Wimbledon

DeShaun Foster was hired on a hunch.

What other way was there to evaluate someone who had no experience for the role he was being brought in to fill?

The hope was that the longtime position coach could quickly grow on the job as UCLA’s football boss while leveraging his unrivaled passion for restoring his alma mater to the glory it had last enjoyed during Foster’s playing days.

Nearly a year and a half later, there are an increasing number of signs indicating that Foster’s hire might have been a smart gamble.

After the Bruins won four of their last six games to end 2024 with a 5-7 record, Foster didn’t simply point to that late-season success as a reason to stay on the same path. Instead, he quickly pivoted to revamp a coaching staff that had been hired on the fly and generated one of college football’s most disappointing offenses.

Among the newcomers were several dogged recruiters who immediately revived the team’s ability to land the sort of elite high school recruits who had usually looked elsewhere under the Chip Kelly regime. UCLA’s 2026 recruiting class, which includes a quartet of four-star players and is currently ranked No. 21 in the country by 247Sports.com, could be the Bruins’ best since Jim Mora challenged the likes of Michigan and Ohio State for the nation’s top prospects.

Another encouraging development revealed itself Thursday inside a Mandalay Bay convention center in Las Vegas. Foster chased away the ghosts of his 2024 Big Ten media days bumble by delivering a 6 1/2-minute opening monologue that presented a coherent message amid a touch of self-deprecating humor, the coach referring to his infamous “We’re in L.A.” line from a year ago as “the most obvious geography lesson in Big Ten history.”

“You’re gonna see growth in my team this year, and you saw growth with me with this press conference,” Foster told a small group of Los Angeles-based reporters afterward. “But, you know, I was looking forward to this, and like I told you guys before, I’ve been waiting on this opportunity to come back out here.”

Perhaps the biggest difference between Foster’s latest public performance and his stumble a year ago was that he actually prepared this time, clutching several sheets of paper instead of riffing off the top of his head to regrettable results.

That’s not to say that Foster has fully silenced the doubters. As his team prepares to open training camp Wednesday in Costa Mesa, there are unknowns galore about a roster that will feature an almost entirely new defense and a transfer quarterback who has only a month to master the offense after transferring from Tennessee.

The baseline for success in Year 2 under Foster should be at least six wins and an accompanying bowl game, which would still fall well short of what the Bruins accomplished with Foster on their roster. Remember, they nearly made the first BCS title game at the end of Foster’s freshman season in 1998 (Damn you, lack of instant replay on the alleged Brad Melsby fumble).

But a winning season combined with a horde of promising prospects on the way would serve as the biggest signal yet that maybe, just maybe, Foster is the right guy for the job.

Promising debut

Nico Iamaleava walks off the field after the UCLA Spring Football Showcase on May 3.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

It would have been easy for UCLA to squirrel away its new 6-foot-6 quarterback until the season started, saving Nico Iamaleava from a fusillade of questions that felt like a Congressional hearing.

But there was the transfer from Tennessee on Thursday, facing one of the biggest scrums of reporters near the end of the final Big Ten media day.

“I wanted to bring him here,” Foster said. “Just, you know, it’s time to let you tell your story. A lot of people wrote a book for you and didn’t talk to him about it, so I just wanted him to be able to come out here … and, like, really tell his truth.”

Iamaleava told a fairly straightforward story about wanting to move closer to his Long Beach home to play in front of family for a team that he considered attending out of high school. More importantly, he never came close to getting frazzled by a series of probing, repetitive questions about the circumstances of his departure from Tennessee.

“He’s just somebody that I don’t think can really get rattled, you know?” Foster said. “Personality wise, he’s kind of quiet a little bit, but, you know, has confidence. But a quarterback, you’ve got to be able to function with stuff [happening] around you.”

Letting Iamaleava get the media scrutiny out of the way now was a smart move that will let him fully focus on something far more important — preparing for the season opener against Utah on Aug. 30 at the Rose Bowl.

Looking ahead

UCLA is installing a new grass practice field outside the Wasserman Center,

(Ben Bolch / Los Angeles Times)

For the first time since it slogged through the San Bernardino heat in 2016, UCLA will hold its football training camp off campus.

The team will use the Jack Hammett Sports Complex in Costa Mesa, a previous home to the Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders.

The site’s proximity to coastal breezes could prevent the Bruins from spending as much time soaking in ice baths as they did in San Bernardino, where temperatures routinely reached triple digits.

Right tackle Garrett DiGiorgio said the team’s hotel was only four minutes away from the practice fields, meaning players won’t be stuck on buses for a long commute.

The move to train off campus was made in large part because UCLA is installing a new grass practice field outside the Wasserman Center, but it could have additional benefits for a team that’s integrating dozens of transfers and high school freshmen.

A bear market?

This could be a historic year for UCLA sports.

After finishing fifth in the Learfield Directors Cup that measures broad-based success in college athletics, the Bruins could challenge for the top spot in 2025-26 based on an extraordinary combination of returning talent and gifted newcomers.

What’s perhaps most intriguing is that the football and men’s basketball teams could join their Olympic-sport counterparts in winning big upon the arrival of Iamaleava and point guard Donovan Dent.

In a wide-ranging interview with The Times, UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond said he was bullish on the Bruins’ chances to follow up a prosperous debut Big Ten season with even greater success.

“A lot of people put in a lot of work to put us in this position, and we’re going to keep working, you know?” Jarmond told The Times. “So I’m really, really proud and I’m really excited about what we’re doing and where we’re going.”

Opinion time

Does Terry Donahue belong on a Mt. Rushmore of UCLA football?

(Reed Saxon / Los Angeles Times)

UCLA has produced some legendary football coaches, from Terry Donahue to Red Sanders to Tommy Prothro. Its list of celebrated players is far longer, including numerous inductees into the college and pro football halls of fame.

Who are your favorites? If you had to pick four figures to place on a Mount Rushmore of UCLA football (say, along a Bel-Air hilltop overlooking campus), who would they be? Email your responses to [email protected] and we’ll post the results next week.

Remember when?

Foster has experience coming off a disappointing UCLA season with a tough opener at the Rose Bowl like his team will face late next month when Utah coach Kyle Willingham brings his team to Pasadena.

In their 2000 opener, the Bruins faced third-ranked Alabama at the Rose Bowl and it looked like things might get ugly. UCLA lost starting quarterback Cory Paus after the first drive with a sprained shoulder ligament. The Bruins fell behind when the Crimson Tide scored the first touchdown on a punt return.

But then backup quarterback Ryan McCann and Foster engineered a stunning 35-24 victory that coach Bob Toledo at the time called the second-greatest of his UCLA career behind only a double-overtime triumph against USC in 1996.

Foster tied a school record with 42 carries for what was then a career-high 187 yards and McCann completed 14 of 24 passes for 194 yards, including a 46-yard touchdown to Freddie Mitchell. You can watch that game here.

Unranked at the time, UCLA went on to win its first three games en route to a No. 6 ranking before finishing the season with a 6-6 record after a 21-20 loss to Wisconsin in the Sun Bowl.

In case you missed it

After successful Big Ten debut, UCLA has designs on something even bigger

‘It came down to me wanting to be back home’: Nico Iamaleava details move to UCLA

A year after stumbling at Big Ten media days, UCLA’s DeShaun Foster is poised and confident

Wide receiver Kaedin Robinson suing NCAA in bid to play for UCLA this season

‘It was a real blessing’: Ben Howland remains grateful long after leaving UCLA

Have something Bruin?

Thank you for reading the first UCLA Unlocked newsletter. Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on X @latbbolch. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. This week, with official football practice beginning on Monday, let’s look at the players who never pass up doughnuts, steaks or pancakes — the offensive linemen.

Looking for pancakes

Those with ambitions of winning football championships know it starts with the offensive line.

In the City Section, Birmingham has weaknesses to fix, but a big, experienced offensive line that will create openings for two promising running back transfers will be key to the Patriots’ City title hopes. Leading the way is junior Pablo Granados, an improving 6-foot-4, 280-pound left tackle who started as a sophomore.

San Pedro returns two All-City linemen in David Medina and Quincy Couch. Banning has Erick Hernandez, a 6-5, 260-pound senior. Kai Wheeler is a 6-2, 320-pound senior offensive tackle from Crenshaw becoming more agile and stronger.

Kodi Greene (No. 75) of Mater Dei blocks last season. He’s one of the nation’s top blockers.

(Craig Weston)

Mater Dei went unbeaten in the Southern Section last season aided by a strong offensive line, and two of the Monarchs’ top blockers return in Kodi Greene and Lex Mailangi. Servite might have the best sophomore lineman in Elisha Mueller. Alabama commit Sam Utu leads an experienced Orange Lutheran line that includes junior Lucas Rhoa.

Josh Haney at JSerra, Niniva Nicholson at Santa Margarita and Kaden Franco at St. John Bosco round out an impressive group of blockers in the Trinity League.

Cooper Javorsky, a UCLA commit at San Juan Hills, had a great off season to surge as a player and prospect. Andre White at Rancho Cucamonga and Elisha Faamatuainu of Murrieta Valley are big men to watch in the Inland Empire. Dylan Felli of Mission Viejo is the key blocker for quarterback Luke Fahey.

Blake Graham of Leuzinger is a 280-pound battering ram.

Schools deal with ICE raids

With downtown Los Angeles in the background, Contreras football coach Manuel Guevara prepares for another obstacle this season _ ICE raids that strike fear among his players and their parents.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

As high school football practices begin Monday, three downtown Los Angeles high schools, Contreras, Roybal and Belmont, are trying to deal with the effects of ICE raids in the community.

Summer practices have been disrupted. Coaches have been trying to keep players safe and calm fears of parents.

Here’s a look at the fears and obstacles ahead.

Unsung contributors

Micaiah Underwood operates Hart High’s drone on Wednesday morning.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Drone operators, managers and athletic trainers. As football practices begin Monday, coaches are relying on unsung contributors to help them manage programs.

Here’s a look.

This is the way

Hamilton coach Elijah Asante (left) and Jordan coach James Boyd are on friendly terms. Asante was his high school coach.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

There’s lots of challenges among City Section coaches, but the only way forward is to focus on players you have, teach them, allow them to have fun and prepare them for life ahead.

Here’s a look at why City coaches have stopped fighting and started sharing stories and ideas to move forward.

Notes . . .

Kinsley Spencer celebrates after scoring a run for Westchester Little League softball team that won the West Regional on Friday.

(Craig Weston)

The Westchester Del Rey softball team will be competing in the Little League World Series in North Carolina this week. Here’s the report. . . .

Quarterback Deuce Jefferson from Long Beach Poly has committed to Weber State. . . .

Corona High first-round draft picks Seth Hernandez, Billy Carlson and Brady Ebel received a combined $16,235,900 in signing bonuses. . . .

Warren graduate Angel Cervantes, a second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates, announced he would be attending UCLA. The hard-throwing Cervantes will be a key addition to the Bruins’ pitching staff. The deadline to sign a pro contract is 2 p.m. on Monday. Here’s the report. . . .

The Perfect Game All-American Game will be held Aug. 17 at Petco Park. Among the players selected for the West team is outfielder Blake Bowen of JSerra, infielder Trey Ebel of Corona, outfielder Isaiah Hearn of Chaminade, outfielder Anthony Murphy of Corona, pitcher Logan Schmidt of Orange Lutheran and outfielder Eric Zdunek of Orange Lutheran. . . .

Joseph Nava is the new wrestling coach at Santa Margarita. Ivan Buich, a former USC assistant, is the school’s new boys water polo coach. . . .

Defensive lineman JD Hill of Mission Viejo has committed to Northern Arizona.

From the archives: Jordin Canada

Former Los Angeles Sparks guard Jordin Canada in 2023.

(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

During her prolific high school basketball days at Windward, Jordin Canada said she wanted to become a nurse. Basketball, though, has taken up much of her time, from UCLA to spending eight years in the WNBA.

This season she’s playing for the Atlanta Dream, averaging 10 points a game. The former Los Angeles Times player of the year was at the beginning of the rapid growth of girls’ basketball in the Southland.

Here’s a story from 2013 when she was The Times’ player of the year.

Here’s a video from 2013 on Canada’s guard skills in the state championship game.

Recommendations

From Abqjournal.com, a story on former Mira Costa third baseman Kyle Karros.

From Themercedfocus.org, a story on a sportswriter switching sides.

From Burlisononbasketball, a story on late summer basketball movers.

From BaseballAmerica, a story on UCLA coach John Savage trying to keep building without lots of transfers.

From NFHS.org, a story encouraging multi-sport athletes in high school.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

From Ryan Kartje: USC star freshman Alijah Arenas will miss at least the next six-to-eight months after sustaining a serious knee injury that will require surgery, leaving his future with the Trojans in question.

An MRI this week found a slight meniscus tear, as well as a bone bruise, according to a person familiar with the situation not authorized to discuss it publicly, dealing a critical blow to both USC and a player it hoped could become a superstar in short order.

“Alijah is a tremendous worker, teammate, competitor and person,” USC coach Eric Musselman said in a statement. “He is understandably disappointed that he will not be able to take the court to start the season, but his health is our No. 1 priority.”

The injury comes just two weeks after Arenas was cleared to practice with USC, and three months after he survived a carwreck in his Tesla Cybertruck. Now it’s unclear how much he’ll play for USC — if at all.

Continue reading here

DODGERS

From Kevin Baxter: For 2 ½ hours of a sun-splashed Wednesday afternoon, the Dodgers were playing up to — or perhaps down to — recent expectations.

Their offense consisted mainly of a Shohei Ohtani home run while the starting pitching kept them in the game, but then everything appeared to go off the rails when manager Dave Roberts went to his bullpen.

This time there was a surprise ending though, with Freddie Freeman lining a two-strike, two-out, two-run single to left field to give the Dodgers a walk-off 4-3 win over the Minnesota Twins.

The win was just the second in six games since the All-Star break. But with the team beginning a nine-game, three-city road trip, its longest of the second half, Friday in Boston, Roberts believes the comeback could provide the spark the Dodgers have been missing.

Continue reading here

The California League is abandoning Modesto. How pro baseball might stick around

Dodgers box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

ANGELS

Pete Alonso hit a three-run homer to power the New York Mets to a 6-3 win and series sweep of the Angels on Wednesday.

Alonso, mired in a 2-for-34 slump dating to July 10, homered two batters after Francisco Lindor broke a career-long 0-for-31 drought with an RBI single.

Brandon Nimmo hit his 14th career leadoff homer and Lindor added another RBI single in the fourth for the Mets, who swept a series for the fifth time this season.

Continue reading here

Angels box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

RAMS

From Gary Klein: Sean McVay has led the Rams to two Super Bowl appearances, one championship and six playoff appearances.

Now, as he prepares for his ninth season, the 39-year-old coach once again has a team regarded as a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

The roster includes experience — quarterback Matthew Stafford is entering his 17th season — and young stars such as receiver Puka Nacua and edge rusher Jared Verse, the 2024 NFL defensive rookie of the year.

“I love the natural, just zest and the joy that this group has,” McVay said this week as players reported for training camp at Loyola Marymount.

Which is not to say that McVay, Snead and the Rams do not have concerns.

Here are five issues to watch as the Rams prepare for their Sept. 7 opener against the Houston Texans:

Continue reading here

CHARGERS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: As the Chargers’ team bus rolled down the freeway past Poway and toward San Diego, Tony Jefferson couldn’t help but smile.

This feels like home.

Eight years after the Chargers left San Diego, the organization is reintroducing itself to the city with two days of training camp this week. Fans who couldn’t secure tickets to practice at the University of San Diego on Tuesday still clamored for a glimpse from the top of a nearby hill. Jefferson, a San Diego native who grew up rooting for the Chargers, has been happy to see the support grow after the franchise’s contentious departure.

“With any sports team that leaves the city, [fans] feel empty when it comes to that spot,” said Jefferson, who signed with the Chargers last year. “But I think we’re gradually filling that void back.”

Coach Jim Harbaugh’s numerous ties to San Diego and instantaneous winning appeared to smooth out a potential reunion with the city. When team executives approached him about returning to San Diego for training camp, the coach eagerly agreed. He suggested the University of San Diego campus, where he got his head coaching start in 2004 for the Toreros.

Continue reading here

ANGEL CITY

From Kara Alexander: Ever since she visited Los Angeles with her national team three years ago, Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir knew she wanted to play in the National Women’s Soccer League one day.

When the opportunity to play for Angel City presented itself, Jónsdóttir was eager to join the league and play for new Angel City coach Alexander Straus.

“When Angel City came up, I was just really excited about it,” she said. “I know Alex. I played against him when he was at Bayern and so I knew he was a great coach.”

Three new players have joined Angel City (4-3-6) during the past few months, delivering an infusion of talent for a team that sits in 11th place in the 14-team NWSL standings. The league’s top eight teams advance to the playoffs.

Continue reading here

NASCAR

From Kevin Baxter: NASCAR is returning to Southern California, only its cars will be racing on the streets of Coronado and not on an oval in Fontana. The stock car racing circuit announced Wednesday it will be hosting a three-day series of races June 19-21, ending in a NASCAR Cup Series race on the U.S. Naval base in Coronado.

NASCAR did not race in Southern California last year for the first time since 1997, with the exception of 2021, when the schedule was hampered by the coronavirus pandemic. For much of that time, the races were held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, but that track was torn down in 2023 to make room for a giant warehouse complex. NASCAR preserved part of the grandstand and had hoped to built a half-mile oval track on the site, but that project has stalled and is unlikely to be revived.

NASCAR also raced on a temporary quarter-mile oval on the floor of the Coliseum, but that event has also been abandoned.

Next summer’s Coronado race, which came to fruition after years of careful negotiation, is the first NASCAR event to be run on an active military base. It is being timed to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Navy and will feature a race weekend including an Xfinity Series race and a Craftsman Truck Series event.

Continue reading here

TOUR DE FRANCE

Sprint specialist Jonathan Milan pounced at the finish to win the 17th stage of the Tour de France after a crash in the last kilometer derailed rivals’ hopes on Wednesday.

Italian rider Milan, the green jersey holder, consolidated his lead in the points classification with an explosive finish to get his wheel just over the line ahead of Jordi Meeus, Tobias Lund Andresen, Arnaud De Lie, Davide Ballerini and others in a rain-soaked sprint finale.

It’s Milan’s second stage win of the Tour after his victory in similar fashion in Laval on Saturday.

But it was arguably more dramatic with rival sprinter Tim Merlier and others involved in a crash under the “flamme rouge” — the triangular red banner over the road signaling the final kilometer.

“The last 25 kilometers were really, really, fast,” said Merlier, who finished 25th, more than a minute behind. “I think I did a mistake. I took one roundabout on the wrong side and I lost a lot of positions. And then I knew I needed to move up. The moment I wanted to move up, I crashed.”

Milan was in trouble earlier in the stage when the peloton split into two groups, finding himself in the second one. He had Lidl-Trek teammates Quinn Simmons and Jasper Stuyven to thank for dropping back to help.

“I didn’t survive alone, I survived with the help of my teammates and I have to appreciate this. Without them, I would still be on one of the climbs, I wouldn’t be here,” said Milan, who clocked 71.1 km/h and is the first Italian to win two stages in the same Tour since Vincenzo Nibali in 2014.

There was no change atop the overall standings with three-time Tour champion Tadej Pogačar maintaining his lead of 4 minutes, 15 seconds over main rival Jonas Vingegaard.

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1908 — John Hayes wins the Olympic marathon in a record of 2 hours, 55 minutes, 18.4 seconds. Italian Dorando Pietri is the first athlete to enter the stadium, but collapses several times before being disqualified when officials help him across the line.

1931 — Paavo Nurmi sets the world record at 2 miles in a meet at Helsinki, Finland, with a time of 8:59.6.

1960 — Jay Hebert beats Jim Ferrier by one stroke to win the PGA golf tournament.

1967 — Don January wins a playoff by two strokes over Don Massengale to win the PGA championship.

1970 — The International Lawn Tennis Association institutes the nine-point tiebreaker rule.

1976 — John Naber of the United States becomes the first swimmer to break the 2-minute barrier in the 200-meter backstroke at the Olympics in Montreal.

1976 — Mac Wilkins of the United States sets an Olympic record in the discus with a toss of 224 feet in Montreal.

1977 — Hollis Stacy wins the U.S. Women’s Open golf championship by two strokes over Nancy Lopez.

1998 — Tour de France riders, angered by the drug scandal that has dominated the event, protest by delaying the start of racing for two hours. Armin Meier, a member of the Festina team who was kicked off the tour the previous week, admits to a French radio station that he used a banned drug.

2005 — Lance Armstrong wins his seventh consecutive Tour de France. All of the titles are stripped in 2012 for doping.

2008 — Nancy Lieberman makes a one-game appearance for the Detroit Shock after the 50-year-old Hall-of-Famer signed a seven-day contract earlier in the day. Lieberman, finishes with two assists and two turnovers, surpassing her own record as the oldest player in WNBA history. Lieberman held the record playing at age 39 in 1997 while playing for the Phoenix Mercury.

2009 — Ron Hornaday Jr. holds off a late challenge from Mike Skinner to win the AAA Insurance 200, making him the first driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to win four consecutive races.

2010 — Fourteen-year-old Jim Liu of Smithtown, N.Y., beats Justin Thomas of Goshen, Ky., 4 and 2 to become the youngest U.S. Junior Amateur champion. Liu, who turns 15 next month, is more than six months younger than Tiger Woods when he won the first of his three consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur titles in 1991.

2011 — Cadel Evans wins the Tour de France, becoming the first Australian champion in cycling’s greatest race.

2014 — Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice receives a two-game suspension from the NFL following his offseason arrest for domestic violence. The six-year veteran was arrested following a Feb. 15 altercation in Atlantic City, New Jersey, with then-fiancee Janay Palmer.

2016 — Chris Froome celebrates his third Tour de France title in four years. The British rider finishes safely at the back of the main pack during the final stage, arm-in-arm with his teammates during the mostly ceremonial final stage ending on the Champs-Elysees. Froome, who also won the Tour in 2013 and 2015, becomes the first rider to defend the title since Miguel Indurain won the last of his five straight in 1995. Lance Armstrong was stripped of his seven consecutive titles for doping.

2019 — 19-year-old Hungarian swimmer Kristof Milak breaks Michael Phelps’ 10-year-old 200m butterfly record in a time of 1:50.73, 0.78s faster than Phelps.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1909 — Nap Rucker of the Brooklyn Dodgers struck out 16 batters in a 1-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

1931 — In an 8-7 loss to Pittsburgh, Babe Herman of Brooklyn hit for the cycle for the second time in the season.

1947 — Jackie Robinson stole home for the first time in his major league career in the Brooklyn Dodgers’ 4-2 win over Pittsburgh.

1948 — Chicago White Sox outfielder Pat Seerey become the first major leaguer to strike out seven times in a doubleheader.

1949 — Cleveland pitcher Bob Lemon hit two home runs to lead the Indians to a 7-5 victory over the Washington Senators in the opener of a doubleheader.

1968 — Hoyt Wilhelm of the Chicago White Sox passed Cy Young’s major league record when he made his 907th appearance. He retired with 1,070 appearances.

1973 — Bobby Bonds homered and doubled to lead the NL to a 7-1 rout of the AL in the All-Star game at Kansas City.

1983 — The “Pine Tar” home run was hit by the Kansas City Royals’ George Brett off New York pitcher Goose Gossage at Yankee Stadium. Brett’s shot came with two out in the top of the ninth to give the Royals a 5-4 lead. Brett’s homer was ruled an out because the amount of pine tar exceeded what was allowed. After a protest by the Royals, the final out and the Yankees’ half of the ninth was completed on Aug. 18.

1993 — Anthony Young of the New York Mets extended his record losing streak to 27 games when he walked in the winning run in the 10th inning for a 5-4 loss to the Dodgers.

1999 — In their biggest victory in 46 years, the New York Yankees routed the Cleveland Indians 21-1 as Chili Davis went 5-for-6 with six RBIs.

2010 — Tampa Bay won in Cleveland for the first time in nearly five years. The Rays snapped an 18-game losing streak with a 6-3 win against the Indians. Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon snapped an 0-21 personal losing streak as the visiting manager that began when he was the Angels interim manager in 1996.

2016 — Ken Griffey, Jr. and Mike Piazza are inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Cooperstown, NY. Griffey obtained the highest percentage of the vote ever — 99.3% — in being elected in his first year of eligibility by the BBWAA, while Piazza made it on his fourth try. A crowd estimated at 50,000, the second-largest ever at Cooperstown, is on hand to witness the event.

2022 — The induction ceremony is held for the Class of 2022 at the Hall of Fame. Three of the seven men inducted — David Ortiz, Jim Kaat and Tony Oliva — are present to receive the honor. The others, all deceased, are represented by relatives — Gil Hodges, Minnie Minoso and Buck O’Neil — while Dave Winfield introduces 19th-century Black baseball pioneer Bud Fowler. Over 35,000 persons are present in Cooperstown, NY to witness the ceremony, and Dominican flags and Boston Red Sox gear, in honor of Ortiz, are well in evidence in the crowd.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

From Broderick Turner: The Clippers went from “strongly, strongly considering” bringing Chris Paul back to the franchise to actually agreeing to a deal with the point guard on Monday.

Lawrence Frank, the Clippers’ president of basketball operations, told the media Saturday in a Zoom that Paul “obviously possesses some of the qualities we just referenced” and that led to the two sides agreeing to a veteran’s minimum deal of about $3.6 million.

“Chris is one of the most impactful players ever to wear a Clippers uniform and it’s appropriate that he returns to the team for this chapter of his career,” Frank said in a statement Monday. “Chris will help fortify our backcourt with his exceptional ballhandling, playmaking and shooting. He is joining us as a reserve point guard and is excited to fill whatever role [coach Tyronn] Lue asks him to play. He wants to be part of the group and we’re fortunate to have him back.”

Paul joined the Clippers for the 2011-12 season and was with the team until 2017 as he teamed with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan to form the core of the “Lob City” teams.

“What I’d say about Chris is he’s a great player,” Frank said Saturday. “He’s a great Clipper.”

Continue reading here

DODGERS

From Jack Harris: It was quality over quantity for the Dodgers on Monday night. A bunch of empty at-bats, salvaged by a few emphatic drives that left the ballpark.

In six innings against struggling Minnesota Twins starter David Festa, the Dodgers’ slumping offense managed only four hits — doing little to quell the offensive concerns that have mounted during a puzzling month of poor all-around production.

Three of the knocks, however, went over the fence, with a two-run blast from Shohei Ohtani in the first inning and a pair of solo homers from Will Smith in the fourth and sixth lifting the team to a 5-2 win at Dodger Stadium.

A course correction, this was not for the Dodgers’ supposed powerhouse offense.

Entering the night, the team had the third-lowest team batting average in the majors this month. As even president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman acknowledged during pregame batting practice, “we’ve had more than half of our lineup really scuffle” for the last six weeks running.

Continue reading here

From a day off to the leadoff spot, Dodgers try unraveling mystery of Mookie Betts’ slump

Dodgers Dugout: Jaime Jarrín discusses Vin Scully, Fernando Valenzuela and Muhammad Ali

Dodgers box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

ANGELS

Juan Soto hit a tying single in the seventh inning, Francisco Alvarez delivered a big double in his return from the minors and the New York Mets rallied past the Angels 7-5 on Monday night.

Brett Baty launched a two-run homer for the Mets, who erased an early four-run deficit to match their largest comeback victory this season. They scored the go-ahead run in the eighth on an error by catcher Logan O’Hoppe, and Brandon Nimmo added a sacrifice fly that made it 7-5.

Brooks Raley (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth in his second outing since coming back from Tommy John surgery, earning his first win since April 2024.

Continue reading here

Angels box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1921 — Jim Barnes wins the U.S. Men’s Open golf championship by edging Walter Hagen, Leo Diegel, Jock Hutchinson and Fred McLeod.

1962 — Gary Player of South Africa becomes the first non-resident of the United States to win the PGA championship.

1963 — Sonny Liston knocks out Floyd Patterson in 2 minutes, 10 seconds of the first round to retain the world heavyweight title. Liston took the title from Patterson with a first-round knockout in Chicago on Sept. 25, 1962.

1973 — Sue Berning wins the U.S. Women’s Open golf championship for the third time with a five-stroke victory over Gloria Ahret.

1984 — Kathy Whitworth becomes the all-time winner in pro golf tournaments by winning the Rochester Open. Whitworth, with 85 career wins, passes Sam Snead’s total of 84 PGA tournament victories.

1984 — Seve Ballesteros wins the British Open with a four-round 276, breaking the course record set by Ken Nagle in 1960 by two strokes. Tom Watson and Bernhard Langer finish two strokes behind.

1990 — Nick Faldo wins his second British Open crown in four years, defeating Payne Stewart and Mark McNulty by five strokes.

1996 — Naim Suleymanoglu of Turkey becomes first weightlifter in Olympic history to win three gold medals. Suleymanoglu wins the 141-pound division by hoisting 413¼ pounds.

1998 — Jackie Joyner-Kersee ends her brilliant heptathlon career with a victory at the Goodwill Games. It’s her fourth consecutive Goodwill title. Earlier, the 4×400-meter relay world record of 2:54.29, set by the 1993 U.S. World Championship team, comes crashing down. Michael Johnson, the anchor on that 1993 team, anchors this United States 4×400 team, which finishes in a 2 minutes, 54.20 seconds.

2001 — David Duval shoots a 4-under 67 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes to win the British Open title, his first major championship. He finishes at 10-under 274 for a three-stroke victory over Sweden’s Niclas Fasth.

2005 — Yelena Isinbayeva clears the 5-meter mark at the Crystal Palace Grand Prix in London for her latest world record. The Olympic champion easily clears 16 feet, 4¾ inches on her first attempt, barely nudging the bar.

2007 — Padraig Harrington survives a calamitous finish in regulation and a tense putt for bogey on the final hole of a playoff to win the British Open over Sergio Garcia.

2008 — Candace Parker scores 21 points and DeLisha Milton-Jones adds 19 before both are ejected after a scuffle in the final minute as the Sparks beat the Detroit Shock 84-81 at Auburn Hills, Mich. The WNBA game turns ugly in the final seconds as a collision between Parker and Detroit’s Plenette Pierson turns into a shoving match that has players and coaches from both teams leaving the bench.

2012 — Bradley Wiggins becomes the first British cyclist to win the Tour de France by protecting the yellow jersey during the final processional ride into Paris. Fellow Briton and Sky teammate Christopher Froome finishes second, 3 minutes, 21 seconds behind.

2012 — Ernie Els wins his fourth major championship in an astonishing finish, rallying to beat Adam Scott in the British Open when the Aussie bogeys the last four holes. Els, who starts the final round six shots behind, finishes off a flawless back nine with a 15-foot birdie putt for a 2-under 68. Scott was four shots ahead with four holes to play.

2018 — Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird plays in a record 500th WNBA game.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1905 — Weldon Henley of the Philadelphia Athletics pitched a no-hitter, defeating the St. Louis Browns 6-0 in the first game of a doubleheader. It was the highlight of Henley’s 4-11 season.

1906 — Bob Ewing pitched the Cincinnati Reds to a 10-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies without a single assist by teammates.

1923 — Washington’s Walter Johnson struck out opposing pitcher Stan Coveleski for his 3,000th career strikeout. The Big Train, the first player in MLB history to reach 3,000 strikeouts, struck out five and allowed one run to give the Senators a 3-1 win over Cleveland.

1926 — Cincinnati had four triples in an 11-run second inning as the Reds beat the Boston Braves, 13-1. Curt Walker hit two in the inning to tie an NL record for most triples in an inning.

1932 — Philadelphia’s Mickey Cochrane hit for the cycle and drove in four runs to lead the Athletics to an 8-4 win over the Washington Senators.

1962 — Floyd Robinson of the Chicago White Sox had six singles in six at-bats in a 7-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

1964 — Pittsburgh’s Willie Stargell hit for the cycle, drove in three runs and scored four times in the Pirates’ 13-2 rout of the St. Louis Cardinals.

1967 — The Atlanta Braves used a major league record five pitchers in the ninth inning of a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. The pitchers were Ken Johnson, Ramon Hernandez, Claude Raymond, Dick Kelley and Cecil Upshaw.

1997 — Atlanta’s Greg Maddux turned in a masterful pitching performance, using 76 pitches in a complete game 4-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs.

2000 — Seattle’s 13-5 win over Texas was interrupted for 54 minutes when a rainstorm drenched fans at Safeco Field and the $517.6-million stadium’s roof wouldn’t close because of a computer problem.

2006 — Alfonso Soriano had three doubles, a triple and scored two runs to lead Washington to a 7-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs.

2012 — Seth Smith hit a tying homer in the ninth inning, Coco Crisp singled home the winning run in the 12th and the surging Oakland Athletics rallied from four runs down to stun the New York Yankees 5-4 and complete a four-game sweep. The Yankees had not been swept in a four-game series since May 2003 against Toronto.

2013 — Ryan Braun, the 2011 National League MVP, was suspended for the rest of the season and the postseason, the start of sanctions involving players reportedly tied to a Florida clinic accused of distributing performance-enhancing drugs. The Milwaukee Brewers star accepted the 65-game ban, 15 games more than the one he avoided last year when an arbitrator overturned his positive test for elevated testosterone because the urine sample had been improperly handled.

2014 — The Minnesota Twins turn a triple play against the Yankees.

2022 — In their first game after the All-Star break, the Blue Jays set a team record for runs in a 28-5 beatdown of the Red Sox.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. My name is Eric Sondheimer. Let’s take a sneak peek at receivers and tight ends to watch this fall.

Receiving position is loaded

Kayden Dixon-Wyatt of Mater Dei goes airborne against Servite.

(Craig Weston)

If a college team was able to sign the receivers from Mater Dei and St. John Bosco, there would certainly be some future pros in that group. Those two schools have great depth this season with quality receiver after quality receiver.

Ohio State commit Chris Henry Jr. is supposed to be back from injury for Mater Dei. He’ll be joined by another Ohio State commit Kayden Dixon-Wyatt. Gavin Honore is a Georgia commit. Add tight end Mark Bowman, a USC commit, and you have a special group.

St. John Bosco has Texas A&M commit Madden Williams, Oklahoma commit Daniel Odom, San Jose State commit Carson Clark and super sophomore DJ Tubbs, among others.

Junior Quentin Gates and senior Jalen Ross are top targets for quarterback Jaden Jefferson at Cathedral. Mission Viejo has Miami commit Vance Spafford joined by Santa Margarita transfer Jack Junker. Santa Margarita has the Mosley brothers, Trent, a USC commit, and sophomore Grant. Orange Lutheran returns Chris Flores Jr., who caught 60 passes last season, and promising junior Nico Bland. Also available is Loyola transfer Markus Kier, a Princeton commit.

USC commit Luc Weaver of Sherman Oaks Notre Dame has improved his strength and speed and is set for a big senior season. Sierra Canyon has USC commit Ja’Myron Baker.

Troy Foster of Huntington Beach is coming off a junior season in which he caught 65 passes, 15 for touchdowns. James Leicester of Dana Hills had 13 TD catches. Damani Porras of Downey will be a key weapon for quarterback Oscar Rios after catching 15 TDs as a sophomore. Alijah Royster of Oxnard Pacifica made a huge impact as a sophomore with 13 touchdowns. Jordan Slye of Salesian is a talented two-way player entering his sophomore season. Long Beach Poly returns Kamarie Smith.

Jaylen Stokes from St. Pius-St. Matthias had 16 TD catches. Jack Cunningham returns as Ventura’s go-to receiver. Blake Wong has 40 receptions as a sophomore for Norco.

In the City Section, Paul Turner, a transfer from Palmdale, joins Birmingham and could provide a lift for the Patriots after 15 TD receptions last season. Palisades has picked up one of the fastest athletes in the state in Bishop Alemany transfer Demare Dezeurn.

It’s also a terrific year for tight ends with Mater Dei’s Bowman and Servite’s Luke Sorensen, a Nebraska commit, leading the way.

Long Beach Poly tight end Jaden Hernandez makes catch.

(Craig Weston)

There’s also 6-5, 230-pound Keawe Browne of Corona Centennial and 6-3, 235-pound Jaden Hernandez of Long Beach Poly. Andre Nickerson of Inglewood and Beckham Hofland of Los Alamitos are committed to Southern Methodist and Boise State, respectively.

Bishop Montgomery’s Caleb Tafua is a Texas A&M commit. Freshman Austin Miller of Bellflower is 6-4 and an impact first-year player.

Mira Costa special teams

Mira Costa kicker Nico Talbott (left) and punter Jackson Shevin.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

When it comes to special teams, Mira Costa is feeling it has a trio to turn to. Kicker Nico Talbott, punter/holder Jackson Shevin and long snapper Jackson Reach offer experience and talent for coach Don Morrow, who’s going into his 37th season as a varsity head coach, 33 years at Mira Costa.

Here’s the report.

Raul Lara visits LB Poly

Mater Dei football coach Raul Lara returned to his alma mater, Long Beach Poly, on Saturday for a passing tournament.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Mater Dei football coach Raul Lara had his team participate in the Long Beach Poly passing tournament Saturday. He was asked if he remembered how to get to Poly. “No,” he joked.

It was a homecoming for Lara, who graduated from Poly and was football coach for 13 years, winning five Division 1 titles.

Here’s the report.

Notes . . .

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame had two former players taken in the MLB draft, making it 29 players since 1993 chosen during the Tom Dill coaching era. The Knights have had more players selected before that, including Cy Young Award winner Jack McDowell and Tim Foli, who was the No. 1 pick in 1968. . . .

Corona ended up with four players taken in the draft after Ethin Bingaman was taken in the 20th round by the Diamondbacks. . . .

Mira Costa senior pitcher Garrett Jacobs has committed to UCLA. . . .

USA Baseball announced the 88 players invited to its 18U national team training camp. Here’s the list.

Ontario Christian girls basketball standouts Kaleena Smith and Tatiana Griffin will compete in August in the Overtime Select women’s basketball league. Both will be captains. . . .

Former Villa Park principal Dr. Kenneth Miller is the new executive director of athletics at Mater Dei. Here’s a release from the school. . . .

The Southern Section announced its final transfer totals for the 2024-25 school year, and there were a record 7,099 transfers. That provides a strong indication that when the final state transfer total is released, it will exceed 17,000 for the second straight year. The CIF continues to debate whether there needs to be changes to its transfer rules, such as a one-time free transfer. But a proposal is months, if not years, away from from being introduced. . . . .

Orange Lutheran’s baseball team has added two big-time LSU commits as transfer students in 6-foot-5 pitcher Cooper Sides from Red Buff and infielder CJ Weinstein from Huntington Beach. . . .

CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti is set to become president this school year of the National Federation of State High School Assns. . . . .

The AAU Beach Volleyball Player of the Year is Mira Costa sophomore Christian Chow. His sister, London, won the same award in 2012. . . .

Kenneth Bell is the new boys basketball coach at Arleta. . . .

Mike Minjares is returning for a second stint as baseball coach at St. Bonaventure. . . .

Windward girls basketball coach Rachel Schrote has resigned to pursue other coaching opportunities, according to athletic director Tyrone Powell. She will be replaced by assistant Dante Dixon on an interim basis for the upcoming system. It’s a difficult coaching position dealing with parents and expectations. . . .

SoFi Stadium will be the site for several high school football games the week of Aug. 21-22. South Hills has confirmed it will face El Rancho on Aug. 22. Mayfair and Yorba Linda are also expected to play in one of the scheduled games. . . .

From the archives: Cody Schrier

Former JSerra and UCLA shortstop Cody Schrier

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Former JSerra and UCLA Cody Schrier is performing well in the minor leagues for the Miami Marlins.

The 13th round draft pick in 2024 is batting .270 this season having played for two teams and has 22 stolen bases.

Here’s a story from 2019 about the Schrier brothers facing off in high school.

Recommendations

From the Washington Post, a story on a travel basketball team that’s a social media sensation.

From UWHuskieswire, a story on former Gardena Serra and UCLA tight end Caleb Wilson.

From MLB.com, a story on former Corona High standout Brady Ebel taking batting practice at Dodger Stadium as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers organization.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time…

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

@Allies&Morrison/AELTC

PA Media

Simon Wright

‘Worrying precedent’

From Jack Harris: The Dodgers held their annual Family Day on the field at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, rolling food trucks, bounce houses and a climbing wall onto the warning track in left field. Few of the players seemed to be in a festive mood, however.

That’s because the Dodgers warmed up for Family Day with a 6-5 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, the team’s third straight loss and the 10th in 12 games in which they’ve been outscored 71-36. It’s the team’s worst 12-game skid since 2018.

The loss was also the sixth in as many tries against the Brewers in the last two weeks, making Milwaukee the first team to sweep a season series of more than four games from the Dodgers in 20 years.

“Guys are getting frustrated,” manager Dave Roberts said. “You see kind of more emotion coming in. We just haven’t played good baseball.”

But it gets worse: the Dodgers (58-42) might have lost first baseman Freddie Freeman for a spell. Freeman, who is among the team leaders in batting average (.292) and is third in runs (47) and hits (95), sustained a left wrist contusion after being hit by a José Quintana pitch in the sixth inning. Roberts said X-rays on Freeman’s wrist were negative and the first baseman is considered day to day.

“That one, I held my breath,” Roberts said. “I think we all did, because, you know, when you’re scuffling and to potentially lose a guy for four-to-six weeks is obviously very scary.”

In Freeman’s absence, catcher Dalton Rushing could play at first base.

Continue reading here

New mural at Dodger Stadium honors Fernando Valenzuela

Pitching injuries continue to be an issue in MLB. How it’s impacting pitchers at all levels

Is there a way to mitigate pitching injuries? The Rays (and Dodgers) may shed some light

Dodgers box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

ANGELS

José Soriano limited Philadelphia to two runs in seven innings, Taylor Ward had a three-run double and the Angels beat the Phillies 8-2 on Sunday for a series victory.

Soriano (7-7) gave up six hits and struck out five. He was touched for a run in the second inning on an RBI single by Rafael Marchan, and the Phillies mustered little else until Otto Kemp’s two-out home run in the sixth.

The Angels scored five runs in the second against Ranger Suarez (7-4), who yielded six earned runs in 4 1/3 innings.

Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel was removed from the game after being hit by a pitch.

Schanuel appeared to take a changeup from Suarez off the upper wrist of his left arm in the first inning. He hurried down the first base line in obvious pain. After being checked by a trainer, Schanuel remained in the game.

Schanuel did not play the field in the bottom of the inning, replaced by LaMonte Wade Jr.

The Angels said Schanuel was diagnosed with a left wrist contusion and is listed as day to day.

Continue reading here

Angels box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

CHARGERS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: They lost a cherished teammate hours before they started training camp. But the Chargers receivers knew just what to do when they heard of Mike Williams’ sudden retirement.

“At this point [we’re] just treating it like the next man up,” receiver Quentin Johnston said. “Him leaving was unexpected, but at the same time, we just gotta fill in the blank and keep moving.”

Williams’ sudden departure has left an already questionable receiver group with even more to prove. The 6-foot-4 receiver was coming off one of the worst seasons of his career but was still expected to add a familiar, trustworthy face for quarterback Justin Herbert. When it came to winning 50-50 balls, Williams was one of the best ever, offensive coordinator Greg Roman said.

And in a group that was led by a standout rookie last year, the 30-year-old Williams was a much-needed veteran presence.

Continue reading here

BRITISH OPEN

Scottie Scheffler had all the time in the world to celebrate his latest major title. This British Open was never in doubt Sunday as golf’s No. 1 player delivered another dominant performance to win his second major this year and grab the third leg of the career Grand Slam.

Scheffler began with a shot into 10 inches for birdie. One hour into the final round, his lead already was seven shots and no one got closer than four the rest of the way at Royal Portrush.

He closed with a three-under 68 for a four-shot victory, sending him to the U.S. Open next year with a chance to make it a clean sweep of golf’s biggest titles.

Scheffler won the Masters by three shots in 2022 and by four shots last year. He won the PGA Championship by five shots in May.

Continue reading here

British Open leaderboard

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1876 — Princeton takes the team championship in the first IC4A (Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes Association) track and field meet.

1957 — Lionel Herbert wins the PGA championship with a 2-1 final round victory over Dow Finsterwald.

1957 — Althea Gibson becomes first Black person to win a major U.S. tennis tournament.

1963 — Jack Nicklaus wins the PGA championship by two strokes over Dave Ragan to become the fourth golfer to win the three major United States titles.

1968 — Arnold Palmer becomes the first PGA golfer to earn $1 million over his career despite losing by one stroke to Julius Boros in the PGA championship.

1974 — Sandra Haynie edges Carol Mann and Beth Stone by one stroke to win the U.S. Women’s Open championship.

1979 — Spain’s Seve Ballesteros captures the British Open by three strokes over Ben Crenshaw and Jack Nicklaus.

1985 — John Henry, the greatest money winner in horse racing history, is retired. The 10-year-old won 39 races in 83 starts and earned $6,597,947 in total purses.

1985 — Sandy Lyle wins the British Open by one stroke over Payne Stewart.

1989 — Mike Tyson knocks down Carl “The Truth” Williams with a left hook and stops him 93 seconds into the first round of his heavyweight title defense. It is the fifth shortest heavyweight title fight in history.

1996 — Tom Lehman shoots a final-round 73 for a 72-hole total of 13-under 271 to win the British Open, two strokes better than Ernie Els and Mark McCumber.

1996 — Wayne Gretzky signs a two-year deal with NY Rangers.

2002 — Ernie Els squanders a three-stroke lead but outlasts Thomas Levet of France to win a four-man playoff that produces the first sudden-death finish in the 142-year history of the British Open.

2007 — Bernard Hopkins, in the twilight of his fighting days, ends Winky Wright’s 7 1/2-year unbeaten streak with a unanimous decision in their 170-pound bout in Las Vegas.

2009 — China’s Guo Jingjing easily wins her fifth straight world championship in 3-meter springboard. She captured her first springboard world title in 2001, and hasn’t lost since in the every-other-year competition.

2013 — Phil Mickelson wins his first British Open title with a spectacular finish. He birdies four of the last six holes for a 5-under 66 to match the best round of the tournament.

2013 — Britain’s Chris Froome wins the 100th Tour de France, having dominated rivals over three weeks. He rides into Paris wearing the yellow jersey he took in Stage 8 in the Pyrenees and never relinquished.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1921 — The Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees combined for an AL record 16 doubles in the Indians’ 17-8 victory. Cleveland had nine doubles and New York seven.

1945 — The Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Athletics played 24 innings in a 1-1 tie. Les Mueller pitched 19 2-3 innings for the Tigers.

1956 — Brooks Lawrence of the Cincinnati Reds had his 13-game winning streak broken when Roberto Clemente’s three-run homer led the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 4-3 victory.

1970 — San Diego’s Clay Kirby held the New York Mets hitless for eight innings but was lifted for a pinch hitter by manager Preston Gomez. With the Padres trailing 1-0 with two out in the eighth, Gomez elected to go for the win instead of letting Kirby finish. The Padres lost the no-hitter and the game, 3-0.

1973 — Hank Aaron of Atlanta hit his 700th home run in the third inning of an 8-4 Braves loss to Philadelphia. Aaron connected on a 1-1 fastball off Phillies pitcher Ken Brett.

1975 — Joe Torre of the New York Mets grounded into four double plays in a 6-2 loss to the Houston Astros. Felix Millan had four singles but was wiped out each time by Torre.

2001 — In their highest-scoring game in 58 years, the Dodgers routed Colorado 22-7. The 22 runs were the most scored by the Dodgers since Brooklyn beat Pittsburgh 23-6 on July 10, 1943, at Ebbets Field.

2006 — Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to reach 450 home runs when he homered in the New York Yankees’ 7-3 loss to Toronto. Rodriguez also got his 2,000th career hit.

2007 — Jamie Moyer and David Wells face off. The two combine for 88 years and 307 days of age, making it the second-oldest matchup of starting pitchers in major league history. The only older duel was between Don Sutton and Phil Niekro in June of 1987.

2008 — Detroit’s 19-4 victory at Kansas City marked the third time this season the Tigers scored 19 runs. The Boston Red Sox were the last team to accomplish that feat, scoring 19 or more four times in 1950. Detroit beat Texas 19-6 on April 23 and Minnesota 19-3 on May 24.

2015 — Shin-Soo Choo hit for the cycle, leading the Texas Rangers past the Colorado Rockies 9-0. Choo, who had three RBIs, doubled in the second inning, homered in the fourth and singled in the fifth. He completed the cycle with a triple to center to start the ninth.

2019 — The 2019 Hall of Fame Class is inducted in Cooperstown, NY, with six former players being honored: Harold Baines, Roy Halladay, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, Mariano Rivera and Lee Smith. All are present, save for Halladay, who passed away in a plane crash in 2017 and, who is represented by his wife, Brandy. Rivera, the first player to be elected unanimously to the Hall, gets the honor of speaking last, befitting his status as the greatest closer in history.

2021 — Eddy Alvarez is named one of two flag-bearers for Team USA at the Opening Ceremonies of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics that will take place in two days — after a full year’s delay. A member of the U.S. baseball team, Alvarez previously won an Olympic medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics in short-track speed skating and is vying to become one of the few athletes ever to win medals in both a summer and a winter Olympics. Sue Bird, a member of the women’s basketball team, will join him as a flag-bearer.

2024 — The Hall of Fame inducts its four newest members, constituting the Class of 2024, at its annual ceremony. Honored today are 1B Todd Helton, C/1B Joe Mauer, 3B Adrian Beltre and manager Jim Leyland.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

The driver of the car that killed two 8-year-old girls at a school in south-west London has been interviewed following her re-arrest over the girls’ deaths.

Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau died after a Land Rover driven by Claire Freemantle crashed into an end-of-term tea party at The Study Preparatory School in Wimbledon, on 6 July 2023.

Ms Freemantle, 48, was arrested at the scene but was later told she would not face charges. However, she was re-arrested in January after police reviewed their investigation.

The Metropolitan Police said she was interviewed on Thursday 17 July on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and was bailed until October for further inquiries.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Ms Freemantle may have experienced an epileptic seizure as she was driving, which caused her to lose control of the vehicle that then crashed into the school.

But it also said there was no evidence she had ever suffered a similar seizure before and she had not been diagnosed with such a medical condition.

Families of the schoolgirls recently told the BBC they felt they still had no answers for what happened.

Speaking about the continuing police investigation, Nuria’s father, Sajjad Butt, said: “While we welcome this renewed focus on the case, we will continue to champion the pursuit of complete clarity on the events of that devastating day.

“The truth must come to light.”

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Chargers were the first team in the NFL to open training camp, but the focus Thursday quickly shifted to who didn’t join them.

Wide receiver Mike Williams is retiring, the Chargers confirmed Thursday as the team began camp. Just as a hole opened in the receivers room, the Chargers also signed rookie receiver Tre’ Harris, the team announced, ending the second-round pick’s contract holdout.

The news of Williams’ sudden retirement broke on social media as Chargers players went through some of the first team drills of training camp. Williams, 30, was just months removed from his feel-good homecoming to the franchise that drafted him seventh overall in 2017. The free agent was optimistic about revitalizing his career in familiar territory. A wide smile split his face when he was asked in March about reuniting with quarterback Justin Herbert.

On Thursday, Herbert still smiled at the jaw-dropping plays they made together.

“I want what’s best for Mike,” said Herbert, who propelled Williams to a career season in 2021 with 86 catches and 1,146 yards receiving. “He’s always been there for us and we’re going to be there for him. It’s obviously a tough situation and I got so much respect for him as a teammate, as a friend, as a receiver, as a player and the man that he is. … Football at the end of the day is a game. There’s more to life than just football and I’m just hoping for the best for him.”

Continue reading here

The Harbaugh way’: Even practice jerseys are a source of pride

CLIPPERS

From Broderick Turner: Yanic Konan Niederhauser received the pass near the half-court line from a Clippers teammate who had just stolen the basketball. The 6-foot-11 center maneuvered down the court, his long strides allowing him to use just two dribbles before he took flight outside the circle and threw down a thunderous dunk over helpless Lakers defender Cole Swider.

The crowd inside Thomas & Mack Center went into a frenzy, including Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who leaped out of his courtside seat, pumped his fists and yelled.

At that moment Monday night, Niederhauser displayed his agility, speed and ballhandling skills. It was another step taken in his progress while playing in the NBA Summer League on the campus of UNLV.

The Clippers had used the 30th and last pick in the first round of the NBA draft to select Niederhauser out of Penn State because they saw potential.

Continue reading here

From Ben Bolch: Kaedin Robinson, a former record-setting wide receiver at Appalachian State whose bid to play for UCLA this fall was blocked by the NCAA, has sued the college governing body in an effort to receive one more season of eligibility.

In the lawsuit filed this week in the Central District of California, Robinson asserted the NCAA relied on an “unlawful” five-year eligibility rule that violated federal antitrust laws in declaring Robinson ineligible to play next season because it unjustly limited his opportunities.

UCLA had requested that the NCAA waive the five-year eligibility rule and grant Robinson permission to play next season after Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia made a successful bid to gain an additional season of college eligibility thanks to a court injunction after having spent one season at a junior college.

Continue reading here

BRITISH OPEN

The British Open had a little bit of everything Thursday, from sunshine to rain, a breeze to strong gusts. And no surprise, it had Scottie Scheffler right in the mix.

Former U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick handled the notorious “Calamity Corner” par-three 16th by chipping in for birdie. Harris English, whose longtime caddie couldn’t get a travel visa for the U.K. because of prison time served 20 years ago, put his short-game coach on the bag and made seven birdies.

They were among five players tied for the lead at four-under 67, the largest logjam after 18 holes of the British Open since there was a six-way tie in 1938.

One shot behind was Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player who has not finished out of the top 10 in the last four months, a stretch that includes another major among three wins.

Continue reading here

British Open leaderboard

DUCKS

Ducks goalie Lukas Dostal signed a five-year contract on Thursday to remain with the team.

Dostal made the announcement on a social media post by the team. The agreement means the 25-year-old avoided an arbitration hearing.

Dostal had a 23-23-7 record with a 3.10 goals-against average and .903 save percentage for the Ducks last season.

Continue reading here

DODGERS

From Dylan Hernández: Blue towels swirled around in every section of Dodger Stadium as his entrance song started to play.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto stepped on the mound and into the chaos wearing a mask of calm. His appearance was misleading.

Inside, he was terrified.

“I think that was the game for which I was the most nervous in my entire baseball career,” Yamamoto said in Japanese.

Yamamoto can laugh now about his memories of Game 5 of the National League Division Series against the San Diego Padres last season, knowing what was revealed on that October night and the path on which it set him.

He started that game as an unknown, even to himself. He departed a hero. By the end of the month, he was a World Series champion.

Continue reading here

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1896 — James Foulis wins the U.S. Men’s Open golf championship at Shinnecock Hills, Southampton, N.Y.

1951 — Jersey Joe Walcott, at 37, becomes the oldest fighter to win the world heavyweight title with a seventh-round knockout of Ezzard Charles at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

1975 — The trial of Dave Forbes, the first pro athlete to be indicted for a crime committed during play, ends in a hung jury. Forbes, of the Boston Bruins, was indicted for excessive force used on an opponent. Forbes’ victim was Henry Boucha in a game on Jan. 4 against the North Stars at Minnesota. The prosecution decides not to seek a retrial.

1993 — Greg Norman shoots a 64 on the final day to set a record with a 13-under 267 and wins the British Open. Norman wins by two strokes over defending champion Nick Faldo.

1995 — Britain’s Jonathan Edwards breaks the 10-year-old world triple jump record, leaping 59 feet in the Salamanca Provincial meet. Edwards tops the previous mark of 58-11½ set in 1985 by Willie Banks of the United States.

1999 — Jean Van de Velde’s triple bogey on the 72nd hole sets the stage for Paul Lawrie to become the first Scotsman to win the British Open in his native land since Tommy Armour in 1931. Lawrie, 10 strokes behind when the final round began, wins the four-hole playoff over Van de Velde and Justin Leonard, making birdies on the last two holes to complete the biggest comeback in a major.

2005 — In Oklahoma City, the United States loses a tournament title game for the first time since 1997, falling 3-1 to Japan in the championship of the inaugural World Cup of Softball. The Americans, which lost to Canada earlier in this tournament, lost to Australia 1-0 in the championship game of the 1997 Superball, held in Ohio.

2010 — Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa shoots a 1-under 71 for a seven-stroke victory at 16-under 272 in the British Open on the Old Course at St. Andrews. Lee Westwood of England finishes second.

2021 — Colin Morikawa wins the Open Championship at Royal St. George’s by two strokes over Jordan Speith. It was Morikawa’s second major championship win following his 2020 The Masters win.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1882 — Ambidextrous pitcher Tony Mullane of Louisville pitched with both hands in a major league game at Baltimore. Normally a right-hander, Mullane switched to the left hand in the fourth inning. He eventually lost 9-8.

1912 — The Chicago Cubs had 21 hits in 11 innings but still lost to the Philadelphia Phillies when Gavvy Cravath stole home.

1921 — Babe Ruth achieves 139 home runs and becomes the all-time home run leader in Major League Baseball, taking the title from Roger Connor.

1927 — Ty Cobb of the Philadelphia Athletics doubled off the glove of Harry Heilmann for his 4,000th hit.

1948 — Pat Seerey of the Chicago White Sox hit four home runs in a 12-11, 11-inning victory over the Philadelphia A’s in the opener of a doubleheader. Seerey hit two mammoth shots off Carl Scheib, one off Bob Savage and the game-winner off Lou Brissie in the top of the 11th.

1962 — Bob Allison and Harmon Killebrew of the Minnesota Twins each hit grand slams in the first inning of a 14-3 rout of the Cleveland Indians.

1970 — Willie Mays bounced career hit number 3,000 through the left side of the infield off Mike Wegener in the second inning of the San Francisco Giants’ 10-1 romp over the Montreal Expos. Mays becomes the 10th player to get 3,000 hits.

1987 — New York’s Don Mattingly tied Dale Long’s 31-year-old major league record when he hit a home run for the eighth consecutive game in the Yankees’ 7-2 loss to the Texas Rangers.

1999 — With Don Larsen on hand to help celebrate Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium, David Cone pitched a perfect game. Cone dazzled the Montreal Expos, throwing the 14th perfect game in modern history to lead the New York Yankees to a 6-0 victory.

2001 — Roger Cedeno was 4-for-5 with a double, triple, two homers and six RBIs in Detroit’s 12-4 win over the New York Yankees in the second game of a day-night doubleheader.

2006 — Atlanta became the first team since the 1930 New York Yankees to score 10 or more runs in five straight games following a 14-5 victory over St. Louis. The Braves have scored 65 runs during their offensive explosion that included two 15-run games.

2016 — A federal judge sentenced the former scouting director of the St. Louis Cardinals to nearly four years in prison for hacking the Houston Astros’ player personnel database and email system in an unusual case of high-tech cheating involving two Major League Baseball clubs. Christopher Correa had pleaded guilty in January to five counts of unauthorized access of a protected computer from 2013 to at least 2014, the same year he was promoted to director of baseball development in St. Louis.

2018 — As has been rumored for some time, the Dodgers trade for All-Star SS Manny Machado, who will become a free agent at the end of the season. The price is steep for what amounts to a short-term rental: five prospects, including AA OF Yusniel Diaz, one of the stars of the most recent Futures Game. The Dodgers have a gaping hole to fill, however, having recently lost SS Corey Seager for the remainder of the season.

2022 — Youth is served in the annual Home Run Derby, held at Dodger Stadium on the eve of the All-Star Game as 23-year-old Juan Soto defeats 21-year-old rookie Julio Rodríguez in the final round, but not before 42-year-old Albert Pujols manages to upset NL home run leader Kyle Schwarber in the initial round. Two-time defending champion Pete Alonso goes down before Rodríguez in the semi-finals. Soto misses the title of youngest-ever winner ever by one day, behind 1993 winner Juan Gonzalez.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

From Broderick Turner: The Clippers continue to shape their roster to try to remain competitive in the uber-competitive Western Conference, their latest deal to come in the acquisition of sharpshooting guard Bradley Beal after he clears waivers following a buyout from the Phoenix Suns.

Beal’s agent, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports, confirmed to The Times on Wednesday that his client has agreed to a two-year, $11-million deal that includes a player option for the second season, allowing him to become a free agent after the 2025-26 season.

Beal became available for the Clippers after securing a buyout from the Suns on his current contract, that had two years and $110 million left. He gave back about $13.9 million for the buyout, according to people not authorized to speak on the matter.

Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank had repeatedly said this summer that the team wanted to create cap flexibility in order to be in position to go after free agents. By doing so, the Clippers were able to get Beal.

Continue reading here

DODGERS

From Dylan Hernández: There were no tears.

There were no tears when he addressed the crowd in a Fox interview that was played over the Truist Park sound system.

There were no tears when manager Dave Roberts removed him from the game in the top of the third inning so the fans could salute him one final time.

Freddie Freeman didn’t cry Tuesday at the All-Star Game.

“I didn’t know how it was going to go,” Freeman said.

This was the kind of setting that could have very easily turned the emotional Freeman into a sobbing mess, and he admitted as much the previous day. He was returning to the market in which he spent the first 12 years of his career to play in the kind of event that is often a source of reflection.

The absence of tears represented how much can change in four years, especially four years as prosperous as the four years Freeman has played for the Dodgers.

“Time,” Freeman said, “heals everything.”

For both sides.

Continue reading here

CHARGERS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Chargers running back Najee Harris likely will begin training camp on the non-football injury list, general manager Joe Hortiz said Wednesday, after the running back suffered a minor eye injury during a fireworks incident on July 4.

As veteran teammates reported for camp Wednesday morning, Harris was still getting evaluated by doctors in the Bay Area and was expected to join the team later in the day.

“Everything that’s been relayed to us has been positive,” Hortiz said.

Harris suffered a “superficial” eye injury in a holiday weekend fireworks accident, according to a statement from his agent, Doug Hendrickson, and was “fully expected to be ready for the upcoming NFL season.”

Continue reading here

GALAXY

Myrto Uzuni scored a goal in the 40th minute and added an assist, Owen Wolff scored his first goal of the season and Austin FC beat the Galaxy 2-1 on Wednesday night to snap the Galaxy’s three-game home win streak.

Brad Stuver had three saves and his ninth shutout — second in MLS behind Vancouver’s Yohei Takaoka (10) — this season for Austin (8-8-6).

Diego Rubio, on the counter-attack, played a ball-ahead to Uzuni, who cut back to evade a defender at the edge of the box and then blasted a shot inside the left post to open the scoring.

Continue reading here

Galaxy summary

MLS standings

LAFC

Denis Bouanga scored on a first-half penalty kick and Hugo Lloris made it stand up for his third straight clean sheet as LAFC edged Minnesota United 1-0 on Wednesday night.

Bouanga scored his 11th goal when he sent a right-footed shot past Dayne St. Clair in the 42nd minute. The PK was awarded after Jeremy Ebobisse was fouled by defender Nicolás Romero, who received a yellow card.

Lloris finished with three saves for his league-high-tying ninth clean sheet of the season for LAFC (10-5-5).

Continue reading here

LAFC summary

MLS standings

KOBE BRYANT POLL

We asked, “Is Kobe Bryant one of the 10 best players in NBA history?” After 1,396 votes:

Yes, 75.7%
No, 24.3%

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1939 — Henry Picard beats Byron Nelson 1-up in 37 holes to win the PGA championship.

1955 — Beverly Hanson beats Louise Suggs by three strokes in a playoff to capture the first LPGA championship.

1966 — Jim Ryun becomes the first American to hold the record in the mile since 1937. With a time of 3:51.3 at Berkeley, Calif., Ryun shatters Michel Jazy’s mark of 3:53.6 by 2.3 seconds.

1979 — Sebastian Coe breaks the world record in the mile with a time of 3:48.95 in Oslo, Norway. The time is rounded up to 3:49.

1983 — Bobby Hebert passes for 314 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Michigan Panthers to a 24-22 win over the Philadelphia Stars in the first USFL championship game.

1983 — Tom Watson wins his second straight and fifth career British Open title. Watson shoots a 9-under 275 at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England to finish one stroke ahead of Andy Bean and Hale Irwin.

1994 — Brazil wins a record fourth World Cup soccer title, taking the first shootout in championship game history over Italy.

2005 — Tiger Woods records another ruthless performance at St. Andrews, closing with a 2-under 70 to win the British Open for his 10th career major. He wins by five shots, the largest margin in any major since Woods won by eight at St. Andrews five years ago. He joins Jack Nicklaus as the only players to win the career Grand Slam twice.

2006 — Stacey Nuveman and Lovieanne Jung homer to power the United States to the World Cup of Softball title with a 5-2 victory over Japan.

2011 — Japan stuns the United States in a riveting Women’s World Cup final, winning 3-1 on penalty kicks after coming from behind twice in a 2-2 tie. Goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori makes two brilliant saves in the shootout. Japan, making its first appearance in the final of a major tournament, hadn’t beaten the Americans in their first 25 meetings.

2011 — Darren Clarke gives Northern Ireland another major championship, winning the British Open by three strokes over Americans Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson.

2016 — Henrik Stenson shoots an 8-under 63 to beat Phil Mickelson by three strokes, becoming the first man from Sweden to win the British Open.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1924 — Jesse Haines of the St. Louis Cardinals pitched a 5-0 no-hitter against the Boston Braves.

1925 — Tris Speaker is the 5th player to reach 3,000 hits.

1936 — Carl Hubbell’s 24-game winning streak over two years began as he beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 on five hits.

1941 — Joe DiMaggio’s hitting streak of 56 games was stopped by Al Smith and Jim Bagby of the Indians before 67,000 at Cleveland. The Yankees still won, 4-3.

1956 — In the second game of a doubleheader against Kansas City, Ted Williams hit his 400th home run. Williams connected in the sixth inning off Tom Gorman to give the Red Sox a 1-0 win over the A’s.

1966 — Chicago’s Billy Williams hit for the cycle to lead the Cubs to a 7-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals in the second game of a Sunday doubleheader. Williams singled in the first inning, doubled in the third, had an RBI-triple in the fifth, homered to center in the seventh and popped out to third baseman in foul territory. The Cardinals took the opener 4-3 in 11 innings.

1969 — Jim Kaat, Gold Glove winner for seven straight years, was charged with three errors, leading to three unearned runs against the Chicago White Sox. Nevertheless, he won the game at Minnesota 8-5.

1974 — Bob Gibson struck out Cesar Geronimo of the Reds in the second inning to become the second pitcher in major league history to record 3,000 strikeouts. Cincinnati beat St. Louis, 6-4.

1978 — Doc Medich of the Texas Rangers saved the life of a 61-year-old fan who had a heart attack just before a scheduled game at Baltimore. Medich, a medical student, administered heart massage until help arrived.

1987 — Don Mattingly became the first AL player to homer in seven consecutive games as the New York Yankees disposed of the Texas Rangers 8-4.

1990 — Minnesota became the first team in major league history to pull off two triple plays in one game, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Boston as the Red Sox beat the Twins 1-0.

2007 — Ryan Garko hit a tying pinch-hit home run in the ninth inning and singled home the winning run in the 11th to give Cleveland a 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox.

2011 — Dustin Pedroia singled with two outs in the top of the 16th inning, snapping a scoreless tie and giving the Red Sox a 1-0 victory over the Rays. It was the longest 1-0 game in the major leagues since the Brewers at Angels on June 8, 2004 went 17 innings.

2016 — Starling Marte hit a solo home run in the 18th inning and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Washington Nationals 2-1 in a marathon game that lasted almost six hours. Pinch-hitter Daniel Murphy homered with two outs in the ninth inning for Washington.

2022 — Second-generation players take the first two spots in the 2022 amateur draft as SS Jackson Holliday, son of Matt Holliday, goes first overall to the Orioles, while OF Druw Jones, son of Andruw Jones, is selected second by the Diamondbacks. P Kumar Rocker, who had been the #10 pick in 2021 but had failed to come to an agreement with the Mets following a disagreement over the health of his pitching arm, goes #3 to the Rangers, who sign him mere hours after his selection. Rocker is coming off a brilliant stint of pitching in the independent Frontier League.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

From Jack Harris: Technically, there was no winning pitcher in Major League Baseball’s 95th All-Star Game.

The man who gave up the night’s biggest swings, however, was probably as deserving as any.

As the American League stormed back from a 6-0 deficit in Tuesday’s Midsummer Classic, a rarely contemplated reality started to dawn in both dugouts.

Three years ago, MLB changed its rules for how to break ties in its annual marquee event, instituting a home run “swing-off” to be conducted at the conclusion of the ninth inning. Each team selected three players, who each got three swings. Whichever team hit the most home runs in those nine swings wins the game.

Enter Dino Ebel — veteran Dodgers’ third base coach — and, now, victorious pitcher in the inaugural All-Star Game swing-off.

“What an exciting moment, I think, for baseball, for all the people that stayed, who watched on television, everything,” Ebel said, after teeing up the NL hitters for a 4-3 win in the home run swing-off, and a 7-6 win overall in the All-Star Game.

Continue reading here

————

From Jack Harris: In a week where so much of the focus was on players who weren’t playing in the All-Star Game, and those who were selected that weren’t seen as deserving, it was the player who had been in more Midsummer Classics than anyone else who delivered the most profound reminder.

Before the start of Major League Baseball’s 95th All-Star Game at Truist Park in Atlanta, National League manager Dave Roberts called upon longtime Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw to speak in the clubhouse.

And in an impromptu pregame speech as the team’s elder statesman, Kershaw imparted the most important lesson he’s learned from his 11 All-Star Games.

“The All-Star Game, it can be hard at times for the players,” Kershaw recounted when asked about his message to the team. “It’s a lot of travel, it’s a lot of stress, chaos, family, all this stuff.”

“But,” the 37-year-old future Hall of Famer added, “it’s meaningful, it’s impactful for the game, it’s important for the game. We have the best All-Star Game of any sport. We do have the best product. So to be here, to realize your responsibility to the sport is important … And I just said I was super honored to be part of it.”

Continue reading here

All-Star Game box score

Shaikin: Live from Atlanta: The next front in the war between MLB owners and players

Amid immigration raids, MLBPA advises players to keep legal documents with them

Rob Manfred: MLB won’t cancel the 2028 All-Star Game for the Olympics

DODGERS

From Jack Harris: The hierarchy of stars was obvious even in the table arrangements.

At an All-Star Game media day event on Monday at the Roxy Coca-Cola Theater in Atlanta, the Dodgers’ five All-Star representatives were in the same area of the large venue.

In the first row, basking under large spotlights near an elevated stage, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Clayton Kershaw were positioned front and center, expected to attract so many reporters that retractable ropes lined the perimeter of their podiums.

Several feet behind them, in the shadows of a balcony overhang, sat Will Smith and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

An obvious A-List, followed by a clear B-group.

And even then, where Yamamoto’s media contingent stretched several rows deep, Smith’s rarely swelled beyond a few people.

He was a third-time All-Star, National League starter and batting title contender — once again relegated to the background of the sport’s public consciousness.

“He’s up there as far as being overlooked,” Dodgers manager and NL All-Star skipper Dave Roberts said of his ever-present but easily forgotten backstop. “You know what you’re going to get, but you probably don’t appreciate it as much as you should.”

Appreciated, Smith has not been this year. Not fully, at the very least.

Continue reading here

CHARGERS

The Chargers have unveiled their 2025 uniforms, which include an all-gold alternative and an all-navy option.

(Los Angeles Chargers)

From Chuck Schilken: The Chargers are going for the gold this season.

Or are they going for the mustard bottle?

Or the banana?

Fans will be able to figure that out for themselves this fall when the team debuts its “Charger Power” uniforms, one of two alternate looks revealed by the team Tuesday that will be worn during the 2025 season.

The Chargers also announced that they now have the option to wear powder blue pants with their regular jerseys, which are powder blue at home and white on the road.

Continue reading here

INDOOR BEACH VOLLEYBALL

From Kelvin Kuo: AVP, the biggest and longest-running professional volleyball league, hosted beach volleyball matches for the first time in an NBA arena last weekend.

Hosted at the Intuit Dome, crews were tasked with bringing 300 tons of sand from a quarry in Palm Springs, which is roughly 16 truckloads. AVP is looking for creative ways to attract a new audiences to the sport, often hosting its marquee volleyball events in unconventional locations.

A wooden sandbox was constructed to contain the pre-washed sand and form a single court.

It took the crew, which consists of about 150 people for a change over a typical event at Intuit Dome, five hours after the conclusion of the event to ready the arena for Clippers season ticket-holders the following day.

Click here to watch video of the transformation.

LAFC

LAFC defender Aaron Long will miss the rest of the season after having surgery to repair a ruptured left Achilles.

The team — which said the surgery was successful — made the announcement on Tuesday, three days after Long was injured in the 76th minute of a 2-0 win over Dallas.

The 32-year-old Long is in his third season with LAFC and has started all 15 games this year, scoring one goal. He’s started 60 games for the club over the last three seasons.

Continue reading here

Commentary: 2026 FIFA World Cup dress rehearsal exposes the big problem of extreme heat

SPARKS

From Ira Gorawara: Dearica Hamby lined up for one of those last-second launches as the first-half clock dipped toward zero.

The ball clanged off the front rim, appearing short — until backspin carried it to the back iron for a second bounce.

With Julie Allemand holding her knees and Kelsey Plum already prancing away, the ball kissed the rim twice more. And, finally, after a two-second pause that held the whole arena hostage, the ball dropped. Hamby fell with it, her teammates swarming to lift her as Crypto.com Arena erupted for what was perhaps the Sparks’ finest half of basketball of the season in a 99-80 stomping of the Washington Mystics.

“No one on our team would want anyone to hit a buzzer beater more from three than Dearica,” Plum said. “We were just all super excited, and especially the way it rolled in — it was very, like, climactic. … It was a great moment and it just represented the style we’re trying to play moving forward.”

Continue reading here

Sparks box score

WNBA standings

WNBA

The WNBA players’ union and league officials have much to discuss when they sit down this week for their first in-person talks as a group since December about the new collective bargaining agreement.

After sharing initial proposals, the two sides apparently are far apart in the early negotiations as they prepare for their first face-to-face meeting that includes the players executive council in Indianapolis on Thursday heading into All-Star weekend.

“We got a proposal from the league, which was honestly a slap in the face,” Phoenix Mercury forward and union rep Satou Sabally said.

Increased salaries, revenue sharing and roster size are three areas where the union expect to see major changes from the current CBA that will expire at the end of this season after the players decided to opt out last year. Nearly all the players who aren’t on rookie scale contracts right now will be free agents after this season and looking for big salary increases.

Continue reading here

Expansion WNBA team brings back the original Portland Fire name

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1920 — The United States sweeps Australia in five matches to win the Davis Cup for the first time since 1913. The U.S. team is made up of Bill Tilden and Bill Johnston.

1938 — Paul Runyan wins the PGA Championship by routing Sam Snead 8 and 7 in the final round.

1947 — Rocky Graziano scores a technical knockout with a barrage of 30 punches against Tony Zale in the sixth round to win the world middleweight boxing title. Held in Chicago Stadium, it’s the largest grossing fight in history.

1950 — Uruguay beats Brazil 2-1 to win soccer’s World Cup in Rio de Janeiro.

1967 — Kathy Whitworth wins the LPGA championship by one stroke over Shirley Englehorn. Whitworth sinks a fifty-foot uphill putt for a birdie on the 18th green at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Sutton, Mass.

1989 — Betsy King birdies three of the first four holes of the final round to win her first U.S. Women’s Open championship by four strokes over Nancy Lopez.

1993 — Nick Faldo ties the best single round in 122 years of the British Open with a course-record 63 to give him a one-stroke lead after the second round.

1995 — Annika Sorenstam of Sweden wins the U.S. Women’s Open by one stroke over Meg Mallon, her first victory on the LPGA Tour.

2005 — In Las Vegas, Jermain Taylor beats Bernard Hopkins for the undisputed middleweight title. Hopkins, a winner of a record 20 consecutive defenses, starts slowly and the undefeated challenger builds up a big enough lead on two judges’ scorecards to take the crown.

2006 — J.R. Todd becomes the first Bblack driver to win an NHRA Top Fuel event, beating Tony Schumacher in the Mopar Mile-High Nationals.

2011 — Kyle Busch wins the Nationwide race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to become the third driver to win 100 races in NASCAR’s three national series. Busch, with 22 Cup victories and 29 Trucks wins, also ties Mark Martin for first place in career Nationwide Series victories with 49. Richard Petty and David Pearson are the other drivers with at least 100 wins.

2012 — Roger Federer surpasses Pete Sampras to set the record for the most weeks at No. 1 in the ATP rankings. After winning Wimbledon a week ago — his 75th career ATP title — Federer returns to the top for the first time since June 2010. Today marks his 287th week at No. 1, one more than Sampras.

2017 — Roger Federer defeated Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-1, 6-4, to claim a record 8th Wimbledon men’s title.

2023 — Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: In a classic final, 20-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz ends Novak Đoković’s 34-match win streak at the All England Club with a 1-6, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 victory.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1897 — Chicago’s Cap Anson became the first major leaguer to reach 3,000 hits when he singled off Baltimore’s George Blackburn.

1902 — John McGraw was named manager of the New York Giants, a post he would hold for 30 years.

1909 — Ed Summers of the Detroit Tigers allowed only seven hits and pitched all 18 innings of a 0-0 tie with the Washington Senators, the longest scoreless game in AL history.

1920 — Babe Ruth broke his own season record of 29 homers with his 30th as the New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 5-2. Ruth would finish the season with 54.

1933 — Red Lucas of the Cincinnati Reds pitched a 15-inning 1-0 win over Roy Parmelee and the New York Giants in the opener of a doubleheader.

1941 — Joe DiMaggio extended his hitting streak to 56 games with a 3-for-4 day as the New York Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians 10-3.

1958 — In the nitecap of a doubleheader, Baltimore pitcher Jack Harshman hit two homers in a 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox.

1970 — The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pirates 3-2 before 48,846 in the first game at Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Stadium.

1985 — Sparky Anderson became the first manager to lose an All-Star Game in both leagues. The National League won 6-1 for the 21st win in the last 23 games.

1996 — Colorado’s streak of scoring seven runs in a game ended at 11. The Rockies beat the Giants 5-3 and tied the 1911 Pittsburgh Pirates, 1938 New York Yankees and 1976 Cincinnati Reds with 11 7-run games.

1997 — Kevin Brown pitched his first career one-hitter to lead Florida to 5-1 win over the Dodgers. Brown, who no-hit San Francisco on June 10th, faced two batters over the minimum and allowed a lead-off single to left by Raul Mondesi in the fifth. He struck out eight and retired his final 15 batters.

1998 — Randy Johnson pitched a one-hitter to lead Seattle to a 3-0 win over Minnesota. Johnson struck out 11 and gave up a single to third baseman Brent Gates.

2006 — Chipper Jones hit a two-run homer in Atlanta’s 10-5 win at San Diego to give him an extra-base hit in 14 straight games, tying a 79-year-old major league record. Jones tied the record set in 1927 by Pittsburgh’s Paul Waner.

2006 — Mariano Rivera earned his 400th save, escaping two jams and getting six outs to preserve the New York Yankees’ 6-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox. Rivera joined Lee Smith, Trevor Hoffman and John Franco in the 400-save club.

2009 — Philadelphia Phillies slugger Ryan Howard became the fastest player in major league history to reach 200 career home runs, breaking the record previously held by Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner. Howard reached 200 homers in his 658th game, hitting his 23rd of the season in the sixth inning of a 4-0 win over Florida. Kiner hit No. 200 in his 706th game.

2013 — Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect eighth inning in his final All-Star appearance, Jose Bautista, J.J. Hardy and Jason Kipnis drove in runs to back a night of pulsating pitching, and the American League beat the National League 3-0.

2015 — Brock Holt became the first Boston player to hit for the cycle since 1996 and the Red Sox slugged their way out to a 9-4 victory over Atlanta.

2021 — Jake Cronenworth hit for his first career cycle, Wil Myers had a grand slam and a two-run shot and the San Diego Padres set a franchise record for runs in a 24-8 blowout of the Washington Nationals.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hey, I’m back from Covid! Did everyone miss me? I see no hands raised out there. No one? OK, well, on to the news!

From Chuck Schilken: Shaquille O’Neal has an issue with a recent ranking of the all-time best NBA players.

On Monday, Bleacher Report released its list of the “top 100 NBA players ever,” based on a compilation of rankings from a “legion of B/R NBA experts, writers and editors.”

O’Neal finished just outside the top five. He didn’t seem to have an issue with that.

Shaq’s beef was with the placement of his former Lakers teammate, the late Kobe Bryant, who landed outside of the top 10.

“Kobe at 11 is criminal,” O’Neal wrote on X in the comments of a Bleacher Report post that revealed the list’s top 20. He left his comment a little more than an hour after the original Bleacher Report post went live.

Here are the 10 players ranked ahead of Bryant, in order from the top: Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Bill Russell, O’Neal, Tim Duncan, Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain and Stephen Curry.

Bryant is followed on the list by Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin Durant, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West.

Do you think Bryant is one of the 10 best NBA players of all time? Click here to vote in our survey and let us know.

Continue reading here

————

From Broderick Turner: Even with all the sports dignitaries in attendance and even though they were watching a rivalry game of sorts between the Lakers and Clippers, the fans inside the Thomas & Mack Center still were mostly enamored with Bronny James.

That is the kind of drawing power James had even with his dad, LeBron James, watching again from his baseline seats. That’s the kind of draw James had even with Steve Ballmer, Tyronn Lue, JJ Redick and Rob Pelinka in attendance.

Even with Austin Reaves, Deandre Ayton and Kawhi Leonard looking on, Bronny James was the center of attention yet again.

James had one of his better NBA Summer League games, but it was the Clippers who came out on top in a 67-58 win Monday night at Nevada Las Vegas.

James had 17 points, five rebounds and five assists in 24 minutes and 17 seconds.

Continue reading here

Lakers-Clippers box score

CLIPPERS

From Broderick Turner: The Clippers team Brook Lopez grew up watching as a young kid in Southern California is not that same franchise anymore.

These Clippers are about putting a winning product on the court and about putting together the right talent to win games — and that is what sold Lopez on signing with them.

“It’s crazy to see, but it’s very cool — seeing the climb, the ascent,” Lopez said Monday afternoon at a news conference hours before the Clippers and Lakers played each other in an NBA Summer League game at Nevada Las Vegas. “I’m a Cali boy. I grew up in the Valley, in North Hollywood. Obviously things were very different back then and to see where the Clippers have come now, it’s just astonishing, it’s beautiful. I’m glad to be a part of it and hopefully I can help take them even further up.”

Lopez decided not to return to the Bucks after seven seasons in Milwaukee and opted not to sign with the Lakers, joining the Clippers on a two-year, $18-million deal.

Continue reading here

BASEBALL

From Bill Shaikin: The suspension of former Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías ends Wednesday. The next day, Major League Baseball will remove him from its restricted list, and any team that wishes to sign him can do so.

Scott Boras, the agent for Urías, said the pitcher — the only player suspended twice for violating baseball’s policy on domestic violence and sexual assault — hopes to resume playing.

“He still has every intention to continue his career,” Boras said here Monday. “He’s getting in shape. Obviously, he’ll have options that are open to him.”

Boras declined to discuss any of those potential options Monday, since the suspension has not yet expired. It is believed that multiple teams have checked in on Urías, but it is uncertain whether a deal would be struck and, if so, he might be able to help a major league team.

“It depends on how teams view the situation and view his skill,” Boras said.

Continue reading here

Jacob Misiorowski is the talk of the All-Star Game. Why Dodgers are partially to thank

Seattle’s Cal Raleigh becomes first catcher to win MLB All-Star Home Run Derby

MLB draft: Landon Hodge of Crespi goes to the White Sox in the fourth round

L.A. OLYMPICS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: LA28 released the first look at the 2028 Olympic competition schedule on Monday, exactly three years before the Games open on July 14, 2028. The slate is highlighted by a break in tradition to accommodate the organizing committee’s unique, dual-venue opening ceremony plan.

Instead of beginning the schedule with swimming, as has been customary in recent Games, track and field will instead take place during the first week of competition from July 15 to 24 at the Coliseum. Swimming will follow from July 22 to 30 at SoFi Stadium, where an indoor pool will be built after the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony, now officially scheduled for 5 p.m. PDT on July 14, 2028, will be shared between the Coliseum and SoFi Stadium. Swimming will deliver the final competition of the 2028 Olympics as the last medal events are set to begin at 3 p.m. on July 30, 2028. Three hours later, the Olympic Games will conclude with the closing ceremony at 6 p.m. at the Coliseum.

Continue reading here

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1912 — Jim Thorpe wins the decathlon at the Stockholm Olympics and, in the closing ceremony, Sweden’s King Gustav proclaims Thorpe the world’s greatest athlete.

1922 — Gene Sarazen shoots a final-round 68 to beat out Bobby Jones and John Black for the U.S. Open golf championship.

1923 — Amateur Bobby Jones beats Bobby Cruikshank by two strokes in a playoff to win the U.S. Open golf title.

1927 — Bobby Jones wins the British Open shooting a championship record 7-under 285 at the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland. It’s the second straight Open title for the amateur, who goes wire-to-wire for a six-stroke victory over Aubrey Boomer and Fred Dobson.

1945 — Byron Nelson defeats Sam Byrd in the final round of the PGA golf tournament.

1961 — Arnold Palmer shoots a 284 at Royal Birkdale to win his first British Open title.

1967 — Argentina’s Roberto DeVicenzo wins the British Open by two strokes over defending champion Jack Nicklaus.

1972 — Lee Trevino wins his second consecutive British Open title by beating Jack Nicklaus by one stroke.

1978 — Jack Nicklaus shoots a 281 at St. Andrews to win his third and final British Open.

1984 — Hollis Stacy wins her third U.S. Women’s Open golf title, beating Rosie Jones by one stroke.

1990 — Betsy King overcomes an 11-shot deficit over the final 33 holes to win her second consecutive U.S. Women’s Open as Patty Sheehan blows an eight-shot lead over the final 23 holes.

1991 — Sandhi Ortiz-DelValle becomes the first woman to officiate a men’s pro basketball game, working a United States Basketball League game between the New Haven Skyhawks and the Philadelphia Spirit.

2000 — Lennox Lewis stops Francois Botha at 2:39 of the second round to retain his WBC and IBF heavyweight titles in London.

2007 — BYU star Daniel Summerhays becomes the first amateur winner in Nationwide Tour history. Summerhays scores a two-stroke victory over Chad Collins and Chris Nallen in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational.

2007 — Copa América Final, Maracaibo, Venezuela: Defending champions Brazil win their 8th title with a 3-0 win over Argentina.

2010 — Rory McIlroy, a 21-year-old from Northern Ireland, ties the major championship record by shooting a 9-under 63 in the opening round of the British Open at the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland.

2010 — Caster Semenya wins her first race since being cleared to return to competition after undergoing gender tests, winning the 800 meters in a modest time against a weak field at a low-key meet in Finland.

2018 — Novak Djokovic wins his fourth Wimbledon title with a 6-2, 6-2 7-6 (3) victory over Kevin Anderson. It’s Djokovic’s 13th major trophy, the fourth-highest total in the history of men’s tennis, trailing only Roger Federer’s 20, Rafael Nadal’s 17 and Pete Sampras’ 14. At No. 21, Djokovic is the lowest-ranked Wimbledon titlist since Goran Ivanisevic in 2001.

2018 — France wins its second World Cup title with a 4-2 win over Croatia in a dramatic final in Moscow.

THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1901 — Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants pitched his first of two career no-hitters, beating the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0.

1921 — NY Yankees slugger Babe Ruth ties MLB record of 138 career home runs (held by Roger Connor since 1895).

1960 — Baltimore’s Brooks Robinson goes 5-for-5, hitting for the cycle and driving in three runs to lead the Orioles past the Chicago White Sox 5-2.

1969 — Cincinnati’s Lee May hit four home runs in a doubleheader split with the Atlanta Braves. May had two home runs and drove in five runs in both games. The Reds lost the opener 9-8 but won the second game 10-4.

1969 — Rod Carew stole home off Chicago’s Gerry Nyman in the Minnesota Twins’ 6-2 victory. It was Carew’s seventh steal of home for the year and tied Pete Reiser’s 1946 major league mark.

1973 — Nolan Ryan of the Angels struck out 17 batters and threw his second no-hitter of the year, beating Detroit 6-0.

1980 — Johnny Bench broke Yogi Berra’s record for home runs by a catcher, and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Montreal Expos 12-7. Bench hit his 314th homer as a catcher off David Palmer. Bench had 33 home runs while playing other positions.

1997 — The San Francisco Giants scored 13 runs to set a modern NL record for runs in a seventh inning en route to a 16-2 rout of the San Diego Padres. The Giants set the NL record for the most runs in a seventh inning since 1900.

1999 — After 22½ years in the dreary Kingdome, Seattle finally played a home game outdoors, moving into a $517.6-million ballpark with a retractable roof. Jose Mesa wasted a ninth-inning lead by walking four batters and the Mariners lost 3-2 to the San Diego Padres in Safeco Field’s opener.

2003 — Garret Anderson of the Angels went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and a double, powering the American League past the National League 7-6 in the All-Star Game.

2005 — Baltimore’s Rafael Palmeiro became the 26th player to reach 3,000 hits, curling an RBI double into the left-field corner off Joel Pineiro in the fifth inning of a 6-3 win over Seattle. Palmeiro joined Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray as the only players with 3,000 hits and 500 homers.

2007 — The Philadelphia Phillies lost their 10,000th game, 10-2 to St. Louis. The franchise, born in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and later unofficially called the Blue Jays in the mid-1940s, fell to 8,810-10,000.

2008 — Justin Morneau slid home just in time on Michael Young’s sacrifice fly in the 15th inning, giving the American League a 4-3 victory in the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. The AL extended its unbeaten streak to 12.

2014 — With Derek Jeter going out a winner in his last All-Star appearance, Mike Trout drove in two runs with a triple and a double to lead the American League past the National League 5-3. Jeter started his 14th and final midsummer classic and went 2 for 2 before being removed in the top of the fourth inning.

2017 — Cody Bellinger became the first Dodgers rookie to hit for the cycle and Alex Wood became the first Dodgers pitcher in more than a century to win his first 11 decisions in a season, helping Los Angeles beat the Miami Marlins 7-1.

2021 — Tampa Bay catcher Travis d’Arnaud becomes first player in MLB history to hit 3 homers while catching and batting leadoff in the Rays’ 5-4 win over the NY Yankees.

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. My name is Eric Sondheimer. Let’s take a sneak peek at running backs to watch this fall.

The ground gainers

As much as everyone likes to pass these days in football, the running backs are the ones that can lead to victory or defeat. If you can’t run, you probably won’t win on a night the line can’t protect the quarterback.

The City Section has two running backs coming off fantastic sophomore seasons in Edward Rivera of South East and Ceasar Reyes of Garfield. Both have been working hard this summer to improve their speed and strength. Reyes could benefit from a new all-weather field opening at Garfield.

Journee Tonga of Leuzinger is the little engine that could. He rushed for more than 2,000 yards and 29 touchdowns as a 5-foot-8 junior. Brian Bonner of Valencia and Deshonne Redeaux of Oaks Christian are speedsters committed to Washington and USC, respectively, and capable of breaking away for touchdowns if defenses give them any kind of openings.

AJ McBean of Mira Costa is a 205-pound bruising junior running back with improving speed and power.

Maliq Allen of St. John Bosco showed moments of brilliance as a sophomore and gained 1,003 yards rushing.

Jaxsen Stokes of Sierra Canyon showed he was a big-play weapon in the making as a sophomore. Justin Lewis has taken his talents from Thousand Oaks to Mater Dei, so let’s see how the transition goes. Sean Morris, a Northwestern commit, has left Loyola for Orange Lutheran.

Noah Penunuri of Rio Hondo Prep had 1,965 yards rushing. Zander Lewis has moved from Ontario Christian to Corona Centennial, joining leading rusher Braylin Drake and super sophomore Malaki Davis. Jorden Wells moves from the freshman team to varsity at Servite. His speed could make immediate impact. Kevika Martinez of La Habra is coming off a sophomore season in which he gained 1,021 yards and scored 16 touchdowns.

There are other transfers that must fill out paperwork to decide whether they will be eligible immediately or have to sit out the first part of the season.

Summer success

Ohio State commit Luke Fahey of Mission Viejo launches pass on Saturday at Edison’s passing tournament.

(Craig Weston)

The summer passing season ended Saturday with Mission Viejo once again being best behind quarterback Luke Fahey. The Diablos went 7-0 in the Edison seven-on-seven tournament. Here’s a report.

First-year Santa Margarita head coach Carson Palmer.

(Craig Weston)

Santa Margarita, under first-year coach Carson Palmer, made its first appearance and there’s lots to like about what the Eagles will have available this fall, from an all-star coaching staff, to the Mosley brothers, Trent and Grant, to new quarterback Trace Johnson.

The season opener matching Mission Viejo against Santa Margarita on Aug. 22 is shaping up as the best opening football game this fall.

Freshman quarterback Thaddeus Breaux is Hamilton High’s newest standout player.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Hamilton is planning for big improvement after a 2-9 rookie season for coach Elijah Asante and has a freshman quarterback, Thaddeus Breaux, who Asante is calling “The Franchise.” Here’s the report.

Missing trophy

The City Section perpetual football trophy is missing again. In 2021, it was found in a dumpster and ended up at the Southern Section, where commissioner Rob Wigod presented it to City Section commissioner Vicky Lagos.

(Southern Section)

The City Section wants its perpetual football trophy back from Narbonne, which has to vacate its 2024 title for rules violations. Unfortunately, the trophy is apparently missing again.

This is a repeat from when Narbonne had the trophy in 2018 and it went missing until being found in a dumpster in 2021.

Here’s the report.

Santa Margarita flag football quarterback Madi Lam.

(Steve Galluzzo)

Several of Southern California’s best girls’ flag football players will be competing this weekend at the NFL Flag Championships beginning Thursday in Canton, Ohio.

They’re playing for an all-star club team representing the Chargers from Southern California, the Conquer Chargers.

Madi Lam, who will be a senior at Santa Margarita, is the team’s talented quarterback. Also on the team is Hayli McIlroy from Crean Lutheran, a receiver and defensive back, and center Shelby Nguyen from Marina.

Two recent graduates are key players — Sophie Guitron from Mira Costa and Aaya McLyn from Long Beach Poly.

MLB draft

Corona shortstop Billy Carlson (3) is pumped with teammate Seth Hernandez. Both were first-round draft picks on Sunday.

(Nick Koza)

It was a big Sunday for Corona High baseball, becoming the first high school to have three first-round draft picks. Pitcher Seth Hernandez was taken No. 6 by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Shortstop Billy Carlson was selected No. 10 by the Chicago White Sox. Third baseman Brady Ebel went No. 32 to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Here’s a report.

Notes . . .

Kevin Smith, the former baseball coach at South Hills and Mt. San Antonio College, is the new head coach at Los Altos. …

Mike Voelkel has stepped down as baseball coach after 18 seasons at Palisades. He no longer has a field after the school put temporary bungalows on the field for the next five years to help the campus recover from damage of the Palisades fire. …

Running back Brian Bonner of Valencia committed to Washington. …

Harvard-Westlake baseball coach Jared Halpert and athletic director Matt LaCour will be in Atlanta on Tuesday to watch former Wolverines Max Fried and Pete Crow-Armstrong in the MLB All-Star Game. Here’s a report. . . .

A double first base will be required beginning in 2027 for all high school baseball games. Here’s the latest rules changes. …

Electronic communication by softball players have been clarified in new rules for the sport. Here’s the report. …

Gary Meek, who was a Hall of Fame football coach at Esperanza, died on Thursday. He was 76. He was head coach for 17 years, won two section titles and was inducted into the Southern Section Hall of Fame in 2023. …

St. Bernard guard Joshua Palmer has committed to UC Irvine. His father is UCLA assistant Rod Palmer. …

Sierra Canyon’s basketball program has added 6-foot-7 Brannon Martinsen from JSerra and 6-2 DeLan Grant from St. Francis. …

Jason Crowe Jr., the standout basketball player at Inglewood, is scheduled to announce his college choice on Friday. …

Jason Edgmond has resigned as girls basketball coach at Beckman. …

Eddie Arnett is the new athletic director at Ontario Christian. …

Redondo Union has an opening for softball coach. …

Mathis Dritz, one of the top girls basketball players in Ventura County last season at Westlake, has transferred to Fairmont Prep. …

Receiver Jonah Smith of Santa Margarita, a UCLA commit, will miss his senior season because of a knee injury. …

Cameron Chinn is the new baseball coach at Los Alamitos. He’s a former Edison coach. …

It appears that Palisades’ football team won’t be able to use its home stadium this season. The team has scheduled three home games at Santa Monica College.

From the archives: Troy Williams

Former Narbonne quarterback Troy Williams (right) while playing for Utah in 2017.

(Utah)

Troy Williams, a two-time City Section player of the year from Narbonne in 2011 and 2012, is helping coach at El Camino College this summer with his former offensive coordinator, Tim Kaub. Williams plays quarterback for the Memphis Showboats of the United Football League.

Here’s a story from 2011 about Williams’ potential.

Here’s a story from 2012 about Williams’ continuing progress.

Recommendations

From the Washington Post, a story on a high school hiring a former NBA player as its general manager for basketball.

From Athlonsports.com, a story on the rise of Max Fried with the New York Yankees.

From the New York Times, a story on how youth sports is a $40-billion business.

From ouresquina.com, a story on former St. John Bosco quarterback Caleb Sanchez at Columbia.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on Corona graduate Brady Ebel.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time…

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

Sin-caraz here to stay

The level of shot-making and athleticism produced by Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz as their fast-developing rivalry continued in the men’s singles final was a joy to behold.

Except, perhaps, if you’re one of the guys trying to usurp them. The pair look set to maintain a stranglehold on the men’s game for the foreseeable future.

Certainly it will take something extraordinary for somebody to prevent Sinner or Alcaraz winning the US Open and sweeping the Grand Slams for the second successive season.

Swiatek joins all-court greats

Few would have picked Iga Swiatek pre-tournament as their women’s champion.

But the 24-year-old Pole has now won majors on all the surfaces after needing just 57 minutes to beat Amanda Anisimova in a scarcely believable 6-0 6-0 win.

Despite a difficult year where she dropped down the rankings, Swiatek has reasserted some of her authority after becoming the youngest woman since Serena Williams in 2002 to win Grand Slam titles on all three surfaces.

Time catching up with Djokovic

In truth, this has been apparent for a while. Novak Djokovic has not won a major title since the 2023 US Open and it was widely accepted Wimbledon represented his best chance of breaking the Sinner-Alcaraz duopoly.

The 38-year-old Serb continues to defy the ageing process but losing to Sinner in the semi-finals – ending his bid for a standalone record 25th major title – was another indication he doesn’t have enough in the tank to match the young guns.

Humans versus technology

The ongoing topic of humans being made redundant by technology spilled over into Wimbledon.

The All England Club replaced line judges with an electronic line-calling system, but had to apologise after the technology was turned off in error and missed three calls in one game.

From Jack Harris: They’ve underperformed relative to preseason expectations, but worked around serious roster limitations.

They’ve wowed with an undefeated 8-0 start, a star-studded offense that tops the majors in scoring, and a comfortable division lead in a competitive National League West. And yet, they’ve left so much to still be desired, both on the mound from their injury-plagued pitching staff and at the plate amid uncharacteristic slumps from several veteran stars.

No, the Dodgers have not played like “The Greatest Team Ever” in the first half of the season. Their record-setting $400-million payroll is not bidding for any all-time wins mark.

But, after grinding out a 5-2 extra-innings win over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday to enter the All-Star break with a key divisional series victory, their first half has been a quiet success nonetheless, concluding with the Dodgers (58-39) holding a 5 ½-game lead in the NL West, the top record in the NL and still the best odds of being baseball’s first repeat champion in a quarter-century.

“I think the win-loss, the standings are great,” manager Dave Roberts said. “But I think there’s just a lot of improvement that we need to do, we need to be better at.”

Indeed, Sunday epitomized the duality of the Dodgers’ first 97 games.

Their starting pitcher, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, completed his stellar start to the season with a seven-inning gem, keeping the Giants (52-45) off the scoreboard while giving up three hits, two walks and striking out seven batters.

Continue reading here

Dodgers-Giants box score

MLB standings

MLB scores

LAKERS

Lakers star LeBron James stands on the court at Crypto.com Arena before a game against the Houston Rockets on April 11.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

From Bill Plaschke: The news seemed routine.

The ramifications could be resounding.

Late last month, LeBron James exercised his $52.6 million player option with the Lakers for next season. It was an expected transaction that, at first weary glance, appeared to be no big deal.

Of course he would take the guaranteed money, more than anyone else in the league besides Brooklyn could give him.

Of course he would stay in Los Angeles, where son Bronny sits on the bench and his home sits on a hill and his myriad businesses are sitting pretty.

Of course, of course, of course … but …

Wait a minute. There was a catch.

For the first time since James arrived here seven years ago, there was no second or third or fourth year attached to his contract.

The Lakers didn’t offer him an extension. They refused to guarantee him a spot here after next spring.

Continue reading here

ANGELS

UC Santa Barbara starting pitcher Tyler Bremner delivers against Loyola Marymount in March 2023.

(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)

From Bill Shaikin: The name was a surprise, but the pick should not have been.

The bromide about teams picking the best available player rather than drafting for need does not apply to the Angels, at least not in the Perry Minasian era. The Angels’ front office must try to win now, with an ownership that does not believe in rebuilding, and without huge investments in major league free agency, international scouting or player development.

The Angels needed pitching. They drafted a college pitcher Sunday, in line with their no-margin-for-error strategy of selecting top college players and pushing them into the major leagues.

Their pick: Tyler Bremner of UC Santa Barbara.

It’s been an emotional year for Bremner, who lost his mother to breast cancer in June.

Continue reading here

ALSO: Angels can’t complete the sweep against Diamondbacks

Angels-Diamondbacks box score

DODGERS

Arkansas pitcher Zach Root delivers against Washington State in February.

(Michael Woods / Associated Press)

From Jack Harris: The Dodgers’ first two picks in this year’s MLB draft came consecutively at Nos. 40 and 41 overall.

Turns out, their two selections came from the same school, as well, with the team taking left-handed pitcher Zach Root and contact-hitting outfielder Charles Davalan out of the University of Arkansas.

Root, a junior for the Razorbacks this year, went at No. 40. A transfer from East Carolina, he had a 3.62 earned-run average this season with 126 strikeouts in 99⅓ innings. Scouting reports lauded his versatile pitch mix, which includes a slider, curveball and changeup from a funky low arm-slot delivery.

Continue reading here

SPARKS

Sparks forward Rickea Jackson, right, controls the ball in front of Connecticut Sun forward Aneesah Morrow during the Sparks’ 92-88 win Sunday.

(Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

From Ira Gorawara: It was the kind of offense they’d been chasing all season.

Cuts darted through closing doors, twisting Connecticut’s defense into knots as the Sparks’ monster frontcourt threw its weight around in a 57-point stampede. And with attention pulled inside, Kelsey Plum found her rhythm in the third quarter and Rae Burrell clawed her way into the lane to jolt the Sparks back to life.

With touches flowing from sideline to baseline, the Sparks kept their half of the scoreboard flashing in a wire-to-wire 92-88 victory over a flailing Sun squad — all while limiting Tina Charles, the WNBA’s second-leading scorer, to just nine points on three-for-10 shooting.

Continue reading here

Sparks-Sun box score

WNBA standings

WNBA scores

TENNIS

Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning the Wimbledon men’s singles title on Sunday.

(Kin Cheung / Associated Press)

From the Associated Press: Jannik Sinner defeated two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to win his first Wimbledon championship and reverse the result of their epic French Open final five weeks ago.

The No. 1-ranked Sinner earned his fourth Grand Slam title overall, moving him one away from No. 2 Alcaraz’s total as the two no-longer-rising-but-firmly-established stars of the game separate themselves from the rest of the pack in men’s tennis.

This victory also allowed Sinner, a 23-year-old Italian, to put an end to several streaks for Alcaraz, a 22-year-old Spaniard.

Alcaraz had won the past five head-to-head matches between the pair, most recently across five sets and nearly 5½ hours at Roland-Garros on June 8. Sinner took a two-set lead in that one, then held a trio of match points, but couldn’t close the deal, allowing Alcaraz to improve to 5-0 in major finals.

Continue reading here

SOCCER

Chelsea players celebrate while standing next to President Trump after beating Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup final on Sunday.

(Matt Slocum / Associated Press)

From the Associated Press: Cole Palmer scored twice and fed João Pedro for a goal as Chelsea overwhelmed Paris Saint-Germain in the first half and beat the European champions 3-0 on Sunday in the final of the first expanded FIFA Club World Cup.

Palmer had almost identical left-footed goals from just inside the penalty area in the 22nd and 30th minutes, then sent a through pass that enabled Pedro to chip goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 43d for his third goal in two starts with the Blues.

A 23-year-old who joined Chelsea from Manchester City two years ago, Palmer scored 18 goals this season.

Continue reading here

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1912 — Kenneth McArthur runs Olympic record marathon (2:36:54.8).

1951 — Citation is the first horse to win $1 million in a career by taking the Hollywood Gold Cup by four lengths in Inglewood, Calif. Citation retires after the race with total earnings of $1,085,760. In 45 starts, Citation ran out of the money only once.

1964 — Jacques Anquetil wins his fifth Tour de France. It’s his fourth straight title of the cycling event.

1967 — Eddie Mathews of the Astros hits his 500th home run off San Francisco’s Juan Marichal at Candlestick Park. Houston beats the Giants 8-6.

1968 — Hank Aaron hits his 500th home run off Mike McCormick as the Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2.

1973 — Tom Weiskopf wins the British Open by three strokes over Johnny Miller and Neil Coles. Weiskopf goes wire-to-wire and his total of 12-under-par 276 matches the Open Championship record set by Arnold Palmer on the same Troon Golf Club course in 1962.

1985 — Kathy Baker beats Judy Clark by three strokes to win the U.S. Women’s Open golf title.

1985 — The Baltimore Stars defeat the Oakland Invaders 28-24 to win the United States Football League championship.

1986 — Jane Geddes beats Sally Little in an 18-hole playoff to take the U.S. Women’s Open championship.

1991 — Meg Mallon shoots a 4-under 67 for a two-stroke victory over Pat Bradley in the 46th U.S. Women’s Open. Mallon finishes with a 1-under 283.

1995 — Ramon Martinez throws a no-hitter, giving the Los Angeles Dodgers a 7-0 victory over the Florida Marlins.

2001 — John Campbell scores an unprecedented sixth victory in the $1 million Meadowlands Pace as Real Desire beats favored Bettor’s Delight in the stretch. Real Desire paces the mile in 1:49.3 in matching the record set by The Panderosa two years ago in the race that gave Campbell his fifth win. Campbell, 46, is a winner of a $1 million race 19 times.

2005 — In Oklahoma City, the United States is beaten in an international softball game for the first time since 2002, losing 2-1 to Canada in the inaugural World Cup of Softball.

2009 — The American League continues its dominance over the National League with a 4-3 win in the All-Star game. The AL is 12-0-1 since its 1996 defeat at Philadelphia — the longest unbeaten streak in All-Star history.

2011 — Kaio breaks former grand champion Chiyonofuji career sumo victory record, beating Mongolian Kyokutenho for No. 1,046. The 39-year-old Kaio forces out Kyokutenho in the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament.

2011 — Amateur Tom Lewis shoots a record 5-under 65 in the opening round of the British Open. The 20-year-old Lewis posts the lowest round ever by an amateur in golf’s oldest major to pull even with Thomas Bjorn at Royal St. George’s.

2013 — Jordan Spieth becomes the youngest winner on the PGA Tour in 82 years. The 19-year-old outlasts David Hearn and Zach Johnson on the fifth hole of a playoff to win the John Deere Classic. He’s the first teenager to win since Ralph Guldahl took the Santa Monica Open in 1931.

2015 — Mike Trout becomes the first player in 38 years to lead off the All-Star Game with a home run, and the American League beats the National League 6-3 to secure home-field advantage in the World Series for the third straight time and 10th in 13 years. Trout also becomes the first player to be selected the game’s MVP two years in row.

2018 — Angelique Kerber claims her first Wimbledon title with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over seven-time champion Serena Williams.

2019 — Novak Djokovic wins the longest ever Wimbledon title over Roger Federer 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 13-12 in 4 hours 57 minutes.

2019 — English Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton wins a record sixth British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone; moves him one win clear of Jim Clark and Alain Prost (5).

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 [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash considers how the future of men’s tennis could look after Jannik Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz to win the grass-court Grand Slam title.

WATCH MORE: Sinner storms to first Wimbledon title against Alcaraz – highlights

Available to UK users only.

Sinner has also had to overcome challenges off the court.

Such has been the consistency he has shown over the past 12 months, Sinner has kept hold of the world number one ranking despite serving a three-month doping ban earlier this year.

Sinner accepted the ban after the World Anti-Doping Agency found he “did not intend to cheat” but still bore responsibility for the negligence of members of his team after he twice tested positive for banned substance clostebol in March 2024.

That ban was served between the successful defence of his Australian Open title in January and the French Open – now the only trophy separating him from becoming just the ninth man to achieve a career Grand Slam.

Wimbledon women’s champion Iga Swiatek also served a one-month ban after testing positive for heart medication trimetazidine, which the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted was caused by contamination.

Cahill previously described Sinner as being worn down physically and mentally by the investigation.

“His year has been challenging for everybody involved,” Cahill said on Sunday.

“The person that you see on the tennis court – this focus and attention to detail – is not the same guy off the court.

“He’s a fun-loving guy who is joking around all the time and loves the company of the people around him.

“He’s cooking, messing up stuff, making mistakes all over the place, and we’re laughing about it.”

With Sinner’s career now intertwined with that of Alcaraz, they appear destined to push each other to greater heights – and Sinner has proved beyond doubt that he is up to the task.

BBC Sport pundits Tim Henman and Todd Woodbridge look at how Jannik Sinner has been able to transfer his athleticism from his past as a skier onto the grass court, particularly with his ability to hit shots on the slide after the Italian won his first Wimbledon title by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final.

Watch live coverage from every court on BBC iPlayer.

Available to UK users only.

Top seed Sinner defeats Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in the final to win his first Wimbledon and fourth Grand Slam title.

Wimbledon, United Kingdom – It has taken Jannik Sinner just five weeks to exact revenge against Carlos Alcaraz in their blockbuster tennis rivalry and win the men’s singles final at Wimbledon 2025.

The top-seeded Italian overcame the emotional and physical toll of losing the French Open final to Alcaraz by defeating the Spaniard 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London on Sunday.

Sinner turned the tables on the defending champion by overcoming a loss in the first set – and some early nerves – to win his fourth Grand Slam trophy and first on the famous Centre Court at SW19.

Two-time champion Alcaraz began the final with a strong service game, pouncing on Sinner’s nervous start in his first appearance in a Wimbledon final. The 22-year-old went on to break the world number one’s serve and wrap up the first set in 45 minutes, deploying a serve-and-volley style strategy to win the crucial points.

Sinner dug deep in the second set and was back to his ice-cool self as he applied the brakes on Alcaraz’s attempt for a three-peat of titles at Wimbledon.

The quality of tennis went up a notch as the 23-year-old matched Alcaraz shot for shot and left the crowd gasping at every other point.

Sinner didn’t waste much time in breaking back against the defending champion by deploying an excellent service game to keep Alcaraz at bay, altering his speed and delivery to ensure his opponent scurried for every point. He was soon on level terms.

The third set was, by far, the highlight of the final as both players threw everything at each other with sensational court coverage, scintillating aces, sublime drop shots and even a “tweener”.

It was end-to-end action up until the eighth game, when Alcaraz slipped up by the barest of margins but ended up having his serve broken. Sinner wasted no time to bring out his ruthless streak and finish off Alcaraz’s chances in the set.

Leading the final two sets to one, Sinner stepped on the gas in the fourth and ensured there would be no late Alcaraz comeback as so memorably occurred in the French Open final on June 8.

He broke Alcaraz in the third game, and the stoic Italian showed a glimpse of emotion as he looked towards his team in the stands.

Crowd favourite Alcaraz had most of the capacity crowd on Centre Court behind him, including King Felipe of Spain, but it was not enough to help him stay in the final for one more set as Sinner sealed the trophy with a faultless service game.

‘Dream of a dream’

With joy and disbelief etched on his face, and with the match now over, Sinner raised both arms with a jolt before squatting down on the court to pat the grass with the other hand, all the while hiding the emotions on his face.

Not only did he avenge his French Open final loss with a fourth major trophy, Sinner also moved to within one Grand Slam title of his great contemporary Alcaraz.

The two-time Australian Open champion has become the first man from Italy to win the Wimbledon title, a feat he described as akin to “a dream of a dream”.

“I had never thought of being in this position [to win Wimbledon] growing up so far away from here,” an unusually emotional Sinner said on court after the match.

“I had a very tough loss in Paris, but I tried to understand what I did wrong and kept working [hard].”

Sinner has now won Grand Slam titles on two of the three surfaces and said he was happy to have held his nerve while serving for the championship in the fourth set. Alcaraz, ever the gracious opponent in defeat as in victory, kept up his applause for Sinner even after returning to his chair after losing the match. But he said it was a difficult loss.

“I love playing here and I’m going to be back for sure,” the Spaniard told his fans on Centre Court.

Both players walked off to a loud round of applause after providing yet another enthralling glimpse into another “golden era” of tennis.

Sinner and Alcaraz have won all seven Grand Slam finals since the beginning of 2024, and it will only be a matter of eight weeks until tennis fans can hope to see the next instalment of their flourishing rivalry at the last Grand Slam of the year, the US Open.

LONDON — Jannik Sinner defeated two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to win his first Wimbledon championship and reverse the result of their epic French Open final five weeks ago.

The No. 1-ranked Sinner earned his fourth Grand Slam title overall, moving him one away from No. 2 Alcaraz’s total as the two no-longer-rising-but-firmly-established stars of the game separate themselves from the rest of the pack in men’s tennis.

This victory also allowed Sinner, a 23-year-old Italian, to put an end to several streaks for Alcaraz, a 22-year-old Spaniard.

Alcaraz had won the past five head-to-head matches between the pair, most recently across five sets and nearly 5 1/2 hours at Roland-Garros on June 8. Sinner took a two-set lead in that one, then held a trio of match points, but couldn’t close the deal, allowing Alcaraz to improve to 5-0 in major finals.

Jannik Sinner holds the trophy after winning the Wimbledon men’s singles final against Carlos Alcaraz in London Sunday.

(Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press)

“I had a very tough loss in Paris. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter how you win or you lose the important tournaments. You just have to understand what you did wrong. Trying to work on that — that’s exactly what we did. We tried to accept the loss and then just kept working,” Sinner said Sunday. “And this is, for sure, why I’m holding this trophy here.”

This time, he didn’t waver, asserting himself in a match that featured moments of terrific play by both men, but also the occasional lapses — and one memorable, brief, interruption right before a Sinner serve when a Champagne cork came flying out of the stands and settled on the turf.

With Prince William and Princess Kate in the Royal Box, along with King Felipe VI of Spain, Alcaraz stepped into the sunlight bathing Centre Court as the owner of a career-best 24-match unbeaten run. He had won 20 matches in a row at the All England Club, including victories against Novak Djokovic in the 2023 and 2024 finals.

“It’s difficult to lose,” Alcaraz said. “It’s always difficult to lose.”

The last man to beat him at Wimbledon? Sinner, in the fourth round in 2022.

So this served as a bookend win for Sinner, who proved what he kept telling anyone who asked: No, there would be no carryover from his heartbreak in Paris. Hard to imagine, though, that that collapse wasn’t on his mind at least a little on Sunday, especially when he faced two break points while serving at 4-3, 15-40 in the fourth set.

But he calmly took the next four points to hold there, and soon was serving out the win.

“Very happy that I [held] nerves,” Sinner said.

When it ended, Sinner put both hands on his white hat. After embracing Alcaraz at the net, Sinner crouched on court with his head bowed, then pounded his right palm on the grass.

Yes, Sinner put the French Open behind him in the best way possible and demonstrated that his matchups with Alcaraz could delight tennis fans for years to come.

“Really happy to be able to build a really good relationship off the court,” Alcaraz said, “but then a great rivalry on the court that makes me improve every day.”

Sinner told Alcaraz: “Thank you for the player you are. It’s so difficult to play against you.”

Jannik Sinner reacts after defeating Carlos Alcaraz to win the Wimbledon championship in London on Sunday.

(Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press)

These two guys have divvied up the past seven Grand Slam trophies, and nine of the last 12.

Fittingly, this marked the first time the same two men faced off in the title matches on the clay at Roland-Garros and the grass at the All England Club in the same year since Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal did it in 2006, 2007 and 2008. It hadn’t happened for more than a half-century before that trilogy.

Sinner has participated in each of the last four major finals, a stretch that began with a triumph at the U.S. Open last September and was followed by another at the Australian Open this January.

Wearing the same tape job and white arm sleeve to protect his right elbow that he has been using since falling in the opening game of his fourth-round win on Monday, Sinner never showed any issues, just as he had not while eliminating 24-time major champion Djokovic in the semifinals.

Fendrich writes for the Associated Press.