The Sports Report: Tough night for Dodgers in loss to Phillies

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.

From Jack Harris: Wednesday’s sixth inning was already heading off the rails before Joe Kelly entered the game.

In what became a five-run disaster for the Dodgers, the right-handed reliever simply made the train wreck complete.

After leading by three runs early in the night, and one run entering the sixth inning Wednesday, the Dodgers came undone by a controversial umpire call, some sloppy high-leverage pitching from Kelly and, ultimately, a back-breaking three-run blast from Kyle Schwarber — the most important of his three home runs in the Philadelphia Phillies’ series-clinching 9-4 win at Dodger Stadium.

The whole sixth-inning sequence only took about 15 minutes.

But everything that could go wrong for the Dodgers just about did.

“Yeah,” manager Dave Roberts huffed afterward, visibly upset during his postgame news conference. “This is a frustrating one.”

Leading 4-3 at the start of the fateful sixth inning, the Dodgers’ trouble began when Alec Bohm laced a leadoff double against left-hander Alex Vesia, putting the tying run on base three pitches into the frame.

Things got exponentially worse in the next at-bat, when a bunt from Brandon Marsh led to controversy at third base.

Continue reading here

Mookie Betts preps for ‘big difference’ as No. 2 hitter; Brusdar Graterol return ‘hopeful’

Hernández: The Dodgers are asking a lot of Clayton Kershaw, because they have no choice

Dodgers box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

ANGELS

Zach Neto hit his first career grand slam in a six-run second inning off rookie Will Warren and drove in a career-high six runs as the Angels beat the New York Yankees 8-2 for a doubleheader split on Wednesday night.

In the first game, New York rookie Luis Gil battled command issues but pitched five scoreless innings of two-hit ball in a 5-2 victory. Neto hit a two-run homer in the seventh of the opener before the best game of his career in the nightcap.

Warren was one strike away from escaping the second with just a 2-0 deficit, but Neto turned on a full-count sinker and lifted it to the back of the Angels’ bullpen in left field to make it 6-0.

Continue reading here

Angels Game 1 box score

Angels Game 2 box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

USC FOOTBALL

From Ryan Kartje: His physical transformation, spanning four years at USC, may not have been the stuff of Instagram thirst traps. His shirtless before-and-after shots weren’t shared by USC’s social team this summer, like some of his more trim teammates whose stunning body fat percentages lingered somewhere in the single digits.

But when Lincoln Riley looks at Kobe Pepe today, USC’s coach sees an entirely different defensive tackle than the one he first met back in 2021.

“He’s just totally changed his body,” Riley said of the 315-pound redshirt senior. “He’s one of the ones that I’m most proud of from where he was a couple of years ago till now.”

Continue reading here

RAMS

From Gary Klein: The first joint practice against a defense that featured two elite pass rushers did not go well for the Rams.

Now, four days after Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack of the Chargers helped ruin the Rams’ day, quarterback Matthew Stafford will look across the line of scrimmage and deal with Dallas Cowboys edge rushers Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence.

And Stafford once again will take snaps behind a depleted offensive line.

On Thursday, there will be no tackling during the joint practice in Oxnard, but a Rams offense also without injured receiver Puka Nacua will be challenged to avoid the tipped passes, batted balls and interceptions that permeated the workout with the Chargers.

Continue reading here

CHARGERS

From Anthony De Leon: The Chargers have listed Los Angeles native Daiyan Henley as the starting left inside linebacker on the team’s first posted depth chart of the Jim Harbaugh era but, despite the hype surrounding his progress, his psyche is unmoved.

“Reaching the NFL, that was the dream,” Henley said. “But now, it’s what’s next, and I haven’t gotten to what’s next as there is so much work to be done.”

Running alongside veteran Denzel Perryman with the first-team defense, the 2023 third-round draft pick continues to impress and aims to build trust with his coaches and teammates.

Continue reading here

OLYMPICS POLL

For those of you not reading our special Sports Report, Olympics Edition newsletter, written by John Cherwa, he had an interesting poll you might like to participate in:

Which sports do you want to get rid of?
We’ve got no power, but we can pretend. So, let’s get rid of a few Olympic sports. Here are the choices. You can vote for two.

3 X 3 basketball: Do you want to expand to 2 X 2 or 4 X 4 or 6 X 6? Where does it end?

Artistic swimming: Used to be synchronized swimming but needed rebranding. Reached peak with Esther Williams.

Basketball: Little competitive balance, especially with the women.

Boxing: Growing more insignificant by the day. Bad scoring system. Gateway sport to UFC.

Golf: Too elite and players are judged on how many majors they win, not Olympic medals.

Modern pentathlon: About as outdated as it comes. What kid doesn’t have a daily routine of fencing, swimming, horseback riding, shooting and running?

Rhythmic gymnastics: Ball, ribbon and hoop. Need we say more?

Tennis: See golf.

Trampoline: Extra deduction if you land in the neighbor’s back yard.

Something else: Self explanatory.

(Note to readers: Comments for entertainment purposes only.)

You can vote here.

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1936 — At the Berlin Olympics, the United States finishes 1-2-3 in the men’s decathlon. Glenn Morris sets a world record with 7,900 points, followed by Robert Clark and Jack Parker.

1982 — Ray Floyd, who shot a record 63 in the opening round, wins the PGA championship by three shots over Lanny Wadkins.

1984 — Carl Lewis sets the Olympic record in the 200 meters with a 19.80 clocking.

1992 — The Dream Team picks up its gold medal and Carl Lewis anchors a world-record 400-meter relay, winning his eighth gold medal in three Olympics. The U.S. basketball team beats Croatia 117-85, with the 32-point margin of victory the smallest of the Games. In the 400, Mike Marsh, Leroy Burrell, Dennis Mitchell and Lewis set a world record of 37.40 seconds. Steve Lewis anchors another world-record as the Americans won the 1,600 relay by nearly half the length of a football field. The team of Andrew Valmon, Quincy Watts, Michael Johnson and Lewis ran the 1,600 in 2:55.74.

2006 — Roger Goodell is chosen as the NFL’s next commissioner. Favored for months to get the job, he is unanimously elected by the league’s 32 owners on the fifth ballot.

2010 — Sparks forward Tina Thompson scores 23 points to become the WNBA’s all-time scoring leader in a 92-83 loss to the San Antonio Silver Stars. She surpasses Lisa Leslie’s career total of 6,263 points. Thompson is the last of the original WNBA players.

2012 — Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings of the United States become the first three-time gold medalists in Olympic beach volleyball history. The duo beat Jennifer Kessy and April Ross 21-16, 21-16 in the all-American final, extending their Olympic winning streak to 21 matches.

2012 — Brittney Reese wins the long jump, becoming the first U.S. woman to win the Olympic long jump since Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 1988.

2021 — USA women’s basketball team wins it’s record extending 7th consecutive Olympic gold medal with 90-75 win over Japan in Tokyo; guards Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi each win their 5th straight gold.

2021 — USA Women’s volleyball defeats Brazil in straight sets to win the gold medal. It’s the first Olympic gold medal in USA Women’s volleyball history. The win would give the United States 39 gold medals, breaking a tie with China on the final day of the Tokyo Olympics.

Compiled by the Associated Press