Swanson: Murrieta homeboy Rickie Fowler leading the U.S. Open? What we always expected

• June 18, 2023

LOS ANGELES – I’ve been following the guy with a share of the lead at the U.S. Open for a long time, and let me tell you: He was always a big deal.

I covered golf at the Riverside Press-Enterprise back in the mid-2000s, which is to say: I was on the Rickie Fowler beat. He was the headliner. The best player and brightest star — even before he was rocking all that bright orange Oklahoma State-inspired Puma attire.

It’s impossible to overstate how much he meant to golf in the Inland Empire, where I know folks will be tuned in to see Fowler’s charge toward a possible U.S. Open title Sunday. After shooting a three-birdie, three-bogey even-par 70 Saturday, the 34-year-old heads into the fourth and final round at L.A. Country Club tied for the lead with Wyndham Clark at 10-under par. Rory McIlroy is a shot behind them.

“We always had good players, but he was the guy who took it to the next level,” said Joe Skovron, another Murrieta product who was Fowler’s caddie until last year. “He was a star on the national level and who kept doing it once he turned pro.”

But first Fowler was a quiet, driven kid whose coach Barry McDonnell used to call him “Little Hawk.” Because, Skovron said, “he’d get that look in his eyes when he had it going.”

Fowler’s game was downright loquacious, but in conversation, no, he wasn’t the most insightful golfer I covered. That was Brendan Steele, because I never had a conversation with the future PGA Tour player from Idyllwild that didn’t teach me something about the game.

Wasn’t the wittiest. That was Sydnee Michaels; never did an interview with the Murrieta golfer who’d spend a decade on the LPGA Tour that didn’t crack me up.

And, honestly, in the years since I stopped covering golf regularly, I think most often of Erica Blasberg, the LPGA golfer from Corona. She died by suicide in 2010.

Like Fowler, she wasn’t ever especially forthcoming, but she was, as Fowler was as a young golfing star, helpful, accommodating. And she also was marketable, someone with game and the ability to make golf look cool.

She was cool. And so was he.

Is he: “His reaction to everything is as cool as he was when he was a younger,” said Riverside’s Ed Holmes, a Southern California PGA board member and regional affairs director with the USGA who, like every golf fan in the Inland Empire, has kept up with Fowler.

See Fowler’s post-round demeanor Saturday: Even after closing with a bogey, he shrugged, smiled, said “tomorrow is when the tournament starts,” and then stepped out and signed autographs for anyone who asked.

That cool factor has always been a big part of Fowler’s appeal. He wasn’t a country club snob; rather a member of a multi-racial Murrieta family, a down-to-earth motorcycle-riding crew who were supportive but never pushy. At one of his first pro events, fans wore matching shirts that read: “Rickie is my homeboy” – a sentiment recalled a few times by members of his gallery Saturday.

He always seemed so at ease, so in his element on the golf course – even with the weight of the golf world, and so many heavy, heady expectations.

And we all – he and us – expected plenty.

How could we not? He’d been the high school freshman shooting 62 to win the CIF-SCGA High School championship. Skovron: “I was playing mini-tours and I called the shop and I had to ask three times, ‘No, what’d Rick shoot?’ Because it was so unheard of.”

He was named the SCGA Player of the Year at 16. He topped the world amateur ranking for 36 weeks. Twice qualified for the U.S. Open as an amateur, and made the cut once.

And even before any of that, he’d been the little boy dressing up as Fred Couples for Halloween. The 4-year-old nagging Valerie Skovron, who helped run the Valley Junior Golf Association, to let him play before he turned 5.

“He looked at me and he said, ‘I promise I will be good,’” she told me in 2009, as Fowler was embarking on his professional career. “From Day 1, he was always just so focused. … He was quiet and he got along with all the other kids, but he was out there to do something that the others hadn’t done.”

Josh Anderson, Fowler’s high school teammate, recalls the prodigy shooting in the 40s through nine holes only once in their Murrieta Valley tenure.

“I remember because he cried profusely after it,” Anderson texted Saturday from Scotland, where he’s hoping to qualify for the British Open. “At the time, we all thought he was being childish or acting like a kid. But looking back it shows how much desire and love for the game he has.

“People have always seemed to question that about him and I’ve always defended him because of that moment. Even just looking back on that, it shows just how much golf means to him.”

So, yes, we expected him to be leading the U.S. Open.

Just we expected it sooner.

But golf? Golf makes even its most devoted disciples earn it.

And since he beat out McIlroy for the PGA Tour’s 2010 Rookie of the Year, notched top-five finishes in all four majors in 2014 and finished second at the 2018 Masters, Fowler has been in a dogfight with the damn game.

He hasn’t won since the 2019 Waste Management Phoenix Open. He plummeted from No. 4 in 2016 to No. 185 in the Official World Golf Rankings last fall. And no, he has not won a major.

“There’s definitely been some love-hate at times,” Fowler acknowledged in January, when we talked after he played himself into contention at the Farmers Insurance Open on Torrey Pines’ South Course, an early sign that some alterations could pay off.

He went with a different caddie – Ricky Romano, another former Murrieta Valley High standout, is on his bag now – and reunited with Butch Harmon, the famed golf instructor who told Golfweek: “I think he’ll win this year.”

And, finally, Fowler, now dad to Maya, is where we all knew he’d end up when he was a kid.

Making a run at major success. Making history. His 18 birdies in the first two rounds were the most over any two-round span in a major over the past 30 years, per ESPN. And his 130 total in the first two days equaled Martin Kaymer’s record at the 2014 U.S. Open.

“I love that he’s making all these birdies and playing Rickie Fowler golf,” said Joe Skovron, now a caddie for Tom Kim. They happened to be on the 10th tee box in the first round Thursday, with a view of Fowler on No. 9, finishing off his U.S. Open-record 8-under 62.

“Special,” Skovron called it. “Getting to see everything he’s been through in the past three years and turning it around the last seven, eight months, it’s been great to see. There’s no one out there who deserves a major more than him.

“We’re definitely all pulling for him.”

Digging through the crates this morning. It was tough to write a golf notebook without mentioning the dude.

And this, from the morning of his pro debut in 2009: “Murrieta’s Fowler shows drive to become the best.”

Through two rounds at the U.S. Open, he is. pic.twitter.com/derIfafCX4

— Mirjam Swanson (@MirjamSwanson) June 17, 2023

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Dodgers’ Chris Taylor receives cortisone injection for knee injury

• June 18, 2023

LOS ANGELES – This might sound familiar.

Days after waiting to put Max Muncy on the Injured List, hoping he would recover quickly enough to make it unnecessary – only to put him on the IL – the Dodgers are going down that same road with Chris Taylor.

Taylor underwent an MRI on his injured right knee Saturday which revealed “wear and tear” and a bone bruise, according to Taylor.

“It had been bothering me for the last couple weeks or so. Then last night, coming out of the box (on his second-inning ground out) it got worse,” Taylor said. “With an MRI, you never know so I was a little relieved (that it was a bone bruise and not ligament damage).”

Taylor received a cortisone injection in the injured knee which will make him unavailable to play this weekend. But the Dodgers are not putting him on the Injured List yet, hoping he recovers well enough by Tuesday to play in the series against the Angels.

“I think that knee has been balky for quite some time. When you’re running around over years with time, that cartilage just breaks down,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think last night it came to a little bit of a head. I don’t think it’s longer term. I think it’s something we can manage.”

Utilityman Yonny Hernandez joined the Dodgers Saturday on the taxi squad. He would be activated if Taylor has to go on the IL. Hernandez has hit .265 in 46 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

David Peralta also left Friday’s game with an injury. He injured a hamstring on a play at first base that ended up with him tumbling to the ground. Peralta was out early Saturday afternoon testing his hamstring in the outfield.

“David feels better today. He said he could play today. So if there’s a situation to pinch hit that might be a possibility,” Roberts said, adding that he would avoid using Peralta in the outfield.

“I think I’d like to give him another day as far as running around. But in a big spot to have him hit might be viable.”

URIAS PROGRESS

Left-hander Julio Urias threw an “up-down” bullpen session Saturday afternoon, simulating an inning break and throwing 40 pitches in all.

“(Urias) used his entire pitch mix and was really good,” Roberts said.

The expectation now is that Urias will throw to hitters in a simulated-game setting in the next few days and could go on a minor-league injury-rehabilitation assignment shortly after that. Roberts said Urias could join Class-A Rancho Cucamonga for that. It would be the left-hander’s first game action since injuring his left hamstring on May 18.

PITCHING PLANS

Right-hander Michael Grove was officially optioned to the minor leagues in order to clear a roster spot for Emmet Sheehan to start Friday. But Grove has not left the Dodgers and went through his usual workout Saturday afternoon at Dodger Stadium, throwing in the outfield.

“He’s going to hang around. We’re going to see what we have to do,” Roberts said. “Our pitching is in flux right now so Michael is in a holding pattern.”

The Dodgers have off days Monday and Thursday this week but they could decide to bring Grove back in order to avoid pitching Sheehan on four days’ rest Wednesday in Anaheim. In order to recall Grove that quickly, it would have to be paired with an IL move for another pitcher. Roberts said they are monitoring a number of pitchers in the bullpen who have been used heavily recently.

ALSO

After covering 11 innings in the previous two games, the Dodgers’ bullpen was in need of reinforcement Saturday so 6-foot-8 left-hander Bryan Hudson was promoted from Triple-A. Right-hander Tayler Scott was designated for assignment.

Hudson was 4-0 with a 2.17 ERA in 25 appearances for OKC and struck out 51 in 29 innings.

UP  NEXT

Giants (RHP Logan Webb, 5-6, 3.15 ERA) at Dodgers (RHP Tony Gonsolin, 4-1, 1.93 ERA), Sunday, 1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, MLB Network, AM 570

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Angel City wins first game under coach Becki Tweed

• June 18, 2023

SAN DIEGO — In interim head coach Becki Tweed’s first match of the season, Angel City Football Club defeated San Diego Wave FC 2-1 on Saturday on the road. It was the team’s first match win since May 7.

Defender M.A. Vignola scored the game-winning goal in the 88th minute to give Angel City the win.

Angel City recorded 13 shots with 5 being on goal. Though San Diego had 58.1% of the possessions in the match, Angel City limited the Wave to just 8 total shots.

“It’s a great moment and something I need to be really present in and process,” Tweed said. “We needed this as a group, we needed to come together and we needed these 3 points more than anything.”

San Diego came into Saturday’s match as the No. 1 team in the league with 20 points and a record of 6-3-2.

Angel City made a coaching change earlier this week, firing previous head coach Freya Coombe on Thursday and promoting Tweed to interim head coach.

The club struggled to find a clean shot in the first half, recording just 2 total shots and none on goal.

Early in the second half, San Diego defensive midfielder Kristen McNabb scored on a left-footed shot from just outside the penalty box to put Wave FC up 1-0 in the 57th minute.

Angel City responded when Paige Nielsen scored her first goal of the season on an assist from Clarisse Le Bihan in the 69th minute.

In the 88th minute, Vignola found a lane near the left side of the box and fired a shot that went under San Diego goalie Kailen Sheridan’s right arm and into the left corner of the goal.

Vignola said was relieved when the shot went in.

“(All I was thinking was) low and hard, better finish this,” Vignola said. “I saw it in the back of the net and I was like ‘Oh yeah it was good.’ ”

Nielsen said winning this game was important because of the rivalry with San Diego as well as where Angel City is in the standings compared to San Diego Wave FC.

“We needed that one. We knew the momentum it would take our entire team to grind a game out and that’s what we did today,” Nielsen said. “It was a team performance. We did the dirty things right.”

Angel City will play its next two games at home, starting with the Houston Dash on June 25. They will face San Diego again on June 28 as a part of the UKG NSW Challenge Cup.

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Angels blow six-run lead in loss to Royals

• June 18, 2023

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Angels’ bullpen had arguably been the single biggest reason for the team’s resurgence this month.

It may have been too much of a good thing.

A corps of heavily-worked Angels relievers blew a six-run lead in the seventh and a one-run lead in the ninth in a gut-wrenching 10-9 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Saturday afternoon.

The meltdown spoiled a day that included Shohei Ohtani’s major league-leading 23rd homer, two Brandon Drury homers and an encouraging game from slumping Mike Trout.

All signs seemed to be pointing to yet another victory for a team that won 10 of its previous 12, largely on the strength of a bullpen that had a major-league best 1.43 ERA in that span.

“They’ve been unreal,” Manager Phil Nevin said. “There’s a reason why we put ourselves in the position we’re in as far as the way the last two, three weeks have gone. I’ve asked a lot out of them. They’ve been used a lot. You’ve got throw strikes late in the game. They didn’t do that today.”

Rookies Kolton Ingram and José Soriano combined for four walks and a hit batter, setting the stage for Chris Devenski to be on the mound when the lead disappeared in the eighth and the victory disappeared in the ninth.

Devenski had a two-run lead when he entered in the eighth and then the Angels gave him another one-run lead when he came back for the ninth.

Closer Carlos Estévez was not available because Nevin said he decided after his rough outing on Thursday that he needed two straight days off.

“He’s just been used a ton,” Nevin said. “For us to get where we want to be, I need Carlos Estévez and I need him healthy.”

Devenski did not pitch on Friday, but he had worked three of the previous five days.

“I don’t believe in fatigue,” Devenski said. “I just didn’t get the job done. I let my team down so I gotta bounce back and go back out there tomorrow and work hard.”

In the ninth, Devenski gave up a leadoff bloop single to Edward Olivares. Pinch-runner Dairon Blanco then stole second and took third when catcher Chad Wallach’s throw went into center field.

Blanco scored on a single by Maikel Garcia. He then stole second and went to third on a bunt, and Samad Taylor knocked in the winning run with a fly ball that dropped on the warning track, ending the Royals’ 10-game losing streak at the Angels’ expense.

“I just didn’t get the job done,” Devenski said. “It’s gonna eat at me a little bit, but I’ll go back out there and prove what I got.”

The nightmare began for the bullpen when Ingram entered for his major league debut with a seemingly comfortable 8-2 lead in the seventh.

Ingram retired the first hitter he faced, but then he didn’t retire any of the next four, including two walks. Right-hander Jacob Webb relieved him with the bases loaded and he gave up a double to Bobby Witt Jr. Ingram was charged with three runs.

The Angels still had a three-run lead when Soriano entered in the eighth. Soriano had not allowed a run in any of his first six big league games. Soriano got the first out, but then he walked two straight hitters, hit a batter and gave up a single off the right-field fence.

Devenski, who has been the Angels’ best reliever with runners on base, then gave up a two-run single to Witt, tying the game.

Right fielder Mickey Moniak bailed out Devenski with a diving catch, preserving the tie after eight innings.

That set the stage for Trout to have his biggest moment in weeks.

The Angels’ superstar has been mired in the worst slump of his career, a six-week slide in which he had hit .199 with a .669 OPS. He felt a few recent games this week were encouraging, and on Saturday afternoon he hit two balls at 111 mph or harder, one of them for a double play.

When he came up in the ninth inning, he had a chance to save the Angels after their meltdown.

Andrew Velazquez led off the inning by drawing a walk against Aroldis Chapman, and then he stole second and third. Chapman pitched around Ohtani to bring up Trout, whose slump has been marked by his difficulty hitting high velocity.

Chapman’s first two pitches were 100.3 mph and 101.3 mph. Trout took one for a ball and swung through one. The third was 99.6 mph and Trout yanked it past the drawn-in infield for an RBI single.

“I felt good,” Trout said. “It’s been a slow process, a little slower than I want it to be, but it’s coming along. I feel a lot better up there the last couple days. It’s a step in the right direction.”

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Thousands celebrate earning degrees from UCI

• June 18, 2023

UC Irvine’s Bren Center has been filled with joyous graduates and proud families all weekend as more than 8,200 students celebrate earning degrees.

The commencement ceremonies hosted by UCI’s various schools started Friday and continue through Tuesday – back in May, the schools of Law and Medicine hosted their ceremonies.

Related: Check out all of our local graduation coverage.

This academic year, 8,966 bachelor’s degrees were completed – 46% by the first in their family to earn a college degree – and 1,815 master’s degrees. There are 100 new medical doctors and 393 new Ph.D. holders; 167 graduates now have law degrees.

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Cover girl Martha Stewart proves it’s never too late

• June 18, 2023

So incredibly motivating to see Martha Stewart at 81 make the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

I, too, was contacted to do a two-page spread. However, it was just one photo of me in a bikini, but it took two pages.

I refused.

I have nothing against Martha. She looks fantastic. It is not even jealousy, as you may think.

I, too, grow my own coconuts, making my daily pina coladas at the bar I built by hand, decorated with tiles created and designed in my own kiln.

But she eats healthy meals, cutting out bread and pasta. I’d rather cut out my heart than to eliminate those staples.

Thus, so that you are not disappointed, do not look for me to be a cover girl except in the police gazette if I decide to rob a bank. (It is so tempting with all the leftover masks I own.)

True, inside me lives a skinny gal trying to get out. Usually I shut her up with a bowl of spaghetti or a chunk of pumpernickel. Sometimes I don’t eat it but stuff my ears instead because my inner hungry child sure makes a lot of noise.

Let’s face it: I have never, ever met a bowl of pasta I did not like. And I am very friendly to many other foods. It is my nature to be accommodating.

But I must declare I overdo it on holidays – starting at Thanksgiving and ending at Easter/Passover /Ramadan, as I am an “equal eat on any holiday” activist. Plus special occasions, sporadically, are doing me in.

On Earth Day, I celebrated many international delicacies found on Earth and delivered by Amazon Fresh, Instacart and Uber Eats.

Everyone I know is anxious to mingle since the pandemic lockdown is over. I have to pay the consequences. Enough! Five parties, four restaurants, and a wedding. Please, no more food or toasts.

Remember when I thought I heard applause while walking, then learned it was my thighs hitting together?

Now it’s more like a crowd of screaming rock music fans giving a standing ovation to my jiggles and hanging participles.

Though frankly, I read in The New York Times that being overweight is not bad. They claim the Body Mass Index (BMI) may not be an accurate measure of health. Whew!

As long as I still fit into my earring from high school I’m OK.

Hmm. Can Martha do that?

Humor columnist and Laguna Woods Village resident Jan Marshall is the author of humor books for grownups, including “Dancin Schmancin With the Scars.” She also has written aspirational books for children – “The Toothbrush Who Tried to Run Away,” and “The Littlest Hero” and her latest, “Give the Kid a Hand.”  She’s the founder of the International Humor and Healing Institute in 1986. She’s a clinical hypnotherapist, a TV host and media humorist, and – above all – a proud great-grandmother. Contact her at [email protected].

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Servite football coach Chris Reinert hires coordinators

• June 17, 2023

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First-year Servite football coach Chris Reinert turned to the college ranks to find his offensive and defensive coordinators.

The Friars have hired former Saginaw Valley State assistant coach Cheyne Lacanaria as offensive coordinator and former University of Chicago assistant Jon Davidson as defensive coordinator, Reinert said.

Reinert, a graduate of Servite, arrived from the college ranks in December to replace Troy Thomas. Reinert had served as the special teams coach at the University of Colorado.

Reinert’s staff also includes the return of Frank Kalil as an assistant. Kalil will team with former Los Alamitos, UCLA and NFL lineman Alex Redmond to coach the offensive line.

Kalil’s sons Matt and Ryan Kalil were standout linemen at Servite who went on to play at USC and in the NFL.

Former Golden West College assistant Savea Harrington will coach the defensive line.

Denny Flanagan (Edison) will coach Servite’s freshman team.

The Friars are coming off a 1-9 season, the worst in school history.

Thomas and Servite “parted ways” after the campaign, ending his second tenure at the school after five seasons. In 2021, the Friars finished as the CIF-SS Division 1 runner-up to Mater Dei.

Servite opens the upcoming season by playing host to Silverado on Aug. 18 at Cerritos College.

Please send football news to Dan Albano at [email protected] or @ocvarsityguy

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Angels’ Jared Walsh still searching for swing after late start to his season

• June 17, 2023

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jared Walsh fought a battle to just get back onto the field, and now he’s fighting to stay.

The Angels first baseman missed two months dealing with neurological issues and insomnia that impacted his quality of life to the point that he sought help from a special clinic in Utah.

Those issues have improved enough for him to play, but still aren’t 100% behind him.

“It seems to be coming along,” Walsh said. “Trying to stay patient.”

In the meantime, the time spent away from the game has clearly had an impact on his performance. Walsh is hitting .111 with a .418 OPS in 24 games since he’s been back. He has struck out in 24 of his 74 plate appearances. His 11 walks represent the only bright spot in his numbers.

“I think taking two months off, without doing a ton of baseball stuff, and trying to hit these guys on a nightly basis has been tough,” Walsh said on Saturday, drenched in sweat from a session in the batting cage. “Don’t really have many pretty stats to look at up on the scoreboard. It feels like kind of starting over.”

Walsh said it’s been difficult to remain confident, but he’s trying to be as upbeat as possible, especially while the team has been winning.

“In terms of the controllables, I think I’ve done a good job,” Walsh said. “I’m still working hard. I think I’m being a good teammate. Bringing a good attitude. But there’s no question when your batting average is .110, looking at the scoreboard is difficult. I just try to be real conscious of what information I take in. I understand I haven’t lived up to my potential and there’s expectations and I haven’t met those yet. But it is what it is. I’ve just got to go about my business the right way and hope things turn soon.”

Manager Phil Nevin said the Angels will continue to give Walsh opportunities to get righted. They no longer play him against all right-handers, as was the plan initially. He was not in the lineup for Saturday’s game against a right-hander.

“He’s scuffling,” Nevin said. “There are some timing issues. When you take that much time away from the game at this point in the season, it gets tough, but he’s gonna get a chance. We still think highly of him. To get him going would be great for this group.”

The Angels have no easy solutions with Walsh at this point.

He is the best defensive first baseman on the team. His absence was felt throughout the infield early in the season. Gio Urshela is probably the second best first baseman, but now he’s out for an extended period with a broken pelvis.

If the Angels send Walsh to Triple-A, they’ll have to rely on Brandon Drury at first base, and that’s not his best position.

This weekend the Angels began trying Hunter Renfroe and Taylor Ward at first in pregame workouts, although they view Renfroe as a much more viable alternative there. That would also help alleviate the outfield logjam created by Mickey Moniak’s emergence.

Trey Cabbage, who is naturally an outfielder, has been playing some first base at Triple-A, and he’s hitting .293 with a .969 OPS. The Angels have concerns about Cabbage’s defense at first, as well as his ability to hit major league fastballs.

RENDON UPDATE

Anthony Rendon’s “day to day” wrist injury is going to last at least four days, with the injured list still a possibility if he can’t play on Tuesday.

Rendon was hit in the left wrist by a pitch on Thursday. Although X-rays showed no break, the joint is still swollen.

Nevin said they had hoped Rendon could play by Sunday, but he acknowledged on Saturday that “that might be a stretch.” The Angels are off on Monday, and then have two games against the Dodgers, followed by another off day.

“Tuesday is not out of the realm,” Nevin said. “If we get past that point, (the injured list) is probably something we have to discuss.”

UP NEXT

Angels (LHP Tyler Anderson, 3-1, 5.80) vs. Royals (RHP Zack Greinke, 1-6, 4.65), Saturday, 1:10 p.m., Kauffman Stadium, Bally Sports West,  830 AM.

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