The Sports Report: Chargers lose Derwin James for the season

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.

Jeff Miller on the Chargers: The Chargers have lost standout safety Derwin James, likely for the season, because of right knee injury that will require surgery.

The 2018 All-Pro went down Sunday during a scrimmage in Costa Mesa and hobbled off the field.

James underwent tests immediately afterward and again on Monday, the latter round confirming the extent of the damage.

Pending the results of surgery, he is expected to need six to eight months to recover, meaning he should be ready for the 2021 season.

The injury continued a tough stretch for James health-wise. He missed the first 11 games last year after hurting his foot in a joint training camp practice with the New Orleans Saints.

Before news of James missing the season broke late Monday afternoon, coach Anthony Lynn spoke with reporters and said he made a point to spend time with James after his latest injury.

“I just wanted to be there present with the young man,” Lynn said. “This could be tough for him…He’s a strong-minded young man. He’s going to be fine.”

In replacing James, the Chargers do have multiple options. Starting free safety Rayshawn Jenkins used to play strong safety. He could shift back to the position, with Nasir Adderley taking over at free safety.

DODGERS

Jorge Castillo on the Dodgers: In the days approaching Monday’s 1 p.m. trade deadline, the consensus around the major leagues was that the Dodgers were seeking to bolster their starting rotation with a frontline pitcher. Speculation whirled about the Texas Rangers’ Lance Lynn, a workhouse that would’ve fit the role of Game 3 starter in October. It was one of the very few possible and realistic upgrades imaginable for a team with the best record in the sport.

But the Dodgers didn’t acquire a starter. They traded one, sending right-hander Ross Stripling, a mainstay the last five seasons, to the Toronto Blue Jays for two players to be named later.

“This was extremely difficult, moving Ross,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said in a videoconference with reporters. “It was a conversation that I was not looking forward to just at how uncomfortable and uneasy [it would be], just because of the respect level.”

In previous years, the Dodgers would’ve informed Stripling that he is a capable starter but there just isn’t room in the rotation and he could help in the bullpen. Stripling had become accustomed to the constant bouncing between the roles in his Dodgers tenure. He was often the odd-man out on rosters loaded with starting pitching depth.

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Dylan Hernandez: Dodgers again defer to process at trade deadline rather than acquire a starter

ANGELS

Maria Torres on the Angels: Outfielder Brian Goodwin was a revelation for the Angels, transforming from a waiver claim into a reliable option at the plate and in the field.

But with the Angels far out of a playoff position, and the farm system boasting formidable depth at his spot, Goodwin became expendable. He was traded at Monday’s deadline to the Cincinnati Reds, less than an hour after he was included in the lineup for the Angels’ series finale against the Seattle Mariners.

The Angels in exchange acquired left-handed starting pitcher Packy Naughton, who was one of the Reds’ top pitching prospects. Another pitcher is expected to be sent to the Angels at a later date to complete the deal, said a source with knowledge of the matter who was unable to publicly comment.

While the Reds were busy stocking up to improve their shot at a postseason berth, the Angels fell to 12-24 with a 2-1 loss. The Angels’ silver lining? Strong performances from starter Jaime Barria, who gave up one run in his return to the rotation, and the bullpen. Matt Andriese, Mike Mayers, Felix Peña and Ty Buttrey combined to strike out seven batters in 4 and 2/3 innings.

LAKERS

Tania Ganguli on the Lakers: Pizza is a rare luxury inside the NBA’s bubble and the Lakers took Sunday night to treat their traveling party to some.

“I’m not getting enough pizza in my life in this bubble,” coach Frank Vogel said. “Usually, at least once a week. I’m at a little bit of a deficit for my pizza eating.”

The pizza party capped an off day for the Lakers as they awaited their second-round opponent.

In the first round, the Portland Trail Blazers used bigger lineups against the Lakers to try to handle their size, often playing 7-footers Jusuf Nurkic and Hassan Whiteside together. It’s more likely the Lakers will face smaller groups in the second round, especially if they play the Rockets.

‘What I love about what we did this year is we built in the flexibility to play both styles every game that we play,” Vogel said. “We play some big lineups and some small lineups as part of our normal rotation and part of what we do.

No. 1 Lakers vs. No. 4 Houston or No. 5 Oklahoma City schedule
Second round
All times Pacific

Game 1: Friday, 6 p.m., ESPN
Game 2: Sunday, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Game 3: Tuesday, Sept. 8, 6 p.m., TNT
Game 4: Thursday, Sept. 10, TBD, TNT
Game 5*: Saturday, Sept. 12, TBD, ESPN
Game 6*: Monday, Sept. 14, TBD, TNT
Game 7*: Wed., Sept. 16, TBD, TNT

*-if necessary

CLIPPERS

Dan Woike on the Clippers: Rick Carlisle was sure of it. NBA vet — and noted pest — J.J. Barea happily yelled “bye bye.” And Luka Doncic, maybe the future face of the league, got up and was ready to fight.

But for Marcus Morris, it wasn’t anything special. He was, for better or worse, being himself.

“I just think it is what it is,” Morris said after the Clippers’ win Sunday. “Something that can be taken in different ways.”

It’s all a matter of perspective. In the eyes of the Clippers, Morris gives them some needed snarl. And in the eyes of the defeated Mavericks, there’s no doubt that Morris was dirty.

To Dallas, Morris sneakily provoked Kristaps Porzingis into a second technical foul in Game 1, getting the big man ejected. And during Game 5, he seemingly attacked Doncic’s injured ankle — sliding under him on a jumper and stepping on the back of his foot on another play. And if there were any questions of intent, Morris answered them in the first quarter Sunday when he sent Doncic to the ground after a hard shot to the head.

Officials reviewed the play and ejected Morris with a flagrant type 2 foul.

“It was a terrible play. What can I say? It’s two games in a row he did something like that,” Doncic said. “I really hoped the first game it wasn’t on purpose, but looking back on the foul this game, you know what I think. I don’t want to deal with that kind of player — just move on.”

Had that been Paul George or Kawhi Leonard on the wrong end of an overhead chop, you could bet that Morris would’ve been in the fight. The Clippers know it too. As Morris explained his actions after Sunday’s game — no apologizing — Lou Williams walked by and yelled “Keep it gangsta.”

No. 2 Clippers vs. No. 3 Denver or No. 6 Utah schedule
Second round
All times Pacific

Game 1: Thursday, 6 p.m., TNT
Game 2: Saturday, 6 p.m., TNT
Game 3: Monday, 6 p.m., TNT
Game 4: Wednesday, Sept. 9, 6 p.m., ESPN
Game 5*: Friday, Sept. 11, TBD, TNT
Game 6*: Sunday, Sept. 13, TBD, ESPN
Game 7*: Tuesday, Sept. 15, TBD, ESPN

*-if necessary

RAMS

Gary Klein on the Rams: The Sept. 13 opener against the Dallas Cowboys is less than two weeks away, so Rams coach Sean McVay is playing it safe with multiple players nursing injuries, including wide receiver Cooper Kupp.

McVay said Monday that Kupp was removed from Saturday’s mock game at SoFI Stadium because of lower leg soreness, a condition that had been present throughout the previous week.

“There was a specific play in which he communicated that he was feeling it, so we wanted to be cautious with him,” McVay said, adding that X-rays were negative. “We are going to monitor him, but he is feeling good. ... The goal is to make sure that he’s as healthy as possible for the 13th.”

With Kupp expected to be sidelined for workouts, rookie Van Jefferson will step into Kupp’s spot this week.

Jefferson, a second-round draft pick from Florida, has impressed throughout training camp.

“It’s little things every day,” quarterback Jared Goff said. “Making plays, making catches, running great routes, strong hands.”

NBA PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE

First round (all games in Orlando, Fla.)
All times Pacific

WESTERN CONFERENCE

No. 3 Denver Nuggets vs. No. 6 Utah Jazz

Game 1: Denver 135, Utah 125 (OT)
Game 2: Utah 124, Denver 105
Game 3: Utah 124, Denver 87
Game 4: Utah 129, Denver 127
Game 5: Denver 117, Utah 107
Game 6: Denver 119, Utah 107
Game 7*: Today, 5:30 p.m., ABC

No. 4 Houston Rockets vs. No. 5 Oklahoma City Thunder

Game 1: Houston 123, Oklahoma City 108
Game 2: Houston 111, Oklahoma City 98
Game 3: Oklahoma City 119, Houston 107
Game 4: Oklahoma City 117, Houston 114
Game 5: Houston 114, Oklahoma City 80
Game 6: Oklahoma City 104, Houston 100
Game 7: Wednesday, 6 p.m., ESPN

SECOND ROUND
EASTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Milwaukee vs. No. 5 Miami

Game 1: Miami 115, Milwaukee 104
Game 2: Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 3: Friday, 3:30 p.m., TNT
Game 4: Sunday, 12:30 p.m., ABC
Game 5*: Tuesday, Sept. 8, 3:30 p.m., TNT
Game 6*: Thursday, Sept. 10, TBD, ESPN
Game 7*: Saturday, Sept. 12, TBD, TNT

No. 2 Toronto vs. No. 3 Boston Celtics

Game 1: Boston 112, Toronto 94
Game 2: Today, 2:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 3: Thursday, 3:30 p.m., TNT
Game 4: Saturday, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Game 5:* Monday, 3:30 p.m., TNT
Game 6*: Wed., Sept. 9, ESPN
Game 7*: Fri., Sept. 11, TNT

* – If necessary

NHL PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE

All Times Pacific
Second round
Eastern Conference, all game in Toronto

No. 1 Philadelphia Flyers vs. No. 6 New York Islanders

Game 1: NY Islanders 4, Philadelphia 0
Game 2: Philadelphia 4, NY Islanders 3 (OT)
Game 3: NY Islanders 3, Philadelphia 1
Game 4: NY Islanders 3, Philadelphia 2
Game 5: Today, 4 p.m., NBCSN
Game 6*: Thursday, TBD
Game 7*: Saturday TBD

No. 2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs. No. 4 Boston Bruins

Game 1: Boston 3, Tampa Bay 2
Game 2: Tampa Bay 4, Boston 3 (OT)
Game 3: Tampa Bay 7, Boston 1
Game 4: Tampa Bay 3, Boston 1
Game 5: Tampa Bay 3, Boston 2 (2 OT)

Western Conference, all games in Edmonton

No. 1 Vegas Golden Knights vs. No. 5 Vancouver Canucks

Game 1: Vegas 5, Vancouver 0
Game 2: Vancouver 5, Vegas 2
Game 3: Vegas 3, Vancouver 0
Game 4: Vegas 5, Vancouver 3
Game 5: Tonight, 6:45 p.m., NBCSN
Game 6*: Thursday, TBD
Game 7*: Friday, TBD

No. 2 Colorado Avalanche vs. No. 3 Dallas Stars

Game 1: Dallas 5, Colorado 3
Game 2: Dallas 5, Colorado 2
Game 3: Colorado 6, Dallas 4
Game 4: Dallas 5, Colorado 4
Game 5: Colorado 6, Dallas 3
Game 6: Wednesday, TBD, NBCSN
Game 7*: Friday, TBD

*-if necessary

TODAY’S LOCAL MAJOR SPORTS SCHEDULE

All times Pacific.

Arizona at Dodgers, 6:30 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1906 — The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox 4-1 in 24 innings. Jack Coombs of the Athletics and Joe Harris of the Red Sox pitched all 24 innings. Coombs fanned 18.

1930 — Wes Ferrell of Cleveland beat the St. Louis Browns 9-5 for his 13th straight victory.

1931 — Lou Gehrig hit his third grand slam in four days as the Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 5-1.

1945 — The Philadelphia Phillies, behind Vince DiMaggio’s grand slam, beat the Braves 8-3 in Boston. It was the fourth grand slam of the year for DiMaggio to tie a major league mark.

1958 — Vinegar Bend Mizell of the St. Louis Cardinals set a National League record by walking nine batters and tossing a shutout. Mizell beat Cincinnati 1-0 in the first game of a doubleheader.

1963 — Curt Simmons of the St. Louis Cardinals allowed six hits, drove in two runs with a triple and stole home plate in a 7-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. Simmons’ steal of home is the last by a pitcher.

1967 — Cincinnati’s Bob Lee walked Dick Groat with the bases loaded in the 21st inning to give the San Francisco Giants a 1-0 victory at Crosley Field.

1975 — Tom Seaver struck out Manny Sanguillen in the seventh inning to become the first pitcher to strike out at least 200 batters in eight consecutive seasons. Seaver recorded 10 strikeouts in the Mets’ 3-0 triumph over Pittsburgh.

1986 — Oddibe McDowell and Darrell Porter of Texas hit back-to-back pinch hit homers in the ninth inning off Boston reliever Steve Crawford, but the Rangers fall to the Red Sox 6-4.

1998 — Mark McGwire broke Hack Wilson’s 68-year-old National League record for home runs in a season, hitting his 56th and 57th in the St. Louis Cardinals’ victory over the Florida Marlins.

1999 — Twenty-two of baseball’s 68 permanent umpires found themselves jobless, the fallout from their union’s failed attempt to force an early start to negotiations for a new labor contract. Under the deal mediated by U.S. District Judge J. Curtis Joyner, the union agreed the 22 “will provide no further services.”

2002 — Miguel Tejada hit a game-ending three-run homer to power Oakland to a 7-5 win, Oakland’s 18th straight victory, over Minnesota.

2007 — Clay Buchholz threw a no-hitter in his second major league start, just hours after being called up by the Boston Red Sox. Buchholz struck out nine, walked three and hit one batter to give the Red Sox a 10-0 victory over Baltimore.

2008 — Arizona’s Stephen Drew and Seattle’s Adrian Beltre became the first players to hit for the cycle on the same day since Bobby Veach of the Detroit Tigers and George Burns of the New York Giants did it on Sept. 17, 1920.

2014 — Cole Hamels and three Philadelphia Phillies relievers combined to pitch a no-hitter, beating the Atlanta Braves 7-0. Hamels pulled after six innings. Relievers Jake Diekman, Ken Giles and closer Jonathan Papelbon each pitched a hitless inning to finish off the fourth no-hitter in the majors this season.

And finally

Mr. Ed tries out for the Dodgers. Watch it here.