UCLA football pummels USC in lopsided rivalry matchup  —  LOS ANGELES — Seconds after the end of a beatdown at the Coliseum, USC quarterback Caleb Williams hugged his mother, leaning down over the guardrail of the family section.  He hugged his father, standing on the dirt track around the grass.

Las Vegas F1 race stumbles out of the gate after canceled practice  —  A loose drain cover damaged a driver's car and caused the cancellation of the first practice session for Saturday night's Formula One race in Las Vegas, an inauspicious start for a buzzy event that already is facing a number of questions.

Coaches Johnny Washington, Andy Green leave Cubs to join Angels, Mets  —  The Angels hired Washington as hitting coach, and sources confirmed Green is set to join the Mets front office.  —  New Cubs manager Craig Counsell said the process of filling out his coaching staff would be slow.

More MLB rule changes proposed, including batter timeouts, pitching changes and mound visits  —  The reduction in the pitch clock from 20 to 18 seconds with runners on base is the most significant proposal Major League Baseball's joint competition committee is considering, but not the only one.

Shohei Ohtani becomes first 2-time unanimous MVP winner  —  Ohtani, who also won the American League award in 2021, is the 29th player to win multiple MVP awards.  He is currently a free agent, perhaps set to earn a record-breaking contract.  —  Shohei Ohtani didn't even need to play a full season to achieve another piece of history.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto talks with MLB teams set to start, source says  —  The negotiating window for major league teams to attempt to acquire Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto is expected to start Tuesday, a source told ESPN's Buster Olney on Friday.  —  Yamamoto is expected to be posted Monday …

Mets musings: Luis Severino could be a target, Daniel Vogelbach gets non-tendered  —  After announcing Carlos Mendoza's hiring as manager, the New York Mets' busy offseason continued to roll along this week with trade rumors, free-agent pursuits and coaching staff news.

Mariners acquire Luis Urías from Red Sox for Isaiah Campbell  —  SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners acquired infielder Luis Urías from the Boston Red Sox for right-handed pitcher Isaiah Campbell on Friday.  —  Urías, a utility infielder who can play second and third base and shortstop …

Why Ohtani may not be part of Mariners' plans  —  This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer's Mariners Beat newsletter.  To read the full newsletter, click here.  And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.  —  SEATTLE — The Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes have been underway for nearly two weeks now …

Clippers |  Do Clippers need to embrace selfishness to turn things around?  —  Coach Tyronn Lue has preached the need for his talent-laden roster to put team goals ahead of personal goals, but too much sacrifice and not enough me-first attitude could be a factor in their six-game slide

Former Cubs leaders confident Cody Bellinger can thrive with Yankees  —  The first help wanted ad the Yankees would post this offseason — if such things were done — would look like this: Need a lefty-batting, in-his-prime, strong defensive center fielder (further versatility also valued) …

Royals acquire reliever Nick Anderson from Braves  —  The 33-year-old was a dominant reliever before elbow surgery.  —  The Royals have acquired right-handed reliever Nick Anderson from the Braves for cash, according to reporter Joel Sherman of the New York Post.