The Sports Report: Dodgers land Yoshinobu Yamamoto for $325 million

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

From Jack Harris and Mike DiGiovanna: The big-spending Dodgers beat out at least a dozen other teams to procure the most coveted starting pitcher on the free-agent market, agreeing to terms on a 12-year, $325-million deal with Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, according to a person with knowledge of the deal unauthorized to speak publicly.

Yamamoto, 25, is the team’s third major acquisition in a week, joining two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani, who signed a record 10-year, $700-million contract last Thursday, and veteran right-hander Tyler Glasnow, who signed a five-year, $136.5-million extension on Saturday after being traded from Tampa Bay to Los Angeles.

And Ohtani, who has added “recruiting coordinator” to his already vast tool kit, helped make both deals happen, joining fellow most valuable player award winners Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman for last Tuesday’s sales pitch to Yamamoto in Dodger Stadium and reportedly recording a video message to woo Glasnow.

“It was important to Shohei that this wasn’t the one move we were gonna make, and I think anyone who has watched us operate over the years, we’re trying to add really good players at every turn,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said at Thursday’s introductory news conference for Ohtani.

“We also gave our pledge [to Ohtani to keep adding], because that’s something that was incredibly important to [owner] Mark Walter, and it’s incredibly important to us, so those things were in perfect alignment.”

The 5-foot-10, 176-pound Yamamoto, who joined Ohtani to help Japan win last spring’s World Baseball Classic, was named Pacific League MVP for the third straight year in late-November after winning his third straight Sawamura Award, the Japanese equivalent of the Cy Young Award.

Hernández: Shohei Ohtani’s $680-million loan to Dodgers made Yoshinobu Yamamoto deal possible

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RAMS

From Gary Klein: The Rams put on a show for new Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani.

And they once again showed the rest of the NFL that they could be one of the NFL’s most dangerous teams down the stretch, if not a home run to make the playoffs.

With Ohtani watching from Rams owner Stan Kroenke’s suite, the Rams’ 30-22 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday night at SoFi Stadium tightened the Rams’ grip on a possible postseason berth.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford continued his extraordinary play, receivers Puka Nacua and Demarcus Robinson caught touchdown passes and Kyren Williams eclipsed 1,000 yards rushing this season as the Rams improved their record to 8-7 and held the No. 7 seed for the NFC playoffs.

Safety Jordan Fuller intercepted a pass and linebacker Ernest Jones IV, rookie lineman Kobie Turner had sacks for a defense that helped the Rams win for the fifth time in six games.

Ohtani was on the sideline before the game. Early in the second quarter, after cameras projected his image on the giant video board, Ohtani opened his leather jacket to reveal a custom No. 17 Rams jersey.

Ohtani, who received a $700-million contract from the Dodgers, had to be impressed by Stafford, who threw passes seemingly from 700 million arm angles.

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Rams’ 30-22 home victory over the New Orleans Saints by the numbers

Rams box score

NFL scores

NFL standings

CLIPPERS

From Andrew Greif: One night after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the court in Dallas, his team’s nine-game winning streak came crashing to an end without him Thursday in Oklahoma City.

With Leonard sidelined by a contusion of his left hip, which he’d suffered in the final minute of the Clippers’ win the previous night, the Clippers’ undefeated month finally saw its first blemish in a 134-115 loss to the Thunder.

Asked about the severity of Leonard’s injury, coach Tyronn Lue said Leonard was “day to day.” The team next plays Saturday in a home matinee against Eastern Conference-leading Boston.

Paul George returned after his one-game absence due to illness and scored 22 points in 29 minutes. James Harden scored 23 points, with nine rebounds, six assists and three turnovers.

Playing their third game in four days, the Clippers (17-11) trailed by 12 only halfway through the opening quarter and as many as 14 early into the second. Though they fared well in limiting most valuable player candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – the guard the Clippers dealt away as part of their trade to acquire Paul George in 2019 – and punished one of the NBA’s worst rebounding teams on the offensive glass, they struggled to contain the Thunder’s lone big man, Chet Holmgren, who scored 13 of his 23 points in the first half.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points but shot 11-for-25 from the field.

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Russell Westbrook believes he can be ‘anything on the floor,’ including an all-NBA defender

Clippers box score

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NBA standings

LAKERS

From Dan Woike: Less than 24 hours before tip Thursday night, a dejected Anthony Davis sat in the visiting locker room in Chicago after his Lakers struggled in a loss to the Bulls.

No break was coming his team’s way, Davis said, the pathway out of the team’s slump would need to come from within.

Despite rolling his ankle for the second time in two weeks, Davis was on the court Thursday against the Timberwolves, the top team in the West.

But with LeBron James out for the second night in a back-to-back, even a pretty good Lakers performance wasn’t good enough, the team losing its fourth in a row 118-111.

Davis scored 31 and the Lakers were in position deep into the second half, but they could never get enough stops or scores.

Still, in some ways, it was a step forwards, the Lakers finally showing consistent fight and intensity before cooling off in the fourth.

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Lakers box score

NBA scores

NBA standings

10 GREATEST KINGS

After Hockey Hall of Famer Helene Elliott unveiled her choices for the 10 greatest Kings of all time, along with Jim Fox and Nick Nickson (click here for their picks), we asked readers of this newsletter, Who do you consider the 10 greatest Kings of all time? Points were awarded based on where the player was ranked on each ballot (12 points for first, nine for second, eight for third, etc.) After 792 ballots, here are the results:

1. Anze Kopitar (483 first-place votes), 8,637 points

2. Wayne Gretzky (149), 6.470

3. Marcel Dionne (37), 5,738

4. Jonathan Quick (45), 5,410

5. Drew Doughty (36), 4.558

6. Luc Robitaille, 4,319

7. Dave Taylor (17), 3,661

8. Dustin Brown (25), 3,451

9. Rob Blake, 1,793

10. Rogie Vachon, 1,614

Others receiving votes, in order of points:

Butch Goring, Bernie Nicholls, Charlie Simmer, Tony Granato, Bob Miller, Ziggy Palffy, Bill Flett, Tomas Sandstrom, Jay Wells, Kelly Hrudey, Marty McSorley, Steve Duchesne, Jim Fox, Larry Robinson, Tiger Williams.

DUCKS

Elias Lindholm had a goal and two assists, Jacob Markstrom made 27 saves for his 200th win and the Calgary Flames extended their winning streak to a season-best three games with a 3-0 victory Thursday night over the Ducks.

Nick DeSimone scored his first career goal 2:24 into the opening period and A.J. Greer also scored as the Flames ended a four-game road losing streak.

Lukas Dostal made 41 saves for Anaheim, which had won two in a row. Ducks goalie John Gibson was available but occupied a backup role after missing a game this week following the birth of his child.

Ducks box score

NHL scores

NHL standings

UCLA BASKETBALL

No. 2 UCLA cruised undefeated through its nonconference schedule, beating ranked Connecticut, Florida State and Ohio State on the road.

Now, the Bruins are about to face their biggest test yet.

They’ll take on No. 6 USC after Christmas in the teams’ Pac-12 opener in a game expected to be sold out at Pauley Pavilion.

“It’s going to be a blast,” coach Cori Close said Thursday after the Bruins routed Hawaii 85-46 to improve to 11-0. “We’re not even close to playing our best basketball.”

Charisma Osborne scored 17 points and UCLA had more than half of its points in the paint in the first half.

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UCLA box score

USC BASKETBALL

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: McKenzie Forbes’ season-best 36 points helped No. 6 USC survive Long Beach State’s upset bid on Thursday at Walter Pyramid, leading the short-handed Trojans to an 85-77 win.

The Trojans (10-0) were without star freshman JuJu Watkins and All-Pac-12 forward Rayah Marshall, who both missed the game with an illness. Forbes, a transfer from Harvard, stepped up with her second consecutive season-best scoring night to finish USC’s undefeated nonconference season.

Now the real fun starts.

With No. 2 UCLA routing Hawaii 85-46 at Pauley Pavilion on Thursday, the crosstown rivals are set up for a titanic clash on Dec. 30. The conference-opening matchup at Pauley Pavilion will be the first time UCLA and USC have met as two top-10 teams since 1981.

As Forbes put the finishing touches on Thursday’s win, sinking two final free throws with 1.9 seconds remaining, a USC fan seated behind the team’s bench was already thinking ahead.

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USC box score

BASEBALL

Major League Baseball is widening the runner’s lane approaching first base to include a portion of fair territory, changing a more than century-old rule that caused World Series controversy over interference calls.

MLB also is shortening the pitch clock with runners on base by two seconds to 18 and further reducing mound visits in an effort to speed games.

Another change adopted Thursday by the sport’s 11-man competition committee requires a pitcher who warms up on the mound before a half inning to face at least one batter.

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Shohei Ohtani murals pop up in L.A. Here’s where to see the Japanese star on walls

SOCCER

From Kevin Baxter: Don Garber acknowledged long ago he didn’t know much about soccer when he left the NFL for MLS. Last week, the MLS commissioner showed he still doesn’t understand the sport.

The league’s attempt to limit its participation in the U.S. Open Cup to developmental MLS Next Pro players, knee-capping the country’s oldest national soccer competition, was a colossal mistake. And the league apparently knew it was courting controversy. Because while the decision was approved at the league’s board of governors gathering on Dec. 13, it wasn’t included in the news release that detailed the other mostly minor decisions made at the meeting.

Instead, MLS waited until Friday evening to make the announcement, hoping no one would notice.

U.S. Soccer, which manages the Open Cup, wasn’t warned the decision was coming even though Garber is a member of the federation’s board. One high-ranking federation employee said he found out about 15 minutes before leaving for the annual holiday party.

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BOWL SCHEDULE

All times Pacific

Thursday’s result
Boca Raton Bowl
South Florida 45, Syracuse 0

Today
Gasparilla Bowl
3:30 p.m., ESPN
UCF vs. Duke

Saturday
Birmingham Bowl
9 a.m., ABC
Georgia Tech vs. Troy

Camellia Bowl
9 a.m., ESPN
Arkansas State vs. Northern Illinois

Armed Forces Bowl
12:30 p.m., ABC
James Madison vs. Air Force

Potato Bowl
12:30 p.m., ESPN
Utah State vs. Georgia State

68 Ventures Bowl
4 p.m., ESPN
South Alabama vs. Eastern Michigan

Las Vegas Bowl
4:30 p.m., ABC
Northwestern vs. Utah

Hawaii Bowl
7:30 p.m., ESPN
San Jose State vs. Coastal Carolina

Tuesday
Quick Lane Bowl
11 a.m., ESPN
Bowling Green vs. Minnesota

First Responder Bowl
2:30 p.m., ESPN
Texas State vs. Rice

Guaranteed Rate Bowl
3 p.m., ESPN
Kansas vs. UNLV

Wednesday
Military Bowl
11 a.m., ESPN
Tulane vs. Virginia Tech

Duke’s Mayo Bowl
2:30 p.m., ESPN
North Carolina vs. West Virginia

Holiday Bowl
5 p.m., Fox
No. 15 Louisville vs. USC

Texas Bowl
6 p.m., Fox
No. 20 Oklahoma State vs. Texas A&M

Thursday
Fenway Bowl
8 a.m., ESPN
No. 24 SMU vs. Boston College

Pinstripe Bowl
11:15 a.m., ESPN
Miami vs. Rutgers

Pop-Tarts Bowl
2:45 p.m., ESPN
NC State vs. Kansas State

Alamo Bowl
6:15 p.m., ESPN
No. 12 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 Arizona

Friday, Dec. 29
Gator Bowl
9 a.m., ESPN
No. 22 Clemson vs. Kentucky

Sun Bowl
11 a.m., CBS
No. 19 Oregon State vs. No. 16 Notre Dame

Liberty Bowl
12:30 p.m., ESPN
Iowa State vs. Memphis

Cotton Bowl
5 p.m., ESPN
No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Missouri

Saturday, Dec. 30
Peach Bowl
9 a.m., ESPN
No. 10 Penn State vs. No. 11 Ole Miss

Music City Bowl
11 a.m., ABC
Auburn vs. Maryland

Orange Bowl
1 p.m., ESPN
No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 6 Georgia

Arizona Bowl
1:30 p.m., The CW
Toledo vs. Wyoming

Monday, Jan. 1
ReliaQuest Bowl
9 a.m., ESPN2
No. 13 LSU vs. Wisconsin

Citrus Bowl
9 a.m., ABC
No. 17 Iowa vs. No. 21 Tennessee

Fiesta Bowl
9 a.m., ESPN
No. 8 Oregon vs. No. 23 Liberty

Rose Bowl
2 p.m., ESPN
No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama

Sugar Bowl
5:45 p.m., ESPN
No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas

Monday, Jan. 8
1:30 p.m., ESPN
National Championship Game

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1894 — The United States Golf Assn. is founded, becoming the governing body for the game in the country.

1915 — The Federal League folds. Owners of the American and National Leagues buy out half of the owners (Pittsburgh, Newark, Buffalo, and Brooklyn) of the Federal League teams. Phil Ball, owner of the St. Louis Terriers, is allowed to buy the St. Louis Browns of the AL, and Charles Weeghman, owner of the Chicago Whales, buys the Chicago Cubs of the NL.

1974 — Boston’s Phil Esposito scores two goals, including his 500th goal, to lead the Bruins to a 5-4 win over the Detroit Red Wings at Boston Garden.

1990 — Paul Coffey becomes the second NHL defenseman to record 1,000 points. Coffey reaches the milestone with an assist on Kevin Stevens’ goal in second-period of a 4-3 win against the New York Islanders.

1996 — Brett Hull becomes the 24th player in NHL history to score 500 goals, with a hat trick in the St. Louis Blues’ 7-4 win over the Kings. Brett and his father, Bobby Hull, are the first father-son tandem to each score 500 goals.

2005 — Reggie Campbell of Navy ties the NCAA bowl record with five touchdowns and had 290 all-purpose yards, leading the Midshipmen to a 51-30 win over Colorado State in the Poinsettia Bowl.

2006 — Peter Bondra scores his 500th NHL goal early in the third period to snap a 1-all tie and lead Chicago past Toronto 3-1.

2013 — Peyton Manning finishes 32 for 51 for 400 yards and four touchdown passes to set the single season touchdown mark in Denver’s 37-13 win over Houston. Manning, with 51 touchdown passes, passes Tom Brady (50 in 2007).
2013 — Tom Brady leads the Patriots to a 41-7 win at Baltimore as New England clinches the AFC East. It’s the 11th division title for Brady, the most by a starting quarterback in NFL history.

2020 — Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi scores his 644th goal for FC Barcelona during 3-0 win over Real Valladolid to break Pele’s record for most goals for one club; Pele, 643 goals for Santos 1956-74

Compiled by the Associated Press