The Sports Report: Chargers select Rashawn Slater in NFL Draft’s first round

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

The first round of the NFL draft was Thursday. While the Rams didn’t have a pick, the Chargers did at No. 13. Jeff Miller with the breakdown of the team’s selection:

RASHAWN SLATER, OFFENSIVE TACKLE
6 feet 4, 304 pounds, Northwestern, Round 1, Pick 13

Northwestern tackle Rashawn Slater holds a Chargers jersey with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

(Associated Press)

Notable: Slater was a three-year starter in college and has experience at both left and right tackle. He separated himself during the 2019 season with a strong showing against Ohio State’s Chase Young, the No. 2 overall pick last year.

Last season: Slater opted out of 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has said that not playing allowed him to concentrate more on NFL-specific skills.

Why the Chargers drafted him: General manager Tom Telesco has rebuilt the team’s offensive line, with only right tackle Bryan Bulaga returning among the starters. Slater gives the Chargers a young left tackle to help protect Justin Herbert, the NFL’s top offensive rookie last season. Telesco hadn’t used a first-round pick on an offensive lineman since selecting D.J. Fluker at No. 11 in 2013.

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First round breakdown, featuring a capsule look at every selection

DODGERS

Jorge Castillo on the Dodgers: The Dodgers’ offensive slump, a period that has extended deep into a second week save for the infrequent bright spot, has included its share of lowlights. Bad at-bats. Frustrating strike three calls. Hard-hit balls erased by defensive gems.

The eighth inning in their 2-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday epitomized the stretch.

It started with Mookie Betts working a leadoff, four-pitch walk against Devin Williams, the reigning National League rookie of the year struggling out of the gate in 2021. It was just the second time the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter reached base Friday. Corey Seager was up next. Maybe, just maybe, the Dodgers had something brewing at American Family Park.

That hope lasted some seconds. Seager watched Williams throw four straight balls to Betts and swung at the first pitch anyway. It was lined up the middle, where Brewers shortstop Luis Urías was stationed in the shift. Urías gloved the ball on a hop and shoveled a lead throw to second baseman Kolten Wong, who smoothly made a leaping throwing across his body to complete a jaw-dropping double play.

“He’s an MVP-caliber player so I just don’t ever want him to be passive,� Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I like him aggressive and it’s just unfortunate they made a great play.�

The gem’s significance only climbed when Justin Turner and Will Smith followed with back-to-back singles. Williams was clearly scuffling. Max Muncy then grounded out to let him off the hook.

The offense narrowly avoided getting shut out for the first time this season thanks to Austin Barnes’ pinch-hit two-out RBI single off Josh Hader in the ninth inning. Betts then flied out to conclude the Dodgers’ eighth loss in 11 games as they fell a half-game behind the San Francisco Giants in the NL West standings.

JURISPRUDENCE

Nathan Fenno on the Eric Kay trial: The day after Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs was found dead in his hotel room, Eric Kay, the team’s longtime communications director, leaned against a blue cinder block wall during a news conference at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas.

A few feet away, facing cameras and reporters, manager Brad Ausmus wiped away tears as he described how the Angels coped during the previous 24 hours.

Sadness and shock over the sudden death of the popular player from Santa Monica hung over the stadium on the warm afternoon in July 2019. Little was known about the circumstances of the death. Questions abounded. How could a seemingly healthy, 27-year-old professional athlete die with no obvious explanation?

Kay shifted weight from one leg to the other. His left hand clasped his right wrist. He took a deep breath, leaned back, looked at the ceiling, then slowly exhaled. He appeared as dazed and heartbroken as everyone else in the room.

Authorities allege Kay knew more than he let on at the time.

Almost two years later, the now-former Angels employee is scheduled for trial this summer in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth, Texas. Kay, 46, is charged with giving Skaggs counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl that resulted in his death, and with conspiring since at least 2017 to “possess with the intent to distribute� a substance containing fentanyl. The Tarrant County medical examiner ruled that Skaggs died from “mixed ethanol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication� that led to choking on his vomit.

Kay, the only person to be charged, has pleaded not guilty.

Though authorities remain tight-lipped about the probe, court filings, text messages, law enforcement records and interviews provide a fuller picture about events leading up to Skaggs’ death and the investigation that’s still active. The main focus has been the relationship between the pitcher and the communications director.

Read more

LAFC

Kevin Baxter on LAFC: LAFC coach Bob Bradley expects to have Diego Rossi, the reigning MLS scoring champion, available for Saturday’s game in Houston, but captain Carlos Vela, the 2019 Golden Boot winner, is unlikely to make the trip.

“You can see in his training that he’s missing being on the field,� Bradley said of Rossi, who had 14 goals and four assists last season.

Rossi and Vela are the first teammates to win scoring titles in back-to-back seasons but they’ve started just four times together the last two years. Rossi missed LAFC’s first two regular-season games because of a left hamstring injury while Vela started the opener but came out midway through the first half with a knot in his right quadriceps.

Vela hasn’t trained regularly with the team since the injury and Bradley pronounced him “questionable� for LAFC’s first road game.

“We’re hopeful to get Carlos back as quickly as we can,� he said. “I have my fingers crossed that Carlos might be ready for a little bit next week.�

Bradley could not provide an update on Vela’s long-term future with his team. The former Real Sociedad attacker, 32, has been linked to a return to Spain with Real Betis, leading LAFC to open talks about a two-year contract extension, according to journalist Salvador Perez.

“My conversations with Carlos are [about] trying to find the right way to work together with our team,� Bradley said. “I don’t know anything about where it stands in terms of contract negotiations.�

MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

J. Brady McCollough on CS Northridge men’s basketball: Cal State Northridge men’s basketball coach Mark Gottfried has said he enjoyed being out of the spotlight that he experienced as the head coach for 17 years at Alabama and North Carolina State.

But it appears some of the issues he encountered in his former life followed him to Southern California.

Cal State Northridge announced Thursday it placed Gottfried and its men’s basketball staff on paid administrative leave.

“Upon learning of potential rules violations within our men’s basketball program, I directed an immediate review,� Cal State Northridge athletic director Michael Izzi said in a statement.

“Our focus will be on the welfare of our student-athletes and ensuring their academic, athletic and personal success. CSUN does not comment on specific employee issues and cannot elaborate further about the nature of the potential violations while the review is underway. However, CSUN is committed to ensuring full compliance with all university and NCAA regulations while maintaining the highest standards of integrity and institutional responsibility.�

Gottfried already has one NCAA infractions case pending from his time at North Carolina State, and it’s a big one. The NCAA in July 2019 accused N.C. State of two Level I violations involving Gottfried, assistant coach Orlando Early and star point guard Dennis Smith Jr. for an allegation that was part of the FBI investigation into college basketball corruption.

THIS DATE IN SPORTS

1922 — Charlie Robertson of the Chicago White Sox pitches a 2-0 perfect game against the Detroit Tigers.

1961 — Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants hits four home runs in a 14-4 victory over the Braves in Milwaukee.

1971 — The Milwaukee Bucks become the second team to register a four-game sweep in the NBA championship, beating the Baltimore Bullets 118-106.

1975 — Larry O’Brien is named the NBA’s third commissioner, following J. Walter Kennedy (1963-75) and Maurice Podoloff (1946-63). O’Brien holds the position until 1984.

1976 — Muhammad Ali wins a unanimous 15-round decision over Jimmy Young in Landover, Md., to retain his world heavyweight title.

1992 — The Red Wings and Canucks become the ninth and 10th teams in NHL history to rebound from 3-1 deficits to win playoff series. Detroit beats the Minnesota North Stars 5-2 in the Norris Division, while Vancouver defeats the Winnipeg Jets 5-0 in the Smythe Division.

1993 — Top-ranked Monica Seles is stabbed during a changeover in Hamburg, Germany. Guenter Parche, 38, reaches over a courtside railing and knifes Seles in the back. She has an inch-deep slit between her shoulder blades and missed the remainder of the 1993 season.

2005 — James Toney outpoints John Ruiz to win the WBA heavyweight title in New York. Toney, a former champion at three other weights, wins his third heavyweight bout, becoming the third one-time middleweight champion to take boxing’s top crown.

2010 — Tiger Woods matches the worst nine-hole score of his PGA Tour career and winds up with a 7-over 79 to miss the cut at the Quail Hollow Championship. Woods finishes at 9-over 153, the highest 36-hole total of his career. It’s the sixth time in his 14-year career he misses a cut.

2014 — Anze Kopitar scores the tiebreaking goal late in the second period and Jonathan Quick makes 39 saves to cap the Kings’ comeback from three games down with a 5-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks in Game 7 of the first rounds. This is the fourth time an NHL team won a best-of-seven series after losing the first three games.

2015 — For the first time in 51 years, the NFL draft returns to Chicago. Florida State’s Jameis Winston is selected by Tampa Bay as the first selection.

And finally

The Kings defeat the Sharks in Game 7 of the 2014 playoffs. Watch a recap here.