The Sports Report: Rams and Chargers win in a good day for L.A. pro football
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From Gary Klein: Matthew Stafford placed his right foot gingerly on a step up to the podium and winced through a smile. He did the same on the way down.
A few minutes earlier, the Rams’ veteran quarterback had completed the latest chapter in his streak of dramatic victories at Lucas Oil Stadium.
And it was all the more impressive because he did it Sunday with a bum right hip.
Stafford’s touchdown pass to rookie Puka Nacua in overtime gave the Rams a 29-23 victory over the Indianapolis Colts and marked the third time in as many games at the venue that Stafford worked his magic.
“I was really happy to get the shot,” Stafford said.
Rams’ 29-23 road overtime victory over the Colts by the numbers
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CHARGERS
From Jeff Miller: Las Vegas started the game without its quarterback, and the Chargers briefly saw theirs disappear into the medical tent.
Along the way, the Chargers built an early 17-point lead, eventually gave much of it back, survived another late fourth-down failure and held on for a 24-17 victory at SoFi Stadium.
Herbert suffered an injury to his left middle finger near the end of the third quarter. He spent several minutes in the medical tent before returning for the Chargers’ next possession.
After a three-and-out that included a sack, Herbert returned to the sideline and received additional medical attention while seated on the bench. When he returned to the game again, he was wearing a glove on his left hand.
Afterward, Herbert explained that the injury occurred when his finger got stuck in the helmet of one of the Raiders. He said he knew he could continue playing.
Hernández: Chargers’ record improves, but not Brandon Staley’s decisions or team’s look
Chargers’ 24-17 home victory over the Raiders by the numbers
Sunday’s NFL scores
Rams 29, at Indianpolis 23 (OT)
at Chargers 24, Raiders 17
Kansas City 23, at New York Jets 20*
at Jacksonville 23, Atlanta 7
at Buffalo 48, Miami 20
Denver 31, at Chicago 28
Baltimore 28, at Cleveland 3
at Tennessee 27, Cincinnattii 3
Tampa Bay 26, at New Orleans 9
at Philadelphia 34, Washington 31 (OT)
Minnesota 21, at Carolina 13
at Houston 30, Pittsburgh 6
at Dallas 38, New England 3
at San Francisco 35, Arizona 16
Tonight
Seattle (2-1) at New York Giants (1-2), 5:15 p.m., ABC and ESPN
DODGERS
From Jack Harris: In the win column, the 2023 regular season was technically a step back for the Dodgers.
Going into the playoffs, their path to a World Series seems as muddled as it has been in years.
In many ways, this season’s squad pales in comparison to the de facto super teams of campaigns past; facing more questions about its pitching staff, lineup depth and championship credentials than is typical for the franchise this time of year.
Yet, to many in the clubhouse, around the organization and throughout the fan base, this year’s Dodgers have been as joyful, as endearing, and as triumphant as any in recent memory.
“It’s been quite an accomplishment, with a lot of positives and a lot of growth,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Just seeing how this group came together from the outset of the season … there’s been so many great moments.”
The latest one came Sunday afternoon, when the Dodgers defeated the San Francisco Giants 5-2 at Oracle Park to clinch a 100-win season — the club’s third in a row (a feat accomplished only six times previously in MLB history) and fourth straight in a full-length season (something that had never before been done).
“We stayed together, played together and we went through a lot of guys this year,” Roberts said. “So to see where we’re at and the position we put ourselves in says a lot about that group.”
FINAL NL WEST STANDINGS
x-Dodgers, 100-62
Arizona, 84-78, 16 GB
San Diego, 82-80, 18 GB
San Francisco, 79-83, 21 GB
Colorado, 59-103, 41 GB
x-clinched division
FINAL WILD-CARD STANDINGS
top three teams qualify
y-Philadelphia, 90-72
y-Miami, 84-77
y-Arizona, 84-78
Chicago, 83-79, 1 GB
Cincinnati, 82-80, 2 GB
San Diego, 82-80, 2 GB
y-clinched wild-card berth
DODGERS’ NLDS SCHEDULE
Game 1: at Dodgers, Saturday
Game 2: at Dodgers, Monday, Oct. 9
Game 3: at opponent, Wednesday, Oct. 11
Game 4: at opponent, Thursday, Oct. 12
Game 5: at Dodgers, Saturday, Oct. 14
All games will be on TBS. Start times have not been announced, but if the TBS website is to believed, it looks like the games will start at either 5:30 p.m. or 5.
THE WILD-CARD GAME
If you want to keep track of all the wild-card series, here’s how. They are best-of-three, with the higher seed hosting every game:
Arizona at Milwaukee (winner plays Dodgers)
Game 1: Tuesday, 4 p.m., ESPN2
Game 2: Wednesday, 4 p.m., ESPN2
*Game 3: Thursday, 4 p.m., ESPN2
Miami at Philadelphia (winner plays Atlanta)
Game 1: Tuesday, 5 p.m., ESPN
Game 2: Wednesday, 5 p.m., ESPN
*Game 3: Thursday, 5 p.m., ESPN
Texas at Tampa Bay (winner plays Houston)
Game 1: Tuesday, Noon, ABC
Game 2: Wednesday, Noon, ABC
*Game 3: Thursday, Noon, ABC
Toronto at Minnesota (winner plays Baltimore)
Game 1: Tuesday, 1:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 2: Wednesday, 1:30 p.m., ESPN
*Game 3: Thursday, 1 :30 p.m., ESPN
*-if necessary
All times Pacific
ANGELS
From Sarah Valenzuela: It was during the chilly mornings back at the spring training facility in Tempe, Ariz., that the Angels began to wax poetic about all that looked bright and beautiful for their 2023 season.
Shohei Ohtani was coming off a second historic season. Mike Trout was healthy and set in his new body maintenance routine. Pitchers Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval and José Suarez were looking to build off their promising 2022. General manager Perry Minasian secured bona fide major league depth, picking up better hitters and veteran relievers.
On paper, the team was much improved. And it was not lost on anyone in the organization that it could be the Angels’ last with Ohtani, who is slated to become a free agent after the World Series ends.
Yet, there were several aspects of the 2023 Angels that needed to go just right for them to play meaningful October baseball. The roster underperformed. The injuries compounded those issues. Trout and Ohtani were already on the injured list well before Sunday’s 7-3 win over the Athletics wrapped up a 73-89 season — the same record as 2022 and the Angels seventh consecutive losing campaign.
FINAL AL WEST STANDINGS
Houston, 90-72
Texas, 90-72
Seattle, 88-74, 2 GB
Angels, 73-89, 17 GB
Oakland, 50-112, 40 GB
Houston wins division title based on tiebreaker
FINAL WILD-CARD STANDINGS
top three teams qualify
y-Tampa Bay, 99-63
y-Toronto, 90-72
y-Texas, 90-72
Seattle, 88-74, 2 GB
y-clinched wild-card berth
SATURDAY’S USC FOOTBALL GAME
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: At least a dozen people crowded around Shedeur Sanders as he warmed up Saturday morning. Cameras and cellphones focused on the Colorado quarterback, whose thick, diamond-encrusted chain adorned with his No. 2 jersey number glimmered as the sun rose over the east side of Folsom Field. Fuzzy boom microphones hung overhead near midfield.
Tucked away in the corner of the end zone without a large camera in sight, Caleb Williams, the reigning Heisman winner, stretched silently.
While Colorado has won college football’s popularity contest, using head coach Deion Sanders to dethrone even the original college Hollywood it-team, Williams and No. 8 USC won where it counted Saturday: 48-41 on the scoreboard.
Williams survived Shedeur Sanders’ second-half surge and finished with 403 passing yards, six touchdowns and one interception on 30-of-40 passing as the Trojans (5-0, 3-0 Pac-12) extended their dominance in the series to 17-0.
The junior’s career high-tying touchdown total nearly got overshadowed by another disappointing defensive performance by the Trojans, who allowed 564 yards, the most under head coach Lincoln Riley. The Trojans let Colorado (3-2, 0-2 Pac-12) cut a 27-point deficit to seven and were outgained 318-165 yards during the second half.
“They made plays. And we kind of didn’t,” Riley said of the second-half struggles. “When you stop doing [making plays], especially on the road, against a team that has some talent like they do, they’re going to make a run. And they did. It’s self-inflicted errors.”
Plaschke: Hand him the Heisman already. Caleb Williams once again shows he’s the nation’s best
‘It’s embarrassing.’ Defensive woes threaten to derail USC’s title aspirations
BOXING
From Jorge Castillo: The first question Canelo Álvarez was asked in his news conference after his beatdown of Jermell Charlo on Saturday wasn’t about the victory. It was about if he will next fight Terence Crawford.
Crawford was in attendance for Álvarez’s win at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday. He told reporters that he wanted to fight the winner. A fight with Charlo would’ve presented fewer hurdles, but Charlo was so unimpressive against Álvarez that Crawford ripped him on social media before exiting the building. Which leaves Álvarez.
Canelo vs. Crawford would be the most hyped boxing match in years. It would be a clash between the sport’s biggest draw (Álvarez) and the sport’s pound-for-pound king (Crawford). Álvarez, however, candidly pumped the brakes on the possibility after winning by unanimous decision over Charlo.
“I always say if a fight makes sense, why not,” Álvarez, 33, said. “But he’s not in the plan.”
LAFC
Cristian Arango scored the lone goal, Zac MacMath finished with seven saves and Real Salt Lake snapped a seven-match losing streak against LAFC with a 1-0 victory on Sunday night.
Real Salt Lake (13-11-7) jumps over LAFC (12-10-9) into a tie for second place in the Western Conference with the Seattle Sounders. LAFC would have clinched a playoff spot with a victory.
Neither team scored until Rubio Rubín subbed in for Real Salt Lake in the 69th minute and picked up an assist in the 72nd on Arango’s sixth goal of the season. Braian Ojeda also notched an assist on the score.
How a pro soccer team hopes to create a new identity in the Antelope Valley
GOLF
Europe won back the the Ryder Cup on Sunday, just like it always does before its raucous crowd, with Rory McIlroy leading the way and Tommy Fleetwood delivering the decisive point to extend its dominance over the Americans on home soil.
The outcome was never seriously in doubt at Marco Simone. Europe started the final day with a five-point lead. McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland and Tyrrell Hatton put the Europeans on the verge of the cup, forcing the Americans to win the remaining five matches on the course.
Just like everything else this week, there was little chance of that.
Europe 16½, United States 11½.
HORSE RACING
From John Cherwa: If you want to see some of the best race horses in the country, if not the world, it may benefit you to show up most mornings at Clockers’ Corner, the Santa Anita gathering spot for workouts, breezes and gallops.
There are a lot of unfamiliar faces with stopwatches and two-way radios watching their horses in advance of the Breeders’ Cup, which will be held at Santa Anita on Nov. 3-4. The fields are still under construction for the 14 championship races worth around $31 million in purses.
This past weekend helped fill in some spots including one in the $6-million Breeders’ Cup Classic, which was always the crown jewel of the event that will celebrate its 40th anniversary next month. The Classic has always been the last race in the now two-day schedule. But this year it has been snubbed to an earlier position with two more championship races after it because NBC needs to get to a Big Ten football game. Post time for the Classic will be 3:40 p.m.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1969 — Seattle Pilots’ last game in Seattle; crash to 98th season loss, 3-1 to Oakland in front of just 5,473; move to Milwaukee as the Brewers next season.
1970 — Fourteen members of the Wichita State football team are killed in a plane crash in the Rocky Mountains.
1980 — Larry Holmes registers a technical knockout in the 11th round against Muhammad Ali to win the world heavyweight title in Las Vegas.
1983 — The Green Bay Packers score 49 points in the first half, including 35 in the second quarter, in a 55-14 rout of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
1988 — Future world heavyweight boxing champion Lennox Lewis, representing Canada, wins super-heavyweight gold medal at the Seoul Olympics; beats American Riddick Bowe by 2nd round TKO.
1991 — Steffi Graf becomes the youngest woman to win 500 matches as a professional when she beats Petra Langrova of Czechoslovakia 6-0, 6-1 in the Leipzig International Tournament.
1993 — In the first all-British world heavyweight title fight, Lennox Lewis retains his WBC heavyweight title with a seven-round knockout of Frank Bruno in Cardiff, Wales.
1993 — California rallies from a 30-0 deficit to beat Oregon 42-41. Dave Barr throws three second-half touchdowns, including a 26-yarder to Iheanyi Uwaezuoke with 1:17 left in the game.
1994 — North Carolina’s 92-game winning streak in women’s soccer ends with a scoreless tie in overtime against Notre Dame.
1994 — Don Shula’s Miami Dolphins beat son Dave’s Cincinnati Bengals 23-7 in the first meeting between father and son coaches in pro sports.
2001 — Sammy Sosa becomes the first player in major league history with three 60-homer seasons, but the Reds hold on for a 5-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Sosa’s solo shot comes in the first inning.
2004 — Rice and San Jose State play in the highest-scoring regulation game in Division I-A history, with the Spartans winning 70-63. The 133 points surpass the total from Middle Tennessee’s 70-58 victory over Idaho on Oct. 6, 2001. The schools combine for 19 touchdowns to break the Division I-A record of 18.
2004 — Jeff Kent becomes all-time home run leader for MLB 2nd basemen when he hits 2 in Astros’ 9-3 win; 302 overall HR to break Ryne Sandberg’s major league record established in 1997.
2004 — Montreal Expos earn the last win in the franchise’s MLB history, beating New York Mets, 6 - 3 at Shea Stadium; Brad Wilkerson hits the Expos’ final home run in 9th inning, his 32nd of the year.
2011 — Dallas has its largest lead blown in a loss in franchise history, frittering away a 24-point third-quarter cushion in a 34-30 loss to Detroit.
2016 — The United States win the Ryder Cup for the first time since 2008. Ryan Moore two-putts on No. 18 for a 1-up victory over Lee Westwood, giving the Americans a 15-10 lead that seals the win over Europe. The 17-11 victory over Europe is their biggest rout in 35 years at the Ryder Cup.
2016 — Vin Scully called his final Dodgers game after a record 67 seasons.
—Compiled by the Associated Press
And finally...
Vin Scully gives an emotional final signoff. Watch and listen here.
Until next time...
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
