Letters: Rams, Dodgers and Lakers decisions up for debate

Let’s compare the decisions of the LA teams’ general managers.

Les Snead is getting stalwart pro bowler, great leader, and future Rams Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner for $10 million a year. A lot of money, sure, but almost a suspension for bolstering defense and being a fan favorite for years. Lakers GM LeBron James is getting thinner, beating Russell Westbrook for the bargain price of $40 million a year.

Maybe we’ll let the front office do their job and just ask the players to play.

Jeff Heister
Chatsworth

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The Rams extend Sean McVay and Les Snead’s contracts. Hooray! Great move. But it’s Aaron Donald who drives the Rams, the heart and soul of the team. In recent years his phenomenal play has been exemplary. Von Miller also taught him to be a vocal leader. Donald is clearly the Lawrence Taylor of this generation and arguably the highest-paid defensive player in the league. When money is tight, there is a precedent. Give him 5% fractional ownership a la Magic Johnson and the Lakers. Donald deserves every penny the Rams can muster.

Cy Bolton
Rialto

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Dodgers could have signed Kenley Jansen for the same money they pay Craig Kimbrel and not lose AJ Pollock.

Jack Wishard
Los Angeles

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Cody Bellinger says his swing is in a good place right now, but Dodgers fans aren’t in a good place when he gets to batting. He’s had two bad seasons and is hitting .148 while hitting 70% of the time in spring training. We’re pulling for you, Cody, but we’re running out of patience.

Mike Gamboa
Buena Park

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It was really great to see the Dodgers extend Andrew Toles’ contract for the 2022 season. I have a better chance of actually playing for the Dodgers this season than Toles. His $700,000 salary is a “rounding error” for the team, but with that comes a healthcare plan that is second to none, allowing Toles to continue receiving the top-notch medical care he needs for his mental health issues. Kudos to the owner for a step that’s meaningless on the field but life-saving off it.

Eric Schumann
fountain valley

Facts about the NBA

The Lakers have officially become the NBA’s version of the Washington Generals. Maybe LeBron can jump back to the Globetrotters. Move over Meadowlark, there’s a new Barney Fife in town.

Brent Montgomery
Long Beach

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In the early 1970s, Washington football coach George Allen led the Over the Hill Gang to the NFL playoffs. If Lakers coach Frank Vogel could only channel his inner George Allen, the Lakers might as well make the playoffs.

Chris Sorce
fountain valley

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The problem with the LA Lakers is: They aren’t Lakers! They’re gypsies and guns for hire. These current Lakers have made no meaningful connections to the city or to the Crimson and Gold — they just wear the uniform and collect money for services rendered. The last of the homegrown Lakers – Alex Caruso and Kyle Kuzma – are now playing elsewhere, making LeBron – currently in his third season at the club – the longest-serving Laker. Where we once had a young royal guard preparing to take on enemies in our home. We are now left with mercenaries who don’t care about the brand we fans are loyal to.

Stefan Schef
forest hill

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Clippers coach Tyronn Lue is upset that 76ers GM Daryl Morey had the audacity to criticize communist China, a country mired in genocide and slave labor, because his comments “cost the NBA a billion dollars.” Let’s not let legitimate moral outrage stand in the way of more money.

Bert Bergen
La Canada

What the halo!

The Angels are about to start the 2022 Major League Baseball season. What will we see this season? Nothing we haven’t seen before! Management basically tied their hands on Albert Pujols and Mike Trout’s ($425 million?) contracts. They bring in some guys who don’t offer anything because they don’t have any money, Anthony Rendon is a complete broke; he hits .143 in spring training.

Then one morning we all wake up and a kid from El Modena High School, just five minutes from Angel Stadium, Freddie Freeman, is signed by the Dodgers. Man, someone from the Angels organization was asleep at the wheel.

Steve DeMont
orange

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I usually turn to Sport to read about the angels. Lately I’ve been checking the obituaries section for updates. In the absence of daily coverage of the angels this spring, they are clearly dead to you.

Paul Haddad
Los Feliz

New rules

Due to the length of nine-inning games, MLB should replace the result of the extra innings with a coin toss instead.

David Marshall
santa monica

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So the NFL overtime rules are changing to a smart, sane, and fair system. but only for playoff games.

Then the only sane, intelligent answer and fair question is: Why only for the playoffs? Regular season games affect who makes the playoffs.

Arthur A Fleischer II
Northridge

March madness

Letters to the Times Sports Department over the past two weeks have claimed that Mick Cronin didn’t know how to train offense or defense. With all their injuries, illnesses and trying schedules, how did the Bruins win 27 games to make it into the Sweet 16 with a coach who couldn’t coach?

Sol Bialeck
Van Nuys

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Aside from a slight interest in Johnny Juzang, no other UCLA player draws the attention of the NBA. The Bruins don’t have a big man who can dominate at the low post. They’re not a big rifle team. Despite this, they have found success during Cronin’s tenure as coach. He is the reason. Critics of his offense ignore that UCLA ranks among the top in the country with the lowest revenues. Most importantly, unlike the previous coach, Cronin’s teams are playing hard.

Jim Woodard
forest hill

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As a Bruin grad and longtime ticket holder, I, like many others, blame Cronin for the late meltdown loss to North Carolina. My thought was that maybe the Bruins and Lakers could swap coaches. Then, after the Lakers lost to Philadelphia, after holding a 20-point lead at halftime, I realized that “if it’s broken, you can’t fix it.”

Michael Gesas
Beverly Hills

World Series Guarantee

I feel a lot better now that Dave Roberts guaranteed a World Series Championship and NOT Bill Plaschke!

Wayne Kamiya
El Segundo

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