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Haren 1-hits Indians through 7 in Dodgers’ 1-0 win

By WTOP Staff

JOE RESNICK
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — All that separated Dan Haren from a possible chance at a no-hitter was a third-inning single that was awarded to Cleveland’s Michael Bourn after a replay review.

Rookie Clint Robinson made sure the right-hander’s best outing of the season didn’t go to waste, hitting a pinch-hit RBI single in the bottom of the seventh, and the Los Angeles Dodgers opened their interleague series against the Cleveland Indians with a 1-0 victory on Monday night.

Dodgers shortstop Miguel Rojas made a diving stop of Bourn’s smash behind second base and got the out call from umpire Adrian Johnson before Cleveland manager Terry Francona successfully challenged the ruling. Bourn stole second, putting two men in scoring position. But Asdrubal Cabrera looked at a third strike.

Had the play on Bourn not been overturned, Haren felt he had enough to try for the Dodgers’ third no-hitter of the season after the gems by Josh Beckett and Clayton Kershaw. Haren was lifted after seven innings.

“I didn’t even think about it until I came out of the game and Zack (Greinke) said something like: ‘If this was last year, you’d have a no-hitter,'” Haren said after his 103-pitch effort. “I think 2 2-3 was the longest I’ve had a no-hitter this year, so that was pretty good for me.”

The defending NL West champions took over sole possession of first place in the division by a half-game over idle San Francisco. The Giants led them by as many as 9 1-2 games as recently as June 8. Since then, Los Angeles has gone 15-6 and San Francisco 4-15.

The Indians, coming off a three-game series at Seattle in which they swapped one-hit shutouts with the Mariners, couldn’t do a thing against Haren (8-4) after Felix Hernandez stymied them through eight innings on Sunday.

“I would have liked to be on the winning side of all three,” said Cleveland third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, whose single in the fifth inning against Hernandez was the Indians’ only hit on Sunday following Josh Tomlin’s complete-game 5-0 victory over the Mariners on Saturday.

“You’ve got to give the pitchers credit. That doesn’t happen a lot,” Chisenhall added. “We usually work counts, get deep into counts, get hits and put pressure on guys. But we haven’t done that two days in a row.”

Haren struck out five and walked one on the 11th anniversary of his major league debut, getting through seven innings for just the third time in 17 starts this season. He ended a streak of nine consecutive outings in which he allowed a home run, one shy of his career-worst stretch in 2012.

“I worked on some stuff in between starts, and tonight I was locating the ball really good,” Haren said. “We’ve been working on the curveball, trying to feature it a little bit more during the game.”

Brian Wilson pitched a perfect eighth and Kenley Jansen a 1-2-3 ninth for his 25th save.

Corey Kluber (7-6) allowed a run and six hits over 6 2-3 innings and struck out five. The 28-year-old right-hander, who has spent all four of his big league seasons with the Indians, came in 6-0 with a 2.29 ERA in his six previous interleague starts.

The Dodgers, who held the NL champion Cardinals to just four runs while taking three of four, had runners at second and third in the fourth when Kluber struck out Andre Ethier and retired Juan Uribe on a flyball.

Ethier came up again in the seventh and led off with an opposite-field triple off the glove of left fielder Michael Brantley on the warning track. Two outs later, pinch-hitter Hanley Ramirez was intentionally walked and Robinson worked the count full before smacking a single up the middle for his first major league hit and RBI.

“It put us in a position to win the ballgame. The crowd was cheering, all my teammates were fist-bumping, it was awesome,” Robinson said.

NOTES: A moment of silence was observed in memory of Bobby Castillo, a nine-year major league pitcher who spent his first five seasons and his final one with the Dodgers. “Babo,” as he was affectionately called by everyone in the organization since his rookie year in 1977, died Monday at age 59 from cancer. The L.A. native was credited with teaching Fernando Valenzuela how to throw his trademark screwball. … Dodgers reliever Chris Perez spent the previous 4 1-2 seasons with Cleveland. Two seasons ago, he made some disparaging remarks on the record about Indians fans because of the team’s poor attendance — and felt their wrath numerous times in the aftermath. But he has no regrets. “Everything I said was true. I didn’t make anything up,” said Perez, who turns 29 years old on Tuesday. “It became a little more of a distraction for me than I would have liked, but I think the team didn’t let it bother them. Overall, I think I was more successful there than some fans would like to give me credit for.”

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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