Right now, Rob Blake’s No. 4 in the Crypto.com Arena rafters is a reminder less of his days as the Kings’ rock-solid defenseman than of a flurry of executive mistakes – including one big whopper – that has set his franchise back significantly and for a while appeared to put his own job as general manager in jeopardy.

For a few days this week, it seemed a matter of time before Blake and interim head coach Jim Hiller would be let go, following . But more recently, as beat writer Andrew Knoll indicated, rumblings surfaced that Blake, who has one more year on his contract, would hold onto his job. The Kings’ announcement that Blake would hold a postseason media session Monday afternoon seemed to put the speculation to rest.

Honestly, I need to hear compelling reasons for Blake to stay one more year. Lots or reasons to dump him now. One more year = short-term decision making when we're at least 3 years from being Cup contender. Cap crunched.

— Eric Swenson (@EricWSwenson)

That figures to be as unpopular with a large segment of Kings fans as on Friday was popular with that team’s partisans. Blake’s future job security might hinge on his ability to negotiate a buyout with Pierre-Luc Dubois and reverse that turned into an albatross.

To recap: Blake sent Gabriel Vilardi, Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari and a 2024 second-round pick to Winnipeg for Dubois – a player who had been unhappy in both of his previous stops, Columbus and Winnipeg – and then signed him to an eight-year, $65 million contract ($8.85 million average annual value).

The return on investment: 16 regular-season goals and 24 assists (after Dubois had amassed 302 points the previous six seasons), a minus-9 in 5-on-5 situations during the regular year, and one lonely, solitary, meaningless goal in . The team’s highest-paid player was the fourth-line center by , and that was on merit. Most of the season, Dubois seemed to be coasting whenever he was on the ice.

By the way, a footnote: Vilardi scored 22 goals in 47 games this season for Winnipeg and was a plus-11, while Iafallo had 11 goals and 27 points and was a plus-14 while playing all 82 games.

But this was just the latest in a series of brow-furrowing Blake moves. Forget trying to manipulate the cap through Long Term Injured Reserve as the Vegas Golden Knights have done the past two years to provide reinforcements for the playoffs, when teams don’t have to observe the cap. The Kings couldn’t even adequately shop for reinforcements at the trade deadline because they had little room. (Right now, they have $23.6 million in cap space – but they have only 11 players under NHL contracts, including Dubois. None are goaltenders.)

Blake replaced Dean Lombardi as the team’s top hockey operations executive in April 2017, and by the 2018-19 season had launched a rebuild. Three years in, he started pushing his chips to the middle of the table with the hope of maximizing the remaining seasons of Anže Kopitar and Drew Doughty, the last men standing from the team’s Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014.

Blake acquired Kevin Fiala from Minnesota in 2022 for defenseman Brock Faber, a second-round pick in 2020 who was a regular for the Wild this year as a rookie and is a Calder Trophy finalist. (Fiala had 29 goals in the regular season this year … but one in the Edmonton series, in ).

And Blake mismanaged the Kings’ goaltending situation. He gave a three-year $15 million extension to Cal Petersen, who then spent most of the 2022-23 season in the minors and . And he , the backstop for L.A.’s two Cup winners, to Columbus in March 2023. Quick, no longer in his prime, and won a third ring as a backup with the Golden Knights, and he has performed well with the Rangers as a backup this year and has a chance to win a fourth ring.

Successful playoff teams need a goalie who can steal a game when necessary, as Quick did so often during the Kings’ run as an elite team. Neither Cam Talbot or David Rittich could do so this spring, though Rittich’s effort in Game 4 against Edmonton foundered only .

As for the next generation, a number of Kings prospects – including Samuel Fagemo (43 goals in the AHL), Akil Thomas and Brandt Clarke – are currently in the second round of the Calder Cup playoffs with the Ontario Reign. But as for a massive infusion of youth, or another full-on rebuild? No thanks, with reporters Friday in El Segundo.

“I don’t think I have time for retooling now,” said Kopitar, who indicated he intends to play through the final two years of his contract. “If we go into a full rebuild, it’s not something that I want. There’s some pieces that are obviously very useful here. And we got to build on that and build around it and … (get) that culture back and mentality and, and yes, push forward.”

Doughty, who has three years left on an eight-year, $88 million deal signed in 2019, concurred: “I have no interest in that. I don’t think that’s even necessary to think about, to be honest with you. Do not want to go down that road.”

So here we are. Blake helped get the Kings into this mess. Can he be trusted to get them out of it? Given that the alternative is apparently unpalatable to team president and former teammate Luc Robitaille and/or his boss, AEG chief executive officer Dan Beckerman, there doesn’t seem much choice.

If you’re a Kings fan, that should be unsettling news. That No. 4 in the rafters gets dingier by the day.

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Dominic Palmieri, who oversees several food stands and is known as the Midway Gourmet, said he started to experiment with them about three years ago and is seeing customer interest grow.

“We’re seeing a lot of pickle stuff on social media,” he said. “Sometimes we feel like we’re ahead of the trends, because we have a lot of exposure when we’re at a fair. We’ll see things start to happen and say that looks good, but we can make it better.”

The result is the dill pickle split — like a banana split but with a pickle instead of a banana — one of the wild and wacky foods you’ll find at the Fairplex in Pomona during the fair’s opening weekend. You’ll also find hot honey and mores spicy sweets.

Most specialty items run $10-$20 throughout the fair, but�� all concessions will have fixed-price value items on their menus for $9.50.

Here are a few items you’ll find at the fair that you’re unlikely to find elsewhere, at least in one place.

Dill pickle split

What: A dill pickle is split down the middle and topped with three swirls of pineapple whip and strings of sour spaghetti candy with a chamoy stick and umbrella toothpick for good measure. It looks surprisingly like a banana split but the best way to eat it is to eat the pickle with your fingers, dipping it in the whip.

Find it: Pineapple Whip stand in the Fun Zone.

Candied Pickle and Candied watermelon slice

What: Palmeri continues with the pickle theme with a giant pickle that’s cored out and stuffed with sour spaghetti candy, wrapped in a fruit roll-up and dusted with Tajin seasoning and Chamoy Sauce. The watermelon slice is also wrapped in fruit rolls and seasoned with Tajin.

Find it: Cowboy Kettle Corn, Downtown Fairplex

Hot honey funnel cake chicken sandwich

What: Charlie Boghosian, the force behind the Chicken Charlie’s stands, has been blowing fairgoers’ minds since be came up with deep-fried Oreos in the late ’90s.

This year’s creation, fried chicken between funnel cake, is a collision of flavors.

“The funnel cake complements the chicken, because you have sweet and savory. And now we’re throwing in a little sweet and spicy,” he said at a preview on Wednesday while he drizzled hot honey over the sandwich.

“It’s not spicy like you’re going to cry, it’s spicy like it’s good,” he added.

His stands are also bringing back hits from years past, including 2022’s Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Potstickers and bacon-wrapped pickles.

Find it: Chicken Charlie’s, across from the Grandstand and a giant inflatable Baby Yoda, and Clock Tower Plaza, Broadway and Palm.

Peaches and Cream Funnel Cake

What: This is a more traditional way to experience funnel cake, topped with peaches and whipped cream that’s dusted with sugar and cinnamon.

Find it: Dutchman Funnel Cakes, Fun Zone.

Nashville Chicken Tots

What: Palmieri’s big debut at his Biggy’s stand this year features fried chicken on a bed of buttery garlic tater tots with dill pickle slices for good measure.

Find it: Biggy’s, Fun Zone.

Pretzel Bombs

What: These snacks feature a substantial amount of meat baked into pretzel dough. The result is a dark brown orb that looks a little like a miniature Civil War cannon ball. Choices include pulled pork, chicken, and beef.

Find it: Dough Spot, Downtown Fairplex neighborhood.

Ramen Taco

What: Kung Pao beef, slaw and red onions fill a ramen shell.

Find it: Building 4, Downtown Fairplex.

Thummer Candied Apple

What: This sweet treat is a Granny Smith apple decorated to resemble Thummer, a hitchhiking pig that has been the since 1948. Thummer has a marshmallow nose and gumdrop ears.

Find it: Terri’s Berries, Clock Tower Plaza.

Doughnut chicken sandwich

What: Double-dredge chicken served between two hot doughnuts made on the premises with warm icing. You’ll want to bring moist towelettes for this one.

Find it: Get Fried, Fun Zone.

Big Stick and pork belly tacos

What: A 30-inch skewer is filled with pork sausage links, chunks of pork belly and a bread roll for good measure. The street tacos are more conventional but loaded with meat that’s smoked for two hours and topped with salsa verde, onion and cilantro.

Find it: Bubba’s Pork Belly Tacos, Downtown Fairplex.

LA County Fair

�³�����:��Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona.

When: May 3-27

Hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, plus Memorial Day, May 27.

Tickets: $15-$25 for adults; $10-$12 for children 6-12 years and seniors 60-plus in advance. Tickets at the gate are $30, $15 for children and seniors. Parking is $22 online, $25 at the gate. RV parking is $40.

�ʲ��⳾��Գ�:��Parking, admission and concert box office payments are cashless. Advance online purchases are cheaper than gate prices.

Information:��

Garrett, a 32-year-old left-hander who broke in the majors as Joey Votto’s teammate with the Cincinnati Reds, said Votto gave him the message he needed to hear last month.

“You’re too good not to be in the big leagues,” Votto told Garrett.

Votto went further and told Garrett that he needed to stop pitching defensively.

“Don’t be scared to get hit,” Votto told him. “Throw the ball over the plate like I’ve seen you at your best. The way you attack hitters, not a lot of damage is going to get done. Just trust your stuff.”

After an early outing for Salt Lake City in which he issued three walks, Garrett proceeded to issue just one walk in his next six innings, with seven strikeouts. He did not allow a run.

That earned Garrett a promotion to the Angels, and he has not allowed a run in his first three games in the majors. He has struck out five and walked two in 2 2/3 innings.

“Nothing is finished,” Garrett said. “It’s still a work in progress. I’m just going to keep that mindset that I had.�� And I’m going to go out and try to put zeroes as much as I can for this team.”

At his best, Garrett was a dominating reliever who threw in the high 90s and struck more than a batter per inning. As recently as last season, he had a 3.33 ERA with the Kansas City Royals, but he was released by the Royals last summer. The Cleveland Guardians signed him and released him without bringing him to the majors. He was in spring training with the San Francisco Giants, but released before opening day.

Garrett said his slider, which is his signature pitch, is never good in spring training, and the Giants didn’t have the patience to wait.

The Angels then gave him another chance.

“It’s been a long journey for me to get back here,” Garrett said. “I felt like I was I was in a good space (at Salt Lake). I felt like I was back to my old dominant self when I was in Cincinnati. And I feel that I’m even better than that right now. I think I’m in a good spot right now, in a really good spot.”

LOOKING BETTER

Left-hander José Suarez gave the Angels reason for hope when he pitched two scoreless innings, with three strikeouts, at the end of Friday’s .

Suarez brought a 10.13 ERA into the game. The Angels hung with him because they believed they would lose him to another team if they put him on waivers.

Suarez said he adjusted his mechanics to make sure he’s moving straight toward the plate. He said he’d been moving side to side too much. His fastball velocity also ticked up slightly during Friday’s game.

“I felt great last night,” Suarez said. “That was my stuff. That’s how I want to be … Yesterday was 100%. I feel like I can fight right now.”

Manager Ron Washington said he was encouraged that Suarez showed some tangible improvements.

“I thought he had more oomph on his fastball,” Washington said. “The breaking balls that he threw, he put them in a good spot. Threw some good changeups. So he’s getting his feel back for his pitches. If he can continue to get the feel for his pitches, he could be a tremendous weapon for us.”

NOTES

Luis Rengifo was out of the lineup Saturday because he had been feeling sick, Washington said. …

Brandon Drury returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games with headaches and a stiff neck, the result of a dive in Tuesday’s game.

UP NEXT

Angels (RHP Griffin Canning, 1-3, 7.45) at Guardians (RHP Carlos Carrasco, 1-2, 6.59) at Progressive Field, 10:40 a.m. PT Sunday, Bally Sports West, 830 AM.

That conundrum joins calls about the��coaching staff, team management and on-ice system, but a determination on Dubois carries temporal urgency as well as weighty long-term impact.

Dubois last June amid trade negotiations that sent him to the Kings from the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for three players and a draft pick. Dubois had scored 60 or more points during his prior two seasons in Winnipeg, and the Kings touted him as a dynamo with offensive runway along with potential to round out his defensive game.

Instead, Dubois turned in a vastly substandard 40 points and a minus-9 rating on a team with a +41 goal differential, all with low intensity, particularly so in high-stakes contests.

While, technically, he played all 82 matches plus five in the playoffs, by his own admission he performed to his capability “some nights, some games and some spurts throughout the season.”

Today, the Kings find themselves in, effectively, a now-or-never position to buy Dubois out and get a mulligan on a contract that paid him like an ascending talent, only to see him nosedive in the regular season and remain a complete non-factor in a postseason during which he was billed as a difference-maker until the bitter end.

If the Kings buy Dubois out before his 26th birthday June 24, they’ll be responsible for one third of the remaining salary due to him, stretched across 14 seasons. Per Capfriendly, that sets them up with a modest cap hit for nine of the next 14 years (ranging from $1.13 million to $1.63 million), with the other five seasons’ penalties falling between $2.53 million and $3.82 million. On or after June 24, that cost will double, and there’s an element of suspense since the buyout period won’t open until the Stanley Cup is awarded, a date that could be as late as – you guessed it – June 24.

“I can’t [think about being bought out or traded]. It’s out of my control,” Dubois said. “I’m a firm believer in ‘everything happens for a reason.’”

The reasons Dubois landed such a lucrative contract or in Los Angeles to begin with were nebulous. A team that was deep down the middle with Anže Kopitar, Phillip Danault, 2020’s No. 2 overall selection Quinton Byfield, spark plug Blake Lizotte and lottery pick Alex Turcotte had spoken of needing defensive depth, goaltending, finishing and toughness before abruptly prioritizing yet another centerman over those needs. For next season, they have exactly zero goalies with NHL experience under contract, yet they’re married contractually to Dubois for seven more campaigns.

Nonetheless, he’d been coveted by his prior teams: The Columbus Blue Jackets selected him third overall in the 2016 draft and, when he shamelessly forced a trade to Winnipeg, Columbus netted a prolific winger (Patrik Laine) and a former first-rounder (Jack Roslovic). Yet after Dubois wanted yet another change of scenery, a situation that created burdensome strain in the Jets’ dressing room, there were Rob Blake, Luc Robitaille and Marc Bergevin, mortgaging the franchise with old chum Pat Brisson’s client, Dubois, a player that was still hyped on potential entering the seventh season of his NHL career.

Kopitar and Danault said they tried to comfort Dubois amid a campaign that saw him promoted, demoted, coddled, chastised and otherwise be the focus of gimmick after gimmick, none of which engendered any enduring improvement.

“He didn’t want to talk too much about it, because he knew he had a tough year. In his case, it was harder, because it was a new contract – a big one – and it brought lots of expectations, so it was a very hard year, mentally,” Danault said.

Although Dubois did not “come in and dominate” as Robitaille predicted before the season and even after 82 largely hapless contests, interim coach Jim Hiller – the front-office’s belly flop was a significant factor in the midseason dismissal of Hiller’s previously secure predecessor, Todd McLellan – doubled down on Dubois.

“We’re expecting big things. We’re expecting him to be great,” Hiller said. “We talk about the passion, the size, the energy, the physicality and all those things that get increased in the playoffs, he has all those qualities and we’re expecting him to bring them.”

Dubois responded to those plaudits with one impossibly fortuitous goal, zero shots on net in the three losses that wrapped up the fleeting five-game series and underlying playoff numbers that were nothing short of atrocious, despite matching up against mostly bottom-six forwards and the offensive-oriented Edmonton Oilers’ third defensive pairing. Dubois finished last among a lackluster group of Kings forwards in at least four major possession metrics: Corsi, Fenwick, shots-for and expected-goals-for percentages.

“He would be the first one to tell you that it wasn’t the year that he wanted to have,” Kopitar offered in a euphemism of epic proportions. “It was also a new environment and everything. Yes, we brought him in to put us over the edge, obviously that didn’t happen, but he’s not the only reason why this didn’t work out.”

For Dubois, the same breakup-day setting offered him a chance to alternate between two at-times-difficult-to-reconcile phrases, “It’s on me” and “it’s out of my control.”

He could not control how he was deployed, where he was placed on the power play, that the Kings made a coaching change, that he moved from center to wing and back while playing on all four lines or that he required a juvenile “points system” to reward him for non-statistical achievements (something that apparently worked, as arguably his least unsettling output came during that period).

His responses Friday constituted a respectable effort from a man who has always seemed charming on a personal level and clearly possessed physical talents, which he intermittently put to use in his hockey career.

Yet less respectable were his displays against top teams this year, and not just the Oilers, against whom he mustered two points – a nifty power-play goal and an unreplicable fluke tally in garbage time – in nine games this season. Against the other six Western playoff teams, he put up two goals, four assists and a minus-8 rating in 19 games, that from a player lauded as a “game-breaker,” a “200-foot player” and someone who would catapult the Kings over the top. In reality, Blake’s Kings have been nowhere near the top, with or without Dubois, having not won so much as a playoff series in seven seasons.

Given the Kings’ effusive praise of and concrete commitment to Dubois, one could easily envision Robitaille and whichever of his pals is the Kings’ GM in June –– odds are it will still be Blake or, potentially, a promoted Bergevin –– taking on the roles of Lyndon B. Johnson and Robert McNamara, insisting on soldering on through a war that’s already been lost.

But if the Kings are serious about winning meaningful battles, they’ll hope the Stanley Cup is hoisted in time for them to slam their fists on the reset button.

Next season, Dubois will be their highest-paid forward by annual average value and their highest-paid��player��in actual dollars. He’ll also earn more in actual cash payout than scoring champion Nikita Kucherov and Kings tormentor Connor McDavid. A buyout would free up nearly $7 million in cap space to re-sign Byfield as well as addressing other free agents (Matt Roy, Viktor Arvidsson and Lizotte, to name a few) and upgrading the Kings’ precarious situation in goal.

The circumstances make the available choices clear: Save face or save the franchise.

It’s a move with many adaptations, on and off the field, but through the early weeks the returns have been good.

“You can see he’s adjusting to many things,” Galaxy defender Maya Yoshida said of Yamane. “Many things are new for him. For him, it’s hard, but it’s good to be fresh after a long time in J-League with the same club. Everything is new for him.”

Yoshida, who is also Japanese, left Japan early his professional career and played in several stops in Europe before joining the Galaxy. Yamane, 30, spent his entire career in Japan, debuting with Shonan Bellmare in 2016, before making the move.

As the Galaxy (5-2-3, 18 points) heads into Seattle for a second meeting with the Sounders (2-5-3, 9 points), Yamane has played nine of the 10 games.

“I think he came in super aggressive and was flying, trusting his instincts in the game. I thought he got off to a great start,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. “I think as a couple of things have sort of happened on his side, I think he feels responsible for a couple of situations that has made him maybe a touch passive in a few games.

“We want him to not worry about the things that have happened and trust himself.”

Vanney pointed to the penalty kick that Yamane gave up in on April 6 as one of those instances that have affected Yamane.

“He takes that hard because that becomes a goal against us and then we lose the game,” Vanney said. “We’ve had a couple of set pieces where near-post space was won (by the opposition) and he’s supposed to control the near-post space.

“He takes that hard, I think it’s more emotionally … the league is challenging, there’s going to be challenges, not everything is going to perfect and it’s being able to get beyond that. I want to move forward, you can’t change anything in the past. You have a better chance in our league, if you stay aggressive, of good things happening.”

Yamane talked about his adjustments Friday.

“He loves it in L.A.,” Galaxy chiropractor Shunta Shimizu said, translating for Yamane. “It is definitely different than living in Japan, it’s not as challenging as he thought … he’s been able to adjust.

“He feels like J-League is more teamwork oriented and MLS is more individual skills and he had a hard time adjusting. He had to figure it out of how to handle the individual situations.”

Yamane and the Galaxy head into a difficult road trip. The Galaxy haven’t won in Seattle since 2016 and they will be without Riqui Puig (one-game suspension due to yellow-card accumulation) and Dejan Joveljic (hip injury).

“They’ve played well in recent games, they’ve dealt with some injuries, but as guys get healthy and available, they have speed and are very difficult to break down,” Vanney said of the Sounders. “I expect it’s going to be a difficult game. For us, we’ve got to continue to try to be the best version of us. We have to get off to a better start and against these teams that are hard to score against.

“You can’t concede goals easily because your chances are going to be fewer and far between, so we need to be solid on the defensive side, stay connected and play our moments, be solid in possession and we can’t give the chances to run free on us.”

EMIRO GARCES ARRIVES

The newest Galaxy acquisition, , arrived this week and joined in first-team training Friday. Vanney said Garces, on loan from Deportivo Pereira in Colombia, will be available and on the trip, but will likely not see any action.

“He’s fast to close, great defensive anticipation, gets out to guys early, has no problem getting tight,” Vanney said. “We like him. He brings a different layer to our defenders.”

GALAXY at SOUNDERS

When: 3:45 p.m. Sunday

Where: Lumen Field; Seattle

TV: FS1, Apple TV (free)

The free event, featuring culture and literacy-enriching activities and a presentation by award-winning author Victor Villaseñor, will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Cal State’s Santos Manuel Student Union South.

This year’s theme is “Building Vibrant Communities Through Literacy and Wellness.”

Villaseñor, known for his novel “Rain of Gold,” will be the keynote speaker, scheduled to speak at noon, according to a news release.

Villaseñor, who was born in Carlsbad, Calif., is also the author of “Thirteen Senses: A Memoir” and “Burro Genius: A Memoir,” among other books. His works are taught in U.S. schools, and he has received many awards and endorsements, including an appointment to serve as the founding Steinbeck Chair at Hartnell College and the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas, according to the news release.

The event will include book giveaways, exhibits by health-care organizations, a children’s arts and crafts hall and entertainment by Ballet Folklorico Cultural de San Bernardino and Mariachi Juvenil Corona de Angeles.

Puppeteer and ventriloquist Maryellen Avilez Grande will perform for children in the afternoon, and free educational workshops will include “So, you want to become a doctor or a nurse” and “So, you want to become a writer and have your book published.”

Nataly’s Tacos will sell food at the event.

The festival is open to the public, and complimentary parking vouchers will be available at the main information kiosk at the entrance to campus, 5500 University Parkway, San Bernardino.

Event sponsors include the Cal State San Bernardino Office of the President; Santos Manuel Student Union; San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools; Libreria Del Pueblo; Jack Brown College of Business and Public Administration; the Mexican Consulate; the Black Faculty, Staff and Student Association; Empowering Latino Futures; and Sue and Cesar Caballero.

For information, contact Cesar Caballero at 323-304-6985.

The crowd almost didn’t seem to notice the former frontman for The Police until he started his epic hit-filled set with a song that was fitting for the beach-loving fans, “Message in a Bottle.”

“Just a castaway, an island lost at sea, another lonely day with no one here but me,” the 72-year-old legend sang as the crowd ate it up and sang along.

Yet day one of the South Bay’s biggest festival was anything but lonely for the thousands of music fans who attended the three-day event.

Besides Sting, the Friday included Dirty Heads, Seal, City and Colour and several other acts on four stages. And as has become the tradition for , day one set the relaxing and laid-back tone that continues throughout the weekend at the festival, which aims to celebrate beach culture, art, food and, obviously, music.

With the Seaside Lagoon parking lot transformed into a park-like setting thanks to lush green turf, people played cornhole, ping pong and beer pong with big red plastic cans instead of cups. Some sat on couches and bean-bag style cushions in front of the main stage or sang karaoke between sets.

Many, like Utah resident Holy Hartman, laid on blankets on the turf just absorbing the sun once the early morning clouds moved on.

“I’m just having a good getaway and relaxing. It’s just a place where you can lay down and enjoy the atmosphere or get up and dance when you want to,” said Hartman, who was reading a self-help book on the grass in the early afternoon.

Over at the Lowtide stage, which is closer to the ocean, some people walked barefoot on the sand right in front of the stage, or hung out on hammocks. Music fans ate well too, thanks to food options that included Le Burger by Michelin-starred restaurant Camphor, and the always popular Spicy Pie pizza, which has pretty much become a sought-after culinary headliner at festivals like , Stagecoach and others.

But the day was really about the music with some very memorable sets happening on the smaller stages.

Sporting a brown cowboy jacket with tassels, brown slacks and cowboy boots, Texas-based singer Abraham Alexander thought most festival-goers would probably have no idea who he was as he opened the small Riptide stage by the festival entrance with his 3 p.m. set.

But with his soulful voice and blues and R&B-drenched love ballads, he quickly attracted attendees entering the festival who made a right turn to hear his music instead of walking on by to the main stage area. His new fans were then slowly swaying their shoulders and nodding their heads to Alexander’s music.

“I feel great. You’re coming to a festival where practically no one knows who you are but at this festival they make it in such a way that people get to discover new artists. I felt people were really into the set and what I was saying and doing,” he said after his hourlong set.

And keep an ear out for Alexander because he just released his debut record and is getting ready to head on the road with blues rocker Gary Clark Jr., who previously performed at in 2021

Meanwhile at the Speakeasy stage, where punk-rockers and others perform stripped-down versions of their music, Warren Fitzgerald, the guitarist for The Vandals, had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand with a lighthearted set of some of The Vandals best songs including “My Girlfriend is Dead,” “Money’s Not an Issue,” and “It’s a Fact.”

Dressed in pink pants and pink polo shirt with a green vest on, he almost looked like a singer at a kid’s birthday party, especially since he ended his set with his version of “Baby Shark.” But his fans were passionate and waited for him after his performance to take pictures or talk him up about his music and The Vandals.

“This is just me doing a lot of The Vandals songs that I love. I don’t do it very often and it’s very scary and I said, Why not,’ and it was fun,” he said.

But why end it with “Baby Shark?”

“I call it irritatement. It’s like entertaining and irritating at the same time and that will linger with everyone all day long,” he said with a laugh.

The feeling of being on vacation lingered later on at the Lowtide stage where the , who combine rock, reggae and rap, performed a 7 p.m. set during what some refer to as the “golden hour” of a festival, where the sun starts setting and the day slowly dims into the evening.

The band played hits like “Lay Me Down,” “Medusa,” and perhaps one of the most crowd-pleasing songs of the night, their cover of John Walsh’s catchy reggae-driven hit “Life’s Been Good.”

It had many fans feeling pretty good about their day.

“I feel like I’m on an island or something hearing them on the sand, like where’s my coconut drink?,” said Long Beach resident Patricia Gomez as she danced to “Life’s Been Good.”

But the night clearly belonged to Sting.

“It’s my first time in Redondo Beach,” he told the crowd.

According to festival officials his BeachLife performance was Sting’s first SoCal festival appearance in more than 20 years. And he left his mark on the festival with a performance that included classic hits like “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” “Can’t Stand Losing You,” “Fields of Gold,” and “Roxanne,” and others.

The festival continued Saturday with Incubus and Devo and Sunday with�� ZZ Top and My Morning Jacket as the main acts.

But in the years since the 213 Era began, championships haven’t materialized – only injuries and heartache. The Clippers experienced more of the same Friday night when they were pushed out of the NBA playoffs by the Dallas Mavericks, who completed a 4-2 series victory with of the first round.

In the end, one star was missing, another didn’t show up and Paul George struggled to carry the load when it mattered.

In the end, the Clippers couldn’t do it without Kawhi Leonard, who, after his healthiest season in nearly a decade, sat out four of the six games because of a nagging swollen knee, missing largely his fourth consecutive postseason.

In the end, it was Dallas’ attack, led by Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, that destroyed the Clippers, who couldn’t stop the onslaught and reduced James Harden’s effectiveness in the second halves of the final two playoff games.

And in the end, the Clippers, who finished the regular season 51-31 and fourth in the tough Western Conference, .

Again.

But now what? Will owner Steve Ballmer settle for more of the same? Can the richest owner in the league afford to rely on Leonard, 32, George, 34, and Harden, 34, for another season?

Leonard secured a three-year, $153 million contract extension in January, which keeps him in a Clippers uniform through 2025-26.

George can decline his $48.8 million player option for next season and become a free agent this summer, a situation being watched closely by the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers have made it known they are interested in acquiring the nine-time All-Star.

George said he hasn’t focused on anything besides the playoffs at this point.

“I got a lot to kind of digest myself, so I haven’t even got to that yet,” he told reporters in Dallas. “Look forward to kind of going back, just letting everything kind of decompress, talk to my family, be around family support and then address the next step.”

Harden will be a free agent this summer and could seek a max contract, something that he sought – and didn’t get – with the 76ers. He has indicated he prefers to stay in L.A.

“I don’t even know,” he said after Game 6. “You are asking a lot of questions that I don’t have the answer to or haven’t even thought about.”

Then there is coach Tyronn Lue, who hopes to sign a contract extension instead of seeking jobs elsewhere. His name surfaced as , who was .

“I didn’t come here to bounce around and go all over the place,” Lue said. “This is where I want to be. Hopefully, [the Clippers] feel the same way.”

The Clippers are likely to exceed $200 million in payroll next season, which would restrict their offseason spending because of the second apron. And will it all be for another season that ends in a whimper?

Bad playoff losses have defined the Clippers since Leonard and George joined the team and Game 6 punctuated that notion, ending what started out as their most promising season to date.

This season was supposed to be different. Leonard and George, who ended the previous season on the bench with injuries, were healthy. Leonard played in 68 games, his most in seven years since his days as a San Antonio Spur.

They , costing them role players Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, Marcus Morris and KJ Martin and multiple first-round draft picks yet giving the team another dimension. The transition wasn’t seamless, the Clippers losing their first six games with him. After that rough start, though, the three-time scoring champion found his place alongside Leonard and George and the Clippers got rolling.

They won 26 of 31 games during one stretch, creating a championship buzz around one of the highest-paid – and oldest – teams in the NBA. Then came the All-Star break and the talk turned into online chatter of “what happened?”

Losses began to creep in. The Clippers struggled to figure out how to fix things, finally turning the corner shortly before the postseason. But then Leonard’s knee flared up and he missed the final eight regular-season games.

It would be a harbinger of the postseason as the team, without its scoring leader, went belly-up against the younger, more aggressive Mavericks.

Now, with their new Intuit Arena in Inglewood debuting later this year, will it be the same story for the Clippers, one of big promises and small returns?

Though more demands have been made in a counterproposal received Thursday – some of which he said “can be easily met” but some “challenge the very core of our mission” – he remains “optimistic that we will be able to arrive at a mutually agreeable resolution of this situation.

“At this time, we are scheduled to continue our discussions on Monday,” he said, adding the encampment that has been near Rowland Hall since Monday has remained peaceful – which he said the students protesters have helped ensure.

“As long as this remains the situation, there is no cause to involve law enforcement, except as needed to help ensure the safety of the protestors and others in the area,” he said.

Sarah Khalil, a student organizer, said the chancellor’s email is not an accurate explanation of what’s been happening on campus and the way it was put out was not right.

“We are not leaving until all of our demands are met,” Khalil said. “We want all of them to be met, not some of them.”

The pro-Palestinian encampments that have formed at campuses around the country, including in Orange County, have generally called on universities to divest from companies with ties to Israel and weapon manufacturers.

Those encamped at UCI have asked for donations of supplies to help sustain their effort.

The first shade lover I spotted was . Its silky, pastel orange to vivid reddish orange trumpet blooms are breathtaking in late winter and early spring. They form in clusters with as many as ten flowers per cluster. Leaves are broad straps of green that provide ocular pleasure on their own after flowers have faded. Yellow clivias are also occasionally seen. Spherical red fruits form where flowers have been and these contain seeds that germinate readily enough. The problem is that Clivia grows so slowly from seed that you will have to wait five years until flowers develop. For this reason, it is wiser to plant grown specimens. You can also acquire Clivia bulbs which are apt to give you flowers within the first year of being planted. One source for Clivia bulbs is Terra Ceia Farms (), where you can acquire three bulbs for around twenty dollars.

The only enemy of Clivia is too much love. Plants should not be watered in winter and sprinklers kept on during that season can bring about their death. They also crave fast-draining soil. As indoor plants, they grow best in an orchid mix and, in the manner of orchids, thrive when their roots are exposed. This is not surprising since Clivia, like orchids, is epiphytic — that is, it is found growing in trees where one branch forks off from another.

The other flowering bulb for shade I noticed on my walk was summer snowflake (Leucojum aestivum), a misnomer since it blooms in every season except summer. Flowers are nodding, scalloped bells or lampshades with a green spot on the tip of each petal. This is one of the toughest bulb plants as it can grow in dry or wet soil and spreads quickly in the garden bed.��

And now we come to Lenten rose or which, unfortunately, I did not encounter on my walk but wish I had. Hellebore is perfectly content growing in a shade garden. It does not grow from a bulb but has a clumping growth habit and will spread slowly but surely throughout a garden area that is protected from hot sun.

The Lenten rose is highly decorative – if in a somewhat subtle way – yet durable plant that deserves more of our horticultural attention. Also known as hellebore (hell-uh-BORE), it belies its name since it is a heavenly addition to the garden and far from boring. It blooms for many months in winter and spring with flowers that are typically pale greenish white, but may also appear flushed with pink, burgundy or purple.��

Many varieties have blueish-green foliage with saw-toothed margins. Hellebores need excellent drainage so If your soil is heavy, amend it with plenty of compost before planting. Gypsum, probably the least expensive amendment for softening hard soil, will similarly improve drainage when it is dug into the ground. Although they need good drainage, hellebores are not drought-tolerant and require some moisture in their root zone throughout the year.

Two notes of caution regarding ; second, hellebores should not be moved during the first few years after planting. Established plants may be carefully divided and moved as long as you are willing to wait several years for the divided clumps to re-establish and re-bloom. Hellebore is one of the most undeservedly neglected plants and I do not recall ever seeing it in a nursery, although it is readily ordered from Hellebore growers with a presence on the Internet. The mail-order nursery with the greatest selection of Hellebores, in addition to many, many exotic plant species that neither you nor I have ever encountered, is Sunshine Farm and Gardens ().

Hellebores belong to the buttercup family (Ranunculus), a group noted for the diversity of its foliage, which is always a pleasure to behold. Meadow rue (Thalictrum polycarpum) is a California native buttercup for the shade garden that has soft, intricately-laced leaves atop succulent stems that rise up from underground. Anemone or windflower (Anemone coronaria), another type of buttercup, grows from a tuber and is flowering now in red, white and blue. The fall-blooming Japanese anemone (Anemone x hybrida), which sends up four-foot stems topped with white or pink blooms, is another neglected, but eminently suitable perennial for the shade garden. Finally, there are Ranunuculus corms themselves, which send up lacy foliage and tight turban-shaped flowers in white, yellow, orange, red, and pink.

Other plants that are compatible with hellebores include ferns of every description, low-growing palms and mahonias. Mahonia, or Oregon grape, is a sturdy grower that is also noted for saw-toothed foliage. Native to California, mahonia has edible blue fruit that is attractive to birds and other wildlife. Keep in mind that these plants will not grow in deep shade but do well grown under deciduous trees.��

Japanese maples are often seen growing in the proximity of hellebores due to their similar light requirements. A Japanese maple variety called Coral Bark (Acer palmatum var. Sango-kaku) is special. In addition to its salmon- to red-colored bark which, after its leaves have fallen, glimmers brightly in winter and spring before leafing out, Coral Bark can take more sun than the average Japanese maple. It is a fine specimen tree for light shade, partial sun or container gardens.

California native of the week: is a ground cover that grows six inches to two feet tall and is in full bloom from now until summer. Flowers are blue, foliage is gray and aromatic when crushed. In one year, creeping sage may cover up to eight feet of ground in every direction and single plants may spread to more than 30 feet with the passage of time. Yet where conditions for growth are limited, it may take much longer to reach that size. Still, it is a tough plant that will live for four decades under virtually any conditions. It will grow in rocky or sandy soil where other sages struggle and is seemingly impervious to heat and drought.

If you have bulb plants – or any other plants, for that matter – that you are proud of growing in the shade, please send your success story to joshua@perfectplants.com. Your questions and comments as well as gardening tips or garden problems are always welcome.