LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers are hoping that a well-rested and inspired rookie pitcher will lead them to success in Sunday’s series finale
against the San Francisco Giants.Left-hander Caleb Ferguson will make his third career start
Pernell McPhee Color Rush Jersey , pitching opposite Giants right-hander Chris Stratton, but it will be his first outing where he will get a minute to
catch his breath and ease into his surroundings.Before his major league debut on June 6, and his follow-up effort Tuesday, Ferguson had to scramble to catch a flight and then take the mound for the
Dodgers. This time around, Ferguson has done all of his between-start routine
with the major league club, and even got a bonus assignment this week.Ferguson was able to get an up-close-and-personal look at Clayton Kershaw’s most recent rehab bullpen session. It was a multi-pronged effort to not only let
Ferguson watch a pitcher he looks up to, but to get an in-depth view at one of
the hardest workers in the game.“Even for Caleb to sit in on Clayton’s pen (Friday) and to sit in on Rich (Hill’s on Saturday) and not have to fly in make a start then fly out and come
back in, he will get to assimilate with our guys,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts
said. “I think there is a benefit to that.”Ferguson (0-0
http://www.giantsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-patrick-omameh-jersey , 9.53) lasted just 1 2/3 innings of his debut at Pittsburgh and then went four
innings Tuesday against the Rangers. He has given up a combined six runs, but
the Dodgers offense has scored a combined 21 runs in his two outings so at least
he is getting elite run support.Stratton (7-4, 4.56) has allowed three runs or fewer in each of his last four starts, but he is facing a Dodgers lineup that has hit 34 home runs in June
alone. The right-hander will have to face a trio of left-handed hitters in Max
Muncy, Cody Bellinger and Joc Pederson who have been productive of late.He figures to be up for the challenge after guiding the Giants to a 10-4 record in his starts this season. In his outing Tuesday at Miami, Stratton was
just the second Giants pitcher since May 6 to last at least seven innings, but
he still took the loss in a 3-1 defeat. It was his sixth quality start of the
season.The Giants are currently 3-6 on a three-city road trip that ends Sunday. And while a return home is ahead, better health could be coming soon, although third
baseman Evan Longoria figures to be out at least a month with a fractured left
hand.First baseman Brandon Belt was activated Saturday
http://www.patriotsauthorizedshop.com/authentic-trent-brown-jersey , while pitchers Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija could be back soon.“Our biggest issue has been trying to stay healthy,” manager Bruce Bochy said, according to mlb.com.Madison Bumgarner made his third start since coming off the disabled list Saturday and allowed three runs on five hits in six innings of a 3-1 loss. It
marked the 11th straight time in Los Angeles the Giants scored two runs or less,
according to STATS Inc.Matt Kemp and Enrique Hernandez homered for the Dodgers — who will go for the series sweep on Sunday — while Alex Wood allowed a run on four hits in 5 2/3
innings.Magic Johnson is betting his job on his free-agent recruiting skills for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Johnson declared Monday that he will step down as the Lakers’ president of basketball operations if he can’t persuade an elite free agent to sign with the
16-time NBA champions within the next two summers.”Next summer, if nobody comes and I’m still sitting here like this, then it’s a failure,” Johnson said after a news conference to introduce draft picks Moe
Wagner and Svi Mykhailiuk.Johnson was put in charge of the Lakers’ front office by owner Jeanie Buss in February 2017, and the former superstar point guard immediately announced his
plans to revive the struggling franchise by enticing the game’s best players to
join as free agents.With Paul George and potentially LeBron James headlining the market this summer, Johnson is leading the Lakers’ efforts to land both players this
weekend. If they sign elsewhere http://www.raidersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-nick-nelson-jersey , Johnson and the Lakers will pursue the large crop of 2019 free agents.And if he strikes out with every big name, Johnson said he will quit.”Like I told you when I took the job, it’s going to be a two-summer thing for the Lakers,” Johnson said. ”This summer, and next summer, and that’s it. And if
I can’t deliver, I’m going to step down myself. She won’t have to fire me. I’ll
step away from it. Because then, I can’t do this job. But so far, so good.”Although the Lakers are mired in the worst five-year stretch in franchise history and haven’t made the playoffs since 2013 [b]Blake McLaughlin Ducks Jersey[/b] , Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka have been successful in achieving their initial goals since they took
over 16 months ago.They have solidified a decent core of talented young players – Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart – to provide their potential
free-agent signees with support. They have made several slick trades and
personnel moves to clear enough salary cap room to offer two mammoth free-agent
contracts this summer.Now comes the tough part: Persuading George or James or other big names to move to Hollywood. Johnson said he has no idea whether the Lakers’ pitch will be
well-received, but he also feels confident in his task.”I’m Magic Johnson,” he said with his ubiquitous smile. ”You know how many finals I’ve been in? So you think I’m worried about this? I played against Larry
Bird in the Finals. I played in nine Finals.”Johnson is the second straight basketball decision-maker for the Lakers to create a self-imposed deadline for success.In 2014, co-owner Jim Buss told the Los Angeles Times that the Lakers had to be a contender within three to four years, or ”I will step down, because that
means I have failed.”The Lakers badly missed that deadline, and Buss’ sister fired him and general manager Mitch Kupchak in February 2017.Johnson and Pelinka are spending this week honing and fine-tuning their free-agent pitches. They’ll show their plans to Jeanie Buss later in the
week http://www.chiefsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-armani-watts-jersey , along with numerous contingency plans for the short-term and long-term
future.”If we can sign somebody this summer, we’ll do that,” Johnson said. ”If it doesn’t happen, we’ve got to turn to next summer.”—.
