Dodgers embrace being baseball’s bad guy
The Dodgers beat the Mariners Thursday and have the best record in baseball. They are also the favorites to land Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline as they lean into their villain role.
Good morning! The MLB trade deadline is Monday, and no team looms larger over it than the Dodgers. Los Angeles beat Seattle Thursday to push its NL West lead to 12 games and is now the favorite to land Tarik Skubal. Elsewhere, the Padres’ five-game win streak came to an end against the Giants, the Aces survived a shootout with the Liberty in Las Vegas, and training camps rolled on for the Chargers, Cowboys and Raiders. Let’s get into it.
🚨 HEADLINES
⚾ Bad guys finish first. The Dodgers beat the Mariners 6-2 and are the favorites to land Tarik Skubal before the trade deadline — Arash Markazi at Dodger Stadium.
⚾ Streak snapped. Robbie Ray shut down the Padres in a 4-1 Giants win that ended San Diego’s five-game run — Eric Evelhoch at Petco Park.
🏀 Resilient Aces. A’ja Wilson’s 33 points powered Las Vegas past the Liberty, 104-99 — Steve Carp at Michelob Ultra Arena.
🏈 Dak’s dialed in. The Cowboys offense is already finding its rhythm in Oxnard — Sebastian Sanchez has the details from Oxnard.
🏈 Mentor mode. Khalil Mack is guiding the Chargers’ young pass rushers while Justin Herbert keeps lighting up camp — Fernando Ramirez at The Bolt.
⚾ Ohtani sits. The Dodgers gave Shohei Ohtani a day off Thursday due to knee soreness — Fredo Cervantes at Dodger Stadium.
See what else is trending at The Sporting Tribune.
📋 SCOREBOARD — THURSDAY
⚾ MLB: Dodgers 6, Mariners 2 · Giants 4, Padres 1
🏀 WNBA: Aces 104, Liberty 99
⚾ THE DODGERS AREN’T APOLOGIZING FOR ANYTHING
“What’s wrong with being the bad guy?” That’s the question actor Jason Bateman asks in the Dodgers’ Opening Day hype video, and it played again Thursday before Los Angeles beat Seattle 6-2 to improve to an MLB-best 69-40 and extend its NL West lead to 12 games. The Dodgers leaned into the villain role all offseason — signing Kyle Tucker to a four-year, $240 million deal and closer Edwin Díaz for three years and $69 million — and now they’re the favorites to add reigning two-time AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal before the MLB trade deadline. With three of last October’s four playoff starters currently sidelined and a contentious labor fight looming in December that could bring a salary cap and shrink the Dodgers’ championship window, Arash Markazi argues the time to go all in is now, not later. As manager Dave Roberts put it after last year’s NLCS sweep: “Before the season started, they said the Dodgers are ruining baseball. Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball.” They got those four wins. Now they’re chasing a third straight title — something no team has done since the Yankees’ 1998-2000 run.
GO DEEPER
› Arash Markazi: Dodgers embrace role of baseball’s ‘bad guy’ entering trade deadline (The Sporting Tribune)
› Fredo Cervantes: Dodgers give Shohei Ohtani day off due to knee soreness (The Sporting Tribune)
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⚾ NO TRAFFIC, NO RUNS FOR THE PADRES
San Diego’s five-game win streak came to a close Thursday in a 4-1 loss to the Giants, as Robbie Ray retired 11 of his final 12 batters and the Padres could never turn traffic into runs. Xander Bogaerts drove in San Diego’s lone run, and Fernando Tatis Jr. robbed a Rafael Devers drive at the wall, but the Padres stranded seven runners and drew only one walk all night. “It felt like we were in a lot of good counts for a lot of the night, and then he just made pitches to get himself out of it,” manager Craig Stammen said of Ray. Randy Vásquez turned in the longest relief outing of his career to keep it manageable, and Stammen struck an optimistic note afterward: “We were able to lose in a good manner tonight… hopefully it sets us up better for the next day and the days going forward.” The Padres (55-54) go for the series lead Friday night at Petco Park.
GO DEEPER
› Eric Evelhoch: Lack of traffic leads to Padres winning streak getting snapped by Giants (The Sporting Tribune)
🏀 ACES OUTLAST THE LIBERTY
In front of a sellout crowd of 10,500, A’ja Wilson delivered 33 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and two blocks as the Aces held off the Liberty, 104-99, in a battle of two of the league’s marquee stars. Las Vegas improves to 20-8 and two games back of Minnesota for the top seed, with Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray and Jewell Loyd all contributing behind Wilson. Breanna Stewart led New York with 26 points, but the Aces’ defense made enough stops down the stretch to hold on. “Resiliency is part of any championship team,” coach Becky Hammon said. “We talk about trying to be consistent in what we do, especially defensively.” Gray, who added 16 points, said the group is still finding its identity 28 games in: “I like where we’re at. We’re getting better in real time.” Las Vegas hits the road for a five-game trip starting Sunday in Chicago.
GO DEEPER
› Steve Carp: Aces show resiliency in win over Liberty (The Sporting Tribune)
📺 WATCHLIST — FRIDAY, JULY 31
⚾ MLB: Brewers at Angels – ABTV — 6:30 p.m. PT
⚾ MLB: Giants at Padres – Padres TV – 6:40 p.m. PT
⚾ MLB: Red Sox at Dodgers – SNLA — 7:10 p.m. PT
🎟️ GOING TO A GAME?
Get-in prices across Southern California and Las Vegas — brought to you by TickPick, the no-hidden-fee ticket marketplace.
⚾ Fri., July 31: Giants at Padres — Petco Park — $37
⚾ Fri., July 31: Brewers at Angels — Angel Stadium — $13
⚾ Fri., July 31: Red Sox at Dodgers— Dodger Stadium — $64
🌴 TST TRIVIA
The Dodgers are chasing a third straight World Series title. Which team was the last to win three consecutive titles?
Answer at the bottom.
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Trivia answer: The 1998-2000 New York Yankees.
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