Good morning! Saturday went 1-1 for Southern California baseball: the Dodgers lead their series and the Padres trail theirs. USC beat Washington 25-21 thanks to its defense, UNLV beat Cal, and the Kings rallied from two goals down in the third in San Jose before losing in overtime. Today is crowded: Angel City and the Rams start at 10, the Padres play at 1, the Raiders host unbeaten Kansas City and the Chargers are in Seattle at 1:25, the Ducks and Dodgers both play at 5, and the Golden Knights are in Vancouver at 6. Let’s get into it.
🚨 HEADLINES
⚾ 1-0. Skubal threw six innings of one-run ball, and Hernández, Tucker and Muncy homered in a 5-3 win over Atlanta — Fredo Cervantes at Dodger Stadium.
⚾ 0-1. Jackson Chourio and William Contreras homered as Milwaukee came back to beat the Padres 3-2 — Eric Evelhoch in Milwaukee.
🏈 Gutsy. Jahkeem Stewart’s 48-yard fumble return helped No. 18 USC hold off Washington 25-21 — Holdenn Graff at the Coliseum.
🏈 Five touchdowns. Jackson Arnold ran for two and threw for three as UNLV beat Cal 39-31 — Steve Carp at Allegiant Stadium.
🏒 0-1-1. The Kings erased a two-goal third-period deficit and lost 5-4 in overtime at San Jose — Brady Charette in San Jose.
🏈 Battle of unbeatens. The 3-0 Raiders host Mahomes and the Chiefs this afternoon — Derek Hegna in Las Vgeas.
See what else is trending at The Sporting Tribune.
📋 SCOREBOARD — SATURDAY
⚾ NLDS: Dodgers 5, Braves 3 (Dodgers lead 1-0) · Brewers 3, Padres 2 (Brewers lead 1-0)
🏈 College: USC 25, Washington 21 · UNLV 39, Cal 31 · San Diego State 31, Texas State 22 · San Jose State 20, Hawaii 16
🏒 NHL: Sharks 5, Kings 4 (OT)
🏒 AHL: Firebirds 6, Reign 2
⚾ SPLIT SCREEN
Dave Roberts went with Tarik Skubal over Yoshinobu Yamamoto for Game 1, and it worked. In his first home postseason start, Skubal allowed one run on two hits over six innings and struck out seven.
“Not making one pitch bigger than it needs to be, just being pretty present,” Skubal told Fredo Cervantes.
The offense was all home runs. Teoscar Hernández hit a solo shot. Kyle Tucker hit a two-run homer in the sixth. Max Muncy added a solo homer, his 17th career postseason home run as a Dodger. Shohei Ohtani, playing through the biceps and knee problems he talked about Friday, singled in the first and went 1-for-4. The Dodgers won 5-3 and lead the series 1-0.
“Our fans really remember what you do in the postseason,” Roberts said.
Blake Snell starts Game 2 tonight at 5 on FS1. Atlanta hadn’t named its starter; Chris Sale is a possibility.
In Milwaukee, the Padres had the lead first and lost it. Eric Evelhoch writes that Luis Campusano singled in a run and Jake Cronenworth’s broken-bat grounder brought in another for a 2-0 lead in the second. Then Jackson Chourio hit a 420-foot, two-run homer off Robbie Ray in the third to tie it, and William Contreras homered off Adrian Morejon in the seventh. The Brewers won 3-2. Ray lasted only 2⅔ innings.
That puts the Padres in a must-win spot at 1 p.m. today. Michael King, who threw seven one-hit innings against the Cubs, starts against Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47). A loss would send them home down 0-2.
GO DEEPER
› Fredo Cervantes: Tarik Skubal sets the tone as Dodgers take Game 1 of the NLDS (The Sporting Tribune)
› Eric Evelhoch: Padres drop NLDS opener as Brewers rally behind pair of home runs (The Sporting Tribune)
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🏈 THE GUTSY KIND
A week ago, Arash Markazi wrote that USC had seen enough of Lincoln Riley’s teams collapsing in the second half of the season: 4-0 to 5-4 last year, 6-0 to 1-5 in 2023. The fourth-quarter loss to Oregon looked like more of the same.
On Saturday, the Trojans didn’t collapse. They didn’t look great either, but they won. Holdenn Graff writes that No. 18 USC (5-1) beat Washington 25-21 on the strength of two defensive plays. Elijah Newby forced a fumble from Demond Williams Jr., and Jahkeem Stewart returned it 48 yards for a touchdown. Late in the fourth quarter, Kameryn Crawford’s third-down sack forced Washington into a fourth down it couldn’t convert.
Jayden Maiava completed 21 of 34 passes for 245 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Waymond Jordan and Tanook Hines also scored.
“You go blow somebody out or play awesome,” Riley said, “but sometimes these gutsy wins can do something for you maybe that even a blowout win can’t do.”
We’ll see. USC has a bye, then goes to Penn State for a White Out game. Riley is 5-15 against ranked opponents with the Trojans, and that trip is exactly the kind of game that has defined his tenure.
GO DEEPER
› Holdenn Graff: Trojan defense helps USC escape thriller over Washington (The Sporting Tribune)
› TST Images: USC defeats Washington, 25-21, at Coliseum (The Sporting Tribune)
› Arash Markazi: USC has seen enough and it’s time to move on from Lincoln Riley (The Sporting Tribune)
🍔 THE DEALS BOARD
Active today across Southern California — brought to you by Ike’s Sandwiches, home of the world famous Arash Markazi sandwich, which has fried chicken, purple slaw, wasabi mayo, honey mustard, and cheddar on a Dutch Crunch roll. Just ask for the 500 at any Ike’s location. Eight deals are live after the Game 1 win.
🐼 Panda Express — $7 Panda Plate. Dodgers home win. Code DODGERSWIN, Panda Rewards account required.
🍔 Jack in the Box — free Jumbo Jack with a large Coca-Cola. Dodgers pitchers struck out nine Braves, and the deal needed seven. Code GODODGERS26, app or in-store.
🌭 ampm — free Dodger Dog and 16-oz Coca-Cola. Home game, and the Dodgers stole a base. Scan in the ampm app; good through midnight.
🧋 Sunright Tea Studio — BOGO Blue Heaven Frostie. Home win. Code ILOVELA.
🌮 El Portal, Pasadena — $12 combination plates and $7 house margaritas. Order online for pickup.
☕ Con Azúcar Café, Sylmar — free size upgrade and Dodgers latte art. Say “Dodgers win!” at the register.
🍦 McDonald’s — free McFlurry, any size, with a $2 purchase. The Kings scored in the final minute of the second period in San Jose. In the McDonald’s app.
🥤 Mountain Dew — free 20-oz Baja Blast. Chourio’s homer in Milwaukee went 420 feet, exactly the threshold, and it was one of five qualifying home runs around MLB. Sign up at bajablasthomeruns.com and scan at an OTC Network store.
🏟️ NINE GAMES, ONE SUNDAY
Two must-watch NLDS games. Padres at Brewers at 1, King vs. Henderson, with San Diego needing a win. Braves at Dodgers at 5 on FS1, Snell on the mound.
Three NFL games. The Rams play at Philadelphia at 10 on FOX with Puka Nacua back and Aaron Donald listed with a back injury; the Eagles have beaten them four straight. At 1:25 on CBS, the Chargers are at Seattle and the 3-0 Raiders host 3-0 Kansas City at Allegiant Stadium. The Raiders lead the NFL with nine takeaways, and Patrick Mahomes has thrown seven touchdown passes.
Hockey, twice. The Ducks open Honda Center against Florida at 5 on Prime Video after hanging on in Vegas. The Golden Knights are at Vancouver at 6 on ESPN+.
Also: Angel City plays at Gotham at 10 on ESPN, and the Clippers face the Warriors in a preseason game in Hawaii at 4 on NBA.com.
📌 AROUND THE MARKETS
A comeback, then OT. Brady Charette writes that the Kings trailed 4-2 in the third in San Jose, got goals from Erik Haula and Artemi Panarin to tie it, then lost on Igor Chernyshov’s second goal of the night late in overtime. The Kings outshot San Jose 35-25 and went 2-for-2 on the power play, but Anton Forsberg allowed five goals on 25 shots. At 0-1-1, they open their home schedule Tuesday against Florida.
“It shows where the program is right now.” Steve Carp has Jackson Arnold with 287 total yards and five touchdowns, including a 55-yard run, as UNLV (3-2) beat Cal 39-31 and stopped the Golden Bears on fourth down three times. Derek Hegna has more on Arnold’s second half.
Firebirds even it. A night after losing 6-5 in overtime, Coachella Valley beat Ontario 6-2 in the Reign’s home opener at Toyota Arena. Jani Nyman scored three goals.
GO DEEPER
› Brady Charette: Kings’ comeback falls short as Sharks prevail in overtime (The Sporting Tribune)
› Steve Carp: Rebels beat Cal in battle of big plays (The Sporting Tribune)
› Derek Hegna: Jackson Arnold wills UNLV to statement win despite dramatic second half (The Sporting Tribune)
› Derek Hegna: Raiders prepare for massive early season game in battle of unbeatens (The Sporting Tribune)
› Sabrina McClain: Ontario Reign drop home opener to Coachella Valley Firebirds (The Sporting Tribune)
📺 WATCHLIST — SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4
⚽ NWSL: Angel City FC at Gotham FC — 10:00 a.m. — ESPN
🏈 NFL: Rams at Eagles — Lincoln Financial Field — 10:00 a.m. — FOX
⚾ NLDS Game 2: Padres at Brewers — American Family Field — 1:00 p.m. — FS1
🏈 NFL: Chargers at Seahawks — Lumen Field — 1:25 p.m. — CBS
🏈 NFL: Chiefs at Raiders — Allegiant Stadium — 1:25 p.m. — CBS
🏀 NBA (preseason): Warriors vs. Clippers — Hawaii — 4:00 p.m. — NBA.com
🏒 NHL: Panthers at Ducks — Honda Center — 5:00 p.m. — Prime Video
⚾ NLDS Game 2: Braves at Dodgers — Dodger Stadium — 5:00 p.m. — FS1
🏒 NHL: Golden Knights at Canucks — Rogers Arena — 6:00 p.m. — ESPN+
🎟️ GOING TO A GAME?
Get-in prices across Southern California, Las Vegas and Hawaii — brought to you by TickPick, the no-hidden-fee ticket marketplace.
⚾ Braves at Dodgers, NLDS Game 2 — Dodger Stadium — $89
🏈 Chiefs at Raiders — Allegiant Stadium — $305
🏒 Panthers at Ducks, home opener — Honda Center — $100
🌴 TST TRIVIA
Max Muncy homered in Game 1. How many career postseason home runs does he have as a Dodger?
Answer at the bottom.
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Trivia answer: 17.
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