With a fury and a flourish, Kobe Bryant drove to the free-throw line, pulled up, launched a jumper and held his right hand extended -- bent so delicately at the wrist -- as the ball went in.

The veteran remains day-to-day. It's been a sluggish start to the season for the 2016 NL MVP as Bryant is hitting just .149 with one homer and a 32.7% K% across his first 55 trips to the plate of ...