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Aaron Judge not recruiting Shohei Ohtani… Yet: ‘I’m just gonna admire him from afar for now’

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

Fresh off signing his own gargantuan deal, Aaron Judge is eager to see what kind of payday Shohei Ohtani earns in the coming months.An impending free agent, Ohtani could shatter contractual records given his unicorn status as an elite pitcher and hitter (and runner, as Aaron Boone noted). Count Judge among those who expect the Angels two-way sensation to command a hefty salary.“I’ve never seen a player like him go into free agency where he’s one of the top pitchers in the game, one of the top hitters in the game, and you combine that into a great all-around athlete,” Judge said Tuesday night after Ohtani drilled a home run in the Angels’ 5-2 series-opening win over the Yankees. “It’s gonna be exciting to watch, and [I’m] excited to see where he goes.”Judge then said, “I hope he likes…” before trailing off midsentence. That led to some laughs, and a question about whether the Yankees’ superstar is trying to...

Knicks can’t overcome ugly second quarter as Cavs get the easy win to even series at 1

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

CLEVELAND — A disastrous second quarter for the Knicks ended with an energized crowd chanting together, “New York sucks, New York sucks.”And at that moment, it was impossible to argue.The Knicks definitely stunk.Their first half ended with one cringy possession after another. They were outscored, 15-4, over the final three minutes. They committed nine turnovers just in the second quarter. Josh Hart picked up a technical foul. Darius Garland, a dominant force Tuesday, carved up New York with the precision of a LASIK laser.New York’s deficit hit 20 at the break and the Knicks never recovered in a Game 2 107-89 blowout defeat Tuesday, knotting up a series that shifts to Madison Square Garden for the next two games.“The second quarter was probably the difference,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “You let a team go on a run like that, it’s going to be a problem "The Cavs vowed to get more physical after getting bullied in Game 1. They follow...

Julius Randle says late flagrant foul by Jarrett Allen was ‘a little unnecessary’

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

CLEVELAND — A hard contest in garbage time led to a flagrant foul for Jarrett Allen and a soft warning from Julius Randle that the next game isn’t too far away.“We’ll go back to the Garden,” Randle said, “and see him there.”Randle flew for a breakaway dunk with 2:22 remaining and the Knicks trailing Tuesday’s Game 2 by 23 points. Allen, the Cavs center, trailed and met Randle at the rim, sending the Knicks power forward falling to the court on his back.The referees reviewed the play and assessed a flagrant, and Randle yelled at both Allen and toward the Cavs bench after standing up.“I thought it was a little unnecessary,” Randle said. “I understand playoff basketball. You don’t give up on plays and I respect that. I’m somebody who doesn’t give up on plays. Typically when you make those type of plays, you go across their body, not through them. But it’s fine. It’s irrelevant.”Randle,...

A Heat reunion for Bucks’ Dragic, Leonard, Crowder, as Dragic mulls retirement

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

No, Goran Dragic said, the thought never was about a reunion tour, certainly not anything like when Dwyane Wade returned to a Miami Heat roster that featured Dragic in 2018.And yet if this is the NBA end for Dragic, as he said it well might be, there is a symmetry to this moment, not only as part of the Milwaukee Bucks roster that is facing the Heat in this first-round best-of-seven Eastern Conference playoff series, but also as part of a Heat reunion in the Bucks’ locker room.In addition to Dragic, the Bucks’ playoff roster also features former Heat forward Jae Crowder and former Heat center Meyers Leonard. All three were on the Heat roster that advanced to the 2020 NBA Finals in the Disney World quarantine bubble.“It feels good to be with familiar faces,” Dragic said, with the Heat facing the Bucks in Game 2 of their series on Wednesday night at Fiserv Forum. “We spent a lot of time together that year. We played tremendously well. And we’re back...

Fiery crash delays traffic on SR-163

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A crash on northbound State Route 163 near Kearny Mesa has backed up Wednesday morning traffic, SKYFOX video shows. A vehicle caught fire in the incident, but that fire has since been extinguished.The left lane and left hand shoulder are blocked, delaying the flow of traffic near Exit 8 on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard. Details around the cause of crash are limited at this time, but motorist in the area should expect delays.This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Luxembourg leader champions LGBTQ rights, chastises Hungary

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — The gay prime minister of Luxembourg used the dais of the European Union’s parliament Wednesday to stand up for LGBTQ rights in the 27-nation bloc and to chastise member state Hungary, which wants to curtail discussions of homosexuality in schools and the media. “If there’s anyone in this house who thinks that you’ve become a homosexual by watching the television or listening to a song, then you’ve not understood anything,” Prime Minister Xavier Bettel told legislators at the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg, France. “The most difficult (thing) for a homosexual is to accept themselves.” Bettel, 50, became prime minister of his small European country in December 2013 and married his husband eight years ago. He has often spoken about his sexual orientation and for two years, he has been especially critical of Hungary.A 2021 law prohibited sharing content on homosexuality or gender transition in films, advertisements and other media ...

US-made Patriot guided missile systems arrive in Ukraine

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s defense minister said Wednesday his country has received the U.S-made Patriot surface-to-air guided missile systems it has long craved and which Kyiv hopes will help shield it from Russian airstrikes during the war. “Today, our beautiful Ukrainian sky becomes more secure because Patriot air defense systems have arrived in Ukraine,” Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said in a tweet.Ukrainian officials have previously said the arrival of Patriot systems, which Washington agreed to send last October, would be a major boost and a milestone in the war against Moscow’s full-scale invasion. It’s the latest contribution from Kyiv’s Western allies, who have also pledged tanks, artillery and some types of fighter jets as Ukraine gears up for an expected counteroffensive.China, on the other hand, insists it won’t help arm Russia, one of its key allies, and on Wednesday denied recent reports that Chinese drones have been found on Ukraine battlefields.B...

Stock market today: Wall Street follows global markets down

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

TOKYO — Wall Street is slipping Wednesday following some mixed earnings reports from big U.S. companies and another signal that inflation remains hot around the world. The S&P 500 was 0.4% lower in early trading, threatening to erase the gain it’s built so far this week. The Dow and Nasdaq are also falling. High-growth and tech stocks are being hurt in part by higher yields in the bond market, which rose after a report showed U.K. inflation remains above 10%. Tesla is falling after announcing the fourth U.S. price cut on its vehicles this year. Travelers shares notched their biggest gain in over three years after it reported strong first-quarter results.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story appears below. Wall Street is following global markets lower early Wednesday ahead of another trove of corporate earnings reports and potentially new maneuvers by central banks. Futures for the S&P fell 0.6% before the bell and the Dow were slipped 0.3%.Surprisingly str...

Age of airman in leaks case not the issue: defense chief

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

MUSKO NAVAL BASE, Sweden (AP) — The age of the airman charged in one of the most significant U.S. intelligence leaks in recent memory — just 21 years old — has been the focus of a growing question: Why would the nation give someone so young access to some of its most important secrets?But the airman’s age has not come up as a focus of the Pentagon’s investigation into how the documents were leaked. That investigation instead is targeting what security lapses took place that allowed Airman 1st Class Jack Teixeira to allegedly remove the top secret level documents from the Massachusetts National Guard base where he worked. For the Pentagon’s leaders, who have seen 17- and 18-year-olds serve, age isn’t the issue. “The vast majority of our military is young,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters traveling with him in Sweden on Wednesday. “It’s not exceptional that young people are doing important things in our military. That’s that’s really not the...

CMHC reports annual pace of housing starts in Canada slowed in March

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:58:50 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in March fell 11 per cent compared with February.The national housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts in March came in at 213,865 units, down from 240,927 in February.The drop came as the annual rate of urban starts in the month fell 12 per cent with 192,545 units.The annual rate of multi-unit urban starts fell 11 per cent to 151,769 for March, while the pace of single-detached urban starts fell 16 per cent to 40,776.The annual rate of rural starts was estimated at 21,320 units for the month.The six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rate was 240,669 in March, down six per cent from 254,658 in February. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2023.The Canadian Press