Driving

NEW YORK — Andre Ethier hadn't seen his splits with men in scoring position. "I feel it's not good," Ethier said. He was right. Entering Thursday, the player who used to be called Captain Clutch was two for 19. But Ethier managed to single when it mattered most in the final game of the Dodgers' six-game trip, delivering a ninth-inning hit to drive in the go-ahead run in a 3-2 victory over the New York Mets. Ethier didn't know why he wasn't doing this earlier, as he couldn't point to anything wrong with his approach with men on base.

FRESNO - The Convicted Distracted Driver is sitting in a study carrel in the Cal State Fresno library, which, come to think of it, looks a little like a prison visiting room. "I don't relish that title," said Steven Spriggs. "But that's what I am. " His crime: looking at his iPhone's map application while driving. Spriggs, 58, is director of planned giving for the college. He is gentle and soft-spoken. Or maybe that's just because we are in the library. Still, in his soft-blue dress shirt and gray tie, he looks more like an insurance salesman than a firebrand who sparked what court documents call a "media frenzy.

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Kings' 16-second breakdown is the short, efficient way of describing their 2-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild here on Tuesday night. But it's not the complete version. The Kings allowed goals by Charlie Coyle and Cal Clutterbuck in the span of 16 seconds in the first period to help determine their fate against Minnesota at Xcel Energy Center. That was exacerbated when they were outworked in the first 40-plus minutes by a team fighting for its playoff life.

Re "A tax everyone can love," Opinion, April 21 If folks are leery of paying taxes to cover the actual costs of burning oil, there are two things they can do to mitigate the effects of the carbon tax that Doyle McManus discusses in his column. To start, our national fleet of vehicles is grossly inefficient. In 2012, the average fuel economy for new cars sold in the U.S. was about 24 miles per gallon. This problem is compounded by inefficient driving - hard accelerations, speeding and accelerating toward a stop rather than coasting.

Jack Hartman, the senior pitcher with the movie star name, and Reno Rankin, the senior outfielder with the famous uncle, combined to help Reseda Cleveland defeat Chatsworth, 1-0, on Tuesday in a game for first place in the West Valley League. Hartman (9-1), one of the top pitchers in the City Section, struck out nine, walked four and gave up five hits in a complete-game effort. He had a single in the first inning that drove in Rankin from second base. Rankin's uncle is actor Jamie Foxx, who would have been screaming in excitement, because Cleveland is 18-7 and 5-0 in the league.

Compton High School has two tennis courts, a coach and now, all the gear it can use, including rackets, balls and even shoes. What's lacking is a team. But that's beginning to change. The school started signing up prospective tennis players last week as a donation of equipment and regulation nets was being unloaded. Curious students approached the tennis court to ask what the commotion was about and left as team members with racket bags filled with gear. "Guess we play tennis now," Tatiarria Hayes, 16, joked with her best friend, Robin Butler, 15, both holding black and green bags.

WEST, Texas - At the Veterans of Foreign Wars post just a few blocks past City Hall here, the donated mattresses form a stack that nearly touches the ceiling. Rows of folding tables are piled high with clothes, and the porch out back has enough water bottles to hydrate an army. That's just Saturday's haul. And the first thing visitors hear when they step inside: "You hungry?" PHOTOS: Texas explosion The smoky scent of barbecue wafted through the room, as did the smell of meatloaf fresh off the grill.

The tires on Vaughn Gittin Jr.'s Ford Mustang are shrieking as he jerks his car sideways at nearly 90 mph on this serpentine race track in Long Beach. Walls are closing in on either side, leaving no room for mistakes. As the next turn nears, Gittin pumps the clutch and yanks a neon green hand brake. The rear wheels lose traction, sending the car into a power slide and unleashing a torrent of smoke into the packed grandstands. The move brings nearly 15,000 spectators to their feet.

Specktor will appear at the Festival of Books on Sunday at noon on the panel "Fiction: Inside Hollywood" with Adam Braver, Alex Espinoza and Nina Revoyr. More information: latimes.com/festivalofbooks Matthew Specktor knows the offices of talent agency CAA - past and present - like his own backyard. That's because, as son of top agent Fred Specktor, they practically were. He ran around in the hallways; he worked in the mail room. And although that it set him down the not unexpected Hollywood producer path, what he really wanted to do was write.