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From Dan Woike: JJ Redick, renewed by the All-Star break, bounded through the halls of the Lakers’ arena like a rested golden retriever. His team had a week off and a clean injury report, a 30-game sprint to the finish with a chance to have their best regular-season finish since their 2020 title run.
There were reasons everywhere to be excited. The 48 minutes that followed in a miserable 100-97 loss, though, wouldn’t provide any of them, the Lakers bad on offense for most of the night and unable to get a stop down the stretch.
“I think we played, I don’t even know, 39 to 44 minutes of pretty poor offense,” Redick said postgame. “And some of that’s to be expected. Some of it was sloppiness, some of it was poor spacing, some of it was poor execution. I don’t, I’m not going to, the reason I’m not going to read too much into that is because I think our guys competed tonight and they played extremely hard.”
LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges broke down the Lakers’ defense time and again in the fourth quarter, the Hornets hunting Luka Doncic and attacking a defense sorely lacking rim protection.
The Lakers missed a pair of key free throws, and while a LeBron James bailout three gave them some hope, his two chances at forcing overtime on the Lakers’ final possession rattled out.
From Anthony De Leon: When the stakes are highest against ranked opponents, JuJu Watkins plays her best basketball — and Wednesday’s game versus No. 22 Michigan State was no exception.
Entering the matchup, Watkins was averaging 24.4 points and 8.0 rebounds against Top 25 opponents. Against the Spartans, she scored 28 points and had eight rebounds in leading led USC to an 83-75 win at the Galen Center, securing the team’s seventh victory over a ranked opponent.
And even when Watkins was slowed down with an early injury, USC (24-2 overall, 14-1 Big Ten) showed why it is one of the nation’s best teams, relying on its depth to step up.
While the win is largely credited to Watkins’ performance, teammate Kiki Iriafen also played at a level comparable to the superstar, something she’s quietly done all season. Both scored in double figures and led the Trojans during crucial moments, securing the victory.
“JuJu and Kiki are the best duo in the country,” coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “They played like it tonight. It was the type of game where they were trying to make it chaotic. And sometimes players have just had to make plays.”
From Jack Harris: Troy Tulowitzki never knew Mookie Betts particularly well during their time together in Major League Baseball.
A five-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove shortstop, Tulowitzki played against Betts plenty near the end of his 13-year career, overlapping with the start of Betts’ rise to stardom with the Boston Red Sox. The two had mutual friends and were division foes for three years while Tulowitzki was with the Toronto Blue Jays from 2015 to 2017.
But as Betts embarked on a tireless training program this offseason, preparing to play the position full-time for the Dodgers after his inconsistent three-month stretch last season, he reached out to Tulowitzki and asked to spend some time training together.
Tulowitzki, now an assistant coach with the Texas Longhorns, happily obliged — excited to work with a player of Betts’ caliber and, like the rest of the baseball world, also curious to see how the six-time Gold Glove right fielder would fare in his virtually unprecedented position switch.
Fast-forward a few months, however, and you can count Tulowitzki among the growing contingent of those sold on Betts’ potential at shortstop.
“I wouldn’t say this for anybody else that’s just spent however many years in the outfield and then go to the infield,” Tulowitzki said of a position change that has no equivalent in recent baseball history. “But I can truly tell you, I think he can be an elite defender at the position — which is just crazy to say.”
Dodgers rookie phenom Roki Sasaki pleased with first live session of spring training
The Dodgers have a record-setting payroll. Could their spending impact future CBA talks?
From Sam Farmer and Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Chargers will open Year 2 of the Jim Harbaugh era in Sao Paulo, Brazil, the NFL announced Wednesday, giving the team its first international game since 2019 in the league’s second regular-season game in South America.
Following last year’s Sao Paulo game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers that started the Super Bowl path for the eventual champion Eagles, the Chargers will open their season on Friday, Sept. 5, at Arena Corinthians, the venue that hosted last year’s historic NFL game, the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics.
The Chargers will become the NFL’s first franchise to play games on five continents, having played their first international game nearly 50 years ago. In 1976, they faced the then-St. Louis Cardinals in the preseason Mainichi Star Bowl in Tokyo. They later played preseason games in Berlin, Germany, and Sydney, Australia, with regular-season contests in London and Mexico City.
From Ryan Kartje: After years of showcasing its football team at the end of every spring, USC will not host a spring game in 2025, a person familiar with the decision but not authorized to speak publicly told The Times.
Spring games had been held at USC since Pete Carroll strolled the sidelines of the Coliseum, giving fans a chance to get a first glimpse of the football team months ahead of the coming season.
But the decision to do away with the traditional exhibition comes as the major college football landscape continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Big Ten counterparts Nebraska and Ohio State also moved recently to cancel their spring games, and it’s likely that others will be close behind.
1887 — The International Association, the first minor league baseball association, is organized in Pittsburgh.
1951 — The college point-shaving scandal prompts Long Island University to drop basketball and all other intercollegiate sports. LIU revives basketball in 1957.
1971 — En route to a record 76-goal season, Boston’s Phil Esposito becomes the first player to score his 50th goal in February, but the Bruins lose to the Kings, 5-4.
1972 — Larry Brown of the Denver Rockets sets ABA records for assists in a game (23), half (18) and quarter (10) during a 146-123 home win over the Pittsburgh Condors.
1974 — Gordie Howe, the NHL’s career scoring leader, comes out of retirement and signs a $1 million, four-year contract to play with the Houston Aeros of the WHA and sons Mark and Marty.
1976 — Muhammad Ali beats Jean-Pierre Coopman with a fifth-round knockout at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum in Puerto Rico to defend his world heavyweight title.
1988 — In Calgary, Alberta, Brian Boitano of the U.S. wins the Olympic figure skating gold medal on a technical merit tiebreaker and nearly flawless free skate.
1993 — Julio Cesar Chavez records a fifth-round TKO over Greg Haugen in a WBC super lightweight title bout before a record crowd of 130,000 at Mexico City’s Aztec Stadium.
1998 — Tara Lipinski, 15, becomes the youngest Olympic figure skating champion, beating fellow teen and U.S. teammate Michelle Kwan to take the gold. Lipinski is two months younger than Sonja Henie was in her 1928 victory.
2006 — Tanith Belbin and partner Ben Agosto end the U.S. medals drought in Olympic ice dance competition with a silver. The last to do so were Colleen O’Connor and James Millns, who won bronze in 1976.
2009 — Lindsey Van of the U.S. becomes the first female ski jumping world champion. Women’s ski jumping makes its debut at this year’s Nordic world championships in the Czech Republic. Todd Lodwick wins the opening Nordic combined event to give the U.S. two golds in one day. Before Van’s victory, the U.S. had not won a gold at a Nordic worlds since 2003 when Johnny Spillane took a Nordic combined sprint.
2010 — Switzerland’s Simon Ammann wins the large hill at the Vancouver Games to become the first ski jumper with four individual Olympic titles.
2011 — Trevor Bayne, 20, wins the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s biggest race, in only his second Sprint Cup start.
2011 — Kobe Bryant wins his record-tying fourth All-Star game MVP award, scoring 37 points before his hometown fans and leading the West past the East 148-143.
2016 — Lindsey Vonn clinches a record 20th World Cup crystal globe title and surpasses Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark. It’s Vonn’s record eighth downhill title. Stenmark won 19 globes between 1975 and 1984.
2021 — Australian Open Women’s Tennis: Naomi Osaka of Japan wins her 4th major and second Australian title; beats American Jennifer Brady 6-4, 6-3.
2022 — Hannah Green of Australia becomes first woman to win a mix-gender golf tournament over 72 holes; closes with 5-under 66 for a 4-stroke win in TPS Murray River on the PGA Tour of Australasia.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Page 2
PHOENIX — Troy Tulowitzki never knew Mookie Betts particularly well during their time together in Major League Baseball.
A five-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove shortstop, Tulowitzki played against Betts plenty near the end of his 13-year career, overlapping with the start of Betts’ rise to stardom with the Boston Red Sox. The two had mutual friends and were division foes for three years while Tulowitzki was with the Toronto Blue Jays from 2015 to 2017.
But with Betts just beginning his career and Tulowitzki winding down his decorated playing days, their interactions were limited. The first time they met, Betts was almost too shy to say hello.
“He was like, ‘Oh man, I was so scared to talk to you,’” Tulowitzki said with a laugh recently, after hearing Betts recount the story years later. “Now, obviously, he’s one of the best players in the game.”
One of the best, yes. But also one in search of guidance in playing shortstop.
So as Betts embarked on a tireless training program this offseason, preparing to play the position full-time for the Dodgers after his inconsistent three-month stretch last season, he reached out to Tulowitzki and asked to spend some time training together.
Tulowitzki, now an assistant coach with the Texas Longhorns, happily obliged — excited to work with a player of Betts’ caliber and, like the rest of the baseball world, also curious to see how the six-time Gold Glove right fielder would fare in his virtually unprecedented position switch.
“To be one of the best defenders in the game, if not the best with the Platinum Gloves and Gold Gloves and all that, and then to go to shortstop,” Tulowitzki said, “I’d watch him play [last year] and was like, ‘Eh, he’s OK there.’ But that’s what he should be.”
Fast-forward a few months, however, and you can count Tulowitzki among the growing contingent of those sold on Betts’ potential at shortstop.
“I wouldn’t say this for anybody else that’s just spent however many years in the outfield and then go to the infield,” Tulowitzki said of a position change that has no equivalent in recent baseball history. “But I can truly tell you, I think he can be an elite defender at the position — which is just crazy to say.”
Troy Tulowitzki, top, and Mookie Betts, sliding, were AL East foes for three seasons when Tulowitzki was on the Blue Jays and Betts was with the Red Sox. Tulowitki, now an assistant coach with the University of Texas, worked with Betts in the offseason on playing shortstop.
Last year Betts got a crash course at the position. He was pressed into shortstop duties just weeks before opening day. He spent the first half trying to learn its intricacies on the fly. And after missing two months because of a broken hand, he returned to right field for the stretch run, unable to progress enough at shortstop to play there in the playoffs.
This winter Betts benefited from a more curated instructional plan. He took grounders on an almost daily basis near his home in Los Angeles. He traveled to see Tulowitzki in Texas and Dodgers coaches in Arizona, working on everything from arm slots to attack angles to the mental process of handling different defensive situations.
Most of all he started to craft a personalized style at the position, using his natural athleticism and long-time outfield habits to play shortstop with what first base coach Chris Woodward termed a more “downhill” mentality — already showing this spring more of a comfort level and confidence than he did during his nine-error experiment there last season.
“It’s two grades better already,” manager Dave Roberts said.
The deferential Betts has been more reserved in his own analysis, emphasizing he still has much to learn.
“The one thing I have right now is my technique I practiced in the offseason,” he said. “But the process is gonna be trial and error.”
But others who have watched him expressed renewed optimism in his ability to succeed as a shortstop. The same things Tulowitzki saw in the offseason, Dodgers coaches have witnessed in the early days of camp.
“He’s kind of freed up,” said Woodward, who worked with Betts last season as a special advisor before being hired as the first-base and infield coach this offseason. “He feels like he’s got a style that works well for him. So now it just comes down to maintaining those reps and getting more game reps.”
Betts’ offseason work began almost as soon as the Dodgers’ championship parade ended.
In the first couple of weeks of winter, he and the Dodgers decided to commit to the position switch. And though Betts struggled last year — especially with his throws, which accounted for eight of his nine errors in just 65 games at shortstop — the Dodgers were betting on his perseverance, knowing he was determined to stick at the spot he hadn’t played full-time since high school.
“He is dead set on it,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said at MLB’s winter meetings. “His point is, ‘if I have an offseason to train for this and to get my body in those positions and to learn this, I have no doubt that I can figure it out.’ So we’re going to give him every chance to do that. I wouldn’t bet against him.”
Because Dodger Stadium was unavailable amid large-scale renovations, Betts began frequenting local high school fields with Dodgers video coordinator Petie Montero. Starting in November, they bounced around between the diamonds at Crespi, Sierra Canyon and Loyola. Sometimes the sessions were so improvised, Betts used his backpack as a makeshift base.
“Didn’t matter,” Betts said. “As long as you get the work in.”
Each day, with Montero’s iPads filming Betts’ every move, Montero hit Betts grounders with a fungo bat for upward of two hours. They started with three sessions per week, then four, then five to six.
In a total reversal from last year, when Betts had to fast-track his fundamentals in rushed pregame workouts, the work this winter was methodical. For the first few weeks, Betts did nothing but field grounders to clean up his footwork. From there he began layering in soft throws, growing his comfort with the myriad arm angles required. Only then did he and Montero ramp their way up to full-speed drills.
“It’s not like he’s trying to learn stuff on the fly, then get ready to go play at 7 o’clock,” said Montero, who shared film of each session with the rest of the coaching staff. “I think [this offseason has] given him a little leeway to work on things. And then if we have feels or an understanding of ‘I want to try this’ or ‘Let’s try this,’ we can recreate that when nothing else is happening, when there’s no game that night.”
From his offseason home in Arizona, Woodward reviewed the film from each session, calling him on a daily basis to review his progress and offer feedback. On several occasions Woodward and Betts traveled to train together as well.
Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts works out at Camelback Ranch on Sunday.
“He’s free-flowing and athletic and he likes to play a little more downhill,” Woodward said, comparing Betts’ strengths at shortstop to those of former Dodgers All-Star Corey Seager. “His throw is a lot better [than last year], and when he’s in a flow state like that and his body’s moving and synced up, he’s obviously a really special athlete.”
Throwing also was the main focus of Betts’ work in Texas with Tulowitzki. Amid his transition from the outfield, where Tulowitzki noted “you’re trying to get over the top and create some backspin,” Betts picked Tulowitzki’s brain on how he positioned himself for different tosses across the infield. Then, Betts took that feedback and put it immediately into action during his three-day visit. Over the rest of the winter he continued to send Tulowitzki video of his progress too.
“I couldn’t believe the strides that he made,” Tulowitzki said. “I say to do something, and it’s pretty much done in a day or two. And then once he went home, he would send me video back, and I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s it, man.’ Talk about a pretty easy guy to work with. He’s special.”
It doesn’t mean Betts is primed for Gold Glove-caliber play right away. This spring he has continued to grind through daily shortstop drills, often remaining on the field long after the rest of the infielders have concluded their rounds of morning grounders. He also knows that for all the reps he got this winter, nothing will compare to the speed and pressure of real games, when his new fundamentals will be put to the test.
“It’s the first time I’ve had to mentally prepare for something like this,” Betts said. “Again, I didn’t get this opportunity [last year], so this stuff never came across my plate. So I really have no idea. I’m just gonna go out there and give it what I got, and use this spring training to talk to other guys, figure out what information I can use to make better decisions throughout the game.”
The Dodgers do have fall-back plans if Betts struggles. Tommy Edman, the primary shortstop during the postseason, is currently slated to play center field but could be summoned back to the infield. Miguel Rojas will serve as Betts’ backup but is capable of taking on a full-time role and remains the best defensive shortstop on the team. Kiké Hernández and Hyeseong Kim also could be options.
For now, the opportunity rests entirely with Betts. And so far, the early reviews have been glowing.
“He’s way more comfortable with the things he’s doing at short,” Rojas said.
“He’s starting to look more natural with how he wants to approach the ball, and his throws have been great in practice,” third baseman Max Muncy added.
“Having the entire offseason to work it is gonna be a game changer for him,” Hernández echoed.
As for Tulowitzki?
“I told him, you’re gonna lose me a lot of sleep,” he joked. “Because now I’m definitely gonna watch Dodgers games.”
