — and the efforts they’ve put in to keep the team afloat amid a rash of injuries — the usually stoic Chargers coach remarked about how wide his grin was before slamming his hands down onto the podium in front of him.

“I mean, Oronde Gadsden,” he said, “of course, has been great.”

Herbert added: “It was only a matter of time until he put together two games like he has back-to-back, and he’s gonna make a ton of plays for us. He’s gonna have a super long career.”

Gadsden had his first opportunity to relax during the mini bye week in the 10-day gap between the Chargers’ win over the Vikings and their game against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. He said it’s been non-stop football for him since the beginning of his senior year at Syracuse; from the college season to pre-draft training, rookie mini camp, and now the NFL season.

Chargers tight end Oronde Gadsden II tries to fight off Miami Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks during a Chargers’ win on Oct.12.

(Rebecca Blackwell / Associated Press)

For the first time since those training sessions at Golden West, Gadsden decided to visit Disneyland. It was a rare break for Gadsden since his daily pre-draft days working alongside trainer T.J. Houshmandzadeh, the former Pro Bowl wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals.

What makes Gadsden a special player, Harris said, is his never-stop attitude. During minicamp, Gadsden would arrive at the facility at 5 a.m. — using his East Coast-wired clock to his advantage to get extra work in.

“I’m not gonna say I knew he was gonna do this,” Harris said of Gadsden’s recent success, before pausing. “There’s not a lot of tight ends that can move like he does. And, you know, I’ve seen it firsthand.”

Piastri, meanwhile, cut a somewhat forlorn figure. He had a difficult weekend in the US a week ago and thought he had found the answers. But as he put it: “What’s been a bit surprising here has just been that the gap has been the same pretty much every session.

“I feel like I’ve done some decent laps through the weekend, but everything seems to be about 0.4-0.5secs off.”

Team principal Andrea Stella said Piastri was losing a little bit everywhere, and Piastri said: “I feel like I did a reasonable job and the car felt reasonable as well. So, yeah, the lack of lap time is a bit of a mystery.”

Piastri has been off Norris’ pace whether on short runs or long, low fuel or high, so it is more in hope that he said of the race: “If I can unlock the pace in the car, we can have some fun. We’ve just got to try to unlock it.”

This is now Piastri’s fifth difficult weekend in a row, his form mysteriously evaporating since he won in the Netherlands at the end of August.

He did not talk directly about what this means for the championship, but there was no hiding the meaning behind one of his comments: “There’s a lot of things I could worry about, but ultimately being that far off when you feel like you’ve done a reasonable job is a difficult place to be. And so that’s my biggest concern at the moment.”

Stella said that the conditions in Mexico, like those in Austin, are ones in which Norris thrives and Piastri is less comfortable – low grip, hot tyres.

And he said that “every evidence, every piece of data, every indirect measurement of information we have, tells us that there is no problem with the car”.

He added that it was “good” for McLaren to be able “to confirm that we can have the fastest car”, adding that their “focus is to stop the momentum of Verstappen”.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. With two weeks left in the football regular season, teams are trying to wrap up league titles. But one thing we’ve already learned: St. John Bosco’s collection of receivers are second to none.

Carson Clark of St. John Bosco catches 62-yard touchdown pass and leaves Logan Hirou of Santa Margarita chasing him.

(Craig Weston)

When you have four top receivers and spread the ball to each, you are close to unbeatable. That’s what St. John Bosco has with receivers Madden Williams, Carson Clark, Daniel Odom and DJ Tubbs. Each caught a touchdown pass from quarterback Koa Malau’ulu in a 27-14 win over Santa Margarita last week. Here’s the report.

Upon further reflection, this has to be the best receiving group ever for St. John Bosco, which is 8-0. When Malau’ulu has time to throw and the Braves mix in a little running, their offense is something else. Williams, a Texas A&M commit, has improved every season. Odom, an Oklahoma commit, and Clark, a San Jose State commit, patiently waited their turns. And Tubbs, only a sophomore, is a future college commit.

Los Alamitos won its eighth consecutive football game and first in the Alpha League with a 41-22 win over Edison.

The player drawing rave reviews is running back/defensive back/punter Lenny Ibarra, who’s committed to Army and rushed for 216 yards and two touchdowns while repeatedly refusing to go down unless tackled by multiple players. One opposing coach sent me a text: “Ibarra=Skattebo,” referring to the former Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo, known for his punishing running.

Los Alamitos closes the regular season with games against San Clemente this week and a showdown against Mission Viejo on Oct. 30.

Caden Jones of Crean Lutheran continues to be one of the best athletes in Southern California. The starting point guard for the basketball team, he’s also a terrific quarterback. He passed for 314 yards and five touchdowns in a win over La Habra.

Crespi took control of the Del Rey League race with a 31-16 comeback win over Salesian. Somto Nwute had three sacks for the unbeaten Celts (8-0).

It was a big week for freshman quarterbacks. Ezrah Brown of Orange Lutheran was 17 for 17 passing for 368 yards and three touchdowns in a win over JSerra. Ford Green of Westlake passed for 287 yards and three touchdowns in a double overtime win over Newbury Park. Westlake, 0-10 last season, is 8-0. Marcus Washington of Cajon passed for 238 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Redlands East Valley.

Long Beach Wilson defeated Long Beach Poly for the first time since 1991.

The Southern Section is scheduled to announce the site for its Division 1 championship game on Monday, and the speculation is a return to the Rose Bowl, where St. John Bosco and Mater Dei played in 2022, drawing almost 16,000.

Here’s a list of top individual performances from last week.

Here’s this week’s top 25 rankings by The Times.

Here’s this week’s complete schedule.

What a week it was for City Section football.

Garfield running back Ceasar Reyes set a school record with 420 yards rushing and four touchdowns in win over South Gate

(Nick Koza)

Ceasar Reyes of Garfield turned in the greatest performance by a running back in Bulldogs history, rushing for 420 yards in 42 carries and scoring four touchdowns in a 39-28 win over South Gate that clinched at least a share of the Eastern League title. Here’s the report. It’s now time for the game that draws the largest regular season crowd: the East Los Angeles Classic. Garfield faces Roosevelt on Friday at East Los Angeles College.

Palisades improved to 8-0 and clinched at least a share of the Western League championship by holding off University 19-17. University had the ball on the Palisades eight-yard line with 49 seconds left when a lost fumble cost the Warriors a potential huge upset victory.

King/Drew defeated Dorsey 17-16 to set up a Coliseum League title decider on Friday night at Crenshaw.

Eagle Rock is going to be the Northern League champion after defeating Franklin 42-28. Quarterback Liam Pasten passed for 290 yards and four touchdowns and Melion Busano rushed for 92 yards and one touchdown, caught a touchdown pass and had an 81-yard kickoff return.

Here’s this week’s top 10 City rankings by The Times.

‘The Lion’ roars at Eagle Rock

Senior Melion Busano of Eagle Rock has become one of the best running backs in the City Section after never playing football until sophomore year.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Melion Busano has become one of the best City Section running backs at Eagle Rock in his senior season, and how he even started playing football in his sophomore year is a story itself.

Here’s the report.

Lessons from Max

Loyola’s Max Meier (97) rushes against Gardena Serra at SoFi Stadium.

(Craig Weston)

Stanford-bound Max Meier of Loyola lost his home to the Palisades fire and lost his best friend, Braun Levi, to a suspected drunk driver. The lessons he has learned this year alone and his attitude of giving his all every day is something inspirational.

Here’s the report.

The Southern Section flag football playoffs begin this week, with unbeaten JSerra (23-0) seeded No. 1 in the Division 1 bracket.

Here’s the complete brackets.

JSerra owns two wins over No. 2-seeded Orange Lutheran, the defending Division 1 champion. This is a much more balanced Division 1 bracket, with lots of challenges ahead for all 16 teams. JSerra hosts Trabuco Hills on Thursday and Orange Lutheran hosts Redondo Union. Nine of the 16 teams are from Orange County.

Dos Pueblos quarterback Kacey Hurley.

(Michael Owen Baker/For The Times)

Ventura County is represented by a top opener, with Oxnard playing at Camarillo. Dos Pueblos is another title contender, hosting Etiwanda.

Girls volleyball

Sierra Canyon is seeded No. 1 for the Southern Section Division 1 girls volleyball playoffs.

Here’s the link to complete pairings.

Notes . . .

Long Beach Poly’s football team has forfeited a nonleague game against Tustin because of an ineligible player, dropping to 3-5. . . .

Newport Harbor’s water polo team won the North-South challenge championship, defeating Cathedral Catholic 15-11 in the final, avenging its only defeat during a 25-1 regular season. . . .

Wrestler Michael Kase from Chaminade has committed to Cal Poly. . . .

Kicker AJ Salo of Chaminade has committed to the University of Chicago. . . .

Junior swimmer Chloe Teger of Villa Park has committed to North Carolina State. . . .

Redondo Union will be hosting a terrific group of girls basketball teams Nov. 24-29, including defending state champion Etiwanda. . . .

Tajh Ariza (right) and Malachi Harris of Westchester celebrate after winning the City Section Open Division title on Friday night.

(Nick Koza)

Tajh Ariza, the 6-foot-9 senior who had transferred from Westchester to St. John Bosco, has now left St. John Bosco and will enroll at a prep school. Ariza is committed to Oregon and was the co-City Section player of the year last season at Westchester. . . .

Junior infielder Sam Pink of Great Oak has committed to San Diego State for baseball. . . .

Cornerback Jayden Crowder from Santa Margarita has committed to USC. . . .

At the Orange County cross-country championship, Woodbridge junior Aidan Antonio set a course record at 13:56. Irvine senior Summer Wilson won the girls sweepstakes race in 15:47.3.

From the archives: Miller Moss

Former Bishop Alemany quarterback Miller Moss in 2019. He led Louisville to an upset of No. 2 Miami.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

It’s been a long journey for former Bishop Alemany and USC quarterback Miller Moss. Last week, he helped Louisville upset No. 2 Miami.

Good grades and good patience have always been the impressive qualities displayed by Moss. He missed his senior year in 2020, which was the COVID season. He spent 2021 through 2024 at USC. After leaving USC, there was little doubt he’d have success wherever he ended up. Louisville offered a new beginning.

Here’s a story from 2020 on his decision to choose USC out of high school.

Here’s a story from 2024 when Moss fulfilled a dream, being named the starting quarterback at USC.

Here’s a story from last summer when Moss returned to hold a youth camp after losing his home to the Palisades fire.

Recommendations

From Nebraska, a story on how transfers are changing high school sports.

From ESPN, a story about a lawsuit in Ohio trying to allow high school athletes to profit off NIL.

From Footballscoop.com, a story on a coach in Pennsylvania having to resign under parental pressure after disciplining players.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on former Loyola and UCLA quarterback Jerry Neuheisel.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

The normally surf-themed bar at the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort and Spa has transformed into Pete’s Spookeasy for the month of October with Halloween-themed decor, food and drinks. Order mains such as Pasta from the Black Lagoon, with squid ink spaghetti, sautéed shrimp, lobster cream sauce, roasted tomato, asparagus and micro parsley, plus starters including “Bugs” in Stinky Cheese with whipped goat cheese, dates, marzipan “grubs,” figs, hot honey, micro thyme and crackers. Seasonal cocktails include Hex on the Beach, with rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, coconut and nutmeg, and BooBerry Margarita, with tequila, fresh blackberries, lemon and lime juice, agave and a black salt rim.

Show more Show less

While Arsenal had a longer turnaround, three of England’s other Champions League teams had a Premier League game three days later like City.

Newcastle, like Manchester City, were also in Champions League action on Thursday night – at home to Barcelona.

And they faced a Premier League trip to Bournemouth on Sunday in an earlier fixture than City, at 14:00.

Liverpool had an even shorter turnaround.

They hosted Atletico Madrid on Wednesday – and then faced Everton in the Merseyside derby at 12:30 on Saturday – 62.5 hours after full-time.

Chelsea were away to Bayern Munich on Wednesday and visited Manchester United on Saturday.

Tottenham had four days in between games, hosting Villarreal on Tuesday and then Brighton on Saturday.

The Champions League teams are all in Carabao Cup third-round action this week.

Five of the six teams have their tie three days after their league game, with Tottenham getting an extra day.

And between seasons, Chelsea had less preparation time than Manchester City having won the Club World Cup – with City going out two weeks earlier in the last 16.

The series kicked off this weekend with the highly anticipated launch show, with the celebrities meeting their professional partners for the first time

Strictly Come Dancing is back on our screens with a bang after an epic launch show which saw this year’s batch of famous faces paired up with their professional partners.

Viewers tuned in to see the 15 celebrities meet their dance partners as well as perform in a huge group dance for the very first time as the real competition begins next week.

However, before this year’s crop even shows off their dance moves or lack of, two celebrities have already secured a huge advantage. The bookies have declared which contestants are favourites to win and there’s two that are at the top of the list, according to Paddy Power.

Currently, Emmerdale star and late entrant, Lewis Cope is leading the pack with a bookies odds of 12/5 and just behind him is Love Island winner Dani Dyer, who is on 7/2 at the time of writing.

Rounding out the top five are model Ellie Goldstein with 6/1, social media sensation George Clarke at 9/1 and Gladiators star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey.

READ MORE: Strictly Come Dancing star Vicky Pattison admits filming launch show was ‘worst experience’READ MORE: Strictly Come Dancing star La Voix’s life including TV career and real name

On the other end and currently the least favourites to win are former rugby ace Chris Robshaw and Lorraine showbiz correspondent Ross King, who have outside chances of winning at 100/1.

This makes these two contestants favourites to leave the show first, with Ross at 5/2 to exit the show first, with Chris at 3/1.

During the launch show, the first pairings unveiled were Lewis with Katya Jones, Dani with Nikita Kuzmin, Ross and Jowita Przystal, Chris and Nadiya Bychkova and Drag Race UK’s La Voix with Aljaz Skorjanec.

The next to be revealed were Vicky Pattison and Kai Widdrington, Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe, Ellie and Vito Coppola, Balvinder Sopal and Julian Caillon plus Karen Carney and Carlos Gu.

The final matches were confirmed as Harry and Karen Hauer, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Lauren Oakley, George and Alexis Warr, Stefan Dennis and Dianne Buswell as well as Thomas Skinner and Amy Dowden.

Following the announcement, many fans sadly predicted Ross would be first out as one said: “Poor Jowita out first.” Another added: “Sorry Jowita, it’s an early exit for you this year.”

Eagle-eyed viewers also revealed they think they’ve spotted early signs of tensions between one celebrity and their dance partner. The Apprentice 2019 star Thomas was paired with Welsh beauty Amy but viewers are convinced the two will clash.

Eyebrows were raised when show hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly introduced the coupled up dancers and interviewed them about their early experiences together. Talking to Thomas and Amy in the green room, Claudia asked the former Apprentice hopeful what his dream Strictly breakfast would be.

He replied: “The best breakfast. We’re going down Deano’s cafe, nice and early, before we get started, get spicy Korean noodles, with chicken breasts and poached eggs and a little bit of Tabasco sauce.

He continued: “Or, if you don’t fancy that, we can have the sunshine chicken curry with the round chips.”

But fans noticed that Amy didn’t look convinced by Thomas’s suggestion, commented that they would beed to dance some of their routines close together, and remarked: “I really hope your food doesn’t repeat on you whilst you dance.”

Thomas then suggested he would be able to freshen his breath with chewing gum before they needed to dance closely. But viewers were convinced they could smell friction between the pair.

Taking to X, one shared a screenshot of Amy’s distressed expression that she pulled when Thomas was describing his dream breakfast. They wrote: “Oh Amy you poor thing getting put with skinner.”

And another shared a similar screenshot and wrote: “Amy Dowden’s face speaking for everybody at the same time… #Strictly #TomSkinner.”

CHELSEA have made a last-ditch change to their UEFA squad ahead of their game against Bayern Munich tomorrow. 

With a long-term injury to Dario Essugo, who is out for a minimum of 12 weeks with a thigh injury, the Blues have taken him down from their UEFA squad list on the UCL website.

The £18.5million midfielder had surgery after tearing a thigh muscle on international duty, in a major blow for Chelsea, who have now been left with a lack of cover for Moises Caicedo with Romeo Lavia also often injured. 

Essugo has been replaced by loan signing Facundo Buonanotte in the UEFA list on the official site, who started the 2-2 draw away at Brentford on Saturday night, impressing Enzo Maresca on his debut.

Previously, they wouldn’t have been able to make the change, but can do so thanks to a new UEFA rule which was brought into action last week. 

Buonanotte said when he signed: “It’s a great step in my career. I’ll get the opportunity to play in the Champions League for the first time, which will be a great challenge.”

So it was a shock when he was left off the UEFA A and B lists for Chelsea’s league phase fixtures, which begin in Bavaria on Wednesday, where they will face off against former striker Nicolas Jackson. 

In a shock move, Uefa’s ruling executive committee announced it had agreed an “amendment” to regulations for the three club competitions.

Under the new rules, clubs are now allowed to make a “temporary” replacement of one outfield player with a long-term injury or illness” up until the sixth competition match day in December – when the Conference League initial phase will end.

Uefa said: “The reasoning for the adaptation is to ensure that squad lists are not unfairly reduced and players are safeguarded from additional workload pressure.”

Chelsea have become the first team to take advantage of the rule, while Federico Chiesa and Mathys Tel of Liverpool and Spurs remain out of their respective squad lists. 

With a growing list of injured players at Stamford Bridge, which has already included Levi Colwill, Liam Delap and Cole Palmer this season, the Blues will be grateful to be able to call upon the likes of Facundo Buonanotte in the Champions League this season. 

Stadium lights were flashing on and off Friday night after the latest Corona Centennial touchdown against No. 1-ranked Mater Dei in the first half of a 43-36 Huskies victory, and fans couldn’t believe what they were seeing. One overjoyed Husky fan shouted, “Mater Dei who?”

It was Centennial 28-0 after the first quarter and 33-7 at halftime. Defensive end Jonathan McKinley of Centennial was making a bunch of college-bound offensive linemen look confused and ineffective with two sacks and a pressure rush on quarterback Ryan Hopkins that produced a pick six by Jaden Walk-Green.

Then came the strangest 12-minute third quarter — Mater Dei dominated with a 29-0 outburst to take a 36-33 lead. As if the game couldn’t get wilder, the fourth quarter saw Centennial rally to finish a historic victory.

It was the first time Mater Dei has been beaten by a Southern Section team other than St. John Bosco since Centennial did it 10 years ago en route to a Division 1 championship. Guess who were stars on that team —quarterback Anthony Catalano and receiver Javon McKinley. On Friday night, it was their younger brothers leading the way.

McKinley had three sacks and recovered a fumble. Dominick Catalano, playing quarterback like big bro, displayed toughness and leadership throughout.

“This was for him,” McKinley said of his brother watching from the bleachers. “From the spring, I’ve been practicing every night for this game. I’ve had dreams about this game.”

It was the first loss for coach Raul Lara since he took over as Mater Dei head coach last season. He came in 16-0.

Mater Dei lost two fumbles, had an interception and another fumble resulted in a Centennial safety, all in the first half. Mater Dei finished with five fumbles and two interceptions.

Corona Centennial quarterback Dominick Catalano flies through the air carrying the football against Mater Dei.

(Craig Weston)

“It’s awesome,” Dominick Catalano said. “It’s an incredible feeling.”

It was victory No. 298 for future Hall of Fame coach Matt Logan, who said, “I had a dream we were up 21-0 and I woke up and was so excited.”

Mater Dei caught fire in the third quarter. A one-yard touchdown run by Justin Lewis was followed by a 42-yard touchdown run by Hopkins and a 76-yard touchdown reception by Kayden Dixon-Wyatt. When Kennie Leggett scored on a one-yard run, Mater Dei’s comeback was complete for a 33-30 lead.

But Walk-Green, who returned a pick six in the first quarter, made his second field goal of the night from 36 yards to tie the score. Then Mater Dei’s fifth fumble gave the Huskies the ball on the Mater Dei 31. Soon Centennial faced a fourth-and-10 from the 31. Catalano connected with Keawe Browne for a 12-yard pass. That kept the drive alive and enabled Malaki Davis to score on a four-yard run to take the lead with 2:27 left.

“This proves how good we are,” Browne said. “We played our hearts out. I did all my training in the offseason. I was watching for my moment.”

Kayden Dixon-Wyatt of Mater Dei leaps trying to catch pass, but Jaden Walk-Green came down with the game-clinching interception for Corona Centennial.

(Craig Weston)

Centennial (3-1) clinched the win with Walk-Green’s second interception, taking the ball away from Dixon-Wyatt as the two came down with both holding onto the ball. The officials ruled in favor of Walk-Green. So began a Centennial celebration repeated from 10 years ago when another Catalano led the Huskies to victory.

“It’s a Catalano thing,” Dominick said.

Mater Dei (3-1) received 248 yards passing from Hopkins, but the repeated mistakes, from fumbles to personal-foul penalties, left the Monarchs hardly looking like the No 1 team in California and facing a new challenge next week with a trip to Las Vegas to face Bishop Gorman.

It’s only the fourth week of the season, but Centennial’s victory changes the equation in Southern California high school football similar to when Servite knocked off St. John Bosco in the Division 1 playoffs in 2021. It’s been Mater Dei and St. John Bosco on a nine-year run winning championships. The Huskies put a little bit of uncertainty for 2025.

Lawmakers in Missouri are the latest to try to draw a new U.S. House map for the 2026 election that could improve the Republican Party’s numbers in Congress.

It’s a trend that began in Texas, at the behest of President Trump, to try to keep GOP control of the House next year. California Democrats responded with their own map to help their party, though it still requires voter approval.

Redistricting typically occurs once a decade, immediately after a census. But in some states, there is no prohibition on a mid-cycle map makeover. The U.S. Supreme Court also has said there is no federal prohibition on political gerrymandering, in which districts are intentionally drawn to one party’s advantage.

Nationally, Democrats need to gain three seats next year to take control of the House. The party of the president typically loses seats in the midterm congressional elections.

Here is a rundown of what states are doing.

Missouri lawmakers hold a special session

A special session called by Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe began Wednesday and will run at least a week.

Missouri is represented in the U.S House by six Republicans and two Democrats.

A revised map proposed by Kehoe would give Republicans a better chance at winning the seat held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver by stretching the Kansas City-based district into rural Republican-leaning areas.

Although Democrats could filibuster in the Senate, Republicans could use procedural maneuvers to shut that down and pass the new map.

Texas Democrats walked out but Republicans prevailed

Democratic state House members left Texas for two weeks to scuttle a special session on redistricting by preventing a quorum needed to do business. But after that session ended, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott quickly called another one — and Democrats returned, satisfied that they had made their point and that California was proceeding with a counterplan.

Republicans hold 25 of the 38 congressional seats in Texas. A revised map passed Aug. 23 is intended to give Republicans a shot at picking up five additional seats in next year’s elections. Abbott’s signature made the map final.

California Democrats seek to counter Texas

Democrats already hold 43 of the 52 congressional seats in California. The Legislature passed a revised map passed Aug. 21 aimed at giving Democrats a chance to gain five additional seats in the 2026 elections.

Unlike Texas, California has an independent citizens’ commission that handles redistricting after the census, so any changes to the map need approval from voters. A referendum is scheduled for Nov. 4.

Indiana Republicans meet with Trump about redistricting

Indiana’s Republican legislative leaders met privately with Trump to discuss redistricting while in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 26. Some also met with Vice President JD Vance.

Several Indiana legislators came out in support of a mid-cycle map change following the meetings. But others have expressed hesitation. It remains unclear if Indiana lawmakers will hold a special session on redistricting.

Republicans hold a 7-2 edge over Democrats in Indiana’s congressional delegation.

Louisiana Republicans looking at times for a special session

Louisiana lawmakers are being told to keep their calendars open between Oct. 23 and Nov. 13. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Oct. 15 over a challenge to the state’s congressional map.

Republican state Rep. Gerald “Beau” Beaullieu, who chairs a House committee that oversees redistricting, said the idea is to have lawmakers available to come back to work in case the Supreme Court issues a ruling quickly.

Republicans now hold four of Louisiana’s six congressional seats.

Ohio must redraw its maps before the 2026 midterms

Because of the way its current districts were enacted, the state Constitution requires Republican-led Ohio to adopt new House maps before the 2026 elections. Ohio Democrats are bracing for Republicans to try to expand their 10-5 congressional majority.

Democrats don’t have much power to stop it. But “we will fight, we will organize, we will make noise at every step of the process,” Ohio Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Clyde said.

New York Democrats try to change state law

New York, similar to California, has an independent commission that redraws districts after every census.

State Democrats have introduced legislation to allow mid-decade redistricting, but the soonest new maps could be in place would be for the 2028 elections. That is because the proposal would require an amendment to the state Constitution, a change that would have to pass the Legislature twice and be approved by voters.

Maryland Democrats planning a response to Texas

Democratic state Sen. Clarence Lam has announced he is filing redistricting legislation for consideration during the 2026 session. Democratic House Majority Leader David Moon also said he would sponsor legislation triggering redistricting in Maryland if any state conducted mid-decade redistricting. Democrats control seven of Maryland’s eight congressional seats.

Florida’s governor pledges support for redistricting

Florida Republican state House Speaker Daniel Perez said his chamber will take up redistricting through a special committee. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has reiterated his support for the state to join the redistricting fray, calling on the federal government to conduct a new census count and claiming that the Trump administration should “award” the state another congressional seat.

Twenty of Florida’s 28 U.S. House seats are occupied by Republicans.

Kansas Republicans haven’t ruled out redistricting

Republican state Senate President Ty Masterson didn’t rule out trying to redraw the state’s four congressional districts, one of which is held by the state’s sole Democratic representative. The Legislature’s GOP supermajority could do so early next year.

A court orders Utah to redraw its districts

Utah Republicans hold all four of the state’s U.S. House seats under a map the GOP-led Legislature approved after the 2020 census. But a judge ruled Aug. 25 that the map was unlawful because the Legislature had circumvented an independent redistricting commission that was established by voters to ensure districts don’t deliberately favor one party.

The judge gave lawmakers until Sept. 24 to adopt a map, which could increase Democrats’ chances of winning a seat.

Gov. Gavin Newsom spearheaded a bold overhaul of California’s congressional map, a move that could dramatically shift the state’s political landscape.

A Times analysis of recent election results found the redistricting effort, which will go to voters on Nov. 4 as Proposition 50, could turn 41 Democratic-leaning congressional districts into 47. Democrats currently hold 215 seats in the House, while Republicans control 220. If California voters approve the new map, the shift could be enough to threaten the GOP’s narrow majority.

Newsom’s plan was pushed by state and national Democratic leaders, following a move by Texas to approve its own maps that could give the GOP five more House seats. There’s also a push by the Republican-led states to redraw their lines before the 2026 midterm elections to help the Republicans remain in control. The governor’s plan was approved by the state Legislature last week and now goes to the voters in a November special election. This week California Republicans filed a lawsuit with the state Supreme Court to block the ballot measure.

To get a sense of how the proposed maps might alter the balance of power in Congress, The Times used results from the 2024 presidential election to calculate the margin of victory between Democrats and Republicans in the redrawn districts.

In some cases, districts were split apart and stitched together with more liberal areas. In one area, lines have been redrawn with no overlap at all with their current boundary. As a result, four formerly Republican-leaning swing districts would tilt slightly Democratic, while two others would shift more heavily toward the left. Four out of the five remaining Republican strongholds would become even darker red under the proposed map.

1st District: Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale)

In its current form, California’s 1st Congressional District sweeps south from the Oregon border almost to Sacramento. For the last 12 years, it has been represented by Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfa, who won reelection last November with nearly two-thirds of the vote.

But under the proposed map, that district is split in two. The new 1st District would run inland from Santa Rosa through Chico to the Nevada border. The redrawn 2nd District would follow the north coast from Marin County and the border with Oregon. It would also include deep red Shasta County.

The Times analysis found the proposed 1st District experienced the largest Democratic shift, among all the districts that flipped from red to blue, moving from a 25-point advantage for Trump to a 12-point advantage for Harris. That gain was made possible in part by pulling in more Democratic-leaning areas from the 2nd District, making it slightly less blue.

3rd District: Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin)

Rep. Kevin Kiley has represented the 3rd District since 2022. But he would face an uphill battle to keep the seat on the redistricted map. The new lines lop off the conservative-leaning Eastern Sierra and instead pulls in Democratic voters from Sacramento.

In the 2024 presidential election, the current 3rd District backed Trump by 4 points. Under Newsom’s proposed map, that same area would have gone for Harris by 10 points, creating a 14-point swing that transforms the district from purple to solidly blue.

Kiley, whose district is targeted for elimination under Newsom’s plan, has called for a ban on all mid-decade congressional redistricting. The 3rd District’s boundaries are significantly reduced in the new map, and shifting demographics, including growth in the Asian American population, could further tilt the seat away from Republicans.

41st District: Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Corona)

Rep. Ken Calvert’s 41st District, long centered in the competitive western Inland Empire, would be eliminated and completely redrawn in Los Angeles County. The district would transform from a swinging GOP-leaning seat into one where Democrats would hold a 14-point advantage.

Parts of the new 41st would be carved out of the current 38th District, represented by Democrat Linda Sánchez. That change shifts some of Sánchez’s Democratic base into the new 41st district, making it more favorable to Democrats while leaving the 38th slightly less blue.

At the same time, the Hispanic share of the population would rise, further bolstering the Democrat‘s strength in the proposed district. The new 41st seat would become a majority-minority district. The redistricting proposal includes 16 majority-minority districts; the same number as the current map except for swapping the 41st District for the 42nd.

A section of the current 41st district would be added to Rep. Young Kim’s 40th District. The reshaped 40th District would move 9.7 points to the right — the biggest rightward shift among Republican-held districts.

48th District: Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Bonsall)

The 48th District, a Republican stronghold represented by Darrell Issa, carried a 15-point GOP margin of victory under the current map. But the proposed lines would shift voters into San Diego County, giving Democrats a new edge. The district’s demographics would also change, with a larger share of Hispanic voters. As a result, what had been a safe Republican seat would become a swing district, where Democrats would hold a narrow 3-point advantage. The proposed 48th District includes Palm Springs, a liberal patch that was previously in the 41st District.

Deepening blue

Beyond flipping Republican-leaning swing districts, another aim of the redistricting plan is to shore up vulnerable Democratic seats. Democrats have long fought to hold onto these coastal Orange County seats, eking out narrow wins. Rep. Derek Tran of Cypress unseated a Republican incumbent by just about 650 votes, while Rep. Dave Min of Costa Mesa survived last November with a margin of less than 3 percentage points. Asians are the largest minority currently in Districts 45 and 47.

Under the current map, Harris carried the 45th District by only 1.5 points and the 47th by 4 points. But in Newsom’s proposed map, those advantages widen to 4 and 10 points, respectively, transforming fragile footholds into far safer Democratic turf.

The new changes dilute the number of GOP voters in both Rep. David Valadao’s District 22 and Rep. Adam Gray’s District 13.

— Additional development by data and graphics assistant editor Sean Greene.

WASHINGTON — The Constitution makes it clear: “The People” get to pick those who’ll represent their interests in the U.S. House of Representatives.

But just how closely do those choices reflect the overall political leanings of the people? The question is at the heart of a power play in Texas, where Republicans are trying to reshape the state’s congressional boundaries to help them maintain control of the House in next year’s midterm elections.

In many cases, a state’s congressional delegation doesn’t align very closely with what would seem to be the will of the voters, although that’s not always because of partisan gerrymandering.

Every state decides how to draw its own congressional boundaries. Some, like California, rely on independent redistricting commissions, while most leave it to the state Legislature and the governor to hammer out a plan. It’s states where one party controls all the levers of government where redistricting dramas like the one in Texas often play out as the majority tries to maximize its power.

Regardless of the process, the resulting maps often produce congressional delegations much more lopsided in favor of one party than the state’s partisan demographics might suggest.

A state’s presidential vote result isn’t a precise tool for measuring what its congressional delegation ought to look like, but it can provide a compelling point of comparison. Politicians frequently cite it when decrying partisan redistricting practices they think are unfair.

President Trump, who’s pushing Texas and other GOP-controlled states to redraw their maps, has said Republicans are “entitled to five more seats” in Texas based in part on the size of his win there in November. Trump won 56% of the Texas vote, but Republicans already hold 65% of the state’s congressional delegation — which would rise to 79% if the GOP’s new maps are adopted and past voting patterns hold in the next election.

During an event with Texas Democratic lawmakers in Boston, Missouri state Rep. Ashley Aune cited her state’s presidential vote results in warning of possible Republican-driven redistricting efforts there.

“Fifty-eight percent of Missouri voted for Trump, but they want to send an 87% representation to Congress,” said Aune, a Democrat.

It’s actually fairly common for a state’s congressional delegation not to align with statewide presidential vote results.

In 41 of the 44 states with more than one congressional district, the party of the winning presidential candidate had a larger share of the state’s congressional seats than its share of the presidential vote, an Associated Press analysis found. In most cases, it was a much larger share, a gap of at least 10 percentage points.

Here’s a comparison of the congressional delegations and presidential vote results in a sampling of states, including some of those considering a redraw of their congressional boundaries after Texas called its special session.

California and Illinois

In remarks to CNBC, Trump pointed to California and Illinois as justifications for redrawing the Texas map in Republicans’ favor.

“You notice they go to Illinois for safety, but that’s all gerrymandered,” he said in reference to the Texas Democrats who relocated to the Chicago area to block, at least temporarily, the Republican redistricting efforts.

“California’s gerrymandered. We should have many more seats in Congress in California,” he said.

He’s right about Illinois: Democrats have gerrymandered the lines so they hold 14 of the 17 House seats. Not so in California.

Democrats there do have an outsized majority, holding 43 of the state’s 52 House seats, about 83%. Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, received about 59% of the November vote. But that’s not because of Democratic gerrymandering. A ballot initiative took the process away from state lawmakers and gave it to an independent citizens commission.

California’s lopsided map is due in part to the way like-minded people cluster: California Democrats tend to live in and near major cities that get more congressional districts because of their population.

Florida

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis scored a legal victory in July when the state Supreme Court upheld his congressional redistricting plan redrawing a district with a large Black population. That plan resulted in Republicans holding about 71% of the state’s 28 U.S. House seats. Trump carried the state in November with 56% of the vote.

DeSantis later indicated there may be more “defects” in the map that need to be addressed before the next census.

Republicans held an 18-7 advantage over Democrats in Florida’s House delegation after the 2000 census. Democrats slowly narrowed the gap, reaching 13 seats to Republicans’ 14 after the 2018 election. But Republicans reestablished their advantage after the redistricting that followed the 2020 census, when they reached the 20-8 split they hold today.

New York

Democrats have long enjoyed an advantage at the New York ballot box in presidential and congressional elections. Harris received nearly 56% of the vote in 2024, while Democrats hold 73% of the state’s 26 House seats.

With Democratic advantages in both chambers of the state Legislature, New York might have been a ripe target for Democrats looking to offset Republican redistricting gains in Texas and elsewhere. But they would need to amend the state Constitution to conduct a new round of redistricting before the next census. That constraint means the earliest Democrats could enact a new map would be for 2028.

North Carolina

North Carolina, among the most closely divided states, has been embroiled in its own redistricting drama.

State Republicans implemented new House boundaries in 2023 that turned a 7-7 congressional delegation into one in which Republicans took a 10-4 advantage with the 2024 elections. Several districts are now the subject of a federal lawsuit, with Democrats alleging Republicans illegally diluted Black voting power.

North Carolina has been among the most competitive states in the last several presidential elections. While Trump carried the state in November with about 51% of the vote, it has elected Democrats as governor and attorney general and to other statewide offices.

In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama narrowly edged Republican John McCain with 49.7% of the vote. The congressional delegation at the time mirrored that with an almost even split, with Democrats holding seven seats and Republicans six after the 2010 midterms.

But after rounds of Republican-controlled redistricting after the 2010 census, Republicans held a 10-3 or 9-4 advantage in the congressional delegation for the rest of that decade.

After the 2020 census, a Democratic-majority North Carolina Supreme Court threw out a Republican-drawn plan and permitted elections under a map adopted by trial judges that produced the 7-7 split. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the boundaries to be used in the 2022 elections.

After flipping to a Republican majority in 2023, the state Supreme Court ruled partisan gerrymandering wasn’t outlawed by the state Constitution, allowing GOP lawmakers to redraw a congressional map in use today that led to their party’s 10-4 majority.

Minnesota

Minnesota is the state where the congressional breakdown most closely matches the 2024 presidential result. Harris received 51% of that vote, compared with Trump’s 47%. Democrats and Republicans split the state’s eight House seats with court-imposed maps.

Nevada

Nevada, where a Democratic Legislature drew the lines, is the only state where the party of the winning presidential candidate is outnumbered by the other party in the state’s congressional delegation. Trump received 51% of the vote in Nevada, but Democrats hold three of the state’s four House districts.

Yoon writes for the Associated Press. Associated Press writer Leah Willingham in Boston contributed to this report.

Nathan Eovaldi gave up one unearned run in six innings, Jake Burger and Wyatt Langford each homered and drove in four runs, and the Texas Rangers blew out the Angels 13-1 on Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.

Eovaldi (6-3) gave up five hits, struck out six and walked none to lower his ERA to 1.62 in 15 starts, the best among major league pitchers with at least 80 innings.

Corey Seager hit his 13th homer, Evan Carter drove in three runs, and Texas took advantage of nine walks, with six of those runners scoring.

Infielder Kevin Newman pitched the final three innings for the Angels and infielder Ezequiel Duran threw the ninth for the Rangers.

Angels starter José Soriano (6-6) did not give up a hit through three innings. With a 1-0 lead, he threw two strikes to Seager to open the fourth before throwing seven straight balls and walking Seager and Marcus Semien.

The Rangers then scored five runs in a span of six pitches for a 5-1 lead. Langford hit a two-run double to left, Carter had a ground-rule, two-run double to left and Burger hit a run-scoring single.

Texas took advantage of left-hander Sam Aldegheri’s three walks to score four runs in the fifth, making it 9-1.

Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery left Aldegheri, a top prospect who was called up from double A, in long enough to throw 42 pitches in the fifth. Seager’s sixth-inning homer against Aldegheri made it 10-1.

Seager, a former Dodger, is batting .447 (21 for 47) with five homers, two doubles, nine RBIs, 10 walks and no strikeouts in his last 13 games against the Angels dating to Sept. 26, 2023.

Up next, Angels right-hander Kyle Hendricks (5-6, 4.68 ERA) will face Rangers right-hander Kumar Rocker (3-4, 5.80) on Wednesday night.

RICHMOND, Va. — Democrats in Virginia have built up a hefty fundraising advantage for their effort to reclaim the governor’s mansion in a November election that is seen as a bellwether for the party in power in Washington ahead of the 2026 midterms.

Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA case manager turned congresswoman, has a more than 2-to-1 fundraising advantage over her GOP opponent for governor, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, who has struggled to draw support from her fellow Republicans. Both were unopposed for their party’s nominations and were able to focus on the fall general election without having to overcome a challenge in this week’s primaries. The match-up means Virginia is all but certain to elect the state’s first female governor.

Spanberger has amassed $6.5 million toward her campaign for governor over the last two months after raising $6.7 million between January and March, according to the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project. Combined with the money Spanberger raised in 2024, she has gathered $22.8 million and still has $14.3 million in her coffers.

Earle-Sears, meanwhile, spent more than she earned between April and June, bringing in $3.5 million and spending $4.6 million. Between January and March, she also raised a little over $3.1 million. In total, she has raked in nearly $9.2 million since launching her campaign last September. Now, she has a little under $3 million in the bank, according to Virginia Public Access Project data.

In a statement, Earle-Sears’ campaign said the candidate is putting forward a message for Virginians that money can’t buy.

“Clearly the Spanberger campaign needs a lot of help attempting to erase Abigail’s bad voting record on issues that actually matter to Virginians,” press secretary Peyton Vogel said in an email. “This race isn’t being bought — it’s being built on a message that matters.”

Virginia is one of two states, along with New Jersey, that host statewide elections this year. The contests will be closely watched as a measure of whether voters in the shadow of Washington will embrace President Trump’s aggressive effort to overhaul the federal government, or be repelled by it.

Democrats’ outsized fundraising lead ahead of the primaries may reflect local Democratic enthusiasm and the party’s ability to push people to the polls in light of Trump being in office. Mark J. Rozell, dean of George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government, also referenced the noticeable frostiness among leading state Republicans. The party’s statewide nominees have yet to campaign together, despite securing their nominations at the end of April.

“Enthusiasm drives fundraising and in Virginia right now the Democrats’ voting base has much greater enthusiasm“ than Republicans, Rozell said. ”It is reminiscent of Trump’s first term in office when Democratic fundraising and ultimately voting overwhelmed the Republicans in Virginia.”

Money does not guarantee success, however. In the last Virginia governor’s race, former Gov. Terry McAuliffe outspent Republican Glenn Youngkin, who had invested $20 million of his own money in the race. Youngkin still clinched the election by nearly two points.

Youngkin, who is term-limited from seeking reelection, has offered more than $21,000 in support to Earle-Sears through his political action committee.

When asked whether he would donate more, his PAC responded, “Governor Youngkin is working to elect the entire GOP ticket and is urging all Virginians to support the commonsense team this November to keep Virginia winning.”

The Democrats’ fundraising advantage isn’t confined to the governor’s race.

State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, who eked out a primary win in a close three-way contest for lieutenant governor, raised nearly $1.8 million in her primary race and has $462,000 remaining.

The Republican nominee, conservative talk-radio host John Reid, raised nearly $312,000 since launching his campaign and has $116,000 remaining.

The only statewide GOP candidate with a fundraising lead, incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares, has $2.3 million in the bank after raising a total of $4.6 million. His Democratic opponent, Jay Jones, has raised $2.7 million. He had about $493,000 left at the beginning of June, reports show.

This year, all three Democratic statewide candidates are backed by Clean Virginia, a political group that pushes for clean energy and often takes on legislative challenges against Dominion Energy, Virginia’s largest utility.

The two groups are some of the most influential entities lobbying on state politics and policy. With energy demand likely to be a key issue in November, their influence could be significant.

According to the nonpartisan public-access group, Spanberger has taken in $465,000 from the environmental organization. On Tuesday, Clean Virginia endorsed Hashmi’s candidacy for lieutenant governor, following its previous donations to her state Senate campaign committee.

During his campaign, Jones also received $1.5 million from Clean Virginia, while his primary opponent, Democrat Shannon Taylor, accepted $800,000 from Dominion Energy between 2024 and 2025. Clean Virginia released attack ads targeting Taylor for accepting Dominion money.

The energy utility has become entangled in other statewide battles. On the Republican ticket, Earle-Sears accepted $50,000 from Dominion in March. Miyares also gained $450,000 from the utility so far this year.

Clean Virginia has donated to both Democrats and Republicans, including to candidates running for the House of Delegates, where all 100 members are up for reelection in November.

Democrats who control the legislature are hoping to keep or expand their thin majority and amend the state’s Constitution to protect rights to voting, marriage equality and abortion.

Democratic candidates have raised about $16.9 million in those races, with $3.2 million stemming from House Speaker Don Scott.

Meanwhile, Republicans have raised $8.8 million, with former Minority Leader Todd Gilbert earning over $643,000, and newly tapped Minority Leader Terry Kilgore raising nearly $470,000.

Diaz writes for the Associated Press.

From Brady Oltmans: An NCAA communications official apologized to UCLA baseball coach John Savage before he could join two of his players on the stage for Thursday’s news conference. They hadn’t printed all the nameplates for the coaches yet.

The coach then sat next to star shortstop Roch Cholowsky and outfielder Dean West at the microphone, finished typing into his phone and leaned forward for his opening statement.

“Well, I think you can see by the nameplate, you can tell that they weren’t expecting us,” Savage deadpanned.

He admitted he was teasing before acknowledging the Bruins’ circumstances heading into their Men’s College World Series opener against Murray State on Saturday at 11 a.m. PDT (ESPN).

No team in this year’s CWS field played in last year’s tournament — the first time that’s happened since 1957. But the Bruins set themselves apart from the field because they have played at Charles Schwab Field this year.

Omaha hosted last month’s Big Ten tournament. The Bruins won their first three games in the tournament before falling 5-0 to Nebraska in the conference title game.

Savage believes that week-long tournament helped the Bruins get a feel for the ballpark. They know the downtown streets, the hotels and the practice schedule. But he doesn’t want the team to get too comfortable. He wants them to keep the edge they’ve developed since being shut out.

Continue reading here

Men’s College World Series schedule

NBA PLAYOFFS RESULTS

All Times Pacific

NBA FINALS

Oklahoma City vs. Indiana

Indiana 111, at Oklahoma City 110 (box score, story)
at Oklahoma City 123, Indiana 107 (box score, story)
at Indiana 116, Oklahoma City 107 (boxscore, story)
Friday at Indiana, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Monday at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Thursday at Indiana, 5:30 p.m., ABC*
Sunday, June 22 at Oklahoma City, 5 p.m., ABC*

*if necessary

DODGERS

From Bill Shaikin: The Dodger Stadium Express is scheduled to operate normally this weekend, even as the bus departs from and arrives at an area subject to curfew restrictions.

The service, which provides fans a free ride between Union Station and Dodger Stadium, “will be running per usual,” Metro senior director of communications Missy Colman said Thursday.

On Tuesday, Mayor Karen Bass imposed an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew in the downtown area most impacted by protests against federal immigration enforcement, and by the violence, looting and vandalism that sometimes accompanied them. She said she expected the curfew to last several days.

Continue reading here

RAMS

From Gary Klein: The Rams did not draft an offensive lineman, but they have added a veteran just before the end of offseason workouts.

The Rams on Thursday agreed to terms with veteran free-agent offensive tackle D.J. Humphries, a person with knowledge of the situation said.

The person requested anonymity because the contract has not been signed.

Humphries, a 2015 first-round draft pick by the Arizona Cardinals, joins a line that includes starting left tackle Alaric Jackson, right tackle Rob Havenstein and swing tackle Warren McClendon Jr.

Continue reading here

CHARGERS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Facing unrestricted free agency for the first time in his illustrious career, Khalil Mack could have chosen any team to chase his championship ambitions. Why did the star edge rusher choose to stick with a franchise that has never won the Super Bowl?

“Why not here?” the Chargers edge rusher wondered back.

Praising the leadership under coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz, the players on the roster and his familiarity with the franchise, Mack’s decision to return to the Chargers wasn’t that complicated at all.

“It was a no-brainer,” he said this week during Chargers minicamp in his first comments with local reporters since January.

Continue reading here

U.S. OPEN

J.J. Spaun is still new enough to the U.S. Open, and a newcomer to the brute that is Oakmont, that he was prepared for anything Thursday. He wound up with a clean card and a one-shot lead on an opening day that delivered just about everything.

Scottie Scheffler had more bogeys in one round than he had the entire tournament when he won the Memorial. He shot a 73, his highest start ever in a U.S. Open, four shots worse than when he made his Open debut at Oakmont as a 19-year-old at Texas.

Patrick Reed made the first albatross in 11 years at the U.S. Open when he holed out a 3-wood from 286 yards on the par-five fourth. However, he finished his round with a triple bogey.

Bryson DeChambeau was 39 yards from the hole at the par-five 12th and took four shots from the rough to get to the green.

Si Woo Kim shot a 68 and had no idea how.

“Honestly, I don’t even know what I’m doing on the course,” Kim said. “Kind of hitting good but feel like this course is too hard for me.”

Continue reading here

U.S. Open leaderboard

NHL AWARDS

Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck has won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best goaltender, becoming the first at the position to do so since Carey Price a decade ago.

Hellebuyck was unveiled as the top MVP vote-getter on an awards show Thursday night prior to Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, hosted by actor and former Arizona State wide receiver Isaiah Mustafa.

Kings captain Anze Kopitar won the Lady Byng for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct for a third time.

Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl finished second in the Hart voting and Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov third, a single point ahead of Colorado’s reigning MVP Nathan MacKinnon, as chosen by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. Hellebuyck was a landslide winner of the Vezina as picked by general managers, receiving 31 of 32 first-place votes.

Continue reading here

NHL PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE, RESULTS

All times Pacific

STANLEY CUP FINAL

Edmonton vs. Florida
at Edmonton 4, Florida 3 (OT) (summary, story)
Florida 5, at Edmonton 4 (2 OT) (summary, story)
at Florida 6, Edmonton 1 (summary, story)
Edmonton 5, at Florida 4 (summary, story)
Saturday at Edmonton, 5 p.m., TNT
Tuesday at Florida, 5 p.m., TNT
Friday at Edmonton, 5 p.m., TNT*

* If necessary

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1908 — Canadian champion Tommy Burns KOs Bill Squires of Australia in 8th round at Neuilly Bowling Palace, Paris to retain world heavyweight boxing title.

1913 — James Rowe, who had won back-to-back Belmont Stake races in 1872-73 as a jockey, sets the record for the most number of Belmont Stakes wins by a trainer, eight, when he sends Prince Eugene to victory.

1935 — Jim Braddock scores a 15-round unanimous decision over Max Baer in New York to win the world heavyweight title.

1953 — Ben Hogan wins the U.S. Open for the fourth time, with a six-stroke victory over Sam Snead.

1956 — 1st European Cup Final, Paris: Héctor Rial scores twice as Real Madrid beats Stade de Reims, 4-3 to claim inaugural title.

1959 — Billy Casper wins the U.S. Open golf tournament over Bob Rosburg.

1971 — Kathy Whitworth wins the LPGA championship by four strokes over Kathy Ahern.

1982 — Jan Stephenson wins the LPGA championship with a two-stroke triumph over Joanne Carner.

1989 — 43rd NBA Championship: Detroit Pistons sweep Lakers in 4 games.

1991 — The National, the nation’s first all-sports daily newspaper, ceases publication.

1992 — Sergei Bubka of Ukraine breaks his own world outdoor record in the pole vault by soaring 20 feet, one-half inch. The jump is the 30th time that Bubka has set the record indoors or outdoors, surpassing the 29 world records by distance runner Paavo Nurmi of Finland in the 1920s.

1993 — Patty Sheehan wins the LPGA Championship for a third time, with a 2-under 69 for a one-stroke victory over Lauri Merten.

1997 — Chicago wins its fifth NBA championship in the last seven years, as Steve Kerr’s last-second shot gives the Bulls a 90-86 Game 6 victory over the Utah Jazz.

2002 — Stanley Cup Final, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, MI: Detroit Red Wings beat Carolina Hurricanes, 3-1 for a 4-1 series win; Red Wings’ 10th title; coach Scotty Bowman retires with record 9th title.

2010 — Zenyatta wins her 17th consecutive race, giving her the longest winning streak by a modern-day thoroughbred in unrestricted races. The 6-year-old mare, ridden by Hall of Famer Mike Smith, wins the $200,000 Vanity Handicap by a half-length over St Trinians at Hollywood Park. With the victory, Zenyatta surpasses the 16-race winning streaks of Cigar, 1948 Triple Crown winner Citation, and Mister Frisky.

2011 — Boston scores four times in a 4:14 span of the first period and beats the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden, evening the best-of-7 series. Brad Marchand, Milan Lucic, Andrew Ference and Michael Ryder give Boston a 4-0 lead before the midway point of the first period.

2014 — The Netherlands thrashes Spain 5-1 in the World Cup’s first shocker, toying with an aging team that dominated global football for the past six years and avenging a loss in the 2010 final.

2014 — The Kings wins the Stanley Cup for the second time in three years with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 5.

2016 — LeBron James has 41 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists, Kyrie Irving also scores 41 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers capitalize on the Warriors playing without suspended star Draymond Green, staving off NBA Finals elimination with a 112-97 victory in Game 5. James and Irving are the first teammates to score 40 points in an NBA Finals game as the Cavaliers pulled within 3-2 and sent their best-of-seven series back to Ohio.

2017 — The Golden State Warriors win their second NBA tile in three years with a win over the Cavaliers 129-120.

2019 — The Toronto Raptors beat defending champion Golden State Warriors, 114-110 to win the franchise’s first Championship.

2021 — French Open Men’s Tennis: Novak Đoković wins his 19th Grand Slam singles title; beats Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.

2023 — Stanley Cup Final, T-Mobile Arena, LV: Vegas Golden Knights rout Florida Panthers 9-3 to clinch 4-1 series win; franchise’s first title in only 6th year in the NHL; MVP: Jonathan Marchessault (VGK forward).

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1905 — Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants pitched his second no-hit game, beating the Chicago Cubs and Mordecai Brown 1-0. Mathewson and Brown matched no-hitters for eight innings. The Giants got two hits in the ninth for the win.

1912 — Christy Mathewson recorded his 300th career victory with a 3-2 triumph over the Chicago Cubs.

1921 — Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees pitched the first five innings and hit two home runs in an 11-8 victory over the Detroit Tigers.

1937 — New York’s Joe DiMaggio hit three consecutive home runs to give the Yankees an 8-8, 11-inning tie against the St. Louis Browns in the second game of a doubleheader.

1947 — In the first night game played at Fenway Park, the Red Sox beat the Chicago White Sox 5-3.

1948 — Babe Ruth Day at Yankee Stadium drew 49,641 fans who saw Ruth’s No. 3 retired and the Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians 5-3.

1957 — Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox hit three home runs and drove in five runs in a 9-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians as Williams became the first AL player to have two three-homer games in a season.

1973 — The Dodgers’ infield of Steve Garvey (first base), Davey Lopes (second base), Ron Cey (third base) and Bill Russell (shortstop) played together for the first time in a 16-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. The quartet would set a major league record for longevity by playing 8 1/2 years in the same infield.

1980 — Pete Rose of the Philadelphia Phillies goes 4 for 5 to move past Honus Wagner into fifth place on the all-time hit list with 3,431.

1998 — For the fourth time in major league history, teammates hit back-to-back homers in consecutive innings. Atlanta’s Javy Lopez and Andruw Jones each homered in the second and third inning of the Braves’ 9-7 win over Montreal at Turner Field.

2003 — Roger Clemens reached 300 wins and became the third pitcher with 4,000 strikeouts, leading the New York Yankees over the St. Louis Cardinals 5-2. Clemens, the 21st pitcher to make it to 300, gave up two runs in 6 2-3 innings and struck out 10, raising his total to 4,006. Clemens joined Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Steve Carlton (4,136) in the 4,000-strikeout club.

2008 — Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell hit consecutive home runs in the first inning of Philadelphia’s 20-2 rout of St. Louis.

2012 — Matt Cain pitched the 22nd perfect game in major league history and first for San Francisco, striking out a career-high 14 batters and getting help from two running catches to beat the Houston Astros 10-0. Cain’s 125-pitch masterpiece featured a pair of great plays by his corner outfielders. Left fielder Melky Cabrera chased down Chris Snyder’s one-out flyball in the sixth, scurrying back to make a leaping catch on the warning track. Right fielder Gregor Blanco ran into right-center to make a diving catch on the warning track and rob Jordan Schafer for the first out of the seventh.

2015 — Alex Rodriguez collects his 2,000th career RBI with a two-run home run in the New York Yankee’s 9-4 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. Rodriguez is the fourth player to reach the milestone joining Cap Anson, Babe Ruth and leader Hank Aaron.

2019 — Shohei Ohtani becomes the first Japanese player to hit for the cycle in Major League Baseball.

2021 — The Blue Jays set a record for a visiting team at Fenway Park by blasting 8 homers in an 18-4 win over the Red Sox. Seven players go deep, with Teoscar Hernandez doing so twice, while Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hits his major league-leading 21st.

2024 — It took him 14 seasons and 320 other long balls, but J.D. Martinez finally hits a walk-off homer, doing so off Tanner Scott of the Marlins with Francisco Lindor on base in the 9th inning to give the Mets a 3-2 win. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the third most homers by anyone before a first walk-off shot, trailing only Mark Teixeira (408) and Jose Bautista (336).

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

EDMONTON, Canada — Brad Marchand scored on a breakaway in double overtime and the defending champion Florida Panthers punched back against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 2 of their Stanley Cup Final rematch, winning 5-4 on Friday night to even the series.

Marchand’s second goal of the night 8:04 into the second overtime allowed Florida to escape with a split after Corey Perry scored to tie it with 17.8 seconds left in the third period and Stuart Skinner pulled for an extra attacker. Each of the first two games in this final have gone to overtime, for the first time since 2014 and just the sixth time in NHL history.

Much like last year and the playoff run to this point, Sergei Bobrovsky was dialed in when he was needed the most, making some unreal saves while stopping 42 of the 46 shots he faced. His teammates provided the necessary goal support.

Along with Marchand, Sam Bennett scored his postseason-leading 13th goal and NHL record 12th on the road. Seth Jones scored into a wide-open net after some spectacular tic-tac-toe passing, and fellow defenseman Dmitry Kulikov tied it with a shot through traffic that Stuart Skinner almost certainly did not see.

Kulikov’s goal came after Florida controlled play for several minutes in the second, hemming Edmonton in its zone shift after shift and piling up a 34-13 advantage in shot attempts during the period. Marchand’s overtime goal was his 10th career goal in the final to lead all active players.

Game 3 is Monday night as the teams traverse the continent and play shifts to Sunrise.

The Panthers wrested home-ice advantage away from the Oilers by splitting the first two, rebounding from a Game 1 overtime loss and asserting they won’t go quietly against Draisaitl and Connor McDavid looking like they’ll do everything in their power to hoist the Cup for the first time.

Of course, those stars had their moments. They assisted on Evan Bouchard’s goal when coach Kris Knoblauch put them on the ice together, and McDavid stickhandled through multiple defenders in highlight-reel fashion to set up Draisaitl scoring on the power play.

There were a lot of those — 10 in total — after officials whistled 14 penalties, including three in the first four minutes. Each team had a few calls it was not happy with, though most of that evened out over the course of the game.

Re “Tribe Risks Rejection, Pushes Plan for Casino Near Capital,” Dec. 20: Native American gaming on nonreservation land would set a dangerous precedent and absolutely should not be allowed. Granting permission to even one such tribe places us on a slippery slope that could quickly turn into a landslide of applications for similar treatment by the many tribes that are suddenly appearing from seemingly out of nowhere. I am against any and all tribal gaming, as I believe it is inherently unfair to allow them to profit in an untaxed manner while other Californians, by virtue of their ethnic roots, are not allowed the same privilege. This is a very clear example of an “uneven playing field.”

In an extremely short period of time since approval of the 2000 ballot proposal that guaranteed tribes this unfair business advantage, Native American tribes have parlayed huge gaming profits into tremendous political clout. As political contributions and lobbying from tribal windfalls continue to increase, Californians can only expect to see more perks and political favors go inequitably to these “impoverished” tribes and their wealthy financial backers. This nonsense needs to stop now.

Philip W. Luebben

Cypress

The ASEAN region is often cited as a successful example of regional cooperation. The ASEAN regional bloc consisting of 10 South East Asian countries — Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. It was founded in 1967 with the founding members of the organisation being Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.

ASEAN’s economic achievements

The South-East Asian regional bloc has also been an engine of global growth. Even amidst the economic challenges in recent years, the average growth rate of the group was well over 4% in 2024. While Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam recorded growth of over 5%, Vietnam was the star performer growing at over 7%. According to forecasts, Vietnam is likely to comfortably surpass 6% growth in 2025 and 2026. While the foundations for these successes have been laid over decades, one of the reasons for the economic progress of these nations has been their ability to adapt to geopolitical and economic changes.

The ASEAN region has benefited significantly from globalisation, especially countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.If one were to look at regional trade within the ASEAN group, it was estimated at $3.5 trillion.  ASEAN, which has robust economic relations with US and China, has also focused on enhancing trade with non-member countries.

ASEAN has also excelled in terms of attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). In 2023, ASEAN’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows exceeded $200 billion (230 billion). Thus, the regional bloc has emerged as the largest recipient of FDI in developing regions. The star performers, in terms of drawing FDI, in recent years of the ASEAN region have been Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam. While earlier the successes of Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia drew international attention in recent years it is Vietnam’s economic success which has begun to draw attention. The successes of these countries can be attributed to investor friendly policies, increasing focus on R &D and tech, their geographical location and as mentioned their deftness in dealing with the changing landscape. So far, most ASEAN nations have steered clear of getting embroiled in geopolitical wrangling between China and the US. In recent months, several ASEAN countries have expressed their concern in the context of the downward spiral of ties between both countries.

ASEAN Soft Power

Apart from robust economic performance, the ASEAN grouping has also been reasonably successful in promoting their Soft Power. According to the Brand Finance Soft Power rankings 2025, Singapore ranked 21 globally was ranked the highest in the ASEAN region. It would be pertinent to point out, that rich and diverse culture of the region along with a tourist friendly eco-system has resulted in ASEAN being a preferred destination from tourists across the world. Apart from Singapore and Thailand, other popular tourist destinations in the region are; Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam. Recent years have witnessed a significant increase in the number of Indian tourists visiting the ASEAN region.

 One of the strong components of ASEAN power has been tourism. According to estimates, the ASEAN region was able to attract 123 million tourists in 2024. Six ASEAN countries — Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Myanmar — are also proposing a joint visa initiative dubbed as “6 countries, 1 destination”. This will be a common visa like Schengen. The idea was proposed by Thailand, which is heavily dependent upon tourism and believes that this initiative would give a further boost to tourism.

Some countries have also been able to draw international students. With western countries becoming more inward looking, there is scope for ASEAN countries like Singapore and Malaysia to attract international students. Singapore has emerged as a popular destination for students due to some of its higher education educations being highly ranked as well as the career avenues in that country. Malaysia received over 80,000 student application from international students – this was a 25% increase from 2023.  Both ASEAN countries could become especially attractive destinations for more South Asian students for whom countries in the Anglosphere have been favoured.

ASEAN member states reaction to Trump’s imposition of tariffs

ASEAN nations have expressed their scepticism regarding the deterioration in US-China ties, since they have close economic ties with both.  Apart from this, all have been extremely critical of tariffs and are looking to diversify their relationships. The Singapore PM, Lawrence Wong, while commenting on the recent tariffs announced by US President, Donald Trump said:

“..the recent Liberation Day announcement by the US leaves no room for doubt,…It marks a seismic change in the global order.”

ASEAN interest in BRICS in a changing situation

In the changing situation, it is likely that more ASEAN countries will also explore membership of BRICS+. Indonesia had joined BRICS in January 2025 as a member, while other ASEAN member states – Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam – joined as observers in October 2024. Indonesian foreign minister, Sugiono after joining BRICS had said that it’s decision to join BRICS+ was a reiteration of its independent foreign policy. Other ASEAN countries are also exploring the possibility of entering BRICS.

Conclusion

In conclusion, as mentioned earlier the ASEAN region has so far reaped the dividends of globalisation and a reasonably stable relationship between US and China for very long. The current geopolitical and economic situation is likely to pose significant challenges for the ASEAN region. Apart from internal contradictions within the Bloc, global uncertainty due to US policies during Trump 2.0 are likely to be a major challenge. While all eyes are on the economic impact of the current global turbulence, it is important for ASEAN to focus on ‘Soft Power’, since the region has specific potential in areas like tourism and education as has been discussed earlier. It remains to be seen whether ASEAN can effectively use “Smart Power” to deal with the changing global landscape.