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Blue Jays’ players call team meeting after another loss

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla, (AP) — Their latest loss prompted Toronto players to call a postgame meeting in response to a 2-9 stretch Blue Jays manager John Schneider described as being “punched right in the face.”“We have to get better,” Schneider said after Thursday’s 6-3 defeat to the Tampa Bay Rays. “When it comes down to us as a staff, the expectations are put right in front of you. There is an urgency that needs to be had in order to meet those expectations. Wins and losses out the window. the last 10 days haven’t been great, and I think that the urgency in which those expectations are trying to be achieved is not right there.”“Yes, that’s on me and the players … Ultimately on me.” Schneider added. “When the players are recognizing that, and when the players are calling attention to that, it’s going to hold a lot more weight than anyone of the staff members trying to get mad or get in their face,”Zach Eflin became major leagues’ third seven-game winner in the victory over strug...

Yankees prospect Randy Vásquez to debut Friday vs Padres

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Randy Vásquez will be called up to the New York Yankees to make his major league debut in Friday night’s series opener against the San Diego Padres.Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the 24-year-old right-hander will be used either as an opener or in relief. New York is short on starting pitching while Domingo Germán serves a 10-game suspension through Saturday for violating baseball’s prohibition of foreign substances on the mound.“He did some good things in spring training — good arm, good stuff, he’s been pitching pretty well,” Boone said of Vásquez. “He’s the next guy up right now with an opportunity.”Vásquez was 1-0 with a 5.14 ERA in three spring training appearances for the Yankees, striking out seven and walking four in seven innings. He is 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but has a 2.14 ERA in his last four starts, striking out 22 and walking seven in 21 innings.Luis Severino will start Saturday against the Padres on five days...

Judge grants Churchill Downs’ request for summary judgment to dismiss Bob Baffert’s lawsuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A federal judge has granted Churchill Downs’ motion for summary judgment that dismisses Bob Baffert’s claim the track breached due process by suspending the Hall of Fame trainer for two years.Churchill Downs Inc. suspended Baffert in June 2021 after his now-deceased colt, Medina Spirit, failed a postrace drug test after crossing the finish line first in the 147th Kentucky Derby. The trainer’s request to lift the discipline was denied in February, keeping him out of the Derby for a second consecutive May.U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings ruled in a 12-page opinion issued Wednesday that Churchill Downs’ suspension of Baffert did not devalue his Kentucky trainer’s license. It cited his purse winnings exceeding $1 million at Keeneland in Lexington and stated that his argument “amounts to a false analogy that distorts caselaw.”Jennings denied CDI’s motion to stay discovery as moot.The decision comes less than a week after Baffert-trained colt Nationa...

Manfred: Vote on Athletics’ Las Vegas move could take place at June meetings

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet from June 13-15 in New York.“It’s possible that a relocation vote could happen as early as June,” Manfred said Thursday at Milwaukee during his tour of major league stadiums to speak with players. “It’s very difficult to have a timeline for Oakland until there’s actually a deal to be considered. There is a relocation process internally they need to go through, and we haven’t even started that process.”Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo said Wednesday that legislative leaders and the Athletics had reached a tentative agreement on a $1.5 billion stadium funding plan that would lure the franchise to Las Vegas. A funding bill still must be approved by the Legislature.Manfred was asked whether he believes the door is completely closed on the possibility of the Athletics remaining in Oakland, where the team has played since 1968.“I think you’d have...

PSAC suspends food support fund for graduate students

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

PSAC 901, the union representing grad student workers at Queen’s, has suspended it’s emergency food support fund after exhausting funds beyond what was budgeted for.The union says this clearly demonstrates the great level of need among members and for intervention from the university. PSAC says 457 applications were received with $31,325 being paid out to members over the course of 15 weeks.Justyna Scezwyck-El Jassem, the new President of PSAC 901, says upon offering the fund the union quickly realized they would need to find more ways to support their members.“We were hoping that it would just help a couple of people but as time started passing every week we were just getting more and more applications,” Scezwyck-El Jassem said.“Quickly we realized that we sometimes needed $3000 a week to cover the needs of our members. The need was overwhelming.”She added that as a labour union it isn’t really their job to do this for grad students, but th...

8 Aurora officers sued in violent arrest caught on body camera video

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — A man is suing eight Aurora police officers who he claims violated his civil rights in a traffic stop that turned violent.The new 22-page lawsuit includes screenshots of body camera video from May 2021. They show Preston Nunn III during a traffic stop, which escalated into a violent arrest that hurt him.Aurora officers stopped Nunn after they say he drove into the officers' lane when they were conducting a separate traffic stop. Woman detained in police car hit by train wants charge dropped According to the lawsuit, instead of allowing Nunn to show his license and registration, Aurora officers pointed a gun at his head, tackled him, slammed his head into the ground, applied a chokehold, handcuffed him, used a Taser on him twice, tried to hogtie him and ultimately arrested him.The lawsuit alleges officers used excessive force, in violation of Nunn's constitutional rights."The only plausible explanation for this senseless escalation is that Mr. Nunn, a Black m...

Kelly Brough highlights housing affordability plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Housing affordability remains a top issue for Denver voters ahead of the mayoral runoff on June 6. Where do the two candidates stand on the issue?Mayoral candidate Mike Johnston has been a vocal proponent of creating micro-communities, where half-acre lots around the city would host tiny houses. Johnston said it could help the homeless population by getting them in contact with mental health support, addiction treatment and workforce training. Now, the former state senator's opponent is sharing her plan when it comes to helping families own a home.This week on "Colorado Point of View," Kelly Brough shared her thoughts on creating entry-level condominiums across the city. "Usually, buying a condo is how you get into home ownership and we're really not building them in Denver today," Brough said. Denver mayoral candidates discuss their plans for public safety Her comments come as home prices start to drop nationwide compared to last year, but higher interest rates ar...

Outdoor Colorado: Double-amputee cyclist finds a new way to ride

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) - A bicycle is a perfect metaphor for life. Sometimes it is smooth, and sometimes it can be very rough. But it is a ride that we all must take.Nicholas Young was on a ride one day that changed his life forever. That was 2015 in Chicago. What are Colorado’s signs of summer? "I couldn’t see that the road had a big pothole because it wasn’t clear from my point of view. There was just a glassy clear surface on the road but what I didn’t know is underneath that water there was a pothole that was probably nearly a foot deep," he said.Young crashed hard. His legs never properly healed and in October 2018 he made one of the toughest decisions in his life. He decided to have his right leg amputated."I literally woke up from surgery crying from relief, but I knew this was the right decision," Young said.Two years later, Young became a double amputee. But he was not ready to give up riding his bicycle, or life and he paid attention when someone suggested he look into ...

South Florida artist PXTN to release new single ‘Bloodstream’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

Here at Deco, we love to brag on local talent.A multi-faceted musician is dropping a new single this weekend.Once you hear it, it’ll creep into your “Bloodstream”.Bloodstream is the new single from PXTN.The SoFlo-based artist says it’s a love letter about the art of making music.PXTN: “That gift and that thing never leaves, and I can’t resist it, so it’s in my bloodstream, it’s in my DNA, and it’s who I am, so this song is a celebration.”His songs are listener-friendly with a few surprises thrown in.PXTN: “The pop is always the core, but I love to play with different sounds.”His writing process is pretty simple; if it feels good, it is good.PXTN: “If I’m working off of, just you know, the bass or whatever is going on, I tend to follow that, and that tells me what to do if it doesn’t have the groove, it doesn’t really have heart”Like any true artist, he’s taken styles that he l...

Girls lacrosse: Westwood edges Lincoln-Sudbury

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:49:07 GMT

WESTWOOD — In uncharacteristic fashion, the Westwood girls lacrosse team suffered three early losses this season, albeit to very good opponents.Coach Margot Spatola told her team it could come back, and to not lose faith.If Thursday night’s game with Lincoln-Sudbury was any indication, the two-time defending Div. 1 state champion Wolverines are plenty capable of reaching whatever goals remain.With a dominant first half on the draws and overall strong play, Westwood led throughout and held off a very good L-S team, 8-7.Westwood improves to 18-3 overall, while L-S drops to 16-2.“This is where we want to be,” Spatola said. “We knew our early April team … We did our very best not to worry about that first loss, and all of that. We want to be hitting our stride now. So, we definitely have work to do every day, but I think we’re feeling good, and ready to continue to work.”“I think we’ve really dialed it in at practice,” said Oli...