The Sports Report: Mookie Betts is back

Los Angeles Times

26-03-2025

Howdy, I'm your host, Houston Mitchell. Let's get right to the news.
From Anthony De Leon: Mookie Betts' trademark smile is back. As he walked off the field on his way back to the Dodgers clubhouse, he was in good spirits after his pregame warmup, exclaiming, 'I feel great. Awesome. Normal.'
For Betts, Tuesday marked a return to normalcy, with the star shortstop back in the lineup against the Angels. Betts was slated to get 'three at-bats, play four or five innings of defense,' according to manager Dave Roberts.
Coming back from his stomach ailment, Betts played into the sixth inning of the Dodgers' 4-1 victory over the Angels. He finished 0 for 3 with a couple of groundouts and a foul out to first base.
Betts emphasized that his main focus is simply 'to play baseball.' He added, 'I still don't know how long, how many days it's been — just to play baseball and try to get back into a rhythm.'
It had been nearly two weeks since Betts last took the field, and while he acknowledges there's not much time to get back into game shape, he could be deemed ready by Roberts for Thursday's home opener against the Detroit Tigers.
'Yeah, I played in the game,' Betts said with a chuckle. 'Once I step foot on the dirt, I'm ready to go.'
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From Jack Harris: The Dodgers will visit the White House during their trip to Washington next month to face the Nationals, the team announced Tuesday, continuing a tradition for championship teams of the United States' major sports leagues.
'It's certainly a huge honor to get the invitation to the White House,' manager Dave Roberts said. 'Allows us to celebrate our 2024 championship.'
The visit, scheduled for April 7, will mark the Dodgers' second trip to the White House in the last five years. In 2021, the team's 2020 World Series title was celebrated by President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
This time, the Dodgers will be welcomed by President Trump — which, given past comments some team members have made, raised questions in the wake of Tuesday's announcement about whether anyone might decline to take part in the event.
Roberts said he would participate, despite comments he made to The Times in 2019 indicating he might not go to the White House if Trump — who was notoriously critical of Roberts' managing on Twitter during the 2018 World Series — was president.
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News Analysis: Shohei Ohtani is restarting his throwing program. But how much will he pitch in 2025?
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From Bill Plaschke: JuJu Watkins screamed.
She held her right knee with both hands, squeezed her eyes shut and screamed.
A school and a town and a sport scream with her.
In the history of basketball in Los Angeles, it will be forever known as the night everything changed.
On a court where she flies, USC's Watkins collapsed. In a sport in which her contortions are magic, she lay curled up in a ball. At a school where she leads thousands, she found herself very much alone, mouth open, chest heaving, crying and screaming again and again.
On the saddest of Mondays, the best women's college basketball player in America suffered a season-ending knee injury that could alter a career, a program, a life.
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From Chuck Schilken: Four days after playing the best NBA game of his young career, Bronny James did the same in the G League.
Starting for the Lakers' South Bay affiliate Monday night, the rookie scored a career-high 39 points in a 122-118 win over the Santa Cruz Warriors at UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo.
James made 14 of 21 shots, including four of eight from three-point range, and added four assists, four steals and one block in 38 minutes. He also committed seven turnovers, which tied for his most.
After his performance, James was asked on Spectrum SportsNet what he had been trying to prove on the court.
'Just that I belong out there,' James said. 'That's all I'm trying to prove. A lot of people say I don't, but I just come out, work every day, try to get better every day and prove myself every day.'
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From Chuck Schilken: Puka Nacua already knows when he wants to retire.
It's not anytime soon, but it's probably a lot sooner than Rams fans might want to think about right now.
Asked during a recent podcast appearance how he might know when it's time to hang up his cleats, the 23-year-old star receiver did not hesitate in answering.
'I know I want to retire at the age of 30,' Nacua said on an episode of 'Join the Lobby' that went live Saturday.
That's either six or seven seasons away, depending on when during the start of his fourth decade Nacua (born May 29, 2001) decides to call it a career.
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Outfielder Mickey Moniak was released by the Angels on Tuesday after beating the team in salary arbitration and will receive $483,781 in termination pay rather than his $2 million salary.
Under the collective bargaining agreement that started in 2022, salaries of arbitration-eligible players that are agreed to are guaranteed, but salaries determined by arbitration panels are not. Players with nonguaranteed contracts who are released during the 15 days prior to opening day receive 45 days of termination pay.
Last year New York Mets pitcher Phil Bickford and San Francisco third baseman J.D. Davis were released during spring training after winning in arbitration.
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Kevin Fiala scored twice, Darcy Kuemper stopped 22 shots, and the Kings beat the New York Rangers 3-1 on Tuesday night.
Phillip Danault also scored as the Kings extended their home point streak to 15 games (12-0-3). The Kings are the second team in the NHL to have a home point streak of at least 15 games, joining Washington (11-0-5).
J. T. Miller scored for New York, and Igor Shesterkin finished with 30 saves. The Rangers have lost four of their last five games.
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Kings summary
NHL scores
NHL standings
1944 — St. John's, coached by Joe Lapchick, defeats DePaul 47-39 to become the first back-to-back winner of the National Invitation Tournament.
1946 — Hank Iba's Oklahoma A&M Aggies beat North Carolina 43-40 for their second straight NCAA men's basketball title. Bob Kurland scores 23 points, including the first two dunks in NCAA tournament history.
1949 — Alex Groza leads Kentucky to a 46-36 victory over Oklahoma State for the NCAA championship.
1952 — Kansas' Clyde Lovelette scores 33 points to lead the Jayhawks to a 80-63 win over St. John's for the NCAA basketball title.
1972 — The Lakers beat Seattle 124-98 to finish the season at 69-13, the best record in NBA history, until the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls finish at 72-10.
1973 — Bill Walton scores 44 points to help UCLA win its record seventh NCAA basketball championship with an 87-66 triumph over Memphis State.
1974 — George Foreman knocks out Ken Norton in the second round in Caracas, Venezuela, to retain the world heavyweight title.
1979 — 41st NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Michigan State beats Indiana State, 75-64; marks start of rivalry between future Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Larry Bird; highest-rated game in history of televised college basketball.
1994 — Utah's John Stockton becomes the second player in NBA history to collect 2,000 career steals. Stockton gets a pair of steals during a 98-83 loss at Houston to join Maurice Cheeks, who finished his career with 2,310 steals.
2005 — In the NCAA men's basketball regional finals, Louisville and Illinois make tremendous comebacks to force overtime and advance. Louisville, trailing by 20 to a West Virginia, complete an amazing come-from-behind 93-85 win. Illinois, trailing by 15 with just four minutes to play, went on a dazzling 20-5 run to send Arizona to a crushing 90-89 defeat.
2006 — George Mason stuns No. 1 seed Connecticut 86-84 in overtime to become the first No. 11 seed to reach the men's Final Four since LSU in 1986.
2011 — Shelvin Mack scores 27 points, including five in overtime, as Butler returns to the Final Four with a 74-71 victory over Florida in the Southeast regional.
2012 — Jaime Alas scores in stoppage time and El Salvador forges a 3-3 tie that ousts the United States from Olympic qualifying. The Americans miss the Olympics for the second time since 1976.
2016 — Breanna Stewart has 22 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks to lead No. 1 UConn to a 98-38 record rout of fifth-seeded Mississippi State in the Bridgeport regional semifinals. The victory supplants the record 51-point win the Huskies had over Texas in the regional semifinals last year that set the NCAA record for margin of victory in the regional rounds and beyond.
2017 — Luke Maye hits a jumper with 0.3 seconds left, and top-seeded North Carolina holds off Kentucky 75-73 in the South Regional to earn a second straight trip to the Final Four and 20th all-time.
Compiled by the Associated Press