Sports
Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor and Freddie Freeman fuel Dodgers comeback win over Royals
The Dodgers tapped into some unlikely power sources to erase a three-run deficit Friday night, Miguel Rojas and Chris Taylor each hitting home runs in a score-tying fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals in Chavez Ravine.
Then they fired up some fossil fuel to win it, as veteran first baseman Freddie Freeman, who turns 35 in September, poked a two-out, run-scoring single to center field in the eighth inning to lift the Dodgers to a 4-3 victory in front of a crowd of 49,580.
Mookie Betts sparked the winning rally off Royals left-hander Will Smith with a one-out single to left field, and he took second on Smith’s errant pick-off throw to first.
Shohei Ohtani popped out to shortstop, but Freeman reached out for an 83-mph slider off the plate and lofted a single to center off his former Atlanta Braves teammate — the ball left his bat at 75.7 mph — to score Betts for a 4-3 lead.
Freeman felt like he underachieved for two months, with a .286 average and .842 on-base-plus-slugging percentage through the end of May, but he has lived up to his lofty standards in June, batting .357 (15 for 42) with three homers, three doubles and nine RBIs in 12 games to lift his season average to .297 and OPS to .892.
“Freddie knows how to get a hit,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “Coming through in that spot, I know it was a big weight off his shoulders.”
Taylor, the seldom-used utility man who entered Friday with a .100 average, .307 OPS and 41 strikeouts in 103 plate appearances, can relate. With his first homer of the season, he felt like a few cinder blocks were removed from his shoulders.
Freddie Freeman drives in the go-ahead run on a single in the eighth inning against the Royals on Friday.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
“Yeah, it’s been a while,” said Taylor, who hadn’t homered since last Sept. 7, a span of 165 plate appearances. “I think it was more of a relief than anything. I wasn’t sure I was ever going to get to do that again.”
Royals starter Cole Ragans, whose five-pitch mix featured a fastball that averaged 96.2 mph and topped out at 98.3 mph, was nearly untouchable for four innings, giving up one single and striking out two, and Salvador Perez staked the left-hander to a 3-0 lead with a three-run homer in the top of the fourth.
But that lead disappeared in the span of four bottom-of-the-order batters in the fifth, a rally that rookie Andy Pages sparked with a one-out infield single.
Rojas got ahead with a 3-and-1 count and turned on a 94-mph fastball from Ragans, driving his third homer of the season — and 47th of his 11-year career — 390 feet to left field to pull the Dodgers to within 3-2.
“That was a big hit for us, kind of gave us some life,” Roberts said. “Ragans was throwing the ball so well that one moment, you’re thinking you might get no-hit, and the next thing you know, you’re back in the ballgame.”
Dodgers relief pitcher Alex Vesia reacts after earning a save to close out a 4-3 win over the Royals on Friday.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
Kiké Hernández grounded back to the mound for the second out, but Taylor jumped on a 2-1 changeup, lining his homer into the left-center field pavilion to make it 3-3. It was only Taylor’s 10th hit and second extra-base hit of the season.
“I try to just take it day by day, but I definitely have my moments of frustration,” Taylor said of his season-long struggles. “It’s kind of weird, not being in there that often. Some days you’re feeling good and you don’t play. Then sometimes you’re not feeling good. I’m just trying to be consistent with my work and ready when the opportunity comes.”
Roberts, a former big-league outfielder, said he couldn’t imagine going through what Taylor has endured this season.
“For me, there would’ve been a lot of sleepless nights,” he said. “But he comes in every day ready to help us win, and that’s just sort of who he is. … He’s pretty much the same whether he’s going really well or scuffling.”
Taylor’s wife and young son, Theo, who was born last year, help keep things in perspective.
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1. Dodgers starting pitcher Gavin Stone delivers against the Royals in the first inning Friday. 2. Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages makes a sliding catch in the seventh inning. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 3. Chris Taylor runs the bases after hitting a solo home run off Royals pitcher Cole Ragans in the fifth inning.
“I don’t know how I would have handled this earlier in my career,” Taylor said. “I think I took things home with me a lot more. Now that I have my wife and kid at home, it’s a good escape from all of this. I’m very thankful that I have them.”
Stone, who entered with a 7-2 record and 2.93 ERA in 12 starts, blanked the Royals on one hit through three innings but ran into trouble in the fourth, Maikel Garcia leading off with a single to center, taking second on a Bobby Witt Jr. groundout and third on a wild pitch. Vinnie Pasquantino walked to put runners on first and third with one out.
Stone then hung an 88-mph first-pitch slider to Perez, who demolished the middle-of-the-plate offering for his 11th homer of the season, the ball leaving the veteran catcher’s bat at 113.3 mph and traveling 437 feet for a 3-0 lead.
“Yeah, no doubt, for sure,” Stone said, when asked if he wanted that pitch to Perez back. “But once it’s over, you can’t really do anything about it. You can only focus on the next hitter, and so just having that approach helps a lot.”
Stone escaped a first-and-third, two-out jam in the fifth by getting the dangerous Witt to fly out to center field, and he retired the side in order in the sixth and seventh innings to give the Dodgers a chance.
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1. Dodgers fans Denise, left, and Colleen Quinn-Allen enjoy Pride Night at Dodger Stadium before Friday’s game against the Kansas City Royals. 2. Dodgers fans dance to music during Pride Night at Dodger Stadium. 3. Dodgers fans enjoy Pride Night at Dodger Stadium. 4. Dodgers fans enjoy Pride Night. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
It marked the fourth time in nine starts that Stone, who gave up three runs and four hits, struck out three and walked two for a no-decision, completed seven innings.
“I’ve got all the trust in the world in him that he can make a pitch when he needs to, get back after a tough inning and keep us in the ballgame, which he did,” Roberts said of Stone. “He saved the bullpen, which was a bit in limbo. It seems like he does that every time he takes the baseball, and he’s earned that trust.”
The Cleveland Browns, rumored to be willing to trade down from their No. 6 overall selection in the 2026 NFL draft, did just that Thursday evening when the traded the pick to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cleveland traded the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft to the Chiefs, in exchange for the ninth overall pick, as well as pick No. 74 in the third round and No. 148 in the fifth round.
The Browns now hold the No. 9 and No. 24 picks in the first round of the draft. They have a total of 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns watch from the sidelines during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 7, 2025. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
So the Chiefs gave up three picks in making the first trade of the first round.
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And we know what the fan bases of both clubs were thinking prior to the selection:
Chiefs fans were thinking we know something they don’t. And then the Chiefs selected cornerback Mansoor Delane from LSU — a move no doubt forced by the club’s trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the offseason.
So, the Chiefs fill a major need, assuming Delane is indeed the quality corner they believe.
LSU Tigers CB Mansoor Delane celebrates a defensive stop against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in South Carolina. (Ken Ruinard/USA TODAY Network)
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ESPN’s Mel Kiper didn’t like the pick, by the way. He had Delane as the 14th best player in the draft.
“It was a necessity,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL defensive back, responded.
Browns fans weren’t thinking that way.
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They were probably thinking something akin to “We screwed up.”
This is understandable because they’re Browns fans and this could have been the Browns Browning.
Well, the Browns, moving down three slots, gave up a shot to draft linebacker Sonny Styles of Ohio State to the Washington Commanders, receiver Jordyn Tyson to the New Orleans Saints and then the Browns got their chance with the newly acquired No. 9 pick:
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Offensive tackle Spencer Fano of Utah.
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Ind., on Feb. 24, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Fano is good. And he makes the Browns offensive line instantly better because he’s going to likely start at left tackle for them.
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So what will Browns fans think of this pick?
They’ll probably wonder why the Browns didn’t pick Miami’s Francis Mauigoa, who went with the No. 10 pick to the New York Giants and promised “to die for” Jaxson Dart if necessary. They’ll wonder this because Browns fans expect the worst.
UCLA women’s basketball team has added some star power as its revamped roster begins to take shape.
Former Iowa State forward Addy Brown announced Thursday she is committing to UCLA, giving the Bruins one of the top players in the portal.
Brown averaged 11.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the floor and 33.8% from three-point distance with the Cyclones last season. She played just 21 games due to injury, but she is one of the better two-way players in the nation on the transfer market.
The 6-foot-2 forward co-starred with Audi Crooks for Iowa State the past few seasons and was a part of the mass exodus from the Cyclones’ program.
The Bruins reeled in former North Carolina junior guard Elina Aarnisalo and former Texas Christian senior guard Donovyn Hunter a few weeks ago, adding two more experienced players to the depleted starting lineup after a record six UCLA players were selected in the WNBA draft.
UCLA also signed Arkansas sophomore guard Bonnie Deas earlier this month. She is likely to start at point guard for the Bruins and is one of the best rebounding guards in the nation.
Along with returner Timea Gardiner, the Bruins are starting to form somewhat of a core to defend their national championship. Gardiner was a starter during UCLA’s 2024-25 Final Four run, but missed all of this past season with injury and has one season of eligibility left.
A lineup with Deas and Aarnisalo in the backcourt, Hunter at the three and Gardiner or Brown at the four and adding another big or Sienna Betts at the five would be a competitive lineup in the Big Ten.
Before going to TCU, Hunter played two seasons at Oregon State where she earned All-Pac-12 Defensive Team honorable mention and All-Pac-12 Freshman team honors. This past season with a Horned Frogs team that went to the Sweet 16, she was third in scoring with 10.2 points per game and averaged 3.2 rebounds per contest. She also shot 45.7% from the field and was 33.7% from beyond the arc.
Aarnisalo played her freshman year in Westwood after she originally committed to UCLA in 2025. Due to injuries from point guard Kiki Rice at the start of the 2024-25 season, she was forced into action early her freshman season and finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game.
The Helsinki, Finland, native averaged 10.2 points per game for the Tar Heels as a sophomore last season while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.3% from the arc. The Bruins will desperately need to replace the three-point production lost with the departure of Rice, Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.
UCLA coach Cori Close said she wanted to sign five players from the portal. She probably needs one more guard and a little more forward depth coming off the bench following the departures of Gabriela Jaquez and Angela Dugalic.
Lena Bilic and Amanda Muse are returners coming off the bench who got a little bit of playing time in the tournament and should have much larger roles, but they are still relatively unproven in late-game situations. They will get a chance to develop as backups with some more Power Four experienced starters now in the fold.
Trump says there’s ‘no time frame’ to secure Iran deal
Republican Minnesota Senate candidate Tom Weiler joins ‘Fox & Friends’ to discuss President Donald Trump’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S.-Iranian conflict continues and react to Gov. Tim Walz’s, D-Minn., criticism of the president.
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Saudi Arabia was among the countries seeing missiles fly into their airspace as a conflict broke out in the Middle East between the U.S. and Iran.
The prospect of Iran targeting its Middle Eastern neighbors like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates put some sporting events on hold and questioned others. Formula 1 races in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were canceled and rumors swirled around whether future WWE events could be held in the kingdom.
Roman Reigns celebrates his win during WWE’s Royal Rumble at Riyadh Season Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 31, 2026. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
As the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire with Iran, WWE announced on Thursday that its Night of Champions premium live event will be held in Riyadh on June 27.
“We are proud to welcome Night of Champions back to Riyadh and look forward to delivering another unforgettable night of WWE action for fans in the Kingdom and around the world,” General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Al-Sheikh said in a news release.
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Sami Zayn makes his entrance during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
The release touted that WrestleMania 43 will still be held in Riyadh in 2027. It will be the first time that WrestleMania is held outside the U.S.
WWE president Nick Khan was adamant before WrestleMania 42 that the event will still take place in Saudi Arabia despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“We’re doing WrestleMania next year in Saudi,” he said at a Sports Business Journal event, via The Sporting Tribune. “First time ever, WrestleMania will be outside the United States or Canada. And we’ve had a big, fruitful partnership with them.”
John Cena wrestles CM Punk during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
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He added that those complaining about WrestleMania being held in Saudi Arabia were a “vocal minority.”
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