dodgers

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. At last, our long, national nightmare is over. The Dodgers re-signed Kiké Hernández.

Well, the first spring training game is Saturday against the Angels. Opening day is March 26 at home against Arizona. So what better time to look at a potential opening day roster? After all, it’s not like there will be injuries and roster moves before then, right? This will definitely be the roster.

But first, a couple of notes to catch up on:

—They are splitting up the raising of the World Series flag and the ring ceremony again. The ring ceremony is March 27.

—The Dodgers re-signed Evan Phillips to a one-year, $6.5-million deal. The Dodgers originally acquired Phillips off waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays near the end of the 2021 season. Since then, he has gone 15-9 with a 2.22 ERA and 45 saves in 201 games (195 innings). His injury last season threw the bullpen into disarray. He had Tommy John surgery in June and won’t be back until the All-Star break.

—To make room for Phillips on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers designated Ben Rortvedt for assignment, probably hoping again that Rortvedt will go unclaimed and they can send him to the minors. However, the New York Mets claimed Rortvedt, and he will compete for a backup spot with, among other, former Dodger Austin Barnes, who signed a minor-league deal with the Mets on Jan. 29

—The Dodgers re-signed Kiké Hernández to a one-year, $4.5-million deal. He had elbow surgery in the offseason and won’t be able to play until probably the All-Star break, so expect him to be put on the 60-day IL soon. To make room for Hernández, the Dodgers put Phillips on the 60-day IL.

—The Dodgers traded Anthony Banda, whom they designated for assignment last week, to the Minnesota Twins for $500,000 of international bonus pool space.

—The Dodgers signed Max Muncy to a contract extension, giving him $7 million for the 2027 season with a $10-million team option for 2028. Muncy has said he wants to remain with the Dodgers the rest of his career, and he will be 38 when the 2028 season ends.

—In this era of high contracts, you have to look at Muncy and Will Smith, who has a 10-year, $140-million contract, and marvel. They both have left a lot of money on the table to remain with the Dodgers. Especially Smith, who is arguably the best catcher in baseball, and definitely in the top three.

Why are the Dodgers so good at getting players for under market value? Muncy said this last week to reporters:

“Part of me and who I am as a person and how I was raised, I like to be loyal to people. This organization took a chance on me when I was out of baseball, basically. That meant a lot to me. They stuck with me when things were going bad. They’ve never wavered on me at all. That means a lot to me in itself, and it’s just a place I’m very comfortable. My family’s comfortable here. We have a chance to win every single year. That’s why I play this game. I want to win. Obviously you make money in this game, but that’s not why I play. I play because I want to win. It’s the competitive fire that I want to go out and win as much as I can. That to me is worth more than money.

“I know I’m leaving money on the table, but I’m more than OK with that because I wouldn’t be OK with myself trying to chase money somewhere else watching this team win and I’m on the sidelines. That’s just not who I am. I would rather win. Another component to it is just the relationships I’ve built here. Like I was just saying, I like to be loyal and my relationships mean a lot. I’ve created such a relationship with the staff, the front office, the coaches, the medical and training staff, the clubhouse guys. I just don’t want to create that somewhere else. Being here for my entire career at this point would mean the world to me, and this gives me the chance to do that.”

So, with that out of the way, let’s take a look at the 40-man roster.

Pitchers
Ben Casparius
Edwin Díaz
Jack Dreyer
Paul Gervase
Tyler Glasnow
Brusdar Graterol
Edgardo Henriquez
Kyle Hurt
Will Klein
Landon Knack
Ronan Kopp
Bobby Miller
Evan Phillips-*
River Ryan
Roki Sasaki
Tanner Scott
Emmet Sheehan
Blake Snell
Brock Stewart
Gavin Stone
Blake Treinen
Alex Vesia
Justin Wrobleski
Yoshinobu Yamamoto

Two-way players
Shohei Ohtani

Catcher
Dalton Rushing
Will Smith

Infielders
Mookie Betts
Tommy Edman
Alex Freeland
Freddie Freeman
Kiké Hernández
Hyeseong Kim
Max Muncy
Miguel Rojas

Outfielders
Alex Call
Teoscar Hernández
Andy Pages
Michael Siani
Kyle Tucker
Ryan Ward

*-on 60-day IL so doesn’t count as part of the 40-man limit.

So, let’s assume the Dodgers go with 13 pitchers and 13 position players as usual. And, Dave Roberts reiterated Thursday that they will go with a six-man rotation, at least for the first part of the season. Where does that leave us?

Starting pitchers (6)
Tyler Glasnow
Shohei Ohtani
Roki Sasaki
Emmet Sheehan
*Blake Snell
Yoshinobu Yamamoto

Bullpen (8)
Edwin Díaz
*Jack Dreyer
Brusdar Graterol
Will Klein
*Tanner Scott
Blake Treinen
*Alex Vesia
*Justin Wrobleski

*-left-handed

—Henriquez also could slip in here, it just depends on how everyone looks in spring training. Plus, knowing Dodgers history, one of these guys probably will start the season on the IL.

—Stewart is expected to miss part of the season, and there are questions about Snell, who says he slowed his process of getting ready for the season, and Graterol, who didn’t pitch last season.

—Remember, Ohtani counts as a two-way player, so he is a pitcher and designated hitter but takes only one roster spot, allowing the Dodgers to carry 14 pitchers when the official roster says 13.

Two-way player (1)
Shohei Ohtani

Catchers (2)
Dalton Rushing
Will Smith

Infielders (6)
Mookie Betts
Tommy Edman
Freddie Freeman
Hyeseong Kim
Max Muncy
Miguel Rojas

Outfielders (4)
Alex Call
Teoscar Hernández
Andy Pages
Kyle Tucker

—There’s a chance Edman starts the season on the IL.

—The odds that this is the actual opening day roster are very long. Remember, this is just a guess, not a prediction, so please, no wagering.

—This is just to give you a sense of where the Dodgers stand. Dave Roberts already said it is the best team he has had. But, as I’ve said before, here is what will happen: People will say they are going to set the record for wins. Expectations will be sky high. Injuries will hit the pitching staff. Slumps will happen. Some fans will wonder what happened and say the Dodgers stink and Roberts couldn’t manage his way out of his own house. The Dodgers will end the season with around 95 wins. And then anything can happen in the postseason.

In case you missed it

Plaschke: Yoshinobu Yamamoto must remain the calm in the Dodgers’ storm

Edwin Díaz responds to Steve Cohen comments, settles into Dodgers’ ‘really good clubhouse’

Why Dave Roberts expects Shohei Ohtani to be ‘in the Cy Young conversation’

Plaschke: Alex Vesia opens up about unimaginable loss: ‘Life can change in an instant’

Plaschke: Start talking three-peat! Dave Roberts believes these Dodgers can be better than ever

Kiké Hernández is back with the Dodgers, agreeing to terms on eve of spring training

And finally

Yoshinobu Yamamoto talks about pitching and other topics with José Mota. 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.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. The high school baseball season begins this week, and it’s the sport that produces the most future pro athletes in Southern California. While everyone thinks they are a scout and thousands of dollars are spent on private coaches, travel ball and showcases seeking any kind of edge, the bottom line is whether a player can produce results against quality competition. And throwing 90 mph without throwing strikes means nothing to the programs that win.

Baseball begins

St. John Bosco High teammates celebrate with a dogpile on the field after winning the regional baseball title last season.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Baseball is the sport in Southern California where you think the best team can win a championship but doesn’t because there’s always another team with equally good pitching Corona was the certain team last season to win it all (just like the Dodgers), but St. John Bosco beat the Panthers in the playoff semifinals and won the Southern Section Division 1 championship.

Now St. John Bosco is the Corona of 2026: Everyone’s No. 1 team to start the season because of numerous returnees, including the Clark twins, James and Miles; closer Jack Champlin; top hitters Jaden Jackson and Noah Everly; plus the addition of a healthy pitcher, Julian Garcia, who was supposed to be the No. 1 thrower last season until an injury.

Just like Corona, however, St. John Bosco is no sure thing because there’s lots of teams with the kind of standout pitching to beat the Braves in a one-game playoff situation.

The Mission League alone has so many pitchers throwing 90 mph and above that if you don’t have a radar gun at a game, you look out of place. Harvard-Westlake, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Sierra Canyon and Loyola all have formidable pitchers capable of winning big games against top opponents.

St. John Bosco faces immediate challengers in the Trinity League, led by Orange Lutheran, which has another team filled with all-star players, including 6-foot-8 pitcher Gary Morse and Huntington Beach infielder transfer CJ Weinstein. Texas commit Brady Murrietta will be a four-year standout. The Lancers can tell anyone that being ranked No. 1 hardly guarantees success in the postseason. They haven’t been able to win a section title despite lots of great teams.

Royal has a group of pitchers with big arms ready to see where they stand. Who’s going to inflict a loss on Huntington Beach junior Jared Grindlinger? Striker Pence of Corona Santiago has been clocked throwing 101 mph.

Cypress, El Dorado, JSerra, Santa Margarita, Mater Dei, Aquinas, La Mirada, Arcadia, Norco, Gahr and Huntington Beach have no fear of taking on the big boys this season.

As far as pro prospects, outfielder Blake Bowen of JSerra, outfielder Anthony Murphy of Corona, infielder Trey Ebel of Corona and infielder Brody Schumacher of Santa Margarita are among the top players to watch.

And prepare for one of the most talented group of players from the class of 2029, led by the hero of the El Segundo Little League World Series team, Louis Lappe, who makes his freshman debut for Harvard-Westlake.

Here’s a profile of Lappe and two of his fellow class of 2029 teammates.

Here’s a preseason all-star team.

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

Boys basketball

OJ Popoola of Palisades has made major contributions after transferring with his twin brother from Detroit.

(Nick Koza)

The City Section Open Division semifinals are set for Saturday at L.A. Southwest College. Palisades will face San Pedro at 6 p.m. and Cleveland will take on Fairfax at 4 p.m.

Fairfax upset No. 3-seeded Birmingham. San Pedro eliminated Coliseum League champion Washington Prep. San Pedro has the kind of veteran team that might be able to stay with the top-seeded Dolphins for a little bit if its zone is working.

The top seeds are mostly holding in Division I. The semifinals will have No. 3 Venice at No. 2 Chatsworth and No. 5 L.A. Jordan at No. 1 Granada Hills.

In Division II, No. 10-seeded Marquez is making noise behind football standout Elyjah Staples, upsetting No. 2 Eagle Rock 57-50. Marquez will be at Sylmar in the semifinals. King/Drew coach Lloyd Webster has his team in semifinals after a 52-50 win over Downtown Magnets. He also was smiling because his son, Josahn, scored 22 points for Rolling Hills Prep in its win over Orange Lutheran in Southern Section Division 1.

La Mirada got a breakthrough win in the Southern Section Open Division. Here’s the report. On Tuesday, Corona Centennial is playing at Redondo Union to determine No. 1 in its pool and ditto for Harvard-Westlake at Santa Margarita.

Blair upset top-seeded Bonita in Division 4. Blair is coached by Derrick Taylor, who’s won championships at Taft and St. John Bosco. Here’s the report.

Mater Dei and JSerra continue to dominate in Division 2 and Division 1, respectively. JSerra will face a challenge in the quarterfinals on Tuesday from Rolling Hills Prep at North Torrance. Rolling Hills Prep inflicted a loss to Orange Lutheran last week.

Girls basketball

One of the best coaching jobs this season has been turned in by Birmingham’s Victor Koopongsakorn. The Patriots are 27-3 and seeded No. 2 in the City Section Open Division despite being a young team with few returnees. Next up is a semifinal game against Hamilton on Saturday. The other semifinal has top-seeded Westchester facing Venice. Three of the four remaining teams are from the Western League.

In the Southern Section Open Division, there’s no sign any opponent is going to threaten Ontario Christian, Etiwanda or Sierra Canyon among the 12 teams in pool play. All three are preparing to inevitable meetings in the next two weeks.

Oak Park came through with a 67-44 win over Corona Centennial to make itself the likely No. 4 team to challenge the big three. Karisma Flores had 17 points and Ava Rogerson 15.

Two veteran coaches, Charlie Solomon of Brentwood and Kevin Kiernan of Troy, faceed with their teams on Saturday in Division 1. Troy won 61-48. Kiernan is the winningest coach in California history. He came out of retirement to return for a second stint at Troy. Mei-Ling Perry had 19 points and nine rebounds to advance Troy to the quarterfinals. Kelsey Sugar had 20 points for Brentwood.

Softball

Garden Grove Pacifica continues to take pride in all of its former players playing college softball. The list is at 16 for this season. As they say, “Once a Mariner, always a Mariner.”

Norco, the defending Southern Section Division 1 champions, is expected to be the preseason No. 1 with the return of pitcher Coral Williams. The Cougars open the season Tuesday at home against Aquinas.

Defending City Open Division champion Granada Hills has to find a pitching replacement for Addison Moorman, but has lots of hitters, including Zoe Justman, who batted .442, and Elysse Diaz, who hit .470. The Highlanders will try once again to prepare for City competition by playing Southern Section teams in nonleague and tournament games.

Wrestling

Birmingham’s Henry Aslikyan, seen here last year, became a four-time City Section champion on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Henry Aslikyan of Birmingham capped off a remarkable four-year run in City Section wrestling by winning his fourth City individual title. This time it was at 120 pounds, sending him on to the state championships. He has won two state titles but the 120-pound division will be the toughest in state with three returning state champions competing.

Here’s the link to complete City results.

Here’s the link to Southern Section results.

Soccer

El Camino Real, South East, Marquez and Palisades are the four teams that have made it to the City Section Open Division boys soccer semifinals. On Thursday, top-seeded El Camino Real will host Palisades and No. 2 South East will host Marquez.

On Wednesday in City Open Division girls semifinals, No. 1 Cleveland plays host to Palisades and Thursday, No. 6 New West Charter hosts Granada Hills.

In Southern Section Open Division boys, the quarterfinals begin Tuesday with Orange Lutheran hosting Placentia Valencia and JSerra hosting Mater Dei. In Division 1, Servite is the fourth Trinity League still alive and plays host to Santa Monica.

In Southern Section Open Division girls, Santa Margarita, Oaks Christian, Mater Dei and Redondo Union have advanced.

In Southern Section Division 1 girls, Mission League rivals Harvard-Westlake and Sherman Oaks Notre Dame will face off in Wednesday’s quarterfinals at Harvard-Westlake.

Competitive equity playoffs

The CIF governs high school sports in California.

(CIF)

There’s still coaches unhappy with the Southern Section competitive equity playoff system using computer algorithms to place teams in divisions.

The Southern Section says no system is perfect, but it’s clear the system used for basketball is flawed. How in the name of sanity (just go ask coaches) was Mater Dei placed in Division 2? They were in Division 1 all season until taking a free fall from Jan. 27 until the time the next rankings were released during seeding announcements. They happened to need an at-large berth to qualify for the playoffs and wouldn’t have earned one in Division 1, causing conspiracy theories. I don’t believe there was a conspiracy, just that the computer system got it badly wrong. Mater Dei has won its first two Division 2 playoff games by scores of 83-63 and 85-59. And look for more to come because they are a Division 1 team.

Here’s a look at the concerns.

Notes . . .

St. John Bosco has already won the transfer portal in high school football with the announcement that standout sophomore offensive tackle Elisha Mueller of Servite has arrived at the Bellflower school. Leuzinger sophomore quarterback Russell Sekona has transferred to Mater Dei. Leuzinger sophomore defensive back Pakipole Moala has transferred to Santa Margarita. Here’s the transfer portal list. . . .

Russell White has stepped down after 10 years coaching eight-man football at Flintridge Prep. He’d like to try 11-man football. White led Crespi to a Division 1 football title in 1986 playing running back and went on to star at Cal before being drafted by the Rams. . . .

Rick Garretson is the new football coach at Servite. He’s a 1974 graduate of Servite, was once a long-serving assistant coach and served as head coach at Chandler in Arizona from 2019-2024. Here’s the report.

Kicker Jacob Kreinbring of Loyola has committed to Stonybrook. . . .

Football coach James Stewart of La Quinta has resigned. Lucas Alexander will be the new coach. . . .

Randy Luna is the new football coach at Canoga Park. . . .

Fred Gambrell has resigned after two years as head football coach at Sunny Hills. . . .

Junior receiver Eli Woodard of Chaparral has committed to USC. . . .

Golfer Charlie Woods, the teenage son of Tiger Woods, has committed to Florida State as part of the class of 2027. . . .

Two top high school baseball tournaments for this spring have been finalized. The Boras Classic will begin April 7 at Mater Dei and JSerra. The National Classic also will be held in Orange County starting March. 30. Here’s the link.

St. John Bosco twins Ethan and Justin Coach, standout linebackers, have committed to Washington. . . .

Henry Polanco is the new girls flag football coach at Schurr. . . .

Kiyoshi Harris is the new football coach at JW North. . . .

Benjamin Siff, an assistant baseball coach at St. Margaret’s since 2016, has been named the head coach effective at the end of the 2026 season. Long-time coach Scott Wallis is leaving out of Orange County at the end of this season. . . .

Richard Masson has announced his retirement from coaching basketball. What a journey he’s had coaching boys and girls after winning more than 700 games. He was boys coach at L.A. Jordan for seven years, Carson boys coach for 22 years, Rolling Hills Prep girls coach for seven years, Carson girls coach for four years. He’s won championships and coached lots of great players. “Blessed to have had great players, assistant coaches and support system,” he said.

From the archives: LaMelo Ball

Chino Hills guard LaMelo Ball pulls up for a shot over Mater Dei’s Michael Wang and Matthew Weyand (21) in 2017.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

It’s been nine years since LaMelo Ball scored 92 points as a 15-year-old sophomore for Chino Hills in a 146-123 win over Los Osos in February of 2017, so why not look back.

The big debate was whether it was an accomplishment that should be celebrated or criticized.

“As a coach, if I see a player doing well, who am I to stop his shine?” Stephan Gilling, Chino Hills’ first-year coach, said in 2017.

“About the third quarter, my dad said, ‘Keep shooting,’” LaMelo said during a radio interview on KLAC-AM (570). “If I knew I was going to score that much, I would have shot more in the first half.”

Here’s a story looking back at that game.

Recommendations

From the Seattle Times, a story on former NBA guard Jamal Crawford coaching his son in high school.

From the Tennessee Bar Assn., a story on how the state is moving to loosening transfer rules with one free sports transfer.

From the Pleasantonweekly, a story from last December from a high school sportswriter detailing his frustration with the transfer issues in California high school sports.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on how Brentwood School’s athletic facilities are facing a challenge from the Veterans Administration.

Fram Angelusnews, a story on the turnaround at St. Bernard.

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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Welcome to your daily review and preview of this year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics. My name is John Cherwa and I’m your tour director for the Games as the U.S. finds a new star in speed skater Jason Stoltz. The U.S. got the trifecta on Saturday with a gold, silver and bronze.

Going into the Games, the U.S. had its usual cadre of star power that was supposed to propel the country to the top of the medal standings. But then reality set in. Ilia Malinin had a good lead heading into the free skate in men’s figure skating. Then, he had a ghastly performance, falling twice, and slipping to eighth. Chloe Kim, two-time Olympic champion in the women’s halfpipe, struggled for repeated clean runs and finished second. Then, dreamers believed Lindsey Vonn, skating with a torn ACL, could navigate the women’s downhill to the medal podium. She crashed high in the course.

Enter the latest star for the United States. Speed skater Jordan Stolz, who picked up his second gold of the Games by winning the men’s 500 meters to go with his gold in the 1,000 meters. Both were set in Olympic record time. The 21-year-old from Wisconsin still has at least two events to go, hoping to up his personal and the U.S. medal count. He’s set to compete in the men’s 1,500 (Thursday), and the men’s mass start (Saturday).

The only other medals the U.S. won on Saturday were in the freestyle skiing women’s dual moguls. An Aussie was the winner, but Jaelin Kauf got the silver and Liz Lemley (not to be confused with 30 Rock’s Liz Lemon) won the B final for the bronze. This was the first appearance of dual moguls in the Olympics.

Catching up on the men’s hockey stage, the Kings suffered a severe blow when forward Kevin Fiala sustained a season-ending injury playing for Switzerland on Friday. Fiala had a tough collision with Canada’s Tom Wilson with only a couple of minutes to play in the game. He was stretchered off with a lower leg injury. He had surgery in Italy on Saturday morning and was said to be done for both Olympic and NHL competition the rest of this season.

The Kings are on the cusp of making the playoffs and this, no doubt, will make their road to the postseason that much more difficult. Fiala had 18 goals and 40 points so far this season in 56 games.

NBC should ask Today show personalities Craig Melvin, Al Roker and Dylan Dryer to turn in their journalistic credentials after an embarrassing, saccharine interview with IOC President Kirsty Coventry on the Third Hour of “Today” on Friday. There should have been a warning that watching the interview could cause an immediate increase in blood sugar. The trio, doing the interview from New York, covered such difficult topics of how much fun everyone is having in Italy, how the Olympic spirit is pervasive and, of course, how cuddly the mascots are.

But in no way did they address what would have been the first question any legit journalist would ask, Coventry’s barring of Ukranian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych for wanting to honor his fallen Ukranian athletes with stickers on his racing helmet was never mentioned. We’ll give you that Roker and Dryer are meteorologists, but there is no excuse for Melvin’s lack of journalistic chops.

Elsewhere on Saturday

— Good day for U.S. curlers as the women (2-1 record) beat Japan 7-4, while the men (2-2) beat Germany 8-6. (Valentine’s Day moment at restaurant. My wife: “Are you the only one here straining to see the curling score on TV?” Answer: “Yes.”)

— The U.S. men’s team (2-0) rallied from a 2-1 deficit to beat Denmark 6-3. Germany is next.

— Brazil topped three Swiss skiers, who finished second through fourth, to win the men’s giant slalom. River Radamus of the U.S. was 17^th.

— Norway, on its way to its 10th gold medal, won the women’s 4×7.5 km cross country relay, upsetting Sweden. The U.S. managed a fifth-place finish.

— Austria upset Germany, which finished second and third, in the women’s skeleton. Kelly Curtis of the U.S. was 12^th.

—- Slovenia picked up its first gold of the Games in the men’s ski jumping, large hill. Tate Frantz of the U.S. was 19^th.

— Norway — who else? — won the women’s 7.5 km sprint in the biathlon. France got silver and bronze. Deedra Irwin was the top U.S. competitor in 47^th.

Best Thing to Watch on TV today

We went off the board yesterday and picked the men’s 500 in speed skating as our best bet. Turned out a wise choice. Today, let’s make another swerve and look to the mixed team snowboard cross, in which the U.S. is the defending gold champion. You’ve got returnee Nick Baumgartner, 44, with new partner Faye Thelen. He won gold in Beijing with Lindsey Jacobellis, who is taking a break this year. The qualification starts at 4:45 a.m. PST, with the finals at 5:35 a.m. PST. After a day off, the figure skating gets back on the ice with the pairs short program. The U.S. team of Ellie Kim and Danny O’Shea is going 14th of 19^th pairs with a 10:15 a.m. PST start for competition. The U.S. men’s hockey team (2-0) plays Germany at 12:10 p.m. PST.

Favorite photo of the day

The Netherlands’ speedskater Jenning de Boo clutches his head after losing to American Jordan Stolz in the 500 final in Milan on Saturday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Times photographer Robert Gauthier is at the Winter Olympics. Each day Times newsletter editor Houston Mitchell will select a favorite photo from the many he has taken.

Sunday’s Olympic TV and streaming schedule

Sunday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts for the Milan-Cortina Olympics unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific. 🏅 — medal event for live broadcasts.

MULTIPLE SPORTS
8 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay): Skiing, figure skating, bobsled, speedskating and more. | NBC

ALPINE SKIING
1 a.m. — Women’s giant slalom, Run 1 | USA
4:30 a.m. — 🏅Women’s giant slalom, Run 2 | NBC

BIATHLON
2:15 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 12.5-kilometer pursuit | Peacock
5:45 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 10-kilometer pursuit | NBC
6:30 a.m. — Men’s 12.5-kilometer pursuit (delay) | USA
8:30 a.m. — Men’s 12.5-kilometer pursuit (re-air) | NBC

BOBSLED
1 a.m. — Women’s monobob, Run 1 | Peacock
2:50 a.m. — Women’s monobob, Run 2 | Peacock
6:30 a.m. — Women’s monobob, Run 1 (delay) | NBC
7:30 a.m. — Women’s monobob, Run 2 (delay) | NBC

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING
3 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 4×7.5-kilometer relay | USA
4 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 4×7.5-kilometer relay | NBC

CURLING
Men (round robin)
12:05 a.m. — U.S. vs. Sweden | Peacock
12:05 a.m. — Germany vs. Britain | Peacock
12:05 a.m. — Norway vs. Italy | Peacock
Women (round robin)
5:05 a.m. — U.S. vs. China | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Denmark vs. Italy | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Britain vs. Sweden | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Japan vs. South Korea | Peacock
5:30 a.m. — U.S. vs. China (in progress) | CNBC
Men (round robin)
8 a.m. — U.S. vs. Sweden (delay) | CNBC
10:05 a.m. — U.S. vs. Norway | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — China vs. Canada | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — Britain vs. Switzerland | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — Italy vs. Czechia | Peacock

FIGURE SKATING
8:20 a.m. — Pairs, short program, warmup | Peacock
10:30 a.m. — Pairs, short program | USA
Noon — Pairs, short program | NBC

FREESTYLE SKIING
1:40 a.m. — 🏅Men’s dual moguls, final | USA
9:30 a.m. — Men’s dual moguls, final (re-air) | NBC
10:40 a.m. — Men’s big air, qualifying | NBC

HOCKEY
Men (group play)
3 a.m. — Switzerland vs. Czechia | CNBC
7:40 a.m. — Canada vs. France | USA
10 a.m. — Denmark vs. Latvia | CNBC
12:10 p.m. — U.S. vs. Germany | USA

SKELETON
9 a.m. — 🏅Mixed team event | Peacock
10:15 a.m. — Mixed team event (delay) | NBC

SKI JUMPING
8:30 a.m. — 🏅Women’s large hill, finals | Peacock

SNOWBOARDING
4:45 a.m. — 🏅Mixed team snowboard cross, finals | USA
5:30 a.m. — Mixed team snowboard cross, finals | NBC

SPEEDSKATING
7 a.m. — Men’s team pursuit, qualifying | NBC
8 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 500 meters | NBC

In case you missed it …

Check out the following Milan-Cortina Olympics dispatches from the L.A. Times team on the ground in Italy:

2026 Olympics Day 8 live updates: 2026 Winter Olympics Day 8 recap: Results, medal count and schedule

Jordan Stolz sets another Olympic record to win his second speedskating gold

Visualizing success: Why Olympic skiers mentally rehearse before every run

Ilia Malinin’s collapse a reminder of how stressful the Olympic spotlight can be

Mikaela Shiffrin hopes to end her Olympic slump, but winning gold won’t be eas

Power couple Brittany Bowe and Hilary Knight eager to cap their Olympic careers with gold

Caribbean sprinters are hoping to transform Winter Olympic bobsledding

Winter Olympics TV schedule: Sunday’s listings

Ukrainian Olympian loses appeal over helmet honoring war dead, which IOC said violated rules

Until next time…

That concludes today’s Sports Report Olympic Edition newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email newsletter editor Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here and select the Sports Report.

PHOENIX — Coming off an offseason in which the Dodgers spent over $300 million on just two free agents, the two-time defending champions’ luxurious spending has undoubtedly been a topic of conversation and consternation around Major League Baseball.

However, when asked about the Dodgers’ record-setting payroll Sunday, the Philadelphia Phillies’ Bryce Harper and the San Diego Padres’ Manny Machado were complimentary of the way the Dodgers do business.

“I love it,” Machado told reporters at the team’s facility in Peoria, Ariz. “They figured out a way to do it. … I think every team has the ability to do it. I hope all 30 teams could learn from that.”

Machado spent a half of a season with the Dodgers in 2018 before inking a $300-million contract with the Padres. That same winter, the Dodgers met with Harper, who eventually signed a $330-million contract with the Phillies. Harper shared the same sentiment as Machado when he spoke with reporters in Clearwater, Fla.

“I love what the Dodgers do, obviously,” Harper said. “They pay the money, they spend the money. I mean, they’re a great team. They run their team like a business, and they run it the right way.”

Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes, while speaking with media at Camelback Ranch Sunday, made it clear that his organization isn’t searching for approval from any outside sources.

“We’re not looking externally for validation,” Gomes said. “The validation is winning championships and putting out as good a team as we can each and every year, and all we’re trying to do is get a little bit better each and every season, with the goal of winning championships. [Our] coaching staff, our players I think view it as that. Good, bad or indifferent, the external stuff is something we can’t worry about.”

Gomes also credited Dodgers ownership for providing the financial resources to help the front office continue to bolster its roster each winter.

“[We’ve had] incredible support from ownership,” Gomes said. “We’ve always [been] in the position to address the needs that will help us go out and win another championship, so I think a lot of it is looking at what’s needed in the roster and what’s available. We’ve been in the fortunate position to be able to acquire guys that fit that really well.”

PHOENIX — His smile is so unassuming, his stare so innocent, one has to wonder.

Does Yoshinobu Yamamoto understand he’s become a Dodgers legend?

“No,” he said Saturday, chuckling at the notion. “Nothing’s changed.”

Ah, but everything has changed, the formerly overpaid disappointment having transformed himself into arguably the most important player on baseball’s most important team.

Barely touching 5 feet 10, he looks tiny next to giant countryman Shohei Ohtani, with whom he’ll always be compared because they joined the Dodgers at the same time with equally historic contracts.

Quiet and contemplative, he seems dry next to the charming Ohtani. Employed only as a pitcher, he seems boring next to the goose-bump-inducing Ohtani.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto hoists the MVP trophy as the team celebrates the World Series victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Struggling at times during his first two regular seasons with the Dodgers while Ohtani was twice voted National League MVP, Yamamoto was originally overshadowed by the greatest player in history.

Until last October, when he became one of the greatest World Series pitchers in history.

Who can forget how he shut down the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 2, shut them down again in Game 6, then shut them out in relief on zero days rest to get the win in the deciding Game 7.

It was crazy. It was historic. It was two allowed runs in 17 ⅔ innings with 15 strikeouts and two walks.

Put it another way: It was more compelling than Sandy Koufax’s three-hit shutout on two days rest to win the 1965 World Series over the Minnesota Twins.

It was Yamomania. It was Bulldog 2.0. But if you believe the guy on the mound, it barely made a ripple.

At Camelback Ranch on Saturday, in his first news conference since his World Series heroics, he shrugged and acted like those games were just a walk in the park — except, of course, he barely walked anybody in the park.

Someone asked, how did the World Series change him?

Um, it didn’t.

“I was able to get into the offseason with a great feeling and I was able to go into the offseason with more calmness,” he said through interpreter Yoshihiro Sonoda.

Someone else asked, did he have to alter his legendary workload in the offseason?

Er, no.

“As a matter of fact, the amount of work I did last year has not been affected in terms of preparation,” he said. “In November, I took off and then I began a gradual ramping up. It’s been like a normal offseason.”

Then someone asked, has he watched anything from that World Series?

Actually, yes!

“Of course, that moment of the last out,” he said. “But when I reflect back on that series, there’s so many great plays they made. Also there’s the small play which was very important. So many great scenes.”

One of the best scenes was the one nobody saw, after Yamamoto had thrown 96 pitches in a Game 6 victory.

He was done. He told his personal trainer he was done. Dave Roberts told the media he was done.

But then, in his words, he got “tricked.”

According to a report by then-Times columnist Dylan Hernández, trainer Osamu Yada told Yamamoto, “Let’s see if you can throw in the bullpen tomorrow.”

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws live batting practice during a workout Friday during spring training at Camelback Ranch.

(Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press)

The trainer figured Yamamoto’s mere presence as a potential reliever would inspire the Dodgers and worry the Blue Jays.

Yamamoto figured he was just going to the bullpen for show.

Oh, he put on a show, all right.

After he pitched 2⅔ scoreless innings to win the game and the World Series championship for the Dodgers, the gamesmanship had been transformed into greatness, and the con man had become a hero.

“For him to have the same stuff that he had the night before is really the greatest accomplishment I’ve ever seen on a baseball field,” said Dodgers baseball boss Andrew Friedman to reporters after the game.

Yamamoto explained afterward, “I didn’t think I would pitch. But I felt good when I practiced and the next thing I knew, I was on the mound in the game.”

And before he knew it, history.

“I really couldn’t believe it,” Yamamoto said. “I was so excited I couldn’t even recall what pitch I threw at the end.”

Now, with the Dodgers chasing a third consecutive championship and Yamamoto involved in a daring race for a Cy Young Award — who will get there first, he or Ohtani? — a different sort of question must be asked.

How on earth can he pitch any better?

“That’s an internal personal question … as far as, can you repeat and continue to get better than what you’ve been,” Roberts said. “Certainly there’s a high bar, but there’s always room for improvement and I can’t find anything right now to be quite honest, but …”

Yamamoto needs to stay healthy. He made his major-league high 30 starts last year after making just 18 the previous year. He needs to do that again to support the other frail Dodgers starters.

Yamamoto also needs to take care of himself while playing for Japan in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. Ohtani is not pitching, but Yamamoto is, and he doesn’t need to wreck his arm.

Finally, he needs to continue acting like the ace that he has become, from his uncomplaining leadership to his dazzling arsenal.

“Every time he takes the ball, he expects to win and we expect to win,” Roberts said.

That is the bottom line on Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s new reality. He was once Ohtani’s sidekick. He is now Ohtani’s partner.

Like it or not, his life has changed. Witness the crowd that screamed for him Saturday at Camelback Ranch like they always scream for Ohtani.

“More calmness?”

He’ll need it.

PHOENIX — Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz has been settling in with his new team at Camelback Ranch, but in his first comments to the media since camp opened, he faced questions about his old team.

In an interview with Mets broadcaster Howie Rose on Friday, team owner Steve Cohen called Díaz’s decision to a sign a three-year, $69-million contract with the Dodgers “perplexing.” Though Díaz was caught off guard by Cohen’s comments, he said Saturday he had no bad feelings towards the Mets or their fans.

“It’s a market and I was a free agent, so I got the chance to talk with everyone,” Díaz said. “I think the Dodgers did a great job of recruiting me, so at the end of the day, I chose to be here. I have a lot of respect for the Mets organization — players, staff, ownership — they treated me pretty good. I don’t have anything bad to say about them. But at the end of the day, I’m here, so this is a new journey for me. I’m happy to be with the Dodgers, so let’s see how it goes.”

Díaz participated in the Dodgers’ first day of official workouts Friday, throwing a clean bullpen session without any hiccups. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has liked what he has seen thus far from the three-time MLB reliever of the year.

“I’m very excited to get to know him more,” Roberts said. “[He’s] just a great teammate, really good person, loves baseball, a good heartbeat. You can tell he knows what he needs to do to get ready. [He’s] likable, and at the end of the day, he chose to be here, so that’s something that is of a lot of value for us. High character. I’m really looking forward to getting to know him.”

One thing that attracted Díaz to the Dodgers was the team’s culture.

“That’s how they’ve been so good,” Díaz said. “They have a really good clubhouse… They’ve got different personalities in the clubhouse. They’ve got different players from different countries, and they all get together and have fun, so that’s something good.”

Part of having a melting pot of a clubhouse means missing some key ingredients for an extended period of spring training. The Dodgers will have several players participating in the World Baseball Classic, including Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Will Smith and Díaz.

Each Major League player competing in the event runs the risk of injury, something Díaz knows all too well. Moments after striking out the side to send Puerto Rico to the WBC quarterfinals in 2023, Díaz sustained a season-ending knee injury.

Despite suffering the trauma of the last WBC, Díaz told reporters it was a no-brainer, when he was asked to compete for his country again in 2026.

“It wasn’t in my mind,” Díaz said. “I have the chance to play in front of my family in Puerto Rico. It was an easy decision.”

Díaz’s fearlessness is one trait that Roberts admires about his new closer. Díaz met Roberts’ squad in the 2024 National League Championship Series, where the Dodgers managed only two hits off him across 5.1 IP, scoring no runs.

“He’s not scared,” Roberts said. “When he’s in the game, it’s an uncomfortable at bat for lefties and righties, and when we did see him in the postseason, [we were] really trying to keep him out of the game, knowing that he can go one, two [or] even three innings. That, he’s done against us in the postseason; [he’s] just a great competitor.”

The addition of Díaz should stabilize the back end of the Dodgers rotation. Since bidding farewell to Kenley Jansen after the 2021 season, the Dodgers haven’t had a closer tally more than 25 saves in a season. Over his nine-year career, Díaz has 253 saves.

With Díaz expected to be the regular ninth-inning guy, Roberts looks forward to having more flexibility when managing his bullpen.

“It’s huge,” Roberts said. “I don’t think that there’s one way to manage a pen, but when you have a guy like Edwin Díaz as your closer, I do think it frees up other guys, myself included. Not having to worry about matchups for the ninth, I think that’s freeing for me and allows for getting the matchups we need in the prior innings.”

Dodgers staying cautious with Graterol

One key relief weapon Roberts hopes to have in his armory is Brusdar Graterol.

The hard-throwing right-hander underwent labrum surgery shortly after the 2024 World Series, and hasn’t pitched in a game since.

Roberts provided an update on Graterol’s recovery Saturday.

“He’s in the picture, but I do think that coming back from the shoulder, it’s going to take some time,” Roberts said. “He’s in the bucket of, ‘We’re going to slow-play him’. I think yesterday he threw off the mound, and the velocity is not near where it’s going to be, so I think that it’s a slow progression. I just don’t know where that puts us, but it’s a slow process for Brusdar.”

Staff writer Anthony Solorzano contributed to this report.

Welcome to your daily review and preview of this year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics. My name is John Cherwa and I’m your tour director for the Games as we learn how thin the line is between greatness and failure.

In the most shocking moment of the Games so far, U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin had the gold at his doorstep but instead had a dreadful performance, falling twice and giving the gold to Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan. The feeling in the arena was that there with no way Malinin could lose with his big lead after the short program. Then his main competitor, Yuma Yagiyama of Japan, had a subpar skate just before Malinin took the ice as the last skater of the night.

But Malinin missed his first combo and could never regain his composure in what was likely his worst performance in a major competition in quite some time. He finished eighth but at age 21, we could see him in a future Olympics. It was Malinin’s first loss since Nov. 2023.

In honor of Valentine’s Day, we thought we should look at some of the athlete couples at the Games. We compiled the list from People, so we take no responsibility for last-minute fights or splits (other than time splits, of course).

• Madison Chock and Evan Bates: U.S. ice dancers. Won the silver with a gold-medal performance.
• Brittany Bowe and Hilary Knight: U.S. speedskater Bowe finished fourth in the women’s 1,000 meters and has the 1,500 and team pursuit to go. Knight plays for the U.S. women’s hockey team, which is in the semifinals.
• Nicole Silveira and Kim Meylemans: Both are in the women’s skeleton with Silveira competing for Brazil and Meylemans for Belgium. After two of four heats, Meylemans is eighth and Silveira is 12th.
• Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey: Both are members of the Canadian women’s hockey team, who, despite losing to the U.S. in pool play, is expected to contend for a medal.
• Magnus Nedregotten and Kristin Skaslien: This pair’s love is on the rocks … or stones if your prefer. They are curlers for Norway. They finished sixth in the mixed competition.
• Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant: It’s another curling pair swept to each other’s brooms. The Canadians finished fifth in the mixed competition.
• Ronja Savolainen and Anna Kjellbin: These hockey players play for two different countries, Savolainen for Finland and Kjellbin for Sweden. Both countries made the quarterfinals with Sweden already advancing to the semifinals.
• Hunter Powell and Kaysha Love: This U.S. bobsledding couple will see competition soon, Powell in the four-man and Love in both singles and doubles.
• Emily and Dominik Fischnaller. This luge couple will bring back some hardware. Dominik, who sleds for Italy, took bronze in singles and team relay. Emily, who competes for the U.S., was 12th in singles.

There are certainly others, and some in the making as we speak, but this is a sampling.

Elsewhere on Friday

• Italy is on fire at these Games but were not hot enough to beat the U.S. in women’s hockey. The U.S. won 6-0 and will move to the semifinals.
• France, followed by two from Norway, won the biathlon men’s 10-kilometer sprint. The best U.S. finisher was Campbell Wright in 12th.
• Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, the GOAT of cross-country skiing, won his eighth lifetime gold for Norway by winning the men’s 10-kilometer interval start free. He is tied for most lifetime gold medals in the Winter Games and has three more events. John Steel Hagenbuch of the U.S. was 14th.
• The U.S. and Canada played each other in both men’s and women’s curling. The women won, 9-8, (now 2-1) and the men lost, 6-3, (1-2).
• The U.S. was shut out on snowboard with Australia winning gold in women’s snowboard cross and Japan getting gold and bronze in men’s halfpipe.
• Matt Weston, the world champion from Britain, won men’s skeleton. Germans won silver and bronze. Austin Florian of the U.S. was 12th.
• A 19-year-old from Czechia won the men’s 10,000 meters in speedskating. The U.S. did not compete.

Best Thing to Watch on TV today

Today is the day to take a breath from figure skating. It also seems to be a good time for your tour guide to admit something: I have absolutely no idea if the skaters are doing three, three and a half, four or four and a half rotations when they are in air in real time. OK, I said it. Are you nodding your head in affirmation right now? Thought so. OK, let’s go to something different for today.

The best bet will be the men’s 500 meters in speed skating. Jordan Stolz, the winner of the 1,000 for the U.S., will be in the 12th pair in the event which starts at 8 a.m PST. This isn’t his best event but he should have confidence and momentum going his way. If you need your hockey fix, the U.S. men play Denmark around 12:10 p.m.

Favorite photo of the day

France’s Adam Siao Him Fa performs a backflip while competing in the figure skating men’s free skate Friday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Times photographer Robert Gauthier is at the Winter Olympics. Each day Times newsletter editor Houston Mitchell will select a favorite photo from the many he has taken.

Saturday’s Olympic TV and streaming schedule

Saturday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts for the Milan-Cortina Olympics unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific. 🏅 — medal event for live broadcasts.

MULTIPLE SPORTS

8 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay): Alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, speedskating and more. | NBC

ALPINE SKIING
1 a.m. — Men’s giant slalom, Run 1 | USA
4:30 a.m. 🏅Men’s giant slalom, Run 2 | NBC

BIATHLON
5:45 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 7.5-kilometer sprint | NBC

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING
3 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 4×7.5-kilometer relay | USA
4 a.m. — Women’s 4×7.5-kilometer relay (delay) | NBC

CURLING
Women (round robin)
12:05 a.m. — Britain vs. Canada | Peacock
12:05 a.m. — Italy vs. China | Peacock
12:05 a.m. — Switzerland vs. Japan | Peacock
4:30 a.m. — Britain vs. Canada (delay) | USA
Men (round robin)
5:05 a.m. — Germany vs. U.S. | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Czechia vs. Britain | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Sweden vs. China | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Switzerland vs. Canada | Peacock
Women (round robin)
5:30 a.m. — Italy vs. China (delay) | CNBC
Men (round robin)
10 a.m. — Germany vs. U.S. (delay) | CNBC
Women (round robin)
10:05 a.m. — Japan vs. U.S. | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — Canada vs. Switzerland | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — Italy vs. Sweden | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — South Korea vs. Denmark | Peacock
2:30 p.m. — Japan vs. U.S. (delay) | CNBC

FREESTYLE SKIING
1:30 a.m. — 🏅Women’s dual moguls, finals | Peacock
1:40 a.m. — 🏅Women’s dual moguls, finals (in progress) | USA
7 a.m. — Women’s dual moguls, finals (delay) | NBC
10:30 a.m. — Women’s big air, qualifying | Peacock

HOCKEY
Men (group play)
3 a.m. — Germany vs. Latvia | CNBC
3:10 a.m. — Sweden vs. Slovakia | Peacock
7:40 a.m. — Finland vs. Italy | USA
Women (quarterfinals)
7:40 a.m. — Canada vs. Germany | CNBC
12:10 p.m. — Finland vs. Switzerland | CNBC
Men (group play)
12:10 p.m. — U.S. vs. Denmark | USA

SKELETON
9 a.m. — Women, Run 3 | NBC
10:35 a.m. — Women, final run | Peacock
2:30 p.m. — Women, runs 3-4 (delay) | USA

SHORT TRACK SPEEDSKATING
11:15 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 1,500 meters final and more | Peacock
3:15 p.m. — 🏅Men’s 1,500 meters final and more | USA

SKI JUMPING
8:30 a.m. — Men’s large hill, trial round| Peacock
10 a.m. — 🏅Men’s large hill, final round | USA

SPEEDSKATING
7 a.m. — Women’s team pursuit, qualifying | USA
8 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 500 meters | NBC

In case you missed it …

Check out the following Milan-Cortina Olympics dispatches from the L.A. Times team on the ground in Italy:

2026 Olympics Day 8 live updates: South America earns first Winter Games medal ever

Inside the terrifying and efficient world of Olympic ski airlifts

Ilia Malinin describes crippling anxiety that cost the favorite a Winter Olympics medal

Power couple Brittany Bowe and Hilary Knight eager to cap their Olympic careers with gold

Puerto Rico’s lone Winter Olympian hopes to inspire others to represent the island

Mikaela Shiffrin hopes to end her Olympic slump, but winning gold won’t be easy

Caribbean sprinters are hoping to transform Winter Olympic bobsledding

Winter Olympics TV schedule: Sunday’s listings

Visualizing success: Why Olympic skiers mentally rehearse before every run

Caribbean sprinters are hoping to transform Winter Olympic bobsledding

2026 Winter Olympics Day 7 recap: Results, medal count, schedule

Until next time…

That concludes today’s Sports Report Olympic Edition newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email newsletter editor Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here and select the Sports Report.

PHOENIX — Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expects a lot from Shohei Ohtani this season. But even with those high expectations, a topic of conversation Friday as pitchers and catchers went through their first official workouts at Camelback Ranch, the superstar two-way player already found a way to exceed them.

“I came into camp at the beginning of February,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton following a bullpen session. “This is my third bullpen with pretty good intensity. … I’m not really sure how I’ll be able to practice in the WBC setting, so I’m going to try to ramp up as much as I can to a point where I’m throwing a live BP, which should be next week.”

The 2026 season will be Ohtani’s third year with the Dodgers, and his first pitching without restrictions. Fully recovered from his second Tommy John surgery, Ohtani was able to enjoy a regular, albeit short, offseason. With Ohtani in full bloom, Roberts has even higher hopes for the four-time MVP in the coming season.

“I think there’s certainly a lot more in there, and regardless of my expectations for him, his are going to exceed those,” Roberts said Friday. “I think it’s fair to say, he expects to be in the Cy Young conversation, but we just want to be healthy and make starts and all the numbers and statistics will take care of themselves, but man, this guy is such a disciplined worker, and expects the most from himself.”

Ohtani’s highest placement in Cy Young Award voting came in 2022, when, still a member of the Angels, he finished fourth after logging 15 wins, a 2.33 ERA and a 1.012 WHIP across 166 innings pitched. Ohtani suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament the following season, requiring Tommy John surgery.

“If the end result is getting a Cy Young, that’s great,” Ohtani said. “Getting a Cy Young means being able to throw more innings and pitch throughout the whole season, so if that’s the end result, that’s a good sign for me. I’m just focused on being healthy the whole year.”

Ohtani appeared in 14 games last season, logging 47 innings pitched. Roberts liked what he saw in the small sample size.

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“I think the thing that was most surprising from last year was his command,” Roberts said. “And I’ll say that he still feels his command wasn’t up to par, but given the Tommy John and what typically command looks like the year after, it was above that. So, I think that was impressive. Just his ability to command the couple different breaking balls, to change the shape of his breaking balls was pretty impressive, and everything he does is with a purpose. So, I’m really excited to see with the full offseason and to just prepare and not rehab, what he can do this year.”

Physically, Roberts believes Ohtani is in the right place entering the ninth year of his career.

“I think he just looks strong,” Roberts said. “He looks strong, but there’s not too much mass. Just watching him throw, watching him run, his body’s moving well. I think he’s in a sweet spot. Just watching him, the muscle mass, it just seems that he’s in a sweet spot.”

Ohtani and Roberts said that they don’t yet know when Ohtani and some of his teammates will be departing for the World Baseball Classic, but Ohtani will continue to ramp up in the time leading up to next month’s event. Last month at DodgerFest, Roberts announced Ohtani will not pitch in the WBC in order to focus on pitching in the regular season.

“As much as people think that he’s not human, he’s still a human being who’s had two surgeries,” Roberts said Friday. “He’s got a long career ahead of him.”

Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws live BP

Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw a live batting practice Friday as the World Series MVP took the mound for the first time since he recorded the final out of last year’s Fall Classic. Yamamoto threw 20 pitches to a pair of his teammates, with right-handed hitting catcher Will Smith and left-handed hitting infielder Hyeseong Kim alternated at-bats.

Kim turned on a pair of fastballs from Yamamoto, ripping a pair of base hits into right field.

A little over an hour before Yamamoto pitched, Roberts was asked by reporters about Yamamoto’s durability, coming off a postseason where the 27-year-old totaled 526 pitches, capped off by a Herculean effort in Game 7 that powered the Dodgers to their second straight World Series championship.

“I just believe that he knows his limitations and he’s prepared, so I’m not too concerned about it,” Roberts said.

Yamamoto wasn’t the only pitcher to see some run on the Dodgers’ first day of camp. Among those to throw a bullpen session Friday: veteran Tyler Glasnow, promising sophomore Roki Sasaki, playoff hero Will Klein, newcomer Edwin Díaz, and Ohtani.

Staff writer Anthony Solorzano contributed to this report.

From Steve Galluzzo: As the NBA has evolved, so too has its midseason showcase.

The league’s 75th All-Star Game takes place Sunday at Intuit Dome and Kelly Flatow, executive vice president and head of the events group at the NBA noted how things have changed since the last time the event was in Los Angeles.

“This will be my 20th All-Star and I joined the events group in 2016, so I was responsible for All-Star when it was here at Staples Center in 2018,” she said. “So it’s great to be back in L.A.”

There is plenty in store for the public this year — both in Inglewood and the downtown area.

One key component of the All-Star spectacle is NBA Crossover — a chance for fans to experience the sport through pop culture, fashion, technology, music and entertainment.

“Every year All-Star grows in different shapes and forms,” Flatow said. “What we used to call a weekend is now an entire week. In fact, the Clippers have done an incredible job making All-Star an entire season long celebration of the game.”

Continue reading here

UCLA women rout No. 13 Michigan State

Lauren Betts had 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists and No. 2 UCLA pushed its winning streak to 18 games by thumping No. 13 Michigan State 86-63 on Wednesday night.

Kiki Rice finished with 18 points and seven rebounds for the Bruins (24-1, 14-0 Big Ten). Gabriela Jaquez added 13 points, all in the first half, and Gianna Kneepkens chipped in 12.

UCLA now has nine wins over ranked opponents, six in conference play.

Rashunda Jones scored 15 points and Emma Shumate had 12 for the Spartans (20-5, 9-5), who have dropped three of their last four games. Grace VanSlooten and Kennedy Blair, the team’s top scorers entering the game, were held to a combined 18 points on six-for-25 shooting.

Continue reading here

UCLA box score

Big Ten standings

USC men lose to Ohio State

Bruce Thornton scored 21 points and hit two late throws to help Ohio State secure an 89-82 win over USC on Wednesday.

Ohio State (16-6, 8-6 Big Ten) trailed 43-40 at halftime after opening two of 13 at the free-throw line, but Thornton steadied the Buckeyes in the second half. He became the fifth player in program history to reach 1,935 career points and moved into fifth all-time in Ohio State scoring.

The Buckeyes grabbed their largest lead at 67-60 with eight minutes left after a Devin Royal layup and a John Mobley Jr. three-pointer. USC (18-7, 7-7) answered with a 7-0 run capped by a Jordan Marsh three to cut it to 70-69, but Christoph Tilly scored inside, and Royal added a jumper to push the margin back to five.

Continue reading here

USC box score

Big Ten standings

Kawhi Leonard leads Clippers to victory

Kawhi Leonard scored 27 points and his three-point play with two seconds remaining lifted the Clippers to a 105-102 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.

Leonard, who had 12 rebounds, scored 19 points in the fourth quarter to extend his career-best streak of 20-point games to 33.

The Clippers (26-28) led by four points when Kevin Durant made one of two free throws before a layup by Alperen Sengun cut the lead to 102-101 with 43 seconds left. Leonard missed a three-pointer and Jabari Smith Jr. grabbed a rebound to give Houston (33-20) the ball.

Continue reading here

Clippers box score

NBA standings

This day in sports history

1937 — Cleveland is granted an NFL franchise. The Rams play in Cleveland for nine years before moving to Los Angeles. After the 1994 season, the Rams move to St. Louis.

1947 — Boston’s Bill Cowley becomes the NHL all-time scoring leader when he scores a goal and an assist for the Bruins in a 10-1 win over the New York Rangers. Cowley’s 529 points is one more than Syd Howe, who retired one year earlier.

1958 — Boston’s Bill Russell scores 18 points and grabs 41 rebounds to lead the Celtics to a 119-101 victory over the Syracuse Nationals.

1968 — Jean-Claude Killy of France wins the men’s giant slalom in the Winter Olympics at Grenoble, his second gold medal en route to the Alpine triple crown.

1972 — The Soviet Union ice hockey team wins the gold medal with a 5-2 victory over Czechoslovakia at the Winter Olympics. The United States is awarded the silver because it had beaten and tied Czechoslovakia.

1982 — Wayne Gretzky scores 153rd point of season, breaking NHL record.

1985 — Pittsburgh’s Mario Lemieux becomes the first rookie to be named most valuable player at the NHL All-Star game. The 19-year-old center scores two goals, including the game-winner, and has an assist to lead the Wales Conference to a 6-4 win over the Campbell Conference.

1989 — The largest crowd (44,735) in NBA All-Star Game history turns out at the Houston Astrodome to watch the West beat the East 143-134. Utah’s Karl Malone win MVP honors after scoring a team-high 28 points.

1993 — The San Jose Sharks tie an NHL record by losing 17 straight games, the latest a 6-0 defeat by the Edmonton Oilers.

1994 — Loy Allen Jr. becomes the first Winston Cup rookie to win a pole in the Daytona 500. Allen is .031 seconds quicker than six-time NASCAR Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt.

1995 — Sacramento’s Mitch Richmond scores a game-high 22 points and wins MVP honors in leading the West to a 139-112 triumph over the East in the NBA All-Star Game at America West Arena in Phoenix.

1997 — Morocco’s Hicham el Guerrouj breaks indoor track’s oldest record, winning the mile in 3 minutes, 48.45 at the Flanders meet held in Ghent, Belgium. Ireland’s Eamonn Coghlan ran 3:49.78 in 1983 in New York.

2005 — Allen Iverson scores 60 points, a career high, to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 112-99 victory over the Orlando Magic.

2007 — Duke, saddled by its first four-game losing skid in 11 years, falls out of The Associated Press men’s poll for the first time since the end of the 1995-96 season. The Blue Devils had been in the media poll for 200 straight weeks — the second longest streak behind UCLA’s record 221 weeks.

2014 — Tina Maze of Slovenia and Dominique Gisin of Switzerland tie for gold in the Olympic women’s downhill. Both speed down the Rosa Khutor course in 1:41.57 seconds for the first gold-medal tie in Olympic alpine skiing history.

2018 — Virginia is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press men’s basketball poll for first time since 1982, when Terry Holland was the coach and Ralph Sampson was the Cavaliers’ star player.

2018 — Dutch speed skater Ireen Wüst becomes first Winter Olympian to win an individual gold medal in 4 straight Games with victory in the 1,500m at Pyeongchang; first speed skater to win 10 Olympic medals.

2023 — Super Bowl LVII, State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona: Kansas City Chiefs beat Philadelphia Eagles, 38-35; MVP: Patrick Mahomes, KC, 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.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and pitchers and catcher have their first workout Friday!

Last month I asked you to vote from a list of candidates in our annual Dodgers Dugout Dodgers Hall of Fame. And, proving that you are the best newsletter readers in the universe, I received 29,213 ballots, the most we have gotten. Some cities don’t get that many votes in elections.

And after all the ballots were counted, one person was named on more than 75% of the ballots and are inducted into the 2026 class.

Remember, there was a players list, where you could vote for up to 10, and a nonplayers list with a limit of three votes.

So, without further ado, let’s look at the results. The number in parentheses is what percentage of ballots the candidate was on last year.

Elected

x-Clayton Kershaw, 94.7%: A no-brainer selection. I’m just surprised so many people left him off the ballot.

Just missed (50%-74.9%)

Jaime Jarrín, 71.8% (65.8%): Really, should have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer. A big oversight.

Peter O’Malley, 63.5% (65.1%): The last owner who cared about keeping prices down for fans.

Steve Garvey, 60.9% (64.4%): Either Garvey or Gil Hodges is the best first baseman in Dodgers history. Freddie Freeman is closing fast though.

Ron Cey, 58.3% (61.6%): One of the most underrated players in baseball history.

Don Newcombe, 52.9% (62.1%): His work to help Dodgers struggling with substance abuse is almost enough to get him in before you even consider his greatness as a pitcher.

Best of the rest (30%-49.9%)

Red Barber, 42.1% (45.4%): Vin Scully before there was a Vin Scully.

Mike Piazza, 41.5% (50.3%): What would Dodgers history look like if he hadn’t been traded?

Manny Mota, 39.3% (46.7%): Best pinch-hitter ever. He would stay on the roster the whole year and only pinch-hit.

Davey Lopes, 38.1% (47.1%): Best base stealer in Dodgers history.

Kirk Gibson, 37.4% (40.6%): One amazing season gets him almost 40% of the vote.

Dusty Baker, 35.4% (47.7%): Remember throwing bubble gum to him in left field? His support declined a great deal this year.

Jim Gilliam, 34.4% (40.5%): Jack of all trades who hated his “Junior” nickname.

Mike Scioscia, 32.5% (39.7%): Another what if: What if he had been named Dodgers manager instead of Angels manager?

Ross Porter, 32% (35.3%): Pioneered using more obscure stats before it became popular.

Tommy Davis, 31.9% (42.5%): Last Dodger to win a batting title before Trea Turner, and I’m not sure Turner counts.

Zack Wheat, 30.1% (28.9%): He should be in. The first truly great Dodgers position player.

Everyone else

Willie Davis, 28.2% (33.9%): People seem to prefer Tommy Davis.

Bill Russell, 28% (29.5%): Longtime Dodger draws the least support among “The Infield.”

Eric Karros, 25% (34.1%): This is all you get after hitting the most homers in L.A. history?

Johnny Podres, 24.9% (36.7%): The 1955 World Series MVP.

Carl Furillo, 23.2% (27.9%): Best arm in team history?

Eric Gagne, 22.8% (28.2%): Would he receive more support if not for his PED use?

Dazzy Vance, 21.5% (23.3%): Another guy who should be in. The Drysdale of his era.

Jerry Doggett, 21.8% (29.8%): Complemented Scully beautifully on radio and television.

Bottom 10, removed from ballot for at least two years

Buzzie Bavasi, 21.4% (32.1%): GM of Dodgers’ first four World Series title teams.

Rick Honeycutt, 20.9% (26.7%): Longtime pitching coach (and pitcher).

Carl Erskine, 20.2% (23.7%): Key member of 1955 title team.

John Roseboro, 19.5% (26.1%): The key catcher for Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.

Tommy John, 18% (23.3%): He should be in the real Hall of Fame.

Andre Ethier, 17.7% (23.1%): Doesn’t look like many from Ethier’s prime era will make it.

Pedro Guerrero, 16.6% (25.3%): You could argue that he is the best hitter in L.A. history.

Steve Yeager, 14.8% (20.6%): He blocked the plate as well as anyone ever.

x-Joe Kelly, 6.8%: I guess wearing a Mariachi jacket can get you only so far.

x-Alex Wood, 0.9%: He’ll have to settle for his World Series ring instead of our Hall honors.

x-first time on ballot.

The Dodgers Dugout Dodgers Hall of Fame

People inducted, with year (and percentage of vote)

Walt Alston, 2022 (86.5%)

Roy Campanella, 2021 (84.7%)

Don Drysdale, 2021 (90%)

Orel Hershiser, 2021 (75.1%)

Gil Hodges, 2022 (75.3%)

Clayton Kershaw, 2026 (94.7%)

Sandy Koufax, 2021 (95.6%)

Tommy Lasorda, 2022 (87.7%)

Walter O’Malley, 2024 (79.4%)

Branch Rickey, 2022 (72.1%)

Pee Wee Reese, 2024 (76.3%)

Jackie Robinson, 2021 (88.9%)

Vin Scully, 2021 (92.7%)

Duke Snider, 2021 (78.2%)

Don Sutton, 2025 (75.7%)

Fernando Valenzuela, 2022 (80.6%)

Maury Wills, 2022 (76.6%)

Listed in order of percentage:

Sandy Koufax, 2021 (95.6%)

Clayton Kershaw, 2026 (94.7%)

Vin Scully, 2021 (92.7%)

Don Drysdale, 2021 (90%)

Jackie Robinson, 2021 (88.9%)

Tommy Lasorda, 2022 (87.7%)

Walt Alston, 2022 (86.5%)

Roy Campanella, 2021 (84.7%)

Fernando Valenzuela, 2022 (80.6%)

Walter O’Malley, 2024 (79.4%)

Duke Snider, 2021 (78.2%)

Maury Wills, 2022 (76.6%)

Pee Wee Reese, 2024 (76.3%)

Don Sutton, 2025 (75.7%)

Gil Hodges, 2022 (75.3%)

Orel Hershiser, 2021 (75.1%)

Branch Rickey, 2022 (72.1%)

Note: In 2022, you had to be named on only 65% of the ballots to be inducted. It has been 75% all other years.

Ben is back

Remember Ben Rortvedt, who became a fan favorite as the backup catcher to Will Smith at the end of last season? The Dodgers signed him to a $1.1 million deal after the season, then soon after removed him from the 40-man roster. That meant other teams could claim him, and the Dodgers apparently hoped the $1.1 million price tag would scare teams off. It didn’t scare Cincinnati, which took him.

Last week, the Reds signed Eugenio Suárez, and to make room for him on the 40-man roster, they removed Rortvedt. And the Dodgers snatched him up quickly.

So Rortvedt is back with the team, and will compete with Dalton Rushing to be the backup catcher.

To make room for Rortvedt, the Dodgers removed left-handed reliever Anthony Banda from the roster. They signed Banda to a $1.625-million deal last month, so perhaps they are hoping no team will take him. In two seasons with the Dodgers, Banda is 8-3 with a 3.14 ERA and two saves in 119 games, including 71 games last season, so he was a workhorse. However, his strikeout rate declined last year while his walk rate increased, a troubling sign. The Dodgers have a lot of left-handed options, so he was the odd man out this time.

Bad news for Yasiel Puig

Former Dodger Yasiel Puig was found guilty Friday of obstruction of justice and making false statements to investigators. Puig was alleged to have lied about gambling on sports.

Puig faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. At one point, he was offered a plea deal where he would plead guilty to one count of lying to federal authorities and would have served no jail time while paying a $55,000 fine. He accepted the deal, then backed out of it because “I want to clear my name.”

In case you missed it

Yasiel Puig found guilty in gambling case, faces up to 20 years in prison

Terrance Gore, former Dodgers player and three-time World Series champ, dies at 34

Plaschke: Just say no! Dodgers players should decline White House visit

Dodgers plan to visit White House to celebrate latest World Series championship

And finally

Miguel Rojas discusses his memorable World Series moments. 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.

Major League Baseball is making streaming options available for fans to watch in-market games of 20 teams, including the Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels, San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres — a significant shift to respond to the fast-changing TV landscape.

The Angels on Tuesday announced its arrangement with the league to make its games more widely available. The club said the option — Angels.TV — would be available for purchase for $99.99 for the full season or $19.99 per month through the MLB app.

“We are excited to partner with Major League Baseball to bring Angels games to their streaming platform,” Angels President John Carpino said in a statement. “Our priority is making it as easy as possible for fans to watch Angels Baseball and MLB’s industry-leading app provides another great option to stay connected to the team.”

The league separately announced the move, which provides options for fans of other teams, through its MLB app. In-market games for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays and Washington Nationals will be provided through the app.

Games will still be available to traditional pay-TV subscribers.

Spectrum, owned by cable giant Charter Communications, which distributes the Dodgers’ SportsNet LA had previously made available Dodger games as a streaming option through a separate app.

On Tuesday, ESPN announced that it would become the new streaming home of MLB.TV, bringing out-of-market live games to the ESPN App and ESPN.com.

“With MLB.TV now available through ESPN, we’re taking a significant step forward in reinforcing ESPN as the home of the MLB regular season while deepening the value proposition of the ESPN Unlimited plan – giving fans even more flexibility in how and where they watch all season long,” Rosalyn Durant, Executive Vice President, ESPN Programming & Acquisitions, said in a statement.

The move comes as traditional regional sports networks struggle amid the exodus of pay-TV customers. Regional sports networks once were viewed as cash cows for teams and TV programming companies that owned them but, in recent years, at least one regional sports network owner has filed for bankruptcy. That pompted the MLB to step in to fill the gap.

The league said it also was taking over the television production of games for 14 teams, including the Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks.

From Broderick Turner: In the eyes of Lakers coach JJ Redick, every team his group faces is a test. Still, many wondered if the Lakers’ litmus test would come from facing the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.

Even with All-Star and league most valuable player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander out with a strained abdominal, the Thunder are still a problem for most of the league. And the Lakers had to play OKC with their own MVP candidate, Luka Doncic, sitting out for the second straight game with a left hamstring strain.

In the end, it came down to the Lakers not being able to hold off the champion Thunder in the decisive fourth quarter of a 119-110 loss at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers (32-19) had six players score in double figures, but the Thunder had seven.

The Lakers shot 50% from the field, but the Thunder shot 48.3% from the field and 42.4% from three-point range.

“I think when you play the best teams, and Oklahoma City is clearly, you know they’re the best team, you have to have a really high level of effort, and you have to have a really high level of execution,” Redick said.

Continue reading here

Lakers box score

NBA standings

Dream job

From Steve Galluzzo: The NBA All-Star Game at Intuit Dome is days away, and no one is looking forward to it more than Barbara Bush, daughter of former President George W. Bush and the NBA’s vice president of social impact. She found her “dream job” and is loving every minute of it.

“I played basketball until fifth grade. I grew up in Dallas and everyone watched the Mavericks. Then when I moved to Austin it was all about UT,” she said, referring to the University of Texas. “I never thought I’d work in basketball. For most of my career I’ve worked in global health with nonprofits. During COVID, I started paying more attention to the NBA as it utilized its arenas for vaccination sites and voting centers since you could be socially distanced and compliant by using them.”

While representing the foundation for which she worked, Bush attended meetings with NBA executives and sought ways to work together.

Continue reading here

This day in sports history

1908 — Tommy Burns knocks out Jack Palmer in the fourth round to defend his world heavyweight title in London.

1949 — Joe Fulks of Philadelphia scores 63 points in a 108-87 win over Indianapolis to set an NBA scoring record which would last for nearly a decade.

1952 — The Baltimore Bullets play the 48-minute game without making a substitution and beat the Fort Wayne Pistons 82-77.

1962 — Jim Beatty becomes the first American to break the 4-minute mile indoors with a 3:58.9 in Los Angeles.

1968 — Peggy Fleming wins the women’s Olympic figure skating gold medal in Grenoble, France.

1969 — LSU’s Pete Maravich scores 66 points in a 110-94 loss to Tulane.

1971 — Former first baseman Bill White becomes the first Black announcer in major baseball league history, signing to join the New York Yankees WPIX broadcast team.

1972 — Guy Lafleur becomes the first rookie in the NHL’s modern era to have three hat tricks in a season. Lafleur scores three goals and adds an assist in the Canadiens’ 7-1 win against the Chicago Blackhawks.

1989 — K.C. Jones of the Boston Celtics and Lenny Wilkens of the Cleveland Cavaliers are elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Also elected is William “Pop” Gates, who played during the game’s barnstorming years in the 1930s and 1940s.

1991 — Charles Barkley of the Philadelphia 76ers, playing with a stress fracture in his left foot, becomes the NBA All-Star MVP with 17 points and 22 rebounds after leading the East to a 116-114 victory.

1992 — Bonnie Blair becomes the first woman to successfully defend an Olympic gold medal in 500-meter speed skating and the first American woman in any sport to win gold medals in consecutive Olympics.

1998 — Picabo Street, Alpine skiing’s comeback kid, overcomes a mistake about midway through her run and charges to an Olympic gold by one-hundredth of a second in the women’s super-G — the games’ first Alpine medal after three days of snow-related postponements.

2003 — Detroit’s Brett Hull becomes the sixth NHL player to score 700 regular-season goals. Hull beats San Jose’s Evgeni Nabokov with a wrist shot in a 5-4 win over the Sharks.

2007 — Jaromir Jagr has three assists in the New York Rangers’ 5-2 win over Washington and becomes the 12th player in NHL history to score 1,500 points.

2017 — Golden State’s Draymond Green becomes the first player in NBA history to record a triple-double with fewer than 10 points scored. Green had 12 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals and 4 points in a 122-107 win over Memphis. Green also had five blocks, which made him the first player to record 10 steals and five blocks in a game since steals and blocks were first tracked in 1973-74.

2018 — Sweden’s Charlotte Kalla wins the first gold medal of the Pyeongchang Games and Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjoergen takes silver in the women’s 15-kilometer skiathlon to become the most decorated female Winter Olympian ever. Bjoergen captures her 11th career medal, breaking a three-way tie with Russian Raisa Smetanina and Italian Stefania Belmondo.

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.

Megan Grant laughs after hearing that at one point during her basketball career, she was shooting .500 from field-goal range, better than her career .348 batting average.

The two-time NFCA All-American utility player has made softball look easy during her time with UCLA. She holds a career .727 slugging percentage, .978 fielding percentage and hit 26 home runs during the 2025 season, a Big Ten single-season record.

Is basketball just that much easier for her?

“I wouldn’t say easy but I would always say fun,” Grant said. “It’s something where I can just easily lose myself in the competitive nature and just the process of things.”

Grant has been a member of the Bruins’ women’s basketball team this season, an opportunity brought to her by her softball coach. When coach Kelly Inouye-Perez asked her if she would be interested in joining the team for the Bruins’ current season, she felt like she couldn’t turn down the opportunity.

Training with the basketball team would allow her to add new skills to her game. While developing, she would be doing it at a high level of college basketball competitiveness — it was a win-win situation.

“Just being able to say I played basketball at such a high level collegiately, it’s always an honor to say,” Grant said.

UCLA forward Megan Grant (43) is surrounded by teammates while celebrating after a win over North Carolina on Nov. 13 in Las Vegas.

(Steve Marcus / Associated Press)

Throughout the season, Grant has played 33 minutes off the bench and made three of nine field goal attempts. The No. 2 UCLA women’s basketball team is 22-1 and undefeated in Big Ten play.

Softball season began Friday, so her time on the court has come to an end. As she transitions to the diamond, Grant is entering her senior season with ambition, gratitude and a new sense of leadership.

“I feel like all programs all throughout our campus, we just have this competitive greatness about all of us that we know we will do whatever it takes to win,” she said. “It’s really refreshing to even see that from [women’s basketball] coach Cori [Close’s] side and just to get to learn her little nuggets.”

No. 7 UCLA softball is 5-0 after the opening weekend, including a record-setting 17-0 rout of UC Riverside.

The Bruins were the runner up in last year’s Big Ten tournament after falling 2-0 to Michigan in the championship game. In the Women’s College World Series, after Grant hit a two-run home run to tie a game against Tennessee, UCLA lost in extra innings.

The Bruins begin the season with a versatile and close-knit roster, Grant said. The team spent the fall getting to know each other, on and off the field.

“I feel like almost every single player is playing both infield and outfield and that kind of depth that we have is something that we haven’t had in a while,” she said.

Grant says even during her stint with the women’s basketball, her goal remained the same — winning softball Big Ten and national championships. Ultimately, she just wants to have the best time with her teammates along the way.

“If that moment were to come, I know in my heart, I have the confidence to just be able to say, ‘Yup, I worked on this and I’m ready,’” Grant said.

Rose Bowl scores a court win

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge denied a request from UCLA last week seeking to move its dispute with the Rose Bowl Operating Co. and the city of Pasadena to arbitration as it stated was required by their lease contract.

Officials who operate the Rose Bowl filed a lawsuit against UCLA after it learned the Bruins were heavily considering ending their lease early and instead playing home football games at SoFi Stadium. The Rose Bowl is seeking to enforce terms of a lease that runs through 2044, arguing taxpayers are backing costly renovations at UCLA’s request and the Bruins’ departure would cause irreparable harm.

Arbitration proceedings would limit the Rose Bowl’s right to obtain records related to the stadium lease and would be closed to the public. City of Pasadena and Rose Bowl attorneys argued public funds were at stake and the dispute should play out in court proceedings open to the public.

Judge Joseph Lipner ruled the contract’s arbitration clause contains “unusual and exceeding narrow language,” with evidence to suggest both sides did not want to use arbitration to settle disputes over termination of the agreement.

The next case hearing is scheduled for Feb. 27.

The streak continues

Lauren Betts pulls a rebound away from two Michigan players Sunday.

(Lon Horwedel / Associated Press)

No. 2 UCLA faced its toughest test of Big Ten play so far this season, earning a 69-66 win at No. 8 Michigan and extending its win streak to 17 games.

“What I’m proud of is, … our team in the midst of situations we haven’t been in very much this season, we found ways to win,” UCLA coach Cori Close said. “To go into a hostile environment, and really in the second half, do it with our defense.”

The Bruins close out a tough trip at No. 12 Michigan State on Wednesday at 5 p.m. PST. The game will be streamed on Peacock.

A Prince tribute

Jordan Chiles earlier this season.

(Jesus Ramirez / UCLA Athletics)

UCLA gymnast Jordan Chiles dusted off last season’s floor routine set to Prince’s music in honor of the team’s meet at Minnesota on Saturday. Chiles nailed the routine, scoring a perfect 10 for the fourth consecutive week. After the meet, Chiles addressed the crowd, saying that the Prince routine was a tribute to the Minnesota fans who have endured immigration raids.

“I know it has been a lot of tough weeks going on here and I just want to say we stand with you,” Chiles told the crowd. “The Prince routine was meant for you guys and I wanted to bring that energy here and so I hope it uplifted you guys in this very dark time and that the Bruins will always be by your side.”

UCLA won the meet 197.550-197.275, with Chiles winning her fourth consecutive individual all-around title.

Watch her routine here and her address to fans here.

Survey results

We asked, “Aside from football and basketball, what is your favorite UCLA sport? Vote for up to three.”

The results, after 684 votes.

Softball, 52.8%
Baseball, 52.3%
Gymnastics, 32.9%
Men’s volleyball, 27.2%
Women’s soccer, 16.7%
Men’s water polo, 14%
Track and field, 11.8%
Women’s volleyball, 8.9%
Beach volleyball, 8.7%
Men’s soccer, 5.8%
Women’s water polo, 5.3%
Women’s golf, 1.1%
Men’s golf, 1.1%
Rowing, 0.6%
Men’s tennis, 0.4%
Cross-country, 0.1%
Swimming and diving, 0.1%
Women’s tennis, 0.1%

In case you missed it

Lauren Betts has 16 points, 16 rebounds as No. 2 UCLA beats No. 8 Michigan

UCLA men’s basketball holds off Washington, closes homestand with back-to-back wins

UCLA gymnastics team loves putting on a show during floor exercise

Kiki Rice and Gabriela Jaquez help No. 2 UCLA rout Rutgers

Everything goes right for Xavier Booker and UCLA men in win over Rutgers

Angela Dugalic and No. 2 UCLA dominate No. 8 Iowa for 15th consecutive win

UCLA falls to Indiana in a double-overtime heartbreaker: ‘We deserved to lose’

Jordan Chiles achieves another perfect 10 to lead UCLA past Washington

The Bruins are actually lions who picked up another big win

Have something Bruin?

Do you have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future UCLA newsletter? Email newsletters editor Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. Playoff pairings have been announced for high school basketball. There’s only one unbeaten team left and what an intriguing story.

Unbeaten Elsinore stands alone

There’s only one unbeaten team in the Southern Section basketball playoffs. And what an intriguing story regarding 28-0 Elsinore.

Back in 1974, when Elsinore when 27-0 until losing at the L.A. Sports Arena in the Division 1-A final, Peter Rettinger rode to the game as a middle school student on the rooter bus and Rick Wolter played in the game as a sophomore.

They’ve been co-head coaches at Elsinore for 32 years. This season, they have a top junior guard in Kamrynn Nathan, averaging 25.2 points. “He’s fun to watch because he’s really creative,” Rettinger said.

Elsinore won the Mountain Pass League and has wins over Chino Hills, Murrieta Valley and Murrieta Mesa. Elsinore was placed in the Division 2 playoffs and opens at home Wednesday against Sonora.

Much has changed since Rettinger was a student at Elsinore, which used to be the only high school in the “Valley” from Corona to Temecula. Now there’s two new high schools in Elsinore, three in Temecula and three in Murrieta.

Wolter retired from teaching and Rettinger is still teaching.

“We’ve always had a positive experience,” Rettinger said. “The parents realized we are the product of the valley and tried to do the best we can with whatever we team have.”

They’re a true neighborhood team supported by loyal neighborhood families.

Boys basketball

The Southern Section playoff pairings released Saturday includes Sierra Canyon as the No. 1 seed for the Open Division. There are 12 teams and four divisions for pool play. Here’s a look.

Here are the Southern Section pairings.

Kaiden Bailey of Santa Margarita had zero points against St. John Bosco but contributed eight assists.

(Dylan Stewart / 1550 Sports)

The McDonald’s All-America Game revealed its rosters for the boys and girls games. Here’s the report.

Santa Margarita won the first Trinity League tournament with a 57-56 win over St. John Bosco. Here’s the report.

St. Bernard won the Del Rey League title behind junior guard Brandon Granger. Here’s the report.

Thousand Oaks’ Dylan McCord has had a great senior year shooting threes. He had 43 points and 10 threes in a win over Newbury Park. Here’s a report.

Palisades won its first Western League title in 30 years and gained the No. 1 seed for the City Section Open Division playoffs. Here’s the City playoff seedings.

Sun Valley Poly coach Joe Wyatt guided his team to a 12-0 record in the East Valley League and 28 consecutive league wins. Here’s the report.

The Times’ final regular season top 25 basketball rankings.

Girls basketball

Sophomore forward Kiara Wakabi helped Birmingham win its 32nd West League game in a row.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Birmingham won the West Valley League title in a close game over Granada Hills and is seeded No. 2 for the City Section Open Division playoffs behind Westchester. Here’s a look at the Patriots’ win over Granada Hills.

Andrea Antonio, a freshman at Hamilton, scored 54 points in her team’s 85-83 overtime win over Palisades.

The Southern Section Open Division pairings were released, and the top three seeds are Ontario Christian, Etiwanda and Sierra Canyon.

Bow ties for Reggie

Reggie Morris Jr., in 2013. He has a collection of bow ties he brings out for the playoffs.

(Nick Koza)

It’s time to break out the bow ties for Reggie Morris Jr., the head basketball coach at Redondo Union. He has won Southern Section titles coaching at Redondo, Leuzinger and St. Bernard. He won a City title at Fairfax.

Here’s what Morris has to say about preparing to challenge Sierra Canyon and others in the Open Division playoffs.

Super Bowl connections

Patriots special teams player Brenden Schooler during his high school days at Mission Viejo.

(Los Angeles Times)

Southern California was well represented in Sunday’s Super Bowl, with former local high school players on the rosters of the Seahawks and Patriots.

Here’s a look at the path those players took and why they made it, according to their high school coaches.

During Super Bowl week, the two NFL rookies of the year announced were from Southern California. Receiver Tetairoa McMillan from Servite and the Carolina Panthers and linebacker Carson Schwesinger from Oaks Christian, UCLA and the Cleveland Browns.

Wrestling

The City Section boys and girls wrestling championships will be held Saturday night at Roybal. Admission is $12. There’s a $5 parking charge.

The Southern Section individual championships will have six divisional finals Friday and Saturday at Westminster, Fountain Valley, Canyon Springs, Great Oak, Moorpark and Glenn. It will help determine qualifiers for the Masters Meet at Sonora on Feb. 20. Admission is $14.

Redondo Union won its first Southern Section Division 6 boys wrestling championship. El Modena won Division 5. Corona took Division 4. South Torrance took Division 3. Temecula Valley won Division 2. St. John Bosco won Division 1.

Santa Ana won the Diviison 1 girls title. Chaparral won Division 2. Oxnard Pacifica took Division 3. Sonora won Division 4.

Soccer

Palos Verdes is seeded No. 1 for the Open Division boys competition. Mater Dei is seeded No. 2.

Here’s the boys pairings.

Santa Margarita is seeded No. 1 in Open Division girls.

Here’s the Southern Section girls pairings.

The City Section playoff pairings will be announced Monday.

Notes . . .

Orange Lutheran coach Rod Sherman.

(Nick Koza)

There will be three new head football coaches in the Trinity League this fall after Orange Lutheran announced that Rod Sherman was no longer the football coach and Chris Reinert resigned at Servite. JSerra hired Hardy Nickerson as its new coach. Here’s the report on Sherman’s departure. Here’s the report on Reinert’s departure and the many changes happening in the nation’s toughest football league. . . .

The National Federation of State High School Assn. football rules committee has clarified and strengthened a rule that prohibits slapping the head of any player on offense or defense. Here are the rule changes for 2026. . . .

Noah Thayer, who was one of the best kickers in the Southland until suffering an injury at JSerra, has committed to Cal Poly. . . .

Junior receiver Michael Farinas of Chaparral has committed to UCLA. . . .

Junior linebacker Mike Davis Jr. of Mater Dei has committed to UCLA. . . .

Jaslene Massey of Aliso Niguel had the seventh-best girls shot put effort in state history at the winter championships at Arcadia High with a mark of 52-10 1/4,

Junior receiver Tycen Johnson of Chaparral has committed to Arizona State. . . .

Sophomore all-league linebacker Allen Kennett V has transferred from Servite to Santa Margarita. . . .

Spud O’Neil, the baseball coach at Lakewood since 1984, has announced 2026 will be his final season. He has 970 victories over 52 seasons that includes stints at St. Anthony and Colton. . . .

The Coliseum League is getting a change for football in the fall. Moving out are Dymally and Fremont, which will be switching to the Metro and Exposition leagues. Moving in is Marquez, which will join Crenshaw, Dorsey, King/Drew and Washington Prep. . . .

Lorenzo Hernandez, who was football coach at Garfield from 1999 through 2024, is the leading candidate to become head coach at Whittier, which has Garfield’s former principal. Hernandez served as athletic director at Garfield since the fall. He’d be taking over a program that is headed to a new league if they select him. . . .

Eddie Ficklin has resigned as football coach at Cantwell Sacred-Heart. . . .

Matt Casey is the new football coach at Arlington. . . .

Eric Carnohan is the new director of aquatics at Servite. . . .

Chace Holley from Bay League champion Redondo Union has committed to Pepperdine.

From the archives: Robert Garcia

Former San Fernando football coach Robert Garcia is now an assistant coach at Bishop Alemany.

(Robert Garcia)

Former San Fernando football coach Robert Garcia has joined Dennis Keyes’ staff as an assistant coach at Bishop Alemany.

He was head coach at San Fernando from 2011 until the summer of 2021, winning two City Section Division II titles and a Division I title. He left to run a family restaurant business. He has helped coach with Keyes before since both have sons playing youth football.

Here’s a 2012 interview after winning a City title.

Here’s a story from 2018 when the Rams recognized San Fernando.

Recommendations

From the Daily Breeze, a story on new Bishop Montgomery coach Oscar McBride.

From The562.org, a story on Lakewood baseball coach Spud O’Neil announcing this will be his final season after 52 years coaching baseball.

From the Oklahoman, a story on the governor supporting open transfers in high school sports.

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.

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

Welcome to your daily review and preview of this year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics. My name is John Cherwa and I’m your tour director for the Games wondering when the United States will get off the schneid and win a medal. Educated guess alert: How about today? Can you say team figure skating?

Saturday was the first day that medals were awarded at the Milan-Cortina Games and not unexpectedly, the host country is doing the best, sweeping all three medal types with a gold in the women’s 3,000 speed skating (Francesca Lollobrigida—before you ask, yes, a grand-niece to Gina) and silver and bronze in the men’s downhill (Giovanni Franzoni and Dominik Paris).

The U.S. squeezed out a 21^st in speed skating with Annika Belshaw and 10^th in the downhill courtesy of Kyle Negomir.

There is no doubt there is a home country advantage for a variety of reasons: familiarity with the competition venues, easier qualification (the home country gets in every event) and enthusiastic crowds urging them on.

Let’s look. 2022 Beijing, China had 15 medals, only nine in South Korea; 2018 PyeongChang, 17 in 2018, eight in Sochi; 2014 Sochi, Russia had 29 that year to 13 four years earlier; 2010 Vancouver, closer with a 26-24 edge for Canada; 2006 Turin, no edge as Italy had 11 compared to 13 in Salt Lake City; 2002 Salt Lake City, the U.S. had 34 medals in Utah and only 13 in 1998 in Nagano.

Italy had 17 medals in Beijing, meaning it has only 15 more medals to top 2022.

Elsewhere on Saturday:

— The U.S. women’s hockey team beat Finland, 5-0, to go 2-0 in pool play.

— The U.S. mixed curling team, after starting 2-0, lost both matches on Saturday to Britain (6-4) and South Korea (6-5).

— Sweden went 1-2 in the women’s 10K skiathlon as Jessie Diggins topped the U.S. team finishing eighth after a crash on the first lap. The U.S. has never won a medal in cross-country skiing and Diggins was a pre-race medal contender.

— Norway won the women’s normal hill ski jumping competition, with Annika Belshaw being the tops at 21^st for the U.S.

— Japan won gold and silver in the men’s snowboard Big Air competition. Ollie Martin of the U.S. was bounced off the stand by the last competitor and finished fourth.

— Despite a mediocre second-place performance by the “Quad God” Ilia Malinin, the U.S. holds the lead with one day to go in the team figure skating. Madison Chalk and Evan Bates of the U.S. won Saturday’s ice dance competition.

NBC GoldZone gets demoted

We have taken the unusual step to demote NBC’s GoldZone (on Peacock) to the SilverZone after a dreadful gaffe on Saturday. In the U.S.-South Korea mixed team curling match, the U.S. rallied with three points in the final frame to tie South Korea sending it to an extra frame. It was down to the last stone to be sent by South Korea with the match on the line. GoldZone, at this moment, cuts to commercial seconds before the final throw. When it came back from the break it went to a canned package on Malinin before picking up figure skating coverage. South Korea won on the last stone and the U.S. and NBC (now) SilverZone lost. Another big gaffe and they could drop to the BronzeZone. Presumably, NBC won’t repeat and pull a Heidi (from 1968) during today’s Super Bowl game.

In case you were wondering

During the Games, we’ll try and answer some questions you might have but didn’t know who to ask. Now you have a spot. We’ll generate a lot of the questions but if you have one, please send to my boss, newsletter editor Houston Mitchell at his email. He prefers to be called Mr. Mitchell as he’s really tired of people saying “Houston, we have a problem.”

In honor of today’s big events:

— Why do they indicate winners when only about a fourth of the downhill field has gone down the course? Unlike sports in which the best people start last (like golf, figure skating etc.) the best skiers go first . So, if you are seeded higher than 15^th, your chances of winning are small and highly unusual. The seeding is decided by FIS points and a random bib draw of the top 15 skiers. There are two reasons, the course gets choppier every time a skier goes down the hill so the earlier you run the better chance of fresh and fair snow you have. And, the later in the day it is, the less firm the snow is because of the sun.

— What’s the difference between ice dancing and pairs in figure skating? In short, pairs is way more athletic. In ice dance there are generally no jumps or throws as there are in other disciplines. Skaters also have to stay within two lengths of each other, unlike pairs. Ice dancing is also the most scandal plagued discipline because of the subjectivity of scoring since there are few jumps, throws or lifts. There have also been rumors of deals made between countries. There have been fixing scandals in 1998, 2002 and 2014.

Best Thing to Watch on TV today

It’s going to sound a lot like Saturday, but the big story today is the likely first medal for the United States in the team competition in figure skating. It starts with the pairs at 10:30 a.m. PST and ends with the men’s singles, starring Ilia Malinin , at 2:55 p.m. Anything short of a gold will be a disappointment. If you are up early enough, the other big event is the women’s downhill with the return of Lindsey Vonn, who tore her ACL last week. It starts at 2:30 a.m. PST with Vonn being the 13^th woman down the hill. If you want to just hang all day, there are four medal events today in snowboard, starting around 4 a.m. PST and going until about 6 a.m. PST.

Sunday’s full Olympic TV and streaming schedule

Sunday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts for the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific. 🏅 — medal event for live broadcasts.

MULTIPLE SPORTS
7:45 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay; after Super Bowl): Figure skating, skiing, luge, curling, cross-country skiing and more. | NBC

ALPINE SKIING
2:30 a.m. — 🏅Women’s downhill | USA
6:20 a.m. — Women’s downhill (re-air) | NBC

BIATHLON
5:05 a.m. — 🏅Mixed 4X6-kilometer relay | Peacock
5:45 a.m. — Mixed 4X6-kilometer relay (delay) | NBC

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING
3:30 a.m. — 🏅Men’s skiathlon | USA
8:50 a.m. — Men’s skiathlon (re-air) | USA

CURLING
Mixed doubles (round robin)
1 a.m. — Norway vs. Czechia | Peacock
1 a.m. — South Korea vs. Estonia | Peacock
1:55 a.m. — Mixed doubles highlights | USA
5:30 a.m. — U.S. vs. Estonia | USA
5:35 a.m. — Canada vs. Sweden | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Britain vs. Switzerland | Peacock
5:30 a.m. — Italy vs. Czechia | Peacock
10 a.m. — U.S. vs. Sweden | Peacock
10 a.m. — Canada vs. South Korea | Peacock
10 a.m. — Italy vs. Britain | Peacock
10 a.m. — Switzerland vs. Norway | Peacock
2 p.m. — U.S. vs. Estonia (re-air) | CNBC
4 p.m. — U.S. vs. Sweden (delay) | CNBC
6 p.m. — Italy vs. Britain (delay) | CNBC

FIGURE SKATING
🏅Team competition
10:30 a.m. — Pairs, free skate | USA
11:45 a.m. — Women’s free skate | USA
12:55 p.m. — Men’s free skate | USA
10:30 p.m. — Team competition, final day (re-air) | USA

HOCKEY
7:40 a.m. — France vs. Sweden | Peacock
12:10 a.m. — Czechia vs. Finland | Peacock
2 p.m. — Czechia vs. Finland (delay) | USA
5:30 p.m. — France vs. Sweden (delay) | USA

LUGE
4:30 a.m. — Men’s doubles, training | Peacock
8 a.m. — Men’s singles, Run 3 | USA
9:45 a.m. — 🏅Men’s singles, final run | USA
7:30 p.m. — Men’s singles, runs 3-4 (re-air) | USA

SKI JUMPING
10 a.m. — Men’s normal hill, training | Peacock

SNOWBOARDING
Midnight — Men’s and women’s parallel giant slalom, qualifying | USA
4 a.m. — 🏅Men’s and women’s parallel giant slalom, finals | Peacock
4:30 a.m. — 🏅Men’s and women’s parallel giant slalom, finals (in progress) | NBC
4:30 a.m. — Men’s big air, final (re-air) | USA
7:30 a.m. — Men’s and women’s parallel giant slalom, finals (re-air) | USA
10:30 a.m. — Women’s big air, qualifying | Peacock
3:30 p.m. — Women’s big air, qualifying (delay) | USA

SPEEDSKATING
7 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 5,000 meters | NBC

In case you missed it …

Check out the following Milan-Cortina Olympics dispatches from from the L.A. Times team on the ground Italy:

Doctors explain how Lindsey Vonn can ski at Olympics with a ruptured ACL

‘Quad God’ Ilia Malinin conserves energy in Olympic debut; U.S. still leads team skate

Hilary Knight and U.S. women’s hockey routs Finland, works to avoid norovirus

Italian police fire tear gas in clash with anti-ICE protesters near Olympics venue

Meet the ‘Quad God.’ Why Olympic star Ilia Malinin might revolutionize figure skating

NBC juggles emotions of Savannah Guthrie’s family tragedy, celebrating the Winter Olympics

Italians embrace unity — except with JD Vance — during Olympics opening ceremony

Review: Winter Olympics opening ceremony was a sleek Italian spectacle, as only they could deliver

Photos from the sweeping 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics opening ceremony

NBC’s Mike Tirico ready to pull off an Olympic-sized feat at Super Bowl

Inside the Milan Olympic village: real beds, free tech and other athlete perks

From cathedrals to Dolomites: Milan-Cortina Olympics pose a massive logistical test

How climate change is threatening the future of the Winter Olympics

Alysa Liu 2.0: How retirement, perspective helped the U.S. star reach new heights

The power of teamwork: Inside U.S. figure skating’s new Olympic golden age

Hilary Knight’s hockey achievements go beyond gold medals and championships

Everything you need to know about ski mountaineering, the newest Olympic sport

Ten U.S. athletes to watch at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

Until next time…

That concludes today’s Sports Report Olympic Edition newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email newsletter editor Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here and select The Sports Report.

I just read Bill Shaikin’s excellent column contrasting the Dodgers’ option to visit the White House with Jackie Robinson’s legendary civil rights stands throughout his life.

As a lifetime Dodger fan who has tried to stay as apolitical as possible, I would be absolutely ashamed of my Dodgers if they were to attend this photo op. I was ashamed last year, too. But nowhere near as much as this year.

Please don’t go.

Eric Monson
Temecula

Just to let Dave Roberts know, there is something bigger than baseball. On the wall in my den are my father’s medals: a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star from when the United States sent my father, Marcelo Villanueva, and others like him, to fight Adolf Hitler.

When our freedoms are being taken away, it’s not OK if you go to the White House and visit the man who is taking them away. Which means my father fought for nothing. You should be ashamed of yourself. You don’t deserve to wear the same uniform Jackie Robinson did.

Ed Villanueva
Chino Hills

I agree with Bill Shaikin that for the world champion Dodgers to visit the fascist friendly White House would be an implicit contradiction of Jackie Robinson’s legacy. Most of the players probably don’t care, but you wish a manager like Dave Roberts (in L.A.!) were as smart and sensible as Steve Kerr. Apparently he is not.

Sean Mitchell
Dallas

I couldn’t disagree more with Bill Shaikin and his stance that the Dodgers should decline the opportunity to visit the White House. In a world of increasing stresses and dangers, sports is, or should be, a reprieve from the news reported on the front pages. After 9/11, for example, we celebrated the return of baseball as a valued respite from the tragedies we were dealing with. Allow baseball to continue to be this respite, Bill, and stop trying to drag sports into the fray.

Steve Kaye
Oro Valley, Ariz.

Bad look, Dave. It doesn’t help to invoke Jackie Robinson, then in the next breath, “I am (just) a baseball manager.”

Can’t have it both ways. Shaikin is right. Decline.

Joel Soffer
Long Beach

If Roberts feels he needs to go, he should. But the rest of the team should not. Dodger management should support them. Roberts conveniently thinks that going is not a political statement. It is. Roberts’ going supports Trump. The man who raised him and served this country did not do so to see it under the thumb of a corrupt man who attacks all that it has stood for. Today we are all politically identified by the choices we make. There’s no avoiding it.

Eric Nelson
Encinitas

Bill Shaikin nailed it when he talked about and quoted Jackie Robinson and compared him to Dave Roberts’ spineless decision to take the Dodgers to the White House. It’s “only” sports? A team of this renown, in a city terrorized by ICE, in a state directly harmed by Trump? Thank you, Mr. Shaikin, for calling Roberts out.

Ellen Butler
Long Beach

Thank you, Dave Roberts, for making the decision to go to the White House and celebrate our Dodgers’ victory in the World Series. It’s a thing called respect for the office of the president no matter what political party is involved. I don’t care about the L.A. Times sports writers’ politics, so keep your political opinions out of the Sports pages.

Lance Oedekerk
Upland

A jury found former Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig guilty of obstruction of justice and making false statements to investigators Friday in Los Angeles federal court.

The two-week trial concluded with the jury deliberating for nearly two days. Puig, 35, could face up to 20 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 26.

Puig faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison on the obstruction of justice charge and up to five years in prison for the two false statement charges. He remains free on his own recognizance.

The charges stemmed from a January 2022 videoconference interview with federal investigators during which Puig was alleged to have lied about his sports betting. The investigators — led by Assistant U.S. Atty. Jeff Mitchell — were gathering information at the time about an illegal gambling ring headed by Wayne Nix of Newport Coast.

Investigators alleged that Puig denied he had placed bets with Nix despite evidence establishing that he made 899 wagers with the former minor league pitcher on football and basketball games and tennis matches from July to September 2019.

Puig — who was not accused of betting on baseball — lost more than $1.5 million in sports bets, Internal Revenue Service Special Agent Christen Seymour testified, and owed Nix $282,900.

Nix pleaded guilty in 2022 to one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business and one count of subscribing to a false tax return. He is awaiting sentencing.

Mitchell would soon be best known for overseeing the investigation and conviction of Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, who was sentenced a year ago to 57 months in federal prison for bank fraud and filing a false tax return after stealing $17 million from Ohtani to pay off his own illegal gambling debts.

But Mitchell’s interest in Puig centered around what he knew about Nix, the target of the federal probe in 2022. According to a court declaration reviewed by The Times, Mitchell told Puig’s attorney that he didn’t believe it was a federal crime to make payments to an illegal bookmaker. Investigators were after “an unlawful sports gambling organization,” Mitchell said.

Yet when Mitchell concluded Puig lied about placing bets through Nix intermediary Donny Kadokawa, he swiftly charged the outfielder with making false statements and obstruction of justice.

Puig agreed in August 2022 to plead guilty to one count of lying to federal authorities and would have served no jail time while paying a $55,000 fine. Weeks later, however, he backed out of the agreement, and a judge ruled he could do so because he had not yet entered his guilty plea in court.

“I want to clear my name,” Puig said in a statement at the time. “I never should have agreed to plead guilty to a crime I did not commit.”

It took three more years of pretrial legal wrangling, but Puig finally got his day in court in January. Assistant U.S. Attys. Juan Rodriguez and Michael Morse served as prosecutors after Mitchell resigned from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in May.

Puig’s defense centered around issues with the 2022 interview with Mitchell and investigators who represented the Department of Homeland Security and the IRS.

Defense lawyers Keri Curtis Axel and Brian Klein contended in court filings that Puig, who is from Cuba, was confused because of his language barrier and a dual diagnosis of ADHD and post-traumatic stress disorder. The investigators misinterpreted his answers, the attorneys said.

Steven Gebelin, who represented Puig in 2021 and 2022, testified at trial that his then-client tried to be helpful during the interview but, because the interpreter’s Spanish dialect differed from Puig’s, his answers were translated poorly. Puig did not testify at trial.

Axel contended during her closing statement that Puig did not lie about his interactions with Nix and his associates, which occurred two years before the interview with investigators.

The investigators assumed Puig was lying when he became confused by the questioning and felt pressured to accurately recollect the details of his gambling activity, Axel argued, telling the jury that “assumptions and speculation are not evidence, and you shouldn’t rely on it.”

Prosecutors also alleged Puig said during the interview that he had lost $200,000 in 2019 betting on a website he couldn’t identify and that a person whose name he couldn’t recall instructed him to purchase $200,000 in cashier’s checks made out to another client of Nix’s to settle his gambling debt. Investigators considered Puig’s inability to remember the name a lie.

Kadokawa testified that he was the person giving Puig instructions. Axel argued that Puig told the investigators later in the interview that he had placed bets through Kadokawa, according to court documents.

Prosecutors said Puig also lied when he went through the naturalization process to become a U.S. citizen in 2019, producing evidence that he said on an application and in an interview that he never gambled illegally.

After growing up in Cuba, Puig came to the United States in 2012 and signed with the Dodgers. His attorneys called an expert who testified that Puig’s arduous journey from his home country caused post-traumatic stress disorder.

UCLA psychology professor Marcel Pontón, a neuropsychology expert witness for the prosecution, disputed that diagnosis. And Morse rebutted the contention that Puig couldn’t understand English by playing audio of Puig reflecting in English about his interview.

The power-hitting outfielder quickly became a Dodgers fan favorite, finishing second in National League Rookie of the Year voting in 2013. Nicknamed the “Wild Horse,” Puig remained a fearsome presence in the lineup for six years and helped the Dodgers to the World Series in 2018 when he hit a three-run homer in Game 7 of the NL Championship Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

From Broderick Turner: The biggest news for the Lakers on Thursday was that All-Star guard Luka Doncic was unable to play in the second half against the Philadelphia 76ers because of left leg soreness, the team announced in the third quarter.

Doncic left the game in the second quarter of the Lakers’ 119-115 win at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers were undaunted by Doncic’s departure, coming back from 14 points down and holding on for the win by following the lead of Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura and a strong defensive effort led by Marcus Smart and Jarred Vanderbilt.

After the game in which Reaves led the Lakers in scoring with 35 points off the bench, the biggest concern for the Lakers was the health of Doncic.

“He felt some soreness in his hamstring so he didn’t feel like it was good enough to go back in [and] neither did [our medical team,] ” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “So, we held him out and they [are] going to do some imaging. It’s too early to say if there’s an injury, but [he] just had a sore hamstring.”

Continue reading here

MORE NBA NEWS

Lakers acquire Luke Kennard, prepared to pursue Giannis Antetokounmpo this summer

Clippers trade Ivica Zubac to Pacers for Bennedict Mathurin, first-round picks and more

Stafford announces decision while accepting MVP award

From Gary Klein: Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford will be back for an 18th NFL season.

And he’ll do it as the reigning NFL most valuable player.

On Thursday night, Stafford was announced as the MVP during NFL Honors at the Palace of Fine Arts.

And then he made a big announcement of his own.

Stafford, wearing a black tuxedo with a black shirt and black bow tie, accepted the award on stage with his four young daughters, who attended most games this season. He thanked his wife, Kelly; family; teammates; coaches; and those who helped him reach the milestone.

“I’m so happy to have you at the games on the sideline with me and I can’t wait for you to cheer me on next year when we’re kicking a—,” Stafford said to his daughters, before turning his attention to the audience.

“And so I’ll see you guys next year,” he said as a crowd that included coach Sean McVay and several teammates began to roar. “Hopefully, I’m not at this event and we’re getting ready for another game at SoFi.”

Continue reading here

MORE RAMS NEWS

Rams will play the San Francisco 49ers in Australia next season

How to watch the Super Bowl

Sunday

at Santa Clara

Seattle vs. New England

3:30 p.m. PT, NBC, Peacock, Telemundo, KLAC AM 570

Halftime show: Bad Bunny

National anthem: Charlie Puth

Odds: Seahawks favored by 4.5 points

Over/Under: 45.5 points

Dodgers to visit the White House

From Ana Ceballos and Ed Guzman: The Dodgers will make a return trip to the White House in recognition of their latest World Series title.

President Trump is planning to host the team, but no date has been set for the ceremony, a White House official confirmed Thursday morning.

The Dodgers went to the White House following their two previous World Series championships, hosted by President Biden in 2021 and President Trump last April.

Continue reading here

U.S. women’s hockey makes history as it wins Olympic opener

From Kevin Baxter: Laila Edwards finally got out from under the spotlight and onto the ice for the U.S. women’s hockey team Thursday. It was a simple act, but one that made history.

Yet for Edwards, it was just another day at the office.

“It didn’t feel different at all,” she said. “It’s still hockey at the end of the day. Even though it’s the highest level, it’s still hockey.”

With her first shift in Thursday’s 5-1 win over Czechia, on the first day of hockey at the Milan-Cortina Winter Games, Edwards became the first Black woman to play for the U.S. national team in an Olympic tournament. On a team full of record-breakers, it was a significant milestone, one that has become a storyline for the world’s top-ranked team.

Continue reading here

Alysa Liu returns to Olympics after a brief retirement

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Alysa Liu wore a hollow smile on the ice. She had achieved a dream, skating at the Beijing Olympics at just 16, but in a mostly empty arena, few were there to see the moment.

Perhaps that was what Liu secretly wanted.

“It’s not that I didn’t want to be seen,” Liu said. “It’s just I had nothing to show.”

The 20-year-old now proudly presents Alysa Liu 2.0.

Four years after shocking the sport by retiring as a teenage phenom, the Oakland native could win two gold medals at the Milan-Cortina Olympics. She is a title contender in her individual event that begins Feb. 17 as the United States tries to end a 20-year Olympic medal drought in women’s singles figure skating, and she will skate Friday in the women’s short program of a team competition the United States is favored to win.

Continue reading here

Olympics newsletter

Starting Saturday, you will receive a separate newsletter containing all the Olympics news from our reporters in Italy, including a medal count and TV listings. Sports Report subscribers will automatically get this newsletter, and it should arrive around 3 a.m. in your inbox.

Friday’s Olympic TV/streaming schedule

Friday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific.

OPENING CEREMONY: 11 a.m.| NBC, Peacock
(replay at 8 p.m. on NBC)

MULTIPLE SPORTS
7 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay): Figure skating, curling, hockey, skiing and more.| NBC

ALPINE SKIING
2:30 a.m. — Men’s downhill, training | Peacock
2:30 a.m. — Women’s downhill, training | Peacock

CURLING
Mixed doubles (round robin)
1:05 a.m. — U.S. vs. Canada | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Italy vs. Switzerland | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Sweden vs. Britain | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Czechia vs. U.S. | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Estonia vs. Italy | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — South Korea vs. Britain | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Sweden vs. Norway | Peacock
5:55 a.m. — Czechia vs. U.S. (in progress) | USA

FIGURE SKATING
Team competition
1 a.m. — Rhythm dance | USA
2:35 a.m. — Pairs, short program | USA
4:35 a.m. — Women, short program | USA

HOCKEY
Women (group play)
3:10 a.m. — France vs. Japan | Peacock
5:40 a.m. — Czechia vs. Switzerland | Peacock

USC extends its winning strea

From The Times staff: The USC women’s basketball team rolled to an 83-65 victory over Northwestern at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thursday night, extending their win streak to three games.

USC freshman Jazzy Davidson and redshirt freshman Laura Williams helped the Trojans open the game on an 11-0 run, claiming a lead they would never relinquish.

“I feel like as a team with these last couple of games, we’ve improved a lot,” sophomore guard Kennedy Smith said. “We’ve stayed consistent and are playing together and growing as a team, and that starts in practice. Just a lot of conversations about being better, obviously through that stretch of losses, but that doesn’t define us. I think the games matter the most in February and March, so we’re here to be better from here on out.”

Continue reading here

USC summary

Big Ten standings

Kings lose to Golden Knights

From the Associated Press: Mark Stone had a goal and two assists and the Vegas Golden Knights took control early Thursday night by scoring four times on their first six shots for a 4-1 victory over the Kings.

Vegas heads into the Olympic break with back-to-back victories after losing seven of eight games. The Kings have lost four of five.

Jack Eichel and Pavel Dorofeyev each had a goal and an assist for the Golden Knights. Mitch Marner scored a goal for his 799th career point and Ivan Barbashev extended his points streak to five games with two assists.

Barbashev’s four-game goal streak, however, ended. Eichel extended his points streak to four games and now has 200 assists in a Golden Knights uniform.

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Kings summary

NHL standings

This day in sports history

1943 — Montreal’s Ray Getliffe scores five goals to lead the Canadiens to an 8-3 triumph over the Boston Bruins.

1958 — Ted Williams signs a contract with the Boston Red Sox for $135,000, making him the highest paid player in major league history.

1967 — Muhammad Ali successfully defends his world heavyweight title with a 15-round decision over Ernest Terrell in the Houston Astrodome.

1970 — The NBA expands to 18 teams with the addition of franchises in Buffalo, Cleveland, Houston and Portland.

1981 — Wayne Gretzky scores three goals and three assists in a 10-4 Edmonton victory over the Winnipeg Jets, giving him 100 points in the season.

1985 — Seventeen-year-old Dianne Roffe becomes the first U.S. woman to win a gold medal in a World Alpine Ski Championship race, capturing the giant slalom in 2:18.53.

1988 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan wins the NBA Slam Dunk contest with a perfect score of 50 on his final dunk, in front of a hometown crowd at Chicago Stadium.

1990 — Brett Hull of the St. Louis Blues scores his 50th goal, making him and his Hall of Famer father, Bobby Hull, the only father-son combination in NHL history to reach that milestone.

1993 — Riddick Bowe easily wins his first defense of his WBA and IBF heavyweight boxing titles by beating Michael Dokes in the first round of their championship bout held at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

2000 — Randy Moss sets records with nine catches for 212 yards, and Mike Alstott scores three touchdowns in the NFC’s 51-31 victory over the AFC, the highest-scoring Pro Bowl.

2000 — Pavel Bure records the 11th hat trick in All-Star history and goalie Olaf Kolzig plays a shutout third period as the World team routs North America 9-4 in the NHL’s 50th All-Star game.

2005 — The New England Patriots win their third Super Bowl in four years, 24-21 over the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s their ninth straight postseason victory, equaling Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers.

2011 — New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady becomes the first unanimous choice for The Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player Award. Brady gets all 50 votes since the AP began using a nationwide panel of media members who cover the league.

2011 — Aaron Rodgers throws three touchdown passes and Nick Collins returns an interception for another score, leading the Green Bay Packers to a 31-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.

2022 – NFL Pro Bowl, Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, Nevada: AFC beats NFC, 41-35; MVPs: Justin Herbert, QB LA Chargers; Maxx Crosby, DE LV Raiders.

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

During their recent magical World Series run, the champion Dodgers had many heroes, but one constant.

Whenever they needed a leader, they found one.

No matter how dire the circumstances, whenever they needed a hero, somebody stepped up.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto won a game on zero day’s rest. Will Smith won a game with one hand.

Freddie Freeman was an 18th-inning savior on one leg. Kiké Hernández was a ninth-inning savior with a bad elbow.

Everywhere you looked, there was a veteran Dodger willing to sacrifice himself for the good of the team.

That needs to happen again.

That needs to happen now.

A player needs to spearhead a decision that will not be made by the big business that runs this team, a decision that will bypass the biased blather and directly connect to their many besieged fans, a decision that only a player can make.

In the wake of Thursday’s White House confirmation that the Dodgers will be making the traditional champions visit there this spring, somebody needs to send a clear message to President Donald Trump.

“No.”

Federal immigration agents stage outside Gate E of Dodger Stadium on June 19. Sporadic immigration raids continue to roil Southern California.

(Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)

No, they won’t go.

No, they will not support the ICE raids that are taking place daily just outside their clubhouse doors.

No, they will not openly support an administration that has declared war on its fan base.

No, after basking in the adulation of four million diverse neighbors every summer, the players will not turn their backs on these people while the government continues to round them up despite no criminal history.

This isn’t about asking pro athletes to be politicians. This is about asking them to be people.

Some will say players should not be involved, that it’s a management decision high above the pay grade of the average southpaw or slugger. But when their backyard becomes a battlefield, those players need to fight back, and that time is now.

Dodger management will always leave any tough choice like this one up to the players. By virtue of hundreds of millions of dollars of salaries, the players are essentially partners who need to embrace that responsibility.

No matter what owner Mark Walter says, if the players don’t want to visit the White House, they won’t go.

No matter who shouts the loudest, whether it be conservatives or liberals, the players’ collective voice is the only one that counts.

So, when spring training begins next week, here’s hoping for a hero.

After being showered with numerous curtain calls by an adoring fan base, it’s time for the players to return the favor.

How about a standing ovation for the brave law-abiding immigrant family of four that cheers you from in the left-field pavilion even though they know they could be arrested and hauled away at any time?

How about a, “Let’s Go Dodgers” chant for the longtime residents with no criminal record who spent last October huddled around their TV sets clinging to your victories as reason for hope?

How about being there for so many who have been there for you?

A protestor wearing a Mookie Betts jersey and waving a Mexican and American flag stitched together protests ICE outside the Dodger Stadium game on June 21.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

This was an issue last year, when former Times columnist Dylan Hernández urged the Dodgers to cancel their initial White House visit.

“This was something we discussed with all the players, all of whom wanted to go,” team president Stan Kasten told Hernández. “Remember, everyone in here grew up wanting to be a world champion and all the things that come with it, and it comes with a champagne toast, silliness in the locker room, a parade, rings, an invitation to the White House. It’s what they all come to associate with being world champions. Everyone wanted to go, and so we did.”

So they went, all of them except an injured Freddie Freeman. The event was even attended by Mookie Betts, who had previously declined a visit when he was with the Boston Red Sox.

Since then, the landscape has dramatically changed in light of the ICE raids that ramped up during the middle of the season.

This is no longer simply about the rebuke of a president. This is about a fight against a system that has consistently terrorized southern California streets and recently, in Minneapolis, resulted in the deaths of two American citizens at the hands of agents of the American government.

Surely the Dodgers clubhouse leaders see this. Surely they feel this.

They can’t be so insulated that they don’t notice the protests in city streets that resemble those near Chavez Ravine. They can’t be so sheltered that they don’t hear the outrage from people who look just like their biggest fans.

The players can’t hide from this. The players need to handle this.

And, no, it’s not even up to manager Dave Roberts, who last week told the Times’ Bill Shaikin that he supports the visit.

“I was raised — by a man who served our country for 30 years — to respect the highest office in our country,” Roberts said. “For me, it doesn’t matter who is in the office, I’m going to go to the White House.”

Again, this is no longer about just Trump. This is about Tom Homan and Greg Bovino and Kristi Noem and all the other immigration officials that have wrought so much unfounded havoc.

Baseball clubhouses have traditionally leaned heavily to the right.

Nobody is asking anybody to disavow their beliefs. This is no longer about ideology, this is about standing up for those who are being wrongly arrested, being unfairly harassed or being made to feel constantly frightened in their own homes.

Dodger Stadium is one of those homes, and those who permanently live there need to do their best to provide comfort and safety for those who don’t.

Dodgers veteran leaders, this is your time.

Their White House visit would probably occur during the team’s trip to play the Washington Nationals in the first week of April. Here’s hoping that before the road trip, the secure and well-paid Dodgers veterans let the team’s kids understand what it means to be a Dodger and how declining a White House visit would be the Jackie Robinson thing to do.

Sending a title team to the White House is baseball tradition. Sending a message about equality and fairness and freedom is a Dodgers tradition.

Somebody in a Dodgers uniform needs to stand up for that tradition.

Anybody?

The Dodgers will make a return trip to the White House in recognition of their latest World Series title.

President Trump is planning to host the team but no date has been set for the ceremony, a White House official confirmed Thursday morning.

The Dodgers went to the White House following their two previous World Series championships, being hosted by President Biden in 2021 and President Trump last April.

A Dodgers spokesman declined comment Thursday.

Questions swirled around whether players would decline to go ahead of last year’s visit. Kiké Hernández said in 2018 he was unsure he would have done had the Dodgers won the World Series the previous year. Mookie Betts said he was undecided and needed to talk it over with his family first when last year’s visit was initially announced. After winning his first World Series with the Red Sox in 2018, Betts skipped their trip to the White House the following year during Trump’s first term.

Both players ended up going in 2025.

Manager Dave Roberts, who indicated in comments to The Times in 2019 he might not go to the White House if Trump was president, also participated in last year’s ceremony.

When asked at last weekend’s Dodgers’ fan festival about the possibility of returning to the White House this year, Roberts told The Times’ Bill Shaikin: “For me, I stand by: I’m a baseball manager. That’s my job.

“I was raised — by a man who served our country for 30 years — to respect the highest office in our country. For me, it doesn’t matter who is in the office, I’m going to go to the White House. I’ve never tried to be political. … For me, I am going to continue to try to do what tradition says and not try to make political statements, because I am not a politician.”

Though no date has been set for this year’s White House visit, the Dodgers will play the Nationals in a three-game series April 3-5, with an off day on April 2 following a six-game homestand to open the season.

From Kevin Baxter: Many of the officials supporting the nearly 250 U.S. athletes competing in this month’s Winter Olympics arrived in Italy last weekend to a greeting they may not have expected: Hundreds of demonstrators packed a square in central Milan to protest the reported plan to deploy U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during the Games.

The first events in the 18-day competition, which will be shared by Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Italian Alps, begin Thursday and the opening ceremony is scheduled for Friday. Against that background, International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry called the agents’ involvement “distracting” and “sad.”

“This is a militia that kills. They are not welcome in Milan,” Mayor Giuseppe Sala said on local radio ahead of the protests, which took place beneath the neoclassical Porta Garibaldi arch in the Piazza XXV Aprile, named for the date of Italy’s liberation from Nazi fascism in World War II.

Many demonstrators blew whistles and carried signs of the five Olympic rings rendered as handcuffs above the words “No ICE in Milan.” One woman held a handmade poster featuring photos of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, the two Minnesotans killed by federal agents last month, alongside Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old boy in the blue bunny hat who was taken from his home in Minneapolis to a detention facility in Texas.

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Teamwork makes the dream work

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Amber Glenn achieved a lifelong goal, sealing her Olympic bid by winning her third consecutive U.S. championship last month. Her first celebration came with her opponents.

“We all deserve it,” Glenn said with her arms wrapped around national silver medalist Alysa Liu and bronze medalist Isabeau Levito.

The spirit of collaboration has brought U.S. figure skating into a new golden age. The 16-athlete team the United States sent to Milan may be the country’s strongest Olympic team in decades. With three reigning world champions and three current Grand Prix final champions, the United States is poised for one of its best Olympic Games ever in figure skating.

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IOC continues to have ‘full trust’ in Casey Wasserman and L.A. Olympic committee

Olympics newsletter

Starting Saturday, you will receive a separate newsletter containing all the Olympics news from our reporters in Italy, including a medal count and TV listings. Sports Report subscribers will automatically get this newsletter, and it should arrive around 3 a.m. in your inbox.

Thursday’s Oly TV/streaming schedule

Thursday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts. All times Pacific.

The first day of full competition begins Saturday.

ALPINE SKIING
2:30 a.m. — Men’s downhill, training | Peacock

CURLING
Mixed doubles (round robin)
1:05 a.m. — Norway vs. U.S. | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Britain vs. Estonia | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — South Korea vs. Italy | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Sweden vs. Czechia | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — U.S. vs. Switzerland | USA
5:35 a.m. — Norway vs. Canada | Peacock
10 a.m. — Canada vs. Italy | USA
10:05 a.m. — Czechia vs. Britain | Peacock
10:05 a.m. — Estonia vs. Sweden | Peacock
10 a.m. — Switzerland vs. South Korea | Peacock
2 p.m. — Norway vs. U.S. (delay) | CNBC

HOCKEY
Women (group play)
3:10 a.m. — Sweden vs. Germany | Peacock
5:40 a.m. — Italy vs. France | Peacock
7:40 a.m. — U.S. vs. Czechia | USA
12:45 p.m. — Finland vs. Canada | USA

SNOWBOARDING
10:30 a.m. — Men’s big air, qualifying | USA

Checking in on Dodgers’ commitment

From Bill Shaikin: Not long after Pacific Palisades and Altadena had burned, Gov. Gavin Newsom summoned reporters and television cameras to Dodger Stadium. Newsom stepped behind a podium dropped within a stadium parking lot, with a commanding view of Los Angeles as the backdrop.

He was there to unveil LA Rises, a signature initiative under which the private sector and philanthropists could unite to help Southern California rebuild and recover.

The most valuable player that day: Mark Walter, the Dodgers’ chairman and controlling owner. The big announcement: Walter and two of his associated charities — his family foundation and the Dodgers’ foundation — would contribute up to $100 million as “an initial commitment” to LA Rises.

One year later, Newsom’s initiative has struggled to distinguish itself amid a panoply of wildfire relief efforts. LA Rises has delivered $20 million to date, including $7.8 million from Walter’s family foundation, according to Newsom’s office.

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Dodger Stadium tour guides failed to unionize. Here’s why they’re getting raises anyway

Les Snead has a lot on his plate

From Gary Klein: If he returns for an 18th NFL season, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford will almost certainly demand a significant raise. And receiver Puka Nacua is positioned to potentially break the bank with an extension.

Those are just two issues Rams general manager Les Snead will deal with in the coming weeks and months as the franchise retools for the 2026 season.

Snead, who along with coach Sean McVay signed extensions this week, said Wednesday during a videoconference with reporters that the “opportunity to continue shouldering my responsibility” along with McVay and other executives for owner Stan Kroenke was “the opportunity of a lifetime.”

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Angels sign Trey Mancini

Former Baltimore slugger and cancer survivor Trey Mancini is taking another shot at a major league comeback after agreeing to a minor league contract with the Angels that includes an invitation to big league spring training.

The Angels on Wednesday listed the infielder among their 27 non-roster invitees to camp in Tempe, Ariz.

The 33-year-old Mancini has batted .263 with 129 homers and 400 RBIs over parts of seven seasons, but he hasn’t played in the major leagues since 2023. He began his career by playing parts of six seasons with the Orioles, hitting a career-high 29 homers in 2019.

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Jaxson Hayes suspended for one game

From Broderick Turner: Lakers center Jaxson Hayes has been suspended one game without pay for pushing a Washington Wizards mascot during pregame introductions, the NBA announced Wednesday.

The Lakers played the Wizards at Capital One Arena on Friday night.

Hayes will miss the Lakers’ game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena.

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Darius Garland discusses joining Clippers

Darius Garland could not have been more in transition than he was Wednesday night on his first day with his new team.

Officially traded earlier in the day from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Clippers for 11-time All-Star James Harden, Garland talked about his upheaval during halftime of Wednesday’s game between his current and former teams, a game the Cavaliers won, 124-91.

“I knew about it. It wasn’t a shock, though,” the two-time All-Star said. “It’s the business of basketball. Cleveland was great to me and my family, and I have respect for all of those guys over there. … Seven years was a really long time, and it was great. I’m glad I’m here now. The next chapter in my book.”

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Clippers box score

NBA standings

UCLA women rout Rutgers by 40

Headlined by first and third quarter dominance, No. 2 UCLA women’s basketball picked up a 86-46 win over Rutgers (9-14, 1-11) at Pauley Pavilion on Wednesday night.

Kiki Rice led the Bruins (22-1, 12-0 Big Ten) with 17 points and seven rebounds, while Gabriela Jaquez got things started, scoring 10 of her 14 points in the first quarter.

Rutgers, playing without its two leading scorers in Nene Ndiaye and Imani Lester, committed 18 turnovers that the Bruins converted into 25 points.

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UCLA box score

Big Ten standings

Kings acquire Artemi Panarin

The Kings acquired high-scoring left wing Artemi Panarin from the New York Rangers on Wednesday for a conditional third-round draft pick and prospect Liam Greentree.

The Kings then signed Panarin to a two-year, $22-million contract that will keep the Russian forward in Los Angeles through the 2027-28 season.

The trade ends weeks of uncertainty around the future of the 34-year-old Panarin, who hadn’t played since Jan. 26 while the Rangers held him out in anticipation of trading their top scorer in each of the past seven consecutive seasons. He currently leads New York with 57 points in 52 games.

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Kings lose to Kraken

Shane Wright scored twice to lead the Seattle Kraken to a 4-2 win over the Kings on Wednesday night.

Vince Dunn and Adam Larsson also scored and Chandler Stephenson and Frederick Gaudreau each had two assists for the Kraken, who have won five of their last six games. Joey Daccord made 25 saves.

Andrei Kuzmenko scored both of the Kings’ goals and Darcy Kuemper made 19 saves.

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Kings summary

NHL standings

Super Bowl

Sunday
at Santa Clara
Seattle vs. New England
3:30 p.m. PT, NBC, Peacock, Telemundo, KLAC AM 570
Halftime show: Bad Bunny
National anthem: Charlie Puth
Odds: Seahawks favored by 4.5 points
Over/Under: 45.5 points

This day in sports history

1913 — The New York State Athletic Commission bans boxing matches between fighters of different races.

1919 — Charges against Cincinnati’s Hal Chase of throwing games and betting against his team are dismissed by National League president John Heydler. Two weeks later, Chase is traded to the New York Giants.

1948 — After landing the first double axel in Olympic competition, Dick Button becomes the first American to win the Olympic gold medal in figure skating. Gretchen Fraser becomes the first U.S. woman Olympic slalom champion.

1960 — Bill Russell grabs 51 rebounds in the Boston Celtics’ 124-100 victory over the Syracuse Nationals. Russell is the first player in NBA history to pull in 50 or more rebounds.

1972 — Bob Douglas is the first Black person elected to Basketball Hall of Fame. Known as “The Father of Black Professional Basketball,” Douglas owned and coached the New York Renaissance from 1922 until 1949.

1976 — Austrian Franz Klammer wins the Olympic gold medal in the downhill at Innsbruck, Austria. Bill Koch wins a silver in the 30-kilometer cross-country race to become the first American to win a medal in a Nordic event.

1980 — Gordie Howe plays his 23rd and final All-Star Game. Howe doesn’t score, but sets up the final goal of the game, by Real Cloutier, in the Wales Conference’s 6-3 win against the Campbell Conference at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

1990 — Notre Dame bucks the College Football Association and becomes the first college to sell its home games to a major network, agreeing to a five-year contract with NBC beginning in 1991.

1991 — Dave Taylor of the Kings has two assists in a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers to become the 29th player in NHL history with 1,000 points.

1999 — Patrick Roy, at 33, becomes the youngest goalie in NHL history to earn 400 wins when he makes 26 saves in the Colorado Avalanche’s 3-1 win against the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena.

2003 — Bode Miller of the United States captures his first major title, winning the gold medal in the combined at the world championships in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

2006 — Pittsburgh wins a record-tying fifth Super Bowl, but its first since 1980 with a 21-10 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

2009 — Tennessee’s Pat Summitt becomes the first Division I basketball coach — man or woman — to win 1,000 games after her Lady Vols beat Georgia 73-43.

2011 — Dejen Gebremeskel of Ethiopia wins the men’s 3,000 at the Boston Indoor Grand Prix, after losing his right shoe at the start of the race. Gebremeskel stays close to the lead throughout the race and takes over on the final lap to finish in 7:35.37. Britain’s Mo Farah finishes second in 7:35.81.

2012 — Eli Manning and the Giants one-up Tom Brady and the Patriots again, coming back with a last-minute score to beat New England 21-17 for New York’s fourth Super Bowl title.

2017 — Tom Brady leads one of the greatest comebacks in sports, let alone Super Bowl history, lifting New England from a 25-point hole to the Patriots’ fifth NFL championship in the game’s first overtime finish. The Patriots score 19 points in the final quarter, including a pair of two-point conversions, then marches relentlessly to James White’s two-yard touchdown run in overtime beating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28.

2022 — Six days before his 50th birthday, 11-time world surfing champion Kelly Slater wins his eighth Pipeline title beating 22-year old Hawaiian Seth Moniz in the final.

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.

Win-win might be overstating the outcome. But when the Dodgers emailed their roughly 55 tour guides Wednesday to say they were getting the pay raise they sought during a failed attempt to unionize, there must have been more smiles than frowns.

The Dodgers and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees reached an agreement in October, but ratification of the pact by the union failed by one vote. A second vote also narrowly failed. Then in January the tour guides voted to decertify the union, meaning the pay raise and increased stadium security on non-game days IATSE and the Dodgers had agreed upon were off the table.

Not for long. The Dodgers bumped up the guides’ pay from $17.87 to $24 an hour — the same increase they would have gotten under the scrapped union contract.

That’s hardly Kyle Tucker money: The Dodgers’ new right fielder signed a contract for $240 million over four years, an average annual value of $60 million. The Dodgers will pay the tour guides a grand total of about $650,000 in 2026 — $170,000 of that reflecting the raise of about $3,000 per person. Tucker will make 92 times the entire tour guide payroll annually.

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 as 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 multimillion-dollar asset.”

Tours now take place every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. The burgeoning demand has caused breaches in stadium security, with guides flagging instances of tour participants entering the top deck with backpacks and even rolling suitcases going unchecked.

The union agreement included a promise by the Dodgers to beef up security. Some guides worried that the decertification would mean the team might continue to ignore their safety concerns. However, the letter to tour guides announcing the raise also addressed stadium security without offering specifics.

“I want you to know that we hear you, team, and we see you,” wrote Kayla Rodiger, Dodgers senior manager of tours. “Your concerns are valid, and I’ll be working closely with our front office colleagues to ensure we make a sincere and meaningful effort to address them.

“That being said, we are actively discussing security issues around the stadium, and I hope to have an update for you on your Top Deck concerns soon.”

Nicole Miller, president of IATSE Local B-192, led the union negotiations that fell short of a contract but likely nudged the Dodgers into addressing the pay and security issues on their own.

“Make no mistake, our IATSE Local B-192 bargaining team’s efforts were crucial in the tour guides obtaining a significant wage increase, and we hope they follow up on their promise to increase security,” Miller said.

The letter from Rodiger also said that the Dodgers’ longtime practice of offering tour guides comp tickets would continue. The perk of four reserve-level tickets for each of the 13 homestands in a season is worth $2,600 assuming the tickets are valued at $50 each. Miller said that in 2024 only three tour guides took all 52 tickets; on average, each guide took 32.

The Dodgers refused to mention free tickets in the union agreement because they said other part-time union employees would demand the same perk. Still, the uncertainty surrounding the tickets kept several guides from voting for union representation.

The contentious negotiations and near 50-50 split among the membership prompted veteran tour guide Cary Ginell to retire, sending a letter Jan. 23 to several of the Dodgers’ top executives.

“I’m writing to let you know that the tour program has become a dysfunctional battle between pro and anti-union factions with resentment and animosity on both sides,” wrote Ginell, a Grammy-nominated author of more than a dozen books on American music. “As an executive, you should be concerned about this, because it reflects on the entire Dodger organization.

“Above all, I wanted what was best for the tour guides, especially the younger ones who struggle to earn a living by working multiple jobs, but come to work afraid of who will be reporting on them and what threats might occur due to the absence of building security.”

Less than two weeks later, the Dodgers responded.

“Over the past two years, our department has thrived, earning recognition across the Dodgers organization, the league, and the City of Los Angeles,” Rodiger wrote to the tour guides. “Your ability to stay focused and uphold our standards to continue to give World Champion level tours has not gone unnoticed, and I promise you all that your contributions to this organization are not taken for granted.”