Dana Hills baseball beats Aliso Niguel with walk-off ending to wild contest

• April 24, 2025

DANA POINT – The Dana Hills baseball team committed eight errors Wednesday.

And won.

Dana Hills sophomore Ryan See’s line drive down the left-field line in the bottom of the seventh inning sent home Tommy Moro with the winning run for a 9-8 walk-off victory over Aliso Niguel in a South Coast League game at Dana HIlls High.

“That was a weird one,” See said.

The Dolphins’ chances for securing a playoff berth improved Wednesday. They are 5-5-1 in the five-team South Coast League. Dana Hills’ chief competition for the league’s third and final guaranteed playoff berth most likely is Tesoro, which is 4-4 in league. Aliso Niguel is 5-3 in league.

Trabuco Hills beat Tesoro 3-1 on Wednesday to improve to 5-3 in league to form a first-place tie with Aliso.

Dana Hills (10-12-1 overall) plays its final league game Friday at Aliso Niguel (18-16). Dana Hills will still have three league games remaining, all against Tesoro. Those teams start a three-game series Monday at Tesoro.

“We kind of have our backs against the wall right now,” said Dana Hills coach Tom Faris, “and we’re fighting our way through it.”

Aliso Niguel is No. 13 in the Orange County Top 25 and Dana Hills is not ranked.

The game consumed 3 hours and 2 minutes. The first inning needed 29 minutes to complete. There was only one 1-2-3 inning.

Aliso Niguel trailed at three different times Wednesday, including an 8-7 deficit going into the seventh inning.

Jason Orwat led off the seventh for the Wolverines with a walk and advanced to third base on a single by Hudson Covington. Cooper Flemming reached on an error, with Orwat crossing the plate on the play for an 8-8 tie.

Moro led off the Dana Hills half of the seventh with a single, moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Brad Lewis and scored from second when See pulled a high fastball to left field to end the game.

It was a pitch that See anticipated.

“The last couple of at-bats they threw it up,” he said. “So I was thinking another was going to be up.”

Aliso Niguel scored three runs in the top of the first inning. The left-handed hitting Flemming, who took a .385 batting average into the game, got the first of his three hits to start the game. Flemming, Jarett Sabol and Austin Hays scored in the first with the help of the first two Dana Hills errors.

Dana Hills scored five runs in the bottom of the first in which the Dolphins sent 10 batters to the plate. Two runs came on bases-loaded walks and Ryan Georgia and Luke Blankenship had runs-scoring hits. The inning ended with Dana Hills on top 5-3.

Aliso Niguel tied it two runs in the top of the fourth inning. Flemming contributed an RBI single. The other run was scored on one of Dana Hills’ three errors in the inning.

Dana Hills regained the lead 7-5 with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Brody Bateson, who took a .313 batting average into the game, opened the inning with a single and scored on Evan Daly’s single. An Aliso Niguel error provided the other Dolphins run.

The Wolverines tied it again with two runs in the top of the fifth inning. Two Dana Hills errors were involved.

Dana Hills took an 8-7 lead in its half of the fifth. Tommy Burked hit a double and scored on a fielder’s choice.

Aliso Niguel tied the game again in the top of seventh, and See’s hit would get the Dolphins the win in the bottom of that inning.

Faris, in his 21st season coaching Dana Hills baseball, said the Dolphins have been the team that comes out the loser of a dramatic ending.

“We’ve lost three or four league games on that kind of stuff that ends a game,” Faris said. “It’s nice that our guys figured out a way to get through it like this. I’m proud of them.”

​ Orange County Register 

Angels’ slumping hitters manage only 2 hits against Pirates

• April 24, 2025

ANAHEIM — The same questions have come at Ron Washington after most of the Angels’ games lately, and he continues to give the same answer.

The Angels are not hitting, including a two-hit performance in a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night, and Washington says simply that they will eventually snap out of this.

“All we can do is keep working,” Washington said. “We’re in an offensive funk right now, and it’s up and down the whole lineup. It’s not just in certain parts of the lineup. It’s up and down. It’s our big boys. It’s our little guys. It’s everybody. So we’ve just got to keep working. One day we’ll walk out there in the near future, and we’ll find ourselves offensively.”

Mike Trout, who went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts to drop his season average to .169, said the “energy’s down” since the Angels got off to a hot start. The Angels improved to 8-4 with a 10-run, six-homer outburst on April 10 in Tampa.

Since then, the Angels (11-12) have lost eight of 11 games, dropping under .500 for the first time since they were 0-1. They’ve averaged 2.4 runs in those games, surpassing four runs just once and getting shut out twice.

They’ve hit .186 and struck out in 33% of their plate appearances. The major league average strikeout rate is 22.4%.

“Obviously, things aren’t going our way,” Trout said, “but we’ve got to stay positive, and you know keep pulling for each other.”

Washington said they’ve addressed the hitters as a group, trying to kickstart the offense, but ultimately each player has to do what’s necessary to get out of this rut. He said he’s not worried about their confidence right now.

“They’re confident,” Washington said. “They’re not down on themselves. They know they’re better than what they’re showing, and I know they’re better than what they’re showing. So all we’ll do is keep grinding. We’re only in the first month. If we can get it out right now, I’m good with that. And then we can do what we have to do the rest of the way. We’re just in an offensive funk. It is up and down the lineup, not in one area.”

On Wednesday night it was former Angels left-hander Andrew Heaney who kept them in a funk.

Heaney struck out nine in six innings, including the first six hitters of the game. The Angels didn’t have a baserunner until Travis d’Arnaud doubled with one out in the fifth. Nolan Schanuel then reached on an error, giving the Angels a brief glimmer of a rally.

But Luis Rengifo then hit a fly ball to center and Kyren Paris struck out.

The Angels didn’t have another baserunner until Jorge Soler’s double in the ninth inning.

The offensive outage has put more pressure on Angels pitchers, and on this night right-hander Jack Kochanowicz did all he could to keep the Angels close.

Kochanowicz gave up two runs in six innings, which was an improvement after he’d given up 10 runs in 9⅓ innings in his previous two starts.

“I thought he was real good,” Washington said. “His stuff was crisp tonight. He had a lot of ground balls. He had a lot of traffic throughout the game, but he was able to pitch around it, and that’s who he is. He doesn’t strike out guys. But he did get the ball on the ground a lot tonight. His four-seam was real crisp. And then he came later on in the game and the sinker started working.”

It was a typical Kochanowicz game, in that he only struck out three and walked one. He induced eight groundouts, including three double plays.

There were also plenty of balls that eluded Angels fielders, accounting for eight hits.

The defense had no shot at one of them, a 463-foot homer from Oneil Cruz. Kochanowicz hung a slider and Cruz blasted it at 116.6 mph, bouncing it off the green hitter’s background beyond the trees past the center field fence.

Although Washington acknowledged the hard contact against Kochanowicz, he said he didn’t mind it because of the results.

“He had a lot of hard contact, but he only gave up two runs in six innings,” Washington said. “If every time he takes the ball he gives up two runs in six innings, I will take it.”

After Kochanowicz was finished, left-hander Reid Detmers entered for his best outing of the season.

Detmers pitched two scoreless innings and struck out four, without a walk.

​ Orange County Register 

Kings ride revitalized power play to Game 2 win, 2-0 series lead on Oilers

• April 24, 2025

LOS ANGELES — A pair of three-goal onslaughts powered the Kings past the Edmonton Oilers, 6-2, on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena, where the hosts took a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven, first-round playoff series.

The Kings have lost just twice all season, and never in regulation, when scoring three goals or more, and they’ve won 33 of 43 games on home ice, including both in the playoffs.

“We’ve been a really strong home team this year. We got the home-ice advantage. Going into the series, that was our mentality, that we’d build off what we’d done all year at home,” said Adrian Kempe, who asserted himself with two goals and two assists. “Tonight we came out and played a really solid 60 minutes, and I think we were the better team throughout both games.”

The Kings have turned the special-teams angle 180 degrees, now amassing five power-play goals and allowing none through two games after allowing nine power-play goals and two more right after penalties while scoring none in last year’s five-game loss.

The series shifts to Edmonton for Game 3 on Friday night and Game 4 on Sunday night.

“It feels good. That was what we were looking to do. We played two really solid games at home,” Kempe said. “The job’s not done, we’ve got to go up there and win at least one game, otherwise it’s going to be tough to win the series.”

Captain Anže Kopitar matched Kempe’s point total with a goal and three assists, and their other linemate, Andrei Kuzmenko had a goal and an assist to make both his first two playoff appearances multipoint efforts. Quinton Byfield and Brandt Clarke each lit the lamp, while Warren Foegele chipped in two assists. Darcy Kuemper made 24 saves.

Leon Draisaitl and Viktor Arvidsson tallied for Edmonton. Stuart Skinner wobbled again, stopping 23 of 28 shots before the Oilers summoned Calvin Pickard from the bench.

Kempe now has 14 goals and 26 points in 20 career playoff games, all of which came against Edmonton, which bounced the Kings from each of the past three postseasons. He leads all NHL postseason scorers with three goals and seven points.

After the Kings took a 3-0 lead for the second straight game, they also faced a similar impasse as in Game 1. There, they retroceded a four-goal advantage and needed a last-minute, tie-breaking goal by Phillip Danault to win. Wednesday, they saw their three-goal margin diminish to one, but Kempe scored a goal, notched another and set up Kopitar in between to leave the Oilers in his dust.

“We’d been here before, two days ago it was kind of the same thing,” said Clarke, who got the ball rolling with a power-play goal, his first career playoff point. “We knew they weren’t going to go away, we knew they had some of the best players in the world and we knew they were going to fight tooth-and-nail to the end, so we were going to do the same thing.”

A late goal in the second period begat an early one in the third for Edmonton once again on Wednesday, this one by the former King Arvidsson. “The Little Viking” contributed a huge marker as he battled hard in front to expertly tip Brett Kulak’s shot skyward at the 4:05 mark.

From there, the Kings outright owned Edmonton, ensuring there’d be no late-game heroics like the ones from Connor McDavid and chums on Monday. McDavid, who had three primary assists and the tying goal before the Kings prevailed 6-5 in Game 1, was held scoreless Wednesday and looked on as Kempe established himself as the man of the match.

Arvidsson’s giveaway – he fanned on a pass deep in his own zone and had his pocket picked by Kopitar – led directly to Kempe’s goal 2:41 after Arvidsson scored. Kopitar found Kempe zooming past the right faceoff dot for a far-side snipe, after which Kempe calmly skated to the corner, sans celebration.

They tacked on another goal, their third on the power play, with 10:53 left in the contest. Kempe hit Fiala, whose seam pass got by Kuzmenko at the netfront, but sailed on to Kopitar for a backdoor redirect that sealed Edmonton’s fate.

For good measure, Kempe scored again, this time off the rush, 2:02 later by way of a shot that entered and exited the net instantaneously. It was a cold welcome to the game for Pickard after he had just come on to relieve Skinner.

The Kings stretched their lead to three goals with tallies 4:14 and 10:37 into the second period before handing one back at 13:54 to lug a 3-1 lead into the second intermission.

Draisaitl broke up Kuemper’s shutout, as he did in Game 1, after he found quiet ice during a puck battle that ultimately got the puck to John Klingberg. Klingberg, who was unavailable for Game 1, spotted Draisaitl cutting to the net and lofted a shot that he tipped past Kuemper. It was Draisaitl’s 19th goal in 20 postseason games against the Kings, cutting the score to 3-1 in favor of the black and silver.

Draisaitl was blunt but nondescript in assessing the Oilers’ special-teams underperformance and defensive woes after they allowed 12 goals in two games, including five while shorthanded.

“They’re just winning that battle right now. They’re beating us in that department. We’ve got to fix some things and be better,” Draisaitl said.

He added: “Way too many [goals]. We’re just a little slow right now, and again, it’s something we have to fix.”

To make it 3-0, the Kings had struck for a second time with the extra man, with both goals going to the player who drew the penalty.

In this case, it was Kuzmenko, producing his second man-advantage marker in as many games. Kempe’s one-timer banked off the end boards and right to Kuzmenko, who popped in the putback.  He had drawn a hooking call against Trent Frederic to earn the opportunity.

Before that, Byfield scored the second goal of the game for the second consecutive contest. While Draisaitl got into a shoving match with Vladislav Gavrikov at the right-wing boards high in the zone, Byfield darted in to outnumber Evan Bouchard at the net before he feathered the puck past Skinner.

Through 20 minutes, the Kings were out-shot 11-6 but still led 1-0, again winning the once-elusive special-teams battle.

They killed two first-period penalties – the first of which in large part due to a deft pad save by Kuemper on Zach Hyman’s point-blank bid and Gavrikov’s swift clearing of the rebound – and scored on their only power-play chance, 8:44 after puck-drop.

Clarke drew the penalty, a cross-check on Evander Kane, who played for the first time all season Wednesday, and scored the goal with time winding down on Kane’s infraction. Clarke joined the rush and drove the net, where Foegele found him for a redirection thanks in part to a poorly executed sliding block attempt by Nurse, one of two he had in the period.

“We’ve executed better. We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We’re up two games to zero and we’re really happy with where we’re at,” Clarke said. “We know they’re really strong, they’re going to make adjustments, they’re going to come out firing and they’re going to be excited to play in front of their home fans. We’ve done a good job of holding it down at home and we’re really confident with where we’re at, but we’ve still got to execute.”

​ Orange County Register 

Feds, family members angered by pending early release of man who killed teens in OC

• April 24, 2025

The pending release of a twice-deported illegal immigrant who has served only about a third of his prison sentence for the DUI deaths of two teens in Orange County has ignited a national uproar reaching both the governor’s office and the Trump administration.

Anatoly Varfolomeev, the father of one of the teens, said the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation notified him that 43-year-old Oscar Eduardo Ortega-Anguiano will be released in July to an undisclosed location in Garden Grove. He has served  just 3 1/2 years of a 10-year sentence for the deaths of Anya Varfolomeev, and her boyfriend, Nicholay Osokin, who were both 19.

Ortega-Anguiano is slated for early release due to state sentencing laws that classify vehicular manslaughter as a nonviolent criminal offense.

“It’s a crazy law,” Anatoly Varfolomeev said in a Wednesday phone interview with the Southern California News Group. “Two teenagers were killed when they were burned to death. That’s not a violent crime?”

Ortega-Anguiano was intoxicated and driving a Volkswagen at high speed when it plowed into the 2000 Honda occupied by Anya and Nicholay on the southbound 405 Freeway near Seal Beach Boulevard shortly before midnight on Nov. 13, 2021.

According to Orange County Superior Court records, prosecutors charged Ortega-Anguiano with two felony counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence as well as other related felony counts for the crash. There also were multiple sentencing enhancements for causing bodily injury.

Ortega-Anguiano pleaded guilty to Judge Kazuharu Makino to the two felony vehicular manslaughter charges and a misdemeanor charge of driving without a valid license. The remaining charges, as well as the sentencing enhancements, were dismissed.

Facing a maximum of 12 years and six months in prison, Ortega-Anguiano was sentenced by Makino to concurrent 10-year sentences on the manslaughter charges and 10 days for driving without a license. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said his office argued for a stronger sentence and did not offer a deal.

Ortega-Anguiano was given 334 days of credit toward his sentence. That covers the 167 days he spent in the Orange County Jail while awaiting trial, and the 167 days of credit for his good conduct.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a post on the social media platform X that Spitzer is to blame for Ortega-Anguiano’s early release.

“After being deported in 2013, this individual unlawfully re-entered the US & committed heinous crimes,” the post states. “A GOP DA then gave him a plea deal instead of pursuing 2nd-degree murder. CDCR will again coordinate with ICE — as they have w/ 10,000+ inmates — to transfer him before release.”

Spitzer fired back Wednesday, accusing Newsom and state lawmakers of facilitating the release.

“Under the law, Ortega-Anguiano’s nonviolent offender status makes him eligible for early release once he has accumulated enough prison credits for good behavior and time served,” Spitzer said. “Years of California’s crusade to put the rights of criminals over the rights of victims has resulted in the unimaginable pain inflicted on the grief-stricken parents.”

Spitzer also noted an anomaly in the law by which drunken drivers who injure people are eligible for harsher sentences than those who kill people, adding that his office has tried unsuccessfully to get the laws tightened.

“California’s creative concoction of good time, education, and other credits has resulted in criminals being released quicker than ever before,” he said. “It is another stab to the heart of victims across California by Governor Newsom and a state Legislature who are hell-bent on releasing as many criminals as possible without any accountability and without any punishment.”

The CDCR  confirmed in an email to the Southern California News Group that Ortega-Anguiano is eligible for early release.

“Shortly before a person’s release, CDCR reviews an incarcerated person’s file for state and federal holds, warrants, and detainers, including ICE detainers,” the email said. “CDCR confirms with ICE if they intend to take custody of the person upon release and coordinates with ICE only for purposes of the transfer of custody.”

Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said the deaths of Anya and Nicholay were preventable because Ortega-Anguiano should not have been in the United States.

“Now, sanctuary state California is letting him out after serving just three years of a 10-year prison sentence,” McLaughlin said. “ICE has placed a detainer with the California Department of Corrections. We hope California law enforcement will work with us to ensure this criminal alien is not released into American communities.”

Ortega-Anguiano has a lengthy deportation history, according to federal officials.

An immigration judge ordered Ortega removed from the U.S. on Nov. 3, 2014. He filed several unsuccessful appeals and was taken into ICE custody on Dec. 2, 2016, and removed to Mexico the same day.

Ortega then attempted to reenter the U.S. on Feb. 2, 2018, near Otay Mesa by presenting a counterfeit document. He was paroled into the U.S. pending criminal prosecution for illegal reentry after removal.

An immigration official issued Ortega an expedited removal order and removed him June 1, 2018, to Mexico. After his latest removal, he again illegally reentered the U.S. on an unknown date and at an unknown location. ICE issued a detainer with the Orange County Jail on Nov. 27, 2021, where he was being held on the two vehicular manslaughter charges, federal officials said.

In 2022, while Ortega-Anguiano was incarcerated following the manslaughter convictions, federal prosecutors obtained an indictment charging him with illegally being in the United States after being previously deported.

The indictment cites three previous convictions that led to deportation, including grand theft, for which he was sentenced to 365 days; unlawful driving, for which he was sentenced to 19 days; and false imprisonment, for which he was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

The indictment remains in effect, and the maximum potential sentence on the immigration charge is 20 years.

“If the State of California will not seek the full measure of justice against this individual, the @TheJusticeDept will,” Bilal Ali “Bill” Essayli, the U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, said on X.

Meanwhile, Varfolomeev clings to the fond memories of his daughter, who was a skilled ballerina studying chemistry at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills.

She had known Nicholay, who was also originally from the Bay Area and later relocated to Huntington Beach, since childhood. The pair had a long-distance relationship, Varfolomeev said.

On the day of the fatal crash, Nicholay had given Anya a tour of Pepperdine University, where he was enrolled. Varfolomeev said his daughter was considering transferring to the school.

Varfolomeev recalled that he was awakened about 3 a.m. on Nov. 14, 2021, by police who informed him that his daughter had been killed and asked him to provide dental records so that her remains could be identified.

“It was just like a horror movie from Hollywood,” he said.

Varfolomeev believes Ortega-Anguiano has played the legal system to his advantage. “He is a career criminal and knows the prison system in and out,” said Varfolomeev, who has written letters to Newsom along with state and federal lawmakers protesting Ortega-Anguiano’s pending release. “He has used everybody, including the judge, the victims, and the District Attorney.”

Pavel Osokin, who is Nicholay’s father, could not be reached immediately for comment. However, he told Fox News that Ortega-Anguiano should be quickly deported.

“Three years for killing two kids! It’s confusing to me,” he said. “Why you give them 10 if they’re gonna spend five, and then three? Give them three in the beginning, at least we know what to expect. It’s sort of spitting in my face.”

​ Orange County Register 

Newport Beach opens its first all-accessible playground

• April 24, 2025

A 12-foot super tower, a four-person wheelchair-accessible play structure and a weesaw are some of the new amenities found in Newport Beach’s first fully accessible park for children of all abilities.

On Wednesday, April 23, Newport Beach city officials, residents and dozens of children turned out for a ribbon-cutting celebrating the refurbishment and upgrades at San Miguel Park. The 5,500-square-foot playground has more than 20 accessible, ground-level play features, elevated components reachable by transfer platforms and ADA-compliant pathways.

The upgrades to the park are partly due to Alexis Portillo, a 17-year-old Corona Del Mar High student, who in 2019 asked the City Council to consider putting an ADA swing at Coastal Peak Park, so her disabled sister, Alanis, could also enjoy the park.

The ask was granted, and it inspired the city to install similar swings at Mariners, Bonita Canyon and Peninsula parks.

A few years later, when the playground at San Miguel Park was due for refurbishment, the City Council approved upgrades to create the first fully accessible playground. The project cost about $900,000; the city using federal and city funds, officials said.

“This is much more than a new playground, it’s a symbol of how a single voice can spark meaningful change,” Mayor Joe Stapleton said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony, acknowledging Portillo’s role in the park’s focus on access for all children. “That thoughtful request led to something even greater: Newport Beach’s first universally accessible playground, right here in San Miguel Park.”

Portillo said she was motivated to advocate for her sister and other children with disabilities because she noticed how difficult it was for the kids to enjoy the typical playground.

“What took the biggest hit on me was seeing her unable to play at the park and swing on the swings like the other children,” she said. “Since the swings were always her favorite, I thought what better way to help her than to go directly to the city and make the change myself. I presented myself and the idea, and pushed through the fear, to surface an issue that has taken a toll on many children with disabilities, including my sister.”

Since the first swing was put in at Coastal Peak Park, Portillo said her sister, now 22,  has enjoyed it many times.

Portillo said the fact that her effort has led to other accessible equipment being put in at other parks in the city is a source of pride and a blessing.

“Being able to stand in front of a group of powerful people and present an issue as well as a solution to help others has always encouraged me to never be afraid or stay quiet when something needs to and can be changed for the better,” she said.

“This whole journey has been a reminder that our greatest strength lies in our compassion and our ability to lift others when they need it most,” she added. “It is important to stand up for yourself, but I have always believed that it is far greater to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, and that is why this whole project is so important.”

​ Orange County Register 

Dodgers’ bullpen game implodes as Cubs complete mini-sweep

• April 24, 2025

CHICAGO — The Chicago Cubs have found a favorable exchange rate.

Travelmates in Tokyo just over a month ago, the Dodgers handled the Cubs fairly easily over there, coming back from Japan with a 2-0 record on their way to the best start ever by a defending World Series champion (8-0).

But the Cubs have found America to be a land of opportunity. They have won four of the five meetings on U.S. soil, including a two-game sweep of the Dodgers at Wrigley Field this week that concluded with a 7-6 win on Wednesday night.

“Yeah, I feel like we caught them when they’re playing some good baseball now,” Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes said. “That’s a pretty good offense. In Tokyo, I think they were still kind of finding their footing. They’ve got some guys who are swinging the bats pretty well now. They beat us twice here and at home too.”

Indeed. The Dodgers held the Cubs to four runs combined in the two games in Tokyo. Since then, the Cubs have scored 38 runs in five games against the Dodgers.

Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong went a combined 1 for 15 in Tokyo. In the five games against the Dodgers since then, Tucker is 7 for 18 and Crow-Armstrong has tormented them offensively – 10 for 22 with four home runs including one Wednesday – and defensively. The duo had three of the Cubs’ five stolen bases Wednesday.

“They are,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked if the Cubs look like a different team since Japan. “It’s a really good defensive team. I think that when we played them in Tokyo, Tucker really was struggling. And Pete Crow-Armstrong has really killed us. So those two guys alone, and they’re just all swinging the bats. They pitch decent.

“But yeah, they’re just a much more confident team, and they’re a good club. We knew that going into the season.”

Going into the season, the Dodgers also thought they had stocked up on the deepest horde of starting pitchers in baseball. But all of those options are not ready yet. So a commitment to keeping Japanese right-handers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki on a one-start-a-week schedule and Blake Snell’s ongoing shoulder issue put the Dodgers in a familiar predicament Wednesday – a bullpen game just 25 games into the season.

Noah Davis and Jack Dreyer were the weak links, combining to allow all seven runs in the fourth and fifth innings as the Cubs completed the sweep of one-run games at Wrigley.

“We’re just not pitching the way we’re capable of,” Roberts said. “I think we’re walking a lot of guys, giving free bases and having to be perfect to get out of jams. The pitch count with a lot of guys is up. And just giving guys opportunities.”

It started well enough with Ben Casparius retiring eight of the nine batters he faced and Anthony Banda keeping the Cubs scoreless into the fourth inning.

By then, Teoscar Hernandez had given the Dodgers a lead with a two-out, two-run single in the third inning off of Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd.

Davis took over for the Dodgers in the fourth inning, well-rested after throwing just one pitch to lose Tuesday’s game in the 10th inning. He stuck around longer in his second appearance for the Dodgers – and did more damage.

Davis gave up a three-run home run to Crow-Armstrong – which does not make him unique among Dodgers pitchers. The former Harvard-Westlake standout has five home runs this season. Four of them have come against the Dodgers.

But Boyd opened the door for the Dodgers in the top of the fifth inning when his errant throw on an easy double play led to three unearned runs – one on a double by Freddie Freeman and two more on a home run by Hernandez.

That put the Dodgers back in the lead, 5-3. They handed it to Dreyer for the fifth inning.

Added to the 40-man roster for the first time last fall, Dreyer made the team out of spring training with injuries to Evan Phillips and Michael Kopech having made room in the bullpen mix. He became a reliable piece, holding hitters to a .070 average (3 for 43) while striking out 17 in his first 13⅔ major-league innings.

That bubble burst at Wrigley Field.

Dreyer walked the bases loaded, gave up a two-run single to Dansby Swanson, a sacrifice fly to Nico Hoerner and an RBI single to that guy – Crow-Armstrong.

“At the end of the day you have to go out there and compete with what you have that day. I wasn’t in the zone enough. Put some guys on to beat myself. That can’t happen,” Dreyer said.

“At the end of the day you have to be in-zone with what you have that day. I didn’t have my best stuff, but no excuse. Just have to compete.”

Andy Pages made it a one-run game with a solo home run in the sixth inning, but the Dodgers offered little resistance from there. Barnes was picked off to keep the three-run fifth inning from being bigger.

Shohei Ohtani had a soft single in the third inning, his first hit since returning from paternity leave, but is 1 for 12 since rejoining the team. He came up with the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position in the sixth inning and popped out.

“He had a fastball to hit and just got too big with the swing. Where all you need is a base hit right there,” Roberts said. “I think a little bit this series, and even that last game in Texas when he came back, there was a little over-aggressiveness. The swing is a little bit longer than it typically is.

“I don’t know if he’s trying to do something, trying too hard. There’s a couple walks in there. But there’s other times where he’s getting himself out instead of taking a walk if given to him.”

​ Orange County Register 

Inglewood revives dream of a people mover connecting Metro to SoFi Stadium

• April 24, 2025

Inglewood is reviving a proposal to build an automated people mover to connect Metro riders and other visitors to SoFi Stadium, the Intuit Dome and its entertainment venues.

The City Council on Tuesday approved a $34 million contract with Elevate Inglewood Partners to reassess the scope of the “Inglewood Transit Connector” project, including the number of stations needed and the technology that will be used. The revived ITC is now proposed to develop in multiple phases, with the first focusing on establishing more parking and shuttle services that will use dedicated bus lanes to connect visitors to the venues during the 2028 Olympics.

“With the world watching us as we prepare to host the Olympics, we’re also looking inward — listening to our community and taking strategic steps to deliver on what matters most to the people who live and work here,” Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. said in a statement. “This updated and phased approach to the ITC is our response to what we’ve heard: a desire for traffic relief and improved quality of life, connected and walkable neighborhoods, and a revitalized downtown reflecting Inglewood’s existing vibrant culture.”

The project will start with a revitalization of Market Street in Inglewood’s downtown with “improved storefront and tenant-friendly improvements” and several “mobility hubs with convenient access from the Metro K and C lines,” according to the city’s announcement. The city plans to use smart traffic signal sychronization, upgraded sidewalks and bus-only lanes to reduce congestion in the near future and will avoid construction disruptions on Prairie Avenue before and during the Olympics.

The proposed first phase will “preserve the option for a high-capacity automated people mover designed to serve the long-term growth of the City” following the Olympics.

An earlier version of the project, estimated to cost more than $2 billion, died last year after it failing to secure the necessary funding.

The new proposal for the ITC will reduce the number of businesses needing to relocate to make space for the people mover’s stations and tracks from 44 to 23, according to the city. Each impacted business will receive “robust relocation support, supplemental grants and promotional assistance,” officials pledged.

The revised proposal imagines at least two “mobility hubs” — one at Market Street and Florence Avenue and the other at Hillcrest Boulevard and La Brea Avenue — with above-grade parking and a bus rotary where visitors can hitch a ride to SoFi, Intuit and other venues on event days.

Inglewood previously hoped to get the people mover in place before the 2028 Olympics, but rising costs and funding snags dragged the project to a halt last year. The 1.6-mile transit system was first pitched in 2019 at a cost of $600 million.

The project faced some powerful opposition last time.

U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, once a supporter, came out against the project last year and pushed to have $200 million in funding earmarked for the project excised from the federal budget. Waters argued the project would displace longtime businesses and did not provide enough benefits to residents to justify the price tag.

She instead advocated for shuttle buses that could “accomplish the same goal at a fraction of the cost.”

Waters did not respond to a request to comment about the revived project.

The final nail in the coffin for the previous iteration of the ITC came in October, when the South Bay Cities Council of Governments rejected a request for $493 million necessary to secure another $1 billion in federal grants.

Inglewood now will have to work out new funding as construction costs continue to rise in California.

The city’s announcement states the newly proposed multiphased approach to the project already has the support of the California State Transportation Agency, L.A. Metro and Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, D-Inglewood.

​ Orange County Register 

Orange County scores and player stats for Wednesday, April 23

• April 24, 2025

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Scores and stats from Orange County games on Wednesday, April 23

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WEDNESDAY’S SCORES

BASEBALL

TRINITY LEAGUE

Santa Margarita 5, JSerra 1 (9 innings)

SM: Bauer (W, 8IP, 7H, R, 5K), Gravely IV 2-5, 3B, 3RBI, Finnegan 2-5, 2B, 3B.

JS: Graham (6.2IP, 9H, R, 3K) Bowen 2-4, HR, RBI, D’Arcy 1-5, 2B

Other scores

St. John Bosco 2, Mater Dei 1

SOUTH COAST LEAGUE

Dana Hills 9, Aliso Niguel 8

AN: Flemming 3H, RBI, 2RS, SB, Etnire, 2B, 2RBI.

DH: See 2H, Daly 2RBI, Bateson 2H, 2B, 2RBI

Note: See had the game-winning RBI for Dana Hills

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

Irvine 4, Sage Hill 0

Laguna Beach 8, Portola 0

SUNSET LEAGUE

Edison 3, Corona del Mar 1

Ed: Gonzalez (W, CG), Johnson 3-run HR

Other scores

Fountain Valley 5, Marina 2

Newport Harbor 5, Huntington Beach 2

CRESTVIEW LEAGUE

Foothill 4, El Modena 1

Foot: Green walk off 3-run HR in the 10th inning.

El Dorado 4, Cypress 0

ED: Steenburgen (W, CG), Gonzalez 1-3 HR 2 RBI

NONLEAGUE

Segerstrom 6, Estancia 5

Est: Silva (LP, 4IP, 6R, 5ER, 6K, K), Atkinson 4-4, 2B, RBI, R, Sweeney 2-3, 2RBI, 2B, R, McCrea 1-3, 2B, R

SOFTBALL

COAST LEAGUE

Santiago 15, Western 0

Anaheim 10, Savanna 1

ORANGE LEAGUE

Century 19, Bolsa Grande 9

GROVE LEAGUE

Santa Ana Valley 11, Loara 4

Orange 17, Estancia 0

EMPIRE LEAGUE

Garden Grove 10, Ocean View 0

Kennedy 6, Segerstrom 3

ORANGE COAST LEAGUE

Tustin 9, Costa Mesa 8

GOLDEN WEST LEAGUE

Valencia 7, Katella 4

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

Irvine 12, University 8

Calvary Chapel 20, Laguna Hills 6

NONLEAGUE

Santa Margarita 1, Dana Hills 0

BOYS TENNIS

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

University 18, Laguna Beach 0

NONLEAGUE

St. Margaret’s 15, Mission Viejo 3

Western 18, Burbank 0

BOYS VOLEYBALL

COAST LEAGUE

Anaheim def. Santiago, 25-13, 25-17, 30-28

Rancho Alamitos def. Santa Ana Valley, 25-20, 25-21, 22-25, 25-22

EMPIRE LEAGUE

Calvary Chapel def. Tustin, 25-12, 25-17, 25-7

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

St. Margaret’s def. Laguna Beach, 25-12, 25-11, 25-17

​ Orange County Register