“Our little angel, we love you forever & you’re with us always,” the Vesias wrote. “There are no words to describe the pain we’re going through but we hold her in our hearts and cherish every second we had with her.”
The Vesias had been expecting the birth of Sterling, their first child, during the Dodgers’ postseason run. Her death came during the World Series, forcing Vesia to step away from the club.
The day before Game 1 of the World Series, the Dodgers publicly announced Vesia was not with the team because of a “deeply personal family matter.” The Dodgers left him off their World Series roster, as well as the family medical emergency list, so as not to pressure him into feeling he needed to return.
“This is so much bigger than baseball,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said at the time. “And for us, it was doing whatever small part we could to just 100% be supportive.”
The Dodgers’ bullpen honored Vesia in Game 3 of the World Series, with each reliever writing his No. 51 on the sides of their caps for the rest of the series. The Toronto Blue Jays’ relievers did the same in Games 6 and 7, a gesture several Dodgers publicly recognized and deeply appreciated.
“I think it really speaks to the brotherhood of athletes, major league baseball players,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts ahead of Game 7. “Baseball is what we do, but it’s not who we are. And for these guys to recognize Alex and what he and Kayla have gone through — ‘heartbreaking’ is not even a good enough descriptor.”
“For those guys to do that, it’s incredible,” outfielder Kiké Hernández added. “They’re trying to win a World Series, but they understand that this is — life is bigger than baseball, and baseball’s just a game. For them to do that with the stakes where we’re at, hats off to them, and I want them to know that we appreciate ‘em.”
The Vesias also thanked the Dodgers, Blue Jays and baseball fans for their support.
“Our baseball family showed up for us and we wouldn’t be able to do this without them,” they wrote. “We have seen ALL your messages, comments and posts. It’s brought us so much comfort.”
Vesia was a key part of the Dodgers’ bullpen in both the regular season (when he had a 3.02 ERA in a career-high 68 appearances) and the first three rounds of the playoffs (when he allowed just two runs in seven outings).
On Thursday, the Dodgers picked up Vesia’s $3.65-million option for next season, avoiding arbitration before what will be his final year before reaching free agency.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla announced Tuesday that he will not run for California governor next year, ending months of speculation about the possibility of the Democrat vying to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom.
“It is with a full heart and even more commitment than ever that I am choosing to not run for governor of California next year,” Padilla told reporters outside his Senate office in Washington.
Padilla instead said he will focus on countering President Trump’s agenda in Congress, where Democrats are currently on the minority in both the House and Senate, but hope to regain some political clout after the 2026 midterm elections.
“I choose not just to stay in the Senate. I choose to stay in this fight because the constitution is worth fighting for. Our fundamental rights are worth fighting for. Our core values are worth fighting for. The American dream is worth fighting for,” he said.
Padilla said his decision was influenced by his belief that under President Trump, “these are not normal times.”
“We deserve better than this,” he said.
Many contenders, no clear favorite
Padilla’s decision to bow out of the 2026 governor’s race will leave a prominent name out of an already crowded contest with many contenders but not a clear favorite.
For much of the year, the field was essentially frozen in place as former Vice President Kamala Harris debated whether she would run, with many donors and major endorsers staying out of the game. Harris said at the end of July that she wouldn’t run. But another potential candidate — billionaire developer Rick Caruso — remains a question mark.
Caruso said Monday night that he was still considering running for either governor or Los Angeles mayor, and will decide in the next few weeks.
“It’s a really tough decision,” Caruso said. “Within a few weeks or so, or something like that, I’ll probably have a decision made. It’s a big topic of discussion in the house with my kids and my wife.”
Major Democratic candidates include former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter, former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, current California Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former state Controller Betty Yee and wealthy businessman Stephen Cloobeck. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and conservative commentator Steve Hilton are the most prominent Republicans running.
Amid fire recovery aftermath, immigration raids and a high-octane redistricting battle, California voters have yet to turn their attention to next year’s gubernatorial matchup, despite the vast power Newsom’s successor will wield. California is now the world’s fourth-largest economy, and policy decisions in the Golden State often have global repercussions. Newsom is nearing the end of his second and final term.
Recent polling shows the contest as wide open, with nearly 4 in 10 voters surveyed saying they are undecided, though Porter had a slight edge as the top choice in the poll. She and Bianco were the only candidates whose support cracked the double digits.
Candidates still have months to file their paperwork before the June 2 primary to replace Newsom.
June incident brought attention
Known for soft-spoken confidence and a lack of bombast, Padilla’s public profile soared in June after he found himself cuffed by federal agents, at the center of a staggering viral moment during a news conference by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Despite identifying himself, Padilla was tackled after trying to interrupt Noem with a question. The manhandling of California’s senior senator was filmed by a staffer and broadcast around the world, provoking searing and widespread condemnation.
Days later, Vice President JD Vance joked about the incident and referred to Padilla — his former Senate colleague — as “Jose Padilla,” a misnaming that Padilla suggested was intentional and others characterized as racist.
The event put Padilla on the national spotlight and rumors of Padilla’s interest in the gubernatorial race ignited in late August.
Padilla told reporters on Tuesday that he received an “outpouring of encouragement and offers of support for the idea” of his candidacy and that he had “taken it to heart”
Alongside his wife, Angela, the senator said he also heard from many people urging him to keep his fight going in Washington.
“Countless Californians have urged me to do everything i could to protect California and the American Dream from a vindictive president who seems hell bent on raising costs for working families, rolling back environmental protections, cutting access to healthcare, jeopardizing reproductive rights and more,” he said.
Padilla said he had listened.
“I will continue to thank them and honor their support by continuing to work together for a better future,” he said.
Ceballos reported from Washington, Wick from Los Angeles. Times staff writer Noah Goldberg, in Los Angeles, contributed to this report.
Richard Alexander Murdaugh came up in a prominent family, both in the legal and social realms of Hampton County, S.C. He attended the University of South Carolina and graduated from its law school, just like his father. Three generations of Murdaugh men served as the circuit solicitor, the South Carolina equivalent of a district attorney, for a region spanning five counties in the state. Randolph Murdaugh Sr. was the first in the family to assume the role in 1920. The family held such power in the region that many locals called the district “Murdaugh Country.”
Alex was a respected personal injury attorney before being convicted of the murders of his wife Maggie and youngest son Paul in 2023. He will spend the rest of his life in prison for the killings but maintains his innocence and is currently appealing his conviction. He also admitted to committing a slew of financial crimes, for which he was cumulatively sentenced to more than 60 additional years in prison.
The family law firm he previously worked for, Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth & Detrick, was renamed the Parker Law Group. Alex’s older brother, Randolph “Randy” Murdaugh IV, still works at the firm.
Maggie Murdaugh
Margaret Kennedy Branstetter Murdaugh, who went by Maggie, was mother to sons Paul and Buster. She met her husband Alex when she was a student at the University of South Carolina in 1991, and they married in 1993.
She was 52 when she and Paul were shot and killed in 2021 at the family’s hunting property in Colleton County. Alex and Maggie were reportedly living separately at the time of her death.
Paul Murdaugh, pictured here in court in a still from the documentary “Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty,” faced significant prison time for allegedly boating under the influence.
(HBO Max)
Paul Murdaugh
Paul Terry Murdaugh was born on April 14, 1999, to Alex and Maggie. He grew up with a love of the outdoors and enjoyed hunting alongside his father and older brother. He was 22 and in his junior year at the University of South Carolina when he was killed.
Paul reportedly abused alcohol as a teenager and young adult, and his friends have said they called his intoxicated alter ego “Timmy” because his behavior changed significantly when he was drinking. In February 2019, Paul was accused of being behind the wheel of his family’s boat while drunk, crashing the boat into a bridge in the early hours of the morning. There were five other people on board with Paul, and one passenger, 19-year-old Mallory Beach, was killed in the crash.
Paul, who was also 19 at the time, had a blood-alcohol level three times over the legal limit when he was hospitalized after the crash. He was charged with felony boating under the influence two months later. He was murdered alongside his mother in 2021 before the trial for the charges he faced in connection with the crash could begin.
Buster Murdaugh
Born Richard Alexander Murdaugh Jr., the eldest Murdaugh son went by “Buster.” He attended Wofford College for his undergraduate studies and went on to study law at his parents’ alma mater, the University of South Carolina. By the spring of 2021, Buster had been kicked out of law school, reportedly for low grades and plagiarism.
Following the deaths of his mother and brother, Buster surfaced in news reports after increased interest in the family unearthed a loose connection between him and a man named Stephen Smith, a former classmate who was killed in 2015. Rumors of an intimate relationship between Smith and Buster, and of the Murdaughs’ involvement in his death, swirled, but Buster denied the allegations.
When his father was on trial for the murders of Paul and Maggie, Buster testified as a witness for the defense, saying that his father’s behavior on the night of the killings and the following weeks was not abnormal. He also said Alex was “heartbroken” on the night they died.
Buster married his longtime girlfriend Brooklynn White in May 2025. His wife is an attorney, but Buster never returned to law school.
Buster Murdaugh, left, and his then-girlfriend Brooklynn White at the double murder trial for his father. He testified in his father’s defense.
(Jeff Blake / Associated Press)
Randolph Murdaugh III
Randolph Murdaugh III was Alex’s father and one of the men who established the Murdaugh family’s legal prominence. Like his father and grandfather, Randolph served as the solicitor of the 14th judicial circuit in South Carolina, which serves Allendale, Colleton, Hampton, Beaufort and Jasper counties. In addition to Alex, Randolph had three other children with wife Elizabeth “Libby” Alexander Murdaugh: Lynn Goettee, Randolph Murdaugh IV and John Marvin Murdaugh. The couple had 10 grandchildren.
When Paul got into the boat crash in 2019, Randolph was his first call. A year earlier, Randolph was honored with the Order of the Palmetto, the highest civilian honor awarded by the governor of South Carolina. A testament to his influence, the award recognizes lifetime achievements and contributions to the state.
He died in June 2021 after a long period of health problems — three days after Paul and Maggie were murdered.
Mallory Beach and her family
Beach was a teenager from South Carolina who was described by friends and family as a loving young woman with dreams of becoming an interior designer. She and her boyfriend, Anthony Cook, were friends with Paul, and in February 2019 the couple boarded the Murdaugh family boat with a few other friends before it crashed into a bridge in Beaufort, S.C.
Beach’s body was missing after the crash and was recovered about a week later. Her family brought a wrongful death lawsuit against the Murdaughs, which eventually cracked open inquiries into Alex’s finances. The family later settled with Maggie’s estate and Buster in 2023 for an undisclosed amount. They were brought into the case because Paul used Maggie’s credit card and Buster’s ID to buy alcohol. The Beach family also reached a multimillion-dollar settlement with the convenience store chain where Paul purchased the alcohol, and in 2024, Alex’s insurance company agreed to pay the family $500,000.
Gloria Satterfield
Satterfield was the Murdaugh’s longtime housekeeper and nanny, who had a maternal-like relationship with Paul and Buster. She was the widow of David Michael Satterfield and had two sons, Michael “Tony” Satterfield and Brian Harriott.
In February 2018, Satterfield allegedly tripped and fell at the Murdaugh’s home and was hospitalized for weeks before she died at 57. Alex and Maggie were mentioned by name in Satterfield’s obituary as “those she loved as her family.”
When the cause of Satterfield’s death was being investigated, Murdaugh claimed Satterfield tripped over the family’s dogs, causing her to fall and hit her head, and he encouraged her two sons to bring a wrongful death claim against him. Murdaugh introduced Satterfield’s sons to Cory Fleming, a fellow lawyer, who represented them in the case and schemed with Murdaugh to collect on his homeowner’s insurance policies. The settlement was reportedly more than $4 million, none of which Satterfield’s sons saw.
Fleming was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for his involvement in the scheme and Murdaugh admitted to orchestrating the plot and intercepting the insurance payout meant for Satterfield’s family, depositing the money directly into his personal account. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison for that crime, plus a slew of other financial crimes he pleaded guilty to in 2023.
Stephen Smith
Smith was born in Lexington County, S.C., and attended Wade Hampton High School, where he was classmates with Buster Murdaugh, graduating in 2014. He was found dead on a rural road in Hampton County in July 2015, and his death was initially ruled as a hit and run.
In 2021, South Carolina law enforcement reopened Smith’s case based on leads uncovered in the Murdaugh double homicide investigation. The Murdaugh name was mentioned over 40 times throughout the course of the investigation, according to a report from FITSNews, a local outlet. Detectives reportedly looked at Buster as a possible person of interest in the case, who was rumored to have been romantically involved with Smith, but the connection was never proved and Buster was never named a suspect.
Coming off a 5-4 shootout loss Saturday night in Nashville, the Kings ended a string of four extra-time games to improve to 4-3-3. They have a game left on a five-game trip that opened with overtime victories in St. Louis and Dallas.
Laferriere tied it 1-1 at 3:29 of the second with a wrist shot off a two-on-one break, and Fiala scored at 4:54 on a wraparound off a breakaway. Joel Armia added a short-handed empty-netter with 1:08 left.
Connor Bedard scored for rested Chicago, and Arvid Soderblom made 19 saves. The Blackhawks dropped to 4-3-2. They had won two in a row and had a five-game points streak.
Bedard opened the scoring on a tip at 7:04 of the first period, with the puck hitting the post and going in off Forsberg’s skate.
Up next for the Kings: at San José on Tuesday night.
Lío Mehiel has been working for a moment like “After the Hunt” for a long time.
Directed by Luca Guadagnino, this thorny morality play of a film set at Yale University pits well-liked professor Alma (played by Julia Roberts) against both her protegé, Maggie (Ayo Edebiri), as well as her longtime friend and colleague Hank (Andrew Garfield) during a scandal that risks her entire academic career.
Amid that starry A-list cast, the actor plays Maggie’s partner, Alex. The film, which had its world premiere in August at the Venice Film Festival, is Mehiel’s most high-profile project yet.
“There is so much time as an artist where you are doing the work and nobody cares and you have to find within yourself the motivation and the commitment and the drive to keep going,” Mehiel tells The Times. “Because you know that when you are going to be able to reach people, it will be worth it.”
Such a step has been years in the making. Mehiel, who lived in Puerto Rico until they were 5 years old, began their creative endeavors almost as soon as they arrived in New York City, first as a salsa dancer and later as an actor. By the time they were in fifth grade they were attending Broadway auditions, eventually booking a role in the 2003 revival of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” starring Ashley Judd and Jason Patric.
(L to R) Lio Mehiel as Alex and Ayo Edebiri as Maggie in AFTER THE HUNT, from Amazon MGM Studios.
But as they began finding their own sense of self and body, they also found the kind of opportunities that led them to “After the Hunt.” That began in earnest back in 2023, when they starred in Vuk Lungulov-Klotz’s film “Mutt” as Feña, a role they booked after cold-emailing the director and telling them they’d do anything to win that part. The film chronicled a particularly hectic day in the life of a young trans man in New York City, as he struggles to rekindle old relationships he’d severed since he’d transitioned. Mehiel’s soulful performance won them a Special Jury Award for Acting at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, putting them on the map as a trans Latine performer to watch.
“Moving forward from ‘Mutt,’ I was really interested in building on that momentum to what’s next,” they say. Not just in terms of their career but in the broader cultural conversation around contemporary queer and trans representation. The following year, they returned to Sundance with Alessandra Lacorazza’s “In the Summers,” which walked away from the festival with the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury prize — the first for a film directed by a Latina director. Like “Mutt,” that sun-dappled film found Mehiel breathing life into a trans character navigating a thorny relationship with their father (played by renowned Puerto Rican rapper Residente).
Mehiel has long been building a body of work that centers on the very work of having a body. Just this past summer, they visited the Salton Sea for a performance installation titled “angels of a drowning myth.” In photos from that day, Mehiel is seen naked and half-submerged into that so-called sea, posing alongside a bust of their own chest made six months after they’d received top surgery. A portrait of a body twice represented, Mehiel’s piece stressed the solidity and malleability of their own body, and the beauty they find within and around it. Their work moves past familiar ideas of the body in transition, gleefully embracing the messiness of the queer experience and refusing the easy siren call of visibility.
“‘After the Hunt,’ is such a beautiful example of that because Alex is a queer and trans character, but we just see them getting home from a run, taking their shirt off, being with their partner, dealing with stuff that has nothing to do with their queerness,” Mehiel says.
That moment Alex first appears on screen is quintessential Mehiel. Not just because of the honeyed intimacy their sweaty, bare chest exudes. But because their appearance immediately reframes everything audiences have heard about this seemingly militant, radical social justice warrior. Alex at first appears as a figure of “woke” culture there to defy the older generation Roberts’ Alma comes to stand for. But there’s more to them than that.
“Alex doesn’t represent all queer people who have a political orientation in the world, all queer people who might attend a protest,” they explain. “I think what Luca did and what Nora did in the script was to give us all an opportunity to move away from identity politics. Instead, they gave each of the characters enough meat on their bones that they get to be complex, messy characters.”
“After the Hunt” may focus on complicated ethical questions surrounding sexual assault allegations at a university, but within that plot, Mehiel sees also a chance for viewers to catch a glimpse of characters like Maggie and Alex who may not otherwise be centered in such stories.
“I’m just excited that there is more exposure that people are having to queer and trans people and to queer relationships, and how that can fit in the context of a ‘normative’ world,” they add. “This is a movie with Julia Roberts, one of our biggest stars and crown jewels of Hollywood and of American cinema. There’s going to be a lot of folks that are going to see it because Julia is in it. And then they’re also going to get to experience a queer and trans person on screen who is likable in some moments and unlikable in others, just as much as every other character.”
That’s been Mehiel’s purpose for years now: to expand what queer and trans characters can look like on stage, on screen and, in turn, in real life. At a time when these communities are vilified by those who wish to harm them, Mehiel insists on the importance of such normalized visibility.
Lio Mehiel seen at the Los Angeles Premiere of Amazon MGM Studios’ “After The Hunt” at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on October 04, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
(Photo by Stewart Cook / Amazon MGM Studios via Getty Images)
“Honestly, exposure to these experiences creates connection more than anything and allows people to feel comfortable,” they add. “Because the political climate right now — for the Latine community and for the trans community — is really hard and heartbreaking and challenging. And I think so much of it has to do with people feeling like they don’t know who these people are.”
A central kernel of the premise of “After the Hunt” is that you never know what someone is going through. And, more to the point, that making assumptions about other people’s experience can be extremely dangerous.
“This movie really serves as a mirror to the people that are watching it,” Mehiel insists. The film confronts audiences with their own biases and refuses any tidy conclusions.
But for Mehiel, the film will forever be remembered as a highlight of a career that is only bound to get bigger and more exciting. Just this year, they spent the summer at the Williamstown Theatre Festival starring in Jeremy O. Harris’ new play as well as serving as head of production for “Mother, Daughter, Holy Spirit,” a grassroots fundraiser for the Trans Justice Funding Project, all while continuing to pursue their various interests as artist, writer, and filmmaker. In that context, “After the Hunt” stands now less as a calling card than as a reminder of how far they’ve come and yet how much further they want to go. That film, now playing in theaters and coming soon to Prime Video, will widen the scope and reach of their artistry.
“Watching it, I was like, ‘I fit right into the fabric of the movie,’” they say. “On a personal journey level, I feel confident that I have the skill, the talent and the experience at this point to work with the masters that I dream of working with (if the sexy French filmmaker, Julia Ducournau, ever reads this interview, she should know that I want to work with her).”
Or, in much simpler terms that echo an ethos they’ve brought to bear on and off screen: “I just feel ready and able to actualize the things that I have been dreaming about for a long time.”
Former England footballer Alex Scott has reportedly been lined up by ITV bosses to star in this year’s I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here and is said to be in ‘advanced talks’
23:00, 24 Oct 2025Updated 23:00, 24 Oct 2025
Alex Scott is reportedly heading to the jungle for this year’s I’m A Celebrity(Image: Getty Images)
A former England football star turned TV presenter is reportedly in “advanced talks” with ITV bosses to appear on this year’s I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.
Alex Scott, a former Lioness, who has been in a relationship with singer Jess Glynne since 2023, looks set to fly out to Australia after impressing ITV bosses.
According to reports, Alex is keen to show the British public a different side to her personality as they only see her in a professional manner.
A source recently revealed to The Sun: “Alex loves pushing herself out of her comfort zone and where better to do it than the jungle? The public know her as a sportswoman and a serious broadcaster so she thinks she can show people a side to her that they’ve never seen before. “
They added: “Alex is game for anything and is a tough cookie so she’s ready for anything that gets thrown at her — literally.”
Alex recently caused a stir after it emerged that she was considering leaving BBC’s Football Focus, which she joined in 2021, after she was blamed for a drop in viewing figures after replacing Dan Walker.
Another source said: “Alex felt deeply hurt by the unfair criticism, she felt like she had been thrown under the bus. The viewing figures were not as reported and she feels no-one backed her up and issued the correct viewing figures.”
However, ITV refuse to conform reports. A show spokesman told the Mirror: “Any names suggested for I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here are just speculation.”
Other names thrown into the mix include actresses Shona McGarty and Lisa Riley, Kelly Brook, Vogue Williams, rapper Aitch, YouTube star Morgan Burtwistle, better known as Angry Ginge, and radio host Nick Ferrari.
Alex’s personal life has been a talking point after it emerged that she was in a relationship with singer Jess Glynne.
But the football pundit revealed that she found it difficult to show emotion after living in an abusive household.
She has described her father as being “stupidly cruel”, and revealed to The Times that he was physically and mentally abusive. This claim has been strongly denied by her father.
She told the publication in March this year: “We weren’t allowed to express emotion. Dad didn’t allow us to hug each other or say ‘I love you’. It had a huge impact on us all.
“To this day, if I want to show people love, I’ll do it by taking them out to dinner and paying. I remember one of the first times Jess hugged me. I was like… [rigid]. She was like, ‘Are you not going to put your arms around me?’ But I didn’t know how to do that.”
On hearing the allegations made about him, her father responded at the time and said: “I have no idea why she’s saying all this stuff. I was raised in a strict but loving Jamaican family and Alex should know what they are like. I taught her discipline, I did a lot to help her.”
TORONTO — The Dodgers announced Thursday that reliever Alex Vesia is away from the team as he and his wife “navigate a deeply personal family matter,” and manager Dave Roberts said his availability for the World Series is uncertain.
Vesia, who has been the Dodgers’ top left-handed pitcher in the bullpen this season, was not present at the team’s World Series media session on Thursday, and was not seen at the club’s open workout at Dodger Stadium on Monday.
Roberts said that the club was reviewing its options within MLB’s postseason roster rules, but that for now Vesia’s status was considered day-to-day.
“We have a little bit of time — I think 10 o’clock tomorrow or something like that — to finalize our roster,” Roberts said. “But, yeah, we’re going through the process of trying to backfill his spot on the roster.”
One potential option for the Dodgers would be to place Vesia on MLB’s Family Medical Emergency List, which would require him to miss a minimum of three days but make it possible for him to rejoin the active roster later in the World Series.
For now, however, Roberts said “we’re just going day-to-day with really no expectations.”
In the Dodgers’ team statement, the club said “the entire Dodgers organization is sending our thoughts to the Vesia family.”
Robertson’s absence has been a big talking point for Cardiff fans, who have been perplexed as to why a player who cost the club a seven-figure fee when he joined from Manchester City in the summer of 2024 has not been used.
He was in Australia’s squad for their friendly matches in the United States and Canada earlier this month, but did not feature in either game.
“I think it’s fine for the supporters to talk about him in whatever way they want,” said Barry-Murphy.
“Alex is somebody who I know really well from long before he was at this club [when Barry-Murphy coached Manchester City Under-21s], so all I want for all the players is to be at their best.
“My duty is then to get them into that condition where they can compete against each other. But I have to be very fair and consistent in the way that I judge all the squad once they reach that level.
“That’s the same for Alex as it is for everybody else. If he was in the shoes of the other players, he’d want the exact same thing.”
Meanwhile, centre-back Dylan Lawlor could be back for Saturday’s League One trip to Bolton Wanderers having missed last Saturday’s 2-1 win over Reading with a groin injury.
Fellow centre-back Will Fish is also managing a knee issue, which limited him to 45 minutes against the Royals last weekend.
“Will Fish has an ongoing knee issue which is getting better, particularly when he hits longer passes,” said Barry-Murphy.
“He’s had some discomfort in his knee. But the amount of discomfort is getting less and less, so he’s making good progress.
“Dylan has had a good week of training so far. I think it’s important that he can do certain things that we want from later on this afternoon [Thursday] when we train, and then hopefully he can be available for Saturday.”
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an appeal from conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and left in place the $1.4-billion judgment against him over his description of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting as a hoax staged by crisis actors.
The Infowars host had argued that a judge was wrong to find him liable for defamation and infliction of emotional distress without holding a trial on the merits of allegations lodged by relatives of victims of the shooting, which killed 20 first-graders and six educators in Newtown, Conn.
The justices did not comment on their order, which they issued without asking the families of the Sandy Hook victims to respond to Jones’ appeal. An FBI agent who responded to the shooting also sued.
A lawyer who represents Sandy Hook families said the Supreme Court had properly rejected Jones’ “latest desperate attempt to avoid accountability for the harm he has caused.”
“We look forward to enforcing the jury’s historic verdict and making Jones and Infowars pay for what they have done,” lawyer Christopher Mattei said in a statement.
A lawyer representing Jones in the case didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment. During his daily show on Tuesday, Jones said his lawyers believed his case was “cut and dry,” while he had predicted the high court wouldn’t take up his appeal.
“I said no, they will not do it because of politics,” Jones said.
Jones mocked the idea that he has enough money to pay the judgment, saying his studio equipment, including five-year-old cameras, was only worth about $304,000.
“It’s all about torturing me. It’s all about harassing me. It’s about harassing my family. It’s about getting me off the air,” said Jones, who urged his listeners to buy merchandise to keep the show running.
Jones filed for bankruptcy in late 2022, and his lawyers told the justices that the “plaintiffs have no possible hope of collecting” the entire judgment.
He is separately appealing a $49-million judgment in a similar defamation lawsuit in Texas after he failed to turn over documents sought by the parents of another Sandy Hook victim.
In the Connecticut case, the judge issued a rare default ruling against Jones and his company in late 2021 because of what she called Jones’ repeated failure to abide by court rulings and to turn over certain evidence to the Sandy Hook families. The judge convened a jury to determine how much Jones would owe.
The following year, the jury agreed on a $964-million verdict and the judge later tacked on another $473 million in punitive damages against Jones and Free Speech Systems, Infowars’ parent company, which is based in Austin, Texas.
In November, the satirical news outlet The Onion was named the winning bidder in an auction to liquidate Infowars’ assets to help pay the defamation judgments. But the bankruptcy judge threw out the auction results, citing problems with the process and The Onion’s bid.
The attempt to sell off Infowars’ assets has moved to a Texas state court in Austin. Jones is now appealing a recent order from the court that appointed a receiver to liquidate the assets. Some of Jones’ personal property is also being sold off as part of the bankruptcy case.
Sherman writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Susan Haigh in Hartford, Conn., contributed to this report.
REALITY TV star Olivia Bowen has wowed the crowds in a striking outfit – just weeks after giving birth.
Mum-of-two Olivia looked sensational as she posed on the red carpet ahead of a screening for her and husband Alex’s new reality TV show.
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Olivia looked striking in the black mini dress just weeks after giving birthCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
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Olivia and husband Alex Bowen looked dressed to kill at their reality TV screeningCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
The formerLove Island star dazzled in a short black dress and diamond-encrusted heels for the special occasion.
With her hair pinned up and sporting glamorous make-up, she accessorised with a black designer handbag and big smile as she posed alongside her husband.
She wrote on social media: “Not. Over. It. Our very special evening for our very special new show with @itv@itvxofficial.
“Thank you so so much to everyone who came & watched & supported our launch – we are so grateful & loved spending the evening with you all.
“And a huge thank you @angeleyemedia & our amazing sponsor @glade_uk.
“We had the most fabulous evening & are feeling so lucky – I just cannot wait for you guys to watch the first ep on Sunday.”
The mum shares three-year-old son Abel and daughter Siena, who wasborn in August,with husbandAlex.
The series will offer intimate access to the couple’s real-life journey as they grow their young family from three to four, whilst dealing with the emotional aftermath of losing one of their twins during early pregnancy.
Love Island 2016 star Alex told heatworld what to expect from the new series.
The Watch List with Rod McPhee
He said: “Before, being on Love Island, I was the serious one, and that’s really not me.
“Hopefully the new series will change people’s perception.”
He added: “When I’m on my Instagram, I’m quite serious when it comes to all my coaching and stuff and all that kind of jazz.
“I’m actually really immature and just daft. I’m quite a jokey person.”
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to pause his payments on a $1.44 billion defamation judgment entered after he claimed the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., was a hoax. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo
Oct. 9 (UPI) — InfoWars publisher Alex Jones wants the Supreme Court to pause a $1.44 billion defamation judgment against him for making false claims about a 2012 school shooting.
Conservative conspiracy theorist Jones on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to pause his payments to the surviving families of the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims, according to The Hill.
The families successfully sued Jones for defamation after he claimed the school shooting was a hoax and are readying to take control of InfoWars, which they intend to turn over to the satirical news site The Onion.
In Thursday’s emergency filing, Jones says the pause is necessary to stop his InfoWars site from being “acquired by its ideological nemesis and destroyed,” NBC News reported.
A Connecticut court in 2022 ordered Jones to pay $1.44 billion to the surviving families of 20 schoolchildren, who were shot and killed by Adam Lanza on Dec. 14, 2012.
Jones filed for personal bankruptcy soon after several judgments were entered against him, but his petition was denied.
He earlier was fined $25,000 per day by a Connecticut judge for refusing to submit to a deposition in the matter.
Lanza, 20, murdered his mother and used her firearm to shoot and kill 20 school children and six adults at the same elementary school he once attended in Newtown, Conn.
He shot and killed himself when law enforcement arrived at the school, which since has been razed and replaced.
Ireland’s Alex Dunne has left McLaren’s driver development programme with immediate effect, saying he is “very excited for what’s to come”.
Formula 2 race winner Dunne impressed on his Formula 1 debut in Austria in June when he finished fourth in opening practice, just 0.069 seconds behind championship leader Oscar Piastri.
By driving at the Austrian Grand Prix, he became the first Irish driver to participate in a Formula 1 weekend in 22 years.
Dunne, who joined the team as development driver in May 2024, also took part in first practice at the Italian Grand Prix in September, and McLaren said it had been a “pleasure” to work with the 19-year-old.
Posting on social, Dunne said he was “very excited for what’s to come”, with an ‘eye’ emoji.
“From today I’ve mutually decided to part ways with the McLaren driver development programme,” he said.
“I’d like to thank every individual at McLaren that has helped me develop and improve as a driver, to have my first opportunity to drive an F1 car followed by two FP1 sessions is something I’ll always hold very close to my heart, I wish them all the best for the future. Thank you papaya family.”
Dunne has won two feature races in his rookie F2 campaign, in Bahrain and Imola, but has dropped out of title contention after a number of technical infringements and collisions.
The final two rounds of the F2 season take place in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Alex over the last year and to contribute to his growth as a driver,” McLaren said.
“We wish Alex all the best for his career going forward.”
Championship leaders McLaren have no race seats available for 2026 with title contenders Piastri and Lando Norris both under contract.
Red Bull have yet to confirm who will partner Max Verstappen or take either Racing Bulls seat, while Alpine are yet to name who will race alongside Pierre Gasly in 2026.
It is thought the injury was caused when he collided with a concrete wall, but the club has not confirmed this.
Fletcher retired from football at the age of 25 after crashing into concrete advertising hoardings during a National League South game for Bath City.
The now 26-year-old was placed in a coma after emergency surgery and did not play for 10 months. He has since taken a role in the brain health department within the Professional Footballers’ Association to advocate for enhanced player safety in football grounds.
“This was an entirely preventable situation,” Fletcher told BBC Breakfast.
“It brought a lot of emotions flooding back for me but my overriding emotion was frustration that the calls for change haven’t been listened to by the FA.
“I’m afraid this will not be the last [death] if action isn’t taken.”
The Football Association said it will carry out an immediate safety review of perimeter walls at football grounds in the National League system following Vigar’s death.
“This will include looking at ways we can assist National League system clubs to identify and implement additional measures at their stadiums that they determine will help to mitigate any potential safety risks,” its statement said.
However, Fletcher said there must be urgent action.
“I think it’s too little, too late,” said Fletcher.
“I think if you asked Billy’s family they would say, is it going to bring their son back?
“It’s something that needs to happen urgently because there are hundreds of football matches being played across the country at all levels where this kind of incident could occur again.
“It’s billed as a freak accident [but] it’s an accident waiting to happen, quite frankly.”
The successor to Bob Costas as play-by-play voice on TNT’s Major League Baseball postseason games will be the same broadcaster who replaced the legendary Bob Miller in 2017 after Miller retired following a 44-year Hall of Fame career with the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL.
Yes, Alex Faust has experience replacing a titan of the airwaves.
Costas, of course, is another Hall of Famer, and he also retired after 44 years. His final MLB call was the 2024 American League Division Series in which the New York Yankees defeated the Kansas City Royals in four games.
Faust, 36, currently calls Friday Night MLB games streamed on Apple TV+. He also is the radio voice of the New York Rangers and has been part of hockey and tennis coverage at TNT Sports. Faust left the Kings in 2023 when their television deal with Bally Sports expired.
Costas will continue to appear on MLB Network but won’t do play-by-play. His most recent appearance on the airwaves was as a guest on the NPR news quiz “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me” on Sept. 13.
After telling stories about not making his high school baseball team and recounting an embarrassing, mildly profane gaffe he made on air early in his career, Costas answered all three game show questions about the Emmy Awards correctly.
Costas joked that he had accomplished “the trifecta, the hat trick, the triple crown.” Host Peter Segal asked what the show should call it when someone goes 3 for 3. Costas laughed and replied, “The Costi.”
He probably should have an award named after him. Costas, 73, has received 29 Emmys and was the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games from 1988 through 2016. He called three World Series and 10 MLB league championships.
Costas stepped down from MLB play-by-play in November, telling Tom Verducci of MLB Network that he had planned to retire for more than a year, saying, “I couldn’t consistently reach my past standard.”
MORE than a few eyebrows were raised at the Emirates when Arsenal’s starting line-up was announced.
In particular the midfield three of Mikel Merino, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi.
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Declan Rice started in a three-man midfield against Manchester CityCredit: Getty
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Martin Zubimendi joined Rice in the midfieldCredit: Reuters
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Mikel Merino was a more surprising name in the Gunners midfieldCredit: AP
It was a defensive-minded decision by Arteta to put pressure on City’s Rodri and limit his influence from deep while keeping things tight until he found the courage to fling on his attacking game-changers at the right moment.
It backfired massively.
Those who criticised Arteta for playing not to lose instead of going for the win at Liverpool last month – eventually losing 1-0 – have even more fuel to chuck on the now-blazing fire.
He had a fully-fit Eze on the bench, and yet kept the handbrake on with a safety-first approach. The question remains: does Arteta have the bravery to win a league title?
The sort of midfield that would have been Jose Mourinho-approved, but one that Arteta must NEVER start again in a title-defining game again if Arsenal are to compete for the Prem.
That trio had no pace, no drive, no attacking intent – and Arsenal have no hope of glory come May should they combine from the off again.
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Pep Guardiola and Sir Alex Ferguson in 2011Credit: Getty – Contributor
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Liverpool boss Arne Slot and GuardiolaCredit: Reuters
MARTINELLI MORE THAN JUST A ‘FINISHER’
MIKEL Arteta made it clear after Arsenal’s Champions League opener just how much it pains him to leave Gabriel Martinelli on the bench.
The Brazilian came on away at Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday night and after 36 seconds he netted before creating another for Leandro Trossard.
It was not enough for Arteta to reward Martinelli with a first start for nearly a month against Manchester City, revealing that he prefers to call his subs “finishers” to give them more meaning and motivation.
But after yet another late goal to snatch points, there is now a dilemma for Arteta: continue using him as a super-sub – or super-finisher – or recall him to that left-winger spot.
Martinelli would admit himself that he has not been in good form over the last 18 months with just 18 goals in all competitions over the past two seasons.
But he is certainly knocking on the door. Is this the start of his North London renaissance?
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Gabriel Martinelli rescued a point for ArsenalCredit: Getty
EZE SHINING IN GOOD COMPANY
WITH England boss Thomas Tuchel watching on, Eberechi Eze proved why he is so special and belongs on the biggest of stages.
Eze would have been more than frustrated to be left on the bench for this one, desperate to build some momentum in an Arsenal shirt with next summer’s World Cup looming.
But boy did he deliver when he was thrown on at half-time with Mikel Arteta desperate for some magic after playing it safe for the first 45 minutes.
His beautifully-crafted long ball over the top to put in Gabriel Martinelli for a late, late equaliser is exactly why Arteta snatched him from Crystal Palace, lured from the grasps of rivals Tottenham at the last minute.
Once again for large parts, the Gunners struggled to break down a low block, just like they did last season, but Eze is the player with the key to unlock the most stubborn of defences – if he is given the chance.
It cannot be clearer now – Arteta must start Eze as much as possible between now and the end of the campaign if Arsenal are going to claw the Prem title away from Liverpool.
Sept. 19 (UPI) — Former U.S. attorney for Florida’s Southern District Alex Acosta testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee during a closed deposition on Friday.
Acosta arrived for the deposition hearing regarding the 2008 Jeffrey Epstein case on Friday morning and ignored reporters’ questions while entering the committee room in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, according to ABC News.
“We want to know what went on during the prosecution, when many believe that Epstein was awarded a sweetheart deal,” Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., told media on Friday.
“We’re going to ask a lot of questions about this,” Comer added. “This is going to be a pretty hard-hitting deposition.”
Friday’s deposition hearing occurred after the House committee on Monday obtained files related to the case, including a “birthday book” note alleged to have been written by President Donald Trump decades ago.
The president has denied writing the note and said it is a forgery.
Acosta was Trump’s Labor Department secretary for more than two years during the president’s first term.
He resigned amid controversy over his handling of the Epstein case as new charges were entered for alleged sex trafficking and other related offenses in 2019, CNN reported.
While he was a U.S. attorney, Acosta negotiated Epstein’s 2008 plea deal that resulted in the former hedge fund manager pleading guilty to state charges in Florida in exchange for avoiding potential federal charges.
The plea deal required Epstein to serve 13 months in thePalm Beach County jail and register as a sex offender, but he had work release.
Although Epstein did not face federal charges, Florida officials had asked Acosta to review the case after accusing a state prosecutor of mishandling the matter, according to a 2020 NPR report.
Epstein committed suicide in a New York City jail ahead of his federal trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019.
The House committee recently released more than 33,000 pages of Epstein file documents and said more will be released.
The documents released so far are redacted to protect witnesses and block child abuse materials.
Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson speaks to BBC Breakfast’s Nina Warhurst about his brother living with dementia, and what he does to keep his own mind active.
He was speaking as part of National Playlist Day, which is used to celebrate the power of personalised music playlists for those living with dementia.
In “The Paper,” the much anticipated mockumentary spinoff to “The Office,” Alex Edelman plays intrepid accountant/reporter Adam Cooper, part of the team tasked with reviving local newspaper “The Toledo Truth-Teller.” Edelman was also a writer and consulting producer for the show, which premieres on Peacock on Sept. 4 with all 10 episodes, and says the project gave him “the thing that is rarest in Los Angeles”: routine.
“It was a really wonderful routine,” he adds.
In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.
Of course, routines must end and new routines must be created. Edelman, who won an Obie and a Special Tony for his stand-up show “Just For Us,” about attending a meeting of Nazis as an Orthodox Jew (it became the HBO original comedy special “Alex Edelman: Just For Us,” for which he won an Emmy), is back on the road and adding new dates for his current show, “What Are You Going to Do.” In his spare time, he’s working on a nonfiction book, “I Don’t Belong Here.”
The perfect Sunday, for Edelman, is always a little bit different, with currents of consistency woven through. (He calls himself a “recommendation machine,” which feels accurate.) There’s always a hike. There are always friends involved. There’s always food. There are plenty of laughs. But for all the tried-and-true recs, novelty is important too. “I guess my headline is, Sunday’s the day to try new things,” he says.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for length and clarity.
7 a.m.: Wake up and go on a coffee walk On the weekends, I like to walk. The only thing left to do on planet Earth apparently is to get coffee. Do you know that our whole lives revolve around a series of silly little coffees? I only drink espresso drinks, which is a fact about me, which is very boring. I might walk between coffee stations, like a man journeying between oases. I’ll walk down and I’ll get to All Time and be like, do I want a coffee here or can I make it to Maru? And when I get to Maru, do I get a coffee here? Or can I make it to Camel? And then I’ll make it to Camel, which apparently is now called Handles? And I’m like, do I get a coffee here or do I go to Dinosaur? And then, do I do a coffee here or do I go to Tartine or LaLo in Silver Lake or Lamill, which is also in Silver Lake. It feels like a long time, but that’s only about an hour walk.
I might get some breakfast too. I like Telegrama or Friends and Family — a favorite there is the olive oil eggs. I spend a lot of my money at All Time. I like to get the thing they call “the B.O.A.T.” I don’t know exactly what it is, but it’s really good.
8 a.m.: Get in a bit of writing I like to park myself at Telegrama or Maru; you can find a little corner and really groove.
10 a.m.: Hike and have an adventure I’m a keen weekend hiker. And I have hiking buddies. My friend [TV writer] Jenji [Kohan] and I started to do a thing in the pandemic where every weekend we would go hike somewhere and eat somewhere. I’ll hike with Jenji or my friend Rebecca or my friend Morgan. We’ll get after it. You hike with someone, you complain. It’s a lot of fun.
There are some really, really gorgeous hikes around Los Angeles. I use AllTrails to keep track of them. If we’re doing a hike out of town, we’ll go up to Santa Barbara or down into Orange County for one of the heavy beach hikes. Or any hikes with the word “Punchbowl” in them. And we’ll go to Charlie Brown Farms right afterwards.
We hike and eat and there’s always an adventure in there. We use the Atlas Obscura and go check out things, like, I heard there’s this weird store where this guy who makes things out of pop tabs or whatever it is. One of my favorite things is just getting to look at a little midcentury modern house I’ll never be able to afford. If there’s a house by Lautner or Neutra or Frank Lloyd Wright, sometimes we’ll take a schlep just for the house, to even just see from the street. One of the hikes in Malibu, Solstice, has an old Paul Williams house. It’s like a ruin.
1 p.m.: Lunchtime We like going into the San Gabriel Valley and eating at Chengdu Taste in Alhambra or Bistro Na’s. I can’t eat pork or shellfish, so whatever falls within the electric fence, my lapsing Judaism. Whenever we drive south for a hike, we like to go to Pho 79 in the Anaheim area, or Garden Grove maybe. And I get something vegetarian or chicken or something like that.
2:30 p.m.: Thrifting and a snack The thrift stores in Pasadena, those places are so good. Downtown, we always stop at the old mochi spot, Fugetsu-Do. They’ve been around for 117 years, even longer. I think they opened in 1903. On Sundays, sometimes the line can be long, but it’s worth waiting in. I like the regular rainbow-colored, strawberry-stained stuff. A thousand percent fruity or candy and no gelatin because of my Judaism.
4 p.m.: Catching up on books Since we’re downtown, I’ll stop by the Last Bookstore. I also really love Skylight. And I love a used bookstore. I love a browse.
I like reading and listening to music on a Sunday. For a while, I was rationing out my friend Taffy Akner’s last book, “Long Island Compromise.” I’d read a couple of chunks every Sunday until I ran out. I just bought a couple of plays by Kimberly Bellflower and Noah Haidle. And I am reading Carrie Courogen’s “Miss May Does Not Exist” about Elaine May, who I worship and actually met once at a friend’s house.
7 p.m.: Pizza and movie night at Phil’s I have a friend, Phil, who sometimes makes Sunday his movie night. His house has a little pizza oven. Phil will have pizza made in the style of the pizza from Mozza, which he loves. And we’ll watch movies on a projector. I watched “A New Leaf” there and enjoyed it very much, speaking of Elaine May.
11 p.m.: Late-night meal I’m out late, especially for Los Angeles. And there’s nowhere to eat very late at night in Los Angeles, unless you’re going to venture into Koreatown, where there’s Dan Sung Sa. I love to eat late and hey, we’re four meals deep, but that’s fine. Or Canter’s is open until 11:30 on Sunday. And Same Same Thai on Sunset is open until 11. They do something called khao soi, which is really hard to find in a lot of places. So I’ll sometimes get a really late night khao soi.
12 a.m.: Scrolling, reading, maybe a phone call or two I’m up for a bit. I watch, I’ll scroll. I’ll scroll until I drift off, which I shouldn’t. Or I’ll call friends in London who are just waking up, stand-up comics. My friend Josie Long was in Glasgow, and sometimes I’ll call her, or I’ll catch my friend Isobel, who’s a composer, who’s in Europe all the time. But in my ideal situation, I’m asleep by 1. I’ll read this book by Lizzy Goodman called “Meet Me in the Bathroom,” or I’ll listen to this podcast called “Search Engine” by PJ Vogt, and sort of drift off.
Katie was not allowed to participate on the show, which she admitted her annoyance about on her podcast, The Katie Price Show.
Shortly afterwards, Peter broke his 16-year silence to speak out against his ex-wife, making public for the first time that the kids were court ordered to live with him since 2019.
And now, after 10 days that have “been a lot” for the star, she has spoken out about her mental health.
Katie has shared how her PTSD has been “triggered”, as well as her anxiety.
Getting candid in a new Instagram post she shared on Thursday night, Katie uploaded a video and caption.
In the video she explained how she was at the horses which she calls her “safe place” because of how relaxing she finds it.
She added how her mental health had been “triggered like you would not believe” over the past 10 days.
In the caption of the post, she elaborated further when she penned: “The past 10 days have been a lot, thank you to everyone who has messaged me.
Katie Price versus Peter Andre, Oasis residency rumours & why Strictly is ‘the cockroach’ of TV
“I have came to the horses for some me time as my anxiety, PTSD and mental health has been triggered a lot.”
She added how she was happy to have a visit planned to the Supreme CBD warehouse to top up on “oil and gummies” which have been “such a massive help”.
“If anyone out there is feeling similar to me right now, the anxiety, lack of sleep, PTSD then stay strong,” she added.
Reacting to her honest post, fans flocked to the comments to show their support for the former glamour model.
What is PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)?
POST-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is a mental health condition sparked by stressful, frightening or distressing events.
The NHS states that someone with PTSD “often relives the traumatic event through nightmares and flashbacks, and may experience feelings of isolation, irritability and guilt”.
Someone with PTSD may also have problems sleeping, “such as insomnia, and find concentrating difficult”.
The health provider states that symptoms are often “severe and persistent enough to have a significant impact on the person’s day-to-day life”.
Any stressful or frightenining event can cause PTSD with the following being some of the most common causes:
Serious road accidents
Violent personal assaults, such as sexual assault, mugging or robbery
“Everything is gonna be okay you are so loved,” said one person.
“Keep your chin up beautiful, keep working on yourself and being the best version of you that you can be and the world will shine on you,” penned a second.
A third wrote: “You have so much love and support. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
While a fourth said: “Stay positive.”
And a fifth added: “Never underestimate the pricey!”
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Katie is mum to Princess and Junior Andre, as well as Harvey, Bunny and JetCredit: Getty Images – Getty
DENVER — Mookie Betts was the first Dodgers position player out on the field Tuesday, walking to a spot near the third-base foul line and kneeling on a mat before a coach, who began hitting soft ground balls to his right and left.
It’s a drill Betts does regularly to improve his defense. Betts’ defense, however, really isn’t a problem for the Dodgers.
A six-time Gold Glove winner in right field, Betts moved to shortstop full-time this season, turning his old position over to Teoscar Hernández. And his defense has been a problem. But Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he isn’t planning any changes to his lineup for the time being.
“Are we playing our best defensive lineup? No,” Roberts said. “But I would say there’s very few teams in the big leagues playing their best defensive lineup every night. Even in a postseason race, you’ve still got to score.”
The Dodgers are definitely in a postseason race and Hernández absolutely helps them score, ranking second on the team in home runs (20) and RBIs (75) after going two for five with a run and an RBI in Tuesday’s 11-4 rout of the Colorado Rockies. He also made two nice running catches.
But then the Dodgers didn’t need much defense Tuesday, pounding out 18 hits with every player in the lineup reaching base as least once. Newcomer Alex Call led the way with a career-high four hits, including a home run and a double, scoring three runs and driving in two others while falling a triple shy of the cycle.
“I wasn’t thinking about it. I was really just trying to get on base another time,” Call, who struck out in his final at-bat in the eighth, said of the cycle. “But everybody else in the dugout was like, ‘if you hit this ball, you better keep running.’ It would have been fun to find a gap and see what would happen.”
The homer, a 453-foot blast in the second, was the longest by a Dodger this season. Yet Call still managed to get the ball back as a souvenir.
“I actually had some some friends in the stands that flew out from Wisconsin, and they tracked down the ball for me,” he said.
The homer helped Call snap out of terrible slump. He entered the game hitting .174 since coming over from Washington at the trade deadline, which wasn’t the kind of introduction he had hoped to have with this new team.
“I wanted to make a good impression. But I think you make a good impression by just showing how you work and showing how you play the game and just trusting in yourself to do what you do,” he said. “I would tell myself, ‘I’m just calibrating.’
“There’s a lot of moving parts, a lot of new things going on. New coaches, new teammates, new situation, new city. You can go on. So it’s a lot.”
Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, Betts and Miguel Rojas joined Hernández and Call with multiple hits for the Dodgers, who scored eight of their 11 runs with two out.
“Really, really pleased with tonight,” manager Dave Roberts said. “You saw a different ball club tonight.”
And a different Call as well.
“It’s certainly a big adjustment, especially when you walk into a clubhouse like ours,” Roberts said. “Coming from the Nationals, a bunch of young players, and you see our ball club in contention and trying to kind of figure out where you where you stand, right? He’s likable the way he plays, practices, and it was good to see him have some success.”
The Dodgers led 7-0 before the Rockies had their second baserunner, with one of those runs coming on Shohei Ohtani’s 44th home run of the season. That made it easy for starter Emmet Sheehan (4-2), who matched a career high by going six innings, striking out a season-best seven batters to earn the win.
“We just got on the board early,” Freeman said. “When you score runs, you want to keep it going as an offense.
“[But] I don’t think anybody’s going to think about how good we did today tomorrow. Every day is a new day. We’ll go out there and give it all again.”
Etc….
Reliever Kirby Yates walked one and struck out one in a one-inning rehab appearance for Oklahoma City on Tuesday. He threw 21 pitches, 13 for strikes. Yates went on the injured list Aug. 1 with lower back pain.
