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Clayton Kershaw returns, Shohei Ohtani homers, Dodgers grab series win over Giants

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Clayton Kershaw returns, Shohei Ohtani homers, Dodgers grab series win over Giants

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw was hardly dominant in a 6-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants before a sun-baked crowd of 52,291 in Chavez Ravine on Thursday, his first game back from the November shoulder surgery that sidelined him for the first four months of the season.

In fact, the 36-year-old left-hander described a start in which he gave up two runs and six hits in four innings, striking out six and walking two, as just “OK.”

But it was more than OK for the Dodgers, who aren’t expecting the three-time National League Cy Young Award winner to regain his 2014 NL most-valuable-player form but need him to pitch well enough to shore up an injury-ravaged rotation as they push toward another division title.

“He’s probably not happy he gave up some runs, but I thought his stuff looked good,” catcher Austin Barnes said. “I thought he was able to move the ball around and keep hitters off-balance. His fastball had that jump on it, that life. He probably wasn’t happy with some of the fastball locations, but I think his whole mix was pretty good.”

Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw makes his season debut against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium Thursday.

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(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

Kershaw threw 72 pitches, 47 for strikes. His four-seam fastball averaged 90.6 mph and topped out at 91.8 mph. He used his 86.6-mph slider to finish four of his six strikeouts. He threw some good looping curves and even mixed in six changeups, a pitch he has struggled to command in the past. He induced 14 swinging strikes.

“I was looking at the stuff and the arm speed, the hand speed, and that’s something he maintained for all of his pitches,” Roberts said. “When he starts to lose that, the slider isn’t sharp, the curveball doesn’t get there, and there’s a loss of fastball velocity, but today, it held. For me, that was a big positive. It shows that he’s strong, he’s healthy.”

A 32-pitch third inning, in which Kershaw gave up two runs but struck out three straight batters with runners on first and second, prevented Kershaw from pitching the fifth, and six relievers — Joe Kelly, Daniel Hudson, Evan Phillips, Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen and Brent Honeywell — had to cover the final five innings.

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But Kershaw gave the Dodgers a chance to win for the sixth time in seven games, which they did when Nick Ahmed, the veteran shortstop who was signed on Wednesday to replace the injured Miguel Rojas, and Shohei Ohtani hit back-to-back home runs off submarine-throwing right-hander Tyler Rogers to snap a 4-4 tie in the eighth.

Ahmed, who was released by the Giants on July 10, drove a 2-and-2 sinker 396 feet to center field for his second homer of the season.

“That was big — we needed it,” Roberts said. “To have essentially a Gold Glove shortstop fall in our lap, and we lose [utility man] Chris Taylor [to a left-groin strain] the same night we acquire him, and for him to hit the go-ahead homer against his old team … I’m sure that felt good for him.”

Ohtani then hit a first-pitch slider that left his bat at 112.6 mph with a launch angle of 46 degrees, producing a towering drive that seemed to hang in the air forever, his 31st homer of the season traveling only 360 feet, tied for the fourth-shortest of his career.

“I was just hoping it would stay fair,” Roberts said. “He hit like a sand wedge at 46 degrees and it went 20 rows deep. Look up the last time somebody hit a ball that far with a 46-degree launch angle. It just doesn’t happen. Those usually go 260 feet. So again, he never ceases to amaze.”

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Shohei Ohtani rounds the bases after hitting a solo homer in the eighth inning to extend  the Dodgers' lead to 6-4.

Shohei Ohtani rounds the bases after hitting a solo homer in the eighth inning to extend the Dodgers’ lead to 6-4.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Kiké Hernández paced a 14-hit Dodgers attack with an RBI single in the second inning, an RBI double in the fourth and a single in the fifth, Barnes had two hits, including an RBI single in the fourth, and Gavin Lux walked and scored in the second, doubled and scored in the fourth and singled in the fifth.

After taking the mound to his familiar entrance song — ”We are Young,” by Fun — Kershaw struck out Patrick Bailey with an 88-mph slider with two on to end the first inning.

He wobbled in the third, giving up a leadoff single to Jorge Soler, an RBI triple to Tyler Fitzgerald, an RBI single to Heliot Ramos and a single to Matt Chapman, the Giants taking a 2-1 lead. There were still two runners on with no outs, and the Giants were threatening to blow the game open, but Kershaw remained calm.

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“He’s the same, honestly, from the start of the game to the end,” Barnes said, when asked if he saw the “old” Kershaw emerge in the jam. “I think that’s one of his better traits. He just doesn’t let off the gas. He’s the same guy. He keeps coming at you.”

Kershaw didn’t give in. He struck out Bailey with an 87-mph slider, David Villar looking at a 73-mph curve and Thairo Estrada with an 88-mph slider.

“He’s pitched in so much stress throughout his career, he just defaults to having already been there,” Roberts said. “So it’s not about your first start back. It’s not about how you feel. It’s getting an out, getting out of that inning, minimizing damage. People who have been in those kinds of battles have that to fall back on.”

Kershaw struck out Mike Yastrzemski swinging at a 74-mph curve to open the fourth. He walked Soler with two outs but got Fitzgerald to fly to right field to end the inning.

An overpowering start it wasn’t, but it was in stark contrast to Kershaw’s last game here, when he retired one of eight batters in a six-run first inning in which he gave six hits, including three doubles and a three-run homer to Gabriel Moreno, in an 11-2 loss to Arizona in the first game of the NL Division Series last Oct. 7.

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“There was some stuff I can get better at, but I felt overall, the breaking balls were good,” Kershaw said. “Fastball command left a little to be desired, but for the first time back, I’ll take it.”

That Kershaw’s wife, Ellen, and four kids, and Dr. Neal ElAttrache, the surgeon who repaired his shoulder last fall, were in attendance made the afternoon all the more special for Kershaw.

“There’s a lot of people here and people back home [in Texas] that spent a lot of time with me to help me get back, so it’s really cool that a lot of people cared so much,” Kershaw said. “They spent all this time helping me get back, and they want to see me back out there so all the work isn’t for nothing.”

Kershaw, who made his major league debut as a 20-year-old in 2008, also became the first Dodgers pitcher to play in 17 different seasons, a milestone of longevity that came after a grueling, 8 ½-month rehabilitation process.

“I think there was a point before the surgery, after the surgery, where he felt, ‘Is he ever going to throw another major league pitch?’ “ Roberts said. “I think over the last few years, he’s finally realized that he’s mortal, so then there comes the appreciation of every moment.”

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Pitching in

The Dodgers added depth to their rotation by signing right-hander Jordan Lyles, who spent most of this season on Kansas City’s restricted list while tending to a “personal matter,” to a minor league deal. Lyles, 33, will report to the team’s Arizona complex to build up endurance before reporting to a minor league affiliate.

Lyles struggled after signing a two-year, $17-million deal with the Royals in 2023, going 6-17 with a 6.28 ERA in 31 starts, but he was a solid back-end starter for the Baltimore Orioles in 2022, going 12-11 with a 4.42 ERA in 32 starts. He did not allow a run in five relief appearances for Kansas City this season.

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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A chaotic scene unfolded at Auburn University on Tuesday night as a wild buzzer-beater was waved off well after the Tigers had celebrated on their own court.

With 0.6 seconds remaining and Auburn trailing 90-88, KeShawn Murphy, somehow left wide open, caught an inbounds pass and nailed a long 3-pointer for what was thought to be the game-winner.

However, officials went to the scorer’s table to review the play, which was awfully close.

 

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Auburn Tigers players watch the replay of a possible game-winning shot that was called back as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

Ultimately, officials ruled that the shot had not gone off in time, ending the Tigers’ celebration and prompting one from Texas A&M.

The officials quickly made themselves public enemy number one and were showered with debris from fans on their way off the court. At least one referee needed his head to be covered.

One fan sitting courtside even turned his back and threw his drink over his shoulder aimed at an official.

“They didn’t say a word. They just said it was no good and ran off the floor. I probably wouldn’t want to talk to me in that moment, anyway,” Auburn head coach Steven Pearl, who took over for his dad, Bruce this season, said after the game. “So, I get why they’d run away from me. Just from the angles that I saw, it looked like it was off his fingers. But that was just, I don’t have all the same angles they have.”

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Texas A&M Aggies players celebrate victory as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

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It is now six losses in their last 10 games for the Tigers after starting 5-1. They lost in the Final Four last year to Florida, who won the national championship over Houston.

Auburn (9-6, 0-2) led 47-37 at halftime and extended the margin to 61-45 with 12:29 remaining.

KeShawn Murphy of the Auburn Tigers reacts after officials ruled that his last-second shot did not beat the shot clock to win the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena on Jan. 6, 2026 in Auburn, Alabama. (Stew Milne/Getty Images)

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Texas A&M answered with a steady run fueled by outside shooting, taking its first lead at 8:42 when Pop Isaacs buried a 3-pointer. The Aggies followed with back-to-back triples from Isaacs to open a five-point cushion that they would not relinquish, by the skin of their teeth.

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

Two-time All-American wide receiver and prominent Outdoors Channel host Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after an accident on his ranch in Texas, his family said in a statement.

Shipley, 40, was described as stable after remaining hospitalized Tuesday night in Austin. The statement said a machine that he was operating near his hometown of Burnet caught fire. The former Texas great suffered “severe burns on his body.”

Shipley abruptly retired in 2012 after three NFL seasons primarily because of persistent concussion issues and chronic knee problems. He quickly transitioned to television shows that showcased his passion for deer hunting, co-hosting “The Bucks of Tecomate” and “Tecomate Whitetail Nation.”

“It was not hard at all,” Shipley said at the time of retiring at 27. “Only because I never saw myself as a football player first. Don’t get me wrong, I worked my tail off for football and I loved it but never saw that as my whole identity because I had such a big background in outdoors. Really, with this opportunity I had I was actually pretty excited about moving forward.”

Although he enjoyed a strong rookie season with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010 with 52 receptions for 600 yards and three touchdowns, he is best remembered as a record-setting player at Texas.

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Shipley starred as a receiver and a kick returner from 2006 to 2009, setting program single-season records in 2009 with 116 receptions and 1,489 yards. He also remains the career leader for receptions with 248 and ranks second in career receiving yards with 3,191, behind Roy Williams. Shipley also returned four punts or kickoffs for touchdowns.

After being drafted in the third round by the Bengals, he became one of the most popular players with Cincinnati fans, and his No. 11 jersey was worn by thousands. After a debilitating knee injury early in the 2011 season, he was never the same player, and he had short stints with Tampa Bay and Jacksonville before retiring.

According to his family, Jordan was operating a machine at his ranch when it caught fire. He managed to free himself from the machine, but “not before sustaining severe burns on his body in the process.” Jordan was airlifted to the hospital in Austin.

“He was able to get to one of his workers on the ranch, who drove him to a local hospital. He was then care-flighted to Austin, where he remains in critical but stable condition,” the statement said.

Shipley’s younger brother, former Texas wide receiver Jaxon Shipley, 33, asked for prayers in a statement on Instagram: “Please pray for full healing and no infections or other issues on his road to recovery. I don’t want to get into all the details, other than his life was spared today by the grace of God and the sheer will to live. I believe prayer is effective so I’m asking anyone and everyone to lift Jordan up in prayer.”

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been known to get visibly angry with his players over his years in East Lansing, but what happened Monday night against USC was different.

Izzo let loose his frustration on a former player.

During the Spartans’ blowout over the Trojans, 80-51, Izzo was spotted unloading on former Michigan State center Paul Davis, who played for the team from 2002-06, after he caused a disturbance in the stands.

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Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts to a call during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

Referees pointed out Davis, who was a spectator, from his courtside seat after he was among many in the building who disagreed with a call in the second half. Davis stood up and shouted at referee Jeffrey Anderson.

Anderson responded with a loud whistle, stopping play and pointing at Davis. Then, Anderson went over to Izzo to explain what happened, and the 70-year-old coach went ballistic.

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First, he was motioning toward Davis, and it was clear he asked his former center, “What the f— are you doing?”

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Davis was met by someone asking him to leave his seat, and that’s when Izzo went nuts. He shouted “Get out of here!” at Davis, who appeared to gesture toward Izzo, perhaps in apology for disturbing the game.

Izzo was asked about Davis’ ejection after the game.

“What he said, he should never say anywhere in the world,” Izzo responded when asked what happened. “That ticked me off. So, just because it’s 25, 20 years later, I’m going to have to call him tomorrow and tell him what I thought of it. And you know what he’ll say? ‘I screwed up, coach. I’m sorry.’”

Izzo quickly clarified that what Davis said “wasn’t something racial” and “it wasn’t something sexual.”

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo protests a call that benefited the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center Dec. 2, 2025. (Dale Young/Imagn Images)

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“It was just the wrong thing to say, and I’ll leave it at that.”

Davis later met with reporters Tuesday, apologizing for his actions.

“I’m not up here to make any excuses. I’m up here to take accountability, to own it,” Davis said. It was a mistake that will never happen again. It was a mistake that’s not me, but, unfortunately, last night it was.”

Izzo said Davis was one of his “favorite guys” during his time playing for the Spartans. He had a breakout sophomore campaign with 15.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and two assists per game in 30 starts for Izzo during the 2003-04 season.

Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb.  (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

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In his senior year, Davis averaged 17.5 points, a career-high, in 33 games.

He was taken in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Davis played just four seasons in the league, his final one with the Washington Wizards.

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