Yankees manager Aaron Boone isn't willing to label Carlos Rodón as a feast-or-famine pitcher. He dismissed that notion and conjecture on Friday afternoon, arguing that ample dominance from the veteran left-hander should be acknowledged more than the back-breaking pitches that have spoiled his recent outings.
The pregame message from Boone couldn't have reached Rodón prior to his first pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays, but the comments were undoubtedly validated. In spite of profuse sweat on his uniform and some slippage on the mound, Rodón delivered six shutout innings with a season-high nine strikeouts in the team's 1-0 win at Steinbrenner Field.
By no means was Rodón's performance clean. He struggled with control throughout the night due to sweat and footing issues, and received a mid-inning towel break that helped dry his left arm and hand. But the southpaw overcame inconveniences, generated enough whiffs, and buckled down for his first quality start of 2025.
"I thought it was a little bit of a grind for him, actually, tonight," Boone said of Rodón after the win. "His last two [starts] were actually better -- they just put two swings out of the ballpark. He kind of grinded his way through. His stuff was good. But I just liked how he kept moving -- next pitch, next pitch. Some command issues at times with him, but he was able to make a big pitch, it seemed like, all night long."
While the main theme of Rodón's shortcomings has been his propensity for the untimely home run, walks have also been a huge concern. He entered Friday with the fifth-highest walk percentage in the league, and his outing on Friday began with a four-pitch walk.
But he didn't allow the two-on, no-out jam in the first inning to overwhelm him. With a four-pitch mix centered around his slider and changeup, Rodón induced three straight strikeouts to escape trouble. He allowed another leadoff walk in the second and a leadoff double in the fifth, but the Rays were unable to build rallies.
It was a gutsy effort -- both physically and mentally -- from Rodón, who let out a scream after throwing his 102nd and final pitch. The 32-year-old lowered his season ERA, raised his strikeout percentage, and, for at least a week, silenced doubters questioning his reliability.
Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivers during the fourth inning of a 3-0 win over the Texas Rangers on Friday. Yamamoto threw seven shutout innings. (Julio Cortez / Associated Press)
One of the starting pitchers Friday night has won two Cy Young Awards.
The other is making an early case to win one of his own.
For years, Jacob deGrom has (when healthy) been the gold standard of major league pitching. He has a career ERA of 2.54. He is a four-time All-Star and two-time strikeout king. In 2018 and 2019, he won back-to-back Cy Young honors.
Although deGrom gave up just one run over seven strong innings, Yamamoto spun seven scoreless innings at Globe Life Field. Where deGrom struck out seven and walked a batter, Yamamoto had 10 strikeouts and no free passes.
It helped the Dodgers win this series-opening matchup between the last two World Series champions, even though they were without Shohei Ohtani, who went on the paternity list in anticipation of the birth of his first child.
And it further cemented one of the most promising early storylines of this Dodgers season — continuing to affirm Yamamoto, in just his second MLB season, as someone who could be competing for hardware this fall.
Friday presented a new challenge for Yamamoto, who entered the game with a 1.23 ERA in his first four starts. His fastball didn’t have its usual life, sitting a tick lower than normal at 95 mph. His splitter, while still wicked, was a little wilder than typical.
So, the 26-year-old Japanese star dug deeper into his bag of tricks. What he came up with kept the Rangers off balance.
A rare area of weakness for Yamamoto early this season had been his curveball. Though manager Dave Roberts last year called it one of the best he’s seen from a right-hander, opponents entered the night batting .429 against it. Yamamoto hadn’t registered a strikeout with it once.
On this night, though, Yamamoto snapped off a flurry of big-bending curves to the Rangers. It generated four whiffs on 11 swings. It accounted for two of his strikeouts, including one to Joc Pederson that stranded runners at second and third in the third. And of the seven that Texas put in play, only two fell for hits.
As Yamamoto worked deeper into the game, he also mixed in his rarely used slider, giving Rangers hitters a different look the second and third time through.
He fanned Jake Burger with one to end the fourth, stranding yet another runner at second. He used it again on his 102nd and final pitch, recording a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double-play to complete seven innings for only the third time in his MLB career.
Yamamoto’s splitter was still effective, totaling seven whiffs (four of them strikeouts) on 17 swings. And with his four-seamer playing down, he incorporated more sinkers and cutters into his arsenal.
It all served as a reminder that Yamamoto — whose 0.93 ERA is now best in the National League — is much more than a two-weapon pitcher. That, after brief flashes of brilliance last year, he is starting to put all the pieces together for a breakout sophomore season.
On the backside of his career at age 36, deGrom was almost as good in what turned into a vintage pitcher’s duel. He yielded just three hits, and retired 13 of the final 14 batters he faced. But back in the first inning, he threw an elevated fastball to leadoff man Tommy Edman (who was filling in for Ohtani at the top of the batting order). Edman whacked it for his NL-leading seventh home run.
It proved to be deGrom’s only real mistake.
But the way Yamamoto was dominating, it was one too many.
Apr 18, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) tries to get to the basket against Miami Heat guard Davion Mitchell (45) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks showed grit — they struggled with their shot in the first half, going 4-of-20 from 3 and trailing by 17, but fought back to lead with just more than three minutes left in the game.
It wasn't enough. There was too much Tyler Herro for the first 48 minutes, he finished with 30 points, then Davion Mitchell dominated the overtime — he outscored the Hawks by himself, 9-8.
The ultimate result was a 123-114 Miami win. With that, the Heat became the first No. 10 seed ever to advance out of the Play-In Tournament, and they will face the No. 1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night to start that series. The loss ends the Hawks' season.
The other winner out of this game: The Oklahoma City Thunder. With the win, Miami's first-round pick, at No. 15, goes to the Thunder (via a convoluted path that included the 2019 Paul George trade). OKC now has the No. 15 and No. 25 (via the Clippers) picks in the first round.
Miami came out hot on the road scoring the game's first 10 points, a lead they stretched out to 17 points midway through the second quarter. Herro led all scorers with 30 points, shooting 5-of-10 from beyond the arc, including a couple of 3-pointers in overtime to help seal the win.
TYLER HERRO COMES UP BIG WITH THE SEASON ON THE LINE
Atlanta fought back behind 29 points from Trae Young and a big night from center Onyeka Okongwu, who had 28 points. It was a driving layup by Young that forced overtime.
Andrew Wiggins added 20 points for Miami, and Bam Adebayo scored 17 points plus grabbed 11 rebounds. For Atlanta, George Niang had 20 points off the bench, and Caris LeVert had 15.
Francisco Lindor hit his first Mets walk-off home run in the team's 5-4 win over the Cardinals at Citi Field on Friday night.
It was Lindor's 250th career homer.
The Mets (13-7) have now won consecutive games after losing two stright for the first time this season.
Here are the takeaways...
-Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas held the Mets' offense down for the first four innings, allowing just four baserunners in that span. However, the Mets' bats woke up in the fifth with Brett Baty's leadoff double and Tyrone Taylor's RBI triple. AfterLindor's shallow fly ball failed to bring Taylor home, the Citi Field crowd gave Juan Soto a standing ovation in hopes of urging their new star to drive in the tying run. The left-hander slugger obliged, pulling a single into right field to tie the game, 2-2.
Soto snapped an 0-for-12 skid and finished 1-for-3 with a walk on the night.
-With the Mets down 3-2 in the sixth, Mark Vientos found the seats for the second straight night with a solo shot. He turned on the eighth pitch of the at-bat -- a 95.4 mph fastball up and in -- depositing it 371 feet into the left field seats. According to MLB's Sarah Langs, Vientos’ home run came on a pitch 4.14 ft above the ground, which is the third-highest pitch a Mets player has homered on in the pitch-tracking era (2008), behind:
8/27/17 Amed Rosario: 4.17 ft
9/22/20 Robinson Cano: 4.16 ft
-The bottom of the eighth was a wild one. After Vientos' leadoff single, Luisangel Acuña pinch-ran and stole second. Brandon Nimmo hit a chopper to third base and the young infielder tried to get a jump to third, but Nolan Arenado hadn't thrown the ball to first yet and it created a foot race for third. Acuña initially beat the tag, but he slid off the bag and the Gold Glover put the tag on to get the first out, which was confirmed by replay.
With Nimmo on first, former Met reliever Phil Maton threw to keep the veteran outfielder on but it hit Nimmo, allowing him to get to second. Luis Torrens then made the Cardinals pay with a double down the left field line, giving the Mets their first lead of the night.
-David Peterson was effective on Friday night, but the Cardinals were able to use small ball to get to the talented lefty. Three singles, which were hit softly but not where fielders were, allowed the Cardinals to score the first run of the game in the second. They then pushed across another after Brendan Donovan took second on a passed ball. Jordan Walker then scorched a liner toward first base that Pete Alonso knocked down but trickled into the outfield.
Peterson would continue to overcome this scrappy Cardinals team and rack up the strikeouts, but St. Louis would push their third run across thanks to a leadoff double from Willson Contreras and a single by Arenado.
Carlos Mendoza pulled Peterson with one out in the sixth and called on Max Kranick to limit the damage. And as the right-hander had done for most of the season, he left ducks on the pond to keep the score 3-2.
Peterson was dominant in spurts, but the Cardinals were able to string hits together in three separate innings. The left-hander went 5.1 innings on a season-high 99 pitches, allowing three runs on seven hits with no walks and a season-high nine punchouts.
-With Edwin Diaz unavailable due to pitching consecutive games, Huascar Brazoban was called to get the final three outs, but on the second pitch, Donovan launched a game-tying homer off the netting on the right-field foul pole. Brazoban bounced back, however, striking out the next three batters to send it to the bottom of the ninth.
-Baty continued to look good at the plate, picking up his first walk of the season in his first at-bat and then swiping second for the third stolen base of his career. He doubled in his second at-bat and finished 1-for-3 with the walk and run scored.
Baty now has a five-game hitting streak.
-Nimmo hit in the No. 6 hole on Friday, his lowest place in the lineup since 2021. He looked good, too, despite his 1-for-4 night.
-After going hitless in Thursday's series-opener -- his last hitless game came on April 13 --Alonso got on the board with a first-inning triple. It was his first three-bagger since 2023. The slugger went 1-for-2 with two walks.
Game MVP: Francisco Lindor
In a back-and-forth affair, Lindor's walk-off sent the crowd home happy and is the logical choice.
The Yankees extended their winning streak to five games on Friday night, as they outlasted the division rival Tampa Bay Rays, 1-0, at Steinbrenner Field.
Here are the takeaways...
-- Carlos Rodón entered Friday with the fifth-highest walk percentage in the league, and fittingly walked Rays leadoff batter Yandy Díaz on five pitches before allowing a single to Junior Caminero four pitches later. But the veteran southpaw managed to escape the two-on, no-out jam in the first inning by striking out three straight with his slider and changeup. Rodón needed 28 pitches to work out of the early trouble.
-- It didn't take too long for the Yankees to draw first blood against Rays starter Drew Rasmussen. After a leadoff single from Paul Goldschmidt and a one-out walk from J.C. Escarra in the second, Trent Grisham smacked a two-out RBI single to shallow center, giving them their lone run. The backup outfielder was also robbed of extra bases in the fourth, when his slicing fly to deep left was snagged on a terrific diving catch by Christopher Morel.
-- Anthony Volpe was no match for Rasmussen in their first two matchups -- he whiffed on three straight pitches in both at-bats. But his woes at the plate didn't disrupt his defensive groove and range. In the bottom half of the fourth, the Yankees' shortstop took an infield single away from Curtis Mead with an impressive across-the-body throw deep in the hole that was nicely scooped up by Goldschmidt at first.
-- Before the game, Aaron Boone insisted that Rodón -- who's developed a knack for back-breaking mistakes -- hasn't resembled a feast-or-famine pitcher this season. The comments were validated, as the left-hander wound up completing six shutout innings with nine strikeouts on 102 pitches. Rodón also overcame profuse sweat and footing issues -- he threw a few wild pitches and received a mid-inning towel break.
-- Mark Leiter Jr. entered in relief of Rodón in the seventh, and nearly gave up a leadoff triple to Jose Caballero. But the deep fly off the center field wall induced a stellar relay between Grisham and Volpe that ended with Oswaldo Cabrera securing the tag at third. The Rays' baserunning blunder shifted momentum -- Leiter settled down after the huge play, striking out two.
-- Cabarello somehow made up for his mistake in the eighth, as he robbed Ben Rice of a two-run home run to right with a stunning leaping catch at the wall. The line drive had a 105 mph exit velocity and a 74 percent chance of becoming a hit, but if not for the clear robbery, Rice easily would've had his sixth homer of the season. He was as shocked as everyone else in the ballpark.
-- The Yankees relied on Fernando Cruz and Luke Weaver to record the final six outs, and neither right-hander disappointed. Cruz logged a pair of strikeouts with his nasty splitter and fastball, while Weaver produced a 1-2-3 ninth with two punchouts for his second save. It was yet another clutch performance from the bullpen, which had to complete 7.1 innings in Thursday's win.
-- Grisham's second-inning RBI single was the only blemish on Rasmussen's record -- Tampa's right-hander lowered his ERA to 0.87 by striking out seven across a season-high 5.2 innings. While the Yankees nearly added two runs on Rice's deep lineout, they struggled overall to muster offense. The only player who found success was Goldschmidt, who produced three of their five total hits and is now tied with Aaron Judge for the team lead in knocks (28).
-- It was another forgettable night at the plate for Jazz Chisholm Jr. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, lowering his season average to .160. The Yankees' second baseman will most likely be forced to sit on Saturday, as MLB issued him a one-game suspension and fine for actions that followed his ejection from Thursday's game. Chisholm appealed the league's ruling on Friday afternoon.
Game MVP: Carlos Rodón
While the sweat on his uniform and arms caused some disruptions on the mound, Rodón delivered his strongest start of the season thus far. He struck out a season-high nine batters, walked four, and gave up two hits. His ERA now sits at 4.34 through five starts.
Duke guard Tyrese Proctor is entering the NBA draft and skipping his senior season. The team announced Proctor's move in a social-media post Friday night. The 6-foot-6, 183-pound junior from Australia was a three-year starter and one of Jon Scheyer’s first incoming recruits when he took over for retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski.
This week on The Hockey Show, hosts Roy Bellamy and David Dwork got into the end of the playoff chases and the upcoming fun of the first round.
Joining the show were the co-hosts of the What Chaos show, DJ Bean and Pete Blackburn, who are apparently bigger fans of THS producer Rose than they are of Roy and Dave.
The boys all got into the Mikko Rantanen Bowl between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche, whether the Washington Capitals can build on their amazing regular season during the playoffs, the latest edition of the Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers and why the Kings can possibly pull off the victory this time.
Roy and Dave also got into the upcoming series between the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning, which could end up being one of the best of the first round.
Additionally, this week’s wins and fails included a couple ridiculous goals from top NHL prospect Gavin McKenna that he scored during the WHL Playoffs, a historic trio of playoff misses, another cell phone ending up on the ice and the amazing comeback of Gabriel Landeskog.
You can check out the full show in the video below:
TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. was suspended for one game and fined by Major League Baseball on Friday following his ejection during a game at the Tampa Bay Rays and violation of MLB’s social media policy.
MLB senior vice president of on-field operations Michael Hill announced the decision.
Chisholm appealed, delaying any penalties until after a resolution. He was in the starting lineup for the second game of the four-game series.
Chisholm was ejected in the seventh inning on Thursday night by plate umpire John Bacon when Chisholm argued after a called third strike on a full-count pitch from Mason Montgomery that appeared low. It was his fifth career ejection and first with the Yankees.
Chisholm then posted on his X account, “Not even ... close!!!!!” with a profanity mixed in, then deleted the post.
MLB’s regulations ban the use of electronic devices during games. The social media policy prohibits “displaying or transmitting content that questions the impartiality of or otherwise denigrates a major league umpire.”
“I didn’t think before I had anything that I said was ejectable but after probably,” Chisholm said after the game. “I’m a competitor, so when I go out there and I feel like I’m right and you’re saying something to me that I think doesn’t make sense, I’m going to get fired up and be upset.
“I lost my emotions. I lost my cool,” he added. “I got to be better than that. ... I’m definitely mad at myself for losing my cool.”
Giants ace Logan Webb pitched very well, recording double-digit strikeouts and no walks.
But San Francisco lost 2-0 to the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night at Angel Stadium.
If that sounds familiar, it’s because almost the exact same script played out in last week’s 2-0 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Oracle Park.
It’s not a new phenomenon for Giants fans, who affectionately refer to it as “getting Cained.”
On April 7, Webb’s stat line read seven innings, four hits, no runs and 10 strikeouts; he was credited with a no decision after departing a 0-0 ballgame.
Eleven days later, Webb tied a career high with 12 strikeouts in six innings of work and again allowed four hits. But this time, he gave up two runs (only one earned) to earn his first loss of the 2025 MLB season.
“It feels like a wasted pitching effort the way he pitched tonight,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said postgame of his star right-hander. “That’s a really good performance. We’re seeing him with the added pitches being able to strike some guys out, too. So, kind of next-level stuff for him. …
“He pitched great — good enough to win a game.”
Bob Melvin feels that Logan Webb's stellar outing tonight was a "wasted pitching effort" with the Giants taking a shutout loss pic.twitter.com/GHy7PpIVtw
Webb has shown off a new-look pitch mix this spring, but it was ol’ reliable — his world-class changeup — that was particularly effective on Friday. Webb used his changeup as the knockout pitch for six of his 12 strikeouts.
“Yeah, super excited about the changeup,” Webb told reporters after the game. “That’s probably the most confident, the best I’ve felt in a long time on that pitch.”
If there’s any solace for Webb, tonight’s outing put him in elite company among Giants pitchers. Only Madison Bumgarner, Tim Lincecum and Juan Marichal have as many games with at least 10 strikeouts and no walks in franchise history, per MLB’s Sarah Langs.
Logan Webb now has 4 career outings with 10+ strikeouts and no walks
Only other Giants with 4+ in at least last 125 seasons:
Madison Bumgarner: 12 Tim Lincecum: 5 Juan Marichal: 4
“I grew up in the area, and I grew up watching those guys,” said Webb, a Rocklin native who looked up to Lincecum and Bumgarner. “Anytime you’re on a list with those guys, I think you’re doing alright.”
Unfortunately for Webb, none of those players — or anyone in Giants franchise history — ever struck out at least 12 batters without a walk while also being on the hook for the loss.
So perhaps it was apt that Webb’s postgame interview in the clubhouse was interrupted by, well, a stinky deed.
"Farts are always funny, not going to lie."
Someone farted in the background of Logan Webb's postgame presser, and he couldn't hold it together 💨 🤣 pic.twitter.com/bKpABOpOJi
(Los Angeles Times photo illustration; photographs from Los Angeles Times and Associated Press)
The bottom came in Minnesota on the second night of back-to-back games in early December, LeBron James showing signs that the mileage he’d compiled over 22 seasons of NBA basketball was starting to erode away his invincibility.
The signs had been building before that wintry Monday night. The game before, he bullied mismatches in the fourth quarter of a one-point win against the Utah Jazz that was much harder than it should’ve ever been. He was bad against the Thunder, middling against the Spurs and shook against the Suns and Nuggets.
Over an eight-game stretch from Nov. 19 through that night in Minnesota, the Lakers were 104 points worse than their opponents when James was on the court.
The end, for the first time, seemed like it was sprinting toward James instead of the other way around. That night in Minnesota, James had to scratch for every one of his 10 points, each miss dragging the shoulders that were always built to carry so much toward the ground.
As a Laker, he might’ve never looked worse.
“It's everything,” he said of what was going wrong. “It's the rhythm. I just feel off rhythm.”
That night in Minnesota felt like it happened forever ago as James spoke after the Lakers’ final practice before Game 1 of the playoffs — a series fittingly that will take the team back to Minnesota for Games 3 and 4. Talking with a mixture of focus and intensity in his face, James looked at the practice court and was asked if the necessary ingredients to win him a fifth NBA championship were in the room.
“Yeah,” he said flatly. “Of course.”
Whether or not that belief will be rewarded in June is as much in the future as that miserable Minnesota night is in the past, but James’ recommitment to the team, to the Lakers’ new identity and to himself and his teammates has undoubtedly propelled the team to the place where it credibly believes it can be the last one standing.
James, coach JJ Redick said, got back on track in losses to Miami and Atlanta before using the Lakers’ weeklong break during the in-season tournament to deal with an ailing foot and to recalibrate his mindset.
He became one of the team’s most impactful defenders. He consistently did all the little things that lead to winning, Over the next 35 games, the Lakers won 25 times. During that stretch, James said part of his consistent effort on the defensive end was about showing his son, Bronny, what it took to win in the league.
“Your examples show better sometimes than the words,” he said on Feb. 20 after leading the Lakers to a win on the second night of back-to-back games in Portland. “So, I hope I’m in position now to do both — to be able to give him words of advice and also show him by example.”
Yet it’s been more than that, the sense that James had given himself fully to whatever the Lakers needed. When it meant ceding shots to Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves, he did that. When it meant controlling the glass with Davis out injured, he did that. And when it required moving well out of the way to make room for Luka Doncic after the Lakers stunned everyone, James included, by acquiring him, he did that.
He finished the season averaging 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists. According to basketballreference.com, it’s the 29th time since 1960 a player has averaged at least 24 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in a season. No one older than 31 other than James has ever done it, and he’s done it six times since turning that age.
And somehow, in his 22nd season, he still found ways to get better, shooting the best free-throw percentage (78.2%) of his career.
As the Lakers kept winning, as they kept showing the best teams in the West that they were capable of beating them, the resolve that the Lakers can win only got stronger.
“The belief’s there,” Redick said of James on Friday. “… I think that LeBron’s confidence, belief in himself, in his teammates, when that’s there, it empowers the group even more. So, if the rest of the guys believe it, and LeBron believes it, that really strengthens that resolve and feeling.”
James doubled-down on his role in the Lakers’ offense on Friday, simplifying any lingering questions about hierarchy now that the playoffs are here.
“Give Luka the ball,” he said. “And if we stay ready, we never gotta get ready.”
James made it clear Friday that his belief means nothing when it comes to the Lakers’ goals of winning 16 more times this season, goals that start by beating Minnesota to four wins.
“Obviously you wanna be healthy going into a postseason run," he said. "That's most important. And then you want to be able to have been playing at a high level for the majority of the season being in like, must-win games going down the stretch, playoff-type intensity games. And we had that.
"But at the end of the day, I can talk as much as you guys want me to talk, but the game is won in between the four lines. I don't give a damn how much you know about a team, how much they know about you. All the talking, it's not about that. It's about once you get on the floor, the game is won in between the four lines.”
On Saturday, James will walk between them with his best chance to stay there until the NBA Finals since he won a ring in 2020 with the Lakers. And for a person who has come a long way in his career and who managed to come a long way this season, that’s special.
“It's a blessing. I don't take it for granted to be able to play in the postseason at my age and how many years I've played in this game,” James said. “To be one of 16 teams to go in with this team and know what we're capable of, all you can do is ask for a chance to be able to compete at the highest level and be able to compete for the ultimate thing. And that's the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
The Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers and Chicago
Blackhawks have more in common than their lackluster seasons.
All three teams fired their coach during the season and
named an interim bench boss.
Of the trio, only the Flyers’ Brad Shaw managed a (mini)
revival of sorts, but that was in a small sample size: nine games.
That at least gives Shaw an outside chance at landing a spot
as the team’s permanent coach.
The other two replacements coaches, Chicago’s Anders
Sorensen and Boston’s Joe Sacco, are also hopeful. And one of them appears to
have a better chance than Shaw to remain as the No. 1 guy.
Here’s a look at the three interim coaches and their pluses
and minuses:
Brad Shaw, Philadelphia Flyers
Pluses
· Shaw, who turns 61
later this month, directed the team to a 5-3-1 record, and young players like
Tyson Foerster (nine goals in nine games), Matvei Michkov (six goals, 12 points
in nine games) and Bobby Brink (eight points in nine games) excelled under him.
· The players sang Shaw’s
praises and played much looser – and scored more – under Shaw than they did for
his predecessor, John Tortorella.
· He is familiar with the
organization, having coached with the Flyers for three seasons.
Minuses
· Fair or not, he’s
associated with the fired Tortorella.
· The Flyers will
probably go with a younger coach who has experience developing up-and-coming
players. That said, the performances of Michkov, Foerster and Brink may give
the Flyers’ brass reason to pause.
· Philadelphia has missed
the playoffs in all three years Shaw has been on the staff. This season, they
had just 76 points – 11 fewer than last year.
Joe Sacco, Boston Bruins
Pluses
· Bruins GM Don Sweeney
praised Sacco, saying he did well, even though he had to coach “completely
different teams” because of several in-season moves that were made.
· Sacco is extremely
familiar with the organization (including some very productive years), having
been on the staff for 11 years.
· Cam Neely, the team’s
president, said Sacco would be considered for the full-time position. Lip
service or an indication he liked Sacco’s work?
Minuses
· He failed to lead the
Bruins, which dealt away key players at the trade deadline, into the playoffs.
· Boston went just
25-30-7 since Sacco replaced Jim Montgomery in mid-November.
· As mentioned, the
Massachusetts native was a longtime Boston assistant before getting the
“interim” tag, and the Bruins seem to be leaning toward someone outside the
organization.
· Sorensen, 49, is
respected for his teaching ability – a mandatory trait for someone coaching a
young team. In addition, his engaging personality seemed to click with his
players.
· Chicago went 17-30-9
after Sorensen replaced the fired Luke Richardson in December, finishing with
the NHL’s second-worst record. Sorensen called it a “rollercoaster,” but he feels the team will be better for it in the long run.
· The Blackhawks finished
31st in goals allowed (3.56 per game) and 26th in
scoring (2.73 per game), though that can be seen as more of an indictment on
the roster than Sorensen’s coaching ability.
· Shortly after Sorensen
took over, the Blackhawks lost five straight and were a defensive disaster,
cementing their hold on last place in the Central.
Aryanna Frank/Imagn Images The latest piece to the puzzle for USC basketball coach Eric Musselman fell into place Friday as Utah transfer Ezra Ausar announced his commitment to USC.Ausar, a 6-foot-8, 242-pound forward with one year of eligibility left, averaged 12.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is introduced before the team's home opener against the Detroit Tigers on March 27. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Shohei Ohtani has had plenty of milestone moments on the field in the last year.
This weekend, he’s about to have one off of it.
The Dodgers slugger and reigning National League MVP was placed on the paternity list, the team announced, in anticipation of the birth of his first child this weekend.
Ohtani stayed back in Los Angeles with his wife, Mamiko Tanaka, according to manager Dave Roberts, and was replaced on the roster during the Dodgers' series against the Texas Rangers by veteran outfielder Eddie Rosario, who was called up from triple A.
“I don’t know when they’re going to have the baby,” Roberts said. “But obviously they are together in anticipation.”
Ohtani can stay on the paternity list for up to three days — which means he would be back for the team’s series next week against the Cubs at Wrigley Field at the latest — but Roberts said it’s possible he could rejoin the team later this weekend in Texas.
To make room on the 40-man roster for Rosario, the Dodgers transferred reliever Edgardo Henriquez to the 60-day injured list.
(Los Angeles Times photo illustration; photographs from Los Angeles Times and Associated Press)
For the Clippers’ vaunted defense, the ultimate test undoubtedly will be dealing with Denver’s incomparable center Nikola Jokic during what figures to be a competitive seven-game playoff series.
Jokic is a basketball savant, exceptional in every facet of the game, a player for whom the Clippers will gameplan like never before.
He’s a three-time NBA most valuable player and is a strong candidate again for the award following an even more impressive campaign than the others.
Jokic became just the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season, joining Nuggets teammate Russell Westbrook and Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson. Jokic posted numbers of 29.6 points (third best in the league), 12.7 rebounds (third) and 10.2 assists (second).
His counterpart at center is Ivica Zubac, who will get the first crack at Jokic for the Clippers starting with Game 1 on Saturday afternoon.
At 7-foot and 240 pounds, Zubac has the size and strength to not get overpowered by the 6-11 and 284-pound Jokic.
But when asked to share his thoughts on having to defend Jokic, Zubac paused, smiled and then chuckled before he answered.
“Ugh, it’s going to be tough,” Zubac said, chuckling again. “He’s incredible. He’s the best player in the league, for sure, and it’s going to be tough. He’s got so much stuff offensively. You got to mix in a lot of different coverages. It’s going to be tough for sure, but I think we have our advantages and I’m sure our coaching staff is going to prepare us to be locked in in Game 1.”
The Clippers allowed just 108.2 points per game, the fourth-best defense in the league, and had the third-best defensive rating at 109.4 per 100 possessions. They held teams to 46.1 percent shooting (eighth), 35 percent three-point shooting (fifth) and picked up 8.8 steals (eighth) per game.
The plan, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said, is to throw a variety of defenses at Jokic.
Expect the Clippers to double team him from different areas on the court, to blitz him and to throw different bodies at him.
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, trying to score against Clippers forward Nicolas Batum (33) and center Ivica Zubac (40), is a three-time MVP who led the Denver to the 2023 title. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
“You can’t play the game perfect,” Kawhi Leonard said. “You can’t guard anyone perfect, so whatever way you guard him, he’s going to try to execute and if that’s him scoring high or him [getting] high assists, that’s just how the game turned out. But we’re just focused on trying to win the basketball game. Obviously, he’s a big part of it and he causes a lot of attention.”
For as much attention that is rightfully being paid to Jokic, the Clippers as a whole have been playing some of the best basketball in the league to end the season.
They entered the postseason tied with the Milwaukee Bucks with the longest winning streak at eight.
The Clippers have won 18 of their last 21 games, winning their last two high-pressure games to secure the fifth seed.
That left an impression on Jokic.
“They are a great team,” Jokic said after Denver’s practice Friday. “They are playing really well lately. They have dangerous players and they have players there that are probably the best in their roles coming off the bench and we know it’s going to be really a big task for us. But I think we are ready for it.”
The Clippers and Nuggets split the season-series at 2-2, but Leonard didn’t play in any of them.
Six of the Clippers average double figures, three over 20 points per game in James Harden (22.8), Norman Powell (21.8) and Leonard (21.5).
“I think we know who we are,” Harden said. “We have to be great defensively every single night. Offensively, it can be anyone of us that can get going. It could be Zu getting post ups, Kawhi and Norm or myself or Boggie [Bogdan Bogdanovic]. For us, I think the game is going to dictate who has got it going. Defensively, that’s the most important thing, is making sure we lock in on that side of the basketball.”
Bogdanovic played with Jokic for the Serbian national team during the Olympics in Paris. The two have been teammates and friends for years, both knowing each other’s game, strengths and weaknesses, and now they will face off in a playoff series.
In that regard, the Clippers did pick Bogdanovic’s brain on ways to prepare for Jokic since the two of them have known “each other for a while.”
“I honestly think he attacks every single game the same way,” Bogdanovic said. “For him, there is no difference of opponent, the season or anything. For sure there is that extra motivation of how the competition is coming to the end. But I think his biggest quality is preparing the same way for every single game.”
Etc.
Clippers all-purpose forward Nicolas Batum, who missed the final two regular-season games with because of a right groin injury, said he was “good, good after a few practices,” and would be ready to play in Game 1.
(This article was written with the assistance of Castmagic, an AI tool, and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy. Please reach out to us if you notice any mistakes.)
On the latest episode of "Baseball Bar-B-Cast," hosts Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman sat down with ESPN’s Buster Olney to dig into the question: Where did all the dynasties go? Their conversation offers a look at the legendary New York Yankees dynasty of the late 1990s — and why today’s superteams struggle to achieve similar levels of dominance.
The Yankees: Baseball’s last true dynasty?
Buster Olney quite literally wrote the book on the Yankees’ dynasty years: "The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty: The Game, the Team, and the Cost of Greatness." As he explains in the episode, the late-’90s Yankees weren’t just a collection of high-priced free agents; they were a product of patience, clever management during a brief George Steinbrenner suspension and a homegrown core that included Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte and Bernie Williams. Veterans and stars such as David Cone and Roger Clemens rounded out the roster, but the key ingredients were sustainability and in-house talent.
Olney frames the 1998-2001 Yankees as the last “true” MLB dynasty, or as he puts it: “maybe the last dynasty that's going to win four World Series in five years.”
What made the Yankees so special? Olney emphasizes the “combination of homegrown players and great stars that they added through free agency,” plus, crucially, a culture that made outside stars want to join: “Because they were so successful, they have what the Dodgers have now, which is a lot of players coming in from the outside saying, 'I want to be a part of that.'”
Why don’t we see MLB dynasties anymore?
So what has changed? Olney, Mintz, and Shusterman point to several big reasons dynasties have become nearly impossible in MLB.
Roster turnover and free agency: With player movement so much more common today, keeping a championship core together is extremely difficult.
Injuries and luck: As Olney notes, “it’s also about luck, it’s about injuries, it’s about players who decide to depart.” Maintaining excellence over multiple MLB seasons is just brutally difficult.
The psychological toll: Olney makes a great point: Today’s social media era means players face far more noise, scrutiny and pressure than Ken Griffey Jr. ever did in the clubhouse. “I do think it takes a toll … players get worn down by the constant feedback.”
Expanded playoff fields: More rounds mean more opportunities for upsets — a dynasty killer. As Mintz notes, “The playoffs are longer by one round … just another roll of the dice.”
The modern superteams: Dodgers, Astros, Giants
Every few years a team emerges — think the Dodgers, Astros or the earlier 2010s Giants — and gets branded with the “dynasty in the making” label. But as the Bar-B-Cast crew explains, none has repeated the Yankees’ level of sustained postseason success. Olney praises the current Dodgers as, “on paper, the best team I've ever seen,” but even he acknowledges that it’s far from a given that they’ll embark on a pinstripes-level run.
The Astros’ frequent postseason trips and the Giants’ trio of even-year titles are impressive, but Mintz still contends, “I would probably argue against both of those [being true dynasties].”
Will we ever see another true dynasty?
All signs, according to the podcast trio, point to “maybe, but don’t hold your breath.” The hosts agree that because of all the factors named above, a four-titles-in-five-years run looks like an artifact of another era.
But as Mintz points out, that isn’t a reason to stop believing: “For those of us who love the drama, there’s always a chance … and that’s what keeps baseball compelling.”
