Detroit, MI
Detroit rookie Reese Olson pitches the Tigers past the Dodgers 4-2 to avoid a sweep
LOS ANGELES — – Reese Olson continues to make his case for being a part of the Detroit Tigers rotation next season.
The rookie won for the third time in his last four starts, combining with two relievers on a three-hitter to help the Tigers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-2 on Wednesday night and avoid a sweep in the three-game series.
“His mix was incredible tonight against a good hitting lineup. He was relentless in the strike zone,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “He’s demonstrating that he belongs and he can do different things to different opponents. When his pitch mix is right he’s as good as anyone that we have.
“When you come into Dodger Stadium and pitch as well as he did, he is going to come out with his chest held high.”
Olson (5-7) allowed one run on two hits in six innings. The 24-year-old right-hander has given up just five runs in 30 innings over his last five starts.
His only mistake came in the sixth inning when Max Muncy drove an elevated slider into the stands in right-center to trim the Tigers’ lead to 2-1.
“To go out there and do what I’ve been doing these past couple weeks is a good confidence boost,” Olson said. “When I am able to mix, I can have success.”
Miguel Diaz went 1 1/3 innings and Will Vest worked 1 2/3 innings for his second save.
Kerry Carpenter had two doubles and scored a pair of runs. The outfielder went 4 for 11 during the series and has hit safely in 36 of his last 44 games.
Tyler Nevin and Carson Kelly both had two hits and drove in a run for Detroit.
Muncy had both hits against Olson. His 36th homer match his career high from 2021.
“It means a lot. It still has been a frustrating season. I know some of my numbers look pretty good but with the opportunities I have had, they should be better,” Muncy said.
Bobby Miller (10-4) allowed two runs on three hits and struck out seven in six innings for Los Angeles, which had a five-game winning streak snapped.
“It was clear the secondary (pitches) he didn’t have feel for it. The changeup was in and out, curveball and slider in and out. The fastball was good. He got some swing and miss with that,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “For him to go six innings and give up two runs and give us a chance to win, that’s all we can ask.”
With the loss, the NL West champions remain 3 1/2 games behind Atlanta for the NL’s best record.
The Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead for the second straight night.
Carpenter led off the second with a double to left-center, advanced to third on Andy Ibanez’s ground out and scored on Nevin’s looping base hit to left-center.
Nevin has hit safely in his last six games and has gone 9 for 23 during that span.
Detroit had the bases loaded in the third with none out in the third, but could only get one across. Carson Kelly had a base hit to left before Matt Vierling drew a walk and Zach McKinstry was hit by a pitch. Dodgers center fielder James Outman made a diving catch on a low liner by Spencer Torkelson, which scored Kelly but prevented any further damage.
The Tigers extended their lead to 4-1 with runs in the seventh and the eighth.
Parker Meadows reached on a throwing error by Muncy to keep the seventh alive. Meadows stole second and scored on Kelly’s RBI base hit to left-center.
In the eighth, Carpenter reached on a two-out double to right and scored on Ibanez’s single.
Los Angeles responded in the home half when Austin Barnes walked with one out, advanced to third on Mookie Betts’ double and scored on Freddie Freeman’s grounder.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Tigers: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez is planning on making his scheduled start Sunday at Oakland. He left Monday’s game in the fourth inning due to a left scapular spasm.
UP NEXT
Tigers: Open a four-game series at Oakland on Thursday. LHP Tarik Skubal (6-3, 3.25 ERA) goes for the Tigers against Athletics’ RHP Luis Medina (3-9, 5.56 ERA).
Dodgers: Host San Francisco for four games in their final home series of the regular season. A starting pitcher has not been named for Thursday.
——
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
While the Detroit Pistons have had a healthy starting five in place lately, a key member of their bench unit has been dealing with a notable injury concern.
When the Pistons faced the Miami Heat last week, the veteran center Isaiah Stewart was injured just seven minutes into his shift off the bench. He left the court with four points and three rebounds.
After getting evaluated back in the locker room, Stewart did not get clearance to return to help the Pistons close out the matchup against the Heat.
Since then, Stewart has been out. Will the trend continue on Thursday night against the Sacramento Kings?
Unfortunately, for Detroit, that will be the case. Stewart has been downgraded to out for Thursday’s game.
Isaiah Stewart (knee) listed out Thursday.
— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) December 27, 2024
After going out against Miami, Stewart was not part of the action when the Pistons hosted the Utah Jazz the following game. On a positive note, Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff mentioned that Stewart’s recovery would not require a long timeline. He was viewed as day-to-day.
When the Pistons traveled to take on the Phoenix Suns, Stewart hit the road with the team. He was seen putting in work following a shootaround session. Although Stewart didn’t play, the Pistons found success against the Suns with an eight-point win.
Nothing changed earlier this week when the Pistons paid a visit to the Los Angeles Lakers. Stewart was ruled out, but the Pistons did well enough to win without him. After getting a couple of days off following the win over the Lakers, Stewart was upgraded on the injury report to questionable.
While it’s a positive sign he seems to be making progress, Stewart is still not ready to return.
The Pistons and the Kings are set to tip at 10 PM ET.
The Detroit Red Wings announced the inevitable with the firing of head coach Derek Lalonde. The team showed life at the start of his tenure and even improved to 41 wins last season. But this year was a noticeable plateau under Lalonde, and Detroit made the only call they could.
In Lalonde’s place, the Red Wings hired Todd McLellan. The former San Jose Sharks, Edmonton Oilers, and Los Angeles Kings coach has over 15 years of NHL head coaching experience, and Detroit is hoping he can bring the team back to the postseason. It’s a gamble worth taking for the Red Wings organization, but the outcome won’t change as long as the roster construction remains the same.
McLellan is a good coach. He’s certainly an improvement over Lalonde, bringing more career wins and nine playoff appearances across three organizations, but he’s a band-aid. The wound in the Red Wings organization runs much deeper than who is behind the bench, and McLellan will be the next bench boss to fall victim to the lack of talent in Detroit
The Red Wings haven’t made the postseason since the 2015-2016 campaign. Long gone is the 30 year stretch where they were basically a perennial playoff team, capturing four Stanley Cups since 1996. The organization has been attempting to rebuild that dynasty for the last decade, with repeated failures along the way.
The current attempt to build the right core is another one of those missteps. They have good players. Captain Dylan Larkin will be a member of the United States roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off and is a talented point producer. Lucas Raymond continues to improve and become the team’s best offensive player. Alex DeBrincat has speed and scoring capabilities. Top defensemen Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson give them quality minutes every night.
Beyond them, though, the roster is so far from a playoff one, let alone a championship one. They lack depth across every position and they’ve consistently failed with their analysis of goaltenders. For several seasons now, the organization has been banking on their overflow of young prospects breaking through to the NHL, but it’s still a waiting game.
That won’t help McLellan take this middling team to the postseason. He has some weapons to work with and his arrival is sure to reinvigorate the Red Wings players. It ultimately won’t matter though. It won’t change the outcome this year or next year or even the year after until their NHL lineup improves drastically.
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College football’s annual bowl game visit to Detroit has a new name. This year, the Pittsburgh Panthers (7-5) meet the Toledo Rockets (7-5) in the 2024 GameAbove Sports Bowl at Ford Field, home to the Detroit Lions.
The Panthers lost five in a row in the ACC to close the regular season after beginning 7-0.
The Rockets were a MAC contender before losing their final two games of the regular season.
The GameAbove Bowl takes the name from what used to be the Quick Lane Bowl, won last year by Minnesota, 30-24, over Bowling Green.
Here’s the game info on Pitt vs. Toledo in the bowl game in Detroit:
Pittsburgh vs Toledo GameAbove Sports Bowl TV channel, start time
- TV channel: ESPN.
- Date: Thursday, Dec 26.
- Start time: 2 p.m. ET.
- Where: Ford Field, Detroit.
- Streaming: ESPN+ or Fubo (free trial).
What are the bowl games today?
There are three bowl games today, Thursday, Dec. 26.
- Pitt vs Toledo (GameAbove Sports Bowl): 2 p.m., ESPN
- Rutgers vs Kansas State (Rate Sports Bowl): 5:30 p.m., ESPN
- Arkansas State vs Bowling Green (68 Ventures Bowl): 9 p.m., ESPN
Watch today’s bowl games on Fubo (free trial)
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