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As the Chicago Cubs bullpen struggles to find consistency in high-leverage spots, President Jed Hoyer says: ‘That’s on me’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

The Chicago Cubs’ formula to building a bullpen follows a distinct pattern.Start with proven, lockdown relievers for the late-inning, high-leverage moments and fill in key spots from there. Craig Kimbrel and David Robertson became the go-to options for save opportunities during their respective tenures for manager David Ross.And leading up to those save opportunities, Ross had Ryan Tepera and Andrew Chafin in 2020-21 and Chris Martin and Mychal Givens last year — at least until the trade deadline, when the Cubs unloaded their top relievers as part of the rebuild.The bullpen’s struggles this season can be attributed partly to the lack of reliable veterans, forcing more matchup-based decisions for Ross. And that falls on Cubs President Jed Hoyer and his offseason decisions. He acknowledged his role in the team’s bullpen woes before Tuesday’s series opener against the New York Mets.“If I’m being candid, I feel like I’ve put Ross in a toug...

Walpole brings the energy, defeats nemesis Wellesley

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

WALPOLE — It was senior day for Walpole girl’s lacrosse, but the team had no need to shift its focus once the game started.That’s because the No. 5 Timberwolves were hosting No. 2 Wellesley, and they jumped out to a quick lead before holding steady and taking a 14-9 Bay State Conference victory.Walpole coach Mike Tosone said the rivalry between the schools has been strong for about the past decade, but the past five years have belonged to the Raiders. His team was determined to end that this season, and getting it done on senior day was icing on the cake.“(Senior Day) was not a distraction that was going to take away any of our focus because we have had miserable success against Wellesley,” Tosone said. “I didn’t even worry about that.”The team quickly took a 2-0 lead and then scored four of the next five to hold a 6-1 lead halfway through the opening half. A key to this was dominance on draw controls, ground balls and possession.“Ground balls and draw controls, next to the score it...

County approves date for District 4 special election after Fletcher resignation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The special election to fill the District 4 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors has been certified, making the Aug. 15 primary date for the vote official.The announcement comes after Nathan Fletcher's resignation from the position last week amid allegations of sexual misconduct from a former Metropolitan Transit System employee that were made public in lawsuit filed at the end of March.Candidates in the running for the District 4 seat include San Diego City Councilwoman Monica Montgomery Steppe, veteran advocacy nonprofit CEO Janessa Goldbeck and Amy Reichert, who ran against Fletcher in last year’s election. Timeline: Unfolding of the Nathan Fletcher scandal The person elected as the District 4 Supervisor will hold the position for the remainder of the current term, which ends in January, per the County of San Diego. A run-off election would be held on Nov. 7, 2023, only if a candidate does not receive a majority vote on Aug. 15.The nearly 400,000 ...

Drag performers sue St. George, Utah, over denying permit for show in public park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah-based group that organizes drag performances is suing a city over the denial of permits for an all-ages show it aimed to host in a public park in April.The group, Southern Utah Drag Stars, and its CEO Mitski Avalōx accuse the city of St. George of “flagrant and ongoing violations of their free speech, due process, and equal protection rights” and, in a complaint filed in federal court on Tuesday, are asking for damages and for St. George to reverse its decision and authorize a drag show at the end of June.“This is the latest offense in a larger pattern of attacks discriminating against gender-diverse and LGBTQ+ people and their rights in Utah and throughout the country,” said Emerson Sykes, an attorney with the ACLU, which is representing the group.The lawsuit marks the most recent development in a fight over drag shows in St. George, Utah, a conservative city 111 miles (179 kilometers) northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. Since HBO filmed a drag ...

Hong Kong’s leader says police will investigate suspicious withdrawals from organ donation register

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said police will investigate suspicious applications from people seeking to withdraw from the city’s organ donation system, condemning the alleged attempt to damage the program as shameful. The city’s organ donation registration system received nearly 5,800 withdrawal applications in the five months since December, when the government raised the possibility of establishing an organ transplant mutual assistance program with mainland China. More than half of the withdrawal applications were found to be invalid, either as duplicate applications or coming from people who had never opted in.At a regular media briefing Tuesday, Lee pointed to those who withdrew their applications without ever registering, calling the moves suspicious. “I severely condemn those who attempt to cause damages to this noble system which saves lives through organ donations,” he said. “This is a shameful act.” Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to...

Ex-Seattle man gets 8 years for stealing $1M in pandemic benefits

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — A former Seattle man who stole over $1 million in jobless benefits and small business loans during the COVID-19 pandemic was sentenced on Tuesday to more than eight years in prison, Seattle U.S. Attorney Nick Brown said in a statement.Bryan Sparks, 42, was indicted for the fraud scheme in November 2021 and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in January. He was also ordered on Tuesday to pay more than $1 million in restitution.U.S. District Judge James L. Robart called Sparks at the sentencing “a serial thief and a fraudster — one of the more successful ones,” and said he was appalled by the damage Sparks had done.From March 2020 until at least January 2021, Sparks and a co-conspirator used stolen personal information of more than 50 Washington residents and businesses to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the Small Business Administration and unemployment benefits from the Washington State Employment Security Department, court d...

Canadian theatre director Daniel Brooks, first Siminovitch Prize winner, dies at 64

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

Daniel Brooks, a renowned Canadian theatre director who won a number of awards in a career that spanned over four decades, has died at 64.A news release announcing his death says he died in Toronto on Monday after a long illness.In his over 40-year career, Brooks was a director, writer, actor, producer and teacher, and frequently collaborated with other artists, including fellow Toronto natives Don McKellar and Tracy Wright, with whom he co-founded independent theatre troupe Augusta Company.Brooks was nominated in 1992 for a Governor General’s Literary Award in the drama category for “The Noam Chomsky Lectures,” co-written with Canadian theatre artist Guillermo Verdecchia.In 2001, Brooks was the winner of the inaugural Siminovitch Prize, which its website says recognizes artists who have made a significant creative contribution to theatre in Canada.Brooks’ family says a celebration of life will be held this summer.This report by The Canadian Press was first p...

NYC college professor fired after confrontation with abortion opponents

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A New York City college has fired an adjunct professor who was recorded on video berating abortion opponents on campus earlier this month and who on Tuesday reportedly threatened a journalist with a machete.A Hunter College spokesperson confirmed art professor Shellyne Rodriguez was fired after the May 2 incident in which she is seen on video calling the abortion opponents’ information display “propaganda” and shoving some of the materials off the students’ table.“Hunter College strongly condemns the unacceptable actions of Shellyne Rodriguez and has taken immediate action,” the spokesperson, Vince DiMiceli, told the New York Post on Tuesday. “Rodriguez has been relieved of her duties at Hunter College effective immediately, and will not be returning to teach at the school.”Rodriguez and DiMiceli did not immediately return phone and email messages from The Associated Press on Tuesday evening.The Post reported that one of its reporters went to Rodriguez...

Mattea Roach advances to final of ‘Jeopardy Masters’ tournament

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

Toronto trivia titan Mattea Roach has made it to the final round of “Jeopardy Masters.”The Canadian writer and podcaster came in second and third in the two games on Tuesday’s show, landing a spot in Wednesday night’s final.The tournament pit six recent super-champions against each other, including Roach, James Holzhauer and Amy Schneider.Schneider was eliminated ahead of the semifinals, while Holzhauer is advancing to the final as well.A different combination of competitors played two “high-stakes games” in each hour-long episode of the quarter- and semifinals. The three remaining champs will play each other twice in Wednesday night’s final, which airs on CTV2.This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 23, 2023.The Canadian Press

Do not call: States sue telecom company over billions of robocalls

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:55:36 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — Attorneys general across the U.S. joined in a lawsuit Tuesday against a telecommunications company accused of making more than 7.5 billion robocalls to people on the national Do Not Call Registry.The 141-page lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Phoenix against Avid Telecom, its owner Michael D. Lansky and company vice president Stacey S. Reeves. It seeks a jury trial to determine damages.The lawsuit arises from the nationwide, bipartisan Anti-Robocall Multistate Litigation Task Force of 51 attorneys general and the District of Columbia. It was formed last year to investigate and take legal action against telecommunications companies routing volumes of robocall traffic. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said nearly 197 million of the robocalls were made to Arizona phone numbers between December 2018 and January 2023.“Every day, countless Arizona consumers are harassed and annoyed by a relentless barrage of unwanted robocalls — and in some instances these ille...