Dodgers hit 2 home runs, catch a few breaks to beat Cardinals

• April 29, 2023

LOS ANGELES — The Roman philosopher Seneca is said to have defined luck as “what happens what preparation meets opportunity.”

Jason Heyward certainly had prepared to face St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jack Flaherty before Friday’s game at Dodger Stadium. The two had seen each other plenty, with Heyward collecting two hits in 18 at-bats. And in the third inning he had an opportunity, with Max Muncy on second base and a bat in his hands.

Heyward didn’t get all of a two-strike curveball from Flaherty when he poked a dribbler inside the third base line, yet no fielders were close enough to stop it with a broom. The ball wound up in left field, Muncy scored easily from second base, and the Dodgers had the kind of lucky break that has eluded them so often in 2023.

The Dodgers caught a few breaks en route to a 7-3 victory over the Cardinals before an announced crowd of 48,138 at Dodger Stadium. The win snapped a two-game losing streak and kicked off a six-game homestand by lifting the Dodgers (14-13) back above .500.

Heyward also made a sliding catch in right field and finished 2 for 2 with two RBIs against Flaherty (2-3).

“(The double) was one of those times that it worked out and got by (Nolan) Arenado somehow,” Heyward said. “That’s what it takes sometimes.”

His billiard shot into left field was not even his most fortunate stroke Friday. In the fifth inning, Heyward flew out to deep right field for the apparent second out of the inning. But catcher Willson Contreras’ mitt impeded the trajectory of Heyward’s bat – a catcher’s interference error – and the bases were suddenly loaded for James Outman.

Outman, who had struck out in seven consecutive at-bats, was hit in the foot with a curveball, driving in the Dodgers’ fifth run.

The Dodgers scored in more traditional fashions too. Mookie Betts led off the game with a homer for the 38th time in his career, the 10th-most in major league history. Miguel Vargas hit a two-run home run, his first of the season, in the seventh inning.

The offensive outburst was more than enough for Dodgers starter Dustin May. After enduring a 26-pitch first inning, May (3-1) emerged victorious for the second time in his last two starts.

The Cardinals tallied two walks, a double, a stolen base, a sacrifice fly, and scored on a wild pitch to take a 2-0 lead before the Dodgers came to bat.

“I was comfortable the whole night,” May said. “I just wasn’t locating anything (in the first inning), spraying everything around, then settled in.”

Betts halved the Dodgers’ deficit with his fourth home run of the season. Later in the first inning, Heyward smoked an RBI single into right field to score another run, helped in part by an error by Lars Nootbaar.

May’s four walks in five innings contributed to his bloated total of 104 pitches, a career high. The right-hander also allowed only three hits and struck out four.

“I would definitely like to get more than five (innings) in a game, but at that point in time I had wasted a lot of throws, thrown a lot of balls,” May said. “It was good to get through five and help the guys out in the ’pen.”

The Dodgers needed five relievers – Caleb Ferguson, Victor Gonzalez, Brusdar Graterol, Shelby Miller and Alex Vesia – to navigate umpire Nate Tomlinson’s stingy strike zone. They combined to issue three walks over the final four innings, but they did not allow a run until St. Louis rallied for one against Vesia in the bottom of the ninth.

After spending the last two weeks on the injured list with a concussion, Will Smith was activated before the game and went 1 for 5 as the Dodgers’ designated hitter.

In his return from paternity leave, Muncy went 1 for 2 with two walks and an RBI double – the key hit in the Dodgers’ third-inning rally that gave them the lead for good.

Graterol, also back from the paternity list, got Paul Goldschmidt to pop out to end the seventh inning on the only pitch he threw.

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​ Orange County Register 

If you don’t like San Francisco, that’s fine, but don’t spread tall tales about it

• April 29, 2023

SACRAMENTO – To hear conservatives describe the state of affairs in San Francisco, you’d think the City by the Bay is a harrowing dystopia along the lines of San Salvador, Juarez, St. Louis or Detroit. I can’t tell you how many people have warned me against spending time there – or talked about the “poop app” that helps visitors avoid human feces on the sidewalks.

“San Francisco is sunk in a rancid drug-ravaged pit of human misery and city leaders have no idea how to pull themselves out of it,” wrote David Marcus in his Fox News column last year. He knows why: “(B)ecause the progressive lunatics running the city believe that every criminal is a victim.”

This week, I read a Twitter debate about which American city would essentially collapse under the weight of its own lunacy. Predictably, San Francisco topped the list. “Look what’s happened to San Francisco,” Donald Trump said during a 2020 campaign stop in Bakersfield. “It’s worse than a slum, there’s no slum like that.”

I suspect that many of the San Francisco doom-tellers haven’t been there, but even many who have join the chorus. Michael Shellenberger’s well-known book is called “San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities.” He makes some solid points – progressives do wreck everything they touch – but his title promotes the “nightmare” theme.

I travel to San Francisco regularly and have visited almost every corner of the city. I spent most of last week there for a wedding on Nob Hill and traipsed around several neighborhoods: Chinatown, North Beach, Alamo Square and South of Market (SoMa). Not only did I live to tell about it, but left with warm fuzzies even after wandering its streets late at night.

San Francisco remains (arguably) the most beautiful city in the country. Its parks are lovely and mostly orderly and clean. On Sunday, we played miniature golf and frequented food trucks, along with hundreds of young families. People were friendly and the restaurants and nightlife were fabulous. Most neighborhoods are surprisingly quiet and safe.

The city’s critics aren’t entirely wrong, of course. Locals warned us not to leave anything in our cars given surging property crimes. The Tenderloin – the notoriously downtrodden downtown neighborhood – is an open sewer of drug dealing and panhandling, just as critics say. Homeless tents line a portion of Market Street near the main shopping drag. But is it fair to define an entire city that way?

Simply put, conservatives bash San Francisco because of the city’s progressive politics, just as liberals portray Republican states such as Texas as redoubts of sexism and racism. For instance, California lawmakers have banned official travel to 22 supposedly backward states. In both cases, politically minded people embrace stupid narratives that confirm their biases.

The San Francisco Chronicle looked at San Francisco’s crime data in 2022 and found that crime rates soared after lockdowns temporarily turned the city into a ghost town, but overall rates are in a downward trend over five years. The murder rate increased since the end of COVID, but the city’s murder rate is “towards the bottom for major cities,” Police Chief Bill Scott told a local CNN affiliate.

It’s a mixed bag, but my sense is the city government’s lackadaisical approach toward lower-level crime and homelessness has created a sense of civic disorder. Many property crimes aren’t reported, so the crime problem is deeper than the data suggest. Residents understandably are feeling jittery about their overall safety.

So after a high-profile murder – such as when tech entrepreneur Bill Lee was murdered this month  on a downtown street – it feeds the narrative of a terribly dangerous city, even if the murder might not have been a random attack. None of my caveats are meant to downplay the seriousness of any crime, but to put the matter in perspective.

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I lived in Washington, D.C., in the 1970s and 1980s – when the murder epidemic was so severe that local newspapers published a death toll on the front pages every day. Crime rates have fallen dramatically nationwide since then, but have increased in recent years. Crime and homelessness partly explain why San Francisco has lost so much population, but crime isn’t nearly as bad as those days.

Marcus lives in West Virginia, which has endured an appalling opioid overdose crisis. Yet that hardly defines an entire state. Isn’t it better to figure out how to deal with these problems rather than just score partisan political points? My sense in San Francisco’s critics despise the city’s politics, so they jump on every bad event to conform to their narrative.

San Francisco is unlikely to ever become a conservative paradise, but even the politics there is self-correcting. Last year, voters recalled their soft-on-crime district attorney Chesa Boudin. The newly appointed DA has vowed to clean up the streets. If you don’t like San Francisco, that’s fine, but don’t spread tall tales about it.

Steven Greenhut is Western region director at the R Street Institute and a member of the Southern California News Group editorial board. Write to him at [email protected].

​ Orange County Register 

Lakers crush Grizzlies in Game 6, advance to 2nd round

• April 29, 2023

LOS ANGELES — The Lakers handled their business in no uncertain terms Friday night, dispatching the Memphis Grizzlies swiftly and certainly in Game 6 of their first-round playoff series at Crypto.com Arena. It was close for a while, but then the Lakers rocketed away to the second round.

The Lakers’ decisive 125-85 victory was nostalgic in so many ways, not the least of which was the dominating way in which they overwhelmed a talented but ultimately overmatched opponent. The Lakers were seeded seventh and the Grizzlies were seeded second. Upset?

Maybe. Maybe not.

To be sure, LeBron James and Anthony Davis presented problems the short-handed Grizzlies couldn’t solve at various points during the series, and their championship pedigree should not be overlooked in a playoff game with so much at stake. The Grizzlies, young and talented but missing two of their key frontcourt players, were unprepared for what hit them.

James scored 22 points, Davis had 16 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots, and D’Angelo Russell set a playoff career-high with 31 points on 12-for-17 shooting (5 for 9 from 3-point range) as the Lakers led by as many as 40 points. They turned a 59-42 halftime lead into a 100-67 advantage entering the fourth quarter with an electric third.

Santi Aldama led Memphis with 16 points.

It was the Lakers’ first playoff series win on their home court since they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of a second-round series in May 2012. The Lakers won the franchise’s 17th NBA championship in 2020 in the pandemic bubble in Orlando, Fla., beating the Miami Heat with only family members in attendance.

The Lakers advanced Friday to meet the winner of the Golden State Warriors-Sacramento Kings series in the second round. The Kings forced the Warriors to a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday afternoon in Sacramento with a 118-99 victory in Game 6 on Friday night in San Francisco.

The Lakers had wilted in the closing minutes of the third quarter in Game 5 in Memphis, losing to the Grizzlies and setting up what loomed as a must-win Game 6 in Los Angeles. The Lakers needed a win to avoid a Game 7 in FedEx Forum, where the Grizzlies had the best home record in the NBA this season; the Grizzlies needed a win to avoid vacation.

After a few moments of uncertainty Friday, the Lakers found a rhythm that was lacking in their 116-99 loss to the Grizzlies on Wednesday. The Lakers built a 20-point lead late in the second quarter and seemed poised to run away with Game 6 before the teams could even reach halftime.

With a raucous sellout crowd of 18,997 urging them onward and upward, the Lakers held a 59-42 lead by halftime on the strength of 59.5% shooting and a defense that limited the Grizzlies to 32.7% shooting. The Lakers’ best players were their best players.

James had 16 points on 7-for-9 shooting by halftime, and Davis had 11 points and 10 rebounds. What’s more, Davis was at his best when defending the Grizzlies’ big men, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Xavier Tillman Sr. Jackson and Tillman got into foul trouble in the second quarter and were non-factors.

Jackson had the same number of fouls as points (three) and Tillman had twice as many fouls (four) as points (two) by halftime. The Lakers took advantage by scoring 36 of their first 59 points in the paint. The Grizzlies scored only 16 of their 42 points in the paint, relying mostly on perimeter shots.

Eighteen of the Grizzlies’ first-half attempts were from behind the 3-point arc.

Russell got the Lakers pointed in the right direction by scoring 10 of their first 25 points, making five of his first seven shots and helping them to a 25-16 lead with a 3-pointer that forced Memphis to call a timeout with 2:45 left in the first quarter. The Lakers were in control from that point.

Russell hit 3-pointers on consecutive trips early in the third and Jarred Vanderbilt hit a third 3 moments later to extend the Lakers’ lead to 68-45 and force the Grizzlies to take a timeout with 10:21 left in the quarter. The crowd was in a celebratory mood by then, roaring ever louder.

James and Davis have won a title together, but they had done little to remember in front of their home fans before the past two months, when their supporting cast markedly improved at the trade deadline with several additions headlined by Russell. The dynamic duo improved to 5-0 in playoff series in which they both appeared in every game together.

Lakers fans sensed the enormity of the moment and turned out in force, highlighted by the return of the 86-year-old Nicholson to his courtside seats after a nearly two-year absence.

More to come on this story.

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​ Orange County Register 

A look at Orange County’s baseball teams and the CIF-SS playoffs

• April 29, 2023

The CIF Southern Section baseball regular season is finished.

The playoff brackets will be released Monday at 10 a.m.

Teams qualified for the playoffs by earning one of their league’s guaranteed playoff berths. The top two teams, for example, in a four-team league received playoffs berths; the top three teams in five- and six-team leagues, and so on.

(That information and more about the playoffs can be found in the CIF-SS playoff bulletin.)

There are seven divisions in the playoffs, which begin with wild-card round games, if needed, Tuesday and Wednesday.

First-round games are Thursday for Divisions 1, 3, 5 and 7, and Friday for Divisions 2, 4 and 6.

For all divisions, second-round games are May 9, quarterfinals on May 12, semifinals on May 16 and finals on May 19 and 20 at Blair Field in Long Beach.

Here’s a league-by-league look at the automatic qualifiers, potential at-large teams and some notes on each league.

(A team’s overall record and playoff division are in parentheses.)

CRESTVIEW LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Villa Park (18-10, Division 1); 2. El Dorado (16-11, Division 1).

At-large candidates: El Modena (14-12-1, Division 2); Foothill (14-14, Division 1).

Noteworthy: Villa Park’s Zach Brown has a team-high 21 RBIs and on the mound is 5-2, and Brandon Luu has a 1.18 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 53.1 innings. … El Dorado shut out Foothill 4-0 on Thursday to clinch the league’s second and final guaranteed playoff berth. … El Modena and Foothill could be viable at-large candidates if there are enough at-large berths in their divisions to accommodate them.

Villa Park starting pitcher Brandon Luu delivers a pitch against El Dorado in a Crestview League baseball game in San Juan Capistrano on Thursday, March 23, 2023. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

EMPIRE LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Cypress (21-7, Division 1); 2. Pacifica (21-3, Division 1); 3. Crean Lutheran (20-8, Division 4).

At-large candidate: Kennedy (13-12-1, Division 5).

Noteworthy: Cypress and Pacifica tied for the league championship; a coin flip designed Cypress as the league’s No. 1 playoff representative. Pacifica beat Cypress 4-2 on Tuesday, thanks in large part to Chad Gurnea’s three shutout innings of relief. On Thursday Cypress’ Chewy Thomas hit a walk-off home run in the ninth inning to give Cypress a 2-1 win. … Crean lost one-run games to Cypress and Pacifica.

Pacifica’s Chad Gurnea (3) delivers a pitch against Cypress during their Empire League game in Garden Grove, CA, on Tuesday, April 25, 2023. Pacifica defeated Cypress, 4 to 2. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

FREEWAY LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Fullerton (17-7, Division 2); 2. La Habra, 18-5-3, Division 4); 3. Sonora (13-15, Division 3).

At-large candidate: Sunny Hills (11-10-1, Division 4).

Noteworthy: Fullerton outfielder Connor Sunderland is batting .468 with 37 hits and 30 RBIs in 24 games. … La Habra pitcher Jared Day has a 1.07 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 48.1 innings.

Fullerton pitcher George Papadatos went five innings in a Freeway League game against La Habra on Wednesday, April 12. Papadatos gave up one hit and two walks with three strikeouts over five innings.(Photo by Lou Ponsi)

GARDEN GROVE LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Loara (10-10, Division 6); 2. Los Amigos (13-10, Division 6); 3. Santiago (9-11, Division 6).

At-large candidate: None

Noteworthy: Loara and Los Amigos both were 9-6 in league games. Loara is the league’s No. 1 playoff representative because Loara beat Los Amigos in two of their three league games.

Los Amigos’ Chris Betancourt crosses the plate to score a run against Loara in a Garden Grove League baseball game at Los Amigos High School in Fountain Valley on Friday, April 7, 2023. (Sam Gangwer, Contributing Photographer)

GOLDEN WEST LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Ocean View (18-10, Division 2); 2. Segerstrom (9-13-2, Division 3); 3. Katella (13-12, Division 5).

At-large candidate: None.

Noteworthy: Ocean View was 9-1 in league and has wins over several playoff teams, including Empire League co-champion Pacifica. … Katella pitcher Luis Tinoco has a 1.75 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 52 innings.

Ocean View pitcher Spencer Johnson pitched a complete game and struck out 10 in a 9-2 victory over Katella on Tuesday, April 25. (Photo by Lou Ponsi)

ORANGE LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Savanna (17-4-1, Division 5); 2. Century (19-9, Division 5); 3. Anaheim (13-12, Division 5).

At-large candidate: None.

Noteworthy: Savanna went 10-0 in the league while scoring 112 in its league games. … Century has wins over playoff teams Estancia, Orange and Santiago. … Anaheim lost to Estancia in 11 innings in last season’s Division 6 championship game.

ORANGE COAST LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Estancia (20-6, Division 5); 2. Orange (9-3, Division 4); 3. Calvary Chapel (14-13, Division 5); 4. Costa Mesa (18-8,  Division 6).

At-large candidate: None

Noteworthy: Estancia, last season’s Division 6 champion, is led by pitcher/second baseman Andrew Mits and outfielder James De La O. … Orange won seven in a row to conclude the regular season. … Costa Mesa’s Grady Jackson has 35 RBIs.

Estancia’s John Uchytil runs down a sinking line drive into right field against Orange in an Orange Coast League baseball game in Orange on Friday, April 7, 2023. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

NORTH HILLS LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Yorba Linda (13-12-1, Division 3); 2. Brea Olinda (13-12-2, Division 4).

At-large candidate: Canyon (14-12, Division 4).

Noteworthy: Yorba Linda won its first North Hills League championship. … Brea Olinda got a huge win Thursday, a 4-3 triumph over Yorba Linda to secure the league’s second and final guaranteed playoff berth.

Players on the Yorba Linda baseball team celebrate on the field after defeating Brea Olinda 7-3 to clinch the North Hills League title for the first time. (Photo by Manny Alvarez)

OLYMPIC LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Maranatha (20-5, Division 1); 2. Whittier Christian (13-11, Division 5); 3. Village Christian (10-14-1, Division 5); 4. Valley Christian (10-11, Division 5).

At-large candidate: None.

Noteworthy: Maranatha, which is good enough to have played in the Boras Classic South tournament, went 12-0 in league. … Whittier Christian gave Marantha its closest league loss, 4-0.

PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Woodbridge (23-5, Division 2); 2. Northwood (17-11, Division 4); 3. Laguna Hills (18-9, Division 4); 4. Beckman (14-12-2, Division 3).

At-large candidate: University (14-13-1, Division 6).

Noteworthy: The Pacific Coast is an eight-team league in which every team plays a league opponent three times, so league games dominate the schedules. … Woodbridge, which went 19-2 in league, has a fine pitching staff that includes Matthew Kuromoto, who is 8-2 with a 1.03 ERA.

Woodbridge players and coaches pose for a group photo after winning the Pacific Coast League championship for the third year in a row. The Warriors defeated Beckman 14-5 on Thursday to clinch the title at Ryan Lemmon Park. (Photo by Lou Ponsi)

SAN JOAQUIN LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Capistrano Valley Christian (20-10, Division 2); 2. Calvary Chapel/Downey (15-8-2, Division 7); 3. Western Christian (15-2, Division 6); 4. Pacifica Christian (9-8-1, Division 7); 5. The Webb Schools (9-8-1, Division 7).

At-large candidate: None

Noteworthy: As a nine-team league the San Joaquin has five guaranteed entries for the playoffs. … Capistrano Valley Christian defeated Calvary Chapel on Friday afternoon to win the league championship.

SEA VIEW LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Aliso Niguel (14-13, Division 3); 2. San Clemente (18-10, Division 3).

At-large candidate: None.

Noteworthy: Aliso Niguel was 2-9 on March 24. The Wolverines have won six of their past seven games. … San Clemente’s Chase Brunson has 39 hits in 28 games.

Pitcher Cole Phister (26) pitches against San Juan Hills during a Sea View League baseball game at Aliso Niguel High School in Aliso Viejo on Thursday, April 27, 2023. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

SOUTH COAST LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Tesoro (19-8, Division 2); 2. Capistrano Valley (13-13, Division 1); 3. Dana Hills (10-17, Division 3).

At-large candidates: Mission Viejo (15-13, Division 2); Trabuco Hills (13-14, Division 1).

Noteworthy: Tesoro, last season’s Division 4 champion and a CIF SoCal Regional champion, too, is 13-2 in April. … Titans leaders include outfielders Jackson Freeman and Owen Faust. … Capistrano Valley lost two one-run, extra-innings games to Tesoro this week.

Players and coaches for the Tesoro baseball team celebrate with a group photo after winning the South Coast League title outright with an extra-inning win over Capistrano Valley on Wednesday. (Photo by Michael Huntley)

SURF LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Huntington Beach (20-8, Division 1); 2. Fountain Valley (15-10, Division 2).

At-large candidate: Los Alamitos (15-12, Division 1).

Noteworthy: In two mega-prestigious tournaments, Huntington Beach won the championship of the National High School Invitational and lost to Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks in the Boras Classic South championship game. … The Oilers have one of the county’s better power hitters, catcher/first baseman Ralphy Velazquea. … Fountain Valley won two of its three games against Huntington Beach.

Huntington Beach’s Brian Trujillo, right, is greeted by teammates at home plate after hitting a solo home run in the second inning against Fountain Valley in a Surf League baseball game in Fountain Valley on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

TRINITY LEAGUE

Qualifiers: 1. Santa Margarita (18-9, Division 1); 2. Mater Dei (16-11-1, Division 2); 3. JSerra (18-9, Division 1).

At-large candidates: Orange Lutheran (17-10-1, Division 1); Servite (14-14, Division 1).

Noteworthy: No. 1-ranked Santa Margarita, which has a superb roster that includes Luke Lavin at catcher and Collin Clarke at pitcher, is among Orange County baseball’s bigger surprises this season. The Eagles won the championship in this great league with a 14-1 league record. … Mater Dei swept JSerra in an early-season, three-game series. … Defending Division 1 champion JSerra beat Orange Lutheran in two of three games in the final week of the regular season.

Santa Margarita players celebrate their 11-2 win over Mater Dei in a Trinity League game that clinched the league title for the Eagles for the first time in school history on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Contributing Photographer)

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​ Orange County Register 

Ashok holes out for eagle, has 2nd-round lead at LPGA’s LA Championship

• April 29, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Aditi Ashok made enough good swings to balance out her mistakes on a difficult day at Wilshire Country Club, shooting a 1-under-par 70 on Friday to take a one-shot lead after two rounds of the LA Championship.

Ashok holed a sand wedge from about 85 yards on the fly at the par-5 15th, part of a torrid three-hole stretch during an up-and-down round that included five bogeys. She was at 6-under 136 through two rounds, one shot ahead of Cheyenne Knight (69), Hannah Green (69) and Pernilla Lindberg (70).

Ashok, a 25-year-old from India, had her father on the bag, and there was plenty of discussion before her best shot of the day.

“It was kind of an in-between number, so we were almost trying to hit the next wedge because there’s water short of the green, but I decided to hit that one a little more full, and we got the number exactly right because it landed in the hole,” Ashok said. “So we’re like, OK, maybe it’s not a bad number.”

Ashok, ranked 90th in the world, chipped in for birdie on the par-4 fifth hole, but she closed with bogeys on Nos. 7 and 9.

“I think some of the misses here can be really brutal,” she said. “A couple of the par-3s I missed them on the long side, like left on 18 today, and I basically had no shot. I was basically making up-and-down for bogey.”

Green, who made four birdies and two bogeys, said Wilshire tests players’ patience.

“I guess it kind of gets a little swirly out here, so it’s kind of hard to pick the right swirl and the right club. But it also is starting to get bouncy,” Green said. “Greens are still relatively soft, but predicting what the first bounce is is still quite difficult.”

Sarah Kemp (68), Linnea Strom (70) and Alison Lee (71) were two shots back on a bunched leaderboard. First-round leader Linnea Johansson was in a group at 3 under after a 75. There were 21 players within four shots of the lead, including world No. 1 Nelly Korda and third-ranked Jin Young Ko, both at 2 under.

In Kyung Kim made a hole-in-one at the par-3 12th hole and was at even par.

Southern California native Lilia Vu, a week after winning her first major at the Chevron Championship, shot 75 to finish 2 over and miss the cut by a shot.

​ Orange County Register 

NFL draft: USC cornerback Mekhi Blackmon taken by Vikings in 3rd round

• April 29, 2023

Cornerback Mekhi Blackmon used to line up against receiver Jordan Addison in daily practices at USC. Now they will continue to be teammates in the NFL.

Blackmon was selected with the final pick of the third round of the NFL draft on Friday, heading to the Minnesota Vikings with the 102nd overall selection. Minnesota selected Addison, the USC receiver, with its first-round pick on Thursday.

A graduate transfer from Colorado, Blackmon played one season with USC. He immediately took over as the Trojans’ top cornerback, using his physicality to harass opposing receivers. He defended 15 passes and recorded three interceptions to go with 66 tackles as an All-Pac-12 first-team selection.

Undersized at 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, Blackmon did not enter the NFL draft as a prospect expected to be a Day 2 selection. But he ran a 4.47-second 40-yard dash with a 1.54-second 10-yard split at the NFL combine, raising his stock just as he did at the College of San Mateo prior to Colorado.

He became the third Trojan selected in the 2023 NFL draft, joining Addison and Tuli Tuipulotu, the defensive lineman taken by the Chargers in the second round.

Blackmon took a pre-draft visit to Minnesota and is considered a good fit for defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ man-heavy scheme.

“Super instinctive corner,” Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said. “He’s one of those guys who throughout the route there’s a calculation going on at any moment. Plays really physical, plays with good vision on the ball. Somebody we’re really happy we got where we did.”

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Asia Kozan earns family bragging rights as Santa Margarita swimmers blaze at Trinity League finals

• April 29, 2023

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Santa Margarita’s boys and girls swimming teams added to their haul of records Friday but one drew an especially bright smile at the Trinity League finals.

Senior Asia Kozan broke the league record in the girls 200-yard individual medley of her older sister Justina by touching in 1 minute, 58.09 seconds at JSerra High.

Kozan flashed her smile after slicing just over two-tenths of a second off the 2021 record of her sister, a former Register swimmer of the year at Santa Margarita now racing for USC.

“I’ve got to brag about it,” Kozan said with a laugh of breaking her sister’s record. “I feel like before I wasn’t really at her level, or even close to her level, but I feel like I’m slowly getting there. I’ve actually never beat her but I just broke her record.”

Kozan, a UC San Diego commit, became the No. 3 performer in Orange County history in the 200 IM. She later won the 100 freestyle in 50.01.

Santa Margarita’s girls, who have set one national record and two county records this spring, blazed three league records en route to a 23rd consecutive Trinity title.

Sophomore Teagan O’Dell challenged her league record from prelims in the 100 butterfly by touching in 52.48. She also won the 50 free in 22.77, missing the league record by six one-hundredths of a second.

One the Eagles’ most impressive league records came in the girls 200 medley relay. O’Dell combined with sophomores Nicole Christensen and Chloe Stinson and junior Ariel Lin to clock a 1:41.49.

The relay posted the third-fastest time in county history and didn’t include freestyle sprinter Teia Salvino, who is representing the Philippines at the upcoming Southeast Asia Games.

Santa Margarita’s boys, who set a county record this season, recorded six league records en route to claiming a fifth consecutive Trinity crown.

Cal-bound senior Humberto Najera led the way with records in the 200 IM (1:48.50) and 100 backstroke (lifetime-best 47.84).

Daniel Verdolaga sliced more than half-a-second off his league record in the 100 butterfly with a 47.84. Hunter Cehelnik edged Grant Shoults’ 2016 league record in the 100 free with  a 44.77 and Nathan Wu touched with a league-record 56.12 in the breaststroke.

“It just shows how we prepared we are (for CIF),” said Najera, who led off the record-setting medley relay (1:30.73).

JSerra’s Ryder Dodd claimed the 200 free in a league-record 1:38.55. “That’s definitely killer,” said teammate Bode Brinkema, who won the 50 free (20.73). “Water polo is all our main sport.”

JSerra’s Sydney Willson swept the 200 (1:50.99) and 500 (4:54.34) freestyles.

In other league finals:

In the Pacific Coast: Woodbridge junior Jacob Wang captured the 50 free at Beckman High in 20.20, second-fastest in county history.

In the South Coast: San Juan Hills’ David Schmitt won the butterfly in 47.78 and San Clemente’s Noah Sech took the 200 IM (1:47.38) and breast (54.23) at Capistrano Valley High.

In the Sunset: Corona del Mar’s Maggie Schalow won the butterfly (52.65) and 500 free (4:47.33) at Golden West College.

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​ Orange County Register 

Angels missing the big hit or the big out in loss to Brewers

• April 29, 2023

MILWAUKEE — The Angels and Milwaukee Brewers each had a chance to take the lead in the eighth inning on Friday night.

The Angels failed and the Brewers succeeded.

That was the difference in the Angels’ 2-1 loss, a game that wasted a strong outing from starter Tyler Anderson.

The Angels’ hitters came up empty for most of the night, scoring only on a Gio Urshela two-out single in the fourth. They had leadoff baserunners in the fifth, seventh and eighth and could not get any of them home.

“We had a couple chances there,” Manager Phil Nevin said. “Just didn’t didn’t cash ’em in. You are not going to get a hit every time. If you hit .300, you make it to the Hall of Fame. Just didn’t get the hits today. That’s all.”

With the score tied 1-1 in the eighth, slumping leadoff man Taylor Ward began the inning by reaching on an error, bringing up the heart of the order.

Mike Trout hit a flyout. Shohei Ohtani singled, sending Ward to third. Anthony Rendon, who had driven in seven of eight runners from third with less than two outs this season, then hit a fly ball to shallow center, not deep enough to get the run home. Hunter Renfroe grounded out, with first baseman Luke Voit sprawling and keeping his toe on the bag just long enough to get the out.

In the bottom of the inning, Aaron Loup gave up back-to-back singles to start the inning. The Angels got a force at second for the first out. Loup then struck out Voit.

Left-handed hitter Rowdy Tellez then yanked a single through the right side of the infield, driving in the go-ahead run.

The Angels came up against Brewers closer Devin Williams in the ninth, ending their three-game winning streak.

Despite the loss, it was an encouraging outing for Anderson, who gave up one run in 6-2/3 innings.

“For sure that was his best one,” Nevin said. “Other than the pitch to Willie (Adames) in the first first inning (a home run). He was really good… Located very well. The changeup was really good. Kind of added a couple ticks of velocity when he needed it. I thought he was really good.”

Anderson brought a 7.20 ERA into the game. After shutting out the hapless Oakland A’s for six innings in his first start of the season, Anderson had allowed 16 earned runs in 14 innings in his next three starts.

On Friday night, he got off to a bad start when he threw an 89 mph sinker over the middle of the plate and Adames drilled it for a first-inning homer.

In the second, Anderson dug himself a hole by walking No. 9 hitter Joey Wiemer on four pitches, bringing up the top of the order. An infield hit then loaded the bases for Adames. Anderson struck him out on a sinker almost in the exact same spot as the one he hit out.

Anderson escaped a jam with runners at second and third when he struck out Christian Yelich on a four-seamer up in the zone.

After that, he cruised, retiring nine straight hitters before a seventh-inning walk ended his night.

“I feel like I tried to kind of feel for guys’ game plans as the game goes on,” Anderson said. “Then when you get in that situation, you just don’t give in. I start feeling better, executing better, going in the right direction.”

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​ Orange County Register