Teoscar

Dodgers beat Rockies, but lose Teoscar Hernández

From Maddie Lee: The Dodgers’ recent string of injuries continued Wednesday when left fielder Teoscar Hernández pulled up limping after trying to beat out a grounder to shortstop.

Once he was thrown out in the second inning of the Dodgers’ 4-1 win against the Rockies, Hernández took his time walking across the field back to the dugout.

He sustained a left hamstring strain, and he is headed to the injured list, manager Dave Roberts said after the game. Hernández, after undergoing preliminary testing Wednesday, is scheduled for imaging Thursday.

“Don’t know how severe it is; he tested well,” Roberts said. “…There’s just no timeline, but something like that obviously is going to be a few weeks at the minimum. Disappointing. He’s been playing so well and he’s a big part of what we’re doing. So to lose him for any length of time is not great.”

This series, as results went, was a success for the Dodgers. They swept the Rockies, outscoring Colorado 24-10 over the course of three games. But the injury losses dealt a blow.

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Kiké Hernández’s oblique shows ‘significant tear’ as utility man returns to IL

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels shut out by Tigers

Spencer Torkelson homered, doubled twice and drove in three runs, and five Detroit pitchers combined for a two-hitter as the Tigers snapped a season-worst seven-game home skid with a 4-0 win over the Angels on Wednesday night.

Despite winning two of their last three games, the struggling Tigers have lost nine of their last 11, 12 of 15 and 17 of their last 21. Detroit has lost six consecutive series for its longest such drought since 2021 and dropped eight of its last nine.

Drew Anderson (2-1) relieved Casey Mize to start the fifth and pitched three perfect innings with three strikeouts. Mize had six strikeouts, gave up two hits and walked one in four scoreless innings before leaving due to an undisclosed injury.

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Angels box score

MLB standings

Lakers to layoff some people

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Lakers informed employees Wednesday there would be a round of layoffs as the organization continues restructuring under new ownership, according to multiple people.

Those familiar with the situation but unable to speak publicly confirmed to The Times that at least 15 people across multiple departments, including communications, marketing and sales, would be laid off.

Since Dodgers owner Mark Walter took over as the majority owner of the Lakers in a record-setting $10-billion deal that was finalized in October, the franchise has gradually overhauled both business and basketball operations.

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NBA draft reform is a miss

From Mirjam Swanson: In the NBA, it’s all: “Together, on three!” Or “defense, on three!”

Or maybe, “Cancún, on three!”

But when the NBA braintrust breaks a huddle, it’s, “3-2-1, overreact!”

“3-2-1, obfuscate!”

“3-2-1, complicate!”

The NBA’s owners are expected to meet Thursday to approve new “anti-tanking draft reform” via a “3-2-1 lottery.” I just know they’re the type of people who love a good board game — one with rules that take a half-hour to explain, by which time their guests’ eyes have glazed over.

Think they’ll get the hint if someone asks, “Y’all got any Clue instead?”

Actually, I’d prefer to turn on the basketball game, that nuanced, ever-evolving sport that’s beautiful for its simplicity: make or miss.

What’s wild is that a league that brings together the world’s best shooters keeps missing so badly on draft reform — unless it’s actually their feet that they’re aiming at.

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Q&A with UCLA’s Rylee Slimp

From Jordan Puente: UCLA softball coach Kelly Inouye-Perez expected sophomore Rylee Slimp to deliver under pressure.

Slimp earned first-team all-Big Ten honors as the leadoff hitter for a Bruins team that features slugging stars Megan Grant and Jordan Woolery. She leads a group of underclassmen who helped send UCLA to the Women’s College World Series.

“I have seen Rylee Slimp just play big from travel ball to big moments in high school, and she came here to play on this big stage,” Inouye-Perez said. “I think her biggest asset, besides the fact that she can hit a home run, is that she can hit to all areas of the field, and she has such a good eye.

“I think she wanted to be in this position this year. She wanted to be the leadoff and be an impact player.”

The Austin, Texas, native is hitting .428 with 16 home runs, 56 RBIs, and 94 runs. Slimp broke Natasha Watley’s UCLA single-season runs record of 75, set in 2001.

The following interview with Slimp ahead of the Bruins’ WCWS opener against No. 1 seed Alabama on Thursday has been edited for length and clarity.

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This day in sports history

1901 — Parader, ridden by Fred Landry, overcomes a bad start to win the Preakness Stakes by two lengths over Sadie S.

1904 — Bryn Mawr, ridden by Eugene Hildebrand, wins the Preakness Stakes by one length over Wotan.

1958 — European Cup Final, Brussels: Francisco Gento scores the winner in extra time as Real Madrid beats AC Milan, 3-2; 3rd consecutive title for Los Blancos.

1969 — European Cup Final, Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid: AC Milan striker Pierino Prati scores 3 in 4-1 win over Ajax; second title for I Rossoneri.

1975 — 19th European Cup: Bayern Munich beats Leeds United 2-0 at Paris.

1978 — Al Unser wins his third Indianapolis 500, the fifth driver to do so, edging Tom Sneva by 8.19 seconds.

1980 — 24th European Cup: Nottingham Forest beats Hamburg 1-0 at Madrid.

1985 — The San Diego Sockers beat the Baltimore Blast 5-3 to win the MISL title in five games.

1995 — Jacques Villeneuve overcomes one penalty and wins by another in the Indianapolis 500. Villeneuve drives to victory after fellow Canadian Scott Goodyear is penalized for passing the pace car on the final restart.

1997 — 5th UEFA Champions League Final: Borussia Dortmund beats Juventus 3-1 at Munich.

2000 — Dutch swimming star Inge de Bruijn sets her third world record in three days, adding the 100 freestyle mark to the 50 and 100 butterfly marks she set previously at the Sheffield Super Grand Prix. De Bruijn becomes the first swimmer to finish under 54.00 in the 100 freestyle at 53.80 seconds.

2003 — Patrick Roy officially announces his retirement from the NHL.

2003 — 11th UEFA Champions League Final: Milan beats Juventus (0-0, 3-2 on penalties) at Manchester.

2006 — Sam Hornish Jr. overcomes a disastrous mistake in the pits and a pair of Andrettis — Marco and father Michael — to win the second-closest Indianapolis 500 ever, by .0635 seconds.

2011 — Novak Djokovic extends his perfect start to the season at the French Open, beating Juan Martin del Potro 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 for his 40th straight victory this year. Djokovic’s 40-0 start to 2011 is the second-best opening streak in the Open era, which started in 1968.

2011 — UEFA Champions League Final, London: FC Barcelona beats Manchester United, 3-1; 4th title for Barça.

2020 — The Boston Marathon canceled for the first time in its 124-year history. The race had originally been scheduled for April 20 before being postponed for five months because of the coronavirus pandemic.

2022 — UEFA Champions League Final, Paris: Carlo Ancelotti becomes first manager to win CL x 4 as Real Madrid beats Liverpool, 1-0.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1918 — Boston’s Joe Bush pitched a 1-0 one-hitter against the Chicago White Sox and drove in the lone run. The only Chicago hit was by Happy Felsch. It occurred when he threw his bat at the ball on a hit and run.

1939 — Philadelphia pitcher Robert Joyce was victimized two straight days by New York’s George Selkirk. Joyce gave up two homers to Selkirk a day earlier. Joyce came on in relief on this day and gave up two more homers to Selkirk. Selkirk ended with four homers in four at-bats against the same pitcher over two successive games. The Yankees won 9-5.

1946 — The Washington Senators beat New York 2-1 in the first night game at Yankee Stadium. The first ball was thrown out by General Electric president Charles E. Wilson.

1951 — After going 0-for-12 in his first three major league games, Willie Mays of the New York Giants hit a home run off Warren Spahn in a 4-1 loss to the Boston Braves.

1956 — Dale Long of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit a home run in his eighth consecutive game, a major league record. Long connected off Brooklyn’s Carl Erskine at Forbes Field.

1968 — The American League announced the league will be split into two divisions. The East division will consist of Baltimore, Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, New York and Washington. California, Chicago, Kansas City, Minnesota, Oakland and Seattle will make up the West.

1979 — George Brett of the Kansas City Royals hit for the cycle and added another home run to beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 in 16 innings.

1986 — Joe Cowley of the Chicago White Sox set a major league record by striking out the first seven batters he faced. He lasted 4 2-3 innings in a 6-3 loss to the Texas Rangers.

1995 — The White Sox and Tigers set a major league record with 12 homers, and combined for an American League-record 21 extra-base hits in Chicago’s 14-12 victory in Detroit.

1998 — Arizona manager Buck Showalter intentionally walked Barry Bonds with the bases loaded and two out in the bottom of the ninth, and the Diamondbacks held on to beat San Francisco 8-7.

2003 — Atlanta became the second team in major league history to start a game with three straight homers in its 15-3 win over the Reds. Rafael Furcal, Mark DeRosa and Gary Sheffield hit consecutive home runs off Jeff Austin in the bottom of the first. The Padres did it against the Giants on April 13, 1987.

2006 — Barry Bonds hit his 715th home run during the San Francisco Giants’ 6-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies to slip past Babe Ruth and pull in behind Hank Aaron and his long-standing record of 755.

2007 — Adrian Beltre tied a franchise record with four extra-base hits, including two homers, as Seattle pounded the Angels 12-5.

2010 — Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera hit three homers in a 5-4 loss to Oakland. Oakland’s Ben Sheets gave up three runs — on Cabrera’s first two homers — worked seven innings in his longest start of the season.

2012 — The Cubs end a 12-game losing streak, their longest since 1997, with an 11-7 win over the Padres at Wrigley Field.

2010 — Matt Cain pitched a one-hitter to match a career best, giving up only a two-out double in the second to Mark Reynolds, and San Francisco beat Arizona 5-0.

2013 — The Mets honor Yankees great Mariano Rivera, who has announced his retirement at the end of the year, by having him throw the ceremonial first pitch before the game between the two teams from the Big Apple at Citi Field, with retired Mets closer John Franco acting as his catcher for the occasion.

2016 — In the thirdrd inning of a game against the Dodgers, Mets P Noah Syndergaard is ejected for throwing at Chase Utley, in apparent retaliation for Utley’s aggressive slide which injured Mets SS Ruben Tejada in last year’s NLDS. Umpire Adam Hamari also tosses Mets manager Terry Collins for arguing his decision, then Utley gets his revenge when he opens the score with a solo homer off Logan Verrett in the 6th and adds a grand slam off Hansel Robles in the 7th. The Dodgers hit five homers in total as they win the game, 9-1.

2019 — Derek Dietrich continues his unlikely homer binge as he hits three, all two-run shots, in leading the Reds to an 11-6 win over the Pirates. With 17 homers this year, he has already topped his career high, and 12 of his last 17 hits have gone over the fence. For the Pirates, rookie Kevin Newman hits his first career homer, a grand slam off Lucas Sims.

2023 — Spencer Strider of the Braves becomes the fastest starting pitcher to record 100 strikeouts in a season, doing so in his 61st inning in an 11-4 win over the Phillies. Last year, Strider set the record for the fastest pitcher to reach 200 Ks in a season.

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’ recent string of injuries continued Wednesday when left fielder Teoscar Hernández pulled up limping after trying to beat out a grounder to shortstop.

Once he was thrown out in the second inning of the Dodgers’ 4-1 win against the Rockies, Hernández took his time walking across the field back to the dugout.

The Dodgers announced that he sustained a left hamstring strain. Utility player Hyeseong Kim replaced Hernández in left field.

This series, as results went, was a success for the Dodgers. They swept the Rockies, outscoring Colorado 24-10 over the course of three games. But the injury losses dealt a blow.

Earlier this month, the Dodgers’ rotation bore the brunt of the injury bug. But recently, it has spread to the position players. Over the last week, three Dodgers position players have left games with injuries.

Last Friday in Milwaukee, third baseman Max Muncy was hit in the wrist by a pitch and sidelined for three games.

Utility player Kiké Hernández made his season debut Monday, after starting the season on the injured list while recovering from offseason surgery on his left elbow, and helped fill in for Muncy’s temporary absence. But Hernández logged just four at-bats before landing on the IL again, lifted from Tuesday’s game with a strained left oblique.

Even after tweaking his oblique in batting practice Monday, Kiké Hernández went four for four with two doubles and a home run as he played through the injury.

Teoscar Hernández’s hamstring strain came in the midst of a hot offensive stretch. Entering Wednesday, he had a 1.072 OPS in his last 13 games.

Manager Dave Roberts also pulled Shohei Ohtani from the Dodgers’ blowout win Tuesday, after he was hit on the right hand by a changeup. But that had more to do with the score, an opportunity to get Dalton Rushing more at-bats, and getting Ohtani ready for his start on the mound Wednesday.

For the second week in a row, Ohtani was in the batting order while also pitching. And for the second pitching start in a row, he gave himself run support with a leadoff home run.

This jumped off his bat at an exit velocity of 111.3 mph, according to Statcast, landing on the netting beyond the center field wall.

Shohei Ohtani runs the bases after leading off Wednesday’s game with a home run.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

His pitching performance was less straightforward. He held the Rockies hitless through six innings. But he still gave up a run, thanks to a total of five free passes (four walks and a hit batter).

Two of them set up the Rockies’ scoring opportunity. With runners on first and third in the fourth inning, the Rockies’ Willi Castro hit a grounder to the right side of the infield, pulling first baseman Freddie Freeman away from the base.

But second baseman Alex Freeeland, recalled Wednesday as the corresponding move as Kiké Hernández went on the IL, ranged to his left and dove to first base with the ball, beating Castro to the bag for the second out of the inning. Ohtani acknowledged Freeland with a point.

A run scored, but Freeland’s hustle set up Ohtani to get out of the inning without further damage.

The Dodgers held the Rockies hitless until the eighth inning, when Tyler Freeman hit a ground-ball single through the right side of the field off reliever Tanner Scott, in the midst of a scoreless inning.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers scored almost all their runs on homers, with Freddie Freeman and Andy Pages adding their own solo blasts after Ohtani, and Alex Call contributing an RBI single.

MILWAUKEE — Teoscar Hernández backpedaled up the line as he watched the flight of his deep fly ball down the left-field line.

It clanged off the left-field foul pole to give the Dodgers the lead for the first time in a game they’d win 11-3.

“It was big,” Hernández said after going three for four with six RBIs, tying a career high. “We took the lead, and that was the best thing. We put less pressure on [starter Roki] Sasaki, so he could keep pitching the way he was pitching after the first inning. So it was a great [fourth] inning.”

The Dodgers’ offense, led by Hernández, came alive after a quiet first game of the series.

His heroics in the comeback victory — which also included a record-setting performance from the bullpen — were a high point in his offensive turnaround the last two weeks.

“I just think that he’s heightened his focus,” manager Dave Roberts said. “I think that his at-bat quality has been considerably better. I don’t think he’s wasting at-bats.

“For me personally, early on, I think that there was a couple of at-bats per night that he was just giving away. And now the last eight days, something like that, I don’t see him giving away any at-bats. And the production has reflected that.”

Hernández’ first hit of the game was made all the more dramatic by the rut the Dodgers started in.

Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki throws during the first inning of a win over the Brewers on Saturday in Milwaukee.

(Jeffrey Phelps / Ap Photo/jeffrey Phelps)

Sasaki, coming off his best start of his MLB career against the Angels last week, ran into trouble right away against the Brewers.

Six pitches in, he’d already given up back-to-back doubles en route to the first run. To make matters worse, his own error extended the inning. He got the Brewers’ Andrew Vaughn to chase a low splitter for a swinging bunt up the third-base line. Sasaki barehanded it cleanly but threw behind Vaughn. As the ball caromed off the retaining wall in foul territory, another run scored.

A fielder’s choice and a walk later, pitching coach Mark Prior strode out of the dugout for a mound visit. The Brewers played “Message in a Bottle” over the loudspeakers.

Sasaki answered his own SOS, with some help from his defense. He struck out Jake Bauers. And then in a 2-2 count to Sal Frelick, Sasaki threw a fastball up and out of the zone. Frelick got on top of it to line a single off the end of shortstop Mookie Betts’ glove as he leaped after it.

The single drove in a third run, but center fielder Andy Pages scooped up the ball and caught Gary Sánchez trying to go from first to third on the play, ending the inning.

Then Sasaki held the Brewers scoreless for the next four innings, retiring 10 straight as he bided time for the offense to make up the deficit.

The Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman slides safely past the Brewers’ Gary Sánchez to score a run during the eighth inning Saturday in Milwaukee.

(Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)

“It seemed a little like Groundhog Day that first inning, how it started,” Roberts said. “But for Roki to find a way to get out of it with three runs, and then settle in, settle down — his stuff got better in the third, fourth and fifth innings, and I told him that. Young pitchers, to understand that even if you get hit in the mouth early, you gotta find a way to keep going, so you don’t blow up your bullpen.”

Freddie Freeman got the Dodgers’ fourth-inning rally started with a leadoff double. Then Pages drove him in by roping his own double into the left-field corner, trimming the Brewers’ lead to two runs.

When Kyle Tucker drew a one-out walk, he gave Hernández the chance to put the Dodgers ahead with one swing. He took it.

“I’m just hitting the ball in the air, hitting it hard,” Hernández said. “That’s what you want as a hitter, and I think that’s what’s been the difference between the last two weeks [versus] the weeks before.”

He entered Saturday with a 1.001 OPS since the beginning of last homestand, compared to a .667 OPS up to that point.

Going into a three-city road trip last week, Hernández said refusing to dwell on poor results, especially in big situations, had been key.

“It was more like getting confidence and getting to trust myself again,” Hernández said. “And then just go out there and trust my swing, trust the work, and just trying to select better pitches to hit.”

In addition to coming up in the big situation, Hernández also contributed to the Dodgers’ late rallies, as they batting through the order in both the eighth and ninth innings to tack on seven runs.

The Dodgers’ bullpen shut down the Brewers for four innings. The performance from Alex Vesia, Kyle Hurt, Tanner Scott and Jonathan Hernández extended the bullpen’s scoreless streak to 36 consecutive innings, eclipsing the Dodgers’ previous record of 33 innings in 1998.

“The biggest thing is that they’re attacking in the hitters, they’re pounding in the strike zone, and when they need a pitch for a double play, they executed really well,” Teoscar Hernández said. “In ‘24 they helped us a lot, ‘25 too, and this year is not going to be different. They’re built for this, and they’re ready for it.”

Injury update

Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy’s right wrist was sore Saturday, as expected after he was hit by a 95.5-mph sinker the night before.

“We’re going to kind of give him a rest day to try to get that swelling out, and then see where he’s at [Sunday],” Roberts said. “And like I said, he’ll be down for the weekend, and then we’ll kind of see where we get to on Monday.”

Depending on how he’s recovering, the Dodgers could send Muncy to get a CT scan when they’re back in Los Angeles.

Dodgers utility player Kiké Hernández (left elbow surgery recovery) is expected to join the team Monday in Los Angeles. Roberts plans to write him into the starting lineup when Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland starts against the Dodgers.

Taylor returns

A day after word spread former Dodger Chris Taylor had opted to retire, he reportedly changed his mind and joined the Minor League Baseball injury list with a left forearm fracture.