NEW YORK — Mike Trout hit his fifth homer of the series and the Angels overcame a homer by Aaron Judge in their 11-4 victory over the New York Yankees on Thursday afternoon for a four-game split.
Trout, who recently made a mechanical adjustment, went six for 16 with five homers and nine RBIs in the series. Trout hit his latest homer with one out in the seventh inning when he sent a 2-2 slider from reliever Angel Chivilli about halfway up the left field bleachers for a 7-4 lead.
Trout homered in his fifth straight game at Yankee Stadium and became the fourth to hit five homers in a series against the Yankees. The others were Jimmie Foxx (1933), Darrell Evans (1985) and George Bell (1990), according to MLB researcher Sarah Langs.
Trout’s latest homer contributed to a rare loss for the Yankees when Judge and Giancarlo Stanton homer in the same game. Including the postseason, New York is 53-8 when the duo both connect.
Jo Adell added a grand slam in the eighth for the Angels, who lead the AL with 32 homers.
Judge hit his 89th career first-inning homer and Stanton hit a two-run shot to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead in the fourth before the Angels scored four runs in the sixth off Max Fried (2-1) and Fernando Cruz. Ben Rice also homered in the sixth.
Trout walked three times and scored the tying run in a four-run sixth on a double by former Yankee Oswald Peraza, who also hit a two-run homer in the first.
Vaughn Grissom hit a go-ahead RBI single, and Josh Lowe hit a two-run single for a 6-3 lead.
The Yankees lost for the seventh time in nine games and Fried gave up five runs and three hits in 5 1/3 innings. Manager Aaron Boone was ejected for the first time this season after New York batted in the eighth.
Brent Suter opened the game and went two-plus innings. Sam Aldegheri (1-0) gave up a run in 1 2/3 innings.
Dodgers right-hander Shohei Ohtani had navigated the Mets lineup without much trouble until the fifth inning. But he’d also been holding back a little something.
“I can’t go full throttle the whole time,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton after the Dodgers’ 8-2 victory Wednesday. “But considering where the game was at that point, I felt like I just really had to go full throttle and make sure I’m considering the game situation.”
The Mets had just scored their first run of the game — ending Ohtani’s streak of innings without an earned run at 32 ⅔, the longest of his career — and cut the Dodgers’ lead to one.
So he unleashed a 100.2 mph fastball past Tommy Pham, and then 100.3 mph. Pham foul-tipped both and had some choice words with himself on the way back to the dugout.
“He has a little extra gear when he needs it,” manager Dave Roberts said. “I’m sure he was frustrated about giving up a run, and then came back and really went after Pham.”
That strikeout was one of 10 Ohtani had in a performance that was dominant, regardless of the first mark on his previously spotless ERA.
Holding the Mets to one run through six innings, Ohtani logged double-digit strikeouts in a regular-season start as a Dodger for the first time, matching his effort in Game 4 of the 2025 National League Championship Series against the Brewers.
Shohei Ohtani pitches against the New York Mets.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Roberts said he’d been considering pulling Ohtani after the fifth inning started going sideways.
Ohtani had faced just one over the minimum through the first four innings he pitched. Then in the fifth he issued two walks before giving up a run-scoring ground-rule double to Mets designated hitter MJ Melendez on a line drive into the right-field corner.
Roberts changed his mind after Ohtani steamrolled Pham and got Francisco Lindor to line out to escape the inning without further damage.
“Just added a little more intensity after they scored a run,” Ohtani said. “But overall it felt really nice and easy and loose throughout the whole outing. So I think that’s the reason why I threw a little harder.”
Good thing Roberts sent Ohtani back out, too. He struck out the No. 2 through 4 hitters in the Mets’ batting order, all on different pitches.
The two-way phenom only had one job to worry about Wednesday.
For the first time since 2021, he was not also in the lineup as a hitter while pitching.
“If it weren’t for the hit by pitch [Monday], he would’ve been DHing and pitching tonight,” Roberts said before the game.
Ohtani was hit in the back of his right shoulder by a 94-mph sinker on Monday. Though that didn’t prevent him from serving as the designated hitter the first two games of the series, the Dodgers wanted to lighten the load Wednesday.
“Just feeling what gives him the best chance to stay loose during the outing, feel good,” Roberts said. “There’s still some soreness in there. When he’s hitting, there’s a component that he’s in the cage getting ready to hit, and if we can take that off his plate and just focus on one thing tonight, we felt — training staff, pitching coaches, myself — we just felt it was the best thing for him. So, once I told him, he completely understood.”
Dalton Rushing rounds the bases after an eighth inning grand slam.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
When asked what Ohtani’s initial reaction had been, Roberts widened his eyes in an impressively accurate impression of one of Ohtani’s patented facial expressions.
“I was a little bit surprised,” Ohtani said after the game. “But it made sense hearing what he had to say.”
The next time Ohtani takes the mound, he is expected to also hit. But Roberts didn’t rule out again having Ohtani just pitch if a similar situation arises again.
“It’s something I’m going to keep an eye on if it makes sense, but not just kind of do it proactively,” Roberts said. “It’s something that’s … got to make sense to not have your best hitter not in the lineup.”
To account for Ohtani’s absence in the batting order Wednesday, Kyle Tucker moved up from No. 2 to leadoff, and Dalton Rushing served as the DH.
The Dodgers scored all eight runs via the long ball: a two-run shot from Hyeseong Kim, his first home run of the season, a solo blast from Teoscar Hernández, Rushing’s first career grand slam, and a solo homer from Tucker.
“We had a really good DH hit today,” Ohtani said of Rushing, who also hit a double.
Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz was available Wednesday, for the first time since Friday. But the Dodgers’ five-run eighth inning eliminated the save situation. Instead, right-hander Kyle Hurt made his first major-league appearance since 2024. He gave up a run and had three strikeouts.
Jackie Robinson Day
The Dodgers’ celebration of Jackie Robinson Day began with the annual reflection at the Jackie Robinson statue, with both teams in attendance. Speakers included Robinson’s granddaughters Sonya Pankey Robinson and Ayo Robinson, Roberts, and Bob Kendrick, the president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
“We make the rather bold assertion that Jackie’s breaking of the color barrier wasn’t just a part of the Civil Rights movement,” Kendrick said in his speech, “it was the beginning of the Civil Rights movement.”
He broke down the timeline: Robinson debuted with the Dodgers in 1947, years before the Supreme Court ruled on Brown vs. the Board of Education (1954) or Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Ala. (1955). The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was still a student at Morehouse College.
“If you don’t believe that one individual can indeed invoke change, you have to look no further than right here,” Kendrick said, pointing to the statue of Robinson. “Because what he did was incredibly difficult, under some of the most harsh circumstances you could ever imagine.”
ATLANTA — Belgium blew out the United States 5-2 on Saturday in a World Cup warmup that exposed the Americans’ defensive difficulties, rallying from a late first-half deficit on two goals by Dodi Lukébakio and one each from Zeno Debast, Amadou Onana and Charles De Ketelaere.
Weston McKennie put the U.S. ahead in the 39th minute with his 12th international goal, his first in three years, but Debast and Onana began Belgium’s rally with their first international goals on a frustrating afternoon for Matt Turner, the former No. 1 American goalkeeper who made his first appearance since last June.
Debast scored in the 45th, Onana put the Red Devils ahead in the 53rd and De Ketelaere converted a penalty kick in the 59th after a hand ball by U.S. captain Tim Ream.
Lukébakio entered in the 62nd minute and beat Turner from long range in the 68th and 82nd minutes to build a 5-1 lead before a disappointed largely pro-American crowd of 66,867 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, site of a World Cup semifinal in July.
Patrick Agyemang scored for the U.S. in the 87th after Ricardo Pepi took advantage of defensive misplay.
The U.S. lost a home game by three goals in which it scored the opening goal for the first time since an 8-1 defeat to England in 1959, according to Opta.
Belgium extended its unbeaten streak to 10 games and has won six straight against the U.S. since losing to the Americans at the initial World Cup in 1930.
The U.S. had entered with a five-game unbeaten streak that created optimism but was missing several injured regulars.
McKennie put the Americans ahead when he took advantage of Johnny Cardoso’s pick to cut in front of Nicolas Raskin and volley Antonee Robinson’s corner kick past Senne Lammens.
American players debuted jerseys with red and white stripes that resemble a waving flag.
With the roof closed in an air-conditioned stadium, fans booed the water breaks in the middle of each half — which will take place at each World Cup match.
Belgium was missing striker Romelu Lukaku, midfielders Leandro Trossard and Hans Vanaken and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois because of injuries and fitness issues. The Red Devils play Mexico in Chicago on Tuesday.
Kawhi Leonard scored 28 points in 25 minutes and the Clippers pummeled the Milwaukee Bucks 129-96 on Monday night.
Brook Lopez added 19 points, Darius Garland had 15 points and six assists, and the Clippers won consecutive games after four straight losses. They made all 18 of their free throws and got back to .500 with 10 games remaining in the regular season after having a 6-21 record on Dec. 18.
Gary Trent Jr. paced the Bucks with 20 points off the bench. Ryan Rollins led their starters with 13, and Milwaukee had five players in double figures. The Bucks have lost 10 of their past 14 games, including three of four since sitting superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo because of a left knee injury.
The Clippers dominated the three-point line at both ends of the court, making 17 of 38 shots from long range (45%) while frustrating the Bucks before they used a meaningless fourth-quarter flurry to finish at 39% (16 for 41). That included the Clippers sinking 11 of 22 attempts in the first half, including a seven-for-12 stretch to help fuel a 43-point second quarter.
Brook Lopez looks to pass against Bucks forward Bobby Portis in the second half.
(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
The onslaught continued into the second half as the Clippers went up by 46. Even the 7-foot-1 Lopez got in on the fun, shooting four of five on threes in the third quarter.
Leonard, who sat out the fourth quarter, shook off a sluggish start to go eight for 18 from the field and make nine foul shots. He had 16 points in the second quarter.
In his 14th NBA season, Leonard is averaging a career-high 28.3 points per game, helping push the Clippers back to an all-but-certain spot in the play-in tournament following their miserable start.
Luka Doncic recorded his first 50-point game of the season Thursday, hitting two late free throws as the crowd at Crypto.com Arena showered him with “MVP” chants in the fourth quarter. Doncic checked out with 1:41 remaining to a standing ovation with 51 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Lakers to a 142-130 win over the Chicago Bulls.
The Lakers (41-25) jumped into third place in the Western Conference with their seventh win in their last eight games, climbing from sixth in just one week behind Doncic’s brilliance. The NBA’s leading scorer has averaged 40.2 points in the last four games, all wins. Doncic had a chance at 50 points in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves in October, but missed a late free throw that forced him to settle for 49 points.
LeBron James returned after missing three games because of elbow and hip contusions he sustained against the Denver Nuggets on March 5. He finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Austin Reaves had 30 points and seven assists, surpassing 5,000 points for his career. Center Deandre Ayton held down a short-handed big man rotation with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
The Lakers were without starting guard Marcus Smart (right hip contusion) and backup centers Jaxson Hayes (back soreness) and Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain). Smart has been playing through the injury for several games, but with a six-game road trip starting next week, “we need it to calm down,” coach JJ Redick said. The coach expected Smart to be available Saturday when the Lakers play the Nuggets at Crypto.com Arena.
The Lakers gave up a 12-3 run to end the first quarter and led the struggling Bulls (27-39) by only five at halftime. James helped give them the breathing room going into the locker room as he scored his first points of the game with 54 seconds left in the first half. His three-point play sparked a quick five-point run to end the half, which ended with a dunk from Rui Hachimura.
Lakers star LeBron James, center, drives between Chicago’s Rob Dillingham, left, and Matas Buzelis during the second half Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
James came alive in the third quarter, beginning with his dunk off a hit-ahead pass from Doncic. He returned the favor by diving out of bounds for a steal on the next possession and the save led to a three-pointer from Doncic.
Doncic made nine of 14 three-point attempts as the Lakers made 17 of 36 shots from beyond the arc, their best three-point percentage in a game since Feb. 20.
After not taking a single shot in the first quarter, James had 11 points, three rebounds and two assists in the third quarter as the Lakers’ lead grew to 22 points.
