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Celebrating the Southland’s top high school football players

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. It’s time to close out 2025 with The Times’ All-Star football package.

It’s awards time

Trent Mosley of Santa Margarita holds the CIF state championship Open Division trophy after beating De La Salle.

The unanimous player of the year is Trent Mosley of Santa Margarita. During the postseason, he was unstoppable as a receiver and wildcat quarterback. The Eagles smartly decided he needed to get as many targets and opportunities as possible to turn short passes into long gainers, and he delivered in spectacular fashion. All the people who declined to make him one of their “five-star prospects” perhaps because of his size or a misunderstanding of how fast he is might want to reconsider now that he’s headed to USC and ready to be an impact player. Here’s the profile.

The back of the year is Luke Fahey of Mission Viejo. Ohio State is getting its next top quarterback. Accurate with a strong arm and great leadership skills, Fahey set an example of how you can reach the top while waiting your turn. He didn’t become the full-time starter until his senior season for the good of the team. He became a Mission Viejo legend. Here’s the profile.

Braiden McKenna of Los Alamitos, left, opens a hole against Cathedral Catholic.

The lineman of the year is Braiden McKenna of Los Alamitos. Playing center, he helped ignite a ground game that produced two 1,000-yard rushers and a Southern Section Division 2 championship. Here’s the profile.

Los Alamitos football coach Ray Fenton stands with his players during an Alpha League opener at SoFi Stadium.

The coach of the year is Ray Fenton of Los Alamitos. He took an underrated team and guided them to a Division 2 championship without transfers and lots of best friends uniting. Here’s the profile.

Here’s a look at the 22-person Times All-Star team.

Here’s the final top 25 rankings by The Times.

Here’s the complete package.

With finals taking place or finished, get ready for the transfer portal to open for high school football players looking for new schools for the spring semester.

There have been lots of rumors about players coming to Santa Margarita to play for coach Carson Palmer after the Eagles won the Division 1 title in his rookie season. Mater Dei has had two lackluster freshman classes the last two years, so if the Monarchs intend to keep up in the Trinity League, look for new players checking in.

Mission Viejo has an opening at quarterback, so keep watch who ends up there. Will JSerra players stick around for a new coach or switch to another Trinity League team.

St. John Bosco has lots of returning players, including two promising quarterbacks who will be juniors. It will be a surprise in today’s environment if both stay. The Braves are expected to get a top defensive back/receiver in the coming days. Sierra Canyon has plenty of back-ups expected to move into starting roles, but it’s been the same problem in recent years for the Trailblazers: Average play at quarterback against the best teams doesn’t get you to be one of the top two teams.

In the City Section, Carson won its 12th championship and gets to build the likely City player of the year, quarterback Chris Fields III. Will Crenshaw continue its rise? Will Birmingham start a new winning streak against City teams? What will happen to coach Robert Garrett, who didn’t get to coach this season at Crenshaw while on administrative leave with no end date in sight. All he does is check in from home waiting for a long and confusing Los Angeles Unified School District investigative process to play out despite reaching 300 career victories.

New coaches at JSerra, Bishop Alemany, St. Francis, Bishop Montgomery, Oaks Christian and St. Paul will offer a glimpse about what direction those private school programs want to take.

JSerra makes historic hire

Finally, a Trinity League school said yes.

Hardy Nickerson of the Chicago Bears poses for his 2007 NFL headshot at photo day in Chicago. He’s the new head coach at JSerra.

(Getty Images / Getty Images)

Hardy Nickerson, a Verbum Dei grad who was an All-Pro linebacker and coached in the NFL, college and high school ranks, was hired by JSerra as its new football coach, becoming the first Black head football coach in the Trinity League since it was formed in 2006. Here’s the report.

This is a story from 2021 about the lack of Black head coaches in the league.

There’s been excuses in the past, from lack of fit, to lack of coaching experiences to lack of school ties. Nickerson earned this chance based on years of qualifications and coaching at every level, from youth to high school to college to the NFL.

There’s no guarantee of success, however, in a league in which the other five schools have invested lots of money and hard work trying to be successful. There’s an expectation coaching in the league you get about three years and are gone without progress.

Nickerson will face the same challenges as his predecessor, former Azusa Pacific coach Victor Santa Cruz, who came in with strong qualifications but was pushed out following a 3-7 season.

If Nickerson succeeds, it can pave the way for other Black head coaches to get a chance to be a coach at a top private school. It has happened in basketball, but football has been way behind.

Basketball

It’s freedom day for high school basketball players who transferred without moving and have been sitting out the first month of the season. They’re getting the best Christmas present of all — eligibility on Friday.

Many teams will undergo changes that could lead to much-improved performances. Sierra Canyon, Chaminade, Mater Dei, Loyola, Crespi, Arcadia and Pasadena are among the schools getting stronger. Among girls, Etiwanda and Corona Centennial will be getting new players.

Crespi is getting 6-foot-9 junior Rodney Mukendi, which will add much-needed rebounding and a rim protector.

Ontario Christian’s girls’ basketball team has won 14 straight games to start the season. Etiwanda is 7-1. The inevitable meeting between the two should happen in the postseason.

The day after Christmas is always one of the busiest basketball days of the season with tournaments galore. The Classic at Damien leads the tournament action. The fact that sit-out period players become eligible on Dec. 26 will make for interesting matchups and possible surprises.

On Monday in Las Vegas, there will be some great matchups at the Tarkanian Classic, including Redondo Union vs. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, San Gabriel Academy vs. La Mirada and Santa Margarita vs. Utah Timpview.

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

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

Baseball/softball

St. John Bosco closer Jack Champlin struck out three of the seven batters he faced to earn the save against Patrick Henry.

It’s not too early to start speculating which teams will challenge defending Division 1 champion St. John Bosco for No. 1 this season. The Braves are loaded with quality returnees, from twins James and Miles Clark to star closer Jack Champlin.

There are at least seven other schools gearing up to make a title run, including JSerra, Orange Lutheran, Huntington Beach, Santa Margarita, Harvard-Westlake, Cypress, Corona and Norco.

Among the elite players, JSerra outfielder Blake Bowen is being mentioned as a possible first-round draft pick. Trey Ebel of Corona is hoping to follow brother Brady as a high pick. Norco has two of the best underclassmen in sophomore pitcher Jordan Ayala and junior shortstop Dylan Seward. Huntington Beach has the best hitter/pitcher in junior Jared Grindlinger. Santa Margarita returns Brody Schumaker, who is switching from second base to shortstop. Harvard-Westlake welcomes a group of off-the-chart freshmen, led by El Segundo Little League World Series hero Louis Lappe.

In softball, Norco looks strong but JSerra has pitching and Sherman Oaks Notre Dame made a big move last season to be a contender with lots of youth.

Notes

Point guard Ryan Gov from Cypress has committed to Azusa Pacifica …

Mark Holman has resigned as football coach at San Dimas …

Mike Moschetti has resigned as football coach at St. Paul …

Former Campbell Hall football coach Dennis Keyes is the new football coach at Bishop Alemany. He was the defensive coordinator at Chaminade this past season and was an All-City player at Birmingham and starting defensive back at UCLA …

Baseball player Malachi Wobrock of Hart has committed to MIT.

From the archives: Colby Parkinson

Oaks Christian tight end Colby Parkinson during his playing days with the Lions.

Former Oaks Christian tight end Colby Parkinson, 26, continues to demonstrate as a key player for the Rams why almost everyone was projecting him to be an NFL player since his high school days when he was a three-sport athlete.

Here’s a story from 2016 looking at his blossoming skills as a tight end in high school.

Here’s a story from 2024 on Parkinson signing with the Rams to come home.

Recommendations

From the Washington Post, a story on two high school basketball siblings who are five-star players.

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 eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

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Prep Rally will be on hiatus next week before returning Jan. 6.

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Chargers’ fourth straight win has them surging at the right time

Dec 22, 2025 Sports Desk

From Sam Farmer: The Chargers are under the radar and over the moon.

They are methodically compiling victories — the latest, Sunday’s 34-17 thumping of the Dallas Cowboys — and perfectly content on the fringes of the national spotlight.

Lots of people wrote them off when those offensive linemen started falling like tall timber, yet the Chargers have found ways to win in spite of that. Seven times in eight games they have walked away victorious, keeping them in the running for the top seed in the AFC.

“We’re not worried about the outside noise,” said edge rusher Khalil Mack, part of a defense that has pitched second-half shutouts two weeks in a row. “Not getting too high, not getting too low. Staying even-keeled and trying to stack wins.”

Despite all that success, the Chargers (11-4) had yet to cement a spot in the postseason by the time they boarded the bus from AT&T Stadium to the airport. They needed a loss or tie by Houston — which beat Las Vegas later Sunday — or by Indianapolis, playing host to San Francisco on Monday night.

As for the Cowboys (6-8), they were eliminated from playoff contention the week before. They were playing for pride and had the NFL’s No. 1 offense, which showed up with Dak Prescott touchdown passes in the first two quarters.

But the quarterback of note in this game was Justin Herbert, who threw for 300 yards and two touchdowns and plunged across the goal line for another score. He also had a 34-yard scramble up the middle, the longest of the game, which ended with a violent collision that had him prone and wincing for a moment.

Continue reading here

Chargers-Cowboys summary

NFL scores

NFL standings

Lakers want consistency on technical calls

Clippers forward John Collins hangs onto the rim after dunking during a win over the Lakers.

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The only thing left for JJ Redick to do was joke about it. What else could be said after the Lakers made just six of 38 three-pointers in a 103-88 loss to the Clippers on Saturday?

“I was proud that we improved from three [after starting] four for 33,” the coach deadpanned. “So we got better as the game progressed.”

With four starters out because of injuries, the Lakers’ ice cold shooting doomed them to a season low in points. Star guard Luka Doncic left the game with 12 points at halftime after a left leg contusion sustained in the first half. Redick noticed the NBA’s leading scorer limping on the court during the second quarter. Fellow starters Austin Reaves (calf), Deandre Ayton (elbow) and Rui Hachimura (groin) already were sidelined as well as key reserve Gabe Vincent (back).

It left them with just one starter in LeBron James, who had 36 points, four rebounds and three assists as the Lakers (19-8) fell behind by 22 but cut the deficit to seven in the fourth quarter before fading again.

Continue reading here

NBA scores

NBA standings

USC men dominate against UC Santa Cruz

USC center Gabe Dynes dunks during a 102-63 win over the UC Santa Cruz at Galen Center on Sunday.

From Ryan Kartje: The call came Monday morning, just six days before USC was slated to play its final nonconference contest. In light of the deadly shooting on Brown’s campus, its men’s basketball team wouldn’t make the trip west. If coach Eric Musselman hoped to test his Trojans again before the new year, he and his USC staff had less than 24 hours to find a replacement.

Which is how USC found itself facing UC Santa Cruz, a 6-6 Division III team with losses to Chapman, Redlands and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, on Sunday. USC had no trouble overwhelming the Banana Slugs in a 102-63 victory. But given the scrambling it took to schedule Santa Cruz, no one was complaining about the seamless victory heading into the Trojans’ winter break.

Musselman, who notched his 250th career win, initially hoped that USC could find a D-1 program to take Brown’s place. But rules limiting the amount of regular-season games a D-1 program can play narrowed that list considerably. It left USC’s coaches counting by hand to decide which teams would fit.

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USC-UC Santa Cruz box score

NCAA men’s basketball scores

Jazzy Davidson powers USC past Cal

USC’s Jazzy Davidson controls the ball in front of California’s Mjracle Sheppard.

From the Associated Press: Freshman Jazzy Davidson scored a go-ahead layup with 4:05 remaining and finished with a season-best 24 points, leading the No. 19 USC women past California 61-57 on Sunday in the Invisalign Bay Area Women’s Classic.

After Davidson’s basket, Londynn Jones hit a jumper the next time down as USC used a 6-0 burst to take control. The Trojans answered each Cal threat with a key defensive play or big basket.

Cal called time out with 43.8 seconds left and trailing 56-54, but as the Golden Bears tried to set up a play, USC’s Kennedy Smith made a steal of Sakima Walker’s bad pass.

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USC-California box score

NCAA women’s basketball scores

Santa Anita postpones opening races

From Jay Posner: After days of deliberation and faced with a forecast getting soggier by the day, Santa Anita officials have decided to postpone opening day of the 2025-26 race meeting from Friday until Sunday, Dec. 28.

It’s just the second time since 1976 that Santa Anita will not open on the day after Christmas. The other time was in 2019 for the same reason: wet weather. More than eight inches of rain are projected to fall between Tuesday night and Friday at Santa Anita.

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Should Angels fans cheer for Dodgers?

Angels star Mike Trout signs autographs for fans before a game against the Minnesota Twins at Angel Stadium on Sept. 8.

From columnist Bill Shaikin: Christmas is three days away, and you’re running out of time to get a gift for the Angels fan in your life. How about a Dodgers cap?

If ever a winter posed a loyalty test, this one could. The Dodgers spent $69 million on Edwin Díaz, the best closer available in free agency, and another $2 million in championship parade costs. The Angels spent $2 million on a closer who put up an 8.23 earned-run average last season.

Next year the Dodgers will try to become the first National League team to win three consecutive World Series. The Angels will try to end baseball’s longest postseason drought at 11 years, still without much of a plan beyond rushing first-round draft picks to the major leagues while treading the financial waters until Anthony Rendon’s contract runs out.

On Sunday they missed out on Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami, who signed with the 102-loss Chicago White Sox. Of the Angels’ five acquisitions this winter, three did not play in the majors last season, and not because they are up-and-coming prospects.

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Author Shea Serrano is photographed at Toretto's Market in the Angelino Heights neighborhood.

From Gustavo Arellano: When Fernando Mendoza won the Heisman Trophy this weekend with another Latino finalist looking on from the crowd, the Cuban-American quarterback did more than just become the first Indiana Hoosier to win college football’s top prize, and only the third Latino to do so. He also subtly offered a radical statement: Latinos don’t just belong in this country, they’re essential.

At a time when questions swirl around this country‘s largest minority group that cast us in a demeaning, tokenized light — how could so many of us vote for Trump in 2024? Why don’t we assimilate faster? Why does Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh think it’s OK for immigration agents to racially profile us? — the fact that two of the best college football players in the country this year were Latino quarterbacks didn’t draw the headlines they would’ve a generation ago. That’s because we now live in an era where Latinos are part of the fabric of sports in the United States like never before.

That’s the untold thesis of four great books I read this year. Each is anchored in Latino pride but treat their subjects not just as sport curios and pioneers but great athletes who were and are fundamental not just to their professions and community but society at large.

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NHL

Scores

Standings

This day in sports history

1894 — The United States Golf Association is founded, becoming the governing body for the game in the country.

1915 — The Federal League folds. Owners of the American and National Leagues buy out half of the owners (Pittsburgh, Newark, Buffalo, and Brooklyn) of the Federal League teams. Phil Ball, owner of the St. Louis Terriers, is allowed to buy the St. Louis Browns of the AL, and Charles Weeghman, owner of the Chicago Whales, buys out the Chicago Cubs of the NL.

1924 — Babe Dye of the Toronto St. Patricks scores five goals in a 10-2 victory over the Boston Bruins.

1946 — The Cleveland Browns beat the New York Yankees 14-9 in the first AAFC championship game.

1969 — Pete Maravich sets an NCAA record by hitting 30 of 31 foul shots, and scores 46 points to lead LSU to a 98-89 victory over Georgia.

1974 — Boston’s Phil Esposito scores two goals, including his 500th goal, to lead the Bruins to a 5-4 win over the Detroit Red Wings at Boston Garden.

1990 — Paul Coffey becomes the second NHL defenseman to record 1000 points. Coffey reaches the milestone with an assist on Kevin Stevens’ goal in second-period of a 4-3 win against the New York Islanders.

1996 — Brett Hull becomes the 24th player in NHL history to score 500 goals, with a hat trick in the St. Louis Blues’ 7-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Brett and his father, Bobby Hull, are the first father-son tandem to each score 500 goals.

2003 — Brett Favre passes for 399 yards and four touchdowns a day after his father dies, moving into second place in NFL history for career TD passes while leading the Green Bay Packers to a 41-7 victory over the Oakland Raiders. Favre passes Fran Tarkenton on the NFL’s career list with his 343rd career TD throw.

2005 — Reggie Campbell of Navy ties the NCAA bowl record with five touchdowns and had 290 all-purpose yards, leading the Midshipmen to a 51-30 win over Colorado State in the Poinsettia Bowl.

2006 — Peter Bondra scores his 500th NHL goal early in the third period to snap a 1-all tie and lead Chicago past Toronto 3-1.

2007 — Eathyn Manumaleuna blocks a field goal as time expires to give BYU a 17-16 victory over UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl.

2009 — Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh becomes the first defensive player voted The Associated Press College Football Player of the Year, winning the award after his dominant performance against Texas in the Big 12 title game.

2013 — Peyton Manning finishes 32 for 51 for 400 yards and four touchdown passes to set the single season touchdown mark in Denver’s 37-13 win over Houston. Manning, with 51 touchdown passes, passes Tom Brady (50 in 2007) for the most in a single season in NFL history.

2013 — Tom Brady leads the Patriots to a 41-7 win at Baltimore as New England clinches the AFC East. It’s the 11th division title for Brady, the most by a starting quarterback in NFL history.

2016 — Matt Linehan throws for 381 yards and four touchdowns and runs for a another score to help Idaho beat Colorado State 61-50 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. It’s the third-highest scoring game in bowl history. Idaho (9-4) matches its highest victory total since moving to FBS in 1996.

2020 — Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi scores his 644th goal for FC Barcelona during 3-0 win over Real Valladolid to break Pele’s record for most goals for one club; Pele, 643 goals for Santos 1956-74.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Rams fall apart and lose to Seahawks

Dec 19, 2025 Sports Desk

From Gary Klein: Short week, strange and bad trip.

It started with Rams star receiver Puka Nacua ripping NFL referees and making an antisemetic gesture on a livestream.

It ended with an epic fourth-quarter collapse.

And a potentially catastrophic fall from the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

The Rams were on the verge of enduring a quick turnaround, a distracting controversy, and a flight delay but they could not hold on to the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

The Rams’ 38-37 overtime defeat by the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night at Lumen Field continued a cascade of ill-timed news for coach Sean McVay and a team regarded as a Super Bowl contender.

The Rams’ record fell to 11-4. The Seahawks displaced them atop the NFC West. And the road to home-field advantage for the playoffs now includes some major roadblocks.

Thank the Rams defense: It forced three turnovers but blew a 16-point fourth-quarter lead.

“This one’s a tough one right there,” coach Sean McVay said of the loss. “Never seen anything like some of the things that occurred.”

McVay was referencing a two-point conversion attempt by the Seahawks in the fourth quarter, which was initially ruled an incomplete pass that left the Rams with a 30-28 lead.

Continue reading here

Rams summary

NFL standings

————

From Gary Klein: As the Rams prepared for their game on Thursday night against the Seattle Seahawks, star receiver Puka Nacua, the Rams and the NFL issued statements related to Nacua performing a gesture “antisemitic in nature” during a livestream.

In a post on Instagram, Nacua apologized for the gesture he made while appearing on a livestream with Adin Ross and N3on. The livestreamers, with Nacua out of earshot, discussed whether Nacua would get in trouble if he performed a move that references an offensive stereotype about Jewish people. Ross is Jewish, but he often performs the move and teaches others how to do it in his livestreams.

They suggested Nacua perform the gesture the next time he celebrated after scoring a touchdown.

“At the time, I had no idea this act was antisemetic in nature and perpetuated hateful stereotypes against Jewish people,” Nacua wrote in his post. “I deeply apologize to anyone who was offended by my actions as I do not stand for any form of racism, bigotry or hate of another group of people.”

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NFL Week 16 picks: Rams defeat Seahawks; Broncos edge Jaguars

Lakers win high-scoring game

From Broderick Turner: When Brice Sensabaugh drilled a wide-open three pointer in the third quarter, Lakers coach JJ Redick quickly called a timeout and began to gesture with both hands toward his players, clearly showing his displeasure with their defense.

The Lakers responded.

They especially picked up their defensive intensity for an important spurt in the fourth quarter, slowing down the Utah Jazz and in the process the Lakers’ offense took off, the two converging at the right time to push them to a 143-135 win Thursday night at the Delta Center.

“Obviously we know this Utah team can score points at a very high rate, but it was very imperative that we got stops,” said LeBron James, who had another productive night with 28 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. “We had to get stops to start that fourth and then it allowed our offense to click.”

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Lakers box score

NBA standings

Clippers lose again

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points before resting in the fourth quarter, and the Oklahoma City Thunder bounced back from a rare loss to beat the Clippers 122-101 on Thursday night.

The Thunder lost to the San Antonio Spurs last Saturday for just their second defeat of the season, ending their team-record, 16-game win streak. They recovered on Thursday after some much-needed rest and improved to 25-2 overall and 13-0 at home.

Gilgeous-Alexander made 13 of 24 shots and had seven rebounds and six assists. It was his 98th consecutive game with at least 20 points, adding to the second-longest streak in NBA history.

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Clippers box score

NBA standings

Londynn Jones has career game for USC

From Antony Solorzano: It was a game to remember for Londynn Jones. She played with confidence and showed her dribbling skills and displaying her all-around skills as she finished the game with a career-high 28 points in the USC women’s basketball team’s 86-39 win over Cal Poly on Thursday night at Galen Center.

In the first part of the game, Jones was perfect on offense while aggressively defending every time the Mustangs had the ball. When Cal Poly attacked, she came up with steals and completed the play with a field goal, sometimes even adding one more point on a foul.

“I’m just happy we’re figuring it out, starting to finally put the pieces together,” she said. “I know that’s something we’ve been emphasizing in practice, just watching films and putting the pieces together.”

Continue reading here

USC box score

Big Ten standings

————

From Ryan Kartje: With three key players out because of injury and USC in desperate need of depth, the Trojans are taking the rare step of adding reinforcements at the midseason mark.

Point guard Kam Woods, who last played at Robert Morris, was added to the Trojans’ roster and cleared to play on Thursday, despite the fact that USC is already a dozen games into the basketball season.

Woods could make an immediate impact for coach Eric Musselman, having averaged 14.9 points, 5.2 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game last year at Robert Morris, where he played alongside current Trojan, Amarion Dickerson. Woods is expected to step into the rotation right away with USC, after the Trojans lost starting point guard Rodney Rice for the season.

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Greg Biffle dies

A business jet crashed Thursday while trying to return to a North Carolina airport shortly after takeoff, killing all seven people aboard, including retired NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his family, authorities said.

The Cessna C550 erupted into a large fire when it hit the ground. It had departed Statesville Regional Airport, about 45 miles north of Charlotte, but soon crashed while trying to return and land, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol said.

The cause of the crash wasn’t immediately known, nor was the reason for the plane’s return to the airport in drizzle and cloudy conditions.

Biffle was on the plane with his wife, Cristina, and children Ryder, 5, and Emma, 14, according to the highway patrol and a family statement. Others on the plane were identified as Dennis Dutton, his son Jack, and Craig Wadsworth.

Biffle, 55, won more than 50 races across NASCAR’s three circuits, including 19 at the Cup Series level. He also won the Trucks Series championship in 2000 and the Xfinity Series title in 2002.

Continue reading here

Snowboarding in Australia?

From Kevin Baxter: Growing up just outside Melbourne, Australia, Scotty James was more likely to spot the Loch Ness Monster or Big Foot as he was to spot snow. For him, the Winter Olympics seemed about as accessible as Mars.

“It is very unique, being an Australian in winter sports,” he said. “We’re very few and far between.”

Unique, but not impossible. Because if he qualifies for February’s Milano-Cortina Olympics, as expected, James will become the first Australian man to represent the country in five separate Winter Olympics. If he reaches the podium in the men’s halfpipe, his specialty, he will become the most decorated winter Olympian in Australian history with three medals.

Yet it almost didn’t happen. If his father Phil, a passionate snowboarder, hadn’t talked a Vancouver ski-shop worker into selling 3-year-old Scotty a miniature display board during a family vacation to Canada decades ago, James still might be watching the Winter Olympics on TV.

Continue reading here

Kings end winless streak

Adrian Kempe scored twice in the second period, and the Kings beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 on Thursday night.

Anton Forsberg stopped 31 shots to help the Kings snap a four-game skid (0-2-2) and get just their third win in nine games (3-4-2).

Oliver Bjorkstrand scored for the Lightning and Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 18 saves. Tampa Bay has lost three straight (0-2-1) and seven of its last nine (2-6-1).

Continue reading here

Kings summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1913 — Heavyweight champion Jack Johnson fights to a 10-round draw with Battling Jim Johnson in Paris.

1917 — The NHL begins play. Joe Malone of the Montreal Canadiens scores five goals in a 9-4 victory over the Ottawa Senators. Harry Hyland of the Montreal Wanderers scores five goals in a 10-9 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

1943 — Harry Lumley, at 17 years and 38 days old, becomes the youngest goaltender in NHL history when he plays for the Detroit Red Wings in a 6-2 loss to the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

1948 — The Cleveland Browns complete an undefeated season beating the Buffalo Bills 49-7 in AAFC championship game.

1948 — The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Chicago Cardinals 7-0 in a major snowstorm for the NFL title. Philadelphia’s Bucko Kilroy recovers a fumble on the 17-yard line in the fourth period, and Steve Van Buren later scores from the 5.

1976 — The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Colts 40-14 in an AFC playoff game. Ten minutes after the game, Donald Kroner, a former charter pilot, crashes a rented, low-wing, Piper Cherokee into the upper deck of Memorial Stadium. No one is seriously hurt as most of the capacity crowd of 60,020 left the one-sided contest early or were heading down the exit ramps.

1987 — Boston and St. Louis combine for the fastest two goals in NHL history. Ken Linseman puts the Bruins ahead 6-5 with 10 seconds left in the third period. Doug Gilmour of Boston wins the faceoff and shoots the puck into an empty net two seconds later to wrap up a 7-5 win over the Blues at Boston Garden.

1990 — Los Angeles Raiders running back Bo Jackson is named to the AFC team, as a reserve, becoming the first athlete chosen for All-Star games in two sports.

2001 — Marshall, led by Byron Leftwich, comes back from a 38-8 halftime deficit to beat East Carolina 64-61 in double-overtime in the GMAC Bowl for the highest scoring bowl game in history.

2007 — New York Islanders forward Chris Simon is banned for 30 games, drawing the longest suspension in NHL history again. Simon’s latest infraction was stepping on Pittsburgh’s Jarkko Ruutu with his skate during a Dec. 15 game. This is the seventh suspension of Simon’s career.

2009 — Michael Phelps helps his American team trounce a group of European all-stars in the Duel in the Pool, anchoring a relay to one of the eight world records the U.S. sets over the two-day meet in Manchester, England.

2010 — Philadelphia’s DeSean Jackson returns a punt 65 yards for a touchdown as time expires in the Eagles’ 38-31 comeback win at the New York Giants. It’s the only game-winning punt-return touchdown in NFL history as the Eagles come back from a 31-10 fourth-quarter deficit. It marks the ninth time in NFL history in which a team trailed by at least 21 points in the fourth quarter and wins the game.

2010 — The Detroit Lions stop their record road skid at 26 games with a 23-20 overtime win at Tampa Bay. It’s the first road win since Oct. 28, 2007, when they beat the Bears 16-7 at Chicago.

2017 — Freshman Trae Young has 26 points and ties an NCAA Division I record with 22 assists as No. 17 Oklahoma rolls past Northwestern State 105-68.

2017 — North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell becomes the third women’s Division I coach to register her 1,000th career victory after the Tar Heels beat Grambling State 79-63.

2017 — Geno Auriemma wins his 1000th game as top-ranked UConn beat Oklahoma 88-64 in the Hall of Fame women’s Holiday Showcase. Auriemma becomes the fourth women’s coach to reach the 1,000-win mark, joining Pat Summitt, Tara VanDerveer and Sylvia Hatchell, who earned her milestone victory earlier in the day.

2018 — Houston Rockets set NBA single-game record with 26 three-pointers in 136-118 victory over Washington Wizards;

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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UCLA’s win over Arizona State had Donovan Dent written all over it

Dec 18, 2025 Sports Desk

From Ben Bolch: The crowd couldn’t believe what it had just witnessed.

Donovan Dent’s crossover move left a helpless defender watching from behind as he accelerated toward the basket, fans unleashing audible admiration even before the UCLA point guard completed the play with a driving layup.

Poor Noah Meeusen and everyone else who tried to stop Dent.

They were overmatched by the finishing ability and fearlessness of a player who had not shown much of either over the season’s first month, hardly resembling the star the Bruins thought they were getting.

On a revelation of a Wednesday night inside Pauley Pavilion, Dent finally looked like someone who could carry a team.

He did exactly that, the transfer from New Mexico helping the Bruins fend off Arizona State during a 90-77 victory that had his handprints all over it.

Continue reading here

UCLA box score

Big Ten standings

USC WINS AT HOME BUT LOSES RICE

From Ryan Kartje: Through a near-perfect nonconference slate, no matter what was thrown USC’s way, whether injuries or other unforeseen circumstances, the Trojans had never lacked for life on the court. It was that endless energy that had helped power them to a 10-1 start.

But for a while Wednesday, that vigor was conspicuously absent against Texas San Antonio, a team that lost four of its last five. Maybe it was the setting, in a mostly empty and eerily quiet Galen Center. Maybe it was the bad news from earlier in the day, as USC announced that point guard Rodney Rice would undergo shoulder surgery and miss the rest of the season.

Whatever it was, USC was eventually able to shake it off Wednesday night, turning a deficit late in the first half to a convincing, 97-70 victory over San Antonio in the second.

Continue reading here

USC box score

Big Ten standings

UCLA-USC TRANSFER TRACKER

From Ben Bolch and Ryan Kartje: A look at all the players who are transferring in and out of UCLA and USC in the NCAA transfer portal ahead of the 2026 college football season.

Wednesday’s updates:

Leaving UCLA: Salem Abdul-Wahab | Long Snapper

Leaving USC: Devan Thompkins | Defensive tackle

Continue reading here

LAKERS DEFENSE NEEDS STAR POWER

From Broderick Turner: They saw how “contagious” it was when playing defense at a high level against the Suns and how Jarred Vanderbilt lit the fuse to ignite things for the Lakers in their last victory over Phoenix.

And for the Lakers to maintain that defensive mindset, stars Luka Doncic and LeBron James also have to be committed to that end of the court.

That was the message from Lakers coach JJ Redick to Doncic and James.

“Yeah, it was good,” Doncic said. “We talked about a lot, not just that, but he was right. You got to get a little big more, especially from the star players. So that’s on us. That’s on me. And we just got to give more, especially at the start of the game. We got to start the game better. But I think in Phoenix, we did a pretty good job. The plan was focused on ourselves and [our] defensive mentality, so I think we did a pretty good job.”

The Lakers will be tested again on defense by the Utah Jazz Thursday night in Salt Lake City.

Continue reading here

NBA standings

A CHRISTMAS GIFT FROM DONCIC

From Broderick Turner: Luka Doncic was back at it again, this time surprising the Lakers and staff members with more than 100 e-bikes for Christmas gifts.

Doncic, who took his teammates to a Porsche Driving Experience in October as a way to bond, gave the gifts away Tuesday after practice.

Continue reading here

NACUA CALLS FOUL ON REFS

From Chuck Schilken: Puka Nacua thinks NFL referees are “the worst.”

He feels they fabricate calls just so their friends can see them on TV.

But, to be honest, the Rams star receiver doesn’t seem too upset about the situation.

During a livestream Tuesday with YouTubers N3on and Adin Ross, Nacua was asked if he thought referees might bend the truth at times when making their calls.

“Oh, a hundred percent,” Nacua answered matter-of-factly. “Yes, the refs are the worst.”

The third-year player continued in the same casual manner, saying that NFL officials are generally part-time employees who probably get a thrill when they appear on screen during national broadcasts — even if it’s while making a call.

Continue reading here

MCVAY, RAMS FACE A CHALLENGE IN SEATTLE

From Gary Klein: Sean McVay might truly qualify as sleepless in Seattle.

After the Rams’ victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday, the Rams coach left SoFi Stadium for the hospital and the birth of his second son, who arrived Monday morning. Then McVay game-planned for Thursday night’s showdown with the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field.

Asked this week if he had slept much in the aftermath of the newborn’s arrival, the notoriously early-rising McVay chuckled.

“Not really,” he said. “Even for me. … This is a good challenge.”

McVay and the Rams, who hold the top seed in the NFC and have clinched a playoff spot, will face their biggest and most important test of the season against the Seahawks.

Continue reading here

NFL standings

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT RAMS VS. SEAHAWKS

From Gary Klein: Kamren Kinchens loves to play against the Seattle Seahawks.

The Rams’ second-year safety has six career interceptions — four against the Seahawks.

On Thursday night, the Rams (11-3) will play the Seahawks (11-3) at Lumen Field with first-place in the NFC West and the top seed in the NFC on the line.

The Rams defense is aiming to repeat their Nov. 16 performance against the Seahawks, when they intercepted four passes by Sam Darnold in a 21-19 victory at SoFi Stadium.

Kinchens had two interceptions, cornerbacks Cobie Durant and Darious Williams one each.

“I did good so are they going to not go at me at this time?” Kinchens said, adding that he welcomes the opportunity to “get more picks. Hopefully, that’s the case.”

Continue reading here

HALFTIME WITH SNOOP DOGG

From Chuck Schilken: Snoop Dogg knows what you want for Christmas.

More Snoop Dogg.

The rapper and pop culture icon will perform during the halftime show at the Detroit Lions-Minnesota Vikings game in Minneapolis on Dec. 25 as part of Netflix’s NFL Christmas Gameday streaming event.

Dubbed “Snoop’s Holiday Halftime Party,” the show will feature hit songs, special guests and holiday cheer, Netflix said in a news release.

“NFL, Netflix and your uncle Snoop on Christmas Day? We’re servin’ up music, love and good vibes for the whole world to enjoy,” Snoop Dogg said in the news release. “That’s the kind of holiday magic Santa can’t fit in a bag.”

On Tuesday, Netflix dropped an announcement video for the halftime show. In what may or may not be a hint at the identity of one of the special guests, funk legend George Clinton narrates the clip. At one point, the Parliament-Funkadelic leader utters, “bow wow wow, yippie yo yippie yay” — a line from his 1982 solo hit “Atomic Dog” that Snoop has used in multiple songs.

Continue reading here

CRAWFORD IS LEAVING THE RING

From Jad El Reda: Terence Crawford shook the boxing world on Tuesday by announcing his retirement, an unexpected decision that brings an end to one of the most dominant careers of the modern era.

At 38, the Omaha native decided to hang up his gloves at the top, undefeated and with a legacy that places him among the all-time greats.

Crawford bids farewell with a perfect record of 42 wins, 31 of them by knockout, after more than 17 years as a professional. With his unexpected retirement, Crawford leaves behind four titles in the 168-pound weight class.

“I’m retiring from competition, not because I’ve stopped fighting, but because I’ve won another kind of battle,” Crawford said in a YouTube video. “The battle where you retire on your own terms.”

Continue reading here

KINGS GO WINLESS FOR FOUR

Sam Bennett scored 10 seconds into the third period, Brad Marchand had two assists and the Florida Panthers beat the Kings 3-2 on Wednesday night to sweep the two-game season series.

Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for Florida, which has won six of its last seven games. Daniil Tarasov made 27 saves for the Panthers, including a breakaway stop against the Kings’ Trevor Moore with just under five minutes left to preserve a one-goal lead.

Joel Armia and Kevin Fiala had the goals for the Kings, who fell to 0-2-2 in their last four contests. The four-game winless streak matches a season-long slide for the Kings, who were 0-2-2 from Oct. 11 through Oct. 18 as well.

Continue reading here

Kings summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1930 — Adolph Rupp coaches his first game at Kentucky, a 67-19 win over Georgetown College in Kentucky. Rupp retires in 1972 after winning 879 games and four national titles.

1949 — The Philadelphia Eagles win the NFL championship with a 14-0 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.

1954 — Montreal’s Maurice Richard becomes the first player in NHL history to score 400 goals during the Canadiens’ 4-2 road victory against the Chicago Black Hawks.

1961 — Olympic track star Wilma Rudolph wins The Associated Press’ female athlete of year award for the second consecutive year.

1962 — Wilt Chamberlain of the San Francisco Warriors scores 61 points in a 130-110 over the St. Louis Hawks.

1964 — Oscar Robertson of the Cincinnati Royals scores 56 points, including 18 in the final quarter, in a 111-107 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.

1976 — Oakland quarterback Kenny Stabler scores with 14 seconds left to give the Raiders a 24-21 comeback victory over the New England Patriots in the in the AFC divisional playoffs.

1983 — Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky scores his 100th point of the season the Edmonton Oilers’ 34th game, a 7-5 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Gretzky scores two goals and has two assists to get to 100 points faster than any player in NHL history. He finishes the season with 205 points.

1995 — Jerry Rice of the San Francisco 49ers records the fifth-highest yardage total by a receiver in NFL history with 289 yards, and catches three touchdown passes in a 37-30 win over the Minnesota Vikings.

1997 — Germany’s Katja Seizinger wins her sixth straight race to tie former French star Jean-Claude Killy’s World Cup record for consecutive victories.

2005 — Indianapolis, which won its first 13 games, the fourth team in NFL history to do so, loses 26-17 at home to San Diego.

2006 — Tenth-ranked Arizona State beats Texas Tech 61-45 when the second outdoor game in women’s college basketball history is called on account of rain with 4:18 to play at Chase Field, home of baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks.

2007 — Edmonton sets an NHL record by competing in its fourth straight shootout, but loses to Dallas 2-1. The Oilers, who had won the first three, lose for the second time in their 12 shootout appearances.

2008 — Steve Asmussen is the first North American trainer to win 600 Thoroughbred races in a single year as Storm Trust captures the fifth race at Delta Downs.

2011 — The Green Bay Packers’ 19-game winning streak, second-longest in NFL history, is snapped with a 19-14 loss at Kansas City.

2011 — Brittney Griner scores 12 of her 25 points in the closing run that pushes the top-ranked Baylor Lady Bears past No. 2 UConn 66-61.

2016 — New England defeats Denver 16-3 to clinch the AFC East and earn a first-round bye. It marks the eighth consecutive division title for the Patriots, the longest streak in NFL history, breaking a tie with the 1973-79 Los Angeles Rams (seven). New England is the only team in NFL history to win 13 division titles in a 14-year span.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Watch our live 2025 Dodgers Debate Christmas Special

Dec 17, 2025 Sports Desk

It’s timmmme!

Join Los Angeles Times Dodgers beat reporter Jack Harris and columnists Dylan Hernández and Bill Plaschke for our very special 2025 Dodgers Debate Christmas Special.

The trio will discuss the signing of Miguel Rojas and Edwin Díaz, who else might be on the 2026 roster, the World Baseball Classic, whether the Dodgers can three-peat and more.

Video replay will be available at latimes.com/dodgers and our YouTube channel to bring joy all holiday season.

FIRST, A SPECIAL DODGERS DEBATE

The Times’ very own Jack Harris, Bill Plaschke and Dylan Hernández come together — matching Christmas sweaters and all — to discuss all things Los Angeles Dodgers.

Watch it here

LAKERS’ JJ REDICK REMAINS HOPEFUL

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: In a game with 68 free throws, five technical fouls and one potential dagger three-pointer marred by an ejection, there was definitely a lot of struggle.

The thought still made JJ Redick smile.

“It’s about growth,” Redick said after the Lakers survived a slugfest against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. “It’s not about perfection.”

The Lakers (18-7) are far from perfect. They got blitzed by the San Antonio Spurs last week and gave up a 20-point lead in seven minutes in an ugly game against Phoenix. But there is still promise.

“Consistently, when they have been challenged on a very specific thing, they have responded to those challenges,” Redick said of his players.

Continue reading here

USC AND BROWN CANCEL MATCHUP

From Ryan Kartje: USC and Brown have mutually agreed to cancel their upcoming men’s basketball game at Galen Center on Sunday, in light of the recent mass shooting on Brown’s campus.

USC announced the cancellation on Tuesday morning while sending its support to Brown and those affected. The school said in a statement that it plans to announce a new nonconference opponent to fill the same slot on Sunday.

The matchup with Brown was slated to be USC’s nonconference finale. The Trojans have yet to lose outside of Big Ten play this season, currently standing at 9-0.

USC was set to be Brown’s first opponent since this past Sunday, when two people were killed and nine were wounded in a deadly shooting on campus.

Continue reading here

USC’S MAIAVA TO RETURN IN 2026

From Ryan Kartje: USC’s starting quarterback is returning for another season in 2026.

Jayden Maiava made it official Tuesday as the school announced that he had re-signed with the program for the upcoming season, his third with the Trojans.

Maiava led USC to a 9-3 record in his first full season as starter after taking over the job during the final month of the 2023 season. He threw for 3,431 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also added six scores on the ground.

Maiava struggled in each of the Trojans’ three losses on the road in 2025. But when asked about his progress last month, Trojans coach Lincoln Riley credited Maiava for leading “one of the best offenses in the country.”

“He’s been a big part of that,” Riley said. “He’s playing good. He’s still learning. He can play better. But he’s continuing to give us chances to win every week.”

Continue reading here

UCLA TOPPLES CAL POLY

From Anthony Solorzano: With a dominant performance on both sides of the court, including 46 rebounds and 19 steals, the UCLA women’s basketball team beat Cal Poly 115-28 on Tuesday at Pauley Pavilion.

The UCLA (10-1) defense held the Mustangs (2-8) to three points in the second quarter and forced 31 turnovers and single digit scoring in the last three quarters. The Bruins scored 59 points off turnovers. Senior Lauren Betts earned her third double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Freshman Sienna Betts, the No. 2 recruit from the 2025 class, played her first minutes with the Bruins, sharing the court with her sister for the first time for UCLA. She scored her first field goal in the fourth to give the Bruins their first 100-point game since December 2024 against Long Beach State, which they will face on Sunday.

Continue reading here

UCLA box score

Big Ten standings

DUCKS FALL TO BLUE JACKETS

Adam Fantilli scored with 1:28 left in overtime to lift the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 4–3 win over the Ducks on Tuesday night, breaking a five-game losing streak.

Zach Werenski scored twice and added an assist in his 600th NHL game, Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist, and Kent Johnson added two assists. Jet Greaves stopped 24 shots for his first win since Nov. 20.

Mikael Granlund had a goal and an assist, Ryan Strome and Jackson LaCombe also scored goals, and Ryan Poehling recorded two assists for the Ducks. Ville Husso made 24 saves as the Ducks dropped three games on their five-city trip.

Continue reading here

Ducks summary

NHL standings

STATUS OF RAMS’ RECEIVER UNCERTAIN

From Gary Klein: It’s going to be cold, and it could be raining on Thursday night in Seattle.

Not exactly ideal conditions for any receiver, let alone a near-33-year-old with a hamstring injury.

So while it seems doubtful that the Rams would let Davante Adams risk suffering more damage against the Seattle Seahawks, that did not stop coach Sean McVay on Tuesday from engaging in some gamesmanship.

McVay told reporters that a determination about Adams’ status would not be made until game time.

“He’s as tough as it gets,” McVay said during a videoconference with reporters, “and so want to be able to kind of see what it looks like with the time that we have.”

The Rams, of course, could use Adams, a future hall of famer who leads the NFL with 14 touchdown catches.

Continue reading here

FOLEY LEAVES WWE FOR ITS TRUMP TIES

From Chuck Schilken: Professional wrestling legend Mick Foley announced Tuesday that he is “parting ways with WWE” because of the organization’s ties with fellow WWE Hall of Fame inductee President Trump.

“While I have been concerned about WWE‘s close relationship with Donald Trump for several months — especially in light of his administration’s ongoing cruel and inhumane treatment of immigrants (and pretty much anyone who “looks like an immigrant”) — reading the President’s incredibly cruel comments in the wake of Rob Reiner’s death is the final straw for me,” Foley, 60, wrote Tuesday on Instagram.

“I no longer wish to represent a company that coddles a man so seemingly void of compassion as he marches our country towards autocracy. Last night, I informed @WWE talent relations that I would not be making any appearances for the company as long as this man remains in office.

“Additionally, I will not be signing a new Legends deal when my current one expires in June.”

Continue reading here

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1933 — The Chicago Bears win the first NFL championship with a 23-21 victory over the New York Giants. The Bears score the winning touchdown on a 36-yard play that starts with a short pass from Bronko Nagurski to Bill Hewitt, who then laterals to Bill Kerr for the score.

1944 — National Football League Championship, Polo Grounds, NYC: Green Bay Packers beat New York Giants, 14-7 for 6th and final league title under long-time coach Curly Lambeau.

1983 — In his 352nd NHL game, Wayne Gretzky scores a goal & 5 assists in 8-1 rout of Quebec Nordiques to record his 800th point and 500th assist; averages 2.27 points, 1.42 assists, 0.85 goals per game to start career.

1987 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan scores 52 points to lead the Bulls to a 111-100 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

1991 — The Cleveland Cavaliers turn a 20-point halftime lead over Miami into the most lopsided victory in NBA history, 148-80 over the Heat. The 68-point margin eclipses the mark of 63 set March 19, 1972, when the Lakers beat the Golden State Warriors 162-99.

1993 — Julio Cesar Chavez secures his place in boxing history, retaining his WBC super lightweight title with a fifth-round victory over Britain’s Andy Holligan. It’s the 27th time Chavez fought for a title without a loss since 1984, breaking Joe Louis’ mark of 26.

1993 — Virgil Hill becomes the most successful light heavyweight in boxing history, winning a record 15th title defense with a unanimous decision over Guy Waters of Australia. Hill, the WBA champion for five of the last six years, had been tied with Bob Foster, who held light heavyweight titles from 1968 to 1974.

2000 — Terrell Owens catches an NFL-record 20 passes for 283 yards and a touchdown in San Francisco’s 17-0 victory over Chicago. Jeff Garcia completes 36 of 44 passes for 402 yards and two touchdowns for the 49ers.

2005 — John Ruiz loses the WBA heavyweight title, dropping a disputed majority decision to 7-foot Nikolay Valuev of Russia in Berlin. Valuev, the first Russian heavyweight champion, also becomes the tallest and heaviest (323 pounds) champion of all-time.

2006 — LaDainian Tomlinson breaks Paul Hornung’s 46-year-old NFL single-season scoring record on a 15-yard run in the first quarter of San Diego’s game against Kansas City. The touchdown run gives him 180 points, breaking Hornung’s record of 176 set with the Green Bay Packers in 1960.

2006 — Gilbert Arenas sets a franchise record with 60 points, 16 of them in overtime, to lead Washington to a 147-141 victory over the Lakers.

2013 — Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scores 21 points on a career-high seven 3-pointers and No. 1 Connecticut beat second-ranked Duke 83-61. Breanna Stewart has 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskies as coach Geno Auriemma earns his 850th career win.

2016 — Donnel Pumphrey breaks the NCAA career rushing record in his college finale, running for 115 yards and a touchdown in San Diego State’s 34-10 victory over Houston in the Las Vegas Bowl. Pumphrey passes former Wisconsin star Ron Dayne’s mark of 6,397 yards on a 15-yard run early in the fourth quarter and wraps up his sensational career in his Nevada hometown with 6,405 yards. Pumphrey’s senior total of 2,133 yards rushing ranks in the top 10 for a FBS player.

2016 — Malik Monk scores a Kentucky freshman record 47 points and hits the go-ahead 3-pointer with 16.7 seconds left to lead the sixth-ranked Wildcats past No. 7 North Carolina 103-100 in a thrilling showdown of traditional powers.

2022 — Minnesota Vikings recover from 33-0 down at halftime to beat Indianapolis Colts, 39-36 in overtime at US Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN; biggest comeback in NFL history.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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How to buy tickets for the 2028 L.A. Summer Olympics

Dec 16, 2025 Sports Desk

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: LA28 announced the next step in its ticketing plan for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games on Monday as ticket registration will open on Jan. 14.

Fans can start registering for tickets on Jan. 14 at la28.org, and the registration will remain open until March 18. All who sign up will be entered into a random draw to receive a time slot to purchase tickets. While registering, fans will enter their zip codes, and those who live in the Los Angeles and Oklahoma City areas near venues will be eligible to access the first time slots reserved for locals.

“The goal there is to make sure that we’re getting tickets into the hands, not just the fans, but of the local fans,” said Allison Katz-Mayfield, LA28’s senior vice president of Games delivery revenue. “Those that are going to be closest to the Games, really helping us host these Games in some ways.”

The 2028 Olympics will feature the largest Games schedule in history, with 36 sports and 11,198 athletes. The majority of the Games will be held in L.A., including major sports zones in downtown, Exposition Park and the Sepulveda Basin, but cities including Carson, Inglewood and Long Beach will also have multiple venues. Oklahoma City will host the softball and canoe slalom events at existing facilities.

Continue reading here

Tyler Skaggs trial update

From Steve Henson: Four years after the family of deceased Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs filed a wrongful death suit against the Angels, and two months into often contentious testimony in an Orange County Superior Court courtroom, jurors are set to begin deliberations on whether Skaggs’ widow and parents deserve hundreds of millions of dollars.

During closing statements Monday, plaintiffs lawyer Daniel Dutko argued that the Angels were negligent in failing to supervise Eric Kay, the drug-addicted team communications director who gave Skaggs the fentanyl that killed him in 2019.

However, Angels lawyer Todd Theodora insisted that Skaggs was a selfish, secretive opioid addict who for years manipulated Kay into obtaining drugs for him. Theodora told the jury that he didn’t believe the Angels owe the Skaggs family an award.

Continue reading here

Clippers lose again

Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 21 of his 31 points in the first half and Cam Spencer added a career-high 27 points as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Clippers 121-103 on Monday night.

Jaylen Wells scored 16 points and rookie Cedric Coward had 12 as the Grizzlies earned a victory over the Clippers for the third time in less than three weeks. Ja Morant also scored 12 points for Memphis in his second game since returning from a calf injury.

Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points and Kris Dunn added 17 for the Clippers, who have lost 12 of their last 14 games.

James Harden was held to 13 points, while John Collins and Jordan Miller each had 10 for Los Angeles in its eighth straight home loss. The Clippers last won in their own building on Oct. 31.

Continue reading here

Clippers box score

NBA standings

Some Trojans won’t play in Alamo Bowl

From Steve Galluzzo: After Monday afternoon’s practice at Howard Jones Field, USC coach Lincoln Riley addressed the media for the first time since the Trojans’ victory over crosstown rival UCLA on Nov. 29.

USC (9-3), ranked No. 16 in the AP poll, is preparing to play Texas Christian (9-4) on Dec. 30 in the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. USC finished 7-2 in its second season in the Big Ten and won four of its last five games, the only setback during that stretch being a 42-27 loss to Oregon, which is the No. 5 seed in the College Football Playoff.

Riley announced that safety Kamari Ramsey, receivers Makai Lemon and Ja’Kobi Lane, tight end Lake McRee and linebacker Eric Gentry will not play in the Alamo Bowl. Lane declared for the NFL draft on Monday.

“Anthony Lucas and Bishop Fitzgerald want to play in the game but are dealing with injuries and trying to get back … we’ll see how that goes,” Riley said. “Kilian O’Connor and Elijah Paige and Jahkeem Stewart all had surgery and will be ready to roll.”

Continue reading here

LAFC introduces new coach

From Kevin Baxter: Moments after Marc Dos Santos was formally introduced as the third head coach in LAFC history, he was led out of a news conference and onto the field at BMO Stadium to meet the most important constituency he’ll have to win over in his new job.

The fans.

Since the club entered MLS in 2018, no team has won more games, scored more goals, earned more points or won more trophies than LAFC. Yet as Dos Santos, a top assistant for five of those eight seasons, was hugging and mugging with some of the people who are soon to become his fiercest critics, another supporter approached general manager John Thorrington with a question.

“How do you separate [him] being a part of that coaching staff and telling the fans ‘look, it’s going to be different with this person?’” he asked.

Continue reading here

Kings lose, Kuemper injured

Mikko Rantanen, Matt Duchene and Wyatt Johnston had a goal and an assist each and Casey DeSmith tied a Dallas record with his 11th consecutive game earning points as the Stars rallied past the Kings 4-1 on Monday night.

Oskar Back scored his first NHL winning goal for the Stars, who are second in the overall standings and avoided their first three-game losing streak since mid-October.

Kings goalie Anton Forsberg stopped 17 shots, entering play with four minutes left in the first period after starter Darcy Kuemper was hit high by Rantanen and sustained an upper-body injury.

Continue reading here

Kings summary

NHL standings

Ducks beat Rangers

Cutter Gauthier scored the go-ahead goal six minutes into the third period and got his second on an empty-netter, Lukas Dostal stopped 26 of the 27 shots he faced, and the Ducks beat the New York Rangers 4-1 on Monday night to end a two-game losing streak.

Gauthier’s first goal with one second left on a power play came off a perfectly placed pass from rookie Beckett Sennecke. Igor Shesterkin barely had a chance to react.

Continue reading here

Ducks summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1918 — Jack Dempsey knocks out Carl Morris in 14 seconds in a heavyweight bout in New Orleans.

1930 — Golfer Bobby Jones wins the first James E. Sullivan Award. The award is given to “the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States.”

1940 — Joe Louis knocks out Al McCoy in the sixth round at the Boston Garden to retain the world heavyweight title.

1945 — The Cleveland Rams beat the Washington Redskins 15-14 for the NFL championship. The deciding play turns out to be a first-quarter automatic safety when the Redskins’ Sammy Baugh passes from his own end zone and the wind carries the ball into the goal post.

1967 — Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors scores 68 points in a 143-123 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

1973 — O.J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills rushes for 200 yards in a 34-14 victory over the New York Jets and sets an NFL record with 2,003 yards rushing for the season. Simpson needed 61 yards to break Jim Brown’s NFL single season rushing record of 1,863 yards set in 1963.

1990 — Warren Moon passes for a 527 yards — the second-greatest passing day in NFL history — as the Houston Oilers beat Kansas City 27-10.

2003 — New Orleans Saints receiver Joe Horn is fined $30,000 by the NFL for making a choreographed cell-phone call in the end zone to celebrate a touchdown during the Saints’ 45-7 rout of the New York Giants on Dec. 14.

2006 — Morten Andersen becomes the greatest scorer in NFL history. The 46-year-old Andersen breaks Gary Anderson’s career scoring record of 2,434 points with the second of four extra points in the Atlanta Falcons’ 38-28 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

2007 — Brett Favre passes for 227 yards in Green Bay’s 33-14 win over St. Louis, eclipsing Dan Marino to become the NFL career leader in yards passing. Favre, in his 17th season, finishes the game with 61,405 yards. Marino had 61,361 in 17 seasons.

2007 — Kikkan Randall becomes the first U.S. woman and second American to win a World Cup cross-country skiing race when she defeats world sprint champion Astrid Jacobsen of Norway in the final meters of a 1.2-kilometer freestyle race. Randall is the first American to win a World Cup cross-country race since Bill Koch in 1983.

2010 — American Ryan Lochte sets the first individual swimming world record since high-tech bodysuits were banned, winning the 400-meter individual medley at the short-course world championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

2012 — Ryan Lochte wins two more races at the short-course world championships in Istanbul, finishing the event with six golds and one silver. The result matches his medal total from the last championships, in Dubai in 2010.

2013 — Justin Tucker makes six field goals, including a 61-yarder in the final minute, to give the Baltimore Ravens an 18-16 win over the Detroit Lions.

2014 — Nick Bjugstad scores the game-winning goal in the longest shootout in NHL history to lift the Florida Panthers over the Washington Capitals 2-1. Bjugstad’s goal comes in the 20th round of a shootout — on the 40th shot — and beats Braden Holtby on the right side.

2016 — James Harden gets his sixth triple-double of the season and the Houston Rockets make an NBA-record 24 3-pointers in a 122-100 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

2019 — Drew Brees breaks Peyton Manning’s NFL record (539) for career touchdown passes as New Orleans Saints rout Indianapolis Colts, 34-7; Brees 29 of 30 for 307 yards & 4 TDs for record 96.7% pass completion.

2020 — Major League Baseball announces it is elevating the Negro Leagues to Major League status

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Prep Rally: With high school football season over, it’s time for transfers and resignations

Dec 15, 2025 Sports Desk

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. My name is Eric Sondheimer. The high school football season has ended. That means it’s time for quarterbacks and others to transfer and lots of coach resignations and firings. Let’s examine the yearly ritual.

Change is coming

Welcome to December, when high school football programs start undergoing changes, with players and coaches deciding to come and go. JSerra, St. Francis, Bishop Alemany, Oaks Christian and Bishop Montgomery are private schools that pretty much got rid of their head coaches and have openings. Long Beach Poly, the most well-known public school in California, is advertising for a new coach after firing its coach following a season in which games were forfeited because of multiple ineligible players.

The question these days is what do principals/school presidents want from their football program besides winning and how do they want the coaches to execute that vision without breaking CIF rules?

Everyone knows recruiting is illegal as far as offering inducements to attend a school. There are no athletic scholarships allowed (wink, wink it’s called financial aid), Boosters and schools can’t set up NIL deals for players. Schools and boosters aren’t allowed to provide housing or jobs for parents as part of a deal for the child to attend.

In fact, many of these scenarios have been happening in the hope of chasing championships.

Whether it’s a public or private school, the people in charge must decide how high their ambitions are and how close to passing the gray line will they permit. People are starting to get caught. More than 40 students this season were declared ineligible by the Southern Section for providing false information on transfer paperwork. The players and their parents didn’t come out looking good and schools were equally at fault for failing to do their due diligence.

It’s OK for athletic directors to say no on transfers that look suspicious, but who’s really going to say no to a top quarterback? There’s nothing wrong with switching schools as long as rules are followed. Taking shortcuts with fake addresses and having assistants scout and make contact through parents, players or social media doesn’t pass muster.

So all the schools changing coaches and trying to rebuild or avoid rebuilding through the transfer portal, beware. The tricks of the trade are being exposed. AI is helping uncover cheaters. Maybe administrators should start offering a vision to focus on building a program from within and developing your own players.

Anyway, prepare for transferring to commence. It’s has become a rite of passage in high school sports, just like the college transfer portal.

State championships

Santa Margarita was unbeatable in the postseason, so much that first-year coach Carson Palmer said he wished his team could keep playing after the Eagles’ 47-13 win over De La Salle in the CIF state championship Open Division final. Here’s the report.

It was a tough weekend for Southern Section teams not named Santa Margarita. Oxnard Pacifica lost to Fresno Central East 42-28 in the 1-A final. Here’s the report.

Rio Hondo Prep’s dream of a 16-0 season ended with a 35-10 loss to Sonora in the 2-A final. Here’s the report.

Barstow was the only other Southern Section team to win a state title.

Here’s the complete results.

Boys basketball

Rancho Verde players get excited during tournament game against Etiwanda.

Lots of teams are headed to Las Vegas this week for the Tarkanian Classic while others are taking trips to Hawaii.

Continuing to make a move is unbeaten Etiwanda, which won the North Orange County tournament championship, beating Heritage Christian in the final. The real event was Etiwanda and coach Danny Ryan facing Rancho Verde and coach Braydon Bortolamedi in the semifinals. Both trained under former Etiwanda coach Dave Kleckner, so their teams were using identical warm-up routines and focusing on Kleckner’s philosophy, defense first. Etiwanda won 63-57.

Mater Dei picked up the 1,300th win in the career of coach Gary McKnight.

Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood gets emotional with his grandfather, Kenneth, and mother Irene.

Inglewood guard Jason Crowe Jr. set a state record for most points scored in a career. Here’s a report.

St. John Bosco won its own tournament championship behind MVP Christian Collins, who scored 30 points in a win over La Mirada. The Braves are 8-0.

Freshman Will Conroy of Village Christian scored 38 points in a win over Chatsworth.

Grant Shaw, the son of Oak Park coach Aaron Shaw, made a game-winning basket to beat Agoura. Here’s the report.

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

Girls basketball

Jerzy Robinson, one of the top players in the state, made her season debut for Sierra Canyon last week after being sidelined with an injury.

Sage Hill, one of the top programs in the Southern Section, has replaced coach Kerwin Walters, sending shock waves through the coaching profession. It was first reported by the Orange County Register.

Running on the street

A car driven by a suspected driver under the influence slammed into and injured seven Anaheim High runners going out on a training session near campus last week.

It raised questions once again about high school athletes and others training on the streets of Southern California.

Here’s a look at one former athlete who was struck by a car when he was at Monroe High and how he views this latest incident.

Soccer

Loyola knocked off Cathedral in a battle of downtown Los Angeles boys soccer programs. Here’s the report.

Amber Ramirez had two goals as Cleveland defeated Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 2-0 in a big girls soccer match.

Notes . . .

Vinnie Lopez is the new football coach at Anaheim Canyon. He has lots of head coaching experience, including at Garden Grove Pacifica. . . .

After eight years as football coach at Oaks Christian, Charlie Collins and the school have parted ways. It creates another private-school opening that includes JSerra, St. Francis, Bishop Alemany and Bishop Montgomery. . . .

Todd Butler has resigned after five seasons as football coach at West Torrance to become offensive coordinator at El Camino College. . . .

Michael Calahan has resigned after six seasons as football coach at Aliso Niguel. . . .

Arlin Slayton has resigned as football coach at Rosemead. . . .

Harvard-Westlake’s power-hitting Jake Kim has committed to UCLA. He’s from the class of 2027. . . .

Junior pitcher Aiden Rae of JSerra has committed to UCLA. . . .

La Salle girls basketball player Casey Higgins has committed to Cal State Los Angeles. . . .

The All-CIF girls volleyball teams were announced. Here’s the link. . . .

There will be an all-star football game on Saturday at Simi Valley High. Here’s the information.

Former Los Alamitos receiver Makai Lemon won the Biletnikoff Award as college football’s top receiver playing for USC.

From the archives: Jeff Kent

LOS ANGELES - JULY 1: Jeff Kent #12 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats during the game.

The newest member of baseball’s Hall of Fame is Jeff Kent, who graduated from Edison High in Huntington Beach in 1986, went to Cal, then played 17 years in the major leagues.

Here’s a story from 1986 in which Kent got dropped from Edison when he disagreed with a position change.

Here’s a story from 1992 when Kent addressed his Edison days.

Recommendations

From the Washington Post, a story on a 6-foot-11 high school basketball player who reclassified trying to speed up a potential NBA career.

From the Seattle Times, a story on a high school football player who led his team to a state championship but might have hurt his college chances by playing running back instead of linebacker in a selfless decision.

From the Washington Post, a story on how self promotion in high school sports has become part of the recruiting experience.

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 eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

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Chancellor Julio Frenk’s warm embrace of UCLA sports is a needed, welcome change

Dec 15, 2025 Sports Desk

He spoke of the importance of athletics to the institution, of the way they bring people together and showcase excellence.

The remarks weren’t nearly as remarkable as the person doing the speaking.

UCLA chancellor Julio Frenk.

In recent years, the school’s chancellors had distanced themselves from athletics as if they were a distasteful part of the job. Gene Block would show up at the occasional football or basketball game but never granted interview requests or spoke at coaches’ introductions. He did once attach his name to a statement that misspelled the last name of newly hired football coach Rick Neuheisel.

It’s believed that the last UCLA chancellor to speak at a coach’s introduction was Albert Carnesale in 2003 upon the hiring of Karl Dorrell.

All of which makes Frenk’s appearance, not to mention his speaking for nearly five minutes Tuesday inside a Luskin Center ballroom, all the more extraordinary. Frenk was there to welcome Bob Chesney, the new football coach who has quickly galvanized a long-suffering fan base with his passion and willingness to immediately poke rival USC by proclaiming that UCLA would soon become “the school in town.”

Frenk had UCLA fans at hello.

What he said next was even more encouraging.

“Athletics are the front porch of the university, one of the most visible signals of what we stand for,” Frenk said. “Athletics connect us across generations and geographies with students and alumni, friends as well as strangers. These things are extremely important and help build community and all of that is coming true at UCLA.”

There was also a reference to one word — alignment — that athletic director Martin Jarmond and Chesney would later echo in their remarks.

“Winning in college football requires a unified approach across all of the university — university leadership and athletics are aligned and committed to doing the right things to build a winning program,” Frenk said.

Jarmond suggested that Frenk was willing to help in a way that his predecessor was not — a slightly curious idea given Block’s willingness to support the move to the Big Ten Conference and approve Jarmond’s contract extension, but it seemed that Jarmond’s larger point was about increased institutional support for the football program under the new chancellor.

“What I’m excited and really enthused about,” Jarmond said, “is we have alignment in a way that we have not had in the past. We have a great chancellor in Chancellor Frenk that understands the importance of athletics, bringing communities together, engaging alumni, wanting our student-athletes to be successful and understanding the commitment it takes at the university level for a football program to be competitive. We have investment now, and we have leadership and vision. I don’t always feel we’ve had all of those together.”

Without question, Frenk’s early visibility has already set a new, welcome tone from inside Murphy Hall.

His comments were heartening for anyone who cares about UCLA athletics because they show he’s not only paying attention but also willing to do his part — one that’s essential — to support the operation.

Suggestion box

UCLA coach Mick Cronin shouts instructions during a game against Oregon on Dec. 6.

It probably shouldn’t take a public-records request to find out that a high-profile UCLA coach — who at the time was the state of California’s second-highest paid public employee behind since-fired Cal football coach Justin Wilcox — received a new contract seven months earlier.

But that’s the reality of the situation after a Times records request led to the disclosure of Mick Cronin’s new deal that will pay the Bruins men’s basketball coach $4.5 million a year as part of a contract running through the end of the 2029-30 season.

The reasoning given for the lack of disclosure was the fiscal situation facing the school at the time, including the prospect of federal funding cuts.

Appearances are important, yes. But so are integrity and transparency.

This is the second time in the last two years that UCLA has signed one of its biggest figures inside the athletic department to a new deal while staying mum. Jarmond’s contract extension was signed in the spring of 2024 and not announced until the following November — after the football team had won three consecutive games, alleviating a significant amount of pressure that Jarmond was facing for the hiring of football coach DeShaun Foster.

The bottom line is this: UCLA is a public institution that should pride itself on accountability, and if you aren’t willing to openly divulge any significant move that you make, then maybe you shouldn’t be making it.

Chesney moves

While the transfer portal doesn’t open until Jan. 2, Chesney provided some early insight into his possible approach in rebuilding his first UCLA roster.

Upon his arrival at James Madison, Chesney said he had a center, guard and a punter come back from the previous team and added roughly 60 players in the transfer portal to help the Dukes win their first bowl game in the history of the school. The next year, the Dukes added about 50 players through the transfer portal and made the College Football Playoff.

What might that mean for his work with the Bruins?

“That will have to be determined by our team when we get that fully assembled and moving forward next year,” Chesney said. “But then whatever our expectations are is where we build our standards and then the day-to-day process. But I see zero reason why, you know, we cannot be competing, cannot be competing for a championship.”

Chesney has begun to assemble his staff, reportedly agreeing to bring James Madison offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy with him and hiring Florida State general manager Darrick Yray in an identical post with the Bruins as part of his efforts to bring in staffers with West Coast ties.

Yray had spent seven seasons in a variety of roles at Oregon State, rising to the role of director of player personnel. Before that, Yray had worked for four seasons as an offensive assistant and three as assistant director of football operations at Fresno State, his alma mater.

Basketball blues?

Cronin’s teams usually get better over the course of the season, even in down years. So it would be folly to foretell of a lost season for the Bruins in mid-December.

But the big question facing UCLA (7-3) at this pivotal point is whether this season has any upside beyond being a bubble team that loses in the first or second round of the NCAA tournament.

As currently constructed, UCLA has so many issues that it’s hard to imagine a different outcome.

A tentative Donovan Dent has not been much of an upgrade over a tentative Dylan Andrews at point guard. Eric Dailey Jr. takes too many jumpers while drifting in and out of games. Tyler Bilodeau can really score but continues to be somewhat limited defensively despite his best efforts. The thought of what the departed Aday Mara and William Kyle III aren’t doing for this team in the post haunts Bruins fans on a daily basis.

What’s far more worrisome is that the talent level isn’t elite — can you really foresee anyone on this roster forging a long NBA career? — and a coach known for defense doesn’t have enough athletic, relentless players to construct a good defense.

Local high school recruiting has all but dried up and Cronin made another reference to needing more money to bring in players after donors shelled out a massive amount last spring to land Dent.

None of it portends an encouraging trajectory for a coach in his seventh season. Cronin is a developmental coach whose finest seasons came with players who were in his program for multiple years. With free agency now the only constant in the college game, it might be time for Cronin to develop a new plan for success.

Opinion time

How does the rest of the men’s basketball season play out for the Bruins?

Everything comes together and the team makes a deep NCAA tournament run
The team plays better before another early tournament exit
The bubble is burst and the team misses the tournament

Click here to vote in our survey.

Poll results

We asked, “What is your level of happiness with the Bob Chesney hire?”

After 1,340 votes, the results:

Ecstatic, couldn’t be happier, 64.7%
Guardedly optimistic, 30.3%
In wait-and-see mode, 4.1%
This is the best they could do? 0.9%

In case you missed it

UCLA gymnasts upbeat about upcoming year after strong offseason workouts

‘I’m where I want to be.’ UCLA’s Mick Cronin got a new five-year contract this summer

UCLA’s defense wilts and a key signature win slips away during loss to Gonzaga

UCLA’s Donovan Dent could be rounding into form just in time for Gonzaga showdown

‘I want to do my part.’ How Dave Roberts helped UCLA land new coach Bob Chesney

Here’s the reason Troy Aikman didn’t get thanked by that UCLA football player

Hernández: UCLA football coach Bob Chesney and the Bruins share why they believe he will win

‘We can win here.’ Bob Chesney gives a bold vision for success as UCLA’s coach

Have something Bruin?

Do you have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future UCLA newsletter? Email me at ben.bolch@latimes.com, and follow me on X @latbbolch. To order an autographed copy of my book, “100 Things UCLA Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die,” send me an email. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Edwin Díaz’s magical trumpeter tops Dodgers’ walk-up playlist

Dec 14, 2025 Sports Desk

Proving yet again that nobody combines excitement and entertainment like these guys, this week the Dodgers made baseball’s most important winter deal.

They acquired Timmy Trumpet.

In real life he’s an Australian impresario who, surprise, plays the trumpet. But in the breathtaking world of ninth-inning baseball, he’s the game’s most popular soundtrack.

It is Timmy Trumpet who plays the chillingly inspiring solo from “Narco” that accompanies closer Edwin Díaz from the bullpen to the mound. For the seven seasons Díaz played for the New York Mets, it was the coolest entrance song in the big leagues, creating the most intimidating scene in any ballpark anywhere.

And now it’s coming to Dodger Stadium, as the Dodgers and Díaz agreed this week to a three-year, $69-million contract that will include Timmy Trumpet rattling the bejeezus out of visiting teams who must be asking, do the Dodgers really have to buy everything?

Was it not enough for them to sign the best reliever in baseball? Did they also have to bring in the best ninth-inning atmosphere in baseball?

Yes, they do, and yes, they did, and if you haven’t witnessed the Edwin Díaz/Timmy Trumpet duet, Google it once and you’ll be hooked.

Upon his signing, the social media of Dodgers fans was filled with trumpet emojis. Even the venerable Dieter Ruehle posted a video of him playing the trumpet solo on the keyboard.

In the pantheon of Dodgers entrance and walk-up songs, this immediately moves to the top of a playlist that has become ingrained in the hearts of fans who have come to associate the brief clips of music with the enduring heroics of their players.

From the late great organist Nancy Bea Hefley playing “Master of the House” for Orel Hershiser … to Kenley Jansen revving up the crowd with “California Love” … there is a rich history of Dodgers being identified by their accompanying music.

This team is no different, with several songs reaching iconic status simply based on the splendid feats that spring from their chords.

One man’s nine best songs, in order of impact.

1. ”Narco” for Edwin Díaz

It is already the best Dodgers song and he hasn’t even shown up yet. Trust me.

Díaz chose it in 2018 when he played for the Seattle Mariners. When that became his 57-save breakout season, his wife advised him to keep it. After being traded to the Mets, he became so loyal to the song, he even asked it to be played in an empty Citi Field during the 2020 pandemic season.

In ensuing seasons the scene went viral, highlighted by an actual performance by Timmy Trumpet last summer. Expect the Dodgers to invite Mr. Trumpet to Chavez Ravine, maybe even for the opening series. Like so many things they have staged during these consecutive championship seasons, it will be an event.

2. ”We Are Young” for Clayton Kershaw

The pitcher is retired, but the song still warrants celebration on an emeritus basis.

Quick question: Has any Dodgers entrance hymn endured as long as this one? Dodgers fans have adult children as old as this song.

Another quick question: When you heard this song for the last time in the final months of this past season, did you surprisingly feel tears?

The perfect anthem for the perfect pitcher.

3. ”Bailalo Rocky” for Roki Sasaki

It’s not really a song, it’s a chant, bailalorocky, bailalorocky, bailalorocky with the “Rocky” sounding like, “Roki.”

It was chosen for the famously unhip Sasaki by Miguel Rojas in spring training and, by the time the kid pitcher returned from the disabled list to save playoff games, the fans were chanting it and dancing to it like few celebration songs in Chavez Ravine history.

“You can see it in Dodger Stadium … it was amazing,” Rojas told reporters before the World Series. “So electric, dancing on the bleachers in left-center field … I’m hoping everybody starts dancing to that song when Roki comes to pitch.”

4. ”Feeling Good” for Shohei Ohtani

Thank you, Michael Bublé, for singing what everybody is thinking every time Ohtani comes to the plate.

And thank you, Mamiko Tanaka, for making it happen.

“The coach of the Dodgers was nice enough to introduce me to Shohei, and I said to him, ‘Why did you choose my song?’” Bublé explained in an interview on “The Today Show.” “And very quickly he just turned to his wife … and it was his wife that chose it.”

Bublé added, “I’ll take it!”

He and about 4 million others.

5. ”Baila Conmigo” for Freddie Freeman

It played before Freeman’s game-winning grand slam in Game 1 of the 2024 World Series.

It played before Freeman’s game-winning home run in the 18th inning of Game 3 of this year’s World Series.

The horn solo at the beginning of this catchy tune has come to represent two words to Dodgers fans who now bounce to its beat.

Greatness coming.

6. “La Leche Materna” for Kiké Hernandez

Just like Hernandez’s Dodgers contributions, this tune saves its best for last.

The final 30 seconds of the song sound like, “Kiké, Kiké, Kiké” over and over again.

It’s weird, but also as powerfully effective as, say, a double play fly ball to end a World Series game.

7. A rotation of songs for Mookie Betts

Betts has walked out to a varied playlist, but his selections are included here because he can boast of one walk-up tune unmatched in baseball history.

He steps to the plate accompanied by an unreleased song written by Snoop Dogg just for him.

8. ”Amen” for Max Muncy

The chorus of this country song that accompanies Muncy to the plate appropriately begins, “Somebody say a prayer for me … ”

Considering all of his injury issues during his eight-year Dodgers career, fans have heeded that call.

Considering he holds the Dodgers record with 16 career postseason homers, those prayers have been answered.

9. ”Squabble Up” for Will Smith

His current Kendrick Lamar song is cool, but Smith is on this list in honor of a previous walk-up song that endeared him to Dodgers fans as that rare player who can laugh at himself.

This Will Smith once walked up to the theme from “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.”

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Why the Dodgers are biggest spenders, and winners, in sports

Dec 13, 2025 Sports Desk

Step into the Dodgers’ team store, turn to the right, and you’ll be staring at Shohei Ohtani.

Not in person, of course. But amid all the jerseys and caps and T-shirts, there is a commercial playing on a loop, with Ohtani waving his fingers through his hair and winking as he displays the product he is endorsing: the top-selling skin serum in Japan.

“Take care of your skin,” the narrator says. “Live life to the fullest.”

Life is good at Dodger Stadium. In the store at the top of the park, you can buy a bottle of skin serum that retails for $118, or World Series championship gear including T-shirts and caps for $54 and up, hoodies for $110 and up, and cool jackets for as much as $382.

If you’re a fan of any team besides the Dodgers, you might despise all the money they spend on players. On Friday after the Dodgers introduced their latest All-Star, closer Edwin Díaz, I asked general manager Brandon Gomes if they really could buy whatever player they wanted.

“Our ownership group has been incredibly supportive, so if we feel like it’s something that meaningfully impacts our World Series chances, we’ve had that support all the time,” he said. “We’re fortunate to be in that position.”

The Dodgers’ owners spend money to make money, and they wisely hired Andrew Friedman a decade ago to tell them where to spend their money. Sounds simple, but some owners do not spend money wisely, and some do not spend money, period.

And sometimes you do both, and it just does not work out.

In the last decade the Dodgers have made the playoffs every year. Take a guess: What other Los Angeles pro team has made the playoffs the most during the last decade?

It’s the Clippers — eight playoff appearances, no championships and now a disaster.

The Dodgers have won three championships over the last decade. You might not remember that the Dodgers’ owners were ridiculed within the industry for spending $2 billion to buy the team in 2012.

At the time I asked co-owner Todd Boehly how he would define successful ownership of the Dodgers.

“You’re not really asking me that, are you?” he said then. “The more World Series we win, the more valuable a franchise it is, right?”

The Dodgers were valued at $8 billion last year by Sportico.

They signed Díaz for three years and $69 million. I asked Gomes what winter signing he recalled as the biggest during the five years he pitched for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Andrew Friedman, left, and Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes welcome Edwin Díaz.

In 2014, he said, the Rays signed closer Grant Balfour: two years and $12 million — after the Baltimore Orioles withdrew a two-year, $15-million deal following a physical examination.

It’s not just the Rays, or even the small markets. The New York Mets’ spending rivaled the Dodgers last season, but the Mets missed the playoffs and lost free agents Díaz, Pete Alonso and Tyler Rogers this week alone. The New York Yankees sound oddly supportive of a salary cap. The Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs talk like big-market teams but do not spend like them.

At the Angels’ team store Friday morning, five customers looked around the team store, where all jerseys sold for 50% off. The attraction at the store Saturday: photos with Santa.

The Angels have not made a postseason appearance since 2014, and their acquisitions so far this offseason: a formerly touted infield prospect once traded for Chris Sale, a talented young pitcher who missed this past season because of injury and another pitcher who finished third in Cy Young voting in 2022 but has not pitched in the majors in more than 18 months. They’ll likely pay those three players less than $4 million combined.

In March, Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken invited Angels owner Arte Moreno to join her in “an open and honest conversation about the future of baseball in Anaheim.”

This week when the future of the Angel Stadium site came up during an Anaheim City Council meeting, Aitken mused about asking city residents “how much of a priority is it to have the land tied up with a baseball franchise,” Voice of OC reported. (The Angels’ stadium lease extends through 2032, and the Angels have the right to extend it through 2038.)

So consider this a timely holiday reminder for Dodgers fans to give thanks for this ownership group, for what the Dodgers are doing now is exceptional and extremely rare.

It would be nice if the Dodgers made more of a commitment to family affordability — and also if the Dodgers did not charge $102.25 for “an iconic photo op with the 2024 and 2025 World Series trophies” — but their attendance nonetheless hit 4 million for the first time.

This is a Dodger town, and the team is the toast of the town. The Dodgers are the biggest winner in American pro sports right now.

The owners are winners too. On Thursday, Boehly’s company staged its holiday party, and the musicians included Eddie Vedder, Bruno Mars, Anthony Kiedis, Brandi Carlile and Slash. Live life to the fullest, indeed.

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How Dodgers landed Edwin Díaz — and finally found a bona fide closer

Dec 13, 2025 Sports Desk

At the start of the winter, the assumption was that top free-agent closer Edwin Díaz would fall out of the Dodgers’ preferred price range.

Knowing they needed bullpen help, however, the Dodgers decided to reach out with interest anyway.

What followed will go down as one of the most surprising outcomes of this MLB offseason. And, for the Dodgers, their latest in a string of big-name, star-player acquisitions.

Even though the Dodgers initially had doubts about their chances of landing Díaz — especially on the kind of relatively shorter-term deal they were seeking in their hunt for relief help — circumstances changed, Díaz’s market evolved, and they went from dark horse to front-runner.

On Friday, it all culminated in a Dodger Stadium news conference, the once-unexpected union between the two-time defending champions and three-time All-Star right-hander being made official as Díaz’s three-year, $69-million contract was finalized.

“It wasn’t easy,” Díaz said of his free agent process, which ended with him leaving the New York Mets after a decorated seven-year stint. “I spent seven years in New York. They treated me really good. They treated me great. But I chose the Dodgers because they are a winning organization. I’m looking to win, and I think they have everything to win. So picking the Dodgers was pretty easy.”

That didn’t mean it came as any less of a surprise.

Early on this winter, the Dodgers signaled a hesitancy to hand out another long-term contract to a reliever, after watching Tanner Scott struggle in the first season of the four-year, $72-million deal he signed last winter.

And though they gradually grew more open to the idea, giving serious consideration to Devin Williams before he signed a three-year, $51-million deal with the Mets two weeks ago, the thought of landing Díaz seemed far-fetched.

After all, the 31-year-old was widely expected to receive a four- or five-year deal, having already opted out of the remaining two seasons on his record-breaking five-year, $102-million contract with the Mets to become a free agent this winter. Also, since he had turned down a qualifying offer from the Mets at the start of the offseason, the Dodgers knew they’d lose two draft picks (their second- and fifth-highest selections) to sign him.

“We checked in from the get-go,” general manager Brandon Gomes said. But, he acknowledged, “the opportunity to add somebody of this caliber to what’s already a really talented bullpen was something that we weren’t sure was going to be able to actually come to fruition.”

Turned out, a few factors were working in the Dodgers’ favor.

First, the Mets weren’t willing to give Díaz a longer-term deal, either. Instead, in the wake of the Williams signing, they were reportedly offering only three years for a similar salary as the Dodgers. Not coincidentally, it was only entering last week’s winter meetings — mere days after Williams’ Dec. 3 agreement with the Mets — that Gomes said talks started to intensify.

“Having those conversations and making sure you’re in there and [letting him know], ‘Hey, we’re really valuing you, and if things make sense on your end, great, we’re here’ — that was the biggest thing,” Gomes said. “Making sure you’re exploring all avenues, because you don’t know how things are gonna play out.”

Another benefit for the Dodgers: They had advocates close to Díaz vouching for the organization.

Dodgers new star closer Edwin Díaz speaks wearing his new uniform during a news conference at Dodger Stadium Friday.

Díaz said he received rave reviews about the club from both his brother Alexis (who spent most of last year with the Dodgers, after they acquired him from Cincinnati following an early-season demotion to the minors) and his Team Puerto Rico teammate Kiké Hernández (a longtime Dodgers fan favorite who is currently a free agent).

“They treat every single player the same,” Díaz said of the message he received. “That’s really nice, [especially] knowing they have a lot of great players, future Hall of Fame players. … That’s really good. That’s how a winning clubhouse is.”

Ultimately, it all led up to a rather swift signing process on Tuesday morning, one in which the Dodgers gave Díaz the highest average annual salary for a reliever in MLB history ($23 million per year) but kept the terms to three years and were able to defer more than $13 million of the total guarantee.

“I think once Devin came off the board, it was like, ‘OK, let’s continue to explore the different options,’” Gomes said. “Obviously having no idea what conversations had gone on up to that point between Edwin and other clubs, it was more about: ‘Hey, we’re here if there’s something that makes sense. And we would love to have you join our group.’ And fortunately enough, everybody’s interests were aligned on that.

“That’s why you shouldn’t play the game of assumptions, and just do the due diligence on the front end,” Gomes added. “Sometimes things work out, sometimes they don’t. But having those conversations and making sure you’re doing the work that’s needed to really understand the situation is important, especially when you see situations like this play out.”

Now, the Dodgers will put their faith in Díaz to play a leading role in their quest for a World Series three-peat.

He will be the club’s designated closer — a role they have been hesitant to bestow upon any one reliever since the departure of Kenley Jansen (the only MLB reliever with more saves than Díaz since his debut in 2016).

“For us, we have a high bar. To name someone the closer, you have to be one of the best. You have to be elite and dominant at what you do,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said.

The team’s expectation is that Díaz’s presence will elevate the rest of the bullpen, too, giving a more defined late-game structure to a relief corps that ranks just 21st in the majors in ERA last season.

“It allows Doc and our coaching staff to kind of put guys into spots leading up to that,” Gomes said, “knowing that it doesn’t really matter who’s in the ninth, that we’re gonna like the matchup.”

Perhaps the biggest news from Friday’s introduction: Díaz still plans to enter games to his iconic walk-out song, “Narco” by Timmy Trumpet — which Gomes described as “probably the most electric walkout song in the game.”

“I can’t wait, the first game of the season, coming in the ninth with Timmy Trumpet and getting the W for the Dodgers,” Díaz said.

A few weeks ago, that scene felt like an unlikely vision.

But now, anytime the sounds of trumpets echo around Chavez Ravine in the summers to come, they will serve as a reminder of the team’s latest free-agent coup — one more unexpected than almost all the rest.

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Dodgers tour guides’ effort to unionize becomes a contentious battle

Dec 12, 2025 Sports Desk

A large group of Dodgers fans enthusiastically answered the call during an August home game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. It was the team’s eighth annual Union Night celebration, and while cheering for the Dodgers, fans also chanted for their local.

“Who are we?” a leather-lunged fan shouted.

“Teamsters!” came the reply.

The Dodgers’ marketing strategy aimed at blue-collar fans of the boys in blue isn’t hypocritical. The franchise reached two landmark Collective Bargaining Agreements in 2023 with the Service Employees International Union United Service Workers West (SEIU-USWW).

Although raises to the 450 employees that included ushers, security officers and groundskeepers were recognized as long overdue and took organized protests and the threat of a strike for the Dodgers to agree to a contract, the result was a decisive victory for union solidarity.

More recently the franchise hasn’t stood in the way of another segment of employees attempting to unionize. It has hammered out an agreement with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) representing the 55 or so Dodger Stadium tour guides — mostly part-timers whose knowledge of Dodgers history and love of the team is unsurpassed.

Yet ratifying the agreement has proven difficult because roughly half of the guides don’t want to unionize. A vote in October failed to pass by a 25-24 margin with six guides abstaining. Repeated emails by The Times to several tour guides who voted against unionizing were not answered, and the Dodgers declined to comment for this story.

The guides supporting the agreement have launched a re-vote for Dec. 15-17, and both sides have spent recent weeks busily lobbying guides perceived as uncommitted. The divide has impacted morale, tour guides say, at a time when Dodger Stadium tours have never been more popular, described by the Dodgers during union negotiations as a “robust money-making operation.”

“The demand has risen tremendously the last two years,” tour guide Cary Ginell said. “It’s been great for the Dodgers. When I joined in March 2022, the cost of a tour was $25. Now no tour is less than $42.50. The team is raking in the money and none of it goes to us.”

Even if the union agreement is approved, however, the battle won’t be over because guides opposing the union have already filed a decertification petition with the National Labor Relations Board to keep IATSE from representing the tour guides.

Although both sides accuse the other of underhanded tactics in swaying voters, the key issue dividing the group is fairly straightforward.

The new agreement would increase wages by 25% from $17.87 to $24 an hour — roughly the same rate the 2023 agreement did for the SEIU-USWW members — with additional $1 an hour increases in the second and third years of the contract.

Security measures at stadium entry points also would be improved. Tour guides have complained that fans who show up for tours are able to walk into the stadium top deck without passing through security, sometimes even while carrying backpacks.

That lapse would end, according to a draft of the CBA obtained by The Times: “The Employer shall provide and properly staff security checkpoints that include a metal detector and bag search at all designated points of entry for patrons entering Dodger Stadium for purposes of participating in stadium tours.”

Unionizing, however, might end the Dodgers’ longtime practice of giving tour guides four reserve-level tickets for each of the 13 homestands in a season, a perk worth an estimated $2,600 assuming the tickets are valued at $50 each. The prospect of that is a deal-breaker for many of the guides.

Tour guides present during negotiations said the Dodgers refused to mention free tickets in the union contract because they said other part-time union employees then would demand the same perk. The Dodgers made it clear they weren’t necessarily ending the perk, just that the issue couldn’t be addressed in the agreement.

The monetary value of the tickets is greater than the raise for tour guides that work close to the minimum number of 60 four-hour shifts per year. However, the average tour guide works about 125 shifts — 500 hours — a year, and they would be taking home more pay in raises than the tickets are worth.

Some less-experienced tour guides have felt pressure from anti-union veteran guides. Semaj Perry said that during his training in March, an older, respected guide convinced him to sign a decertification petition. Perry has since attended a negotiation session and read the agreement between the Dodgers and the union.

“It’s more of a status thing than a financial decision for some of the older tour guides,” Perry said. “For some of them, this is fun to do during retirement. I took the job because I needed to pay rent. I’m voting yes to join the union.”

Dodger Stadium tours have become increasingly popular — generating more than $1 million a year in revenue — because of recent stadium renovations, two consecutive World Series championships and the signings of Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki.

“The tour program has grown so much in the age of Ohtani,” said Ray Lokar, a veteran Dodgers tour guide whose full-time career was a high school coach and athletic director for nearly 40 years. “The visibility and security responsibilities have been amplified. It’s grown from a mom‐and‐pop operation of a dozen people showing folks around the stadium to a multi-million dollar asset.”

The stadium tours now fall under the management umbrella of a recently implemented revenue-producing initiative called Dodgers 365, which offers year-round rentals of everything from $50,000 for the field to $15,000 for the Centerfield Plaza to $12,500 for the Stadium Club. In September, the LA Card Show made its Dodger Stadium debut, drawing thousands of fans swapping and bartering trading cards.

While recognizing that possibly giving up free tickets is a stumbling block, several veteran tour guides who advocate joining the union are perplexed that so many of their colleagues are suspicious of organized labor. About all they agree on is that they love the Dodgers.

“The tour team amplifies the most valuable asset the Dodgers have: their brand, the 135 years of history, from the borough of Brooklyn to Dodger Stadium,” Ginell, author of 14 books on American music, said. “It’s a different function than any other employee. We make fans happy conveying that history, and it’s that history that got the Dodgers their $2 billion price tag.”

Lokar emphasized fairness as a reason tour guides should vote to approve union representation.

“We should be protected, respected and connected,” he said. “We wanted to feel safe physically and emotionally, be paid fairly, and not treated as second-class citizens.”

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SoFi Stadium could be the home of USC football during the 2028 Olympics

Dec 12, 2025 Sports Desk

From Ryan Kartje: Since it first opened in 1923, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum has been the sole home of USC football. No major sports team in the city’s history has played in the same venue for longer.

But after more than a century spent by USC in the city’s iconic stadium by the campus, The Times learned that the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games likely will force USC to find a new home for its football team in 2028, with the likeliest option being SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

People with knowledge of the situation not authorized to discuss it publicly told The Times that the Coliseum would not be ready for the start of the college football season in September 2028 because of the $100-million temporary track that’s being built on top of the Coliseum field to host the track-and-field competition at the L.A. Olympics and Paralympic Games.

The logistics still are being worked out with LA28, the city’s organizing committee, and USC has not made a final decision about where the 2028 football season will be played. A source said the school hasn’t officially determined whether the Coliseum field could be ready later in the fall, perhaps to host a portion of USC’s 2028 home schedule. But even if it is logistically possible, it’s not clear that USC’s athletic department would find that arrangement in its best interest, given it would mean uprooting the team midseason or spending a long stretch of the season away from L.A.

“USC and LA28 are working in lockstep on all logistics for the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” USC athletics spokesperson Cody Worsham said in a statement. “We will share details with the public when they are finalized.”

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DAVE ROBERTS HELPS UCLA

From Ben Bolch: Dave Roberts might have just contributed to another monumental steal.

UCLA landed what could be the coup of the college football coaching carousel with some assistance from the celebrated Dodgers manager and Boston folk hero whose stolen base in the 2004 playoffs sparked the Red Sox’s run to their first World Series title in nearly a century.

This time, Roberts came out of the advisory bullpen to help his alma mater snag what it hopes is a championship coach in Bob Chesney.

“I just see him as a guy that failure’s not an option,” Roberts told The Times of the coach who has agreed to a five-year, $33.75-million contract. “He’s gonna win. I think I have a pretty good gut and read on people and I couldn’t have more conviction in coach Chesney.”

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WHICH DODGERS WILL PLAY IN THE WBC?

From Jack Harris: The 2026 World Baseball Classic begins in less than three months.

Between now and then, the Dodgers will have to have some “delicate” conversations with their star trio of Japanese pitchers.

As of now, Dodgers front-office officials said at this week’s winter meetings, no final decisions have been made about whether Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki will participate in the tournament, nor if Shohei Ohtani (who has already confirmed his participation) will pitch in addition to hitting.

“We’re still working through that,” said president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, who met with Team Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata at the Signia by Hilton Orlando this week.

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Shohei Ohtani made ‘very big contribution’ to help Dodgers teammate’s mother battle cancer

CLIPPERS LOSE AGAIN

Amen Thompson’s three-point play with 17.2 seconds left helped the Houston Rockets to a 115-113 win over the Clippers on Thursday night.

Thompson tipped in Alperen Sengun’s miss to break a 110-110 tie, was fouled by Kris Dunn and hit the free throw. The putback came off Houston’s third offensive rebound of the possession and 21st of the night.

Thompson made eight of 12 from the field and finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

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Clippers box score

NBA standings

DUCKS’ WINNING STREAK ENDS

Anders Lee scored twice and had two assists, and David Rittich made 31 saves as the New York Islanders beat the Ducks 5-2 on Thursday night.

Simon Holmstrom had a goal and two assists and defensemen Travis Mitchell and Ryan Pulock each scored as the Islanders won for the fifth time in six games.

Leo Carlsson and Troy Terry scored for the Ducks, who had their three-game winning streak ended.

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Ducks summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1937 — Rookie Sammy Baugh throws second-half touchdown passes of 55, 78 and 33 yards to overcome a 14-7 Chicago lead and give the Washington Redskins a 28-21 victory over the Chicago Bears for the NFL championship.

1953 — Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens becomes the NHL’s all-time leading scorer with a goal and two assists in a 7-2 victory against the New York Rangers. Richard finishes the game with 611 points, one more than injured linemate Elmer Lach, who has held the record since February 1952.

1965 — Chicago’s Gale Sayers scores six touchdowns with 336 combined yards to lead the Bears to a 61-20 rout of the San Francisco 49ers. The six TDs give Sayers an NFL-record 21 for the season. Sayers’ first touchdown is a reception, the next four rushing and the final, an 85-yard punt return.

1968 — Arthur Ashe becomes first Black person be ranked No. 1 in tennis.

1971 — Bobby Hull of the Chicago Blackhawks scores his 1,000th point with an assist in the first period of a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota North Stars.

1977 — NBA Commissioner Larry O’Brien fines Kermit Washington $10,000 and suspends the Lakers forward for at least 60 days (26 games) for punching Houston’s Rudy Tomjanovich during a game on Dec. 9. The suspension is the longest ever in NBA history and the fine is the maximum permissible under league rules.

1986 — James “Bonecrusher” Smith knocks out Tim Witherspoon in the first round to win the WBA heavyweight title in New York.

1987 — Guard Mookie Blaylock leads Oklahoma to an NCAA-record 33 steals with 13 in a 152-84 victory over Centenary.

1990 — Connecticut uses a stifling press and quickness to jump to a 32-0 lead en route to an 85-32 victory over New Hampshire. New Hampshire plays 11 minutes and 48 seconds before scoring its first point.

2015 — Keenan Reynolds ends his Navy career with a clean sweep against Army. Reynolds rushes for two touchdowns and throws for another score to lead the No. 21 Midshipmen to their 14th straight win over the Black Knights, 21-17. Reynolds is the first quarterback over the 116-game series to go 4-0.

2015 — The Golden State Warriors’ NBA-record start ends at 24 wins when the Milwaukee Bucks beat them 108-95.

2016 — Tom Brady connects with Chris Hogan for a 79-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to help the New England Patriots overcome a sloppy second half and claim a 30-23 win over the Baltimore Ravens. Brady throws for 406 yards and three touchdowns, becoming the fourth NFL quarterback with at least 450 career touchdown passes. He also throws just his second interception of the season.

2021 — Dutchman Max Verstappen wins Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship.

2024 — Six-time Super Bowl winning coach Bill Belichick is introduced as next head football coach at the University of North Carolina.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Lakers will not win the NBA Cup this year

Dec 12, 2025 Sports Desk

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: LeBron James refused to look too far into the future to say what kind of team the Lakers might be when the playoffs arrive in April while they are still playing games in December.

Even though it was the NBA Cup quarterfinal game the Lakers lost to the San Antonio Spurs, 132-119, James didn’t want to venture into how things would unfold.

Two years ago, when the Lakers went to Las Vegas and won the inaugural NBA Cup championship, James cautioned then that they had a long way to go and that that wasn’t an indicator or what that team could accomplish.

Not making it to Las Vegas this time and instead now having to play the Suns in Phoenix on Sunday, James was asked where the Lakers stand long term when it comes to competing for the playoffs.

“It’s December what?” James responded.

He was told it was December 10.

“And you’re talking about the playoffs? Nah, can’t do that. It’s not OK. Not my mindset,” James said. “I don’t. I can’t think about what we can do in the playoffs in December. What I can say is that the habits that we built throughout the regular season each month, if we are in a position to make it to the postseason and be able to get to that point, well, we have to build it now. But as far as talking about what type of damage we’re gonna do in the postseason in December, that’s not right for the basketball gods, not for me.”

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Lakers box score

NBA standings

MORE DODGERS SIGNINGS?

From Jack Harris: As the hotel lobby at the Signia by Hilton Orlando filled at MLB’s winter meetings on Tuesday morning, an unexpected prize was falling into the Dodgers’ lap.

Edwin Díaz, the top reliever on this year’s free-agent market, was suddenly slipping away from the incumbent New York Mets, who reportedly made the fan favorite closer only a three-year offer that did little to entice him to re-sign with the team.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, were swooping in late to snatch away the hard-throwing right-hander, submitting a more lucrative three-year bid that would pay Díaz a relief-pitcher-record $23 million per season.

Just like that, the Dodgers had gone from a perfectly content, but unremarkably quiet winter, to one in which they’d once again flexed their financial muscles and stunned the baseball industry.

The Dodgers might not need to make another big move, in the same way they downplayed the need for any big acquisition coming into the winter.

But they’ll certainly be ready to pounce if another opportunity materializes.

“I would say we definitely can,” Friedman hinted when asked if another big move this offseason could be possible. “Whether that makes the most sense within the timing of our roster — there’s so many factors that go into it, and any decision you make has a future cost. It’s just weighing that. So, yes, we can. How likely it is, is probably another question.”

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Starz picks up drama on gambling scandal involving Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter

CHRIS PAUL ‘AT PEACE’

From Chuck Schilken: Former Clippers point guard Chris Paul says he’s “at peace with everything” after being abruptly dismissed by the team last week.

“Stuff’s been a little crazy in the past few days — to say the least,” Paul told People magazine in an interview published Tuesday. “But honestly, I’m home. My daughter had tryouts yesterday. My nephew had a basketball game. My son has a game coming up on the 12th.”

Paul’s son, Chris Paul II, is a sophomore guard for the Campbell Hall varsity basketball team, which plays Newbury Park on Friday.

“I have never seen my son play a game in person,” the elder Paul said. “Not a middle school game, not a high school game. So I’m excited about seeing him play.”

Also on Tuesday, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue denied an ESPN report from last week that he and Paul hadn’t been on speaking terms in the weeks leading up to the team’s decision to part ways with one of its most iconic players.

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CAN BOB CHESNEY BUILD A WINNER?

From Dylan Hernández: Bob Chesney has a welcoming demeanor. He articulates his thoughts well. And if the people who hired him are right, the small-school wonder will be a transformative figure in Los Angeles sports.

Officially introduced on Tuesday as UCLA’s new football coach, the 48-year-old Chesney has a new-age vibe about him. His opening remarks lasted about seven minutes and he answered questions for nearly 30 more, but that wasn’t enough to tell whether he’ll be another Sean McVay or another Brandon Staley.

Here’s the more important question: Does it matter?

The Sleeping Giant of a football program has been hibernating for so long that no one can be certain it’s still hibernating.

The Sleeping Giant could be a Dead Giant.

Bob Toledo couldn’t build a consistent winner at UCLA. Rick Neuheisel, Jim Mora and Chip Kelly couldn’t either.

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Here’s the reason Troy Aikman didn’t get thanked by that UCLA football player

PHILIP RIVERS RETURNS

From Sam Farmer: Philip Rivers has never been quick on his feet, but he can make quick decisions. That’s what made him such an outstanding NFL quarterback, and it’s part of the reason he’s a Hall of Fame semifinalist.

So it’s not surprising that, even at 44 and a grandfather, he didn’t linger long when the Indianapolis Colts called to take his temperature on coming back to play quarterback for them.

Rivers was at home in Alabama on Sunday night when he got a call from Colts coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard. They had just lost starting quarterback Daniel Jones to a torn Achilles tendon, and rookie backup Riley Leonard suffered an undisclosed knee injury in relief.

“We said, ‘What do you think?’” Steichen said Wednesday of phoning Rivers, the Chargers great who finished his career with the Colts. “He said, ‘Heck yeah, I’m interested. Heck yeah.’ So he slept on it and then we called him back Monday morning and he said, ‘I need to get up there and throw in that building. Start moving around.’”

The quarterback, five years removed from his last game, threw at the Colts facility Monday and Tuesday then went back to his hotel to think it over. When Steichen and Ballard called again, Rivers — in true Philip Rivers style — said, “Dag-gummit, let’s freaking go.”

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KINGS FALL TO KRAKEN

Vince Dunn scored on the power play 1:21 into overtime and the Seattle Kraken ended a five-game losing streak on Wednesday night by beating the Kings, 3-2.

Matty Beniers tied the score for the Kraken with a power-play goal with 25.3 seconds left in regulation. Jared McCann also scored for Seattle, which had been winless in six outings (0-5-1) since Nov. 23. Eeli Tolvanan assisted on the tying and winning goals. Dunn added two assists.

Joey Daccord made 24 saves.

Alex Laferriere had a short-handed goal and Kevin Fiala scored on the power play for the Kings. Anton Forsberg made 30 saves.

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Kings summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1938 — New York Giants beats the Green Bay Packers 23-17 to win the NFL championship.

1946 — The Chicago Stags and Cleveland Rebels play an experimental NBA game featuring 15-minute quarters, instead of the usual 12-minute quarters. The Stags beat the Rebels 88-70.

1949 — Johnny Lujack of the Chicago Bears passes for 468 yards and six touchdowns in a 52-21 rout of the Chicago Cardinals.

1951 — Joe DiMaggio announces his retirement from baseball.

1959 — Richie Guerin scores 57 points, at the time the most ever by a Knick, as New York defeats Syracuse 152-121. His team record was broken by Bernard King 25 years later.

1971 — The Lakers set an NBA record with 21 straight wins by beating the Atlanta Hawks 104-95, breaking the record of 20 set by the Milwaukee Bucks the previous year.

1972 — Joe Namath of the New York Jets passes for 403 yards and Don Maynard sets an NFL record for career receptions in a 24-16 loss to the Oakland Raiders. Maynard, with seven catches, breaks Raymond Berry’s record of 631 by one catch.

1977 — Philadelphia’s Tom Bladon scores four goals and collects four assists to set a record for defensemen with eight points in the Flyers’ 11-1 victory over the Cleveland Barons.

1981 — Former world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali’s 61st and last fight; loses to Trevor Berbick by unanimous decision in 10 rounds at Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre, Nassau, Bahamas.

1982 — Dan Fouts the San Diego Chargers passes for 444 yards and five touchdowns in a 41-37 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco’s Joe Montana passes for 356 yards to set an NFL record with five consecutive games of 300 yards or more passing.

1983 — John Henry becomes the first racehorse to surpass $4 million in career earnings when he wins the Hollywood Turf Cup with jockey Chris McCarron at Hollywood Park.

1985 — Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers registers seven assists in a 12-9 victory over the Chicago Black Hawks. The teams tie the NHL record for most total goals in a game.

1992 — Gary Bettman, the NBA’s senior vice president and general counsel, is named the NHL’s first commissioner.

1999 — Rowan ends Mount Union’s NCAA-record 54-game winning streak, beating the Purple Raiders 24-17 in overtime in a Division III semifinal game.

2002 — Danielle Dube becomes the third female goalie to start in a men’s pro hockey game, stopping 18 shots in the Long Beach Ice Dogs’ 4-1 loss to San Diego in the West Coast Hockey League.

2002 — Colorado’s Joe Sakic scores his 500th career goal in a 3-1 loss at Vancouver. Sakic is the 31st player in NHL history to reach the milestone.

2006 — Jerry Sloan becomes the fifth coach in NBA history to win 1,000 games after Utah defeats Dallas 101-79.

2009 — Tiger Woods announces an indefinite leave from pro golf to focus on his marriage.

2010 — Carl Hagelin scores two goals in the Michigan’s 5-0 victory over Michigan State at Michigan Stadium. The announced attendance of 113,411 crowd sets a world attendance record for a hockey game.

2015 — The Golden State Warriors need two overtimes to remain perfect on a very imperfect night and improved to 24-0 this season by outlasting the Boston Celtics 124-119.

2021 — 87th Heisman Trophy Award: Bryce Young, Alabama (QB)

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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How Shohei Ohtani helped Dodgers teammate’s mother battle cancer

Dec 11, 2025 Sports Desk

When the Dodgers are on the field, Shohei Ohtani dominates the headlines with his base running, his slugging and his pitching. But off the field, his actions also resonate.

In a recent interview with Japanese media, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told a story of when the two-time World Series champion helped relief pitcher Gus Varland’s mother get cancer treatment by making a “very, very big contribution.”

“Shohei does a lot of great things, but a lot of what he does is on the down low, quiet, so people don’t talk about it,” he said.

Varland made seven relief appearances with the Dodgers during the 2024 season — including pitching in the season-opening series in South Korea against the San Diego Padres — and posted a 4.50 earned run average in six innings of work before he was designated for assignment in July of that year.

Roberts said he ran into Varland’s mother during the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays because his brother, Louis, pitched for them. Roberts said the mother told him she was cancer free.

After spending his first six major league seasons with the Angels, Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers. In November, he won his fourth MVP award in five seasons, becoming the only player besides Barry Bonds to win it more than three times.

Ohtani helped the Dodgers win their second consecutive World Series title after hitting 55 homers with a batting average of .282 and an ERA of 2.87 in 2025.

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Why Dodgers face ‘delicate’ situation with Japanese stars ahead of WBC

Dec 11, 2025 Sports Desk

ORLANDO, Fla. — The 2026 World Baseball Classic begins in less than three months.

Between now and then, the Dodgers will have to have some “delicate” conversations with their star trio of Japanese pitchers.

As of now, Dodgers front-office officials said at this week’s winter meetings, no final decisions have been made about whether Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki will participate in the tournament, nor if Shohei Ohtani (who has already confirmed his participation) will pitch in addition to hitting.

“We’re still working through that,” said president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, who met with Team Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata at the Signia by Hilton Orlando this week.

“We’re very supportive of Samurai Japan and all that they’re trying to accomplish, and they’re very supportive of us,” Friedman added. “It was about just keeping open the lines of communication, the mutual respect and working together to help all sides.”

What would be most helpful to the Dodgers, of course, is if none of their three Japanese stars pitch in next spring’s international tournament.

Each of them shouldered a heavy burden during last season’s postseason, from Sasaki’s nine appearances out of the bullpen to Ohtani’s four starts in a two-way role to Yamamoto’s playoff-leading 37⅓ innings (the final 8⅔ of which came on back-to-back days in Games 6 and 7 of the World Series) most of all.

Each of them could also benefit from extra rest going into the 2026 campaign. Sasaki will be returning to the starting rotation after missing most of last year’s regular season because of a shoulder injury. Ohtani will be embarking on his first full season of two-way duties since 2023. Yamamoto is coming off what was already an unprecedented workload even before last season’s playoffs, having set a new career high (either in MLB or Japan) with 30 starts in the regular season.

Already, it appears several other Dodgers players will, or are likely, to skip the event. While Team Canada general manager Greg Hamilton said Freddie Freeman would like to participate, the first baseman is dealing with some lingering health issues after playing through an ankle injury for much of last season. Teoscar Hernández said in an interview that he will not play for the Dominican Republic in order to focus on next season. Tommy Edman, who previously represented Team Korea, is also not expected to play as he recovers from an offseason ankle surgery.

To this point, the only Dodgers player other than Ohtani to confirm his WBC participation is catcher Will Smith for Team USA.

More could follow, from Mookie Betts (who has yet to announce any WBC decision) to Hyeseong Kim (who told Korean media he has requested permission from the Dodgers to participate) to Alex Vesia (who is under consideration for a Team USA spot, according to American general manager Michael Hill).

In Japan, however, the WBC is held to a higher standard of importance than most other countries around the world (and, to its fans, an even more significant level than the World Series itself). The nation has won the event a record three times, including in the most recent 2023 edition. And having star players sit out, or even be restricted, in the tournament can threaten to become a culturally controversial development.

The Dodgers understand this.

Manager Dave Roberts this week described the dynamic with the Japanese players as “very delicate,” and said neither he nor the organization “want to be dismissive of what it means to them representing their country.”

“You can’t debate the emotion,” he added, “what a player might feel of this potential opportunity.”

That doesn’t mean, however, the Dodgers aren’t concerned about the cost the tournament can incur, especially for starting pitchers given its place on the calendar.

Next year’s event will take place March 5-17, requiring pitchers to be built up for live-game action nearly a month earlier than they would otherwise. Team Japan will also have to travel from Tokyo (where they will play their group stage games) to Miami (where the knockout round will be held) during that two-week window, assuming they advance through the preliminary round as expected.

Because of that, Roberts acknowledged he was hoping Ohtani (who will still be managed carefully as a pitcher next season, potentially with a week or more of rest between outings) would only hit in the event — and seemed to hint that would be the likely outcome for the reigning MVP.

“The pitching side of things is challenging and gives us a little bit of pause,” general manager Brandon Gomes added. “But yeah, we’ll obviously continue to have those conversations and figure it out.”

The Dodgers will also face a decision with Sasaki, whom they can block from participating in the WBC since he missed the majority of last season on the 60-day injured list, though they haven’t given an indication yet on whether they would do so.

“We just need to sit down and talk through it as an organization,” Gomes said generally of the team’s process for WBC players. “Once we get more info on the players, we’ll have those conversations.”

While the Dodgers can’t prevent Yamamoto from participating, Roberts indicated they could lobby for Team Japan to keep him (and Ohtani or Sasaki, if they wind up on the Japanese staff, as well) on a more restricted workload for the tournament.

“I would like to think that it’s going to be a dialogue as far as restrictions and limitations,” Roberts said. “In the sense of just trying to give them the opportunity, but also understand they’ve come off some stuff, some long seasons.”

There should be more clarity in the coming month, with Team Japan hoping to have its roster finalized by the new year. Next week, Friedman said, clubs and national teams will also submit forms to MLB regarding players’ potential participation, which allows for a period of feedback between all parties.

“I do think that the conversations need to be had [and] will be had, as far as what each individual is taking on and whatever role that they might be taking on,” Roberts said. “And what potential costs there might be.”

For now, however, when it comes to one of the more delicate situations the Dodgers will have to navigate this offseason, “there’s no more clarity than we had before,” Roberts added.

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Dodgers Dugout: We’ve been down this ‘big reliever signed’ road before

Dec 11, 2025 Sports Desk

Hi and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Looks like the Dodgers found a new closer for Christmas.

The new closer

Well, the Dodgers did what many did not expect: give another long-term, big-money deal to a closer. They have agreed to a deal with former Mets closer Edwin Díaz on a three-year, $69-million deal. There will be $4.5 million deferred each year and the value of the contract as tabulated for luxury tax purposes will be $21 million per year. It’s a record for annual value for a reliever, breaking the record held by….. Díaz.

Díaz was considered by most to be the top reliever on the market. Last season with the Mets, he was 6-3 with a 1.63 ERA and 28 saves. In 66.1 innings, he gave up 37 hits and walked 21 while striking out 98. He turns 32 in March. He had three blown saves and allowed six of 15 inherited runners to score.

If there is a red flag here, it is that his fastball velocity has dropped from an average of 99 mph in 2023 to 97 mph last season. Which is still pretty fast of course.

You’ll forgive me for not doing somersaults over the deal yet. It could turn out to be an amazing signing. However, as we saw last season with Tanner Scott, relievers are like a box of chocolates: You never know what you are going to get. Díaz has a much better record of success than Scott did. But we’ve seen over the last few seasons what can happen with a signing (Scott, Kirby Yates), decline in form (Blake Treinen) or injuries (Evan Phillips, Michael Kopech, Brusdar Graterol).

But the Dodgers did need bullpen help, and they signed the best reliever on the market, so it’s hard to find fault in that.

You can read more on the signing in this story by Jack Harris.

And an analysis, which includes discussion of a possible salary cap, from Bill Shaikin here.

Fernando misses the Hall

The Contemporary Baseball Era Committee for the Baseball Hall of Fame met Sunday. It was a 16-member committee, and there were eight candidates to consider: Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela.

The only person elected: Kent, wh was named on 14 ballots (you had to be on 12 for election).

The others:

Nine votes
Carlos Delgado

Six
Don Mattingly
Dale Murphy

Fewer than five
Barry Bonds
Roger Clemens
Gary Sheffield
Fernando Valenzuela

The committee made a big mistake in not electing Fernando, and really embarrassed itself by not giving him even five votes.

When you look at the numbers, Fernando is at best a borderline candidate. He won a Cy Young and Rookie of the Year award, but won only 173 games in his career.

However, when you consider what he meant for the sport in addition to his accomplishments as a player, he qualifies. The three players who created more baseball fans than any other are Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson and Fernando. The fact the Dodgers have a massive Latino following can be traced back to Fernando. He created fans in other cities. He opened MLB to an almost entirely untapped market.

But, some people look only at the numbers. Fernando should be in the Hall. So should Maury Wills. Unfortunately, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that either will make it.

And congratulation to Jeff Kent, who played for the Dodgers but will go into the Hall as a Giant. So, not that big of a congratulations. His election enhances the candidacy of another former Dodger: Chase Utley.

New book

Last week I told you about a new book by Ross Porter, the longtime Dodger announcer who used to do the “Ask Ross Porter” feature in this newsletter. The book, “The Ross Porter Chronicles — Volume 1: The Dodger Years,” is a compendium of interviews he has done over the years with Dodgers, including Steve Garvey, Davey Lopes, Bill Russell, Ron Cey and Sandy Koufax.

Reaction was overwhelming, and as a result, they sold out of signed books. However, if you still want a signed copy to give to someone as a Christmas present (it would make a great gift for a Dodger fan), you have an alternative. You can order the book at Amazon. Make sure you have it shipped to you before Dec. 21. Ross will be signing books in person on Dec. 21 from 1-3 p.m. at Northridge Sports & Memorabilia, 9514 Reseda Blvd,, Unit 14.

Anyone who buys the book on Amazon can bring it to the signing, and Ross will sign it for free. He’ll also sign any Dodger items you bring.

It’s a great chance for you to meet a Dodger icon. Ross is 87. The icons from our Dodger childhood won’t be there forever. If you have a chance to go out there, I highly recommend it.

In case you missed it

Analysis: Could Dodgers’ Edwin Díaz signing portend more big moves later this offseason?

Starz picks up drama on gambling scandal involving Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter

Shaikin: Dodgers signing of Edwin Díaz shows they aren’t going to worry about a potential salary cap

Dodgers and Edwin Díaz agree to terms in blockbuster move to shore up bullpen

Former Dodgers, Giants slugger and noted curmudgeon Jeff Kent voted into the Hall of Fame

Fernando Valenzuela falls short of induction into National Baseball Hall of Fame

Metro votes to approve Dodger Stadium gondola project despite protests

And finally

Fernando Valenzuela pitches a no-hitter. Watch and listen here.

Until next time…

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Could Dodgers’ Edwin Díaz signing portend more big offseason moves?

Dec 10, 2025 Sports Desk

ORLANDO, Fla. — As the hotel lobby at the Signia by Hilton Orlando filled at MLB’s winter meetings on Tuesday morning, an unexpected prize was falling into the Dodgers’ lap.

Edwin Díaz, the top reliever on this year’s free-agent market, was suddenly slipping away from the incumbent New York Mets, who reportedly made the fan favorite closer only a three-year offer that did little to entice him to re-sign with the team.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, were swooping in late to snatch away the hard-throwing right-hander, submitting a more lucrative three-year bid that would pay Díaz a relief-pitcher-record $23 million per season.

Just like that, the Dodgers had gone from a perfectly content, but unremarkably quiet winter, to one in which they’d once again flexed their financial muscles and stunned the baseball industry.

“There were a lot of scenarios [that could have potentially played out this winter] where we didn’t necessarily end up with a top-end reliever,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Tuesday night, while declining to comment on Díaz directly since the transaction wasn’t finalized. “But we just kind of prepared on a bunch of different fronts. And being aggressive, if something lined up, we’ve known all along [it is something we would do].”

The Díaz signing was an affirmation of the team’s operating procedure on the free-agent market. They always at least target top talent. They always at least stay around the proverbial blackboard, as Friedman calls it, in case a player’s market doesn’t develop as expected. And now, they are armed with the kind of endless resources that can make them a threat to scoop up any rebound.

As they leave Orlando this week and embark on the rest of this offseason, it serves as a reminder:

The Dodgers might not need to make another big move, in the same way they downplayed the need for any big acquisition coming into the winter.

But they’ll certainly be ready to pounce if another opportunity materializes.

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“I would say we definitely can,” Friedman hinted when asked if another big move this offseason could be possible. “Whether that makes the most sense within the timing of our roster — there’s so many factors that go into it, and any decision you make has a future cost. It’s just weighing that. So, yes, we can. How likely it is, is probably another question.”

Start with the top overall available free agent, Kyle Tucker.

The Dodgers are not expected to entertain a long-term contract for the soon-to-be 29-year-old and four-time All-Star. If his bidding war, as projected, results in offers upwards of 8-10 years and $400 million, the club is unlikely to engage; given the glut of long-term contracts already on their books, and the crop of young outfield prospects expected to reach the majors in the next several seasons.

But what if Tucker’s market cools? What if, like Díaz, he is left to consider relatively shorter-term deals with higher annual salaries? Granted, that’s unlikely to happen, considering the wide interest Tucker is reportedly attracting, including from the Toronto Blue Jays and their suddenly big-spending front office. If it does, however, the Dodgers could once again become candidates for a blockbuster, still needing to fill out their outfield as they embark on a quest for a World Series three-peat.

The same dynamic could be in play with other top free agents. The Dodgers have already shown interest in familiar face Cody Bellinger, who could bring both positional versatility and a more refined hitting approach than he had during his first stint with the club. Bo Bichette also presents the kind of balanced offensive profile the Dodgers are believed to seeking, as they try to shore up a lineup that too often was boom-or-bust last year.

Like Tucker, both players are unlikely to fit the Dodgers’ bigger-picture plans if their free agencies develop as expected (with Bellinger pegged for roughly five years and $150 million, and Bichette perhaps eight years and more than $200 million).

But thanks to the team’s flush financial outlook — and the fact that a salary cap could be coming next year, potentially incentivizing extra spending right now — all it could take is a slight cooling in either player’s market to make them more realistic targets for the two-time defending champions.

As long as there isn’t an overburdensome long-term risk, the Dodgers don’t seem afraid of lucrative shorter-term commitments to sustain their newly cemented dynasty.

“We have not only a really talented group of players, but an extremely driven group of players, who want to take care of their legacy and create a dynasty and be part of something really special,” Friedman said. “Because of that mindset, it makes it easier to invest. And do everything we can to help support that and be a part of helping bring that to fruition.”

The Dodgers could alternatively get aggressive on the trade market. Brandon Donovan and Lars Nootbaar of the St. Louis Cardinals are seen internally as fits. Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians would be an even bigger-name addition, albeit is less likely to be dealt this winter.

Then there is the real white whale: Two-time Cy Young Award-winning pitcher Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers.

For now, it’s uncertain at best that Skubal, who will be a free agent after next season and is unlikely to sign a contract extension with the Tigers (or any other team that trades for him) before then, gets moved this winter.

If he does, it figures to come at an extremely steep cost for a starting pitcher with one year remaining of team control.

If there’s any team that has the ammunition to pull it off, however, it’s the Dodgers, with their ample pitching depth and top-ranked farm system. Like with their free-agent pursuits, there is likely to be a limit for how much they’d part with. But if the Tigers seriously consider a trade, it would be no surprise to see the Dodgers be seriously involved.

There are less splashy routes for this offseason to go down, of course. If the Dodgers don’t make another marquee addition, they still feel confident with the roster core they have in place.

Then again, that’s the tone they were striking coming into these Winter Meetings, before swiping away Díaz in the surprise move of the week.

Thus, the baseball world has been put on alert again: The Dodgers won’t be reckless. They want to maintain longer-term flexibility. But if they see value in a top-talent target in the short-term, they won’t be afraid to once again spend big.

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Starz picks up drama on Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter’s gambling

Dec 10, 2025 Sports Desk

After 18 months of shopping the script, the proposed Lionsgate Television series based on the gambling scandal involving Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is in development at Starz.

The project will spotlight the audacious theft by Ippei Mizuhara of $16 million from Ohtani to pay off staggering gambling debts. Mizuhara was fired by the Dodgers after the crimes came to light in March 2024. A year later, he was convicted of defrauding Ohtani in federal court and sentenced to 57 months in prison.

The series will be produced by Tony Award winner Scott Delman, known for “The Book of Mormon” and “A Raisin in the Sun,” and sports journalist Albert Chen. Alex Convery, who wrote “Air,” is on board as showrunner and screenwriter while Justin Lin (the  “Fast and Furious” franchise) will direct, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

“This is Major League Baseball’s biggest sports gambling scandal since Pete Rose — and at its center is its biggest star, one that MLB has hitched its wagon on,” Chen said in a statement to The Times. “We’ll get to the heart of the story — a story of trust, betrayal and the trappings of wealth and fame.”

Lionsgate was having trouble selling the project to companies with media rights agreements with Major League Baseball — Disney, Warner Bros., Discovery, Apple, Netflix and Comcast — because the companies didn’t want to jeopardize their relationships with the league, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Lionsgate is the former parent company of Starz, but the two formally separated in May.

The story unquestionably is compelling. Mizuhara befriended Ohtani in Japan when the player who would become the most accomplished hitting and pitching combination in baseball history was an 18-year-old rookie with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters.

Ohtani came to the United States in 2018 at age 23, signing with the Angels. Mizuhara soon became his most trusted friend and interpreter, serving as an intermediary between Ohtani and nearly everyone who spoke English, including the media, his agent and Angels officials.

Mizuhara arranged wire transfers from Ohtani’s bank account without the player’s knowledge or permission and impersonated him during more than two dozen phone calls with bank employees, all to feed a gambling habit that accumulated $40 million in losses across thousands of bets.

Mizuhara allegedly collected $142 million in winnings but lost about $183 million.

Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700-million contract with the Dodgers in December 2023 and the scandal came to light three months later. Ohtani was absolved of wrongdoing and described as a victim by federal authorities.

“Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has told lies,” Ohtani said through his new interpreter, Will Ireton, shortly after Mizuhara was arrested. “I never agreed to pay off the debt or make payments to the bookmaker.

“I’m just beyond shocked. It’s really hard to verbalize how I am feeling at this point.”

Ohtani quickly put the episode behind him, leading the Dodgers to World Series championships in 2024 and 2025. He was named National League Most Valuable Player both years.

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Surprise! The Dodgers make blockbuster move, sign Edwin Díaz

Dec 10, 2025 Sports Desk

From Jack Harris: Coming into the offseason, the Dodgers signaled that they would be conservative when it came to pursuing help in the bullpen.

Turned out, they were quietly plotting one of the most surprising — and influential — signings of the winter.

In a blockbuster move on Tuesday, the team agreed to a three-year, $69-million deal with top free-agent closer Edwin Díaz, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly, snatching the three-time All-Star and three-time reliever of the year award winner in a move that will transform their previously shaky bullpen.

Díaz, 31, was the consensus best relief pitcher in this year’s free-agent class. Over his nine-year career, he has a 2.82 ERA and 253 saves. In that time, no other MLB reliever tops him in strikeouts (839), while only Kenley Jansen has recorded more saves (334). With the New York Mets this past season — his second since returning from a knee surgery that sidelined him for all of 2023 — Díaz also had one of his best career campaigns, posting a 1.63 ERA with 28 saves in 31 opportunities and 98 strikeouts in 66 ⅓ innings.

He was so good, he elected to opt out of the final two years of the record-setting five-year, $102-million deal he signed with the Mets in 2022.

Thanks to that track record, the hard-throwing right-hander was positioned to be the highest-paid reliever on this year’s market. Most projections pegged him for another four- or five-year deal, making upward of $20 million per season again.

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MORE BASEBALL:

Shaikin: Edwin Díaz signing shows Dodgers aren’t going to worry about potential salary cap

Take a swing? Two Buss brothers consider investing in baseball’s Athletics

NEW UCLA COACH TAKES AIM AT USC

From Ben Bolch: Nine months before his debut in his first big-time college football coaching job, Bob Chesney sounded as confident as a running back with four downs to gain one yard.

Nothing could stop him, no matter the weight of the unique challenges ahead.

For instance…

How did he feel about UCLA’s lack of recent football success?

“To me,” Chesney said, “there is zero doubt in my mind that we can win here.”

A perceived lack of institutional support?

“Alignment,” Chesney said, referencing his shared vision with university officials, “was a word that continued to show up over and over and over again.”

That annoying crosstown rival?

“We don’t need to be the other school in this town,” Chesney said, “we need to be the school in this town and I promise that will happen here in the very, very near future.”

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USC BASKETBALL TAKES NOSTALGIC TRIP

From Ryan Kartje: When they first met more than four decades ago now, the four freshmen on the University of San Diego’s men’s basketball team in 1983 didn’t need long to figure out who would lead them. Eric Musselman had all but elected himself within moments of moving into their dorm room.

“Before I could even drop my bag on the bed, Eric goes, ‘OK, we’re going to the gym,’” recalled Scott Thompson, San Diego’s 7-foot center. “He’d barely said hello.”

It didn’t matter that, at 5-foot-7, Musselman — the future USC men’s basketball coach — was more than a foot shorter than his freshman counterparts, with the other two checking in at 6-foot-11 and 6-foot-9. Or that Musselman carried himself with a swagger and confidence more befitting, even then, of a coach than a college freshman. He was so sure of himself, he actually pitched himself for the head coaching job as a sophomore.

“Father [Pat] Cahill was our athletic director,” Musselman said. “So before they named our new coach [in 1984], I went in there and told him, ‘Hey I think I can coach these guys and be a student athlete and a coach, and it’d be great publicity, the first time ever and all that.”

“And Father Cahill told me to get back to class.”

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MORE USC:

Chad Baker-Mazara and Ezra Ausar lead USC to win at San Diego

USC vs. San Diego summary

RIVERS RETURNS TO NFL

From Sam Farmer: These are not your grandfather’s Indianapolis Colts.

Or perhaps they are.

The Colts are planning to sign Chargers legend Philip Rivers, who recently became a grandfather, bringing back the 44-year-old quarterback after five years of retirement.

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HIGH SCHOOLS

From Eric Sondheimer: It was paparazzi time on Tuesday night at the old Morningside High gymnasium, where more than 20 photographers stationed themselves on the baseline trying to capture the moment Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood set the state record for career scoring by a high school basketball player.

Think Chino Hills days with the Ball brothers and Sierra Canyon days with Bronny James to bring out the cameras en masse.

The 6-foot-4 senior and son of Inglewood coach Jason Crowe Sr. needed 29 points to pass the 3,659 career points accumulated by Tounde Yessoufou of Santa Maria St. Joseph.

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MORE HIGH SCHOOLS:

Josh Gallagher helps Loyola turn back Cathedral in boys’ soccer rivalry game

Prep basketball roundup: Freshman Major Williams makes 11 threes for Edison

DUCKS

Beckett Sennecke scored a shorthanded goal with one second remaining to force overtime, Leo Carlsson scored in the shootout and the Ducks beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Tuesday night for their fifth win in seven games.

The 19-year-old Sennecke eluded three defenders and his shot deflected off the glove of Pittsburgh’s Erik Karlsson and into the net. A replay review confirmed the shot beat the buzzer.

Ville Husso made 45 saves, including seven in overtime, and stopped all three shots in the shootout.

Continue reading here

Ducks-Penguins summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1939 — The Green Bay Packers register the first shutout in an NFL championship game by beating the New York Giants 27-0.

1961 — Billy Cannon of the Houston Oilers rushes for 216 yards, catches five passes for 114 yards and scores five touchdowns in a 48-21 victory over the New York Titans. Cannon finishes with 373 combined yards.

1971 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scores a career-high 55 points in Milwaukee’s 120-104 victory over the Boston Celtics.

1982 — Michael Dokes knocks out Mike Weaver in the first round to capture the WBA heavyweight title in Las Vegas.

1985 — The Indiana Pacers hits only 19 field goals in an 82-64 loss to the New York Knicks, setting an NBA record for the fewest field goals made by one team since the inception of the shot clock.

1986 — Atlanta’s Dominique Wilkins scores 57 points to lead the Hawks to a 123-95 rout of the Chicago Bulls.

1992 — The NHL awards expansion franchises to Anaheim and Miami. The newcomers, scheduled to begin play in the 1993-94 season, bring the NHL to 26 teams.

1994 — Art Monk sets an NFL record for consecutive games with a reception on New York’s first play in the Jets’ 18-7 loss to the Detroit Lions. Monk’s 5-yard catch gives him 178 consecutive games with a reception, breaking Steve Largent’s NFL mark.

1999 — Laffit Pincay Jr. guides Irish Nip to a two-length victory in the sixth race at Hollywood Park for his 8,834th victory, breaking Bill Shoemaker’s 29-year-old record and making him the world’s winningest jockey.

2006 — LaDainian Tomlinson breaks Shaun Alexander’s NFL single-season touchdown record of 28 when he scores three times in the San Diego Chargers’ 48-20 victory over the Denver Broncos. Tomlinson has 26 TDs rushing and three receiving.

2006 — Marvin Harrison of Indianapolis is the fourth player in NFL history with 1,000 receptions, joining Jerry Rice, Tim Brown and Cris Carter.

2008 — Carmelo Anthony matches George Gervin’s NBA record for points in a quarter with 33 in the third and finishes with a season-high 45 points in Denver’s 116-105 victory over Minnesota.

2010 — George Karl earns his 1,000th coaching victory, the seventh coach in NBA history, as Al Harrington scores a season-high 31 points and Nene adds 26 to help the Denver Nuggets hold off the Toronto Raptors 123-116.

2016 — 82nd Heisman Trophy Award: Lamar Jackson, Louisville Cardinals (QB), youngest player to win at 19.

2016 — Army ends a 14-year run of frustration against Navy, using an overpowering running game and opportunistic defense to carve out a long overdue 21-17 victory.

2016 — Roman Torres scores in the sixth round of penalty kicks to give the Seattle Sounders their first MLS Cup title, 5-4 over Toronto FC after 120 scoreless minutes. It’s the first MLS Cup final to fail to produce a goal in regulation, setting the stage for a dramatic tiebreaker.

2017 — Ben Roethlisberger completes 44 of a franchise-record 66 passes for 506 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to top 500 yards passing three times and leading Pittsburgh past Baltimore 39-38. Antonio Brown caught 11 passes for 213 yards for Pittsburgh.

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 Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

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Dodgers signing of Edwin Díaz shows they aren’t worried about a potential salary cap

Dec 9, 2025 Sports Desk

What kind of team would commit $141 million to two closers?

The one that won last year. The one that won this year. The one that plans to win again next year.

“All I have to say to you,” Dodgers owner Mark Walter told fans at the team’s World Series championship celebration last month, “is we’ll be back next year.”

The Dodgers handed Tanner Scott $72 million last winter. It hasn’t worked out. So, on Tuesday, the Dodgers handed Edwin D í az $69 million.

If the Dodgers are going to be Exhibit A for Walter’s rival owners to cry about how desperately they need a salary cap, bring it on. If Walter’s rival owners demand that players be locked out next winter and not be allowed back until they relent and accept a salary cap, well, bring that on too.

There is a sentence players are taught to utter: “I can’t worry about what I can’t control.” The Díaz signing is basically the Dodgers’ ownership saying the same thing: “We can’t worry about other owners pointing their fingers at us. We’re here to win. If the rules change, then we’ll worry about that.”

Or maybe not.

“Honestly, I think that we have an organization that, whatever rules or regulations or constructs are put in front of us,’’ Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Monday, “we’re going to dominate.”

In what they call their golden age, the Dodgers are chasing history. No team had won back-to-back championships in 25 years. Next up: tying the major league record of 14 consecutive postseason appearances, and becoming the first National League team ever to win the World Series in three consecutive years.

“What’s better than two?” Roberts hollered at the World Series celebration. “Three! Three-peat! Three-peat! Let’s go!”

It ain’t bragging if you can back it up. For the first time in what will be his third season with the Dodgers — and after winning consecutive most valuable player awards — Shohei Ohtani should be available to pitch and hit for the entire season.

“I’m ready to get another ring next year,” Ohtani said at the celebration.

Mookie Betts, the only active player to win four championships, will come off a Gold Glove-nominated year in his first full season at shortstop and, presumably, will not have to fight off an illness like the one that derailed his strength and hampered his offense at the start of last season.

“I got four,” Betts told the celebration crowd. “Now it’s time to fill the hand all the way up, baby. ‘Three-peat’ ain’t never sounded so sweet. Somebody make that a T-shirt.”

Roberts stirred some conversation last week when he told the Amazon Prime show “Good Sports” that he would support a salary cap.

“You know what? I’m all right with that,” Roberts said. “I think the NBA has done a nice job of revenue sharing with the players and the owners. But if you’re going to suppress spending at the top, I think that you’ve got to raise the floor, to make those bottom-feeders spend money, too.”

The owners of those bottom-feeders ought to be aware of that, because they would have to spend, and they would not be able to point their finger at the Dodgers. The owners, after all, are pitching a salary cap to the public as a cure for competitive balance.

The Dodgers would welcome that challenge. A salary cap would limit salaries, but it would not limit spending on coaching, analytics, biometrics, facilities, nutrition, team planes, and other areas in which the Dodgers’ owners have earned championship rewards for their significant investments.

For now, though, the Dodgers needed a closer. The Dodgers got the best one available in free agency, a guy who has struck out at least one-third of opposing batters in each of his past seven seasons and has limited opponents to a batting average under .200 in each of his past five seasons.

Would the Dodgers like to get younger? Yes. Did they field the oldest group of position players in the majors last year? Yes. Do the Dodgers now have Díaz and Scott for the next three years, and do both turn 32 next year? Also yes.

But, given where both the Dodgers and Major League Baseball are right now, this might be the more pertinent question for the Dodgers: Can Díaz become the first Dodgers reliever to close out a World Series clincher since Steve Howe in 1981? (Orel Hershiser did the honors in 1988, followed by Julio Urias in 2020, Walker Buehler in 2024 and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in 2025.)

If you believed the Dodgers were ruining baseball, then the signing of Díaz will only intensify that. After all, 11 teams did not open last season with a payroll of $141 million — the combined value of the Díaz and Scott contracts.

And, if enough owners believe the Dodgers are ruining baseball, then those owners can find a solution short of a salary cap — or they can set fire to the game, and to the momentum generated by a global superstar leading an internationally popular team, and an internationally popular World Series.

The Dodgers cannot resolve that by themselves. They can act in their best interest, and on Tuesday they did.

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It’s awards time

JSerra makes historic hire

Basketball

Baseball/softball

Notes

From the archives: Colby Parkinson

Recommendations

Tweets you might have missed

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USC men dominate against UC Santa Cruz

Jazzy Davidson powers USC past Cal

Santa Anita postpones opening races

Should Angels fans cheer for Dodgers?

NHL

This day in sports history

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Lakers win high-scoring game

Clippers lose again

Londynn Jones has career game for USC

Greg Biffle dies

Snowboarding in Australia?

Kings end winless streak

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

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USC WINS AT HOME BUT LOSES RICE

UCLA-USC TRANSFER TRACKER

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MCVAY, RAMS FACE A CHALLENGE IN SEATTLE

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT RAMS VS. SEAHAWKS

HALFTIME WITH SNOOP DOGG

CRAWFORD IS LEAVING THE RING

KINGS GO WINLESS FOR FOUR

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

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Tyler Skaggs trial update

Clippers lose again

Some Trojans won’t play in Alamo Bowl

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THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

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Change is coming

State championships

Boys basketball

Girls basketball

Running on the street

Soccer

Notes . . .

From the archives: Jeff Kent

Recommendations

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Suggestion box

Chesney moves

Basketball blues?

Opinion time

Poll results

In case you missed it

Have something Bruin?

1. ”Narco” for Edwin Díaz

2. ”We Are Young” for Clayton Kershaw

3. ”Bailalo Rocky” for Roki Sasaki

4. ”Feeling Good” for Shohei Ohtani

5. ”Baila Conmigo” for Freddie Freeman