Kawhi returns as Clippers fall to Mavs in Game 2
The Sporting Tribune's Mark Medina writes Kawhi Leonard felt good in his return but it wasn't enough as Dallas ties their series.
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1. Kawhi returns as Clippers fall to Mavs in Game 2
The Sporting Tribune's Mark Medina writes Kawhi Leonard felt good in his return but it wasn't enough as Dallas ties their series.
In what marked his first Clippers’ playoff home game before a full-capacity crowd in five years, Kawhi Leonard still maintained a stoic expression during an otherwise hyped starting lineup introduction.
Though he has remained the franchise’s cornerstone since joining the Clippers in 2019, Leonard did not dramatically enhance the team’s fortunes, either. The Clippers labored through a 96-93 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena. That coincided with Leonard struggling with both his shot: 17 points on 7-for-17 shooting and 0-for-5 shooting. That coincided with Leonard adjusting to his timing and conditioning in 35 minutes after missing the final eight regular-season games and Game 1 with right knee inflammation.
2. Reggie Bush gets his 2005 Heisman Trophy back
USC now has eight Heisman Trophies, the most of any school in the country, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Arash Markazi.
Reggie Bush finally has his 2005 Heisman Trophy back, the Heisman Trust announced on Wednesday with a photo of Bush reunited with his trophy.
Bush originally gave up his Heisman Trophy in 2010 following severe NCAA sanctions against USC following an investigation which concluded, among other things, that Bush had received “improper benefits” while he was in school.
Those “improper benefits” are not improper in today’s college athletics and seem minor in hindsight compared the multi-million-dollar deals college athletes are now making while in school. USC quarterback Caleb Williams, who will be the No. 1 pick in this week’s NFL Draft and won the Heisman Trophy in 2022, reportedly made over $10 million in NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals and endorsements over two years at USC.
3. Olivier Giroud is LAFC’s newest summer signing
French national star and AC Milan striker Olivier Giroud will join LAFC as newest sensational summer signing, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Chandrima Chaterjee.
Major League Soccer is on the cusp of officially signing their newest FIFA World Cup winner, Olivier Giroud, bringing the total number of all-time players with the honor to 17. Currently, two are at Inter Miami (Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets), one is at Atlanta United (Thiago Almada), and soon two will be at LAFC. Fabrizio Romano of The Athletic first confirmed that Olivier Giroud will be joining his former French teammate Hugo Lloris, currently playing as the Black and Gold’s starting goalkeeper, in the summer transfer window.
This March, multiple reports emerged that the AC Milan striker had verbally reached an agreement with the 2022 MLS Cup champions to join in the summer transfer period when his contract with the Serie A club expires. According to the new report, Giroud will be coming to MLS in July on a free transfer after the Euros and has agreed to join the Los Angeles club through December 2025.
4. Dodgers pitching staff will only get better this year
The Sporting Tribune's Doug Padilla writes about a Dodgers pitching staff that will get stronger as this season progresses.
It was a few years ago, following the end of an unsuccessful playoff run for the Dodgers, when a major league scout summed up the situation succinctly.
“Ran out of pitching,” the scout said as the Dodgers limped into the offseason without a World Series appearance that was expected.
The assessment was delivered matter of factly and in one drawn-out word: “ranoutofpitching.” There was no shoulder movement, although you could see the shrug. Nothing else was said, although you could hear his, “No surprise.”
Twice in the past 10 seasons, the Dodgers had enough late-season pitching to win a title. In 2017, they had a championship in their grasp, but it was the Houston Astros who banged on the back of plastic buckets and took it away. In 2020, the Dodgers landed their title, when they pitched their way past the Tampa Bay Rays.
5. Bullpen, timely hitting lifts Dodgers past Nationals in series opener
Los Angeles used a solid performance from the pitching staff and some clutch late hits to open the series with a victory, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Holdenn Graff.
The Dodgers pitching staff, led by James Paxton, held things down in a big way on Tuesday afternoon. Paxton made his fourth start of the year, working through 4.2 innings and allowing just one earned run. Thanks to three walks and five hits, he did allow his pitch count to soar higher than he would have liked. After 4.2 innings, Dave Roberts decided to take him out with the squad trailing 1-0.
Los Angeles was quiet with the bats through the first portion of the game before they finally managed to break through in the sixth with a two-out single from Kike Hernandez. They would add on twice more in the eighth with a big pinch hit, go-ahead double from James Outman and an insurance single from Miguel Rojas.
The flashiest moment of the day came in the top of the ninth, where Shohei Ohtani blasted a mammoth home run to right-center that gave the Dodgers a 4-1 lead.
6. Angels end 5-game skid with win over Orioles, 7-4
Mike Trout, batting leadoff for the first time since 2020, hit his ninth home run this season during the Angels 7-4 win over the Orioles, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Anthony Bautista.
Mike Trout got things going with a home run in his first at-bat, keeping him atop the American League with nine homers.
The home run was Trout’s sixth lead off home run and his first since 2012, his rookie season.
Trout’s homer provided a spark plug for a struggling Angels offense.
“You love a lead-off bomb,” Logan O’Hoppe said of Trout’s home run. “It was weird looking up and seeing him leading off but if he keeps doing that, obviously we’d love to keep doing that.”
Griffin Canning picked up his first win this season (1-3, 7.50 ERA) in 5.0 innings pitched, five hits alowed and three earned runs.
The Angels added a pair of runs in each the 2nd, 3rd and 4th innings to balloon the lead to 7-0.
While the big change in the lineup happened at the top, spots 6-9, occupied by Logan O’Hoppe, Jo Adell, Luis Rengifo and Zach Neto, produced four doubles against the Orioles and help catapult the offense.
7. Video of the Day
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8. Ticket Time
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today:
1:07 p.m. – Orioles at Angels – $3
9. On the Air
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today:
1:07 p.m. – Orioles at Angels – Bally Sports West
3:45 p.m. – Dodgers at Nationals – SportsNet LA
6:30 p.m. – Golden Knights at Stars (Game 2) – ESPN
7:00 p.m. – Kings at Oilers (Game 2) – TBS
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Bet in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher. You can also watch every Friday on BLEAV on FuboTV.
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