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Former big league slugger José Bautista signs one-day contract to retire with Blue Jays

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

TORONTO (AP) — Former big league slugger José Bautista signed a one-day contract so he could retire with the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, one day before his name is added to the team’s level of excellence.The 42-year-old Bautista played for eight teams during 15 seasons in the majors, making his final appearance with Philadelphia in 2018. He hit .247 with 344 homers and 975 RBIs in 1,798 games.“I think everybody knew for a while that I had been retired, but this is a way to make it official,” Bautista said Friday.Pittsburgh’s 20th round pick in the 2000 amateur draft, Bautista made his big league debut in 2004, when he bounced between four teams in one season. The Pirates traded him to Toronto in 2008. In return, Pittsburgh got catcher Robinzon Díaz, who made 43 appearances over two seasons.Bautista, meanwhile, turned into one of the game’s most feared sluggers while playing home games north of the border. The six-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger swatted 288 homers during...

Raiders defense forces multiple interceptions from Purdy, other 49ers QBs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Raiders linebacker Robert Spillane played the previous four seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers and knows as much as anyone what a strong defense looks like.He came to Las Vegas in the offseason to play for a defense that is … well, it’s not the Steelers.But after the Raiders spent Thursday and Friday creating takeaways and giving the San Francisco 49ers’ offense plenty of problems, maybe their defense isn’t quite what it has been.Spillane said he sees the same kind of passion with the Raiders’ defense that he experienced in Pittsburgh.“We’ve got guys who don’t want to be known as the 30th defense in the league,” Spillane said. “We want to be up there with the best, and we just go day by day getting better each day. It’s a continual process throughout the season.”The season will be the ultimate determinator if whether Las Vegas’ defense has improved and by how much. Two practice days in August, even against one of the ...

Deaths from Maui wildfires rise to 67 as survivors begin returning home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — The death toll in Maui rose to 67 on Friday as officials confirmed another 12 fatalities from a massive blaze that turned large swaths of a centuries-old town into a hellscape of ashen rubble.Maui County officials said in an online statement that firefighters continued to battle the blaze, which was not yet fully contained. Meanwhile, residents of Lahaina were being allowed to return home for the first time to assess the damage.Associated Press journalists witnessed the devastation, with nearly every building flattened to debris on Front Street, the heart of the Maui community and the economic hub of the island. The roosters known to roam Hawaii streets meandered through the ashes of what was left, including an eerie traffic jam of the charred remains of dozens of cars that didn’t make it out of the inferno.Incinerated cars crushed by downed telephone poles. Charred elevator shafts standing as testaments to the burned-down apartment buildings they once served....

Misdemeanor charges filed against prominent Miami real estate broker in Boca Chita boat crash that killed teen

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

Charges were filed against a prominent Miami real estate broker who is accused of causing a boat crash in Boca Chita that claimed the life of a young woman and injured several others on Labor Day of 2022.The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office on Friday charged 52-year-old George Pino with two counts of careless operation of a vessel causing death and serious bodily injury, which are second-degree misdemeanors.Pino was at the helm of a 29-foot boat with his wife and 12 teenage girls on board when the vessel collided with a channel marker near the Upper Keys in Biscayne Bay.Everyone on board was ejected on impact. Good Samaritan Pedro Fernandez spoke with 7News about the incident during a phone interview.“We board a girl, I start doing some CPR, talking with 911,” he said, “and she caught a lot water. For me, she was doing good, but she was unconscious.”Seventeen-year-old Luciana Fernandez died at the scene.“The whole class is grieving right now, li...

When coming up with ideas for new album, Jason Mraz says his mom had some sound advice

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

He hasn’t recorded new music in three years, but Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Jason Mraz is back. His eighth album features a new sound and vibe, inspired by someone very close to his heart.Jason Mraz (singing): “My kind of magic, it’s automatic.”Jason Mraz returns to his pop roots with his new album, “Mystical Magical Rhythmical Radical Ride.”Jason Mraz “I hear ‘mystical, magical, rhythmical, radical ride,’ I think of life, so to think that life is a mystical, magical, rhythmical, radical ride is – makes me want to enjoy the ride and live gratefully and live present and aware and awake.”Jason Mraz (singing): “If you need fire, I am your match. If you’ve got an itch, I’ll be your scratch. Whatever you want, I want for you.”Jason Mraz “I really loved how this came out. It’s not all just done on drum machines and computers, you know?”When it came to figuring out what songs t...

Fire breaks out at Brockton recycling plant

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

Fire crews from several Massachusetts communities rushed to a recycling plant in Brockton on Friday after a fire broke out.A large plume of black smoke could be seen rising into the air above the facility.There were no reported injuries and fire officials say there is no threat to the area.The cause of the fire remains under investigation.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Chicago Cubs find both an August off day and playoff push to be ‘refreshing’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

Playing games for 16 consecutive days challenges even the best big-league teams.Between the daily grind and being nearly 4 1/2 months into the 162-game schedule, the Chicago Cubs earned Thursday’s off day in Toronto, their first since July 24. The exhaustive stretch tested the pitching staff. The Cubs entered Friday’s series opener at the Blue Jays refreshed following the one-day break, part of three off days in a week span.It allowed the bullpen to get an important reset, especially the back end that has been called on a lot lately. Seven of the Cubs’ last 16 games were decided by two runs or less, creating plenty of high-leverage opportunities. That’s representative of what the Cubs have faced over the last two months in their efforts to dig out of the poor stretch from the end of April into May.These final seven weeks of the regular season are a stark contrast to the environment manager David Ross and the team faced in the previous two seasons. Trade deadl...

Anthony Volpe, Aaron Judge go deep as Yankees mash in Miami to take series opener against Marlins

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

MIAMI — With the Yankees in town, the Marlins honored their 2003 championship team on Friday night.Miami, which went by Florida back then, won that World Series over the Yankees in six games. Twenty years later, the Marlins welcomed back the likes of Jeff Conine, Juan Pierre, Josh Beckett and Iván Rodríguez to celebrate. Even Carl Pavano, who went on to be a bust with the Yankees, showed up.But those hoping to see another Yankees loss left LoanDepot Park disappointed on Friday, as the Bronx Bombers started the series with a 9-4 win.Anthony Volpe started the scoring with a three-run homer off Jesús Luzardo in the second inning. The blast also made him just the second Yankees rookie to tally at least 15 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season.Alfonso Soriano is the other member of that exclusive club.The Marlins answered back with two runs in the second, courtesy of a Jesús Sánchez triple and a Jake Burger double off Ian Hamilton, who completed two inn...

Chris Sale practically perfect in first game back from injury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

Chris Sale had an innings restriction for his first start in over two months, but he made the most of it.Taking the mound for Friday night’s series opener, the 34-year-old left-hander didn’t give the Detroit Tigers an inch early on. Over four perfect innings, he struck out six, induced eight swings & misses, and of the six balls put in play by the visiting lineup, only two left the bat with an exit velocity above 80.3 mph.Despite the reported 4-inning limit, Sale came back out for the fifth. He got two quick outs before Kerry Carpenter broke up his perfecto bid with a 434-foot solo home run. When the Red Sox starter followed that up by hitting Javier Báez with a pitch, Alex Cora went to his bullpen.Sale walked off to a standing ovation from the Fenway Faithful. No other Red Sox pitcher has started a game by retiring as many as 12 consecutive batters this year; Sale retired 14 of 14 before the Carpenter homer. His 4 2/3 innings were nearly perfect, and for the second ...

Hawaii attorney general conducts review of decisions made during Maui wildfires. Follow live updates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:35:31 GMT

By REBECCA BOONE (Associated Press)Follow live updates about wildfires that have devastated parts of Maui in Hawaii this week, destroying a historic town and forcing evacuations. The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora, which passed south of the island chain, was partly to blame for strong winds that initially drove the flames, knocking out power and grounding firefighting helicopters.Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez’s office will be conducting a comprehensive review of decision-making and standing policies leading up to, during and after the wildfires, she said in a statement Friday.“My Department is committed to understanding the decisions that were made before and during the wildfires and to sharing with the public the results of this review,” Lopez said. “As we continue to support all aspects of the ongoing relief effort, now is the time to begin this process of understanding.”Kula residents who have running water were warned Friday by th...