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Cubs’ Marcus Stroman commits MLB’s 1st pitch-clock violation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Cubs right-hander Marcus Stroman committed Major League Baseball’s first pitch-clock violation in the third inning of Thursday’s opening day game against the Milwaukee Brewers.With no outs, rookie Brice Turang on second base and Christian Yelich at the plate, plate umpire Ron Kulpa called the violation on Stroman at Wrigley Field. Kulpa pointed to his wrist in announcing the call, and the automatic ball made it a 2-2 count against Yelich.Cubs-Brewers was the fourth of 15 opening day games to begin Thursday. Early tilts pitting Giants vs. Yankees and Braves vs. Nationals made it into the late innings without any violations.MLB introduced the pitch clock this season to speed the pace of play. Players have 30 seconds to resume play between batters. Between pitches, pitchers have 15 seconds with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner. Batters must be in the box and alert to the pitcher with at least eight seconds on the clock.When a pitcher fails ...

Mets place Verlander on IL with muscle strain on opening day

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — The New York Mets placed Justin Verlander on the injured list with a strained upper back muscle on opening day, sidelining the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner before his first appearance with the team.The Mets announced that Verlander has a low-grade teres major strain a few hours before beginning the season against the Miami Marlins on Thursday. Verlander will continue throwing at moderate intensity and will undergo more scans in a week.“Not the way I wanted my Mets tenure to start. That’s for sure,” Verlander said. “I’ve put in a ton of work to not have things like this happen.”Verlander said he had been dealing with some discomfort in his upper arm and armpit area throughout spring training.“I think looking back it’s something that was kind of lingering but it was spring training and it’s very normal to have to work through some stuff,” he said. “I didn’t give it much credence.”He said the biggest warning sign was a drop in his velocity by “one or...

Atlanta pitcher Max Fried leaves with left hamstring issue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Max Fried left his opening day start against the Washington Nationals with left hamstring discomfort after 3 1/3 innings Thursday.Fried exited the game after wincing as he ran to cover first base to retire the first Washington batter in the fourth inning.Braves manager Brian Snitker and a team trainer went out to the mound to check on the left-hander, who threw one pitch to test his leg before heading toward the visiting dugout at Nationals Park.Fried allowed four hits and one run in the game, his third consecutive start on opening day for the reigning NL East champions.Last season, he was the runner-up in voting for the NL Cy Young Award behind Miami’s Sandy Alcantara after going 14-7 with a 2.48 ERA.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource

Royals make Salvador Perez 4th captain in franchise history

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals made seven-time All-Star catcher Salvador Perez the fourth captain in franchise history before their opener against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday, rewarding one of the club’s most popular players with the rare title.Unlike football or basketball, the captain title is bestowed upon players that have either achieved a tremendous amount or displayed exemplary leadership over a lengthy period of time. Perez fits both of those categories. Along with his near-annual trips to the All-Star game, the affable catcher has won four Silver Slugger awards, five Gold Glove awards and was the MVP of the 2015 World Series, when the Royals beat the Mets for their second championship.He is also among the most popular players in the Royals clubhouse. Perez’s gregarious nature immediately puts young players at ease, which is a good thing for a club in the midst of a major youth movement, and he’s always willing to sign autographs and tak...

Egypt raises interest rates to curb surging inflation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Central Bank said it raised interest rates on Thursday as the embattled Middle Eastern country continues to battle surging inflation and a depreciating currency. In an online statement, the bank’s monetary policy committee said the most basic lending rate, the overnight deposit rate, has increased from 16.25% to 18.25%. The hike aims to ease spiraling inflation, with the annual figure reaching 32.9% in February, up from 26.5% in January. Nearly a third of Egyptians live in poverty, according to official figures, and are struggling to keep up with rising prices, which have soared since Russia invaded Ukraine last year. The prices of basic items such as grains, meat, poultry, fish and fruit, have risen drastically over recent months.Since the outbreak of the war in Europe, the Egyptian pound has lost more than 50% of its value against the dollar. The currency slide accelerated after Egypt first announced it had reached a $3 billion bailout agreement with the Inter...

Arizona Dairy Queen on the hunt for missing red spoon statue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — The owners of a Dairy Queen in Phoenix remain perplexed — and slightly amused — as to why someone would steal the giant red spoon that adorned their restaurant.“We were kind of upset but then more puzzled,” Puja Kalra said Wednesday. “What are they going to do with a spoon?”She and her husband, Raman Kalra, say the spoon-snatching occurred sometime between late Friday and early Saturday. The 15-foot-tall (4.5 meter) spoon stood against the side of the building with the handle nestled in an opening of a roof parapet. Their surveillance camera caught two people appearing to manipulate the screws that held the spoon to a base and then taking off on a “small motorbike.”“They were so precise about it like they had done it before,” Raman Kalra said. “They just wiggled their way through and made sure the spoon was not damaged.”The couple reported the theft to Phoenix police. Sgt. Brian Bower confirmed officers were called and are investigating. No suspects have been identifi...

Man charged in 20-plus calls of false threats in US, Canada

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — U.S. authorities on Thursday said they arrested a Washington state man who made more than 20 “swatting” calls around the country and in Canada, prompting real emergency responses to his fake reports of bombs, shootings or other threats.Ashton Connor Garcia, 20, of Bremerton, used voice-over-internet technology to conceal his identity as he placed the calls last year — and he treated them as entertainment, broadcasting them on the social media platform Discord, federal prosecutors said.He faces 10 felony counts filed in U.S. District Court in Tacoma, Washington, that could bring up to a decade in prison. Court records did not immediately indicate if Garcia had an attorney who might speak on his behalf.“Every time Mr. Garcia is alleged to have made one of his false reports to law enforcement, he triggered a potentially deadly event — sending heavily armed police officers to an address where they mistakenly believed they would confront someone who was armed and dangerous...

MATCHDAY: Marseille chasing PSG, Frankfurt under pressure

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

A look at what’s happening in Europe on Friday:FRANCESecond-place Marseille can close the gap on French league leader Paris Saint-Germain to four points if it beats Montpellier. Marseille has been impressive on the road but its home form has lacked consistency, with Igor Tudor’s players looking for a first league win at the Velodrome stadium since January. Montpellier is full of confidence ahead of the trip to its southern rival, having won five of their six games since coach Michel Der Zakarian returned last month.GERMANYEintracht Frankfurt is under pressure against Bochum in the Bundesliga. Frankfurt hasn’t won any of its last six games including two losses to Napoli as it exited the Champions League. Its poor form in the Bundesliga is not helping its prospects of returning to Europe’s premier competition next season. Oliver Glasner’s team is now six points behind Freiburg in the last qualification spot and the Frankfurt coach is coming under scrutiny for criticizing his own...

Nebraska to honor Solich 20 years after controversial firing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

Twenty years have passed since Frank Solich’s controversial firing from Nebraska, and he hasn’t publicly appeared at Memorial Stadium since. That’s about to change.The 78-year-old remains a beloved figure among much of the fan base, having been an all-conference fullback for the Cornhuskers in the 1960s, an assistant to Tom Osborne for two decades and the head coach who won 75% of his games over six seasons before his unceremonious dismissal.With the prodding of athletic director Trev Alberts, the urging of Osborne and the invitation of first-year coach Matt Rhule, Solich figured now is the time to return to Lincoln. He and his family will be honored during the Huskers’ spring game April 22 in what he hopes will be the start of a renewed relationship with the program.“I’ve always appreciated the fans of Nebraska and always felt good about them, and the same way about basically most of the coaches I worked with there,” Solich said Thursday in an in...

Battle for Colorado's best burger enters round 2: Vote in the Big Burger Bracket

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:05 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- After hundreds of people cast more than 9,000 votes across all of the matchups, the Big Burger Bracket is down to 32 spots in the search for Colorado's favorite.>> Vote now: Big Burger BracketSecond round voting runs through Friday at noon, with daily rounds continuing until it's time to vote for a winner on Monday.A handful of places received more than 200 individual votes in the first round, including Crown Burgers, Hamburger Mary's, and My Brother's Bar, all in Denver. Also raking in over 200 votes were Big Al's Burgers and Dogs in Fort Collins, Bob's Atomic Burgers in Golden, Bud's Cafe & Bar in Sedalia and The Cherry Cricket.The initial 64 places were selected through Google reviews in early March. A search was done for the highest rated burgers in each Colorado county. Any location which had at least 4.5 stars and 900 total reviews was included in the bracket. Any restaurants with more than one location were included once on the bracket, using the hi...