Shohei

Didn’t hit. Didn’t pitch.

But that didn’t make Shohei Ohtani not the story.

On the contrary. Seeing him chillin’ in a Dodger-blue hoodie — and not dressed for success in his white home uniform top — was the most striking part of the Dodgers’ 5-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday at Dodger Stadium.

Back on Tuesday, before the Dodgers’ fourth consecutive loss, with Ohtani having recorded just four hits in 36 at-bats, manager Dave Roberts announced plans to bench baseball’s best player.

To get him some R&R — rest and reset. “A good spa day,” Roberts would joke Thursday.

Of course, it’s Ohtani, so much is being made of the much-needed breather.

Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run Tuesday at Dodger Stadium.

(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

Maybe you hate it. Maybe you hate it for him. Maybe you think a $700 million contract doesn’t account for days off. Maybe you were among the unfortunate 51,048 paying customers who came to watch the Dodgers even their series with the Giants without Ohtani’s help, and you’re sad about it.

Maybe, though, you should give Roberts the benefit of the doubt. Maybe you should remind yourself Ohtani isn’t actually a unicorn. Not a myth, but a man.

“Mentally, the days that he does pitch, it’s tougher on him [to also hit],” Roberts said Thursday. “Physically, it’s the day after.”

And so the manager wasn’t joking; he wasn’t juking. Even after Ohtani homered for the first time in 53 plate appearances in Tuesday’s 6-2 loss, Roberts stuck with the plan and gave his superstar a whole day off Thursday after having him only pitch the night before.

Only. As in that he only pitched seven scoreless innings, only struck out eight and only lowered his ERA to a major-league leading 0.82. Yes, he only teed up the Dodgers for a 4-0 victory. An honestly exceptional day’s work for anyone else.

Then on Thursday, Ohtani contributed only vibes.

Which was weird. Which was good.

Instead of swinging a bat, Ohtani served as the welcoming committee after Will Smith led off the game with a home run. Ohtani was later an accessory to Smith’s prank filling Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s hood with wrapped pieces of bubble gum. And still, for the second consecutive game without him in the lineup, the Dodgers (26-18) finished the job.

For all of their recent scuffing and shuffling, these loaded, baseball-ruining Dodgers should be able to survive an Ohtani skip day every so often.

Even without Ohtani or Mookie Betts, a lineup with Smith, Freddie Freeman, Kyle Tucker, Andy Pages, Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernández should be able to overpower the lowly Giants, who have been outscored by 45 runs and now are 18-26.

Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani laughs with teammates while sitting in the dugout before a game against the Giants Thursday.

(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)

But maybe you think: Here the Dodgers go again, making it too complicated, being too cute. They’re back to being too cautious, too careful.

But don’t think of it as load management. Consider it asset management.

The Dodgers are going to protect their personnel from as much wear and tear as possible — and from themselves.

Obviously, Ohtani — who came into the season appearing to really covet the Cy Young award — is capable of multidimensional greatness. He’s the Him who closed out the National League Championship Series with a wildest-dream-exceeding, 10-strikeout, three-home run game.

But it’s important that the Dodgers don’t let the 31-year-old burn himself out.

“The thing is with all players, once you get to a point where you’re exhausted and tired and that’s in the middle of the summer, it’s tough to recoup,” Roberts said. “So you kind of have to know how to push them but not get to the red line point. If we can kind of hold and get a good rhythm, which I think we’re getting a good grasp on now, then we’ll have more of a base, a foundation to push him when the time is right. It’s certainly not right now.”

Roberts said Ohtani is sharing in these decisions. If there are days that Roberts feels like Ohtani would benefit from a day off, he’s given the manager his blessing.

Sometimes less is more, even for the guy who can do it all.

From Maddie Lee: Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman thought it was the truth when he said it.

After the Dodgers won the World Series last year, riding extreme highs and lows in an all-time nail-biter of a seven-game set, he remembers telling his wife, Robin, that a second consecutive championship, after a roller coaster of a season, should at least alleviate some of his stress during games the following April and May.

“I should have already gotten it before, but now I really get it,” he told The Times on Tuesday, recounting his declaration from last fall. “So now I’m going to be able to have some perspective.”

Robin didn’t believe him.

“She was right,” Friedman said before the Dodgers’ 6-2 loss to the Giants on Tuesday.

A penchant for worrying often serves those in Friedman’s position well. Anticipating worst-case scenarios is the first step to protecting against them. The quality, however, doesn’t make for a pleasant viewing experience, especially during lulls in the season like the one the Dodgers are currently battling through.

The loss Tuesday extended their skid to four games, keeping the Dodgers (24-18) pinned behind the Padres (24-17) in the division standings.

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Dodgers-Giants box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

MORE BASEBALL:

Shaikin: Mark Walter says the Dodgers can’t win all the time. Even Magic Johnson agrees

Dodgers tout outfielder Alek Thomas’ upside after acquiring him from the Diamondbacks

Angels extend their futility on the road against Guardians | Angels-Guardians box score

Ducks fall to Golden Knights in OT, move closer to elimination

The Golden Knights’ Pavel Dorofeyev celebrates after scoring past the Ducks’ Lukas Dostal during overtime of Game 5 Tuesday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

From Kevin Baxter: The Ducks are a loss away from summer after Pavel Dorofeyev scored 4:10 into overtime, giving the Vegas Golden Knights a 3-2 victory in Game 5 of the teams’ second-round playoff series Tuesday. Dorofeyev, who also scored on a power play in the first period, batted a Jack Eichel pass just inside the left post to end the longest game of the series.

With the win, Vegas leads the best-of-seven series three games to two heading into Game 6 on Thursday in Anaheim, where the Ducks’ season could end.

“We’ve come back a lot all year. Obviously it’s different in a series perspective but a lot of guys are just excited to play already. We just want, we want to, want to get back out there already,” winger Mason McTavish said. “I’m kind of excited to see what everybody’s going to bring. We’ve got a lot of confidence.”

Continue reading here

Ducks-Golden Knights box score

Lakers invest in offseason upgrades beyond players

Lakers coach JJ Redick, right, and general manager Rob Pelinka answer questions from the media.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Lakers’ roster isn’t the only thing getting restructured this offseason.

In the first offseason under Mark Walter’s ownership, the Lakers will undergo several changes in their front office and with the organization’s infrastructure while trying to keep pace in the ever-evolving NBA.

The Lakers plan to hire two assistant general managers, Rob Pelinka, the team’s president of basketball operations and general manager, said in a season-ending news conference Tuesday after the Lakers were swept out of the Western Conference semifinals by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

One position will focus on pro scouting, draft scouting and player development while the other will specialize in analytics, data and the salary cap. The organization has already begun interviews, Pelinka said.

“It’s not that we’ve had holes in those places,” Pelinka said. “We got a great team of people that works incredibly hard. It’s just we want to add more to that.”

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Swanson: Lakers should learn their lesson, avoid Giannis Antetokounmpo

Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo walks off the court after a game against the Nets on April 10.

(Jeffrey Phelps / Associated Press)

From Mirjam Swanson: I get it, you’re still thinking about the Lakers getting swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the playoffs.

It was a valiant fight to the end, Monday’s season-ending 115-110 loss. A thriller for naught.

But now we’ve finally reached the big, beautiful offseason the Lakers have been teasing for months. This pivotal moment that’s had them hoarding assets and fencing off their financial flexibility. All but paralyzed by possibility.

Even after jogging in place all this time, they’ve finally caught up with the can they kicked down the road: All indications are that the Milwaukee Bucks’ superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo is about to hit the trade market.

And the Lakers — loaded with trade ammunition and cap space and forever wishing on star players — are going to be expected to make a play.

But they should run a different play.

Continue reading here

MORE NBA:

Lakers want LeBron James and Austin Reaves to return next season

Resiliency and re-signings: What’s next for the Lakers after getting swept by OKC?

Brandon Clarke, Memphis Grizzlies forward and former first-round pick, dies at age 29

UCLA rewards coach Cori Close with contract extension

UCLA coach Cori Close lifts the WBCA national championship trophy while surrounded by her players.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

From Marisa Ingemi: UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close isn’t going anywhere.

UCLA announced on Tuesday that Close signed a contract extension through the 2029-30 season after she led the Bruins to their first NCAA national championship.

“I am so grateful to Chancellor [Julio] Frenk and [athletic director] Martin Jarmond for the opportunity to continue teaching and mentoring the young women who choose UCLA,” Close said in a news release. “I love being here in Westwood, and I am so excited for what the future holds. I hope we can continue to make our Bruin faithful proud.”

Continue reading here

Ducks playoffs schedule

Second round
All times Pacific
Game 1: at Vegas 3, Ducks 1 (summary)
Game 2: Ducks 3, at Vegas 1 (summary)
Game 3: Vegas 6, at Ducks 2 (summary)
Game 4: at Ducks 4, Vegas 3 (summary)
Game 5: at Vegas 3, Ducks 2 OT (summary)
Game 6: Thursday at Ducks, 6:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO MAX
Game 7*: at Vegas, TBA, ABC or ESPN
*-if necessary

This day in sports history

1891 — Isaac Murphy wins his second straight Kentucky Derby aboard Kingman. In the stretch, Kingman comes from last in the four-horse field to beat Balgownan by one-half length.

1905 — World heavyweight boxing champion James J. Jeffries retires undefeated after 7 title defences; returns in 1910 to be beaten by Jack Johnson.

1950 — First ever race of the Formula 1 World Drivers Championship is run at Silverstone, England and won by Giuseppe Farina of italy in an Alfa Romeo.

1952 — In an Appalachian League game, Ron Necciai of the Bristol Twins strikes out 27 batters while pitching a 7-0 no-hitter against the Welch Miners.

1958 — Stan Musial gets his 3,000th hit with a pinch-double off Chicago’s Moe Drabowsky at Wrigley Field. The Cardinals win 5-3.

1962 — LPGA Western Open Women’s Golf, Montgomery CC: Mickey Wright wins on the 4th hole of a sudden-death playoff with Mary Lena Faulk.

1976 — The New York Nets overcome a 22-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Denver Nuggets 112-106 and win the last ABA championship in six games.

1989 — Trinidad & Tobago ties US 1-1, in 3rd round of 1990 world soccer cup.

1992 — The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the New York Rangers 5-1 to eliminate the Patrick Division champions in six games and advance to the Prince of Wales Conference finals. It is the first time all four division winners are eliminated in the same round. The Norris Division champion Detroit Red Wings were swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in four straight games, and the Montreal Canadiens, who had won the Adams Division, lost in four games to the Boston Bruins. The Vancouver Canucks, the Smythe Division champions lost to the Edmonton Oilers in six games.

1993 — KC Royal George Brett hits his 300th HR.

1995 — Team New Zealand’s Black Magic 1 completes a 5-0 sweep in the America’s Cup, beating Dennis Conner’s borrowed boat Young America by 1 minute, 50 seconds.

1998 — Chelsea of England win 38th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Stuttgart of Germany 1-0 in Stockholm.

2005 — Tiger Woods misses the cut at the Byron Nelson Championship to end his record of 142 consecutive cuts made over the last seven years on the PGA Tour. Needing a par on the 18th hole at Cottonwood Valley, Woods misses a 15-foot putt. He taps in for a bogey and a 2-over 72, leaving him at 1 over for the tournament.

2006 — English FA Cup Final, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (71,140): Liverpool beats West Ham United, 3-1 on penalties after 3–3 (a.e.t.); Reds 7th title.

2007 — Canada wins hockey’s world championship with a 4-2 victory over Finland. Rick Nash leads the way with two goals as Canada captures its’ 24th world title and first since 2004.

2007 — Rafael Nadal becomes the first player to win the Rome Masters three consecutive times by beating Fernando Gonzalez of Chile 6-2, 6-2. The victory extends his winning streak on clay to 77 matches. By reaching the final, the Spaniard broke John McEnroe’s record for most consecutive victories (75) on one surface.

2007 — At 16 years, 65 days Matthew Briggs debuts for Fulham in a 3-1 defeat at Middlesbrough; youngest player to appear in an English Premier League match.

2007 — PGA Players Championship, TPC at Sawgrass: American Phil Mickelson wins by 2 strokes ahead of runner-up Sergio García of Spain; event played in May for the first time.

2012 — Manchester City wins the English title for the first time in 44 years, surging past Queens Park Rangers 3-2 with Sergio Aguero scoring his team’s second goal late in injury time. Aguero scores during the fourth minute of injury time, two minutes after substitute Edin Dzeko made it 2-2. The winning goal snatches the trophy from defending champion Manchester United on goal difference.

2012 — PGA Players Championship, TPC at Sawgrass: Matt Kuchar wins by 2 strokes ahead of Ricky Fowler, Zach Johnson, Martin Laird and Ben Curtis.

2014 — Henrik Lundqvist sets an NHL record with his fifth straight Game 7 victory. He made 35 saves to lift the New York Rangers to a 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins and earn a spot in the Eastern Conference finals. Brian Boyle and Brad Richards score for New York, who rally from a 3-1 series deficit for the first time in the franchise’s 88-year history.

2015 — Derek Stepan scores 11:24 in overtime, lifting the New York Rangers past the Washington Capitals 2-1 and into the Eastern Conference finals. Stepan’s wrist shot from the left wing caps a comeback from a 3-1 deficit in the series. The Rangers become the only team to manage that in successive years, doing the same thing to Pittsburgh in the second round in 2014.

2018 — Liverpool’s Egyptian soccer forward Mohamed Salah scores in a 4-0 win against Brighton to set the EPL goal scoring record (32) for a 38-game season.

2018 — PGA Players Championship, TPC at Sawgrass: American Webb Simpson wins by 4 strokes from Xander Schauffele, Charl Schwartzel and Jimmy Walker.

2019 — The Tradition Senior Men’s Golf, Greystone G &CC: Steve Stricker wins his first career major title by 6 strokes ahead of Billy Andrade, Paul Goydos & David Toms.

Compiled by the Associated Press.

Until next time…

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

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and I guess Shohei Ohtani is human after all.

I’m writing this on Tuesday evening because my youngest daughter, Hannah, whom I’ve mentioned numerous times in this newsletter, is getting married this weekend. I won’t be able to do a newsletter for next Monday, and I didn’t want everyone to wait a week and a half for the next newsletter.

So, hopefully nothing huge happened on Wednesday. But if it did, and it’s not mentioned here, now you know why.

Heading into Wednesday’s game, Shohei Ohtani was hitless since April 27. That’s a long time without a hit. So what happened?

Our Dodgers beat reporter, Maddie Lee, wrote about this after Monday’s game. Some takeaways from that story, which you can read here:

—At one point, Ohtani was going to hit and pitch Tuesday, but the Dodgers changed their mind Monday and had him only pitch.

—“Definitely not results,” Dave Roberts said of how he made that decision. “It’s a little bit more body language and just watching the player. … We’ve certainly enjoyed the fruits of him doing [both], which he will continue to, at times. But I think for me, it’s a start by start kind of read-and-react situation.”

—Ohtani: “I do feel like over the course of my career it’s just a reality that I’m not exactly hitting at the best of my ability at this time of year,” Ohtani said last week through interpreter Will Ireton. “At the same time, as a player, I do want to be better and get to that position where I’m feeling really good. It’s a balancing act of the two.”

—Ohtani has become pull-happy. He was hitting the ball to the right side 53.4% of the time entering Monday, compared to 43.2% last season, according to Statcast.

—“It’s more about timing and feel for him, backing up the baseball,” hitting coach Aaron Bates said. “When he gathers correctly and hits through the baseball, obviously we’ve seen what he’s capable of doing. But just kind of managing his at-bats right now, trying to get to the big part of the park.”

As of right now, this is Ohtani’s worst offensive season since 2020, when he hit .197. Let’s take a look at his OPS+ numbers since he began playing:

2018: 151
2019: 121
2020: 79
2021: 157
2022: 144
2023: 185
2024: 181
2025: 187
2026: 131

Even in the midst of this slump, Ohtani is 31% better than league average this season. Pretty amazing.

Does Ohtani slump early in the season? Let’s look at his numbers per month in his career:

March/April: .293/.369/.559
May: .261/.355/.541
June: .316/.413/.721
July: .248/.361/.543
August: .272/.365/.537
Sept/Oct.: .294/.391/.582

He usually hits fine this time of year. Of course, this season he is also trying to pitch full time. But he hit fine when he was a full-time pitcher with the Angels. Sometimes, players just go through slumps. There’s no reason to believe Ohtani won’t break out of this slump. And if Ohtani went four for four with three homers Wednesday, then I reverse jinxed him.

Stats explained

Every year I get emails from readers who only follow the Dodgers and not baseball in general. They want to know how to calculate various stats and wondered if I could put together a glossary of terms. This seems as good a time as any to do so. Some of you, maybe most of you, probably already know these things, but there are different levels of baseball knowledge among the subscribers, so let’s put us all on the same page. And if you want, you can save this newsletter to refer back to. These definitions come from mlb.com.

Pitching

GF: Games Finished. The number of times the pitcher was on the mound during the final out.

ERA: Earned Run Average. The number of earned runs times nine then divided by the number of Innings Pitched.

CG: Complete Games. When the pitcher throws the entire game without any relief.

SHO: Shutouts. A complete game thrown by the pitcher where the losing team did not score.

Saves. Earned by a pitcher when a. He is the finishing pitcher in a game won by his team. b. he is not the pitcher who earned the win (W). c. he meets one of the following criteria: 1. He came to the mound with a lead of three runs or fewer and pitches at least one inning. 2. He came to the mound with the tying run on base, at bat, or on deck. 3. He pitches effectively for at least three innings.

IP: Innings Pitched. A pitcher with 4.2 innings pitched had four full innings then retired two batters in his fifth inning of work.

ER: Earned Runs. Earned runs are those which scored without the aid of an error, a catcher’s interference call, or a passed ball.

R: Runs Allowed. A total number of runs, earned or not earned, that scored.

K: A strikeout by the pitcher.

Balks. A call against the pitcher for making an illegal motion that the umpire views as an attempt to deceive a baserunner.

Hold. Awarded to a relief pitcher who enters with the lead, retires at least one batter, and does not relinquish the lead.

K/BB: Strikeouts to Base on Balls Ratio. Strikeouts divided by base on balls.

K/9: Strikeouts per nine innings. The number of strikeouts averaged during every nine innings of work. Strikeouts times nine divided by innings pitched.

BB/9: Walks per nine innings. The number of walks averaged during every nine innings of work. Calculated as walks times nine divided by innings pitched.

ERA+: A pitcher’s ERA adjusted to reflect home ballpark and league average. A pitcher with an ERA+ of 100 is a league average pitcher. An ERA+ of 110 means the pitcher’s ERA is 10% better than the league average. An ERA+ of 90 means that the pitcher’s ERA is 10% worse than the league mean.

FIP: Fielding Independent Pitching. FIP is similar to ERA, but it focuses solely on the events a pitcher has the most control over: Strikeouts, walks, hit-by-pitches and home runs.

For example: If a pitcher has surrendered a high average on balls in play, his FIP will likely be lower than his ERA. Balls in play are not part of the FIP equation because a pitcher is believed to have limited control over their outcome.

The formula: The “FIP constant” puts FIP onto the same scale as the entire league’s ERA: ((HR x 13) + (3 x (BB + HBP)) – (2 x K)) / IP + FIP constant.

Hitting

AB: At-bats. Number of times a player batted, excluding walks, sacrifices, catcher interference, or being hit by a pitch.

Plate appearances: The number of times a player batted.

Runs Batted In. Given to a a batter when a runner scores due to a base hit, a sacrifice, being hit by a pitch, during an infield out (but not during a double play), or a fielder’s choice.

Sacrifice Fly. A fly ball hit with less than two outs, fair or foul, that is caught but allows one or more baserunners to tag up and score.

Batting Average. The player’s total number of hits divided by their total number of at-bats.

OB%: On Base Percentage. Determines what percentage of a player’s plate appearances resulted in him reaching base safely. Calculated by adding hits, walks and hit by pitch then dividing that by the player’s at-bats, walks, sacrifice flies and hit by pitch.

SLG%: Slugging Percentage. Calculated by taking the total bases (singles + 2 x doubles + 3 x triples + 4 x home runs) then dividing it by the number of at-bats.

AB/HR: At-Bats per Home Runs. Calculated by dividing the number of at-bats by home runs.

AB/K: At-Bats per Strikeouts. Calculated by dividing the number of at-bats by strikeouts.

OPS: On-Base Plus Slugging. On-base percentage added to slugging percentage.

OPS+: OPS adjusted to reflect league and ballpark conditions, like ERA+ for pitchers. OPS+ is scaled so that 100 is a league average player. Formula: 100 x (OBP/lgOBP + SLG/lgSLG – 1)

BABIP: Batting Average on Balls in Play. BABIP measures a player’s batting average exclusively on balls hit into the field of play, removing outcomes not affected by the opposing defense (namely home runs and strikeouts).

For example, a hitter who goes two for five with a home run and a strikeout would have a .333 BABIP. He’s one for three on the balls he put in play.

The formula: (H – HR)/(AB – K – HR + SF)

BABIP can be used to provide some context when evaluating both pitchers and hitters. The league average BABIP is typically around .300. Pitchers who have allowed a high BABIP is considered to be pitching with “bad luck.” Over time, they’ll see fewer balls in play fall for hits, and therefore experience better results in terms of run prevention. The same applies for batters who have seen a high or low percentage of their balls in play drop in for hits.

Up next

Friday: Atlanta (*-Chris Sale, 6-1, 2.14 ERA) at Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 2-1, 5.23 ERA), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Atlanta (Spencer Strider, 0-0, 8.10 ERA) at Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 1-3, 5.97), 6:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Atlanta (JR Ritchie, 1-0, 3.63 ERA) at Dodgers (*-Justin Wrobleski, 5-0, 1.25 ERA), 1:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

All times Pacific

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Shohei Ohtani is mired in a hitless streak. Here’s what the Dodgers are doing to fix it

How a onetime top Dodgers prospect became an advisor to four U.S. presidents

And finally

Vin Scully tells a story about a childhood prank. 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.

HOUSTON — It was the perfect time for Shohei Ohtani to step up to the plate. The Dodgers’ offense was rolling again, ready to make a statement with a third-inning rally against the Astros. They loaded the bases and turned over the batting order.

Then Ohtani chased a sinker off the plate and chopped a slow bouncer to Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes, giving him an easy play at second. A far departure from the eye-popping exit velocities that Ohtani’s swing usually produces, the run-scoring grounder was soft enough to avoid a double play.

In the Dodgers’ 8-3 win Monday against the Astros, Ohtani’s hitless streak stretched to five games, his longest such skid since 2022, when he also went five games without a hit (May 24-28).

“I do feel like over the course of my career it’s just a reality that I’m not exactly hitting at the best of my ability at this time of year,” Ohtani said last week through interpreter Will Ireton. “At the same time, as a player, I do want to be better and get to that position where I’m feeling really good. It’s a balancing act of the two.”

The rest of the Dodgers’ offense finally broke out on Monday, against a snakebitten Astros pitching staff.

Alex Freeland ended the Dodgers’ homerless streak at six games with an opposite-field shot into the Crawford boxes in the second inning. Leading off the third, Kyle Tucker hit a solo home run of his own, giving the Dodgers their first multi-homer game in two weeks.

Seven Dodgers combined for 13 hits, with Freeland and Will Smith leading the pack with three apiece. Tucker and Freddie Freeman each contributed a pair of RBIs.

The offensive surge just didn’t extend to Ohtani.

Kyle Tucker hits a solo home run for the Dodgers in the third inning against the Astros on Monday.

(Tim Warner / Getty Images)

In contrast to his offensive struggles, Ohtani has been dominant on the mound. He earned a pitcher of the month award for the first time in his career Monday after recording a 0.60 ERA in five starts in March and April.

Unhappy with just one-sided success, however, Ohtani shook up his routine with early on-field batting practice Monday.

“Most of the times when he does this, it works,” manager Dave Roberts said.

Ohtani took on-field batting practice before Game 3 of the 2025 NL Championship Series and then hit three home runs in Game 4. He usually prefers the batting cages for his pregame BP. But Monday marked the second time this season that he moved his session to the field.

“If you hit a ball down the line the other way in the cage, it kind of looks like it’s a foul ball,” hitting coach Aaron Bates said. “Whereas on the field you can see it’s fair, you can kind of see the spin of the ball a little better. It just kind of changes up the environment a little bit. The depth perception, too, helps a lot.”

Hitting the ball the other way was one of Ohtani’s goals.

Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivers during the first inning Monday against the Astros.

(Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

Amid his slow offensive start, Ohtani’s swing has become pull-happy. He’s been hitting the ball to the right side at 53.4% entering Monday, compared to 43.2% last season, according to Statcast.

“It’s more about timing and feel for him, backing up the baseball,” Bates said. “When he gathers correctly and hits through the baseball, obviously we’ve seen what he’s capable of doing. But just kind of managing his at-bats right now, trying to get to the big part of the park.”

For the first time since 2023, Ohtani is also balancing a full starting pitcher’s workload with his offensive responsibilities.

“It is easier to maintain something good when things are going well,” Ohtani said. “But when things are not going well, it’s not easy, in the sense that I have to make sure that I’m healthy and not overdoing it in terms of repetition. So while I’m working on certain things, it’s also a balancing act of making sure I’m not overdoing it physically and making sure that I’m healthy.”

No matter what, it’s going to take a greater physical toll. Case in point: after hitting on the field Monday, Ohtani also threw a bullpen session.

The Dodgers have tried to help him manage his workload by giving him days off from hitting on some of his pitching days. Those pitching-only days weren’t a regular occurrence when Ohtani was with the Angels, but now Ohtani is also preparing for what’s expected to be a deep postseason run.

The Dodgers have given Ohtani two pitching-only days already this season, but Roberts said he plans to have Ohtani hit when he pitches against the Astros on Tuesday.

“It’s doable,” Roberts said when asked about Ohtani trying to fix his swing while pitching. “The bottom line is, there’s no other alternative. He’s going to DH a lot. He’s going to pitch a lot. Now, how best we preserve him and keep him strong and healthy is the question.”

Ohtani’s search for his usual offensive production will continue at least another day. He drew two walks Monday. And the best contact he made was on a fly out to center field (91.2 mph exit velocity) in the seventh inning.

Dodgers fall to the Marlins

From Maddie Lee: Right-hander Shohei Ohtani shook his head slightly as he walked off the field, having escaped the fifth inning with just one run yielded, stranding the bases loaded.

He strode through the dugout and straight back into the tunnel, with time to reset before coming back out for the sixth.

That was a luxury he wouldn’t have had if he was also hitting in the Dodgers’ 2-1 loss to the Marlins on Tuesday. His usual leadoff spot was coming up third in the bottom half of the inning.

“More times than not, it’s been fine,” pitching coach Mark Prior said in a conversation with The Times before the game. “But there are occasions where those conversations in between with the catcher or the staff doesn’t always happen. By him not hitting, it at least allows us to make sure that we’re hopefully, on the same page, and maybe we’re seeing things the same way.

“Obviously, one of the best hitters, so you like him in there offensively. But for the long-term goal of keeping them fresh all year, I think these are smart decisions when we can do it, when it makes sense.”

Continue reading here

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels lose to White Sox

Drew Romo hit the first two home runs of his career as the Chicago White Sox beat the Angels 5-2 on Tuesday night. It was the fifth loss in a row for the Angels.

Colson Montgomery homered in the second off Angels starter José Soriano (5-1), ending his shutout streak at 25 2/3 innings. The right-hander gave up three runs and six hits over five innings, raising his major league-leading ERA from 0.24 to 0.84.

Davis Martin (4-1) outpitched Soriano, giving up one run and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. Martin struck out seven and walked one.

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Angels say rodent infestation at one offending stadium concession stand has been cleaned

Angels box score

MLB standings

Austin Reaves a game-time decision for Game 5

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Less than four weeks after suffering a Grade 2 left oblique muscle strain, Austin Reaves is closing in on a return with the Lakers in position to clinch a spot in the Western Conference semifinals.

Reaves will officially be a game-time decision before Wednesday’s potentially series-clinching Game 5 against the Houston Rockets at 7 p.m. at Crypto.com Arena. He was questionable for Games 3 and 4, warming up on the court before each game, but is “trending in the right direction,” he said Tuesday.

The Lakers have a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series despite playing without Reaves and leading scorer Luka Doncic, who is out because of a Grad 2 left hamstring strain.

“JJ [Redick] specifically was like you have to be comfortable with your body and what you can do to go out there and help us be successful,” Reaves said of his coach in his first comments to reporters since suffering the injury on April 2. “And I want to get back out there as fast as I can.”

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LeBron James needs sidekicks back to help Lakers hold off Rockets

Ex-Lakers assistant admits role in gambling schemes, could face years in prison

Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
at Lakers 101, Houston 94 (box score)
Lakers 112, at Houston 108 (box score)
at Houston 115, Lakers 96 (box score)
Wednesday: Houston at Lakers, 7 p.m., ESPN
*Friday: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., Prime
*Sunday: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

Oilers beat Ducks to force a Game 6

Leon Draisaitl scored a pair of goals and Evan Bouchard chipped in with three assists as the Edmonton Oilers staved off elimination by beating the Ducks 4-1 on Tuesday night.

The Oilers now trail the best-of-seven Western Conference playoff series 3-2 with Game 6 on Thursday night at Honda Center.

Vasily Podkolzin and Zach Hyman also scored for the Oilers who had previously yielded six separate leads to slip away in the first four games of the series.

Ducks summary

NHL playoffs schedule

Ducks playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Edmonton 4, Ducks 3 (summary)
Ducks 6, at Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 7, Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 4, Edmonton 3 (OT) (summary)
at Edmonton 4, Ducks 1 (summary)
Thursday: Edmonton at Ducks, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max, KCOP-13
*Saturday: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD

*-if necessary

This day in sports history

1901 — His Eminence, ridden by Jimmy Winkfield, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 1/2 lengths over Sannazarro in the only Derby ever raced in April.

1961 — ABC’s “Wide World of Sports,” debuts.

1963 — LPGA Titleholders Championship Women’s Golf, Augusta CC: Marilynn Smith beats Mickey Wright by 1 shot in 18-hole playoff.

1970 — Lakers guard Jerry West hits a 60-foot desperation shot at the buzzer to tie Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. The Knicks outscore the Lakers 9-6 in the overtime for a 111-108 win.

1980 — NFL Draft: Oklahoma running back Billy Sims first pick by Detroit Lions.

1981 — NFL Draft: South Carolina running back George Rogers first pick by New Orleans Saints.

1985 — Tony Tubbs captures the WBA heavyweight title with a unanimous 15-round decision over Greg Page in Buffalo, N.Y.

1986 — NFL Draft: Auburn running back Bo Jackson first pick by Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

1990 — Pat Riley becomes the winningest coach in NBA playoff history as the Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 104-100. Riley’s 100th victory put him ahead of Red Auerbach.

1998 — For the first time in the 124-year history of the Kentucky Derby, a redraw is ordered during the post-position draw. Churchill Downs officials allowed ESPN to control the announcing of the draw. Commentator Chris Lincoln called the No. 15 pill twice while picking the draft order for post positions.

2000 — Lennox Lewis knocks down Michael Grant three times in the first round and knocks him out at 2:53 of the second at Madison Square Garden in New York to retain his WBC and IBF heavyweight titles. The combined weight of 497 pounds made it the heaviest title fight ever.

2003 — Indiana outscores Boston 5-0 in overtime for a 93-88 victory, cutting the Celtics’ first-round series lead to 3-2. It’s the first overtime shutout in NBA playoff history.

2006 — NFL Draft: North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams first pick from Houston Texans.

2007 — Phoenix guard Steve Nash has 23 assists, one shy of the NBA playoff record, to help Phoenix to a 113-100 victory over the Lakers.

2010 — The NCAA’s Board of Directors approve a 68-team format for the men’s basketball tournament beginning next season. It’s the first expansion since 2001 when the tourney went from 64 to 65 teams.

2014 — Clippers owner Donald Sterling is banned for life by the NBA in response to racist comments he made in an audio recording. The Clippers’ owner is also fined $2.5 million, the maximum amount allowed under the NBA Constitution.

2018 — Spanish tennis great Rafael Nadal equals his Open-era record for most wins at the same event (11 Monte Carlo) with his 11th Barcelona ATP title.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1902 — Baltimore Orioles infielder John McGraw is hit by pitches five times, but home plate umpire Jack Sheridan refuses to allow him to take first base. In the 9th inning, McGraw is hit for the last time and sits down in the batter’s box in protest. American League president Ban Johnson will suspend McGraw for five games.

1918 — Center fielder Tris Speaker executed the fourth unassisted double play of his career in the Cleveland Indians’ 8-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox.

1922 — The New York Giants hit four inside-the-park home runs in a 15-4 win at Braves Field in Boston. George Kelly hit two and Ross Youngs and Dave Bancroft hit the others. Youngs also hit for the cycle and added a double while going 5-for-5 and driving in five runs.

1931 — Wes Ferrell of the Cleveland Indians pitched a 7-0 no-hitter over the St. Louis Browns, including his brother Rick. Wes also knocked in four runs with a homer and a double.

1933 — In a strange play at home plate, catcher Luke Sewell of the Washington Senators tagged out two Yankees runners on the same play. Lou Gehrig had held up, thinking a fly ball would be caught. Dixie Walker closed up on him, and both were tagged out trying to score.

1958 — Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox becomes the tenth major league player to get 1,000 extra-base hits.

1981 — Steve Carlton struck out Montreal’s Tim Wallach in the first inning of the Philadelphia Phillies’ 6-2 victory over the visiting Expos to become the sixth major league pitcher — and first left-hander — to strike out 3,000 batters.

1986 — Roger Clemens set a major league record by striking out 20 batters as the Boston Red Sox defeated the Seattle Mariners 3-1.

1987 — Andre Dawson had five hits and hit for the cycle to lead the Chicago Cubs to an 8-4 victory the San Francisco Giants.

1988 — The Baltimore Orioles ended their 21-game losing streak by winning their first game of the season, 9-0 over the Chicago White Sox on a combined four-hitter by Mark Williamson and Dave Schmidt.

1994 — Kirk Rueter of the Montreal Expos becomes the first major league pitcher since Fernando Valenzuela in 1981 to start his career with a 10-0 record.

1996 — New York Mets closer John Franco becomes the first left-hander in major league history to record 300 saves.

1997 — Chili Davis of the Kansas City Royals becomes the 75th major leaguer to hit 300 home runs.

2005 — In the first matchup between 300-game winners in almost 18 years, the Cubs’ Greg Maddux outdueled the Astros’ Roger Clemens in Chicago’s 3-2 win over Houston. Maddux earned his first win of season and 306th of his career, allowing two runs on seven hits over six innings.

2006 — Albert Pujols sets a major league record with his 14th home run in April.

2007 — Colorado shortstop Troy Tulowitzki had an unassisted triple play in the seventh inning of the Rockies’ 9-7 win over Atlanta.

2015 — In what was believed to be the first major league game played without fans in attendance, Chris Davis hit a three-run homer in a six-run first inning and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Chicago White Sox 8-2. After a pair of postponements caused by rioting in Baltimore, the Orioles and Chicago White Sox played at Camden Yards. The gates at Camden Yards were locked because of concern for fan safety following recent rioting in Baltimore after a 25-year-old Black man died in police custody.

2017 — Carlos Gomez hit for the cycle for the second time and Rougned Odor hit a tiebreaking two-run homer to help the Texas Rangers beat the Angels 6-3.

2017 — Yasiel Puig, Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner hit consecutive homers off Hector Neris in the ninth, helping the Dodgers rally for a 6-5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Los Angeles trailed 5-2 before the three straight homers.

2020 — The Hall of Fame announces the cancellation of its annual induction ceremony in Cooperstown, NY, scheduled for the last week-end of July, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the ceremony will be combined one year later with the one for the Class of 2021.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

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

The Dodgers claimed a series victory over the Chicago Cubs with a 6-0 win on Sunday.

Their offensive surge from the previous game carried over into the first inning.

Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernández remained patient against Cubs rotation-leader Shota Imanaga, both drawing walks. Then Andy Pages hit a sacrifice fly, Kyle Tucker doubled and Miguel Rojas drove in two runs, to give the Dodgers (19-9) a 3-0 lead.

Neither team scored for the next four innings.

Dodgers left-hander Justin Wrobleski navigated early command issues, issuing three walks in the first two innings before finding his rhythm to get through six frames without allowing a run. He limited the Cubs (17-11) to four hits.

The Dodgers’ bats came alive again in the sixth. Pages led with a double and Kyle Tucker drew a walk, setting up Dalton Rushing’s RBI single through the right side of the field. Tucker later scored on an errant back-pick attempt by Cubs catcher Carson Kelly.

Kyle Tucker scores for the Dodgers in the fifth inning against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.

(Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)

The next inning, designated hitter Shohei Ohtani homered for the first time in two weeks, suggesting the end of his short-lived slump.

Dodgers relievers Edgardo Henriquez, Jack Dreyer and Kyle Hurt completed the shutout.

Will Smith sidelined

Dodgers catcher Will Smith was out of the lineup for the second straight game because of lingering back tightness, according to manager Dave Roberts.

“It’s one of those where he could play if needed,” Roberts said. “But we just thought it was smart to give him an extra day.”

Roberts said the Dodgers were not considering putting Smith on the injured list and hoped he would return to the lineup Monday against the Miami Marlins. It helped that backup catcher Rushing entered Sunday batting .400 with seven home runs in just 11 games.

“You weigh out the positives and negatives,” Roberts said. “But Dalton going the way he’s going, it just only seems like downside to push [Smith] now.”

The decisive blow in the Dodgers’ 12-4 win against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday at Dodger Stadium was the kind of unrelenting rally they hadn’t mustered since leaving Colorado on Monday.

The Dodgers were trailing by a run going into the bottom of the fourth inning. Then they put together a six-run rally.

They stacked up six hits, only one of which was for extra bases, and two walks in the inning, to knock Cubs starter Colin Rea out of the game before piling on against long reliever Javier Assad.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts acknowledged Friday that the offense hadn’t been clicking as a whole for much of the week. That changed Saturday, with contributions from across the lineup.

Shohei Ohtani ended a three-game hitless streak (0 for 12) with a single in the first inning. He went on to draw two walks to reach base three times.

Max Muncy — batting third because he was feeling under the weather and Roberts wanted to take advantage of the matchup with Rea before replacing Muncy with Santiago Espinal — drove in the Dodgers’ first runs. Muncy’s two-run blast in the third inning was his ninth home run of the season.

Dodgers No. 8 hitter Hyeseong Kim started the fourth-inning rally with a line-drive single up the middle. Then Alex Freeland, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernández, Dalton Rushing and Andy Pages combined for six RBIs.

Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki delivers against the Cubs in the first inning Saturday at Dodger Stadium.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

They kept applying pressure against the Cubs’ injury-depleted bullpen, putting together a four-run sixth inning that added two more RBIs to Pages’ tally.

The Dodgers (18-9) forced the Cubs (17-10) to use two multi-inning relievers, which could affect the rubber match Sunday.

Dodgers starter Roki Sasaki gave up three home runs, but they were all solo shots since he limited traffic on the bases. Sasaki surrendered four runs, each in different innings, and left the game in the sixth after putting two runners on base with a walk and single.

Left-hander Jack Dreyer entered and immediately walked designated hitter Moisés Ballesteros to load the bases. But he struck out the next two batters, and right-hander Will Klein finished the escape job.

The bullpen, with Kyle Hurt and Jake Eder also contributing, held back the Cubs the rest of the way. The Dodgers’ victory stopped the red-hot Cubs’ 10-game win streak.

Dodgers lose to the Giants

From Bill Shaikin: José Soriano leads the major leagues with a 0.24 earned-run average. It’s hard to think of something the Angels could do to make him better.

Shohei Ohtani ranks second with a 0.38 ERA. It’s not so hard to think of something the Dodgers could do to make him better.

On Wednesday, however, that might not have turned the Dodgers into winners. The San Francisco Giants won in the unlikeliest of ways: on one swing, a three-run home run from Patrick Bailey, a catcher who opened play batting .145 and had not hit a home run since last season. After Ohtani pitched six shutout innings, Bailey homered off Jack Dreyer in the seventh.

That was not the only unlikely performance: The winning pitcher was Tyler Mahle, who pitched seven shutout innings for his first victory in 10 months. Mahle started the game with an 0-3 record and 7.23 ERA.

That was the ballgame: Giants 3, Dodgers 0, with San Francisco clinching the series and the Dodgers losing for the fourth time in five games. In two games against the Giants, the Dodgers have scored one run.

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Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Mike Trout ties a Garret Anderson record

Mike Trout homered, Nolan Schanuel homered and hit a three-run double and Jose Soriano worked five shutout innings as the Angels beat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-3 on Wednesday to avoid a series sweep.

Trout’s eighth homer of the season was a 428-foot solo shot in the bottom of the fifth. That hit tied the 34-year-old Trout with the late Garret Anderson for the Angels’ franchise record of 796 extra-base hits. Anderson died last week of an acute necrotizing pancreatitis at the age of 53.

Soriano, who is 5-0, gave up three hits and struck out five in five innings before leaving with a 3-0 lead. He lowered his ERA to an MLB-leading 0.24. The 27-year-old right-hander is the first MLB pitcher since 1900 to allow no more than one run in the first six starts of a season, and he has the lowest ERA (with a minimum of 30 innings pitched) through a pitcher’s first six starts of a season since 1913, when earned runs became official in both leagues.

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Angels box score

MLB standings

Ducks even series with Edmonton

Cutter Gauthier broke a tie off a rebound with 4:52 left and the Ducks beat Edmonton 6-4 on Wednesday night in Game 2 to even the first-round series, with Oilers star Connor McDavid slowed by an apparent leg injury.

McDavid appeared to catch an edge early in the second period after getting tangled up with teammate Mattias Ekholm and the Ducks’ Ian Moore. McDavid briefly left the game before returning, playing just over 24 minutes.

Game 3 is Friday night at Honda Center. Edmonton opened the series Monday night with a 4-3 victory.

Gauthier put the Ducks back in front after Josh Samanski — making his playoff debut — tied it at 4 with 6:09 to go. Ryan Poehling put it away with an empty-netter with 1:10 left, his second goal of the game. He scored shorthanded in the second.

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Ducks summary

NHL playoffs schedule

Ducks playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Edmonton 4, Ducks 3 (summary)
Ducks 6, at Edmonton 4 (summary)
Friday: Edmonton at Ducks, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max)
Sunday: Edmonton at Ducks, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Tuesday: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD
*Thursday, April 30: Edmonton at Ducks, TBD
*Saturday, May 2: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD

*-if necessary

Kings playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Colorado 2, Kings 1 (summary)
at Colorado 2, Kings 1 (OT) (summary)
Thursday: Colorado at Kings, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max
Sunday: Colorado at Kings, 1:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max
*Wed., April 29: Kings at Colorado, TBD
*Friday, May 1: Colorado at Kings, TBD
*Sunday, May 3: Kings at Colorado, TBD

*- If necessary

Lakers series is over

From Bill Plaschke: Who knew?

LeBron James flying down the lane unchecked for a pumping, over-the-shoulder slam.

Marcus Smart diving and scrapping and leading cheers with a scream.

Luke Kennard stepping to the free-throw line and hearing the chant, “MVP! … MVP! … MVP!”

Who knew?

Without their two best players, facing the quicker and more bruising Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, who knew the Lakers would do what they did Tuesday night at a roaring Crypto.com Arena?

They say a series doesn’t start until the home team loses a game, but, believe it, this series is already over.

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Lakers’ ‘Swiss Army knife’ Marcus Smart sets the tone against Kevin Durant, Rockets

Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
at Lakers 101, Houston 94 (box score)
Friday: Lakers at Houston, 5:30 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
Sunday: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., NBC
*Wednesday: Houston at Lakers, TBD
*Friday, May 1: Lakers at Houston, TBD
*Sunday, May 3: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

LAFC plays to scoreless draw

Zack Steffen finished with two saves and had his second shutout of the season for the Colorado Rapids in a 0-0 tie with LAFC on Wednesday night at BMO Stadium.

The Rapids (4-4-1) had 71% possession.

LAFC (5-2-2), who had lost back-to-back game for the first time in more than a calendar year, are winless in three straight.

Hugo Lloris had two saves and leads MLS with seven shutouts.

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LAFC summary

MLS standings

Galaxy lose to Columbus

Dániel Gazdag and Diego Rossi each scored to help the Columbus Crew beat the Galaxy 2-1 on Wednesday night in a game delayed for over two hours because of severe weather.

Columbus (2-4-3) has given up just three goals in its first four home matches of the season.

Gazdag scored in the 41st minute when he redirected Hugo Picard’s cross with the outside of his foot.

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Galaxy summary

MLS standings

Final NFL mock draft

From Sam Farmer: This might be the first time in the NFL’s modern era that Pittsburgh has hosted the draft, but the whole format was actually invented here.

In 1935, the league’s founders met at the Fort Pitt Hotel and voted unanimously to put in place a selection process in reverse order of the previous season’s standings. That would promote competitive balance, which has been a hallmark of the NFL ever since.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Las Vegas Raiders. The franchise went 21-41 over the past four seasons and its offense scored a league-worst 241 points last season.

Quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who led Indiana to a national championship, won’t be at the draft but almost certainly will hear his name called first. He’s likely to be the only quarterback selected in the opening round.

A look at how the draft could unfold:

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This day in sports history

1950 — The Detroit Red Wings edge the New York Rangers 4-3 in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup.

1950 — The Minneapolis Lakers become the first team to win back-to-back NBA championships by defeating the Syracuse Nationals 110-95 in Game 6 of the finals. George Mikan leads the Lakers with 40 points in a game marred by three fights, four Minneapolis players fouling out, and Nats coach Al Cervi being ejected for complaining too vociferously about a call.

1954 — The NBA adopts the 24-second shot clock.

1969 — Jerry West scores 53 points to lead the Lakers over Boston 120-118 in the opening game of the NBA finals.

1989 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scores 10 points in his last regular-season game as a Laker in a 121-117 win over Seattle.

1989 — NFL Draft: #1 pick UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman by Dallas Cowboys.

1993 — The Dallas Mavericks avoid matching the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers as the worst team in NBA history, beating Minnesota 103-100 for their 10th triumph of the season.

1993 — Orlando’s Nick Anderson scores 50 points in the Magic’s 119-116 win over the New Jersey Nets at The Meadowlands. Anderson’s feat is overshadowed by Shaquille O’Neal, who rips down the backboard in the first quarter, delaying the game 45 minutes.

2002 — Brent Johnson of the St. Louis Blues ties an NHL record with three straight shutouts in the playoffs. That had not happened in 57 years. Johnson reaches the milestone with a 1-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.

2005 — NFL Draft: University of Utah quarterback Alex Smith first pick by San Francisco 49ers.

2011 — The Portland Trail Blazers rally from 23 points down in the second half, including an 18-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to defeat Dallas 84-82 and tie the first-round series at 2-2. Portland’s Brandon Roy scores 18 in the fourth quarter, including a 4-point play and the go ahead jumper with 39 seconds left. Roy outscores Dallas 18-15 in the quarter.

2017 — Kenyan runner Mary Keitany breaks Paula Radcliffe’s women-only marathon world record with a third victory in London. Keitany completes the 26.2-mile course in 2 hours, 17 minutes and 1 second to shave 41 seconds off Radcliffe’s 12-year-old mark.

2020 — NFL Draft: LSU quarterback Joe Burrow first pick by Cincinnati Bengals.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1903 — The New York Highlanders, who later changed their name to the Yankees, won their first game as a major league team, 7-2 over the Washington Senators.

1913 — New York Giants ace Christy Mathewson beat the Phillies 3-1, throwing just 67 pitches.

1939 — Rookie Ted Williams went 4-for-5, including his first major league home run, but the Red Sox lost to Philadelphia 12-8 at Fenway Park.

1946 — Ed Head of the Brooklyn Dodgers no-hit the Boston Braves 5-0 at Ebbets Field. Head was making his first start after a year’s military service.

1952 — Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians and Bob Cain of the St. Louis Browns matched one-hitters. Cain wound up as the winner, 1-0.

1952 — Hoyt Wilhelm of the Giants hit a home run at the Polo Grounds in his first major league at-bat. He was the winner, too, and pitched 1,070 games in the majors — but never hit another homer.

1954 — Hank Aaron hit the first home run of his major league career. The drive came against Vic Raschi in the Milwaukee Braves’ 7-5 victory over St. Louis.

1962 — After an 0-9 start, the expansion New York Mets won their first game beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-1 behind Jay Hook.

1964 — Ken Johnson of the Houston Colt .45s became the first pitcher to lose a nine-inning no-hitter when Pete Rose scored an unearned run to give the Cincinnati Reds a 1-0 victory.

1978 — Joe Morgan of the Cincinnati Reds makes an error at second base, bringing his major league record of 91 consecutive errorless games to an end.

1989 — Nolan Ryan came within two out of his sixth career no-hitter, losing it when Nelson Liriano tripled in the ninth inning as the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1. Ryan finished with his 10th lifetime one-hitter.

1990 — Steve Lyons of the Chicago White Sox plays all nine positions during an exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs.

1999 — Fernando Tatis of St. Louis became the first in major league history to hit two grand slams in one inning in a 12-5 win over the Dodgers. Tatis also set the record with eight RBIs in one inning.

2008 — The Chicago Cubs won their 10,000th game, joining the Giants as the only franchise to reach that mark with a 7-6 10-inning victory at Colorado.

2009 — Ichiro Suzuki lined James Shields’ second pitch of the game for a home run, the only run of Seattle’s 1-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. It was the 22nd time a leadoff homer was the deciding run in a game, and it was just the second time it happened for the Mariners.

2012 — Ivan Rodriguez, who has caught more games than anyone in big league history, announces his retirement after a 21-year career.

2013 — B.J. Upton and his brother Justin hit back-to-back homers for the first time, leading the Atlanta Braves past the Colorado Rockies 10-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep. It was the 27th time in major league history that brothers homered in the same game, but only the second time they went deep in consecutive at-bats. Lloyd and Paul Waner of the Pittsburgh Pirates also accomplished the feat on Sept. 15, 1938.

2022 — Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers becomes the 33rd member of the 3,000 hit club.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

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

Shohei Ohtani pitches well in Dodgers’ victory

From Maddie Lee: 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.

That strikeout was one of 10 Ohtani had in a performance that was dominant, regardless of the first mark on his previously spotless ERA.

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.

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L.A.’s Blue Era: How popular are the Dodgers? Even the Lakers look up at them. Way up

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Bad play costs Angels

José Caballero laced a two-run double in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the New York Yankees a 5-4 victory over the Angels, moments after the Angels botched an infield popup in a costly misplay Wednesday night.

Aaron Judge hit his third homer of the series and Trent Grisham had a two-run single for the Yankees, who won for only the second time in eight games after an 8-2 start.

Mike Trout hit his fourth homer in three games, putting the Angels ahead 4-3 with a two-run drive in the fifth.

That was still the score when Jazz Chisholm Jr. popped up to the left side with one out and nobody on in the ninth. But shortstop Zach Neto and ex-Yankees third baseman Oswald Peraza miscommunicated, and the ball dropped between them on the infield dirt for a gift single.

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Angels box score

MLB standings

Clippers season comes to an end

From Steve Galluzzo: It was do or die Wednesday night at Intuit Dome, and the Clippers did not do enough to keep their season alive, blowing a 13-point lead early in the fourth quarter and losing to the Golden State Warriors, 126-121.

Having rebounded from a franchise-worst 6-21 start to earn the next-to-last berth in the NBA play-in tournament, coach Tyronn Lue’s resilient bunch could not extend its historic comeback on its home floor.

Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 35 points, Kristaps Porzingis and and Gui Santos each had 20, and Brandin Podziemski added 17. The Warriors were 19 for 41 from three-point range, with Al Horford hitting four in the fourth quarter.

Bennedict Mathurin scored 23 points off the bench while Kawhi Leonard and Darius Garland each added 21 points for the Clippers, who won three of the teams’ four regular-season meetings, including a 115-110 victory in the same arena four days earlier. Wednesday night, however, Leonard was held scoreless in the fourth quarter until the final seconds as the Warriors rallied.

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Clippers box score

Deandre Ayton can take the spotlight

From Broderick Turner: The last time Deandre Ayton appeared in the playoffs was in 2023, when he was a member of the Phoenix Suns and viewed in NBA circles as having the potential to be a force as a center in the league.

A lot has changed since then.

He’s on his second team since those days in Phoenix, playing two years for the Portland Trail Blazers and now the Lakers. He has been viewed by many as an inconsistent player who hasn’t reached his full potential.

Ayton has a chance to prove his worth, to show his critics he has the ability to be elite in the postseason when the Lakers open the first-round of the Western Conference playoffs Saturday against the Houston Rockets at Crypto.com Arena.

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Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

Saturday: Houston at Lakers, 5:30 p.m, ABC
Tuesday: Houston at Lakers, 7:30 p.m., NBC
Friday, April 24: Lakers at Houston, 5:30 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
Sunday, April 26: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., NBC
*Wed., April 29: Houston at Lakers, TBD
*Friday, May 1: Lakers at Houston, TBD
*Sunday, May 3: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

L.A. Olympics questions

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: You ask. We answer. Or at least we’re going to try.

The Times asked readers for their burning questions regarding the Olympics, and it’s the ticketing process that’s bringing the most heat. Locals in Southern California and Oklahoma City endured the presale headaches and sticker shock before the global audience got their shot at securing tickets this week. But with more than two years remaining until the Games open, expect that there will be more questions.

Here is what Times readers wanted to know:

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USOPC ‘quite confident’ of LA28 direction amid ticket sales uproar

Same old Sparks

From Bill Plaschke: One of the WNBA’s founding franchises, the failure-ridden Sparks enter the league’s 30th season attempting to break a five-year playoff drought with an understandable yet unremarkable game plan.

They’re going old. They don’t have a choice. Five years of lottery missteps have produced exactly one current Sparks player, Cameron Brink, a social media star who’s been an injured basketball bust.

While the national champion Bruins spent Monday dancing across the league from Toronto to Chicago, the Sparks didn’t get a chance to acquire any of them, and wound up with three late picks who will raise no eyebrows and play few minutes.

So, yeah, old.

When the Sparks open the season by hosting defending champion Las Vegas May 10, their fans are going to say, “Oh yeah!” followed by a resounding chorus of, “Oh no!”

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This day in sports history

1939 — Stanley Cup Final, Boston Garden, Boston, MA: Boston Bruins beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-1 for a 4-1 series win; first best-of-7 SC Final series.

1949 — The Toronto Maple Leafs win 3-1 to sweep the Detroit Red Wings for the second straight year in the Stanley Cup Finals.

1953 — Stanley Cup Final, Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec: Montreal Canadiens beat Boston Bruins, 1-0 for a 4-1 series win.

1954 — The Detroit Red Wings edge the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 in the seventh game to win the Stanley Cup.

1957 — The Montreal Canadiens beat the Boston Bruins 5-1 to take the Stanley Cup in five games.

1958 — Arnold Palmer edges Doug Ford by one stroke to capture the Masters.

1961 — The Chicago Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup in six games with a 5-1 triumph over the Detroit Red Wings.

1980 — Arthur Ashe retires from pro tennis.

1987 — Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls scores 61 points in a 117-114 loss to the Atlanta Hawks and becomes the second player to surpass the 3,000-point mark in a season.

1990 — Gelindo Bordin becomes the first Olympic men’s champion to win the Boston Marathon. The Italian finishes in 2:08:19. Rosa Mota of Portugal wins the woman’s division in 2:25:24.

1991 — The St. Louis Blues become the eighth team in NHL playoff history to come back from a 3-1 deficit, beating the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in the seventh game.

1995 — PGA Seniors’ Championship Men’s Golf, PGA National GC: Raymond Floyd wins by 5 strokes.

2000 — PGA Seniors’ Championship Men’s Golf, PGA National GC: Doug Tewell wins first of 2 Champions Tour major titles.

2001 — Lee Bong-ju of South Korea wins the Boston Marathon, ending a 10-year victory streak for Kenyan men. Kenya’s Catherine Ndereba wins the women’s race.

2003 — The Mighty Ducks beat the Detroit Red Wings in a 3-2 overtime victory, making the Red Wings the first defending Stanley Cup winner in 51 years to be swept the following season in a four-game opening series.

2003 — Washington Wizards’ Michael Jordan plays his final NBA game.

2008 — Jason Kidd gets the 100th triple-double of his career with 27 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in Dallas’ 111-98 victory over New Orleans.

2013 — Two bombs explode in the crowded streets near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring more than 270 in a bloody scene of shattered glass and severed limbs. Earlier in the day, Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia wins the 117th edition of the marathon and Rita Jeptoo of Kenya takes the women’s race.

2018 — Desiree Linden runs through icy rain and a near-gale headwind to win the Boston Marathon, the first victory for an American woman since 1985.

2019 — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson becomes the highest-paid player in NFL history with a 4-year, $140-million extension.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1929 — Cleveland’s Earl Averill became the first American League player to hit a home run in his first major league plate appearance. The Indians won the game 5-4 in 11 innings on Carl Lind’s double.

1935 — Babe Ruth, 40, made a sensational National League debut in Boston. His single and homer off Carl Hubbell led the Braves over the Giants 4-2.

1940 — Bob Feller of Cleveland defeated the Chicago White Sox 1-0 in the only opening day no-hitter in major league history.

1948 — WGN-TV televised a baseball game for the first time. It was an exhibition game at Wrigley Field with Jack Brickhouse doing the play-by-play. The White Sox defeated the Cubs 4-1.

1961 — Beginning his historic chase of Babe Ruth’s 60 home run season-record, Roger Maris connects for his first homer in the twelfth game of the season for the Yankees.

1972 — Burt Hooton of the Cubs no-hit the Philadelphia Phillies 4-0 at Wrigley Field.

1978 — Bob Forsch of the St. Louis Cardinals no-hit the Philadelphia Phillies 5-0. Less than a year later, Bob’s brother Ken of the Houston Astros pitched a no-hitter against Atlanta. They are the only brothers to throw no-hitters.

1983 — Padres first baseman Steve Garvey appears in his 1,118th straight National League game, breaking the mark held by Billy Williams.

1984 — Dave Kingman of the Oakland A’s hit three home runs, including a grand slam, in his first three at-bats. In total, he drove in eight runs in a 9-6 victory over the Seattle Mariners.

1989 — Kelly Gruber becomes the first player in Toronto Blue Jays history to hit for the cycle in a 15-8 victory against the Kansas City Royals.

1997 — The Chicago Cubs set the mark for worst start in National League history, making three more errors as they extended their losing streak to 12 with a 4-0 loss to the Colorado Rockies. Chicago broke the modern NL record of 0-10 set by Atlanta in 1988 and the overall NL record of 0-11 by the 1884 Detroit Wolverines.

2005 — Toronto’s Reed Johnson was hit by a major league record-tying three pitches — two with the bases loaded — in the Blue Jays’ 8-0 victory over Texas.

2006 — Albert Pujols hit three home runs, including a two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth, to give St. Louis an 8-7 win over Cincinnati.

2007 — The Cleveland Indians became the first team in nearly 55 years to win a game with their only hit coming in their first at-bat. Grady Sizemore led off Cleveland’s 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox with a double.

2009 — Ichiro Suzuki makes history as he collects the 3,086th hit of his pro career, breaking the Japanese record held for decades by Isao Harimoto.

2009 — Grady Sizemore hit a grand slam and Cleveland ruined the first game at the new Yankee Stadium by beating New York 10-2.

2014 — Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda pitched the New York Yankees to a 3-0, 2-0 sweep of the Chicago Cubs in a chilly day-night-doubleheader. The Yankees had not won by shutout twice in one day since April 9, 1987, against Kansas City. No team in the major leagues had done it since Minnesota swept Oakland on June 26, 1988.

2015 — Giancarlo Stanton becomes the Marlins all-time leading home run hitter when he slugs #155 for his career.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

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

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.”