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Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. New ranking of the summer movies I’ve seen this year: 1. The Odyssey; 2. Supergirl; 3. Young Washington; 4. Disclosure Day; 5. Masters of the Universe; 6. The Devil Wears Prada 2

We are less than a week away from the trade deadline (Monday at 3 p.m. PT). The Dodgers have a commanding lead in the NL West and are going to make the postseason. Their current team is good enough to win the World Series, but there’s now a big question mark over Shohei Ohtani, whose knee is preventing him from pitching.

Ohtani’s last start was July 3. And, in the category of things that make you wonder, his batting stats since then: .250/.300/.500, 16 for 64, four doubles, four homers, five walks, 17 strikeouts. Could just be a down couple of weeks, which every batter goes through. But when paired with the sore knee, it makes you think.

The Dodgers are counting on getting Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell back in August. That would give them a postseason rotation (if Ohtani can’t pitch again this year) of:

Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Snell
Glasnow
Justin Wrobleski

If Ohtani can pitch again, one of those guys drops off. But what if he can’t come back and Snell and/or Glasnow aren’t able to come back? Emmet Sheehan? Roki Sasaki? Bullpen game? Sasaki has pitched well his last couple of starts, but we’ve been down that road before.

Or do the Dodgers add a reliever? Another hitter? Stand pat?

And then add in the fact that getting someone, even someone like Tarik Skubal, guarantees nothing. The Dodgers have made big deals in the past and not won. They have made marginal deals and won it all.

What would you do? Assuming the trade is fair, which would you acquire first, a starting pitcher, reliever, batter or would you stand pat?

Click here to vote in our survey.

Maddie Lee offers her trade deadline take here.

In the meantime, here’s a look at some previous trade deadline deals by the Dodgers.

2017

—Acquired pitcher Yu Darvish from Texas for A.J. Alexy, Willie Calhoun and Brendon Davis.

—Acquired pitcher Tony Cingrani from Cincinnati for Scott Van Slyke and Hendrik Clementina.

—Acquired pitcher Tony Watson from Pittsburgh for Angel German and Oneil Cruz.

—Acquired outfielder Curtis Granderson from the New York Mets for Jacob Rhame.

Dodgers record before deadline: 74-31, .705

Record after deadline: 30-27, .526

2018

—Acquired shortstop Manny Machado from Baltimore for Rylan Bannon, Yusniel Diaz, Dean Kremer, Zach Pop and Breyvic Valera. (This trade was made July 18, but we will count it.)

—Acquired pitcher John Axford from Toronto for Corey Copping.

—Acquired second baseman Brian Dozier from Minnesota for Logan Forsythe, Luke Raley and Devin Smeltzer.

—Acquired infielder David Freese from Pittsburgh for Jesus Valdez.

Record before deadline: 59-49, .506

Record after deadline: 33-22, .600

2019

—Acquired pitcher Adam Kolarek from Tampa Bay for Niko Hulsizer.

—Acquired infielder Jedd Gyorko from St. Louis for Jeffry Abreu and Tony Cingrani.

Record before deadline: 71-39, .645

Record after deadline: 35-17, .673

2020

Nothing significant. This was the 60-game COVID season.

2021

—Acquired pitcher Max Scherzer and shortstop Trea Turner from Washington for Gerardo Carrillo, Donovan Casey, Josiah Gray and Keibert Ruiz.

—Acquired outfielder Billy McKinney from the New York Mets for Carlos Rincón.

—Acquired pitcher Danny Duffy from Kansas City for Zach Willeman.

Record before deadline: 63-43, .594

Record after deadline: 43-13, .768

2022

—Acquired pitcher Chris Martin from the Chicago Cubs for infielder-outfielder Zach McKinstry.

—Acquired left fielder Joey Gallo from the New York Yankees for Clayton Beeter.

Record before deadline: 68-33, .673

Record after deadline: 43-18, .705

2023

—Acquired Kiké Hernández from Boston for Justin Hagenman and Nick Robertson.

—Acquired pitchers Joe Kelly and Lance Lynn from the Chicago White Sox for Jordan Leasure, Nick Nastrini and Trayce Thompson.

—Acquired infielder Amed Rosario from Cleveland for Noah Syndergaard.

—Acquired pitcher Ryan Yarbrough from Kansas City for Derlin Figueroa and Devin Mann.

Record before deadline: 59-45, .567

Record after deadline: 41-17, .707

2024

—Acquired pitcher Jack Flaherty from Detroit for Thayron Liranzo and Trey Sweeney.

—As part of a three-team deal, acquired infielder/outfielder Tommy Edman from St. Louis and pitcher Michael Kopech from the Chicago White Sox for Alexander Albertus, Jeral Perez and Miguel Vargas.

—Traded pitcher Ryan Yarbrough to the Toronto Blue Jays for outfielder Kevin Kiermaier.

Record before deadline: 63-46, .578

Record after deadline: 35-18, .660

2025

Traded pitcher Dustin May to the Boston Red Sox. Received Zach Ehrhard and James Tibbs III.

Traded pitchers Paul Liñan and Eriq Swan to the Washington Nationals for outfielder Alex Call.

Traded catcher Hunter Feduccia to the Tampa Bay Rays for pitchers Adam Serwinowski and Paul Gervase and catcher Ben Rortvedt.

Traded outfielder James Outman to the Minnesota Twins for pitcher Brock Stewart.

Record before deadline: 63-46, .578

Record after deadline: 30-23, .566

See, last year, the most important acquisition was getting Rortvedt, and no one was exactly extolling his virtues when they got him. I remember when the Dodgers acquired Darvish, it seemed to guarantee the World Series title. And when they got Scherzer, that seemed like a slam dunk for the title. But you never know what’s going to happen.

And are there any trades up there that make you say, “Wow, that was a terrible deal?” No. Andrew Friedman has a great track record on trades, so, it will be interesting to see what the Dodgers do.

The postseason

Here’s a look at the NL. Remember, the three division winners plus the next three teams with the best record make the postseason. The two division winners with the best record get a first-round bye.

Division leaders
1. Dodgers, 67-39
2. Milwaukee, 66-40, 1 GB
3. Atlanta, 62-44, 5 GB

Wild-card standings
1. Chicago, 60-46
2. Philadelphia, 57-50
3. Pittsburgh, 55-52

4. Arizona, 55-52
5. Washington, 54-53, 1 GB
6. St. Louis, 53-53, 1.5 GB
7. San Diego, 53-53, 1.5 GB
8. Miami, 53-54, 2 GB
9. Cincinnati, 49-55, 4.5 GB

These names seem familiar

How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams (through Sunday). Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page:

Anthony Banda, Twins: 2-0, 4.46 ERA, 2 saves, 34.1 IP, 31 hits, 15 walks, 33 K’s, 97 ERA+, out for the season

Cody Bellinger, Yankees: .259/.350/.420, 434 PA’s, 21 doubles, 3 triples, 11 homers, 53 RBIs, 113 OPS+, on the IL

Walker Buehler, Padres: 6-5, 5.12 ERA, 100 IP, 99 hits, 42 walks, 91 K’s, 80 ERA+

Mike Busch, Cubs: .247/.368/.405, 468 PA’s, 18 doubles, 2 triples, 13 homers, 56 RBIs, 117 OPS+

Michael Conforto, Cubs: .237/.326/.481, 178 PA’s, 11 doubles, 9 homers, 24 RBIs, 122 OPS+

Justin Dean, Cubs: .286/.444/.571, 9 PA’s, 1 triple, 3 RBIs, 1829 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, Reds: 1-0, 3.86 ERA, 1 save, 21 IP, 23 hits, 10 walks, 20 K’s, 115 ERA+

Jack Flaherty, Tigers: 3-8, 4.59 ERA, 86.1 IP, 80 hits, 42 walks, 102 K’s, 93 ERA+, on the IL

Kenley Jansen, Tigers: 2-4, 3.90 ERA, 12 saves, 27.2 IP, 17 hits, 17 walks, 31 K’s, 111 ERA+

Craig Kimbrel, Rays: 0-2, 4.35 ERA, 31 IP, 26 hits, 12 walks, 29 K’s, 99 ERA+

Gavin Lux, Rays: on the IL

Dustin May, Cardinals: 5-7, 4.59 ERA, 104 IP, 104 hits, 33 walks, 103 K’s, 87 ERA+

Zach McKinstry, Tigers: .200/.277/.298, 277 PA’s, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 20 RBIs, 61 OPS+

James Outman, Tigers: .161/.219/.295, 160 PA’s, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 16 RBIs, 42 OPS+

Joc Pederson, Rangers: .251/.341/.491, 318 PA’s, 11 doubles, 2 triples, 17 homers, 36 RBIs, 140 OPS+

Luke Raley, Mariners: .230/.284/.447, 280 PA’s, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 15 homers, 39 RBIs, 107 OPS+

Ben Rortvedt, Mets: in the minors

Corey Seager, Rangers: .182/.292/.374, 219 PA’s, 6 doubles, 10 homers, 25 RBIs, 94 OPS+, on the IL

Justin Turner, Tijuana (Mexican League): .292/.394/.472, 254 PA’s, 21 doubles, 6 homers, 28 RBIs

Trea Turner, Phillies: .244/.295/.391, 455 PA’s, 18 doubles, 1 triple, 14 homers, 41 RBIs, 82 OPS+

Miguel Vargas, White Sox: .242/.348/.484, 449 PA’s, 24 doubles, 1 triple, 22 homers, 63 RBIs, 131 OPS+

Kirby Yates, Angels: 0-5, 3.65 ERA, 3 saves, 24.2 IP, 16 hits, 11 walks, 30 K’s, 114 ERA+

Up next

Tuesday: Seattle (Luis Castillo, 3-9, 4.85 ERA) at Dodgers (TBD), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Seattle (Emerson Hancock, 6-4, 3.16 ERA) at Dodgers (TBD), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Thursday: Seattle (Bryce Miller, 4-5, 2.75) at Dodgers (TBD), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Tarik Skubal blockbuster deal likely isn’t part of Dodgers’ trade-deadline plans

Swanson: Hall of Famer Joe Torre passionate about going to bat for kids at risk of family violence

Huntington Beach’s Jeff Kent credits his parents for helping fuel his Hall of Fame career

Shohei Ohtani suffers setback in his plans to return to Dodgers’ rotation

Jeff Kent starting to feel like a Hall of Famer this weekend

Miguel Rojas on decision to visit Capitol Hill, White House: ‘I’m representing the Dodgers’

Dodgers Debate: The White House and the trade deadline

Lopez: 5 reasons the Dodgers should not go back to the White House again next year

And finally

Vin Scully narrates a wacky play at Candlestick Park. 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.

SAN FRANCISCO — Rafael Devers and Jung Hoo Lee hit three-run homers, Robbie Ray pitched six shutout innings and the San Francisco Giants beat the Angels 9-2 on Saturday.

Devers and Casey Schmitt opened the scoring with RBI singles in the third before Lee lined a sweeper 365 feet into the right-field stands to extend the Giants’ lead to 5-0.

Luis Arraez added a one-run single in the fourth, and Devers extended the lead to 9-0 with his team-leading 22nd homer of the season. The homer was Devers’ third since the All-Star break and second in as many days.

Ray (9-6) struck out five and gave up six hits on just 80 pitches before being lifted. Over his last seven games, the 34-year-old left-hander has thrown 43⅓ innings with a 1.04 ERA and a 4-0 record.

Ryan Johnson (2-5) gave up eight runs on eight hits in 3⅓ innings for the Angels. Catcher Tyler Heineman pitched a hitless inning of relief.

Mike Trout drove in Los Angeles’ first run with a bases-loaded, RBI double play in the seventh. Trout, Zach Neto and Jo Adell were all pulled because of the score. Jose Siri was walked in the ninth inning, capping the scoring.

Up next: Angels’ RHP José Soriano (8-6, 3.43 ERA) faces Giants’ LHP Carson Whisenhunt (2-0, 3.38 ERA) in the series finale Sunday.

SINGER Charli XCX shows off her glamorous side as her new album is released.

The Brit hitmaker, 33, shared a photo of her holding a copy of her latest studio album Music, Fashion, Film.

It features cultural icons John Cale, Marc Jacobs and Martin Scorsese on the cover, and comes two years on from Brat.

That album sparked the brat summer phenomenon, celebrating messy, party-loving fun.

Charli, also at home on the red carpet, declared it over in September 2024, posting: “Goodbye forever brat summer.”

Recently Charli got in front of the lens for the music video to her new track Camera.

PROUD MUM

Denise Welch shares unseen pics of son Matty Healy’s wedding

STAGE RETURN

Charli XCX announces huge new Music, Fashion, Film tour ahead of album release

It is from her upcoming seventh album Music, Fashion, Film.

Dressed in a plunging blue shirt, Charli filmed a dramatic storyline with French actor Vincent Cassel.

The action-packed scenes looked like they were in a desert but were actually filmed in a quarry in Kent.

Vincent’s character had a gunshot wound to his abdomen.

In footage that could rival a Hollywood blockbuster, Charli stood in front of an overturned grey car that had ploughed into a sand dune, and was also seen crawling on all fours.

The singer took over London’s Scala nightclub on Tuesday for an intimate performance of tracks from her forthcoming album, including Camera.

In the lyrics, she sings: “It makes me question what I’m doing.

“Do I wanna make music? Am I being f*****g stupid. If I try to be a girl on the screen when I’m turning thirty-four?”

WE’VE seen the end of Matty Healy’s messy era with his marriage to Gabbriette Bechtel – and it’s all down to another woman. 

That’s the opinion of The Sun’s Howell Davies, who first met the notoriously chaotic rocker over a decade ago. 

Our experts have delved into The 1975 frontman’s life story on Showbiz Fix: Uncut, looking at his high school days when the band was first formed, through to worldwide success and that relationship with Taylor Swift. 

But our Associate Bizarre Editor Howell believes his marriage to model Gabbriette last week marks the dawn of a new era – and we’ve got Charli XCX to thank.

Chatting on The Sun’s celebrity vodcast, Howell said: “Matty and Gabrielle got together in 2023 but the fun connection is that Gabbriette is actually really good friends with Charli.

“Gabbriette and Charli got to know each other really well on this Netflix show that Charli made where she put together a band called Nasty Cherry and Gabbriette was in this band. 

PROUD MUM

Denise Welch shares unseen pics of son Matty Healy’s wedding

MAT-TIE HEALY

Matty Healy to get married in A-list location with dress code he won’t like

“Charli was sort of there helping them make it in music, she got them a record deal. 

“The band didn’t really last very long – but the show is entertaining if anyone wants to go back and watch it. 

“But because Charli has been dating Matty’s band mate George for years, eventually Gabbriette and Matty Healy met, through this friend group.”

Charli was never a fan of Matty’s on/off relationship with Taylor and even shaded the US popstar in her own track, Sympathy Is A Knife.

Howell went on: “I think Gabbriette is definitely more approved by Charli than Taylor Swift was, for sure. 

“It makes a lot more sense for him to be with Gabbriette 

“Fans love it. You know, they’re sort of this edgy, wild card couple who will always be doing weird stuff. 

“You know, Gabbriette has a pet rat and you’re like, yeah, that makes sense for Matty.”

Matty and Gabbriette married at the historic Castillo del Lago estate in Los Angeles on July 18. 

It came two weeks after his ex’s wedding – with Taylor marrying Travis Kelce on July 3 in New York.

Howell said: “The funny thing about Gabbriette and Matty getting together in 2023, just after his split from Taylor Swift, is it’s almost exactly the same time, almost to the week, that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelsey got together. 

“Then, you know, fast forward three years, they’re getting married two weeks apart. 

“So I think there’s stellar competitiveness between Taylor and Matty.”

You can watch the full episode of Showbiz Fix: Uncut on The Sun’s Showbiz YouTube channel, where a new episode drops weekly. 

Hunter Dobbins scattered six hits over six innings, JJ Wetherholt hit a home run in the sixth and the St. Louis Cardinals held on for a 1-0 victory over the Angels on Wednesday at Angel Stadium.

Dobbins, recalled from triple-A Memphis for Wednesday’s start, struck out five and walked none to help St. Louis snap a four-game losing streak and end the Angels’ three-game win streak.

Luis Gastelum threw a scoreless seventh, George Soriano had a 1-2-3 eighth and closer Riley O’Brien struck out Oswald Peraza with an 80-mph sweeper and Josh Lowe with a 98-mph sinker with two on in the ninth for his 26th save.

Dobbins (2-1) escaped a first-and-third, two-out jam in the second, a two-on, one-out jam in the third and a first-and-third, two-out jam in the fourth.

That inning ended with Cardinals third baseman Blaze Jordan reaching into the third-base dugout to snag Tyler Heineman’s popup.

Angels starter Reid Detmers (3-7), expected to be a top target of contenders looking to acquire starting pitching before the Aug. 3 trade deadline, blanked the Cardinals on one hit through five innings despite walking two to open the fifth.

The left-hander escaped the fifth with the help of third baseman Vaughn Grissom, who made a backhand diving stop of José Fermín’s grounder, scrambled to the bag for a forceout and threw to first to complete a double play.

Jordan struck out to end the inning.

But with one out in the sixth inning, Detmers (3-7) left a fastball up to Wetherholt, who lined his 15th homer of the season over the wall in center field to break the tie and knock Detmers out of the game.

Up next: Cardinals RHP Michael McGreevy (4-7, 2.92 ERA) will oppose Arizona RHP Brandon Pfaadt (4-1, 4.58 ERA) Thursday night in St. Louis. For the Angels, RHP Grayson Rodriguez (3-3, 8.23 ERA) will face Giants RHP Logan Webb (5-7, 3.87 ERA) Friday night in San Francisco.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Went to the movies to see “The Odyssey” on Friday. Just got out Sunday in time to write this newsletter.

We are two weeks away from the trade deadline of Monday, Aug. 3, at 3 p.m. PT. The Dodgers usually make a deal or two around that time, sometimes major, sometimes minor. Who are the big names the Dodgers might have interest in this season? Let’s take a look.

Tarik Skubal, SP, Detroit Tigers, 6-5, 2.83 ERA

It seems every year Skubal, who won the last two AL Cy Young Awards, is the top name available at the deadline, and this might finally be the year that it happens. Sure, the Tigers are on the fringe of the wild-card race, but can they really afford to let their most valuable trade piece walk away without getting anything for him? Skubal is a free agent after this season. Then again, what will the new bargaining agreement look like? Will Skubal be able to demand as much on the open market once the new agreement is in place? And do the Dodgers really need him? Bill Plaschke says they do. But, they have the best record in baseball without him. They have won two straight World Series without him. They don’t need him. The question is, do they want him? They certainly have the pieces to get him, and the resources to sign him to a long-term deal. Plus, he missed part of this season because of elbow surgery and they love to get formerly injured pitchers.

Joe Ryan, SP, Minnesota Twins, 6-5, 2.85 ERA

The Twins are very much in the wild-card race, so it seems unlikely they trade Ryan unless someone offers them something too good to turn down. He won’t be a free agent until after the 2028 season. The same can be said of Sonny Gray of Boston. The Red Sox have won 13 in a row, so it seems unlikely they are trading anyone unless they lose their next 13.

The problem with the trade deadline since the postseason was expanded to 12 teams is that so many teams have a chance at the postseason. In the AL, 12 teams have a chance at making the postseason. Detroit is 46-53 and only 4.5 games out of a wild-card spot. Minnesota is only two games out. In the NL, 11 teams have a chance. It’s hard to trade one of your best players when you have a chance at the postseason.

Casey Mize, SP, Detroit Tigers, 4-6, 2.79 ERA

Mize will also be a free agent at the end of the season and is having his best season by far. He missed almost two seasons of his career because of Tommy John surgery.

Luis Arraez, 2B, San Francisco Giants, .326/.366/.455, 133 OPS+

Quite a few Dodgers fans would like to see the team acquire Arraez to play second. However, with Tommy Edman back and playing well, and Kiké Hernández back soon, they don’t really need a second baseman right now, especially one who is a poor fielder.

Reid Detmers, 3-6, 4.16 ERA, and José Soriano, 8-6, 3.49 ERA, SP, Angels

The Angels have the worst record in baseball, so much of their roster will be available. Unless the Dodgers believe that Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow or Shohei Ohtani won’t pitch the rest of the season, it’s hard to see how these players fit in.

Ryan Jeffers, C, Minnesota Twins, .288/.401/.540, 160 OPS+

Jeffers is the only top-line catcher rumored to be available this season. And it seems the only way the Dodgers acquire him is if they are convinced Will Smith isn’t coming back. Otherwise, perhaps a reunion with Ben Rortvedt, who is stuck in the minors with the Mets.

Those are just a few of the players available (I recommend you visit mlbtraderumors.com to see a complete picture of what every team wants or could offer). Next time, we will look back at trade deadline deals after Andrew Friedman took over.

What will happen this season? Well, Friedman will pull off a deal or two involving players who aren’t on everyone’s list. The Dodgers can win the World Series with the team they have right now, but it never hurts to add more pitching.

Injury Report

Edwin Díaz: Has made a couple of appearances with Class A Ontario, pitching two innings, striking out four. He will need to pitch in consecutive games before he is activated.

Tyler Glasnow: His back has been an issue all season. He is throwing only fastballs at the moment.

Kiké Hernández: Is on assignment with triple-A Oklahoma City and could return when the Dodgers return home from their current trip.

Shohei Ohtani: Has been shut down from pitching because of swelling in his left knee. Timetable for his return as a pitcher remains murky, but he can still hit.

Will Smith: Out until at least mid-August. His return is pivotal for the Dodgers, because they don’t want to go into the postseason with just Dalton Rushing to count on behind the plate.

Blake Snell: Began a rehab assignment in triple A on Saturday and will probably need to make at least three more starts there before he is ready.

Blake Treinen: On the IL since June 20 because of a sore elbow, he is slowly working his way back.

As for the other guys on the IL, Ben Casparius, Brusdar Graterol, Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, it would be miraculous to get meaningful contributions from them this season.

These names seem familiar

How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams (through Sunday). Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page:

Anthony Banda, Twins: 2-0, 4.46 ERA, 2 saves, 34.1 IP, 31 hits, 15 walks, 33 K’s, 97 ERA+, out for the season

Cody Bellinger, Yankees: .255/.345/.417, 414 PA’s, 19 doubles, 3 triples, 11 homers, 52 RBIs, 113 OPS+

Walker Buehler, Padres: 5-5, 5.36 ERA, 89 IP, 93 hits, 35 walks, 81 K’s, 77 ERA+

Mike Busch, Cubs: .244/.370/.403, 438 PA’s, 17 doubles, 2 triples, 12 homers, 52 RBIs, 117 OPS+

Michael Conforto, Cubs: .241/.327/.476, 160 PA’s, 10 doubles, 8 homers, 22 RBIs, 122 OPS+

Justin Dean, Cubs: .400/.571/.800, 7 PA’s, 1 triple, 3 RBIs, 279 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, Reds: 1-0, 3.20 ERA, 1 save, 19.2 IP, 20 hits, 8 walks, 19 K’s, 139 ERA+

Jack Flaherty, Tigers: 3-8, 4.48 ERA, 82.1 IP, 76 hits, 40 walks, 98 K’s, 97 ERA+

Kenley Jansen, Tigers: 1-4, 4.38 ERA, 11 saves, 24.2 IP, 16 hits, 14 walks, 27 K’s, 100 ERA+

Craig Kimbrel, Rays: 0-2, 4.50 ERA, 30 IP, 26 hits, 12 walks, 29 K’s, 96 ERA+

Gavin Lux, Rays: on the IL

Dustin May, Cardinals: 5-7, 4.78 ERA, 98 IP, 97 hits, 32 walks, 95 K’s, 84 ERA+

Zach McKinstry, Tigers: .196/.277/.298, 256 PA’s, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 19 RBIs, 60 OPS+

James Outman, Tigers: .159/.224/.288, 143 PA’s, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 13 RBIs, 42 OPS+

Joc Pederson, Rangers: .243/.339/.479, 302 PA’s, 9 doubles, 2 triples, 16 homers, 35 RBIs, 136 OPS+

Luke Raley, Mariners: .230/.287/.459, 267 PA’s, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 15 homers, 37 RBIs, 111 OPS+

Ben Rortvedt, Mets: in the minors

Corey Seager, Rangers: .182/.292/.374, 219 PA’s, 6 doubles, 10 homers, 25 RBIs, 94 OPS+, on the IL

Justin Turner, Tijuana (Mexican League): .280/.386/.466, 228 PA’s, 18 doubles, 6 homers, 28 RBIs

Trea Turner, Phillies: .242/.292/.375, 428 PA’s, 17 doubles, 12 homers, 35 RBIs, 78 OPS+

Miguel Vargas, White Sox: .242/.352/.485, 422 PA’s, 21 doubles, 1 triple, 21 homers, 59 RBIs, 132 OPS+

Kirby Yates, Angels: 0-5, 3.74 ERA, 3 saves, 21.2 IP, 15 hits, 8 walks, 28 K’s, 113 ERA+

Up next

Monday: Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 4-6, 4.81 ERA) at Philadelphia (*Cristopher Sánchez, 11-4, 2.62 ERA), 4:10 p.m., ESPN, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Dodgers (*Eric Lauer, 4-5, 4.81 ERA [3-0, 3.12 ERA with Dodgers]) at Philadelphia (Zack Wheeler, 10-1, 2.13 ERA), 3:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Dodgers (*Justin Wrobleski, 10-2, 2.69 ERA) at Philadelphia (Aaron Nola, 3-7, 5.68 ERA), 3:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Shaikin: Shohei Ohtani’s knee troubles creating a major pitching dilemma for Dodgers

Shaikin: With Will Smith out indefinitely, Dodgers need to trade for a catcher

Hall of Famers Jeff Kent and Andruw Jones played one forgettable Dodgers season together

Dodgers Debate: What the Dodgers need right now

And finally

The Dodgers honor Vin Scully on opening day in 2016. 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.

STACEY Solomon has been left “heartbroken” after daughter Rose, four, said goodbye to her nursery.

The mum-of-five got very emotional as Rose marked the end of an era, ahead of the next stage of her education journey in September.

Stacey shared a picture of a scrapbook filled with notes and photos from Rose’s time at nursery.

She wrote: “The end of an era [crying emojis]. Looking through Rose’s last 3 years at nursery is actually heartbreaking.”

On another post of an orange sunset, she wrote: “What a day. Watched Rose’s graduation to Primary. Saw my niece finish primary ready for secondary. Said goodbye to some very special teachers.

“Just a little message to say… cuddles to all the parents & carers entering into new beginnings. And just a huge thank you and I can’t even begin to describe the appreciation & admiration I have for learning staff.”

READ MORE ON STACEY SOLOMON

THAT’S SORTED

Popular BBC show fronted by Stacey Solomon to get seventh series

SWASH & GO

Joe Swash set to star in Celebrity Race Across The World WITHOUT Stacey Solomon

She continued: “You’re raising my babies with me. Honestly I love our teachers & caregivers so so much. The effort, love, kindness and care every single day.

“Helping us shape our humans ready for the world. Hope you get a rest over the summer. To the moon and back.”

Stacey’s brood are a variety of ages. Her eldest boys — Zachary and Leighton — are from past relationships and are 18 and 14, respectively.

Her youngest three — Rex, seven, Rose, four, and Belle, three — are from her marriage to Joe Swash. She is also stepmum to Joe’s son Harry, 19.

The family live at Pickle Cottage, a picturesque home in rural Essex.

Stacey has amassed a £10m fortune since shooting to fame on The X Factor in 2009.

She’s now best known for her time on Loose Women, her DIY hacks on social media and her decluttering show Sort Your Life Out on the BBC.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Here we are at the All-Star break. How did that happen so fast? And how crazy is baseball? Arizona is 49-47, 11½ games out of first. The Angels are tied for the worst record in baseball (38-59) and are also 11½ games out of first.

The Dodgers begin the second half of the season with a 61-36 record, leading the NL West by 11½ games over Arizona. Yes, they lost their last three games going into the break, but those things happen. The first few games after the break (at Yankees, at Philadelphia, at Mets) won’t be easy, so we will see where things stand after that.

How does their record compare to years past at the break?

2026
61-36, .629
lead NL West by 11½ games
Record after break: ?

2025
58-39, .598
led NL West by 5½ games
Record after break: 35-30, .538
won NL West by 3 games

2024
56-41, .577
led NL West by 7 games
Record after break: 42-23, .646
won NL West by 5 games

2023
51-38, .573
second in NL West, a half-game behind Arizona
Record after break: 49-24, .671
won NL West by 16 games

2022
60-30, .667
led NL West by 9½ games
Record after break: 51-21, .708
won NL West by 22 games

2021
56-35, .615
second in NL West, two games behind San Francisco
Record after break: 50-21, .704
second in NL West, one game behind Giants

2020
Covid-shortened season

Now let’s look at the main players on the team. We will include their slash numbers (AVG/OB%/SLG%) and their career slash numbers.

We will list them in order of OPS+.

Shohei Ohtani
2026: .293/.403/.549, 162 OPS+
Career: .282/.377/.580, 160 OPS+

The discussion of whether pitching is hurting his hitting has mostly come to a halt. But maybe it is hurting his knee? That’s a huge thing to keep an eye on in the second half.

Tommy Edman
2026: .343/.421/.478, 150 OPS+
Career: .261/.314/.407, 99 OPS+

It’s highly unlikely that Edman hits this well the rest of the season (he’s had only 78 plate appearances), but the Dodgers are certainly better with him on the roster.

Freddie Freeman
2026: .290/.375/.487, 138 OPS+
Career: .299/.386/.510, 142 OPS+

He is still as steady as ever. When was the last time you said “Wow, that was a bad at-bat by Freeman?” It never seems to happen.

Max Muncy
2026: .259/.354/.488, 132 OPS+
Career: .232/.354/.475, 125 OPS+

Unsung star of the first half, even if he did make the All-Star team. He’s quite the steal at only $10 million. And his defense has gotten better too.

Dalton Rushing
2026: .254/.337/.475, 123 OPS+
Career: .232/.303/.409, 97 OPS+

Has has filled in quite well for Will Smith.

Andy Pages
2026: .270/.336/.471, 122 OPS+
Career: .264/.317/.448, 112 OPS+

Remember the Pages who seemed to break wrong on every fly ball his rookie year? That Pages no longer exists.

Miguel Rojas
2026: .290/.335/.420, 109 OPS+
Career: .261/.314/.364, 87 OPS+

He is not playing like a guy who is retiring at the end of the season. You could make a case for this being his best year ever.

Will Smith
2026: .249/.338/.382, 100 OPS+
Career: .263/.357/.470, 126 OPS+

Looking at his numbers, you have to wonder if he had any other nagging injuries before he went on the IL because of a neck problem. Playing catcher is hard, folks.

Kyle Tucker
2026: .244/.341/.375, 100 OPS+
Career: .270/.356/.493, 135 OPS+

You have to figure the Dodgers were hoping for more than a league average hitter for $60 million a season. I always wonder if deep down, a guy such as Rojas says to himself, “That guy is making $60 million and I’m making $6 million?”

Teoscar Hernández
2026: .243/.319/.387, 96 OPS+
Career: .260/.316/.479, 118 OPS+

The consistency just isn’t there anymore. The last two seasons he has been decidedly average as a player.

Mookie Betts
2026: .235/.293/.416, 95 OPS+
Career: .288/.366/.509, 134 OPS+

He may never be the hitter he once was. Then again, he’s hitting .288/.335/.475 since June 9.

Alex Call
2026: .250/.358/.321, 92 OPS+
Career: .243/.343/.365, 100 OPS+

A perfect example of a fourth outfielder.

Hyeseong Kim
2026: .259/.323/.328, 82 OPS+
Career: .271/.318/.361, 90 OPS+

Many fans are still enamored with him, but until he develops a better eye at the plate and a more consistent swing, he’s going to spend a lot of time in the minors.

Alex Freeland
2026: .234/.313/.318, 77 OPS+
Career: .221/.307/.315, 75 OPS+

Another Dodgers top prospect who hasn’t panned out … yet. Remember Miguel Vargas, who looked about as bad as Freeland with the Dodgers and was on the AL All-Star team this year? Perhaps they can use that as a factor at the trade deadline.

Starting rotation

Shohei Ohtani
2026: 8-2, 1.79 ERA, 234 ERA+
Career: 47-22, 2.83 ERA, 151 ERA+

Strangely, the Dodgers have a hitter with the same name. I wonder if they ever get them mixed up.

Justin Wrobleski
2026: 10-2, 2.69 ERA, 155 ERA+
Career: 16-9. 3.76 ERA, 110 ERA+

Get this: He has pitched this well and might not even be in the postseason rotation if Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell return.

Tyler Glasnow
2026: 3-0, 2.72 ERA, 154 ERA+
Career: 46-36, 3.69 ERA, 112 ERA+

Glasnow has been in the majors for 11 seasons and pitched more than 100 innings only three times, and in one of those seasons, he pitched over half of those innings in relief.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto
2026: 9-6, 2.85 ERA, 147 ERA+
Career: 28-16, 2.72 ERA, 151 ERA+

It has been a quiet season from him so far, but a very good season. Considering all the arm injuries in baseball, it’s amazing his arm didn’t fall off this year after his usage in the postseason.

Eric Lauer
2026: 3-0, 3.12 ERA, 134 ERA+
Career: 49-44, 4.20 ERA, 99 ERA+

Once again, the Dodgers find a pitcher on the scrap heap, make an adjustment, and he becomes a solid pitcher.

Emmet Sheehan
2026: 4-6, 4.81 ERA, 87 ERA+
Career: 14-10, 4.17 ERA, 101 ERA+

A big disappointment so far. If any of the 12 million starting pitchers on the IL for the Dodgers was healthy, you have to figure they might get a shot.

Roki Sasaki
2026: 3-5, 5.33 ERA, 78 ERA+
Career: 4-6, 5.06 ERA, 82 ERA+

He starred briefly while in the bullpen last postseason, but overall, you have to wonder why the Dodgers don’t let him figure things out in the minors.

Blake Snell
2026: 0-1, 12.00 ERA, 39 ERA+
Career: 81-63, 3.17 ERA, 129 ERA+

Snell is like Bigfoot. You think he might exist, but he’s seen only rarely and pictures of him are blurry. The search continues.

Bullpen

Alex Vesia
2026: 1-1, 2.27 ERA, 3 saves, 185 ERA+
Career: 20-14, 2.85 ERA, 16 saves, 145 ERA+

This is Vesia’s sixth season in the Dodger bullpen, and he has had only one mediocre season, in 2023. He comes in, get the job done, gets the team pumped up and leaves. Every team needs a Vesia.

Edgardo Henriquez
2026: 4-1, 2.29 ERA, 1 save, 183 ERA+
Career: 6-2, 2.34 ERA, 3 saves, 180 ERA+

No one gets too excited when Henriquez comes into a game, but he sure has been effective.

Will Klein
2026: 3-4, 2.41 ERA, 2 saves, 174 ERA+
Career: 5-5, 3.45 ERA, 2 saves, 123 ERA+

Career ERA before joining Dodgers: 11.05. ERA with the Dodgers: 2.39. At the beginning of the season, we mentioned something like what Klein did in Game 3 of last year’s World Series could catapult him into a long, solid major league career. So far, so good.

Tanner Scott
2026: 1-3, 2.56 ERA, 13 saves, 164 ERA+
Career: 33-31, 3.62 ERA, 91 saves, 121 ERA+

Yes, he has had a rough game or two this season, but overall he has been a dependable closer.

Brock Stewart
2026: 0-0, 2.79 ERA, 155 ERA+
Career: 10-5, 4.40 ERA, 2 saves, 97 ERA+

It is hard to draw any conclusions on Stewart since he has pitched only 13.1 innings for the team since it acquired him at last year’s trade deadline for James Outman.

Jack Dreyer
2026: 3-1, 3.03 ERA, 139 ERA+
Career: 6-3, 2.97 ERA, 4 saves, 139 ERA+

Henriquez, Klein, Dreyer. Three guys who draw little notice but have been stalwarts in the bullpen this season.

Blake Treinen
2026: 4-1, 3.52 ERA, 1 save, 120 ERA+
Career: 49-42, 2.93 ERA, 83 saves, 142 ERA+

He had three great seasons with the Dodgers, but it has been hit and miss since then.

Kyle Hurt
2026: 3-1, 4.88 ERA, 1 save, 86 ERA+
Career: 3-2, 4.05 ERA, 1 save, 105 ERA+

On the IL again, which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering his name. Kyle hurt? Yes.

Evan Phillips
2026: 0-0. 6.00 ERA, 78 ERA+
Career: 16-12, 3.39 ERA, 46 saves, 126 ERA+

He has pitched only three innings since his return from the IL, so it’s too soon to draw any conclusions on how well he has recovered. He was really, really good before the injury.

And finally …
Of course, this doesn’t include players such as Kiké Hernández and Edwin Díaz, who played very little this season but are expected back after the All-Star break.

Overall, a solid team. There’s no one where you can say “That guy is terrible.” There may be a player or two who is overpaid for their production, but even those guys aren’t terrible. And that’s how you end up with the best record in baseball at the All-Star break.

Leaders

Remember sitting down with the Sunday newspaper and turning to the page that listed all of the hitters and pitchers and their stats? The Times and almost every other paper stopped running that years ago. Let’s do a little of it now by listing the top five in key categories in the NL and where the top Dodger is at the break. Remember, to qualify for rate stats, you have to have 3.1 plate appearances or one inning pitched for each game your team has played.

Batting average
1. Otto Lopez, Miami, .334
2. Luis Arráez, San Francisco, .330
3. Nick Gonzales, Pittsburgh, .308
4. Xavier Edwards, Miami, .303
5. Jung Hoo Lee, San Francisco, .302
12. Shohei Ohtani, .293

On-base%
1. Juan Soto, New York, .412
2. James Wood, Washington, .410
3. Shohei Ohtani, .403
4. Bryan Reynolds, Pittsburgh, .400
5. Pete Crow-Armstrong, Chicago, .386
10. Freddie Freeman, .375

Slugging %
1. James Wood, Washington, .575
2. Juan Soto, New York, .562
3. Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia, .559
4. Luis Garcia Jr., Washington, .554
5. Shohei Ohtani, .549

Runs
1. James Wood, Washington, 89
2. Bryan Reynolds, Pittsburgh, 68
3. Brice Turang, Milwaukee, 66
4. Shohei Ohtani, 65
5. Matt Olson, Atlanta, 64

Doubles
1. Otto Lopez, Miami, 26
2. Rafael Devers, San Francisco, 25
3. Matt Olson, Atlanta, 24
t4. Six tied with 23, including Freddie Freeman

Home runs
1. Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia, 32
2. James Wood, Washington, 28
3. Hunter Goodman, Colorado, 27
4. Matt Olson, Atlanta, 25
t5. Shohei Ohtani, 22
t5. Jordan Walker, St. Louis, 22

RBIs
1. Jordan Walker, St. Louis, 74
2. Luis Garcia Jr., Washington, 68
3. CJ Abrams, Washington, 67
3. Alec Burleson, St. Louis, 67
5. Andy Pages, 66

ERA
1. Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee, 1.62
2. Chris Sale, Atlanta, 2.20
3. Eduardo Rodriguez, Arizona, 2.29
4. Chase Burns, Cincinnati, 2.54
5. Max Meyer, Miami, 2.58
7. Justin Wrobleski, 2.69
9. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2.85

Strikeouts
1. Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee, 167
2. Cristopher Sanchez, Philadelphia, 144
3. Jesus Luzardo, Philadelphia, 136
4. Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh, 130
5. Braxton Ashcraft, Pittsburgh, 128
13. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 106

Saves
1. Mason Miller, San Diego, 25
t2. Jhoan Duran, Philadelphia, 24
t2. Riley O’Brien, St. Louis, 24
4. Paul Sewald, Arizona, 22
5. Raisel Iglesias, Atlanta, 19
t7. Tanner Scott, 13

Up next

Friday: Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 3-5, 5.33 ERA) at New York Yankees (Gerrit Cole, 3-4, 4.04 ERA), 4:05 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 4-6, 4.81 ERA) at New York Yankees (*Ryan Weathers, 3-7, 4.15 ERA), 5:08 p.m., Fox, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 9-6, 2.85 ERA) at New York Yankees (Cam Schlittler, 9-5, 2.05 ERA), 4:20 p.m., NBC, Peacock, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Plaschke: Who says they don’t need him? Dodgers need to trade for Tarik Skubal

Most pressing question for Dodgers in the second half: Can Shohei Ohtani stay healthy?

Shohei Ohtani wins two ESPYs … and Mike Tyson learns the Dodgers superstar is a guy

Dodgers’ Mookie Betts has six Gold Gloves. And now a baseball glove company

Shaikin: To seize 2028 Olympics spotlight, does MLB really need draconian participation rules?

And finally

Kevin Costner on the legacy of Vin Scully. 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 Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Ranking the summer movies I’ve seen this year: 1. Supergirl. 2. Young Washington. 3. Disclosure Day. 4. Masters of the Universe. 5. The Devil Wears Prada 2.

Here we go again

Before you go any further, if you don’t like politics in your Dodgers newsletter, which is a perfectly respectable opinion, THEN SKIP TO THE NEXT ITEM!

OK. The Dodgers are visiting President Trump and the White House on July 23 to celebrate their 2025 World Series title. This has caused quite a controversy, again, just like when they visited last year to celebrate the 2024 World Series title. Should the Dodgers visit the White House?

Here are some things I know:

1. The Dodgers have the largest Latino fan base of any team in baseball. Many of them despise Trump because of what ICE has done to their communities, which includes rounding up and detaining people who are here in the country legally, many of whom were born here.

2. Many Latinos who were born in L.A. and lived here their whole lives have been stopped and asked to provide identification merely because they are Latino. That’s not how this country is supposed to work.

3. Even if you somehow have no problem with the above, on a business level the Dodgers risk turning those fans into non-fans by visiting this White House.

4. There are players and members of the organization who are supporters of President Trump and would like to visit this White House.

5. This is the organization of Jackie Robinson and Fernando Valenzuela. Do I have to say more?

So, here’s what I would do if I owned the Dodgers. “The Dodgers thank President Trump for his invitation to visit him at the White House. As a policy, the Dodgers as an organization no longer accept political invitations of any kind. However, any member the the organization, be it player or front office personnel, is more than welcome to accept the invitation on their own behalf and visit.”

And, according to Dave Roberts, no one is being forced to go. “I’m sure a lot of guys are going to participate and be there, and this is an individual choice,” Roberts said. “But I do expect a lot of our guys to be there.”

It will be interesting to see who isn’t there.

No matter who is in office, the trip to the White House is a photo op to show how the president is a person of the people, especially a person of the people of the city that team represents. It’s all for show.

What I do find interesting is Roberts. In 2020, he said this when George Floyd was killed: “It’s disappointing to see my generation and the generation prior failing the younger generation. And that’s what’s really sad. You always hope for progress, but that just, unfortunately, isn’t the case.

“For me, the leaders of our country, unfortunately, aren’t good listeners and that’s how you impose change. People of color want to be heard. And when you have leaders that are put in positions to make change and don’t want to have those uncomfortable conversations, then change isn’t going to happen. There’s a difference between being educated and being ignorant. You have to understand that these situations happen every single day to people of color.”

And this is Roberts this year: “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.”

From making a giant political statement in 2020 to “not try to make political statements” in 2026 is quite a shift.

And Kiké Hernández will not be there, because he is going to be on a rehab assignment: “It’s going to be hard to be in two cities at the same time,” Hernández said. “If I was active, I probably wouldn’t have gone anyways.” And then he said why:

“I’d rather take a day off than do team activities.”

Which didn’t stop him from going last year. However, during the height of the ICE raids in L.A., he wrote this on Instagram: “This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart. ALL people deserve to be treated with respect, dignity and human rights.”

So, that’s a summation of something that used to be a fun day. And that ends the political discourse for this newsletter.

For another viewpoint on this, please read Bill Plaschke’s column.

Do the Dodgers’ first draft picks pan out?

The draft was last weekend, and with their first pick (40th overall) the Dodgers selected shortstop Bo Lowrance of Christ Church Episcopal High in Greenville, S.C. Lowrance was expected to be chosen well before 40, so the Dodgers were pleased. Why was the Dodgers’ first pick at 40? Because they were penalized 10 spots in the draft for exceeding the second surcharge threshold of the Competitive Balance Tax.

Lowrance told reporters he has modeled himself after Freddie Freeman. “He’s obviously a first baseman, and I’m on the left side, so defensively a little different,” Lowrance said. “But he’s still unbelievably athletic, and a big thing that I’ve watched for years is his approach and how he uses the whole field. … [Freeman is] somebody that I’m always trying to emulate.”

Pretty good guy to emulate. But how well does the first pick by the Dodgers do? Let’s take a look.

2010
Zach Lee, pitcher
Pitched only 12.2 innings in the majors with an 8.53 ERA. Was traded for Chris Taylor though, so there’s that.

2011
Chris Reed, pitcher
Was traded four years later to Miami for pitcher Grant Dayton. Reed pitched four innings for Miami and was released in 2018.

2012
Corey Seager, shortstop
Perhaps you’ve heard of him. World Series MVP in 2020, now with the Texas Rangers.

2013
Chris Anderson, pitcher
Was released four years later, signed by the Minnesota Twins and released by them. Never pitched in the majors.

2014
Grant Holmes, pitcher
Was part of the 2016 trade that brought Rich Hill to the Dodgers. Ended up with the Braves, made the majors in 2024 and is in Atlanta’s starting rotation.

2015 (Andrew Friedman’s first draft with the Dodgers)
Walker Buehler, pitcher
Perhaps you’ve heard of him too. Got the last out of the 2024 World Series. Now with the San Diego Padres.

2016
Gavin Lux, shortstop
Snakebit by injuries. Has been on the IL with Tampa Bay all season.

2017
Jeren Kendall, outfielder
Hit .209 in five minor league seasons before retiring.

2018
J.T. Ginn, pitcher
Did not sign and went to Mississippi State. Was selected by the New York Mets in the second round of the 2020 draft and signed. Currently pitches for the Athletics.

2019
Kody Hoese, third baseman
Spent six seasons in the minors, hitting .255/.323/.395 in 514 games. Became a minor league free agent after last season and remains unsigned.

2020
Bobby Miller, pitcher
Had a great 2023 season with the Dodgers but hasn’t pitched well since then. Currently on the 60-day injured list.

2021
Maddux Bruns, pitcher
On the IL for double-A Tulsa, where he had a 14.94 ERA in 15.2 innings. In six minor league seasons, he is 4-20 with a 5.71 ERA.

2022
Dalton Rushing, catcher
Much like this season, the Dodgers did not have a first-round pick in 2022, but had the 40th overall pick and drafted the player who has become their backup catcher.

2023
Kendall George, outfielder
Ranked as the No. 13 prospect for the Dodgers, he is hitting .342/.428/.409 at double-A Tulsa. He is only 21.

2024
Kellon Lindsey, shortstop
The No. 15 prospect for the Dodgers, Lindsey is 20 and hitt slashing .341/.421/.476 for class-A Ontario.

2025
Zach Root, pitcher
Also selected with the No. 40 pick, Root, 22, is 3-2 with a 2.37 ERA in 49.1 innings for class-A Great Lakes.

As you can see, it’s quite the crapshoot when you pick players in the draft, which is a main reason the MLB draft doesn’t draw the same attention as the NBA or NFL drafts.

All-Star news

Shohei Ohtani will not play in the All-Star Game as he deals with a troublesome knee. After Sunday’s loss to Arizona he was scheduled to have his left knee drained and likely will receive an injection. That sounds like a lot of fun. He is not expected to miss any time after the All-Star break.

In the good news department, Justin Wrobleski has been added to the All-Star roster. He is 10-2 with a 2.69 ERA and is a worthy addition.

All-Star numbers

By popular demand, a look at Dodgers All-Star game career leaders:

At-bats
Steve Garvey, 22 (9 for 22)
Roy Campanella, 20 (2 for 20)
Jackie Robinson, 18 (6 for 18)
Pee Wee Reese, 17 (2 for 17)
Maury Wills, 14 (5 for 14)

Hits
Steve Garvey, 9 (22 at-bats)
Jackie Robinson, 6 (18)
Maury Wills, 5 (14)
Mike Piazza, 4 (12)
Gil Hodges, 4 (12)
Billy Herman, 4 (9)

Runs
Jackie Robinson, 7
Steve Garvey, 6
Gil Hodges, 3
Duke Snider, 3

Doubles
Jackie Robinson, 2
Steve Garvey, 2
8 players tied with 1

Triples
Steve Garvey, 2
No other Dodger has tripled

Home runs
Steve Garvey, 2
Mike Piazza, 2
Jackie Robinson, 1
Gil Hodges, 1
Jim Wynn, 1
Shohei Ohtani, 1
Willie Davis, 1
John Roseboro, 1
Mickey Owen, 1
Jim Gilliam, 1

RBI’s
Steve Garvey, 6
Mike Piazza, 4
Jackie Robinson, 4
Shohei Ohtani, 3

Stolen bases
Steve Sax, 2
Maury Wills, 1
Will Smith, 1
Shawn Green, 1
Orlando Hudson, 1

Walks
Pee Wee Reese, 3
Roy Campanella, 3
Wally Moon, 3
Steve Garvey, 2
Jackie Robinson, 2
Ron Cey, 2
Augie Galan, 2
Duke Snider, 2

Strikeouts
Roy Campanella, 5
John Roseboro, 4
Pee Wee Reese, 3
Steve Garvey, 3
Cody Bellinger, 3
Yasiel Puig, 3

Batting average (Min. 6 at-bats)
Billy Herman, .444
Steve Garvey, .409
Maury Wills, ,357
Jackie Robinson, .333
Gil Hodges, .333
Mike Piazza, .333
Duke Snider, .300

Innings pitched
Don Drysdale, 19.1
Don Newcombe, 8.2
Don Sutton 8
Fernando Valenzuela, 7.2
Clayton Kershaw, 7.2
Sandy Koufax, 6
Claude Osteen, 5

ERA (minimum 5 IP)
Claude Osteen, 0.00
Don Sutton, 0.00
Fernando Valenzuela, 0.00
Don Drysdale, 1.40
Sandy Koufax, 1.50
Clayton Kershaw, 3.52
Don Newcombe, 4.15

Strikeouts
Don Drysdale, 19
Fernando Valenzuela, 9
Don Sutton, 7
Zack Greinke, 6
Clayton Kershaw, 6
Don Newcombe, 5

Saves
Don Drysdale, 1
Jonathan Broxton, 1
Jim Brewer, 1

Current Dodgers in the All-Star game
Numbers with Dodgers only

Shohei Ohtani, .400 batting average, 2 for 4, 1 homer, 3 RBIs
Mookie Betts, .333, 1 for 3, 1 RBI
Will Smith, .200, 1 for 5, 1 double, 1 steal
Freddie Freeman, .000, 0 for 4
Teoscar Hernández, .000, 0 for 2
Max Muncy, .000, 0 for 4

These names seem familiar

How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams (through Sunday). Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page:

Anthony Banda, Twins: 2-0, 4.46 ERA, 2 saves, 34.1 IP, 31 hits, 15 walks, 33 K’s, 97 ERA+, out for the season

Cody Bellinger, Yankees: .254/.345/.421, 403 PA’s, 19 doubles, 3 triples, 11 homers, 51 RBIs, 114 OPS+

Walker Buehler, Padres: 5-5, 5.36 ERA, 89 IP, 93 hits, 35 walks, 81 K’s, 77 ERA+

Mike Busch, Cubs: .239/.368/.395, 424 PA’s, 17 doubles, 2 triples, 11 homers, 49 RBIs, 115 OPS+

Michael Conforto, Cubs: .243/.331/.486, 160 PA’s, 10 doubles, 8 homers, 22 RBIs, 126 OPS+

Justin Dean, Cubs: .400/.500/.800, 6 PA’s, 1 triple, 3 RBIs, 259 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, Reds: 1-0, 2.41 ERA, 1 save, 18.2 IP, 19 hits, 7 walks, 17 K’s, 185 ERA+

Jack Flaherty, Tigers: 3-8, 4.48 ERA, 82.1 IP, 76 hits, 40 walks, 98 K’s, 96 ERA+

Kenley Jansen, Tigers: 1-4, 4.56 ERA, 11 saves, 23.2 IP, 16 hits, 13 walks, 25 K’s, 95 ERA+

Craig Kimbrel, Rays: 0-2, 4.82 ERA, 28 IP, 26 hits, 11 walks, 26 K’s, 90 ERA+

Gavin Lux, Rays: on the IL

Dustin May, Cardinals: 5-6, 4.55 ERA, 93 IP, 89 hits, 28 walks, 89 K’s, 89 ERA+

Zach McKinstry, Tigers: .197/.278/.298, 248 PA’s, 6 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 19 RBIs, 60 OPS+

James Outman, Tigers: .152/.221/.288, 136 PA’s, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 13 RBIs, 40 OPS+

Joc Pederson, Rangers: .235/.334/.462, 294 PA’s, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 15 homers, 34 RBIs, 130 OPS+

Luke Raley, Mariners: .229/.288/.453, 259 PA’s, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 14 homers, 36 RBIs, 109 OPS+

Ben Rortvedt, Mets: in the minors

Corey Seager, Rangers: .182/.292/.374, 219 PA’s, 6 doubles, 10 homers, 25 RBIs, 94 OPS+, on the IL

Justin Turner, Tijuana (Mexican League): .282/.394/.475, 216 PA’s, 17 doubles, 6 homers, 28 RBIs

Trea Turner, Phillies: .236/.284/.355, 415 PA’s, 16 doubles, 10 homers, 33 RBIs, 71 OPS+

Miguel Vargas, White Sox: .245/.355/.493, 409 PA’s, 20 doubles, 1 triple, 21 homers, 59 RBIs, 135 OPS+

Kirby Yates, Angels: 0-4, 3.00 ERA, 3 saves, 21 IP, 14 hits, 7 walks, 28 K’s, 141 ERA+

In case you missed it

Shaikin: Love it or hate it: Would the Dodgers’ NL West rivals call a Tarik Skubal trade overkill?

How Dodgers’ Justin Wrobleski went from demotion to All-Star in less than two years

Shaikin: Inside the Shohei Ohtani Economy driving a wild auction for his worn cleats

Dodgers’ top MLB draft pick Bo Lowrance eager to emulate Freddie Freeman, Corey Seager

Dodgers pitcher Justin Wrobleski added to National League roster for All-Star Game

Kiké Hernández on why he’ll miss Dodgers’ White House visit

Shohei Ohtani scratched from pitching start, won’t play in MLB All-Star Game

Why 2026 MLB draft will be special for Dodgers coach Dino Ebel’s family

Plaschke: Are the Dodgers tone deaf? White House visit is an insult to their fans

Dodgers scheduled to visit White House in late July to celebrate 2025 World Series win

Dodgers’ collab with KAWS will put acclaimed artist’s unique ‘XX’ spin on jerseys, trading cards, more

And finally

Vin Scully discusses getting Babe Ruth‘s autograph. 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.

The Dodgers needed to turn things around Sunday to wrap up the first half on a high note. Manager Dave Roberts said as much the night before.

“When you give teams free bases, extra outs, it’s hard to win a game, regardless of the opponent,” he said. “Emmet [Sheehan] needs to go out there and throw the baseball well tomorrow. We’ve got to find a way to win a game tomorrow to feel somewhat better about going into the break.”

Instead, the Dodgers fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3, swept for the first time this season. It was Arizona’s first sweep at Dodger Stadium since September 2017.

Perhaps the break is coming at a good time.

“I guess,” Roberts said. “Gives guys a reset. … We’ve got some good teams coming up and we’ve got to play good baseball.”

Sheehan at least did his job, holding the Diamondbacks to three runs in 5⅓ innings. It was clear from the first at-bat that his pitch count could limit how deep he pitched into the game. Sheehan won a 14-pitch battle to strike out Ketel Marte.

The right-hander then struck out the side and was efficient enough to pitch into the sixth. He exited after his pitch count reached 101.

Max Muncy swings at a pitch in the seventh inning.

(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)

Shohei Ohtani sparked the offense with his ninth leadoff home run of the season — and 22nd overall — on a two-hit day. But he’ll get treatment this week instead of playing in the All-Star Game.

It wasn’t a clean defensive game for the Dodgers. In the midst of the Diamondbacks’ two-run fifth, All-Star center fielder Andy Pages tracked a long fly back to the wall but missed the catch as the ball bounced off his glove for an error.

In the sixth, the tying run scored when All-Star third baseman Max Muncy’s throw to the plate hit Geraldo Perdomo in the back as he ran home for another error.

“Just a slump,” Muncy said. “You go through slumps both offensively and defensively, mentally. It’s just one of those stretches for us right now, and I think everyone’s ready for the break.”

Regardless of some sloppiness, the Dodgers have had a successful season going into the break.

“Just flush it,” Roberts said. “We’re still in a really good spot. Don’t let it carry over to the second half.”

They have the best record in the majors (61-36) and an 11½-game lead in the National League West. They also had six players selected as All-Stars.

So, as Major League Baseball pauses play and honors some of the best performers in each league, now’s a good time to hand out our first-half awards.

PHILADELPHIA — “It just means more” is a fine slogan. When it comes to the baseball draft, however, the Southeastern Conference can take a back seat to our oceanfront pitching factory.

First pitcher selected in last year’s draft: Tyler Bremner, UC Santa Barbara, taken second overall by the Angels.

First pitcher selected in this year’s draft: Jackson Flora, UC Santa Barbara, taken fourth overall by the San Francisco Giants.

Bremner followed the first round of Saturday’s draft from an airplane, watching from the screen on the back of the seat in front of him.

“It was cool to see someone I knew get picked that high,” Bremner said. “He’s stoked.”

Under former general manager Perry Minasian, college players would be stoked to be drafted by the Angels, who did not hesitate to promote top prospects to the major leagues after the briefest of stints in the minor leagues.

American League catcher Nathan Flewelling greets American League pitcher Tyler Bremner, left, during the MLB All-Star Futures game on Sunday in Philadelphia.

(Chris Szagola / Associated Press)

Bremner has yet to rise above Class A, but he did participate in Sunday’s Futures Game. He retired the only batter he faced.

The pitchers the Angels might well have taken in place of him, Kade Anderson and Seth Hernandez, each pitched a scoreless inning in the Futures Game.

After the Angels drafted Bremner with the second pick, the Seattle Mariners selected Anderson, an LSU product considered the most polished pitcher available. Anderson is 8-1 with a 1.36 ERA at double-A, likely the next man up should the Mariners’ rotation need one.

The Mariners had alerted him after the first pick — infielder Eli Willits, by the Washington Nationals — that they would take him with the third, he said.

“I got to watch the Angels make their pick, and then it was my turn,” Anderson said. “I never talked to them.”

Anderson signed for $8.8 million, Bremner for $7.7 million. Under Minasian, the Angels chose to spend less on the first-round pick and spread the savings among players drafted in lower rounds.

The first high school pitcher selected last year, Seth Hernandez, played at Corona High, about 20 miles from Angel Stadium. Hernandez is 6-foot-1 with a 2.61 ERA at Class A for the Pittsburgh Pirates, with 111 strikeouts in 69 innings.

He said he had talked with the Angels but did not expect them to select him because he “knew what direction they were going.” (Translation: trying to save money in the first round.)

“It would have been cool to go there,” Hernandez said, “but I’m happy with where I’m at with the Pirates.”

Whatever success the Angels might have in developing players drafted in the lower rounds, their 2025 draft will be remembered for this: They had their choice of any pitcher in America, and they chose Bremner.

Today, the league website ranks Anderson and Hernandez as the game’s top pitching prospects, and among the top six overall. Bremner ranks 44th overall, the only Angels prospect among the top 100.

His season started well, with a 1.08 ERA over five starts. He then missed a month because of illness and arm fatigue. Since his return, he has a 5.63 ERA over six starts.

The 48 strikeouts over 34 total innings is good news. The 34 innings to this point means his season grade can only be marked as incomplete.

“I’m just trying to stay on the field the rest of the year,” Bremner said. “That’s the main goal.

“I think it all comes down to how I perform and how I execute. They gave me all the opportunity in the world this year.”

In addition to adjusting to the first season of his professional career, Bremner is playing his first full season without his mother, who died from breast cancer last June.

“I feel like I am still dealing with that a good amount,” he said.

“It’s not something that gets brought up too much. I don’t want to say people move on, but it has been a year, and people start looking toward the next thing. That’s just how life moves.

“It’s still on my mind a lot. I’m trying to focus on what I need to be focusing on, and that’s being present and competing and having success in the sport. It’s my job right now. It’s not easy, but I’m getting through it.”

Same, really, for his pitching.

In a year in which three of the starters in the Angels’ opening rotation have been (a) injured; (b) demoted; or c) demoted and recalled, it’s hard not to imagine that a healthy and productive Bremner might have made the majors by now.

“I think about it sometimes,” he said, “but I’m content: not really contentment with where I’m at, but content going day to day and figuring out the process as I go through it.

“You can’t really think about getting to the big leagues before going through the other steps. Just kind of enjoying where I’m at right now, and realizing I need to have success here to make it there.

“You can’t just expect it to be handed to you. That’s something they made clear to me: It’s not going to be handed to me. It needs to be earned. I think I have a little ways to go, but I’m confident I can get there.”

He is confident, too, that Santa Barbara was an optimal launching pad toward getting him there.

“They develop pitchers well,” he said. “It’s a good location. It’s a fun school. I can’t say enough about my time there.

“Playing a lot of guys who have played in those big stadiums and in those big settings — Omaha, whatever — you do realize it’s the same game once you get here. It’s an even playing field. I feel like I fit in just fine.”

He should. The number of Cy Young winners this decade from the SEC is the same as the number from UCSB: one.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. No animals were harmed in the production of this newsletter.

Dalton Rushing has certainly been in the spotlight lately. From his miscommunication with Shohei Ohtani to getting emotional on the bench. We put the spotlight on him recently in this newsletter, which you can read here.

This led to readers asking whether his teammates like him. And while you can never know what lies in the heart of a person, it seems very likely that they do. We quoted colleague Maddie Lee‘s story last time. This time, we look at a couple of interesting quotes from Katie Woo’s story in the Athletic.

Freddie Freeman: “Everyone here loves Dalton Rushing. The person he is in the clubhouse, before games, after games, doesn’t get to be shown on the field. But there’s that three-hour window where his emotions come forward, and it can be a lot. I wish people could see the Dalton Rushing inside the clubhouse, on the plane, on buses. It’s not what you see during the game. He’s a young guy who’s learning the starting role, who wants to be great, who is just learning, and we’re here to help, and that’s why you see so many people trying to help him.”

Miguel Rojas: “It’s really hard to change one person’s personality from one year to another. We have to understand and give him a little bit of a break, because he’s young. Now, if we’re seeing this next year, or the same thing happening two years from now, there’s probably going to be a conversation with the organization. You have to see growth.”

That sounds like two guys who like him, and are trying to help him navigate through all of this. Which is what teammates are for.

However, is Rushing in sync with the pitchers? Let’s take a look at the starting pitcher ERA with Rushing and with Will Smith in their career. We’ll include Austin Barnes and Ben Rortvedt too.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto
ERA with Rortvedt: 0.86 (21 innings)
Barnes: 1.64 (33)
Rushing: 1.75 (92.2)
Smith: 3.29 (221.2)

Justin Wrobleski
Smith: 2.60 (86.2)
Rushing: 3.75 (72)
Rortvedt: 6.14 (7.1)
Barnes: 10.90 (17.1)

Shohei Ohtani
Rortvedt: 0.00 (11)
Smith: 2.08 (82.1)
Rushing: 2.97 (39.1)
Barnes never caught him

Roki Sasaki
Rortvedt: 0.00 (2)
Barnes: 2.00 (9)
Smith: 4.32 (58.1)
Rushing: 6.21 (37.2)

Emmet Sheehan
Rortvedt: 0.00 (1)
Rushing: 3.04 (50.1)
Smith: 4.20 (124.1)
Barnes: 7.56 (16.2)

Tyler Glasnow
Rushing: 1.46 (24.2)
Rortvedt: 2.89 (18.2)
Smith: 3.42 (210.2)
Barnes: 5.40 (10)

Blake Snell
Rortvedt: 0.47 (19)
Smith: 3.26 (30.1)
Rushing: 4.80 (15)

Eric Lauer
Smith: 1.50 (6)
Rushing: 3.86 (23.1)

All Dodgers pitchers this season
Smith: 3.02 (393)
Rushing: 3.74 (341.1)
Chuckie Robinson: 4.88 (59)

All Dodgers pitchers in 2025
Rortvedt: 2.89 (140.1)
Rushing: 3.87 (325.1)
Smith: 4.00 (865.1)
Robinson: 5.14 (7)
Barnes: 5.16 (103)

You can see why the Dodgers liked Rortvedt so much.

Dave Roberts, millennium man

Dave Roberts got the 1,000th victory as Dodgers manager when they beat the Athletics on Tuesday.

“I mean, 1,000 didn’t even seem on my radar,” Roberts said after that game. “That’s a long time of consistent winning, let alone keeping a job for 11 years. That’s just kind of the life I chose. But yeah, to kind of put your head down and look back and go, ‘Oh my God, I’m here,’ it’s mind-blowing. I still feel like I’m getting better, and I still enjoy it.”

Roberts, who is in his 11th season as Dodgers manager, gave a hint as to how long he will be at the helm.

“I will not manage 20 years. Mookie wants me to manage until his contract expires [in 2032], so that’s something I am thinking about. But I can be certain I’m not going to do 20 years. It’s too much. I love it, but it’s a lot to give. To see myself doing that for another seven, eight, nine years, that’s a lot.”

Barring some unexpected collapse by the Dodgers for a couple of seasons, Roberts will be manager of the Dodgers for as long as he wants. He has won three World Series titles and will go into the Hall of Fame one day. He has grown considerably as a manager, as he has shown in the last two postseasons. There is always a vocal minority who doesn’t like him, or who thinks anyone could manage this team to a title. Nonsense. As Mookie Betts said:

“I would definitely say it’s probably the reverse. It makes it harder. It’s probably easy to write in a lineup, for sure. But to manage so many personalities, injuries, guys coming up, guys coming down, it’s a lot, especially losing. We went through our stretches where we weren’t playing well.

“And then it’s the other way, like, ‘Oh, you got this roster, and you’re still losing X, Y, and Z.’ But he just kind of handled it. Handled it with grace. And still come out on top. So, yeah, it’s probably easy to write in the lineup, but to manage it for 162-plus is really hard to do.”

Roberts became the 69th manager to win 1,000 games and the fourth Dodger manager, joining Walter Alston (2,040), Tommy Lasorda (1,599) and Wilbert Robinson (1,375). He also has the best winning percentage of any manager in history, winning 62.3% of his games. He is 1,003-607. Just behind him is Joe McCarthy, who won 61.5% (2,125-1,333). McCarthy won seven World Series titles, all with the Yankees, and is considered by many to be the greatest manager in history.

Sad news

Catcher Eliezer Alfonzo made his major league debut with the Dodgers on Sunday, but with a heavy heart. Alfonzo’s younger sister, Eliana, and stepmother, Patricia, died during the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela recently.

”Don’t really know what to say about it outside of my heart goes out to him and his family,” Roberts said before Sunday’s game. “He’s in [the lineup]. He’s going to play today, but obviously it’s heavy hearts. I don’t want to really go too far because I’ll get emotional, so I don’t know. I know it’s tough, very tough.”

After the game, Alfonzo said this about playing: “Honestly it was a little difficult, but at the same time thanking God always for everything. What happened, unfortunately, is out of my hands and part of life. Only God knows why they happen. I went out there to honor my sister and my stepmother, and give my best in a difficult moment.”

Keep these types of things in mind the next time you want to boo or yell at a player for making an error, mentally or physically. We don’t know what they are going through from day to day. It’s easy to get caught up in thinking these are baseball players making a lot of money and living the dream. But no one lives the dream 24/7.

Four All-Stars

Ohtani, Freeman, Max Muncy and Andy Pages were all elected as starters for this year’s All-Star team, and Yamamoto also made the team, giving the Dodgers four All-Stars this season, tied for the most with Atlanta and Philadelphia. It is Ohtani’s third All-Star nod with the Dodgers (he also had three with the Angels), Freeman’s fifth with the Dodgers (he also had five with the Braves), the third for Muncy, the first for Pages and the second for Yamamoto.

The franchise record for most players on the team is seven, done in multiple years while the Dodgers were in Brooklyn.

Dodgers named to the All-Star team at least four times:

11
Clayton Kershaw

10
Pee Wee Reese

Nine
Don Drysdale

Eight
Roy Campanella
Steve Garvey
Gil Hodges

Seven
Sandy Koufax
Duke Snider
Maury Wills

Six
Ron Cey
Jackie Robinson
Fernando Valenzuela

Five
Freddie Freeman
Mike Piazza
John Roseboro

Four
Mookie Betts
Pedro Guerrero
Cookie Lavagetto
Davey Lopes
Van Lingle Mungo
Don Newcombe
Mickey Owen
Johnny Podres
Preacher Roe
Don Sutton
Dixie Walker
Whit Wyatt

These names seem familiar

How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams (through Sunday). Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page:

Anthony Banda, Twins: 2-0, 4.46 ERA, 2 saves, 34.1 IP, 31 hits, 15 walks, 33 K’s, 98 ERA+, on the IL

Cody Bellinger, Yankees: .251/.348/.426, 374 PA’s, 17 doubles, 3 triples, 11 homers, 50 RBIs, 116 OPS+

Walker Buehler, Padres: 5-4, 4.61 ERA, 82 IP, 83 hits, 30 walks, 76 K’s, 91 ERA+

Mike Busch, Cubs: .234/.367/.391, 398 PA’s, 14 doubles, 2 triples, 11 homers, 47 RBIs, 114 OPS+

Michael Conforto, Cubs: .250/.345/.492, 148 PA’s, 10 doubles, 7 homers, 21 RBIs, 133 OPS+

Justin Dean, Cubs: .400/.500/.800, 6 PA’s, 1 triple, 3 RBIs, 259 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, Reds: 1-0, 1.62 ERA, 1 save, 16.2 IP, 15 hits, 6 walks, 16 K’s, 278 ERA+

Jack Flaherty, Tigers: 2-8, 4.60 ERA, 76.1 IP, 74 hits, 37 walks, 92 K’s, 93 ERA+

Kenley Jansen, Tigers: 1-4, 4.98 ERA, 10 saves, 21.2 IP, 14 hits, 12 walks, 23 K’s, 87 ERA+

Craig Kimbrel, Rays: 0-2, 4.62 ERA, 25.1 IP, 22 hits, 10 walks, 23 K’s, 9Gavin 4 ERA+

Gavin Lux, Rays: on the IL

Dustin May, Cardinals: 5-6, 4.80 ERA, 84.1 IP, 83 hits, 24 walks, 78 K’s, 84 ERA+

Zach McKinstry, Tigers: .196/.274/.291, 225 PA’s, 6 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 16 RBIs, 58 OPS+

James Outman, Tigers : .159/.234/.292, 124 PA’s, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, 11 RBIs, 46 OPS+

Joc Pederson, Rangers: .242/.338/.466, 276 PA’s, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 14 homers, 31 RBIs, 133 OPS+

Luke Raley, Mariners: .228/.293/.466, 241 PA’s, 8 doubles, 1 triple, 14 homers, 35 RBIs, 114 OPS+

Ben Rortvedt, Mets: in the minors

Corey Seager, Rangers: .182/.292/.374, 219 PA’s, 6 doubles, 10 homers, 25 RBIs, 94 OPS+, on the IL

Justin Turner, Tijuana (Mexican League): .281/.394/.475, 216 PA’s, 17 doubles, 6 homers, 28 RBIs

Trea Turner, Phillies: .246/.283/.360, 364 PA’s, 15 doubles, 10 homers, 31 RBIs, 72 OPS+

Miguel Vargas, White Sox: .247/.363/.494, 304 PA’s, 17 doubles, 1 triple, 20 homers, 56 RBIs, 138 OPS+

Kirby Yates, Angels: 0-3, 2.75 ERA, 2 saves, 19.2 IP, 11 hits, 7 walks, 28 K’s, 154 ERA+

Note: Vargas was named to the AL All-Star team.

Up next

Monday: Colorado (*Kyle Freeland, 2-7, 7.25 ERA) at Dodgers (*Eric Lauer, 4-5, 4.84 ERA [3-0, 2.88 ERA with Dodgers]), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Colorado (Michael Lorenzen, 3-9, 6.91 ERA) at Dodgers (*Justin Wrobleski, 10-2, 2.80 ERA), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Colorado (Ryan Feltner, 3-2, 4.27 ERA) at Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 3-5, 5.40 ERA), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers’ Edwin Díaz pushes back against alleged links to illegal cockfighting

Dodgers’ Eliezer Alfonzo to start after his sister and stepmother died in Venezuela

Dodgers sending four more players to MLB All-Star Game, tied for most selections

Shohei Ohtani and Dodgers taking cautious approach with his biceps ailment

How Dodgers’ Max Muncy, vying for his third All-Star selection, continues to evolve

Fan loudly expresses unbridled enthusiasm for Mexico’s World Cup goal … at Dodgers-A’s game

Dodgers Debate: Midseason awards

Walter Alston, Dave Roberts and everyone in between: The 10 managers in L.A. Dodgers history

And finally

Vin Scully tells us about Kirk Gibson‘s home run. 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.

Willson Contreras and Romy Gonzalez homered to back the superb pitching of Sonny Gray, who gave up one run and four hits in six innings of the Boston Red Sox’s 8-1 win over the Angels on Saturday night at Angel Stadium.

Wilyer Abreu added a two-run double, and relievers Jovani Morán, Greg Weissert and Alec Gamboa combined for three hitless innings for the Red Sox (39-48), who have won seven of nine games. The Angels (36-54) have lost five straight and 11 of 17 since June 17.

Gray (10-1) induced two of Boston’s three double-play grounders, struck out seven and walked one. The 36-year-old right-hander has six straight quality starts since May 30, a stretch in which he’s gone 5-0 with a 1.97 ERA.

Though he leads the American League in wins and ranks second with a 2.61 ERA, Gray was not named to the AL All-Star team Saturday.

Angels starter Sam Aldegheri (3-4) walked two ahead of Contreras’ 19th homer, a 421-foot blast to left-center that gave Boston a 3-0 lead in the first.

Josh Lowe’s one-out homer pulled the Angels to within 3-1 in the second. Jo Adell walked, and Wade Meckler singled, but Gray struck out Donovan Walton and Tyler Heineman to escape the jam.

Aldegheri did not give up a hit in the second, third and fourth, but with his pitch count at 88, he was pulled in favor of left-hander Samy Natera Jr., who gave up one run in his first nine big-league games.

Anthony Seigler led off the fifth with a double, Ceddanne Rafaela walked, and Abreu slammed a two-run double off the right-field wall for a 5-1 lead.

Gonzalez, robbed of a potential first-inning homer when Adell made a leaping catch of his drive above the wall in right, followed with a towering, 368-foot fly that cleared the short left-field wall for his first homer of the season and a 7-1 lead. Rafaela’s RBI single in the eighth made it 8-1.

Up next: Red Sox LHP Ranger Suarez (4-3, 2.94 ERA) will oppose Angels RHP Ryan Johnson (1-3, 7.40) in Sunday night’s series finale.

After the total failure that was Mexico’s participation in the Qatar 2022 World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stage, the future looked very dire for “El Tri.” By 2024, the situation had worsened after another international failure at the Copa América. The 2026 World Cup co-hosts had even more pressure now. In a crisis-control move, the Mexico Football Federation opted to bring back its proven problem solver, head coach “El Vasco” Javier Aguirre, for a third stint.

In a short time, Aguirre was able to shape “El Tri” into a competitive squad by breaking from his usual approach. The man who shockingly demoted then-24-year-old goalkeeper Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa in favor of a more experienced player prior to the 2010 World Cup was now relying on upstarts.

Aguirre’s 26-man roster for the 2026 World Cup features 14 debutants on soccer’s grandest stage.The crown jewel of this nucleus is undoubtedly 17-year-old wonderkid Gilberto Mora, but there are also two American-born players who are also expected to become pillars of the team: Brian Gutiérrez, from Berwyn, Ill., and Obed Vargas, from Anchorage, Alaska.

Under Article 30, Section A, Part II of the Mexican Constitution, individuals born abroad are considered Mexican by birth if they are children of Mexican parents — a Mexican mother or a Mexican father. Gutiérrez’s parents are from San Juan de los Lagos, Jalisco, while Vargas’ father is a native of Morelia, Michoacán, and his mother was raised in Mexico City.

“Obviously, I’m taking it day by day and just trying to enjoy the experience,” said Gutiérrez about the opportunity to play for Mexico at the World Cup. “I talk about it a lot with my friends and family. Honestly, it’s amazing… I’m just living in the moment.”

Gutiérrez, 22, and Vargas, 20, are not the first players born in the United States to represent Mexico in a World Cup. That distinction belongs to Miguel Ponce and Isaac Brizuela, who were both born in California and part of the 2014 squad. But the comparisons largely end there.

Unlike Ponce and Brizuela, Gutiérrez and Vargas were fully raised in the United States and went through their entire soccer development on American fields. Ponce and Brizuela were also fringe contributors; they didn’t see any minutes in Brazil 2014.

Meanwhile, Gutiérrez and Vargas are already getting important playing time with the national team. Both were part of Mexico’s historic group stage where, for the first time in history, the team won all three of its games. Gutiérrez was a starter against South Africa and South Korea, while Vargas came off the bench to help preserve the 1-0 lead over South Korea.

Their protagonism in Aguirre’s squad could also signal another new era for the Mexican national team — one in which Mexican American players are just as vital as those born on Mexican soil.

“Brian and Obed are two young players of Mexican heritage. They are very talented players who have made great progress recently. We called them up, and they convinced us with their performances,” said Aguirre prior to the tournament. “I believe there are many Mexican American players who, in the future, will continue strengthening Mexico’s youth national teams, including the women’s side. That makes me happy because they were not born in Mexico, yet they have a deep love for the country and have shown it by choosing to represent us.”

Both Gutiérrez and Vargas are also products of MLS academies.

Gutiérrez, a skillful and dynamic attacking midfielder, rose through the ranks of Chicago Fire’s youth system and made his senior debut in 2020. In December, he moved to storied Liga MX club Chivas, his childhood team. It took time for Gutiérrez to establish himself as a starter for Gabriel Milito’s squad, but his game-changing talent was there — enough to catch the eye of “El Vasco.”

Vargas, a box-to-box midfielder, developed through the Seattle Sounders youth system and debuted with the senior team in 2021. A strong showing against Atlético de Madrid in the 2025 Club World Cup led to the Spanish club adding him to its roster this February. This move also put him in Aguirre’s World Cup plans.

“Playing for Mexico at the World Cup is a dream come true for all Mexican American kids,” said Vargas. “Obviously, with the World Cup being in both countries, it’s special to me. I have connections and ties to both countries.”

For so long, it was said Mexican American players just could not earn a place with Mexico at the international level. Players like Édgar Castillo and Alejandro Zendejas — born in Juárez but raised in El Paso — represented “El Tri” up to the U-23 level, then switched and played for the U.S. Jonathan González (Santa Rosa, Calif.) represented the U.S. at youth level and then chose Mexico, but after a few call-ups he fell out of the picture.

But in this World Cup cycle, Mexican American players have stood out more than ever.

Aguirre’s preliminary 55-man World Cup roster included six Mexican American players. Richard Ledezma (Phoenix), Efraín Álvarez (Los Angeles), Jorge Ruvalcaba (Rialto), and Julián Araujo (Lompoc, Calif.) ultimately missed the final cut. Of the four, Ledezma and Araujo came closest to making the team, but for different reasons fell short.

Vargas believes it was only a matter of time before the talent broke through.

“I think Mexican American players have always been there. The quality has always been there. Obviously, the growing passion for the sport in the United States has helped fuel the development of many of those players,” said Vargas. “I think it’s amazing to see so many Mexican Americans doing well with the national teams of both the United States and Mexico. Dreams come true for kids, and that continues to inspire the next generation of Mexican American players coming through in the U.S.”

Gutiérrez and Vargas, like many standout Mexican American players over the last 15 years, began their paths with “El Tri” amid a long-standing tug-of-war between their birth country and the country of their parents. The Mexico men’s national team and their U.S. counterparts have increasingly become rivals, both on the field and in recruiting dual-national players.

For Mexico, the United States now represents a prime area for scouting outside its territory. According to the Migration Policy Institute’s (MPI) tabulation of data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, approximately 38.8 million U.S. residents were either born in Mexico or reported Mexican ancestry or origin.

Not only do Mexican American players expand the national team’s talent pool, but as some argue, they also bring a different element that can be a major advantage for the program.

Former Mexico youth coach and current Guatemala coach Luis Fernando Tena recently raised eyebrows in an interview with ESPN Deportes by stating that Mexican American players possess qualities that can set them apart from homegrown Mexican players.

“They have an American mindset. They grew up with that mentality and with good nutrition, and that makes them different,” said Tena, who led Mexico’s U-23 team to the gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. “They are more disciplined, work harder, and are more focused — something that we sometimes don’t always find in many Mexican-born players.”

Gutiérrez and Vargas started their international careers representing Team USA at youth level, but FIFA’s one-time switch rule allowed them to change allegiances.

Vargas said he chose Mexico because he simply “followed his heart.” His love for his heritage and the Mexican national team outweighed everything else.

As for Gutiérrez, he was motivated to make the change because his time at Chivas convinced him. In Liga MX, the club has been at the forefront of tapping into the Mexican diaspora in the U.S. Their long-standing “Mexicans-only” policy limits the club’s talent pool when acquiring players. Because of this, Mexican American players are becoming a vital lifeline for Chivas.

“As soon as I arrived at Chivas, I knew my decision was to represent Mexico because we play with 100% Mexicans, that’s just how it is,” said Gutiérrez.

Opportunity may have also played a major role in Gutiérrez’s and Vargas’s “one-time switch” decisions. Both had no clear pathway into the U.S. senior squad, while Mexico offered a clearer route — and a chance at the 2026 World Cup.

In a 2023 interview, El Paso native Ricardo Pepi, who made the one-time switch from Mexico to the U.S., said on the Men in Blazers podcast that his decision was influenced by the fact that the U.S. had him in mind for the senior squad, while “El Tri” did not.

“It was just easy to decide. The U.S. wanted me to join them in World Cup qualifiers, which is a big deal,” said Pepi. “It’s a unique opportunity, being at a World Cup, and something I didn’t even have to think about because Mexico wanted me for the U-20s and eventually the first team. I was like, ‘I’m past that.’”

Although Gutiérrez and Vargas chose Mexico and embrace their parents’ culture, their duality is still present. They carry their communities with them.

A year ago, when aggressive ICE raids and mass deportations swept through many immigrant communities in the United States, particularly Mexican immigrant communities, a visibly frustrated Aguirre refused to comment on the situation, saying he was “apolitical” and not “a spokesperson” for the Mexican people.

This was not the case with Gutiérrez and Vargas, who both addressed questions about the ICE raids during Mexico’s World Cup media day in Pasadena, where they switched seamlessly between English and Spanish.

Gutiérrez answered without hesitation. His hometown of Berwyn is a suburb of Chicago, a city that in September was targeted by “Operation Midway Blitz,” a major federal immigration enforcement surge. According to the Chicago Tribune, between 3,800 and 4,500 individuals were detained or arrested during the operation.

Gutiérrez’s words reflected the strain felt throughout his community.

“It’s been a hard, hard year for us,” Gutiérrez said. “It’s affected a lot of families, and I take playing for Mexico with great pride and hope to show it on the field.”

It’s no secret that a large part of Mexico’s fanbase is composed of Mexican Americans. They are the ones who help fill massive NFL stadiums for “El Tri’s” annual MexTour, a slate of mostly inconsequential friendly matches that are often seen as a cash grab for the Mexican Football Federation. The presence of standout players like Gutiérrez and Vargas is a major development for this segment of the fanbase.

By featuring players with shared cultural experiences and struggles, the connection between the Mexican diaspora in the U.S. and “El Tri” can only strengthen. The ties now go beyond simply sharing the same roots; Mexican Americans can now gravitate toward a team with players who represent their dual identity. And this can bring a true sense of belonging.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — He’s a prize-winning presidential historian who wrote an entire biography of Thomas Jefferson. But even Jon Meacham needs to think for a moment before defining what it means to be a “Jeffersonian.”

“Well for a long time, before the civil rights movement, it meant to be more inclined toward states’ rights and limited government,” says Meacham, the National Constitution Center’s Semiquincentennial Scholar. He then pauses, and asks to start over, recalling how President Franklin Delano Roosevelt evoked Jefferson as an “apostle of liberty” who would have supported the U.S. fighting the Nazis in World War II.

You could define it in so many ways. Historians may argue over the “greatness” of individual founders, but as the country’s 250th anniversary approaches many agree that no one’s life and work resonates like Jefferson’s. He embodied the “very best and the very worst” of the United States, Meacham says.

And a great deal in between.

America’s birth is rooted in his most profound contradiction — the man who proclaimed that “all men are created equal” while being a slaveholder to the end of his life. But Jefferson advanced and explored both sides of so many issues and world views that have defined the country’s path: agrarian self-sufficiency and worldly innovation, pluralism and separatism, limited government and dreams of an “empire of liberty.”

“There is no more malleable figure in early America than Jefferson,” says Andrew Burstein, a professor of history at Louisiana State University who has summed up Jefferson’s legacy in a book he published a decade ago: “Democracy’s Muse: How Thomas Jefferson became an FDR Liberal, a Reagan Republican, and a Tea Party Fanatic, All the While Being Dead.”

“There have been times in American history when just about everyone would have considered themselves ‘Jeffersonian,’” says historian Peter S. Onuf, author of numerous works on Jefferson. “Yet even at those moments, he was a controversial figure.”

It’s an argument without end

Jefferson’s legacy is debated even in settings that owe their existence to him.

On the campus of the University of Virginia, the college he founded and regarded as a signature achievement, stands a memorial to thousands of enslaved people who lived and worked there.

At Monticello, the mountaintop estate and plantation outside of Charlottesville where Jefferson lived when not in public office, a banner near the entrance features the Declaration and the caption, “After all, our guy wrote it.” But once on the grounds, reminders of his enslavement of hundreds are found throughout, from its “Burial Ground for Enslaved People” that includes dozens of graves to an exhibit dedicated to Sally Hemings, the enslaved woman with whom Jefferson is widely believed to have had six children.

Monticello’s director of historic interpretation and audience engagement, Brandon Dillard, cites the staff’s mission “to tell unflinching stories of America’s complex origins and fitful progress toward the ideals Jefferson articulated in the Declaration of Independence.”

Jefferson regarded Monticello as a refuge from the times, but the times inevitably find their way here. A guide on the gardens and grounds tour points out that a foldable plant Jefferson tried and failed to grow — the “Mimosa Pudica,” or “sensitive plant” — now thrives because of climate change. The visitors’ center is LEED Gold-certified for green energy, Dillard says, and geothermal systems have been installed in other buildings for temperature control.

Monticello raises questions old and new about race. Virtually all of the guides are white, an issue Dillard notes is prevalent nationwide. A recent survey released by the American Association for State and Local History found that around just 10% of workers at museums, historic sites and historical societies were nonwhite and that many “Latino/a/x, and multiracial respondents reported higher rates of discrimination and harassment.” (Dillard declined to answer in detail the experience of guides of color at Monticello.)

There is a Jefferson for every occasion

Jefferson’s contradictions date back through much of American history; he was claimed by both sides of the Civil War and both sides of the civil rights movement.

Nineteenth-century Confederates and 20th-century segregationists cited his defense of states’ rights, while Abraham Lincoln and civil rights leaders emphasized Jefferson as the author of the Declaration of Independence. In the space of a few months in 1963, he would be invoked in the inaugural speech of Alabama Gov. George Wallace as he vowed defiance of federal efforts to integrate the state’s schools and by the Rev. Martin Luther King as he delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington.

Roosevelt enlisted Jefferson as an ideological ally for the New Deal (the Thomas Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C., began as a New Deal project) and a former New Dealer-turned conservative, President Reagan, held up Jefferson decades later as a foe of wasteful spending. Jefferson has been cited often by free-speech advocates for his crucial support for the Bill of Rights, while President Trump has quoted Jefferson’s 1807 lament that “Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper” as an implicit endorsement of his modern war against “fake news.”

Jefferson has also been placed on either side of today’s divide over immigration. Ibram X. Kendi, author of “How to Be an Anti-Racist,” cites his well-documented belief in colonization for Black people as inspiration for contemporary scapegoating and xenophobia. Meanwhile, at a time when the Trump administration is aggressively trying to restrict immigration and even denaturalize some citizens, Monticello continues its decades-old July 4 naturalization ceremonies, with Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger scheduled as this year’s keynote speaker.

“As new citizens share their personal stories every Fourth of July,” Dillard says, “we are reminded that the values uplifted in that Declaration are values toward which people from all backgrounds aspire.”

Many Monticello visitors, many reasons to visit

Monticello attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. They come for many reasons.

Erin Porter is a Virginia native in her 40s who until recently had never been to Monticello and wanted to cross it off her bucket list, while Nathan Jaycox of Connecticut is a former nuclear engineer now seeking to absorb history for a class he hopes to teach. Duane Cromwell, a longtime resident of Vancouver, was here on a very personal mission.

Cromwell, 70, grew up in Greenville, S.C., where she was taught that slavery was “an economic necessity” and learned nothing about Jefferson’s history of enslavement. In town last month for a family reunion, she arrived at Monticello anxious to get past the “whitewashed Southern version” and the myths of evil “yankees” and the victimized rebels who defied them.

“Did you (ever) notice kudzu growing up over trees and buildings while in the South? It is an invasive plant brought to the region to control erosion. Well, it is like racism. It is pervasive, part of the horizon, always there but soon you don’t notice it,” she says.

“Having said that, I do think that people do go along better, there is more interactions, relationships than when I was growing up. Everyone needs each other and in the South, there is a great sense of humor and friendliness that help people navigate the awkward moments.”

For Cromwell, Monticello was a chance to educate herself, to become a better person — and, like countless others before her, using Thomas Jefferson as a prism.

“Isn’t that what it’s all about?”

Italie writes for the Associated Press.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Today is one of those newsletters that we devote to only one topic.

Do you remember where you were 36 years ago today?

Fernando Valenzuela was a great pitcher. I think he should be in the Hall of Fame for his on-field talents and the fact he brought thousands of new fans to the sport, all across the country.

But by 1990, he was no longer a great pitcher. He was an afterthought on the 1988 World Series title team. In 1989, he was basically a league average pitcher, going 10-13 with a 3.43 ERA. Going into his start against St. Louis on June 29, 1990, he was 5-6 with a 4.09 ERA, had given up 97 hits in 94.2 innings and had given up eight runs in 5.1 innings in his last start.

Pitching a no-hitter, which seemed possible earlier in his career, was off the table. And then, well, who better to take us through that final inning than Vin Scully?

Covering the Dodgers then for The Times was Bill Plaschke. The rest of this is his words as written that evening:

Thirty minutes before the Dodgers faced the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, Fernando Valenzuela noticed on a clubhouse television set that Oakland pitcher Dave Stewart had thrown a no-hitter in Toronto.

“Fernando turned to some teammates and he said, ‘That’s great, now maybe we’ll see another no-hitter,’ ” Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda said.

It was the first time in the modern baseball era that two no-hitters have been pitched on the same day. It was the Dodgers’ first no-hitter since Jerry Reuss had one against the San Francisco Giants on June 27, 1980.

“And it couldn’t have happened to a tougher, more competitive guy,” Lasorda said. “You look at Fernando and he has done everything in his career except a no-hitter. And now . . . this.”

With Willie McGee on first base and one out in the ninth inning, former Dodger Pedro Guerrero hit a grounder up the middle that seemed destined for the outfield. But Valenzuela stuck out his glove, the ball nicked the leather and rolled to Juan Samuel, who stepped on second base and threw to first baseman Eddie Murray, who made the catch that sent Dodgers running to the mound.

“Do you think if I don’t touch that ball, it goes through for a single?” Valenzuela asked afterward. “Whoooa. I think it does. I think I don’t touch it, I’m in trouble.

“I was just glad to see Scioscia running to the mound from the plate. Only then did I know it was over. Thank goodness Alfredo Griffin made the catch and the throw.”

When reminded that it was Samuel who made the final play, Valenzuela laughed.

“That shows you how excited I am,” he said after improving to 6-6 with a 3.73 earned-run average. “This is a great moment for me.”

But in the final three innings, he threw 49 pitches, and was obviously tired.

“But this was a different kind of tired,” Valenzuela said. “This kind of tired did not bother me. You think I feel anything during those last inning? No way.”

“This is a different pitcher than in previous seasons,” catcher Mike Scioscia said. “This guy is not as quick as the old Fernando, but this guy still knows how to win.”

Back to your humble host here. If you want to read Plaschke’s entire article, click here.

When watching the final inning as called by Vin, I was struck by a tinge of sadness when Vin gave the day and time in case “Fernando wants to play this to his grandchildren one day.” Valenzuela died in 2024. He had seven grandchildren; let’s hope they all got to sit with him and hear it.

It was also amazing to hear Vin say that Fernando had thrown only 108 pitches through eight innings, so he has plenty of ammunition left. Now baseball managers and front office people are afraid a pitcher’s arm would fall off if they throw 108 pitches today.

And thanks, Fernando, for all the great memories.

Here’s another link to Vin’s call.

Up next

Monday: Dodgers (*Eric Lauer, 3-5, 4.87 ERA [2-0, 2.54 ERA with the Dodgers]) at Athletics (*Gage Jump, 3-1, 2.04 ERA), 6:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Dodgers (*Justin Wrobleski, 9-2, 2.71 ERA) at Athletics (*Jeffrey Springs, 3-7, 5.52 ERA), 6:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani, 8-2, 1.58 ERA) at San Diego (J.T. Ginn, 6-4, 3.15 ERA), 6:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Wife, kids of Dodgers’ Miguel Rojas in Caracas when earthquakes hit Venezuela

Mookie Betts is ‘back’ for Dodgers: Offensive takeaways from series win over Padres

‘He cares about people.’ How Dodgers’ Dave Roberts got to the cusp of 1,000 career wins

Shaikin: Did Padres curse themselves by messing with that anti-Dodgers FTD burger?

And finally

Vin Scully and Fernando Valenzuela throw out the first pitch before Game 2 of the 2017 World Series. 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.

Shea Langeliers capped a seven-run rally in the fifth inning with the Athletics’ sixth straight single, backing J.T. Ginn in a 9-3 victory over the Angels on Friday night after the Angels fired general manager Perry Minasian.

Ginn (6-4) gave up three runs and eight hits, striking out five and walking one, to provide a much-needed boost to a pitching staff that had major league highs in June with a 6.14 ERA and 44 home runs given up.

The last-place Angels appointed former St. Louis Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak to be their interim GM and baseball operations consultant.

Angels starter Walbert Ureña (5-6) was perfect through four innings, opening the game with 15 straight strikes and needing only 36 pitches — 31 strikes — to retire his first 12 batters.

But the 22-year-old right-hander, who had a 1.93 ERA in his previous 10 starts, walked two of his first three batters in the fifth, throwing nearly as many pitches in the inning (36) as he did in the first four.

Max Muncy broke up Ureña’s no-hit bid with an infield single that load the bases, and the A’s followed with Jeff McNeil’s two-run single, Alika Williams’ RBI single, Henry Bolte’s two-run single and RBI singles by Nick Kurtz and Langeliers that built a 7-1 lead.

Donovan Walton’s RBI single had put the Angels ahead in the fourth. Jo Adell hit a two-run homer in the fifth.

Up next: Athletics RHP Jack Perkins (2-3, 6.26 ERA) and Angels LHP Reid Detmers (3-5, 3.93 ERA) start Saturday night.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. We are exactly halfway through the Dodgers season and they are 52-29. The newsletter mathematician is out sick, but I think that works out as being on pace for a 104-58 record this year.

Remember a few weeks ago when the Dodgers were slumping a bit? They had lost four in a row and had dropped into second place behind the San Diego Padres? Well, the Dodgers have the best record in baseball now and are in first place by nine games over the Padres.

They are headed to Petco Park to start a three-game series tonight, with a chance to bury the Padres this weekend, or, let the Padres get within shouting distance again.

So, with 81 games to go, here’s a look at the top two teams in the NL West:

Record
Dodgers, 52-29
Padres, 42-37

Batting average
Dodgers, .262 (1st among the 30 teams)
Padres, .220 (30th)

On-base%
Dodgers, .345 (1st)
Padres, .294 (30th)

Slugging%
Dodgers, .438 (1st)
Padres, .364 (30th)

Runs per game
Dodgers, 5.22 (2nd)
Padres, 3.91 (30th)

Doubles
Dodgers, 137 (7th)
Padres, 113 (T24th)

Home runs
Dodgers, 109 (3rd)
Padres, 81 (T22nd)

Batting avg. with runners in scoring position
Dodgers, .265 (7th)
Padres, .247 (15th)

Batting avg., two out and runners in scoring position
Dodgers, .242 (9th)
Padres, .238 (12th)

Well, there goes the theory that the Dodgers are a poor clutch-hitting team.

ERA
Dodgers, 3.40 (3rd)
Padres, 3.85 (9th)

Rotation ERA
Dodgers, 3.25 (2nd)
Padres, 4.50 (23rd)

Bullpen ERA
Padres, 3.12 (2nd)
Dodgers, 3.68 (10th)

The Dodgers are in the top 10 in everything, while the Padres are in the bottom 10 in a lot of things. It’s amazing they are in second place with an offense that bad,

Now let’s look at the lineups.

Catcher
Dodgers, Will Smith, .249/.338/.382, 102 OPS+
Padres, Freddy Fermin, .145/.245/.258, 41 OPS+

Smith is having an off year by his standards, while Fermin is having an off year by living person standards. His backup, Rodolfo Durán, is hitting .136/.239/.339

First base
Dodgers, Freddie Freeman, .282/.372/.486, 139 OPS+
Padres, Ty France, .252/.297/.485, 115 OPS+

Freeman just keeps chugging along. He is in the top 100 in major league history in hits, runs, doubles, homers, RBIs and walks. He is the active leader in times reached base with 3,741. He’s 36, and next year he will really start rocketing up the career lists as a lot of players are tightly bunched just ahead of him. France is 31, and next year he has a really good shot at being 32.

Second base
Dodgers, Alex Freeland, .241/.324/.340, 87 OPS+
Padres, Fernando Tatís Jr., .283/.347/.367, 101 OPS+

Freeland is the worst hitter among the starters, and he isn’t that bad. Tatis hit 25 homers last season and has three this season, as the Padres have lost all their power this season for some reason. Normally, Jake Cronenworth starts at second for the Padres, but he has been on the IL since May 5 because of concussion symptoms and was hitting only .144 in 34 games before that.

Third base
Dodgers, Max Muncy, .266/.365/.508, 142 OPS+
Padres, Manny Machado, .184/.267/.378, 79 OPS+

You know what you never hear anymore? This: “The Dodgers need to move on from Muncy at third.” Muncy has been their most consistent hitter and has worked hard to improve defensively. Meanwhile, everyone would like to know what happened to Machado, who has been terrible this season and at one point seemed to blame analytics for his slump. He had a walk-off hit Tuesday and seems to be emerging from his doldrums, hitting .259/.339/.556 since June 9.

Shortstop
Dodgers, Mookie Betts, .230/.290/.415
Padres, Xander Bogaerts, .230/.321/.337

Speaking of season-long slumps, hi Mookie! He is also showing signs of life, hitting .317/.358/.524 since June 9 and lifting his numbers to where they are better than Bogaerts’.

Left field
Dodgers, Teoscar Hernández, .276/.348/.436, 119 OPS+
Padres, Samad Taylor, .379/.438/.448, 150 OPS+

Hernández should be back off the IL soon, and Alex Call has filled in quite well in his place. The Padres have played better since calling Taylor up from the minors a couple of weeks ago. His lofty numbers will probably drop (he has had only 66 plate appearances), but his speed has been a spark for San Diego. He replaced normal left fielder Ramón Laureano, who is probably out for the season after hip surgery.

Center field
Dodgers, Andy Pages, .266/.318/.474, 119 OPS+
Padres, Jackson Merrill, .212/.274/.352, 74 OPS+

Pages has been the linchpin of the offense pretty much all season and it’s nice to see a player shake off a brutal postseason on offense by rebounding this year. Merrill is one of many Padres who are mysteriously slumping this season. He hit .264/.317/.457 last season.

Right field
Dodgers, Kyle Tucker, .234/.333/.374, 98 OPS+
Padres, Jase Bowen, .133/.138/.167, 1 OPS+

Tucker would have been great if he was working under the same contract Michael Conforto had last season. Dodgers fans would be pleased with that production for that pay ($17 million). Instead, he’s getting $60 million for league-average production. Bowen has had only 32 plate appearances, and Tatís will move back here once Cronenworth is able to return to second base.

Designated hitter
Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani, .295/.414./.549, 168 OPS+
Padres, Miguel Andujar, .246/.283/.405, 90 OPS+

Ohtani is the best player in the game, while the Padres seem confused as the what a DH is supposed to do. Hint: the word “hitter” is right there in the job title.

Starting pitchers (in order of IP)
Dodgers
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 7-5, 2.65 ERA
Justin Wrobleski, 9-2, 2.71 ERA
Shohei Ohtani, 8-2, 1.58 ERA
Roki Sasaki, 3-4, 4.76 ERA
Emmet Sheehan, 3-5, 5.32 ERA
Eric Lauer, 2-0, 2.54 ERA

Padres
Michael King, 5-6, 3.33 ERA
Randy Vásquez, 6-5, 4.17 ERA
Walker Buehler, 4-3, 3.96 ERA
Griffin Canning, 1-5, 7.38 ERA
Lucas Giolito, 2-3, 5.16 ERA

The Dodgers have one weak spot right now in Sheehan. The Padres just put Giolito on the IL and have been using openers quite a bit lately. It’s nice to see Buehler become a productive pitcher again.

Closer
Dodgers, Tanner Scott, 1-3, 2.18 ERA, 11 saves
Padres, Mason Miller, 2-1, 0.79 ERA, 21 saves

Scott has been good this year, but Miller is the best closer in baseball and has given up only 14 hits and 13 walks in 34 innings, while striking out 66.

Relievers (six most-used, in order of IP)
Dodgers
Edgardo Henriquez, 2-0, 2.93 ERA
Will Klein, 2-2, 2.59 ERA, 1 save
Jack Dreyer, 3-1, 3.82 ERA
Alex Vesia, 1-1, 2.39 ERA, 3 saves
Kyle Hurt, 2-1, 3.42 ERA, 1 save
Blake Treinen, 4-1, 3.52 ERA, 1 save

Padres
Adrián Morejón, 6-1, 3.51 ERA, 1 save
Wandy Peralta, 1-0, 1.82 ERA
Jason Adam, 2-1, 2.45 ERA
Ron Marinaccio, 1-0, 3.72 ERA
Yuki Matsui, 0-1, 1.67 ERA
Kyle Hart, 0-1, 4.13 ERA

It seems unlikely that the Padres will fade quietly into the night, especially if Machado and Tatís start hitting.

For full stats for both team, click here for the Dodgers and click here for the Padres.

Milestone for Mookie

Betts hit the 300th home run of his career Wednesday against the Twins, becoming only the 169th player to reach that mark. He is tied with Chuck Klein and one behind the great Rogers Hornsby. He is 14 behind for Dodger Reggie Smith and 16 behind former Dodger Ron Cey.

Ohtani vs. Rushing

Dodgers catcher Dalton Rushing wears his emotions on his sleeve. Sometimes, that’s a good trait in a player. Alex Vesia is like that and he seems to fire up the team. He does it in a “Yeah! Let’s beat these guys!” sort of way.

Rushing, however, is sort of a high-energy Eeyore, the guy who makes every mistake he makes a tragedy of epic proportions.

During Wednesday’s game against the Twins, Rushing had some problems behind the plate while Ohtani was pitching.

Rushing let a pitch get past him for a passed ball due to some miscommunication. Ohtani explained to reporters after the game (through interpreter Will Ireton): “There were two pitches called. The first one was offspeed. The second pitch was a fastball. Rush thought that he was getting an offspeed because I started moving after the first pitch was called, but what I had in mind was the second pitch, which was a fastball.”

From Rushing: “Shohei and I talked about it. It was an error on my side. I messed it up. It was my fault.”

Also, a pitch was called a ball and Ohtani thought it was a strike. He tapped his head to call for an ABS challenge while Rushing shook his head to not challenge. The umpire accepted the challenge and it was a strike.

Ohtani gave up three runs in the second inning. After that, he called his own pitches instead of letting Rushing call them. He then pitched four scoreless innings.

Ohtani, on how to make things better: “The in-game flexibility, reading the swings, reading how the hitters are really taking their approach during the game — that’s how I see what adjustment needs to happen. In that sense, I personally realized we just have to be better at being on the same page and communicating throughout the game.”

Also Ohtani: “There’s really a couple ways of communicating. One is by words, but the other way to be able to communicate is by example, and just taking charge and showing Rush what kind of pitching style I’m capable of.”

Now, I’m not interpeter Will Ireton, but I interpret that as, “When is Will Smith coming back?”

Rushing also struck out in his first three at-bats. He was upset with himself during the game and was consoled on the bench by Dave Roberts, Freeman and Dodgers mental skills coach Brent Walker. That’s a lot of hand holding during a game. And Rushing has had other moments on the bench during games where he has gotten upset or angry about something that has happened. Always directed toward himself, not to his teammates.

Could this be a big problem? Well, it could be. But, the Dodgers didn’t get to where they are by not knowing how to handle situations like this. A lot of scouts will tell you that the biggest difference between triple-A and the majors is the mental aspect. Rushing is learning this now. It would be great if he was just calm and cool and handled all situations flawlessly. But we were all made different for a reason. So, we can afford to give him a little grace, and if the Dodgers feel he (or anyone else) is becoming a detriment to the team, then one day we will wake up to discover, “The Dodgers have traded …”

In the meantime, don’t focus on just these occasional outbursts, look at how well he has played overall. He’s a major league player, he just needs a little help. And don’t we all sometimes?

Final word from Rushing, to reporters after the game: “Good thing he’s as good as he is and he can take control of the game, but it’s pretty embarrassing. They’ve always got my back. Once again, it’s embarrassing that I need support like that. I’m a grown man, and it’s a pretty tough pill to swallow.”

Up next

Friday: Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 3-4, 4.76 ERA) at San Diego (Walker Buehler, 4-3, 3.96 ERA), 6:45 p.m., Apple TV, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 7-5, 2.65 ERA) at San Diego (Randy Vásquez, 6-5, 4.17 ERA), 5:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 3-5, 5.32 ERA) at San Diego (Michael King, 5-6, 3.33 ERA), 1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Shohei Ohtani is the first Dodger to be named 2026 All-Star

Shohei Ohtani takes control of Dodgers’ win after miscommunication with Dalton Rushing

Dodgers fulfill $1-million pledge in response to ICE raids, owners divest from prison group

MLB clears Dodgers’ Dr. Neal ElAttrache after link to Conor McGregor steroids report

Shaikin: Why a salary cap wouldn’t be enough to stop the Dodgers from winning

And finally

Vin Scully tells us the first phrase he learned in Japanese. 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 Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell.

We received more than 500 questions for Justin Turner after putting out the plea a couple of weeks ago, which is a record. (Some were the same question asked by multiple people.) I selected a few, and Turner answered them via email between games with the Tijuana Toros.

Mark Haendel in Santa Monica asks: Any ideas of staying in baseball after you actually retire? Coaching, managing, college or pro level, etc.?

Turner: I will definitely stay in the game in some capacity. I love it too much and my son loves being around it too much to step away.

Kristen Lazalier in Norman, Okla., asks: Please share three favorite memories of your years with the Dodgers. Thank you for always bringing such passion and joy to your play — both on and off the field!

Turner: It would have to be winning the World Series in 2020. Winning the Roberto Clemente Award in 2022. The walk-off homer in the NLCS and winning the fan vote for my first All-Star Game in 2017.

Chris Nayve asks: What is your go-to mindset or thought that helps you when things get challenging in baseball or just in life?

Turner: The best thing is just to simplify things and not try to do too much. Take the results out and trust the process. Live in the moment and control what is in front of me.

Robert Scott Wallace asks: First and foremost, I wanted to thank JT and his wife for all the good they do for the city of Los Angeles. A basic question: Who is the toughest pitcher you had to ever face in the big leagues and why?

Turner: Felix Hernández was the nastiest. Cliff Lee and Tyler Glasnow, after the 2020 World Series, own me. (Editor’s note: Turner was 0 for 3 with two strikeouts against Hernández, one for 20 against Lee with four strikeouts and 0 for 11 against Glasnow with 10 strikeouts.)

Paul Mihalow asks: Did anybody on your MLB teams ever complain about the “pine tar” on the back of your jersey — like clubhouse managers or laundry guys?

Turner: No. I asked the clubhouse guys and they said it was actually very easy to get out every night.

Jeff Plotkin asks: Who were some of your favorite teammates?

Turner: That’s a tough one. I get along great with just about everyone. But my favorite baseball guy of all time is, hands down, Chase Utley.

Gabriel Ortega asks: What is one lesson you’ve learned from fatherhood that has surprised you the most, and how has it changed the person you are both on and off the field?

Turner: Being a dad definitely taught me patience and understanding. That just because i know what I’m saying or asking doesn’t mean Bo or anyone else does. Sometimes you have to get creative to get your message across.

Robert Shannon asks: Where does the 2004 College World Series championship with Cal State Fullerton rank on your career highlights?

Turner: That has to be way up near the top. That’s one of the hardest tournaments to win and that was always a special group of guys.

Marshall Fong asks: What adjustments did you make as you aged to remain a competitive player?

Turner: The biggest thing is time management and learning how to get my work in that needs to be done without killing myself and my energy for the game.

Thanks again to Turner for taking the time to answer reader questions.

Andy Pages has a burden

Last week, colleague Liana Handler wrote a nice story on Andy Pages and the struggle he has as his family lives in Cuba. He is unable to see them and sometimes he can’t get reach them on the phone, which is when the fears really loom large.

A few key passages from Handler’s story:

Unlike his teammates — both American and those on visas — Pages is distinctly cut off in the United States, where he lives with his wife, Alondra, but is separated from his parents and sister in Mantua. The third-year Dodgers center fielder is making $800,000 this year but can’t spend his money on flights home or on bringing his family to the country where he plays baseball. The tense relations between the U.S. and Cuba — the Trump administration has imposed economic sanctions and made diplomatic threats — don’t allow for that.

“I haven’t found any way that gives me that tranquility and peace,” he told The Times in Spanish two weeks ago. “Because the way things are there, what’s always on your mind is that it could happen. Anything, any time. And I have all my family in Cuba. So, you have to live with that worry all the time.”

Most of Pages’ family can only listen to his baseball games on the radio or through fuzzy images on the television.

No one understands that more than Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas. A Venezuelan immigrant, Rojas said he felt a personal responsibility for Pages, who is caught between wanting to speak more about the situation and being guarded because of his budding career and the fact that he’s not yet eligible to be a free agent.

“We need to preserve our job, because this is our only way to make an income, and a lot of us are the head of the family, so we got to continue to think about it that way,” Rojas said. “I would like to be more vocal and be a little bit more present for my community, but it’s really hard because I’m performing my job, and if I stop doing this, I don’t know how to do anything else.”

As Rojas describes, it is not easy to focus on your job when you see people you know at home suffering.

“We are here to perform and actually provide entertainment to people, and sometimes we are seen like that,” he said. “The problem is when the lights are off at night, when you have to go home, when you become a regular human being that is on the streets.”

The story is well worth your time and can be read here.

Perfect Father’s Day present

Shohei Ohtani missed Friday’s game to be present for the birth of his second child with his wife, Mamiko.

“We are again overjoyed to experience this wonderful day in our lives together,” Ohtani said on Instagram. “Thank you for being born safely. We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supported us throughout this journey.”

Injury updates

—Will Smith has an inflamed disk in his neck and recently had an injection there to help reduce it. The earliest he will be back is Friday, as he is not going on the team’s trip to Minnesota.

—Teoscar Hernández will begin a rehab assignment in triple-A this week and could be back before the end of the month.

—An MRI on Blake Treinen‘s elbow showed no structural damage, so he should be back as soon as he can come off the 15-day IL.

—Reliever Edwin Díaz is progressing well and remains on track to return after the All-Star break.

—Reliever Evan Phillips has pitched in six games for triple-A Oklahoma City. In 5-1/3 innings, he has given up five hits, walked four and struck out five. He should return in early July.

—Reliever Brock Stewart could be activated before today’s game against Minnesota. If not, then sometime this week.

These names seem familiar

How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams (through Sunday). Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page:

Anthony Banda, Twins: 2-0, 4.22 ERA, 2 saves, 32 IP, 26 hits, 14 walks, 29 K’s, 104 ERA+

Cody Bellinger, Yankees: .276/.370/.473, 324 PA’s, 15 doubles, 3 triples, 11 homers, 49 RBIs, 133 OPS+

Walker Buehler, Padres: 4-3, 3.96 ERA, 72.2 IP, 73 hits, 23 walks, 65 K’s, 105 ERA+

Mike Busch, Cubs: .247/.377/.396, 337 PA’s, 13 doubles, 2 triples, 8 homers, 42 RBIs, 122 OPS+

Michael Conforto, Cubs: .222/.328/.434, 116 PA’s, 9 doubles, 4 homers, 13 RBIs, 116 OPS+

Justin Dean, Cubs: .500/.500/1.500, 2 PA’s, 1 triple, 3 RBIs, 443 OPS+

Caleb Ferguson, Reds: 0-0, 1.50 ERA, 12 IP, 10 hits, 5 walks, 12 K’s, 302 ERA+

Jack Flaherty, Tigers: 1-8, 5.35 ERA, 65.2 IP, 69 hits, 34 walks, 78 K’s, 81 ERA+, on the IL

Kenley Jansen, Tigers: 1-3, 4.00 ERA, 9 saves, 18 IP, 10 hits, 10 walks, 22 K’s, 110 ERA+

Craig Kimbrel, Rays: 0-2, 5.50 ERA, 18 IP, 19 hits, 8 walks, 18 K’s, 78 ERA+

Gavin Lux, Rays: on the IL

Dustin May, Cardinals: 5-6, 4.30 ERA, 83.2 IP, 78 hits, 22 walks, 77 K’s, 94 ERA+

Zach McKinstry, Tigers: .177/.272/.259, 171 PA’s, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 11 RBIs, 48 OPS+

James Outman, Tigers: .169/.238/.286, 84 PA’s, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homer, 5 RBIs, 44 OPS+

Joc Pederson, Rangers: .237/.333/.419, 235 PA’s, 7 doubles, 2 triple, 9 homers, 25 RBIs, 119 OPS+

Luke Raley, Mariners: .241/.303/.503, 210 PA’s, 6 doubles, 1 triple, 14 homers, 35 RBIs, 126 OPS+

Ben Rortvedt, Mets: in the minors

Corey Seager, Rangers: .186/.284/.373, 204 PA’s, 6 doubles, 9 homers, 24 RBIs, 91 OPS+, on the IL

Justin Turner, Tijuana (Mexican League): .273/.483/.461, 196 PA’s, 14 doubles, 6 homers, 25 RBIs

Trea Turner, Phillies: .227/.280/.336, 328 PA’s, 12 doubles, 7 homers, 22 RBIs, 67 OPS+

Miguel Vargas, White Sox: .236/.353/.465, 324 PA’s, 12 doubles, 1 triple, 16 homers, 44 RBIs, 126 OPS+

Kirby Yates, Angels: 0-3, 3.68 ERA, 1 save, 14.2 IP, 9 hits, 7 walks, 19 K’s, 116 ERA+

Up next

Monday: Dodgers (*Eric Lauer, 2-5, 5.37 ERA [1-0, 3.22 ERA with Dodgers]) at Minnesota (Zebby Matthews, 3-4, 4.78 ERA), 4:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Dodgers (*Justin Wrobleski, 8-2, 2.72 ERA) at Minnesota (Joe Ryan, 5-3, 2.99 ERA), 4:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, TBS, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani, 7-2, 1.47 ERA) at Minnesota (*Connor Prielipp, 2-5, 5.17 ERA), 4:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani announces birth of second child

Shaikin: Why MLB’s Pride Night cap condemnation isn’t the anti-Christian crackdown conservatives claim

Lopez: There might be one advantage to climate change: More home runs at Dodger Stadium

Dodgers Debate: BLISTER WATCH. Should Shohei Ohtani be shut down?

Shaikin: The Dodgers are ruining baseball! Stop them! But first let me vote for all their players

And finally

Vin Scully tells us “Don’t be afraid to dream.” 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.

Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani was away from the team Friday for the birth of his second child.

He was out of the lineup for the series opener against the Orioles, but the Dodgers did not opt to put him on the paternity list, temporarily playing down a player instead. The team said it expects Ohtani back at some point this weekend.

Ohtani pitched Wednesday, so he should be back with the team well before his next turn in the rotation.

With Ohtani out, rookie Ryan Ward served as the designated hitter Friday, batting seventh. And right fielder Kyle Tucker moved up to the leadoff spot that Ohtani usually occupies.

Entering Friday, Ohtani owned the second-highest OPS (.962) in the National League, among qualified hitters. And his 1.47 ERA ranked No. 2 among pitchers who have thrown at least 50 innings, despite giving up seven combined earned runs in his past two starts.

Ohtani has been pitching through a blister on the middle finger of his right hand. And last week he missed a game to address a bout of inflammation in his left knee, which he thinks may have stemmed from mechanical problems in his pitching delivery.

Will Smith to get injection for neck

Catcher Will Smith (stiff neck) will get an injection to address his neck injury, manager Dave Roberts said. Recent imaging came back “fine,” Roberts said, and didn’t reveal anything “really bad.”

Smith said last week, before undergoing imaging, that he was diagnosed with an “inflamed disk.”

Smith — remaining on the injured list past the minimum stint, despite the Dodgers’ initial optimism — will be sidelined through the weekend, and he may not make the trip to Minnesota on Monday, which kicks off a three-city trip.

Edwin Díaz throwing off mound

Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz pitches against the Washington Nationals in April.

(Nick Wass / Associated Press)

Closer Edwin Díaz (elbow surgery) has progressed to throwing off the mound. He threw a 15-pitch bullpen on Friday, all fastballs, at 91-93 mph, Roberts said.

“Really positive day for Edwin,” Roberts said.

When Díaz underwent the procedure to remove loose bodies from his elbow in late April, the Dodgers eyed a post-All-Star break return. And they won’t push for an aggressive build-up, with the long-term in mind.

Short hops

Left fielder Teoscar Hernández (strained left hamstring) is on track to begin a minor-league rehab assignment early next week, Roberts said. … Left-hander Blake Snell (elbow surgery) is progressing in his throwing program after undergoing a NanoNeedle scope procedure to remove loose bodies from his elbow in mid-May. He is close to throwing off a mound, Roberts said.

Brenda Jaimes pushed her way through an ecstatic crowd in downtown Santa Ana Thursday night, stopping in the middle of Fourth Street and calling attention to herself by shouting, “Me! Me!”

An hour earlier, Mexico beat South Korea 1-0 in the World Cup. Jaimes, a 22-year-old Santa Ana resident, was one of thousands of people who crowded into the neighborhood’s many bars and restaurants to watch the thrilling victory then spilled onto the streets to party.

Fans blew horns and spun noisemakers, chanting “México!” and “¡Sí se puede!” They brandished the Mexican flag seemingly everywhere: on banners, painted on cheeks, emblazoned on Jaimes’ tube top. They stood on the back of trucks and boogied.

An Orange County Fire Authority truck flashed its sirens to cheers. A line of drivers cruised down Fourth Street — the historic cultural and economic heart of Latino Orange County — to high-five the crowd and let people shake their cars as if everyone was inside a bounce house.

Jaimes wanted something more dramatic.

She lay down in the arms of some men wearing green Mexico soccer jerseys. They counted to three, launched her a good 8 feet upward, then effortlessly caught the laughing Jaimes.

Scenes like this replicated themselves across Southern California after the match, from Koreatown to Boyle Heights to Pacoima to Huntington Park — really, anywhere with a big Latino population. It happens any time Mexico wins big in soccer. But the pachanga was even more pronounced in Santa Ana.

A year earlier, Fourth Street was empty. Federal immigration agents were seizing people across the city. The National Guard set up a roadblock complete with an armed Humvee for over a month, just a block away from where Jaimes and so many others celebrated.

One of the most Latino big cities in the country trembled in fear. On Thursday night, Santa Ana erupted in joy.

“This here is the antithesis of the raids last year,” said Sandra De Anda, who wore a Stetson and a Tigres Mexican soccer club jersey and waved a South Korea flag. She’s the director of policy and legal strategy at the Orange County Rapid Response Network.

Last June, the Santa Ana native joined thousands as they marched down Fourth Street for days demanding that ICE and the National Guard leave town. Through the rest of 2025, she and others in the Rapid Response Network fought la migra in courthouses and through fundraisers for immigrant detainees and their loved ones.

“They tried to take our community down, but they had no chance,” De Anda added as her boyfriend rushed off to join the celebration. “We Mexicans always get beat down, but we have pride. Tonight, you see how we stand up when we need to.”

Jaimes agreed.

“It’s so important to do this especially after last year,” she told me after her short turn as a Cirque du Soleil performer. “We don’t care what Trump can say about this. It was his birthday recently — who cares? This right here is real.”

Another young woman shrieked as she sailed above us. Jaimes pointed at her, then looked at me. “Throw yourself también [also], bro!”

I stuck to slapping the hoods and windows of so many cars that my hand turned black with soot.

Mexico soccer fans shake a car cruising down Fourth Street in downtown Santa Ana after Mexico’s 1-0 World Cup win over South Korea on Thursday.

(Gustavo Arellano / Los Angeles Times)

Seeing Mexico become the first country to win its World Cup group would be thrilling any year. But in 2026, when Trump continues to meddle in Latin American affairs while his migra goons keep launching raids across the country, the satisfaction hits that much more.

Few things irk Trump and his followers more than Mexicans succeeding at anything. Eleven years ago this week, he announced his presidential campaign by stating that Mexico was “not sending its best” immigrants but instead, people he claimed were mostly rapists and drug dealers. Trump has spent his two terms obsessing over the U.S.-Mexico border, attacking anything that reeks of diversity and demeaning Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum as if she were a junior executive at one of his many failed companies.

Conservatives and more than a few liberals always get furious when Mexican Americans wave the flag of their ancestral homeland — but rooting for Mexico’s soccer team especially brings out the venom. Fans far outnumber supporters of the U.S. soccer team during matches in this country, which brings on accusations of treason against Mexican Americans even though other diasporas do the same, with nowhere near the same opprobrium.

Haters don’t get why so many Mexican Americans root for El Tri. The team embodies what it means to be Mexican: They’re a good group of folks who always seem to get bad breaks and never seem to win against the powers that be — but never stop fighting for a better day, while having fun doing so.

That’s why Americans of all ethnicities should back Mexico along with the U.S. side in this World Cup, which Trump has already sullied. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security denied a Somali referee entry into this country because he allegedly was “talking to some very bad people,” per the White House World Cup task force. The Trump administration is forcing Iran’s squad to base its training camp in Tijuana, which means players have to fly to matches in Los Angeles and Seattle instead of taking every other team’s short bus trip.

Every Mexico victory should give solace to the underdogs of the world and affirm the belief that a communion of nations engaged in friendly rivalries is better than Trump’s proclivity for launching indiscriminate raids and bombings. To cheer for Mexico is about as American as you can get right now.

Sydney Tran took her turn at the Fourth Street procession in a Honda Civic packed with friends. The crowd shook her car with such vigor that the 23-year-old Westminster resident couldn’t turn up the music like people shouted at her to do.

“This is crazy!” yelled Tran, who wore a Mexico soccer jersey. “I’m Vietnamese, but this is wonderful to see my Mexican friends so happy. They deserve to be happy — it’s been rough for them. It’s been rough for all immigrants.”

Mexico fans celebrate a goal while watching a FIFA World Cup soccer Group A matchup between Mexico and South Korea in Boyle Heights on Thursday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

The festivities were still going strong when I left. Restaurants that were usually closed by 10 p.m. had lines out the door. Dance parties sprouted on sidewalks. Rancheras, funk and oldies blasted everywhere. The police were nowhere to be seen, unlike last year, when they broke up the anti-ICE protests with rubber bullets and tear gas.

Cynicism shot through me for a second. Mexico, which won on a fluke goal and two miraculous saves, stands virtually no chance of beating soccer titans like France and Argentina once the knockout stage of the World Cup begins. Trump’s immigration team vows that more raids are forthcoming. And I can only hope that the overwhelmingly young crowd will take the passion they showed for Mexican soccer to the ballot box this November.

Then I chilled out.

Everyone around me got to breathe and scream and let out their frustrations about our nation in the most delightful way imaginable. Reality would return the next morning — but for one night, for a few hours, life was wonderful for Mexican Americans, and better days ahead seemed possible. Sí se puede, indeed.

The classic Chicano film “Zoot Suit” is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year in style.

The Golden Globe-nominated movie, featuring a lead performance by Edward James Olmos, was based on a stage play penned by legendary screenwriter and director Luis Valdez, who drew inspiration from a pamphlet about the 1942 Sleepy Lagoon murder case and the riots that it sparked.

On Thursday it was announced that the flick will be screened at The Ford amphitheater on July 8 to honor its notable benchmark and enduring legacy. The special screening will include a conversation with Valdez, Olmos and actor-educator Cristina Frías, who will discuss the movie’s production, influence and place in the L.A. film canon.

“‘Zoot Suit’ changed the way our stories could be seen on screen,” Olmos said in a statement. “It gave voice to a history that many people had never been taught and showed the beauty, strength and complexity of the Chicano experience. Forty-five years later, the film continues to inspire because it is about more than one moment in time. It is about identity, dignity and the responsibility we have to remember where we come from.”

The screening will also feature a vintage car show put on by the Pachuco Car Club, which will showcase the rides reminiscent of the time period shown in the movie.

In June 1943, L.A. was engulfed in the lawlessness and violence that became known as the Zoot Suit Riots. The name is misleading because it suggests that the zoot suiters — the young Mexican, Black and Filipino men and boys who wore the flamboyant outfits — were the perpetrators.

In fact, they were the victims.

The attacks by servicemen and white Angelenos on zoot suiters, derided as “gamin dandies” in The Times, were driven by prejudice and the anti-immigrant attitudes of the era. The roots of the unrest can be traced to events that occurred more than a year earlier — such as the incarceration of Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor, as well as the murder of a young man, which was later known as the Sleepy Lagoon murder case.

In his 1981 review of the film, The Times’ former film critic Kevin Thomas praised Valdez’s direction and the strength of the cast.

“Valdez has captured well many of the elements of the era that contributed to the fate of the Sleepy Lagoon defendants — the sensationalist press, the feverish patriotism of wartime and the rampant bigotry directed at all minorities,” Thomas wrote. “At the same time, Valdez makes clear that various people outside the Mexican-American community helped in the struggle to mount an appeal for the Sleepy Lagoon defendants. And he questions the entire validity of the switch-bladed, cynical pachuco mystique as [Daniel Valdez’s] Henry comes to realize that El Pachuco [Olmos] is at once his best friend — and worst enemy.”

The original 1979 Broadway run of the “Zoot Suit” play catapulted Olmos to the national stage and led to him getting a Tony nomination for best featured actor in a play.

“It was a monumental moment in time, and we captured lightning in a bottle,” Olmos told The Times in 2023. “Not only did it change the course of Latinos in theater but it touched the very soul of the culture. It was catching the voice of the pachuco.”