Kendrick Lamar expected to perform at opening ceremony
Organizers do not anticipate visa problems for teams
The organizers of the 2028 Olympics say the Games will help Los Angeles rebuild after the wildfires that devastated the city earlier this year.
“The rebirth, the rebuild, maybe reimagining LA 2.0 — and the Olympics as a catalyst for all those things – we think is really part of our ethos,” LA 2028 organizing committee chairman Casey Wasserman told the Associated Press during the International Olympic Committee’s annual meeting. “You can’t have a natural disaster at that scale in a city as big and as important as Los Angeles and not have it be part of your core philosophy going forward.”
The Boston Celtics haven’t secured the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs just yet, but they have a 99.6 percent chance of doing so, per Basketball Reference.
Clinching the No. 2 seed would result in the Celtics playing the No. 7 seed in the first round of the postseason. The Miami Heat had a 23.5 percent chance of getting the No. 7 seed last week, but those odds (calculated by Basketball Reference), have since dropped to 9.5 percent.
The two most likely first-round opponents for Boston are the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic. Both of these teams have more than a 40 percent chance of finishing seventh, as of March 20.
Here’s an updated look at the probabilities:
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The Pistons, who are 14-5 in their last 19 games (including a Feb. 26 win over the Celtics), would really need to fall apart over the next few weeks to be a No. 7 seed candidate.
The Heat and Bulls could also jump back into the mix for the No. 7 seed, but it’s unlikely.
The Celtics went 1-2 against the Hawks this season. The last meeting was a 119-115 overtime defeat for the C’s in Boston on Jan. 18. The Celtics have one more game against the Magic on April 9 — the third-to-last matchup of the regular season. Boston is 1-1 versus Orlando so far this season. These teams last met on Jan. 17 at TD Garden, where the C’s won 121-94.
The No. 7 seed will be determined by the winner of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game in the play-in tournament. The play-in tournament runs from April 15-18.
The Celtics last played the Hawks in the playoffs in 2023. Boston won that first-round series in six games. The most recent Celtics-Magic playoff series was the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals, which Boston won in six games.
The 10-seed Arkansas Razorbacks are in the Big Dance, and will face off against the 7-seed Kansas Jayhawks in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night. It hasn't been an easy season for the Razorbacks, who were dealt a rough hand with injuries and inconsistent play for most of the season, but they rattled off wins when it mattered, and heard their names called. Now, all eyes will be on head coach John Calipari and his squad in the NCAA Tournament.
Two notable developments at Phillies camp on Thursday morning, a week before Opening Day:
• Garrett Stubbs was optioned to Triple A, meaning Rafael Marchan will be the backup catcher to J.T. Realmuto.
• And Johan Rojas, for the first time this spring, was penciled into the starting lineup in center field. Rojas had been limited to DH duty because of a shoulder injury suffered during winter ball.
Stubbs had been Realmuto’s backup for three seasons and gained a reputation as a clubhouse and fan favorite, but the news was not a surprise. Marchan is out of minor-league options so the Phillies would have had to expose him to waivers (and likely lose him) if he didn’t make their Opening Day roster. Stubbs has an option year remaining.
The Phillies said that it would be a true battle and that if one outperformed the other, the contract situation wouldn’t stand in the way, but in reality, it was always going to be extremely difficult for Stubbs to make the team this spring barring a Marchan injury or trade. Stubbs appeared in 10 games and went 6-for-21 (.286) with two doubles and three walks. Marchan was hitting .250 with a .357 OBP in 28 plate appearances heading into Thursday’s game.
Stubbs will be the next catcher up if an injury takes place. Realmuto spent just 10 days on the IL in his first five seasons as a Phillie but missed six weeks last season with a knee injury and turned 34 on Tuesday. Marchan has missed ample time throughout his minor-league career with various injuries — hamstring, hand, shoulder, back — and has played more than 70 games just once, back in 2019 at Single A. So Stubbs might not have seen the last of the home clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park.
Marchan arrived in Clearwater on January 6. He wanted to work with the strength and conditioning staff to better prepare his body for the best opportunity of his career, and it also didn’t hurt to cram in bullpen sessions with early-arriving pitchers and newcomers like Jordan Romano.
“Really everything,” manager Rob Thomson said this spring when asked what he likes about Marchan. “He throws as well as anyone, catches the ball great, he can block, moves around, he’s aggressive with back-picks. He’s done a lot of work with J.T. and Stubby and Caleb (Cotham), our pitching group. He’s done a lot of homework, and now he calls a really good game. Intelligent kid. He’s not a kid anymore, really intelligent person. I have full confidence in him.”
Marchan was in the lineup Thursday behind the plate to catch Nabil Crismatt, who is vying with Tyler Phillips, Kyle Tyler and Michael Mercado for a spot in the bullpen. Rojas was set to lead off and start in center. He jammed his shoulder sliding into second base in the Dominican Winter League three months ago and has been brought along slowly. The Phillies will want to see him healthy and full-go with his throws to carry him on the Opening Day roster. If Rojas’ shoulder injury lingers, Oscar Mercado could make the club out of camp.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani homers off Cubs pitcher Nate Pearson in the fifth inning of Wednesday's game. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
After taking his final question in the Tokyo Dome press room Wednesday night, his Dodgers having accomplished all they hoped to during their season-opening series in Japan, manager Dave Roberts grabbed the mic for one last unsolicited quote.
“Last thing I want to say is, to the city of Tokyo and the country of Japan, on behalf of the Dodgers and Major League Baseball, we just want to say thank you,” Roberts said. “You guys were all such great hosts, and hopefully we put on a good show.”
The Dodgers certainly did, both on the field with a two-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs and off of it with their well-documented efforts to grow their fan base in the country.
In both games the overwhelming majority of fans wore Dodgers gear. On the streets of Tokyo, advertisements including their biggest star, Shohei Ohtani, dominated the landscape.
For a team that’s trying to defend its World Series title and amplify its brand on an international stage, it marked a successful voyage. Now, as the Dodgers return home for the rest of their season, here are four takeaways on where they stand.
Freeman, Betts expected back soon
Perhaps the most amazing part of the Dodgers’ 2-0 start is that it came without Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman on the field.
Betts was ruled out days before the opener, sent home early Monday after losing almost 15 pounds while battling a stomach virus. Freeman was a late scratch from the opening lineup because of rib discomfort and was held out again Wednesday.
The Dodgers managed without the two former most valuable players, scoring nine runs over the final 14 innings. They are expecting the pair to be available once the season resumes next week with their March 27 home opener against the Detroit Tigers.
In both cases Roberts said the Dodgers wanted to be mindful of protecting their star players early in the season. With Betts, team doctors worried about the increased risk of a soft tissue injury given his lingering dehydration and fatigue. With Freeman, the Dodgers wanted to ensure that his rib issue — which is in the same place he suffered torn cartilage last postseason — wouldn’t get worse before they can fully examine him in Los Angeles this week.
“He lobbied hard, like he always does,” Roberts said of Freeman, who went to the batting cage before the game before being ruled out. “But ultimately, [he] conceded to myself and the training staff. It’s just too early in the season to potentially put him in harm’s way.”
Depth already shining
Given how much the Dodgers spent constructing a nearly $400-million roster, it would have been difficult for depth to be any sort of concern.
Still, over two games, the sheer volume of talent became quickly and abundantly clear.
Without Freeman, the Dodgers started Kiké Hernández at first base and watched him lead the team with three RBIs, including a key two-run homer Wednesday that put the finale out of reach. At shortstop, Miguel Rojas replaced Betts with his typical defensive excellence, highlighted by a sliding backhand play for the final out Wednesday.
Elsewhere in the lineup, plenty of other names chipped in. Michael Conforto had two hits, including a double, in his first two games as a Dodger. Andy Pages reached base in half of his at-bats from the No. 9 spot. Will Smith walked a staggering five times while also recording two hits and an RBI. And Tommy Edman continued his slugging surge from late last season by whacking the first home run of the year.
Bullpen’s first impression
Speaking of depth, the pitching staff has that in spades — from a rotation that featured Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki impressing in Tokyo and probably will turn to two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell and 2024 opening day starter Tyler Glasnow for next week’s homestand, to a bullpen that dominated the Cubs without using any reliever twice.
On Tuesday, the Dodgers trotted out what should be their typical late-game combination, with Blake Treinen pitching the eighth inning and offseason acquisition Tanner Scott getting his first Dodgers save in the ninth.
With the Dodgers staying away from repeat relief appearances, the bullpen depth was on full display after Sasaki’s three-inning start, with five pitchers combining for the final six frames. That procession included Jack Dreyer, a left-hander making his MLB debut, Landon Knack, the breakout rookie from last season who served as a swingman this week before being optioned to the minors after Wednesday’s game, Kirby Yates, another marquee signing, and Alex Vesia, who earned the save in lieu of Scott or Treinen.
A connection in Japan
Clayton Kershaw wasn’t able to participate as he continues to recover from offseason toe and knee surgery. Since he wasn’t on the 31-man travel roster, he had to fly to Japan on his own with his family.
However, the veteran pitcher and future Hall of Famer was determined to be there. And as he packed in the clubhouse to return to Los Angeles on Wednesday night, he was left struck by something he’d always known but never seen.
“Just how much people love baseball here,” he said. “I think that was something new. I knew they liked baseball, but I didn’t know the passion they have. It was just really cool to see.”
Much more postgame discussion was centered on the atmosphere raucous Japanese crowds created than the results of the games.
“It’s always cool to experience different baseball cultures,” Max Muncy said. “They cheer all the good plays. When a ball gets hit hard, you hear the whole stadium go ‘Ooooooo!’ even if it’s just an out. They’re here to watch good baseball.”
“It’s great how it’s pitch silent while the home team is pitching, and then it’s just like a party when they’re hitting,” Hernández echoed, comparing it to the excitement of Latin American baseball. “That’s my kind of party.”
“The passion and the engagement was amazing,” Rojas added. “And hopefully, the game is in a better place now than before we came here.”
An investor group led by William Chisholm, a Massachusetts native and lifelong C’s fan, has agreed to purchase a majority of the team at a $6.1-billion valuation — a record for a North American sports team.
“Bill is a terrific person and a true Celtics fan, born and raised here in the Boston area,” Celtics governor Wyc Grousbeck said in a statement. “His love for the team and the city of Boston, along with his chemistry with the rest of the Celtics leadership, make him a natural choice to be the next Governor and controlling owner of the team. I know he appreciates the importance of the Celtics and burns with a passion to win on the court while being totally committed to the community. Quite simply, he wants to be a great owner. He has asked me to run the team as CEO and Governor for the first three years, and stay on as his partner, and I am glad to do so.”
Chisholm is the managing director and co-founder of private equity firm Symphony Technology Group.
“Growing up on the North Shore and attending college in New England, I have been a die-hard Celtics fan my entire life,” Chisholm said in a statement. “I understand how important the Celtics are to the city of Boston – the role the team plays in the community is different than any other city in the country. I also understand that there is a responsibility as a leader of the organization to the people of Boston, and I am up for this challenge.
“My partners and I have immense respect for Wyc, the entire Grousbeck family and their indelible contributions to the Celtics organization over the last 23 years. We look forward to learning from Wyc and partnering with Brad Stevens, Joe Mazzulla and the talented team and staff to build upon their success as we work to bring more championships home to Boston.”
The Grousbeck family announced last July that it intended “to sell a majority interest in 2024 or early 2025.” The Grousbecks have owned the team since 2002 and the franchise has won two championships during that span.
