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Y E S T E R D A Y…

Dodgers 5, Mets 4: Have the Dodgers finally found a decent third baseman? Well, after driving in four runs last night — including an inside-the-park homer — Blake DeWitt has Dodger fans believing. Hiroki Kuroda lasted only 3 1/3 innings after giving up four runs, but Hong-Chih Kuo came on in relief to pitch 3 2/3 scoreless innings — including a career-high 8 K’s — to allow the boys in blue to recover from a 4-1 deficit and register their 10th win in the past 11 games. This recent hot streak as gotten the blue crew to within three games of the D-backs and breathing right down their necks.

Angels 5, Royals 3: The score should really say: Garret Anderson 5, Royals 3. The Halos outfielder continued his power display for the second straight night as he drove in all of the teams runs in yet another victory. Nick Adenhart last a bit longer in his 2nd career start — 4 1/3 — giving up three runs while walking five. That’s four straight wins now and major league best 12-4 record on the road. Imagine if this team had its full compliment of players.

T O D A Y…

Lakers vs. Jazz (7:30 p.m., TNT): NBA commish David Stern is gonna be in town for this one to present Kobe Bryant his first MVP award. Let’s hope this doesn’t inspire the pesky Jazz to spoil the Laker party in Game 2 of this Western Conference semifinal. The Lake show would be wise to shore up the rebounding after getting out hustled on the boards 58-41 in game 1. As long as the P&G remained focused, which has been the case all post-season long, then the pre-game festivities should carry right on through the game.

Dodgers vs. Mets (12:10 p.m., PRIME): The boys in blue gotta get up early for this one as they try bust out of the brooms and complete the sweep. Brad Penny takes the mound and looks to keep the winning ways going as he is opposed by John Maine.

Angels at Royals (5:10 p.m., FSW): Another SoCal team goes for a sweep as the red hot Halos look to notch a 5th consecutive victory tonight. It won’t be easy, though, as KC sends their young stud Zack Greinke and his 1.37 ERA to the mound to silence the Halo bats. Jared Weaver gets the call from Scioscia as he looks to shake off his early season struggles.

N E W S W O R T H Y…

• As you know by now, Kobe received his first MVP award at a press conference today… more on that below.
• Here’s something crazier than Kobe taking 12 years to finally win an MVP award: Jerry West never won one.
• USC and the Coliseum Commission are on the verge of a long-term deal.
• UCLA is reportedly close to landing a top basketball recruit from LSU.

C O L U M N S…

• SportsHubLA.com Column’s of the Day: MVP! MVP! MVP! Here at SHLA we’ve got you covered with the local media’s take on everything Kobe the MVP. Jim Alexander of the Press-Enterprise says that Kobe finally received the elusive MVP award because he was all about the team this year and not himself. Bill Plaschke chimes in that #24 is your MVP because of the cold blooded attitude he can have on and off the court. Jeff Miller of the OC Register mentions how extremely happy Kobe is with the new hardware, so happy that he lets it be known that he’s a Laker for life once and for all, writes Elliot Teaford L.A. Daily News. It’s pretty amazing to think that a guy considered the best player in the game for a number of years took this long to be recognized by the media as the Most Valuable Player. Finally, we’ve aggregated all our best Kobe columns into a single post, so check those out as well.

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