The Sports Report: Old friends Cody Bellinger, Michael Busch are too much for Dodgers

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

From Jack Harris: It was around this time last year that the Dodgers offense started cooling off.

After a sluggish performance at the plate this week, they can only hope it isn’t happening again.

Before the Dodgers crashed out of the 2023 playoffs in a National League Division Series sweep against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team’s bats began to quiet in September, when declining production from big stars and role players alike foreshadowed the offensive no-show that doomed the team in October.

Lately, the Dodgers have experienced something similar, following up a rollicking offensive showcase in Arizona with one muted effort after the next in the week since.

The latest example came in a 10-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Monday night at Dodger Stadium, in which ex-Dodgers Cody Bellinger and Michael Busch almost outscored the entirety of their former team.

In the first four innings alone, Bellinger and Busch had three hits, a home run a piece and four total RBIs off Walker Buehler.

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ANGELS

Reid Detmers worked six solid innings and Brandon Drury and Niko Kavadas homered to lead the Angels to a 6-2 victory over the struggling Minnesota Twins on Monday night.

Detmers (4-6) was making his second straight quality start after spending three months at triple-A Salt Lake. The 25-year-old left-hander gave up five hits and struck out eight — including the last three batters he face — for his first win since May 20 against Houston after starting the season 3-0. He gave up three hits and struck out 10 in six innings in a no-decision against the Dodgers last Tuesday in his first appearance since June 1 after being demoted to the minors after months of inconsistency.

Drury hit his fourth homer of the season, a two-run shot, in the the third inning and Kavadas added another two-run homer, his third, in the sixth.

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RAMS

From Gary Klein: Rams receiver Puka Nacua suffered a knee sprain during the season-opening overtime defeat to the Detroit Lions and will be placed on injured reserve, coach Sean McVay said Monday.

Nacua suffered a right posterior cruciate ligament sprain Sunday in the second quarter of a 26-20 loss at Detroit, reaggravating an injury he suffered in August during a joint practice with the Chargers, McVay said. Once placed on IR, Nacua will miss at least the next four games.

“It’s unfortunate for him, and I’m bummed out for the person, more importantly,” McVay said during a videoconference with reporters.

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CHARGERS

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Jim Harbaugh made a beeline toward midfield, shook Raiders coach Antonio Pierce’s hand and turned right around toward the sideline. There was no extra pomp for Harbaugh’s first win as the Chargers’ coach. This circumstance called for him to duck straight into the locker room.

The Chargers’ 22-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, Harbaugh insisted, was not about him. Instead, it belonged to Derwin James Jr., Justin Herbert, Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack and the veteran Chargers whose own hard work was formerly overshadowed by the franchise’s forgettable results.

“They’ve been playing that way long before us newcomers arrived on the scene,” Harbaugh said Monday. “So I feel lucky to be here, to be able to be coaching these guys, as do the rest of the coaches on the staff. That’s the L.A. Chargers mentality.”

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LAKERS

From Dan Woike: Christian Wood will not be available for all of training camp, the Lakers announcing that he’ll miss at least the next eight weeks because of more knee problems.

Wood underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Monday, the Lakers said. He also had the knee operated on last March.

For Wood, the injury delays the comeback season he had hoped for after signing a minimum deal with the Lakers before the 2023-24 season.

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From Ben Bolch: Indiana, Iowa and Minnesota, three traditional Big Ten schools coming to the Rose Bowl this season to face conference newbie UCLA, expect to bring their largest contingent of fans traveling to any road game in 2024, reflecting the stadium’s allure in pockets of the country used to longingly seeing the stadium on television.

“Compared to our other Big Ten road games, UCLA has far and away the biggest level of interest among our fans right now,” said Mike Wierzbicki, the Minnesota senior associate athletics director for external affairs who expects at least 10,000 Golden Gophers fans to attend the game on Oct. 12.

To capitalize on the interest, Minnesota’s athletic department is sponsoring two- and three-night travel packages that include accommodations at the JW Marriott LA Live, a group tour of Los Angeles and a pregame tailgate, complete with open bar, at Brookside Golf Club. There will also be a “’Sota Social” at Barney’s Beanery in Pasadena on the evening before the game.

Mark Jessen, a lifelong Golden Gophers fan, said he planned to attend every event on the itinerary to savor each moment leading up to kickoff and, if he’s lucky, a picturesque sunset over the nearby San Gabriel Mountains.

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THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1933 — Fred Perry wins his first U.S. men’s singles title with a 6-3, 11-13, 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 victory over Australian Jack Crawford.

1937 — The Cleveland Rams play their first NFL game and lose 28-0 to the Detroit Lions.

1962 — Rod Laver becomes the first man since Don Budge in 1938 to win the Grand Slam beating Roy Emerson 6-2, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, at the U.S. Open. Margaret Smith becomes the first Australian woman to win the U.S. Open with a 9-7, 6-4 win over Darlene Hard.

1966 — Muhammad Ali knocks out Karl Mildenberger in the 12th round in Frankfurt, Germany, to retain his world heavyweight title.

1967 — John Newcombe beats Clark Graebner to win the men’s title in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships. Billie Jean King wins the singles, doubles and mixed doubles championships.

1972 — The United States men’s basketball team loses its first game in Olympic competition. The Soviet Union wins 51-50 with the help of a controversial ending. Dr. William Jones, secretary general of the International Amateur Basketball Federation, tells the referees to have the players replay the final three seconds and the Soviets score a last-second bucket. The Americans, who had the lead when the buzzer sounded the first time, protest in vain. The U.S. team later refuses to accept the silver medal.

1972 — Emerson Fittipaldi wins the Italian Grand Prix to become the youngest to win a Formula I championship. Fittipaldi, 25, wins his fifth race of the season and clinches the title with two races remaining.

1978 — Jimmy Connors becomes the only player to win the U.S. Open on three different surfaces, with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 win over Bjorn Borg. Connors wins the first men’s final played on the Deco Turf II courts at the new USTA National Tennis Center. Connors had won the 1974 U.S. Open on grass and the 1976 U.S. Open on clay courts.

1983 — Larry Holmes TKOs Scott Frank in 5 for heavyweight boxing title.

1988 — Steffi Graf becomes the third women to complete the Grand Slam, defeating Gabriela Sabatini 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in the U.S. Open.

1989 — Indianapolis running back Eric Dickerson rushes for 106 yards against San Francisco to become the fastest player to top the 10,000 yard plateau; 91st career game.

1995 — Pete Sampras wins his third U.S. Open men’s singles title, taking down the No. 1 seed and defending champion Andre Agassi, 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5.

2004 — Zippy Chippy, thoroughbred racing’s lovable loser, makes it 0-for-100 when he finishes last in an eight-horse field at the Three-County Fairgrounds in Northampton, Mass.

2006 — Roger Federer defeats Andy Roddick 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the U.S. Open final for his third major championship this year and ninth of his career. Federer becomes the first man ever to win back-to-back Wimbledon and U.S. Open crowns for three straight years.

2012 — Andy Murray wins the U.S. Open in five grueling sets to become the first British man since 1936 to capture a Grand Slam title. Murray beats defending champion Novak Djokovic 7-6 (10), 7-5, 2-6, 3-6, 6-2 in his fifth try in the final of a major tournament.

2017 — The Rams rout the Indianapolis Colts 46-9 in 31-year-old Sean McVay’s impressive debut as the youngest head coach in modern league history.

Compiled by the Associated Press