Sports
Dodgers decide to delay Walker Buehler's start to season
As eager as Walker Buehler is to return from his second Tommy John surgery, the erstwhile Dodgers ace will have to wait at least an extra month to make his first regular-season start since June 10, 2022.
The Dodgers — with Buehler’s blessing — have decided to delay the veteran right-hander’s start to the season in order to limit his workload and increase the chances of him being fresh in October.
General manager Brandon Gomes wouldn’t go into specific numbers, but Buehler is expected to be limited to 150-175 innings and 24-27 starts. In his last full regular season, he threw 207 ⅔ innings over 33 starts in 2021.
“I think there’s a little bit of art to it, a little bit of science to it, in terms of how fast I can build up,” Buehler said at Saturday’s fanfest event. “I’m sure I’ll make some rehab starts and hopefully get into the rotation in the early part of the year, and then we’ll kind of go from there.
“We have a lot of depth, a lot of talent. Since I’ve been here, it’s never been a one-man show, and it’s not going to be this year, either, so I don’t feel this crazy burden to throw 220 innings or anything like that. But I want to be really good when I play, and I want to play a good amount.”
The Dodgers have more than enough depth to weather Buehler’s late start and ease the workloads of new starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who pitched once a week in Japan, Tyler Glasnow, who has never thrown more than 120 innings in his eight big league seasons, and James Paxton, who has made only 20 starts in the last three seasons.
Young right-handers Emmet Sheehan, Gavin Stone, Michael Grove, Kyle Hurt and Landon Knack and left-hander Ryan Yarbrough will be available to fill out an early-season rotation that will feature Yamamoto, Glasnow, Bobby Miller and Paxton.
“I don’t think anyone has a timeline, but it’s fair to say it’s going to be a late start for the season for Walker,” manager Dave Roberts said. “But the rehab work looks great, and I expect Walker to have a heck of a year.”
Buehler, 29, has clearly been working hard in the weight room. He’s added about 20 pounds of muscle that he hopes will help him better withstand the rigors of the season.
“I put on some good weight,” said Buehler, who had his first major elbow surgery after he was drafted in the first round out of Vanderbilt in 2015. “My elbow keeps snapping, man, so I had to put a little weight around it and try to protect it a little bit.”
Ohtani rehab report
While Shohei Ohtani said he is “very confident” he will be ready to serve as the team’s designated hitter for the March 20-21 season-opening series against San Diego in Seoul, the two-way star has not begun the throwing part of his rehabilitation from a second Tommy John surgery last Sept. 19.
“We haven’t sat down and mapped that out just yet,” Gomes said of the pitching phase of Ohtani’s rehab. “Right now, we’re focused on the hitting portion of it. Obviously, throwing will be a main part of it at some point, but we haven’t spent a ton of time on it yet.”
Shohei Ohtani, right, speaks to the media during the Dodgers’ fanfest event Saturday at Dodger Stadium.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
When Ohtani suffered his first major elbow injury with the Angels in 2018, he had surgery in early October and missed the first month of the 2019 season. But once he returned on May 7, his pitching rehab didn’t interfere much with his hitting.
After a slow start in which he hit .250 with a .692 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, three homers and 13 RBIs in 20 May games, Ohtani hit .340 with a 1.091 OPS, nine homers and 22 RBIs in 27 June games. He finished the season with a .286 average, .848 OPS, 18 homers and 62 RBIs in 106 games.
“I’m going to start my throwing program when I get to Arizona and go from there,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “We haven’t scheduled anything like live [batting practices sessions]. We’re going to play it by ear through camp. The main focus will be on hitting, and we’re going to try to ease into the pitching program throughout the year.”
Sour taste remains
A $1.2-billion winter spending spree that netted Ohtani, Yamamoto, Glasnow and others and has positioned the Dodgers as World Series favorites didn’t erase the playoff disappointment of last October, when the heavily favored 100-win Dodgers were swept by the 84-win Arizona Diamondbacks in a three-game National League division series.
“I mean, it’s still there,” third baseman Max Muncy said. “There’s no way around it. We sucked. We really kind of blew it. I’m not trying to take anything away from the Diamondbacks — they played very well, and hats off to them — but we blew it. When something like that happens, it sticks with you for a while.”
The Dodgers were outscored 19-6 in the series and their three starting pitchers — Clayton Kershaw, Miller and Lance Lynn — were rocked for 13 earned runs and 16 hits, including five homers, in 4 ⅔ innings. A Dodgers offense that ranked second in baseball with 906 runs and a .795 OPS hit .177 (17 for 96) with four extra-base hits.
“I feel like you can have a dartboard and throw a dart and it would land on something that went wrong,” Muncy said. “We didn’t hit. We didn’t score. We didn’t pitch. Everything went wrong.”
Short hops
Top pitching prospect Nick Frasso, who went 4-6 with a 3.77 ERA in 25 starts for double-A Tulsa and triple-A Oklahoma City last season, underwent minor labrum surgery in November, and the 25-year-old right-hander will miss most, if not all, of the 2024 season. “His rehab has gone well,” Gomes said, “but he’s so young and talented, we’re not gonna take any risks in pushing him if he’s not ready.” … The Dodgers signed reliever Dinelson Lamet, who is 17-24 with a 4.66 ERA in parts of six seasons with San Diego, Colorado and Boston, to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.
Sports
Eli Manning fires back amid debate comparing ex-Giants star to Falcons great Matt Ryan
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Eli Manning retired in 2019 and missed out in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility in 2025. He was passed over again earlier this year but still fired back at a fan who claimed one of his contemporaries was the better quarterback.
On Tuesday, a social media user floated a theory about former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan, who now oversees football operations as the team’s president, last played in an NFL game in 2022. He announced his retirement in 2024, making him eligible for Hall of Fame consideration beginning in 2028.
“Matt Ryan was a better QB than Eli Manning… people just worship rings. Agree or nah,” the post read.
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New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning greets Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan after their game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Oct. 22, 2018. (Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports)
Manning caught wind of the suggestion and weighed in, pointing to the two Super Bowl-winning teams he was part of during his standout run with the New York Giants.
“I will ponder this while I play with my rings…,” Manning wrote in a quote-tweet.
Ryan’s statistical production surpasses Manning’s, at least on paper. He was named NFL MVP in 2016, an honor Manning never earned. Ryan is also the most accomplished player in Falcons history and finished his career with more than 62,000 regular-season passing yards, compared with Manning’s 57,023.
NFC head coach Eli Manning leads a huddle during a practice session before the NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on Feb. 4, 2023. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Both quarterbacks were selected to four Pro Bowls, but the key difference lies in championships. Manning won the Super Bowl in 2007 and 2011, while Ryan reached it once but fell short. Manning threw for a single season career-best 4,933 during the run leading up to the second Super Bowl title.
Ryan threw for 284 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to help the Falcons build a 25-point lead in the championship game — a matchup remembered for the New England Patriots engineering the largest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan passes the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Jan. 2, 2022. (Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)
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The Falcons have reached the Super Bowl twice in franchise history, first in 1998, but the team is still chasing its first elusive championship.
The Giants marked their 100th season in 2024, winning four Super Bowls over the franchise’s century-long history.
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Sports
Rams coach Sean McVay says Puka Nacua is ‘doing really well’ after rehab stint
Star receiver Puka Nacua will fully participate in voluntary offseason workouts, the Rams are getting closer to another contract adjustment with quarterback Matthew Stafford, and coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead hope backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo decides to put off retirement and return for a third season and possible Super Bowl run.
McVay and Snead addressed those topics and the NFL draft on Tuesday during a videoconference with reporters.
Nacua led the NFL in receptions last season but also was involved in a string of off-the-field incidents the last few months, including an alleged biting incident that led to a civil lawsuit. Those situations put the brakes on any immediate discussion between the Rams and Nacua about a massive extension for the fourth-year pro.
In March, Nacua began a rehabilitation program in Malibu, but he was present for the first day of workouts on Monday.
Nacua, 24, “looks great” and is “doing really well,” McVay said. McVay declined to detail discussions he’s had with the All-Pro, who was a finalist for NFL offensive player of the year.
“He and I have a great relationship,” McVay said. “Feel really good about kind of the direction we’re going.”
Stafford, 38, led the Rams to the NFC championship game last season and is the reigning NFL most valuable player. According to overthecap.com, he is due to carry a salary-cap number of $48.3 million this season.
But Stafford has no doubt demanded, and will receive, a raise and a possible additional year in a deal that the Rams acknowledged two years ago is essentially a year-to-year situation.
“Progress has been made,” Snead said of negotiations.
There is no timeline, Snead said, “but don’t expect any drama, per se.”
Garoppolo, 34, has backed up Stafford for two seasons, and he has been invaluable.
Last year, with Stafford sidelined for training camp because of a back issue, Garoppolo ran the offense and prepped the defense with a skillset honed during a 12-year career that included a Super Bowl appearance. Stafford joined workouts before the season and remained healthy throughout, but Garoppolo was perhaps the most valuable insurance policy in the NFL.
Last season, Garoppolo played on a one-year contract and earned $4.5 million, according to overthecap.com.
McVay expressed confidence in fourth-year pro Stetson Bennett, but said he was hopeful that “when the time is right,” Garoppolo will “change his mind,” and return.
“You leave the door open,” McVay said when asked if there was a point that Rams would press Garoppolo to return. “I don’t think you want to press. What you don’t want to do is ever force a guy to play if in his mind he’s ready to move on.
“But you don’t want to minimize that, ‘Hey, if you do decide you want to play, let’s make sure it’s here with us.”
The Rams have the 13th pick in the NFL draft, which begins Thursday in Pittsburgh. They have one pick in the second and third rounds, one in the sixth round and three in the seventh.
Receiver, offensive line and edge rusher are among the positions the Rams could address with their first top-15 pick since they selected quarterback Jared Goff with the No. 1 pick in 2016.
“There’s a lot of possibilities,” McVay said. “We don’t control what happens in those 12 picks before, and so what we’ve done is a lot of contingency planning and a lot of conversations, and feel really good about that.”
Sports
PGA Tour signals new era with axing of Hawaii events from schedule
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The PGA Tour has announced that it will not be hosting an event in Hawaii during the 2027 season, ending a 56-year run of holding a tournament in The Aloha State. The change comes as the Tour and CEO Brian Rolapp have consistently teased a revamped schedule beginning next year.
The Tour was forced to cancel The Sentry at the start of the 2026 campaign due to the dying grass on the Plantation Course at Kapalua amid a local dispute with the company responsible for delivering water to the area.
An aerial view of the golf course from over the ocean prior to The Sentry at The Plantation Course at Kapalua on December 31, 2023 in Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. (Photo by Ben Jared/PGA TOUR) (Ben Jared/PGA TOUR)
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With The Sentry being canceled, the Sony Open at Waialae Country on Oahu served as the Tour’s season opener in ‘26, which was won by Chris Gotterup. The event was in the final year of its sponsorship, although the Tour has shared that it is working toward making the event the opening event on the PGA Tour Champions circuit.
Chris Gotterup of the United States celebrates with the trophy on the 18th green after his winning round of the Sony Open in Hawaii 2026 at Waialae Country Club on January 18, 2026 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images) (Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
The Tour’s removal of The Sentry and the Sony Open wipes out what has now turned into a traditional two-week stretch on the island to begin a new season.
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The PGA Tour did not share further details about the 2027 schedule upon its announcement about leaving Hawaii, but with Sentry reportedly being an event title-sponsor through 2035, it will need to find a new landing spot on the calendar. The logical stop would be Torrey Pines in San Diego, which checks the West Coast and great weather boxes, but the venue is also looking for a new sponsor, as its deal with Farmers Insurance ended in 2026.
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View of the 18th hole is seen during the final round of The Sentry at The Plantation Course at Kapalua on January 5, 2025 in Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. (Photo by Ben Jared/PGA TOUR via Getty Images) (Ben Jared/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)
The Tour’s decision not to begin next season in Hawaii makes sense, as there are plenty of venues in the lower 48 states that are much easier to operate from, but the departure will have a tremendous financial impact on the state.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports that The Sentry is estimated to have a $50 million annual impact on the community, while the Sony Open directly generates an estimated $100 million in revenue per year, plus another $1 million per year to Friends of Hawaii charities.
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