season

SAN JOSÉ — Igor Chernyshov scored his second goal of the game with 1:42 remaining in overtime and the San José Sharks beat the Kings 5-4 on Saturday night for their second straight win to open the season.

The Kings rallied from two goals down in the third to tie the game and controlled play for most of the overtime. But San José came out on top when Chernyshov beat Anton Forsberg on a one-timer off a pass from Macklin Celebrini, who has five assists in two games.

After not getting a win in the first five games the past four seasons, the Sharks have back-to-back overtime wins to begin this season after beating Florida 4-3 in the opener Thursday night.

Tyler Toffoli, Kiefer Sherwood and Nolan Allan also scored for San José. Yaroslav Askarov made 31 saves.

Adrian Kempe, Quinton Byfield, Erik Haula and Artemi Panarin scored but it wasn’t enough to keep the Kings from falling to 0-2 on the season. Forsberg made 20 saves.

Chernyshov gave San José a 4-2 lead early in the third when he scored on a breakaway but the Kings responded. Haula scored to make it a one-goal game and Panarin got the equalizer with 5:01 remaining after a poor clearing attempt by Allan.

The Kings struck first when Kempe scored on a one-timer off a pass from Panarin on the power play in the first. The Sharks took control with three goals in the second starting when Toffoli tapped in a perfect feed from rookie Ivar Stenberg on the power play. It was the first career point for the 19-year-old Stenberg.

The Kings got one back with 1.3 seconds left in the period when Byfield scored on the power play.

Up next for Kings: vs. Florida at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday night.

On one side there’s hope. On the other, history.

Three weeks is only a sliver of the NFL season; a backsliding team has plenty of time to correct its course.

That said, only seven teams in the Super Bowl era have rebounded from an 0-3 start to make the playoffs.

That’s a sobering statistic for the Chargers, Houston Texans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, all winless so far. As for the 0-3 Miami Dolphins, well, that isn’t quite as shocking.

“We’re searching for every possible way to give ourselves an advantage,” said Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, whose team lost at Buffalo last Sunday despite five takeaways and a plus-four turnover differential.

The uphill climb continues for the Chargers, who play at Seattle on Sunday, with the defending Super Bowl champions itching to respond to an upset loss at Washington in Week 3.

So far, the change at offensive coordinator to former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel has been a bust for the Chargers. Their offense has sputtered and wheezed, even as their defense has done its part to keep them in games.

Elsewhere Sunday, the Texans play host to Dallas, Tampa Bay hosts Green Bay, and Miami plays at 3-0 Minnesota.

Of those seven teams that dug themselves out of a foreboding pit, only the 1992 San Diego Chargers turned their season around after an 0-4 start — so it’s pretty much now or never for this year’s class of Sunday strugglers.

The others to make the playoffs after losing their first three games were the 1981 New York Jets, 1982 Buccaneers, 1995 Detroit Lions, 1998 Buffalo Bills, and the Texans, who pulled off the feat in 2018 and last season… and now find themselves back in that dank basement.

“We’ve been here before,” Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud told reporters this week, “so we know we can get this thing turned around.”

For those who have made that euphoric U-turn, there are life lessons to draw upon. Chief among them, don’t panic.

Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh stands on the field before a loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 27.

(Bryan M. Bennett / Getty Images)

Former Lions linebacker Stephen Boyd recalls the composure and calm of Detroit coach Wayne Fontes, after three losses to Pittsburgh, Minnesota and Arizona — two of those by a field goal.

After the third loss, Boyd said, “Wayne Fontes walks into the meeting room with a big smile on his face and says, `Listen, here’s the deal, we’re going to give the ball to Barry [Sanders] a little bit more, and we’re going to get this turned around.’”

Sure enough, the Lions broke through the following week with a win over San Francisco on Monday night. But there were more bumps in the road for Detroit, which by November was still a dismal 3-6. Few could have predicted the club would win its final seven games.

That set the stage for a strange wild-card game against Philadelphia in which the Eagles built a 51-7 lead and held on despite the Lions scoring 30 points down the stretch. The final score: 58-37.

Three years before Fontes kept his cool under pressure, Chargers coach Bobby Ross did the same.

“There were a lot of grumblings that this was just some college coach that didn’t know what he was doing in the pros,” recalled former Chargers linebacker Gary Plummer of Ross, hired out of Georgia Tech. “There were a lot of guys that were essentially jumping off the ship.”

That team held a players-only meeting after falling to 0-3… then got clobbered, 27-0, by the Houston Oilers in Week 4.

Ross held steady, though.

“He told us that he wasn’t changing,” Plummer said. “We were still going to have physical practices. He said that was the only way he knew how to coach.”

The Chargers responded by winning four in a row. Then, after a hard-fought, two-point loss to Kansas City, the Chargers tore off another seven wins.

Defense led the way for those Chargers, allowing just 241 points that season, the fourth-fewest in the NFL.

So far this season, these Chargers are showing similar tendencies. Last Sunday, the defense played a gem of a game, and certainly through three quarters.

Hope still has a heartbeat, but that grows fainter by the loss.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. A good Tommy Lasorda quote: “You have got to love what you’re doing. No matter what it is. Whatever you undertake in life, if you don’t love it, and you don’t enjoy it, you are making a big mistake. You have got to love what you are doing. You have to appreciate what you are getting, and you have to do it to the best of your ability.”

It’s that time of year

The Dodgers will face the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS starting Saturday, with Game 1 set to start at 1 p.m. Pacific, with the temperature forecast to be around 100 degrees. So, bring a sweater. People have complained that the 1 p.m. start is unfair because it will be too hot, but unless it is going to be 75 degrees on the Braves side of the field, it will be even. Personally, I would have put Padres-Brewers at 1 p.m. and Dodgers-Braves at 5:30 p.m., but no sense crying over spilled milk (Editor’s note: How many clichés can this guy work into one paragraph?)

The Dodgers faced the Braves six times during the season and lost five.

May 8
at Dodgers 3, Atlanta 1
Emmet Sheehan and five relievers combined to outpitch Braves ace Chris Sale. Freddie Freeman homered.

May 9
Atlanta 7, at Dodgers 2
Blake Snell gave up five runs in three innings and the Braves got 12 hits overall, 11 of them singles. Snell went back on the IL after the game, staying there for three months. Spencer Strider started for the Braves. He is currently on the IL.

May 10
Atlanta 7, at Dodgers 2
Justin Wrobleski took one for the team, giving up all seven Braves runs in 8 2/3 innings. Bryce Elder started for the Braves, going 5 2/3 innings. Drake Baldwin and Matt Olson homered for Atlanta.

Aug. 25
at Atlanta 4, Dodgers 3
Tyler Glasnow gave up three runs in five innings and Tanner Scott gave up the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth. Bryce Elder got the start for the Braves, giving up three runs in six innings. The teams combined for 19 hits, but only two extra-base hits.

Aug. 26
at Atlanta 6, Dodgers 5
Roki Sasaki gave up four runs in 3 1/3 innings, but Tanner Scott got the loss when he gave up a walk-off single to Ha-Seong Kim in the bottom of the ninth. AJ Smith-Shawyer started for the Braves, giving up three runs in five innings. Matt Olson and Sean Murphy homered for Atlanta, Tommy Edman for the Dodgers.

Aug. 27
at Atlanta 1, Dodgers 0
The only run came in the first inning by Drake Baldwin, Atlanta’s leadoff hitter. Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up the lone run and four hits while striking out eight. Chris Sale pitched a shutout, giving up five hits and striking out 11.

Dodgers against the Braves this season

Batting
Hunter Feduccia, 3 for 5, 2 RBIs
Mookie Betts, .333/.429/.417, 14 plate appearances, 1 double, 1 RBIs
Teoscar Hernández, .333/.467/.333, 15 PA’s
Ben Rortvedt, 1 for 3
Andy Pages, .300/.364/.600, 11 PA’s, 1 homer, 2 RBIs
Tommy Edman, .273/.429/.636, 14 PA’s, 1 double, 1 homer, 3 RBIs
Alex Call, .273/.429/.364, 14 PA’s, 1 double, 1 RBI
Santiago Espinal, 1 for 5
Shohei Ohtani, .192/.192/.308, 26 PA’s, 1 double, 1 triple, 1 RBI
Freddie Freeman, .174/.240/.348, 25 PA’s, 1 double, 1 homer, 1 RBI
Will Smith, 1 for 7
Kyle Tucker, .133/.278/.200, 18 PA’s, 1 double, 1 RBI
Alek Thomas, 1 for 8, 1 RBI
Miguel Rojas, 1 for 8
Max Muncy, .118/.211/.294, 19 PA’s, 1 homer, 2 RBIs
Hyeseong Kim, 0 for 6
Kiké Hernández, 0 for 3
Alex Freeland, 0 for 7
Dalton Rushing, 0 for 5
Team, .196/.281/.299, 6 doubles, 1 triple, 4 homers, 2.5 runs per game

Pitchers

Jack Dreyer, 0.00 ERA, 2.2 IP, 2 hits, 1 walk, 1 K
Brock Stewart, 0.00 ERA, 2 IP, 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 K
Alex Vesia, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.1 IP
Evan Phillips, 0.00 ERA, 1.1 IP, 1 hit, 1 K
Will Klein, 0.00 ERA, 1 IP, 1 hit,1 walk, 1 K
Kyle Hurt, 0.00 ERA, 1 IP, 2 hits, 1 K
Wyatt Mills, 0.00 ERA, 0.1 IP, 2 hits
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 0-1, 1.42 ERA, 6.1 IP, 4 hits, 1 walk, 8 K’s
Emmet Sheehan, 1.93 ERA, 4.2 IP. 6 hits, 1 walk, 7 K’s
Edgardo Henriquez, 2.70 ERA, 3.1 IP, 2 hits, 1 walk, 5 K’s
Paul Gervase, 3.00 ERA, 3 IP, 4 hits, 1 walk, 5 K’s
Eric Lauer, 4.50 ERA, 2 IP, 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 K
Tyler Glasnow, 5.40 ERA, 5 IP, 6 hits, 7 K’s
Tanner Scott, 0-2, 6.75 ERA, 1 save, 2.2 IP, 4 hits, 1 walk, 2 K’s
Justin Wrobleski, 0-1, 7.27 ERA, 8.2 IP, 7 hits, 1 walk, 7 K’s
Roki Sasaki, 10.80 ERA, 3.1 IP, 6 hits, 2 walks, 3 K’s
Blake Snell, 0-1, 12.00 ERA, 3 IP, 6 hits, 2 walks, 5 K’s
Team, 1-5. 4.35 ERA, 1 save, 51.2 IP, 57 hits,16 walks, 55 K’s

Braves vs. Dodgers this season

Batting

Jorge Mateo, 4 for 7, 1 RBI
Ha-Seong Kim, 2 for 4, 1 RBI
Dominic Smith, 2 for 5, 1 double
Eli White, 2 for 5, 1 RBI
Drake Baldwin, .364/.481/.727, 27 PA’s, 2 doubles, 2 homers, 5 RBIs
Michael Harris II, .348/.375/.391, 25 PA’s, 1 double, 2 RBIs
Jim Jarvis, 1 for 3
Mauricio Dubón, .280/.308/.320, 26 PA’s, 1 double, 4 RBIs
Matt Olson, .261/.320/.565, 25 PA’s, 1 double, 2 homers, 4 RBIs
Ozzie Albies, .250/.269/.250, 26 PA’s, 4 RBIs
Austin Riley, .238/.292/.286, 24 PA’s, 1 double, 3 RBIs
Sean Murphy, .214/.267/500, 15 PA’s, 1 double, 1 homer, 1 RBI
Lane Thomas, 1 for 7, 1 double
Ronald Acuña Jr., 1 for 9
Mike Yastrzesmki, .083/.154/.083, 13 PA’s
Kyle Farmer, 0 for 1
Team, .278.330/.395, 9 doubles, 5 homers, 4.33 runs per game

Pitching

Spencer Strider, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 6 IP, 1 hit, 2 walks, 8 K’s
Raisel Iglesias, 0.00 ERA, 1 save, 2 IP. 1 hit, 1 walk, 2 K’s
Didier Fuentes, 0.00 ERA, 2 IP, 1 hit, 3 walks, 1 K
Victor Mederos, 1-0. 0.00 ERA, 1.2 IP, 2 walks, 3 K’s
Dylan Dodd, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.1 IP, 1 hit
Robert Suarez, 0.00 ERA, 1.1 IP, 1 walk
Aaron Bummer, 0.00 ERA, 1 IP
Chris Sale, 1-1, 11.13 ERA, 16 IP, 10 hits, 18 K’s
Bryce Elder, 1-0, 2.31 ERA, 11.2 IP, 9 hits, 4 walks, 13 K’s
AJ Smith-Shawyer, 5.40 ERA, 5 IP, 5 hits, 3 walks, 3 K’s
Dylan Lee, 9.00 ERA, 2 IP, 5 hits, 1 walk
Reynaldo López, 9.00 ERA, 2 IP, 4 hits, 1 walk, 1 K
Tyler Kinley, 18.00 ERA, 1 IP, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 K
Team, 2.38 ERA, 53 IP, 38 hits, 19 walks, 50 K’s

How they compare

Let’s take a look at how the Dodgers and Braves compare this season:

Runs per game
Dodgers, 4.94 (fourth in the majors)
Atlanta, 4.58 (ninth)
League average, 4.48

Batting average
Dodgers, .257 (third)
Atlanta, .246 (11th)
League average, .244

On-base percentage
Dodgers, .338 (third)
League average, .318
Atlanta, .309 (28th)

Slugging percentage
Dodgers, .424 (second)
Atlanta, .409 (sixth)
League average, .400

Doubles
Dodgers, 266 (eighth)
Milwaukee, 251 (15th)
League average, 250

Triples
League average, 22
Dodgers, 18 (T19th)
Atlanta, 13 (29th)

Home runs
Dodgers, 204 (T7th)
Atlanta, 204 (T7th)
League average, 186

Stolen bases
League average, 110
Atlanta, 83 (T23rd)
Dodgers, 72 (27th)

Sacrifice bunts
League average, 23
Dodgers, 15 (T21st)
Atlanta, 11 (T26th)

Grounded into double play
Dodgers, 128 (third)
League average, 105
Atlanta, 89 (T27th)

ERA
Dodgers, 3.55 (fifth)
Atlanta, 3.63 (sixth)
League average, 4.17

Rotation ERA
Dodgers, 3.43 (second)
Atlanta, 3.76 (sixth)
League average, 4.24

Bullpen ERA
Atlanta, 3.44 (fourth)
Dodgers, 3.74 (ninth)
League average, 4.09

Pitcher strikeouts
Dodgers, 1,521 (fourth)
League average, 1,352
Atlanta, 1,350 (15th)

Pitcher walks
Dodgers, 480 (fourth fewest)
Atlanta, 529 (12th)
League average, 545

Home runs allowed
Dodgers, 172 (12th fewest)
Atlanta, 185 (17th)
League average, 186

Saves
Atlanta, 49 (T4th)
Dodgers, 46 (T7th)
League average, 42

Blown saves
League average, 23
Dodgers, 23 (T14th)
Atlanta, 20 (T21st)

Inherited runners who scored%
Atlanta, 20.9%, 36 of 172 (1st)
League average, 71 of 226, 31.4%
Dodgers, 35.8%, 69 of 174 (23rd)

The two teams are pretty evenly matched.

So who’s going to win?

The last NL team to win the World Series before the Dodgers? The Braves in 2021. They were led by some guy named Freeman.

If the Dodgers go into one of their team-wide funks, they could get swept. But here’s guessing they won’t do that in the postseason. It will be a tough series, but I’m going with…… Prediction: Dodgers in 5.

Poll results

We asked, “Which two of these four players would you pick to be on the postseason roster?”

After 18,543 votes:

Josue DePaula, 94.3%
Alex Call, 64.6%
Hyeseong Kim, 35.1%
Dalton Rushing, 6%

Up next

Saturday: Atlanta at Dodgers, 1 p.m., Fox, AM 570, KTNQ 1020
Sunday: Atlanta at Dodgers, 5 p.m., FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020
Tuesday: Dodgers at Atlanta, 3 p.m., FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020
*Wednesday: Dodgers at Atlanta, 3 p.m., FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020
*Friday: Atlanta at Dodgers, 5 p.m., Fox, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-if necessary

In case you missed it

‘We are the team to beat’: How the Dodgers are preparing for showdown with Braves

Nine concerns the Dodgers should have about facing the Braves in the NLDS

Shaikin: ‘Hired gun’ Tarik Skubal opens up on the pressure, pain and lessons of October

And finally

Freddie Freeman hits a walk-off home run in the 18th inning to win Game 3 of the 2025 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.

Calabasas baseball coach Thomas Cassidy might be feeling a little pressure over the next two seasons considering he has one junior pitcher, Jayden Singer, committed to USC, and another junior pitcher, Cash Wiltgen, committed to Stanford.

That’s an impressive duo to build a team around. Now all Cassidy has to do is find fielders to catch the ball and hitters to drive in runs.

In truth, Cassidy is excited about both pitchers. Singer has been a standout since his freshman season at Calabasas. Wiltgen arrived from Sierra Canyon, had to sit out the first part of last season and battled back from an injury. He only pitched one inning but had a good summer.

“I’m happy for those guys,” Cassidy said. “It’s awesome to have those guys. It’s a great position to put themselves in.”

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.

LAS VEGAS — Leo Carlsson had a goal and an assist, Lukas Dostal made 27 saves, and the Ducks opened the season by holding off the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 on Friday night.

The teams met last season in the second round of the playoffs, with Vegas winning in six games and going on to win the Western Conference. The Golden Knights opened Tuesday night at home with a 5-2 victory over Chicago.

Carlson set up Beckett Sennecke’s goal with eight seconds left in the first period, then scored at 7:03 of the second to cap a three-goal burst for a 4-0 lead. Alex Killorn and Jeff Malott also scored.

Shea Theodore, Tomas Hertl and Braeden Bowman scored for Vegas in the third period, with Bowman connecting with 2:50 left. Hertl struck on a power play.

Carter Hart stopped 16 shots for the Golden Knights.

Up next for the Ducks: vs. Florida at Honda Center on Sunday.

Paul Reubens’ larger-than-life stage presence as Pee-wee Herman carried over into the actor’s home-sweet-home — and this month, fans of the late actor can bid on 439 items from his collection.

Julien’s Auctions is hosting Paul Reubens’ Big Auction at the Groundlings Theatre in Los Angeles on Oct. 28 to celebrate the life and career of the late comedian, actor and writer. Tickets sold out within the day on Friday, but the public may participate in the auction online at juliensauctions.com. Anyone with a Groundlings show ticket can view the exhibition until Oct. 28.

The auction features Pee-wee’s iconic gray suit and other costumes, red Schwinn bicycles, dolls, puppets, claymation figures, scripts and more. The memorabilia comes from Reubens’ major features and TV shows, including “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” “The Pee-wee Herman Show,” “Big Top Pee-wee” and “Pee-wee’s Big Holiday.”

Reubens created the Pee-wee Herman character in 1978 while a member of the Groundlings company. “The Pee-wee Herman Show” began at the Groundlings Theatre, moved to the Roxy Theatre on Sunset Boulevard and aired as a 1981 HBO special. Reubens parlayed the show’s success into the 1985 hit film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” Tim Burton’s feature film directorial debut, the movie had a $7 million budget and earned more than $40 million.

• Share via Close extra sharing options

Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian best known for portraying the character Pee-wee Herman on stage and screen, has died. He was 70.

Next came the Daytime Emmy-winning TV series “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” which ran from 1986 through 1990 and helped kick-start the careers of now well-known stars including Phil Hartman, Laurence Fishburne and S. Epatha Merkerson. Feature films “Big Top Pee-wee” (1988) and “Pee-wee’s Big Holiday” (2016) followed. Before his death on July 30, 2023, Reubens recorded interviews for the 2025 Emmy-winning documentary miniseries, “Pee-wee as Himself.”

Here are six highlights of the auction:

“Pee-wee’s Big Holiday” Hero Pee-wee Herman Suit

“Pee-wee Herman” hero ensemble.

(Julien’s Auctions)

The iconic slate gray glen plaid suit worn by Paul Reubens in his 2016 Netflix film, complete with white shirt, red bow tie, pocket square, and white loafers. ($8,000-$10,000)

“Pee-wee’s Playhouse” Fridge Food

12 pieces of “food” found in Pee-wee’s fridge.

(Julien’s Auctions)

A collection of 12 prop food pieces from the “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” refrigerator, including a claymation red pepper and bacon with armature arms, olive barbells, frozen food boxes, and desserts. ($800-$1,000)

Pee-wee Herman 1989 JCPenney 40-Inch Limited-Edition Doll

Large Pee-wee Herman doll from the late 1980s.

(Julien’s Auctions)

The 40-inch doll made by Carousel for Reubens’ JCPenney-exclusive line in the late 1980s is one of the rarest Pee-wee Herman collectibles. Only 2,000 were made in 1989, and some were used as store displays. The doll is in its original box, with the original factory shipping carton. ($300-$500)

Paul Reubens’ “Pee Wee” Harmonica

A vintage “Pee Wee” brand harmonica, circa 1945-1951.

(Julien’s Auctions)

A vintage “Pee Wee” brand harmonica made in occupied Japan (circa 1945-1951) in its original box, personally owned by Reubens, who cited this brand as the inspiration for his character’s name. ($100-$200)

“Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” Replica Bicycle with 2011 Visionary Spike TV Scream Award

A full-scale replica of Pee-wee’s red Schwinn DX bicycle.

(Julien’s Auctions)

A full-scale replica of Pee-wee’s iconic red Schwinn DX, ridden by Reubens at the 2011 Spike TV Scream Awards where he accepted the honorary Visionary Award (also included in the auction). ($5,000-$7,000)

Production scripts and storyboards

“The Pee-wee Herman Show” 1981 production script with revision pages.

(Julien’s Auctions)

• “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” Season 1 scripts (a collection of 13, one for each episode of Season 1 in 1986)
• “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” script credited to Phil Hartman, Paul Reubens, and Michael Varhol, containing minor differences from the final film including a deleted magic shop scene
• “Big Top Pee-wee,” featuring barnyard and farm animal artwork
• “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” Season 4 storyboards

(each lot range: $500-$700)

When Lincoln Riley hired Gary Patterson to be his third defensive coordinator in five seasons, the USC head coach naturally pointed to Patterson’s impressive track record.

His reputation, after all, was as one of the great defensive minds in the modern history of college football, a coach who, at Texas Christian, knew how to get more out of lesser talent. It stood to reason that he could do the same at USC, where they’d just signed the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class. And through the spring and summer, that appeared to be the case, as coaches and players alike raved about their new coordinator, who earlier this year was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

But as the Trojans approach the midway point of an increasingly tense campaign, Patterson and his defense have fallen drastically short of those expectations.

As USC welcomes Washington to the Coliseum with its season on the brink, its defense is currently allowing more than 6.14 yards per play, good for 115th nationally. The secondary, which has struggled with consistent miscommunication, is allowing 8.4 yards per pass play — more than either of former coordinator Alex Grinch’s defenses allowed at USC. And big plays are becoming a big problem. Only three defenses the country have allowed more explosive plays of 20-plus yards than USC (23), which is also in line with Grinch’s defenses.

USC coach Lincoln Riley and defensive coordinator Gary Patterson talk after a loss to Oregon at the Coliseum on Saturday.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

And all this despite the fact four of the Trojans’ first five games were against opponents who were expected to struggle against USC’s far superior talent.

Patterson has yet to answer questions about those early results. That’s because unlike Riley’s first two defensive coordinators at USC, who spoke at least weekly, Patterson has not spoken to reporters since the preseason.

Without any explanation from him for USC’s early issues, the numbers don’t exactly paint a promising portrait of Patterson’s season. But while Riley acknowledged that the defense has “had some breakdowns at all levels” and must “play tighter in all areas,” the coach insisted Thursday that the Trojans were close to reaching their potential on defense, again reassuring that there was “a lot of good on tape” on that side of the ball.

“We don’t necessarily need any level of the defense to make this massive jump,” Riley said. “We just need each level to play a little bit better and each level to play a little bit better together.”

Outside of USC’s Week 1 shutout of Fresno State, though, the Trojans haven’t looked particularly good at any level of the defense. The pass rush has been lacking, with only three sacks across USC’s four other games. And on the back end, the Trojans continue to be caught flat-footed, with defensive backs out of position.

One former USC defensive back, Max Williams, posited on social media that the Trojans’ secondary appeared to be getting the defensive calls too close to the snap of the ball. In another social media breakdown by a former Trojan player, former quarterback Max Browne suggested that USC’s defensive backs were often out of position before the play began, putting them behind.

Those problems have seemingly been exacerbated the past two weeks in Big Ten play, as Rutgers and Oregon combined to pile up 964 yards on USC’s defense. And the Ducks did it with a backup quarterback at the helm in Dylan Raiola, who converted all seven of his third- and fourth-down pass attempts.

Patterson’s defense will have another tough test this week in Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who’s just as much a threat with his legs as his arm. The Trojans already had trouble with a dual-threat quarterback earlier this season, allowing Louisiana’s Lunch Winfield to rush for 94 yards during a Week 2 Trojans win.

Any further struggles from here for USC’s defense could spiral in a hurry. The Trojans travel to Penn State next weekend and still have No. 5 Indiana and No. 6 Ohio State on the schedule. They’ll have to win two of those three, plus all their other games, if they still hope to contend for the College Football Playoff.

Those hopes hinge largely on Patterson, who Riley bet before the season would finally bring him salvation on the defensive end.

Riley still has faith that bet will pay off. Mostly because “there’s very few that have been through as much as he has.”

“Trust me, nobody takes it more personal than him or takes more responsibility than he does,” Riley said of Patterson. “He’s done this for a long time. He’s done it at a high level. And there’s nobody, you know, more committed to getting it fixed.”

Left-hander Martín Pérez (9-9, 3.04) is on the injured list with back inflammation and isn’t expected to be activated for the National League Division Series but right-hander Bryce Elder (8-8, 4.11), who underwent knee surgery in early September, could be available, which would strengthen a rotation that’s missing four starters.

Fortunately, the Braves have a Cy Young candidate in Sale (14-9, 2.16 ERA in the regular season). The left-hander gave Atlanta a solid 6 1/3 innings in the Game 1 win over Philadelphia in the wild-card series this week. Journeyman Tyler Mahle, who went 4-1 with a 1.99 ERA after coming over from the Giants in August, allowed just a run in 6 2/3 strong innings in Game 2 in his postseason debut.

After that, however, Weiss will have to lean heavily on his bullpen and fortunately he has a good one: Atlanta relievers were second in the National League in ERA (3.44) and saves (49) during the regular season. Cuban closer Raisel Iglesias had 34 of those saves (in 37 regular-season opportunities), blowing just one save chance since July 26.

Set-up man Robert Suárez missed more than three months with elbow inflammation but made two appearances in the final week of the regular season to finish the year 4-0 with a 1.06 ERA in 33 games. Ahead of him, Didier Fuentes (7-2, 2.45), Dylan Lee (6-1. 3.09), Dylan Dodd (4-1, 2.54) and Brent Suter (2-0, 1.63 with the Braves) give Atlanta perhaps the deepest bullpen in the playoffs.

The Ducks have signed promising young defenseman Tristan Luneau to a six-year contract extension worth $43.2 million after just 14 NHL appearances.

The Ducks announced the deal Thursday with the 22-year-old Luneau, whose promising career has been slowed by injury. Now healthy and ready for a full-time NHL role, he inked a long-term deal with the team that drafted him in the second round in 2022.

Luneau was the Quebec major junior league’s top defenseman in the 2022-23 season and he made the Ducks’ roster out of training camp the next fall. But Luneau came down with a viral infection that winter while practicing with Canada’s national junior team, forcing him to miss the rest of the year.

Anaheim took a deliberate approach with Luneau’s health for the past two seasons, keeping him with its AHL affiliate in San Diego for most of that time. But the Ducks never wavered in their belief that Luneau will be an above-average defenseman, and they proved it with a long-term contract for a player who suited up in just one game for the NHL club last season.

Luneau will be expected to play a significant role this season for the Ducks, who lost four veteran defensemen — Jacob Trouba, captain Radko Gudas, John Carlson and Olen Zellweger — from last season’s already mediocre blue line group over the summer.

Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek moved aggressively to lock up Luneau after being burned repeatedly in restricted free agency over the offseason.

Verbeek spent months failing to reach a deal with center Leo Carlsson, who then signed a $90-million offer sheet with Philadelphia that briefly made him the NHL’s highest-paid player before Anaheim matched it. Carlsson is among the best young centers in hockey, but his deal is worth much more than he was expected to get as a restricted free agent — as is the five-year, $36 million deal given to Pavel Mintyukov by Verbeek after other teams began to sniff around the Russian defenseman in the wake of Carlsson’s massive offer sheet.

Verbeek then signed high-scoring forward Cutter Gauthier to a six-year, $81 million extension last month, but the resulting salary cap constraints from Verbeek’s summer of misadventure effectively forced the Ducks to waive 22-goal scorer Chris Kreider, damaging their depth.

Luneau will join Jackson LaCombe and Mintyukov as the new core of the Ducks’ defense. Rising star LaCombe agreed to an eight-year, $72-million extension a year ago.

Anaheim ended a seven-year playoff drought last spring, advancing to the second round under coach Joel Quenneville. The Ducks open the regular season Friday at Vegas before their home opener Sunday against Florida.

Beacham writes for the Associated Press.

LAFC on Thursday named Xavi Tamarit its interim head coach, replacing Marc Dos Santos, who was fired Sunday amid a slump that has seen the team win just two of its last 13 games in all competition.

Tamarit, 44, was named to Dos Santos staff last January. He has more than two decades’ worth of elite coaching experience, including stints in the English Premier League, Spain’s La Liga and Argentina’s top division. A Spanish citizen, he is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

“Xavi brings a wealth of experience at the highest levels of the game and a clear understanding of our players, their strengths and what this group needs now,” John Thorrington, LAFC’s president of soccer operations, said in a statement. “We have full confidence in Xavi and the rest of the staff to get the best out of this team. Our standards and ambitions remain unchanged, and we are committed to giving everything to finish the 2026 season strong.”

LAFC (11-9-8) is sixth in the 15-team Western Conference table with six regular-season games left. That’s good enough for a playoff berth but two places and five points out of home-field advantage for the postsesason. LAFC is 3-6-6 on the road by 8-3–2 at home this season.

Dos Santos, an assistant for both Bob Bradley and Steve Cherundolo at LAFC, was named the third manager in team history last winter and was unbeaten in its first 11 matches in all competition, outscoring opponents 27-3 and advancing to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, where LAFC lost to Mexico’s Toluca, the eventual winner. But the team has gone 6-9-7 in MLS play since then, including a 1-0 loss to FC Dallas last Saturday in which Dos Santos was without six key players — including leading scorer Denis Bouanga and captain Son Heung-min — who were with their national teams.

Tamarit’s first game as manager will be at home on Oct. 10 against conference-leading Vancouver.

Just last week, Joey Porter Jr. told reporters he “definitely” would play for the Pittsburgh Steelers this season despite a contract standoff and a lingering back issue.

That’s not going to happen. The Steelers have traded the fourth-year cornerback to Dallas for a second-round 2028 draft pick and a sixth-round 2027 pick, the Cowboys announced Thursday morning.

“Here I come…… Dallas,” Porter wrote on a post to his Instagram Stories early Thursday.

The son of a former Steelers great — Joey Porter Sr. won a Super Bowl with the Steelers during his 13 years as an NFL linebacker and spent several years with the team as a defensive coach — Porter was selected by Pittsburgh in the second round of the 2023 draft. He broke up 31 passes over his first three seasons.

Porter missed all of training camp and preseason while on the Steelers’ physically unable to perform list because of the reported back issues. During the same period of time, he and the Steelers were unable to come to terms on a contract extension on the rookie deal that was set to expire after this season. The Steelers do not negotiate contracts once a season has begun.

Since the season started, Porter has been a limited participant in practices but was inactive in all three games. As the Steelers prepared to face the Cleveland Browns on “Thursday Night Football” this week, Porter was listed as a full participant in practice, although the team added a back injury to Porter’s injury status on Wednesday.

Porter is the third Steelers player traded to the Cowboys in the last two years, following receiver George Pickens last year and offensive lineman Broderick Jones just before this season started. First-year Steelers coach Mike McCarthy was the Cowboys coach from 2020 to 2024.

Last year, a contract dispute led Dallas to deal star edge rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers just before the start of the regular season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Halloween season is arguably the most festive time of year in Los Angeles. Is it any wonder that a city that favors make-believe would take to a holiday that inspires elaborate set dressings and creative costumes, the latter a chance to take on a role other than ourselves?

Likely not, and whether you lean spooky or playful, the days and weeks leading up to Oct. 31 are filled with events, often with no costume necessary. Consider October an excuse to throw a massive, fall-related bash.

This season there are returning staples, such as “Carved” at Descanso Gardens and Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights, but also opportunities to explore Halloween’s campier side. Our penchant for the theatrical is well represented, and even newer Los Angeles institutions such as the Academy Museum are getting in on the autumnal fun.

Whether you’re seeking an event to charm or to inspire frights, there’s plenty our region has to offer.

Meanwhile, City club sponsor Etihad Airways said it is considering legal action against the Premier League.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the United Arab Emirates-based airline said it “categorically rejects any finding, conclusion or implication that suggests the airline has ever been involved in improper commercial arrangements”.

It added: “The Premier League’s public communication of the commission’s findings, following a period of selective leaks and reporting, has further created damaging implications for Etihad despite the airline not being named in the redacted published findings.”

Etihad, City’s main sponsor since 2009, also said it was given no opportunity to engage in a process that now reflects “adversely on the airline”.

The statement added: “Etihad is deeply concerned by the way this matter has been communicated publicly.

“The lack of clarity and transparency, together with the selective disclosure of information, has created damaging implications for Etihad despite the airline not being named in the published decision.

“The Premier League must take responsibility for the consequences of the way in which these findings have been presented.

“Etihad will seek the relevant legal counsel on the options and recourse available to protect its interests.”

The Premier League declined to comment when contacted by BBC Sport.

The Chicago White Sox used a big first inning and a three-run homer from Chase Meidroth to propel them to a 7-3 win over the Houston Astros on Wednesday to sweep their AL Wild Card Series.

It’s the first time Chicago has won a playoff series since beating Houston in the World Series in 2005. Under the direction of second-year skipper Will Venable and with a letter of support from Pope Leo XIV, the White Sox advanced to face AL Central champion Cleveland in the AL Division Series beginning Saturday in Cleveland.

The White Sox, who lost 100 games in each of the last three seasons, are the only team in major league history to follow consecutive 100-loss seasons with a playoff berth.

The AL West-winning Astros went 81-81 to become the first team to reach the postseason without a winning record. Their recent playoff woes in Houston continued Wednesday as they dropped their ninth straight home playoff game in a ninth trip to the postseason in the last 10 years.

Chicago pounced on the Astros for four runs in the first inning a day after scoring three in the first two innings of a 6-3 win. Houston ace Hunter Brown was lifted after getting just two outs and wasn’t helped by a sloppy defense which committed two first-inning errors.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. A good Tommy Lasorda quote: “There are three types of people in the world. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen and those who wonder, ‘What happened?’ ”

Some random questions

While we await the winner of the Braves-Phillies series, it’s time to get a different viewpoint. I reached out to Times columnists Mirjam Swanson and Bill Plaschke to get their answers to a few Dodgers questions.

Q. Which team is the one the Dodgers would rather avoid playing in the NL playoffs?

Swanson: The San Diego Padres, actually. Weird stuff happens with rivalries. Weird stuff has happened against the Padres. Add a rivalry to the high-stakes NLCS? Guaranteed weirdness.

So the Padres concern me more than the Brewers, a talented group headlined by ace Jacob Misiorowski that nonetheless does itself in with its poor-little-us talk. The Padres have swagger — and substance — and they just finished the season on a heater, going 41-18 to close the season.

I still like the Dodgers in that series, and then against whomever comes out of the American League too.

It’s the NLDS that’s of most concern — less for who the opponent will be and more for the fact that it’s a best-of-five series. That squeezes the already small sample size of a playoff series and makes it so there’s less room for error and more room for baseball to happen.

Plaschke: The one team the Dodgers should avoid playing is the Philadelphia Phillies. They have all those left-handed starters who can shut down the best Dodger hitters. They only lost the NLDS to the Dodgers last year because one of their relief pitchers lost his mind. They have a veteran lineup that is long overdue. Play them at your peril.

Q. Does Josue De Paula find a space on the postseason roster, and what do they do with him next year, with the positions he plays seemingly taken?

Swanson: Yes, absolutely, JDP will be on the roster in the postseason. For his incredible energy. For his incredible bat. Both much-needed.

Next year? Are they going to play professional baseball next year?

OK, let’s hope they do play ball. And as long as they do, I can see the Dodgers giving De Paula run in the outfield — so long as he puts in the work in the offseason (however long that is) to train and study and make himself a playable outfielder.

His hitting is so elite, he needs only to be a competent fielder to justify his regular presence in the lineup. He’s a great young athlete and if he understands and tackles the assignment with the gusto that he approaches hitting, I don’t see what could hold him back.

Plaschke: De Paula has to be on the roster this October and in a position to take some high-leverage at-bats. I think he’s potentially good enough that you trade Teo and put him in left.

Q. How would you rank the bullpen in terms of trust (top three)?

Swanson: Roki Sasaki and Edgardo Henriquez are both coming back from injuries and basically jumping right into the postseason fire so … fingers crossed. But let’s assume Sasaki’s blister is a thing of the past, as it appears to be, and that Henriquez’s back isn’t aching, I’ll pick them and make a call for Evan Phillips, who looks great and looks like he’s feeling great; I just saw him hit 100 mph for the first time this season, striking out the San Diego Padres’ Jackson Merrill looking in the Dodgers’ loss Thursday.

Plaschke: In the bullpen I trust, in order, Roki Sasaki, Alex Vesia, and Evan Phillips. I don’t trust Tanner Scott. Would you?

Q. The Dodgers won last year despite not getting a first-round bye. So was it really important for them to get the bye this year?

Swanson: Yes! This team is “old.” They know it, everyone knows it — and they know they’ll benefit from getting off their feet for a few days. To them, it’s a reward for a job well done. As a thankful Freddie Freeman chuckled Thursday night: “Rest for all of us is always nice. We’ve been grinding since February, getting ready for the season. Then you go through a 162-game schedule. It’s a lot. So we played really good baseball for six straight months and we get rewarded for that. So we’ll take it in, rest up and get ourselves ready to go for Saturday.”

Plaschke: The bye is hugely important. This is the oldest team in baseball. This is the most exhausted team in baseball. They desperately need those five days off.

Q. Finally, predictions. Who wins the World Series this year?

Swanson: The club that won the past two World Series.

Plaschke: Milwaukee wins the World Series. Nobody beats the Miz.

Who makes the roster?

We will predict the postseason roster after we know who the Dodgers are playing, but, it appears the final two spots among position players could come down to Josue De Paula, Alex Call, Dalton Rushing and Hyeseong Kim. Which two would you choose to make the team?

Click here to vote.

The last two weeks

Who is hot and not heading into the postseason? Numbers over the last two weeks for the team:

Alex Freeland, .385/.556/.692, 18 plate appearances, 1 double, 1 homer, 1 RBI
Josue De Paula, .385/.529/.692, 34 PA’s, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homers, 7 RBIs
Will Smith, .382/.488/.706, 41 PA’s, 2 doubles, 3 homers, 5 RBIs
Mookie Betts, .340/.431/.640, 58 PA’s, 6 doubles, 3 homers, 8 RBIs
Andy Pages, .333/.458/.722, 24 PA’s, 1 double, 2 homers, 5 RBIs
Kyle Tucker, .292/.393/.521, 56 PA’s, 2 doubles, 3 homers, 5 RBIs
Teoscar Hernández, .286/.352/.490, 54 PA’s, 1 double, 3 homers, 6 RBIs
Kike Hernández, .261/.292/.435, 24 PA’s, 1 double, 1 homer, 3 RBIs
Shohei Ohtani, .238/.273/.286, 22 PA’s. 1 double, 1 RBI
Miguel Rojas, .231/.310/.385, 29 PA’s, 1 double, 1 homers, 3 RBIs
Freddie Freeman, .220/.245/.220, 53 PA’s, 4 RBIs
Max Muncy, .205/.286/.364, 49 PA’s, 4 doubles, 1 homer, 5 RBIs
Tommy Edman, .186/.265/.349, 50 PA’s, 1 double, 2 homers, 8 RBIs
Alex Call, .091/.167/.182, 12 PA’s, 1 double, 1 RBI
Hunter Feduccia, .063/.286/.063, 16 PA’s, 1 RBI
Dalton Rushing, 0 for 3
Team, .265/.356/.455, 25 doubles, 1 triple, 21 homers, 4.57 runs per game

Pitchers

Emmet Sheehan, 0.00 ERA, 11.1 IP, 3 hits, 2 walks, 14 K’s
Alex Vesia, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 6.2 IP, 1 hit, 1 walk, 9 K’s
Edwin Díaz, 0.00 ERA, 5 IP, 1 hit, 1 walk, 9 K’s
Kris Bubic, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 4.2 IP, 4 hits, 5 K’s
Landon Knack, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 4 IP. 4 hits, 2 K’s
Roki Sasaki, 0.00 ERA, 3 IP, 2 hits, 6 K’s
Kyle Hurt, 0.00 ERA, 2 IP, 1 hit, 2 K’s
Justin Wrobleski, 1-0, 1.35 ERA, 6.2 IP. 6 hits, 7 K’s
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 1-1, 1.38 ERA, 13 IP, 6 hits, 3 walks, 11 K’s
Blake Snell, 1.80 ERA, 5 IP, 6 hits, 4 K’s
Tarik Skubal, 3-0, 1.89 ERA, 19 IP, 14 hits, 3 walks, 22 K’s
Evan Phillips, 1-0, 3.60 ERA, 5 IP, 2 hits, 8 K’s
Tyler Glasnow, 1-1, 3.65 ERA, 12.1 IP, 6 hits, 4 walks, 21 K’s
Bobby Miller, 4.15 ERA, 4.1 IP, 4 hits, 2 walks, 6 K’s
Brock Stewart, 4.50 ERA, 4 IP, 4 hits, 1 walk, 5 K’s
Blake Treinen, 4.91 ERA, 3.2 IP, 5 hits, 2 walks, 3 K’s
Tanner Scott, 0-1, 5.06 ERA, 3 saves, 5.1 IP, 5 hits, 2 walks, 10 K’s
Jack Dreyer, 5.68 ERA, 6.1 IP, 6 hits, 3 walks, 5 K’s
Seth Halvorsen, 0-1, 9.00 ERA, 3 IP, 4 hits, 3 K’s
Edgardo Henriquez, 27.00 ERA, 0.2 IP, 3 hits, 1 walk, 1 K
Team, 10-4, 2.38 ERA, 3 saves, 125 IP, 87 hits, 25 walks, 153 K’s

Bracket time

Every year around this time, this newsletter mentions Makenna Martin, who holds an online bracket (much like the NCAA bracket) where people can fill out their choices for the best-looking Dodger. She added a charitable aspect to it, raising money for a charity for women who are the victim of domestic violence.

Martin, now a college graduate, has continued the bracket, and this year is using it to raise money for “Peace Over Violence,” another charity that helps victims of domestic abuse. You do not have to donate to take part in the bracket challenge. Whether you donate or not, it’s a lot of fun to do. There’s also a raffle to raise funds, with a lot of Dodgers prizes to win. A tip of the cap to Martin and to all young people who try to make the world just a little bit better.

You can find the bracket here.

Donate and take part in the raffle here.

Up next

Saturday: Atlanta/Philadelphia at Dodgers, 1 p.m. or 6 p.m., Fox/FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Atlanta/Philadelphia at Dodgers, 5 p.m., Fox/FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Dodgers at Atlanta/Philadelphia, TBD, Fox/FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*Wed., Oct. 7: Dodgers at Atlanta/Philadelphia, TBD, Fox/FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*Friday, Oct. 9: Atlanta/Philadelphia at Dodgers, TBD, Fox/FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-if necessary

In case you missed it

Who’s hot and who’s not as Dodgers prepare for the postseason

The Dodgers have an old roster. But that isn’t necessarily a drawback in October

Woeful Mets outspend the Dodgers while Rays, Guardians and White Sox win on the cheap

Dodgers Debate: Who do the Dodgers want in the NLDS?

Shaikin: How the playoffs might impact the lockout, and … unfair to the Yankees? What?

And finally

Freddie Freeman hits a walk-off grand slam to win Game 1 of the 2024 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.

A new age of Clippers basketball started on Monday.

It’s about moving on, or attempting to, after the franchise endured a nightmare offseason.

“My entire summer’s been basketball,” guard Darius Garland nonchalantly said during media day at Intuit Dome. “My main thing is to come in here and win games. So, that’s my main focus.”

The Clippers’ offseason was engulfed by the NBA’s salary-cap circumvention investigation into the team’s endorsement deals with Kawhi Leonard. The NBA fined the Clippers $30 million, stripped them of five first-round picks, dealt suspensions to owner Steve Ballmer and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank — and the Clippers ultimately traded Leonard, who was fined merely $700,000, back to Toronto.

Garland represented his teammates in prioritizing hoops.

But for Trent Redden, the Clippers’ interim president of basketball operations, things weren’t that simple. The admittedly nervous executive started Monday’s news conferences by apologizing to the Clippers’ faithful for the aftermath of the Leonard situation.

“Our fans deserve to hear from us before this, and for that we’re sorry,” Redden said. “We’ve been listening to the thoughts, the concerns, and feeling the emotions of our fan base. They mean everything to us. … We hope to fulfill our promises to them, to build their trust and move forward through this time.

“This franchise often has done its best work with its back against the wall … We hope to represent our fans the same way we always have in dark times, by coming out fighting.”

Fighting is all the new-look Clippers can do as they enter the 2026-27 season.

Leonard is back north of the border. Other stars, such as Paul George, James Harden and the recently retired Russell Westbrook, are distant memories in L.A. For the first time in years, the Clippers aren’t entering a season with championship aspirations.

“It’s been difficult,” said Ty Lue, who enters his seventh season as the Clippers’ coach. “But I give our players a lot of credit … the leadership is great [and] the morale is great, even in these tough situations. That’s good to see, when you have your players coming in every day, giving everything they have; a lot of teams don’t have that.”

The Clippers’ league-record streak of 15 consecutive winning seasons is in jeopardy. Nonetheless, the team will still feature plenty of intrigue roster-wise, with a mix of youngsters “doing TikToks” and “old heads” trying to keep up, as Garland described it.

“I think we can surprise a lot of people,” he said.

Garland himself, 26, enters his first full season in L.A. as the team’s go-to scorer. A two-time All-Star, he’s primed to lead a promising backcourt alongside 19-year-old rookie Keaton Wagler, the Clippers’ No. 5 pick in the 2026 draft.

Wagler is one of the team’s promising young players, alongside fellow rookie Baba Miller, Kobe Sanders and the rehabbing Jordan Miller and Yanic Konan Niederhauser.

“I’m just going to do my best to stay mentally focused,” Wagler said when asked about the pressure of being the team’s first top-five pick since Blake Griffin in 2009. “Not worry about all the outside noise.”

The Clippers return key role players like Derrick Jones Jr., Kris Dunn, Bradley Beal and Brook Lopez, and sport new ones like Max Strus and Gradey Dick via trades.

However, the team’s ceiling will rest on the influence of new forwards Brandon Ingram and Rui Hachimura. Hachimura is coming off a strong playoff run and four-year stint with the Lakers.

“One thing about here … everybody talks about how they take really good care of their players,” Hachimura said of signing a two-year, $28-million contract with the Clippers this offseason.

Ingram, the centerpiece of the Leonard trade, is a solid three-level scorer and will shoulder much of the offensive load alongside Garland — when healthy.

Redden shockingly shared that Ingram is recovering from a partially torn Achilles tendon in addition to heel surgery.

“I had been dealing with some pain throughout the year with the Raptors, especially coming down crunch time with the Raptors,” Ingram said. “I didn’t quite know what it was. Near the end of the season, we figured out what it was, and surgery was the best thing to do.”

The 29-year-old Ingram, though, should make a full recovery and claims his best days are still ahead of him.

He feels the same way about his new Clippers team.

“I know [there are] little to no expectations for us this year,” Ingram said. “We have enough in the building to compete. This is what we love to do. So, we’ll go out and compete every single night, learn, go on to the next game and get better and better.”

Drake Maye was almost the NFL’s MVP last year.

The New England Patriots quarterback finished second in the Associated Press poll of national media members, with 23 first-place votes and 361 total points. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford edged him out with 24 first-place votes and 366 overall points.

Chances are, Maye won’t be receiving any votes this year — at least not if the first three games are any indication of how the rest of the season will go. Months after helping the Patriots to a surprise Super Bowl appearance, the third-year player and two-time Pro Bowl selection is not playing close to the standard he established last year.

Maye has thrown only one touchdown pass so far this season after tossing 31 a year ago. And he has been intercepted six times already in 2026 after getting picked off only eight times total last season.

The Patriots are 1-2 at the moment, the same record they had after the first three games last season. But Maye showed promise in those games a year ago, throwing for five touchdowns and two interceptions.

During a 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, Maye was picked off twice and also fumbled two times, losing one. The lost fumble came first, when an untouched Maye lost grip of the ball while reaching back to pass late in the first quarter.

After the game, Maye told reporters that blood from center Jared Wilson’s hand had gotten on the ball and made it slippery. But, he added, “at the same time, I’ve got to hold onto the football.”

Jaguars two-way player Travis Hunter, the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner and second overall draft pick in 2025, got his first NFL interception when he picked off Maye in the end zone late in the second quarter.

Then in the third quarter, on the Patriots’ first play from scrimmage after falling behind 21-3, Maye had a pass intercepted by Jacksonville’s Jarrian Jones. Jones stepped in front of a pass intended for Kyle Williams and returned it to the New England 5-yard line.

The Jaguars scored on the next play to take a 28-3 lead, after which Patriots coach Mike Vrabel could be seen on the sideline with both hands on Maye’s shoulders in an apparent attempt to comfort his quarterback.

“My conversations with each person on that sideline, I have to do my best each and every play, whoever I’m communicating with, to try to get the best out of them,” Vrabel told reporters Monday. “So I’ll have conversations with a lot of people. I’ve got a lot of faith and confidence in everybody that’s here. That’s why they’re here.”

Maye, who completed 14 of 25 passes for 199 yards and was sacked three times, finished with a passer rating of 48.6, the second-lowest of his career.

“It’s disappointing,” Maye told reporters after the game. “I think the ball starts rolling like that, we can’t get out of our own way — can’t get out of my own way, personally. So I gotta look myself in the mirror and take it to the turning point. … I’ve got to start with myself and lead these guys and we’ve got to get back after it.”

After the 2025 season, Maye revealed that he had injured his throwing shoulder during the AFC championship game against the Denver Broncos and received an injection to help with the pain before the Patriots’ 29-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX. Both he and Vrabel have said they don’t feel there have been any lingering effects from that injury.

On Sunday, Maye told reporters that his confidence hasn’t wavered despite the rough start to the season.

“This is an opportunity to band together and realize that the best football that we play is together,” he said, “and realize that’s going to start with me, protecting the football and protecting this team. Because that’s my job and I’ve been failing to do that.”

SAN FRANCISCO — Stop me if you’ve heard this a million times, but the Dodgers are trying to become the first team to win three consecutive World Series championships since the New York Yankees, from 1998 to 2000.

Those Yankees had a Hall of Fame closer. In 1998, Mariano Rivera got the final four outs of the clincher. In 1999, he got the final four outs. In 2000, he got the final three outs.

These Dodgers? Their closer? Your guess is as good as theirs.

“I do not know,” said Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations.

This might be a good time to know, no? The regular season is over. The postseason is upon us.

“I feel very confident that we’re going to be going into October with arguably the deepest and best pitching staff that we’ve had,” he said. “Exactly what their roles will be and how things will be ordered, I don’t know right now.”

Perhaps the Dodgers are overthinking this. They have done that before.

Tanner Scott converted 25 of 29 save opportunities this season, including saves Friday and Saturday.

But the strongest hitters on the Dodgers’ possible division series opponents are left-handed — Matt Olson, Drake Baldwin and Michael Harris II on the Atlanta Braves; Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber on the Philadelphia Phillies — and the Dodgers may not hesitate to use the left-handed Scott against those guys in the seventh or eighth inning.

In theory, these Dodgers have three candidates as closer: Scott, their marquee closer signing for 2025 and actual closer for most of 2026; Edwin Díaz, their marquee closer signing for 2026; and Roki Sasaki, their accidental closer last October.

Yet Friedman said he could envision scenarios where Evan Phillips could close, or even Brock Stewart, or perhaps Alex Vesia against a run of left-handed hitters. The Dodgers hope to activate Edgardo Henriquez for the playoffs. The starters could close, too, especially a well-rested Tyler Glasnow early in the first round.

“We’ve got a number of guys that we really trust,” Friedman said. “Depending on who we’re playing, how deep our starter goes, there are a lot of factors that would go into it. But, more than who will be that pitcher on the mound, is the fact that we have so many candidates we feel really good about.”

That the Dodgers have improvised an October relief corps, transformed a rookie starter into a postseason closer and run bullpen games in elimination games might lead you to conclude Friedman does not really believe in the concept of a designated closer. In a world where “high leverage” is the trendy jargon, maybe a closer is more of an anachronism than a necessity.

That the Dodgers invested $72 million in Scott and $69 million in Díaz in consecutive winters would lead you to conclude Friedman does indeed believe in the concept of a designated closer. In fact, he does.

“I think it’s extremely helpful,” he said.

The Dodgers do not hold splashy news conferences to introduce closer candidates. When the Dodgers introduced Díaz last December, Friedman proudly introduced the three-time All-Star as the closer.

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

Díaz’s season went awry, limited to 18⅔ innings after elbow surgery and then a neck injury. But in five September appearances since his activation from the injured list, he gave up no runs and one hit in five innings, striking out nine of the 17 batters he faced. (In the same span, Scott has given up no runs and two hits in five innings, striking out nine of the 19 batters he faced.)

Dodgers reliever Edwin Díaz high-fives teammates in the dugout after pitching against the San Diego Padres on Sept. 22.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“What we’ve seen out of Díaz recently has been really encouraging,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “What that ultimately means, we don’t know yet.

“Of course, if you have a reliever who is really hot in October, that can be extremely valuable. It doesn’t mean you use him exclusively in the ninth. But, by and large, that’s how you would use him.”

Roberts saluted Díaz for working hard to get back to an uncertain assignment.

“I’m really proud of Edwin, given the deal he signed, to work it out, to go to the minors, to come back and pitch in whatever role we ask of him, that shows a lot of character,” Roberts said.

“He could have mailed this year in. That’s something that has not gone unnoticed. And we’ll see how October plays out.”

The Dodgers could be forgiven for believing it will all work out in the end. Their final pitcher in each of the World Series clinchers under Friedman, all starters: Julio Urías in 2020, Walker Buehler in 2024, Yoshinobu Yamamoto in 2025.

The pitchers to record a postseason save in those championship seasons: Kenley Jansen, Joe Kelly, Brusdar Graterol, Blake Treinen and Urias in 2020; Alex Vesia, Treinen and Buehler in 2024; Glasnow, Sasaki and Treinen in 2025.

The organizational flexibility can lead to some uncomfortable discussions within the clubhouse, as Roberts and coaches keep the relievers updated on the latest plan for how they might be used.

“It is tricky,” Roberts said. “These are constant conversations. They are ever-evolving. They are ongoing.”

If all goes right for the Dodgers, those conversations will be ongoing for another month.

It is a result that could be the catalyst Chelsea needed to push on and put pressure on Manchester City, who face Arsenal next in the WSL (Sunday, 16:30 BST).

Chelsea’s match-winner Alyssa Thompson said their victory over the Gunners was “amazing for team morale”.

Even Bompastor admitted Chelsea are “a different team from last season” and there are tangible examples of their improvements.

England midfielder Keira Walsh was a standout performer against Arsenal and it was her strike which was parried into the path of Thompson for the only goal.

Her new parternship with 20-year-old Lexi Potter is flourishing and has allowed Walsh to get further up the pitch and play with more freedom.

Bompastor said the 29-year-old was “a boss on the pitch” when she reaches those levels and it helps the team have “better foundations”.

Goalscorer Thompson has consistently delivered up front, while the arrival of summer signing Melvine Malard from Manchester United has given them an outlet.

The French striker missed their opening two matches with a minor injury but scored on her debut against Birmingham City and caused havoc against Arsenal.

“She’s massive for us. She puts in work off the ball and sets off the press,” said team-mate Walsh.

“Her awareness of people around her and her ability… She’s an incredible striker and she will be very good for us.”

That press, led by Malard, has moved higher up and teams have struggled to break through, while full-back Ellie Carpenter continues to overlap dangerously.

Katie McCabe, who switched from Arsenal to Chelsea this summer, has brought leadership and bite – an aggression that was lacking at times last season.

Most of all, the Blues look like a team who believe they should be champions and are willing to work for it.

It was in contrast to toothless Arsenal, who have one victory in their first four WSL games and scored just twice.

“We’ve got both sides to our game and we showed that tonight in spells. Everyone was fighting for each other. Every first and second ball was ours,” added Walsh.

French Open – final round

-20 M Fitzpatrick (Eng); -17 A Hidalgo (Esp); -15 M Pavon (Fra), T Vaillant (Fra), K Reitan (Nor), E Lopez-Chacarra

Selected others: -12 L Aaberg (Swe); -10 E Ferguson (Sco), D Bradbury (Eng); -7 E Molinari (Ita), V Hovland (Nor)

Full leaderboard

England’s Matt Fitzpatrick secured his fourth title of the season with a three-shot win at the French Open in Paris.

Fitzpatrick carded a one-under-par 70 to hold off the challenge of Spain’s Angel Hidalgo at Le Golf National.

The 32-year-old has already won the Valspar Championship and RBC Heritage titles on the PGA Tour this year, as well as the Zurich Classic team event in New Orleans alongside younger brother Alex.

He led by five shots going into the final day, but a run of 12 successive pars allowed the chasing pack to cut that advantage to two.

However, crucial birdies on the 13th and 15th pushed Fitzpatrick further clear and even a bogey at the last could not deny him an 11th European Tour title.

“Delighted to get it over the line, it was definitely a battle today,” he said.

“I didn’t have my best stuff for the first 12 holes and then managed to find some of my best stuff.

“In a way I was quite lucky – I left myself in some nice spots where you can still get up and down from, but I fully took advantage of that and did really well.”

Matthieu Pavon shot the best round of the day, with a seven-under 64 ensuring he finished tied for fourth alongside French compatriot Tom Vaillant, Spain’s Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra and Norway’s Kristoffer Reitan.

THE EERIE last words of Deadliest Catch star Todd Meadows to his children have been revealed in the season 22 finale.

Meadows, 25, was killed when he fell overboard while he and his crew mates were filming this latest series which ended on The Discovery Channel on Friday.

The rookie deckhand fell off the Aleutian Lady in a fishing accident on The Bering Sea and died from downing with possible hypothermia on February 25, 2026.

In the final episode of Season 22, a touching segment showed before and after his death, and captured his final conversation with his children just moments before the accident.

In a FaceTime call, he told his three children, all under five, that he was “being safe” and promised a fishing trip when he saw them again.

“I hope you’re being safe,” his daughter said on the call.

read more on deadliest catch

BIG CATCH

Deadliest Catch star announces shock divorce from wife after 13 years of marriage

“If you’re not being safe, you better be safe.”

“Oh, I’m being safe,” he told her.

He promised his son a salmon fishing trip when he returned, telling producers on-camera that it was a “heart-wrencher” to leave his children at home for long stretches.

“It’s been one of my dreams and goals to make it up here,” he said, speaking of joining the crew for the season.

“That’s why I’m up here to make it and to try to support my family.”

Another part of the season finale captured the chaos surrounding the moment he fell overboard, without the actual fall or subsequent actions being shown on camera.

Captain Rick, who announced Meadows’ death, is filmed manning the vessel and asking “Everybody OK?” before the crew say that a man has gone overboard.

As he turns the boat and instructs them to ready the ring and crane, he tells the crew: “I got my eye on him.”

They successfully got Meadows out of the frigid sea and the Captain instructed them to perform CPR.

“Come on, man, come on, someone go get the AUD right now,” he says off camera with him tearfully telling the crew to “keep pumping” before a producer says, “He’s gone, Rick.”

A statement on screen read: “On February 25th, 2026, deckhand Todd Meadows went overboard.

“After six minutes and twenty-six seconds in the water, he was recovered unresponsive.”

The episode then showed the aftermath of his death and its impact on the crew.

It ends with a cut back to Meadows as he prepares food in the kitchen and answers a producer’s question about what he would want to say to his children.

“Work towards your dreams and goals, don’t let anything slow you down. If you put your mind to it, you can do anything.

“Just want my kids to know I want them to work hard and be successful in life.”

Weeks before his fall, Meadows suffered a serious head injury onboard and was sent home on medical leave before being cleared again for work on September 18.

His week of medical leave saw him go back to his family while nursing his concussion which would tragically be the last time he saw them.

“The last photo I got of him was when he was building a fire. He was listening to music in the moment and was so happy,” his mom Angela said at the time.

“That’s how I want to remember him.”