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Column: Colder weather is in the forecast for the Chicago Cubs — but new players are eager for their 1st Wrigley Field outing

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

The early forecast for opening day at Wrigley Field on Thursday calls for cloudy skies and balmy temperatures in the low 50s.After one of the coolest spring training stretches in Arizona, the Chicago Cubs should be well prepared for a day like that.“I don’t know what’s going on,” manager David Ross said Sunday of the unseasonable spring weather. “We’ve only had a couple warm days, right? We say it prepares us for (Chicago), but we’d be begging for this some days in Chicago.”A sunny, 70-degree Sunday at Sloan Park was about as good as it gets.The Cubs wound up with a 5-0 win over the Kansas City Royals before 15,261 in what technically was the final spring game. The final two home games against the White Sox on Monday and Tuesday were added late and won’t count in the Cactus League standings.Cold and rainy weather could play a factor for the Cubs early this season. Thirty-one of their first 56 games through Memorial Day will be pl...

High-speed motorcycle pursuit leads to arrest in National City

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. -- A motorcyclist was arrested Sunday after a high-speed pursuit started in North County and ended in the South Bay, authorities said.The incident began around 1:50 a.m. when a police officer saw a motorcyclist driving at excessively high speeds on southbound Interstate 15 in Escondido, said Lt. Suzanne Baeder of the Escondido Police Department. Police investigate ‘suspicious’ death of man in San Diego At that time, officers attempted to stop the driver who police say fled and continued southbound at a high rate speed.A San Diego Sheriff's Department helicopter was called in to assist and followed the motorcycle until it stopped in National City, said Lt. Baeder.Officers responded to the area and authorities say the driver initially hid, but was peacefully taken in to custody after the helicopter pilots made announcements for the driver to surrender.The motorcyclist has been identified by police as 23-year-old Michael Chavez who resides in Jamul. Chavez was ...

N.S. RCMP warn public of dangerous woman with handgun in Sipekne’katik First Nation

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

INDIAN BROOK, N.S. — The Mounties in Sipekne’katik First Nation in central Nova Scotia are warning residents of a dangerous woman “on foot” with a handgun in the community. RCMP in the Mi’kmaq community issued a public alert just after 7 p.m. local time Sunday. The alert says the woman’s name is Shannon Yvonne Hudson and she is five feet, three inches tall and 119 pounds with shoulder length light brown hair and blue eyes, and was last seen wearing blue jeans, a light sweater and a red hat.Investigators say the incident started inside a house on Dowie Road earlier this evening in the First Nation, which is located about 66 kilometres north of Halifax.Police say the area had been closed to the public and they are warning anyone who encounters Hudson not to approach her.RCMP spokesman Cpl. Guillaume Tremblay said in a telephone interview that as of 7:30 p.m. it was believed Hudson was still in the area of the First Nation. He said no injuries have been reported...

Is the David porn? Come see, Italians tell Florida parents

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

ROME (AP) — The Florence museum housing Michelangelo’s Renaissance masterpiece the David on Sunday invited parents and students from a Florida charter school to visit after complaints about a lesson featuring the statue forced the principal to resign.Florence Mayor Dario Nardella also tweeted an invitation for the principal to visit so he can personally honor her. Confusing art with pornography was “ridiculous,” Nardella said. The board of the Tallahassee Classical School pressured Principal Hope Carrasquilla to resign last week after an image of the David was show to a sixth-grade art class. The school has a policy requiring parents to be notified in advance about “controversial” topics being taught. The incredulous Italian response highlighted how the U.S. culture wars are often perceived in Europe, where despite a rise in right-wing sentiment and governance, the Renaissance and its masterpieces, even its naked ones, are generally free of controversy. Sunday’s front page of ...

Churches provide solace in tornado-ravaged Mississippi Delta

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

ROLLING FORK, Miss. (AP) — As a deadly tornado tore through the lower Mississippi Delta, the Rev. Mary Stewart clung to a door in the hallway of her Rolling Fork home, shielding herself from the branches and chunks of debris that came flying through her shattered windows.Friday’s storm flattened entire town blocks, but the Rolling Fork Methodist Church withstood the high winds. And so the first Sunday after the twister would commence just like any other Sunday — with congregants reaffirming their faith and finding solace together. “We are a very religious community,” said Laura Allmon, a fourth-generation congregant. “It just means a lot for us to be able to get together and pray and be thankful for what we have.”At least 26 people were killed and dozens of others were injured late Friday in Mississippi as the storm ripped through one of the poorest regions in the country, leaving a swath of destruction in its wake.With their homes unlivable, many Rolling Fork residents flocke...

Canadian Pacific train derails in Franklin Park

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

FRANKLIN PARK, Ill. — A Canadian Pacific train derailed in Franklin Park Sunday afternoon, according to a spokesman from the company.According to the railway company, a CP train derailed two cars at around 12:45 p.m., with one carrying wheat and the other being empty.Metra trains, which travel through the area on the same tracks, have not experienced many problems due to the derailment. According to Metra, only one train has experienced a delay, and it only lasted about 15 minutes. Sunday Forecast: Cloudy, chance of rain/snow showers, t’storms The two cars are still derailed on the tracks and Canadian Pacific crews are working to remove them. It is unclear at this time how long it will take until the tracks are clear.

Weekend Break: Chicago Magic Lounge

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

CHICAGO — One of the best-kept secrets on the North Side is the Chicago Magic Lounge, hidden behind a fake laundromat.“We want to catch people with a little bit of misdirection from the moment they walk in,” said Joey Cranford, Chicago Magic Lounge co-owner and CEO. Sunday Brunch with Scratchboard Kitchen Once inside, guests are transported into an Art Deco speakeasy bar where the magic happens every night, starting at 5 p.m. You don’t need to have a ticket to the show to enjoy the experience that comes with the performance bar.“You can just come in and watch magic, you don’t actually have to have a ticket, but make sure you get here early,” Cranford said.The capacity is capped at 34 guests in the performance bar and Cranford said it often gets packed close to show time, so people are encouraged to arrive early. To get inside the Harry Blackstone Cabaret Theater, people are brought into a library and through a secret entrance so mysterious, you’ll ha...

No. 8 Texas softball sweeps Texas Tech, turns attention to showdown with No. 1 Oklahoma

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The No. 8 Texas softball team completed a three-game sweep of Texas Tech with an 8-3 win Sunday at McCombs Field.The win is the Longhorns' seventh in a row. They beat the Red Raiders 3-2 to open the series Friday and 4-3 on Saturday.MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newslettersIn the finale, freshman pitcher Citlaly Gutierrez notched her 10th win of the season. She allowed two earned runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and two walks in six innings. Courtney Day and Katie Cimusz both hit home runs to jolt the Longhorns' offense. Cimusz hit a 2-run blast in the third inning to make the score 5-1 and Day also hit a 2-run homer to extend the Texas lead to 8-3 in the sixth. Leighann Goode and Reese Atwood each had two hits for Texas. Goode is now leading the team with a .413 batting average and a .464 on-base percentage. Goode entered the weekend third in Division I w...

Gophers hockey: Bryce Brodzinski’s late-season warm-up earns a Florida trip for his family — divided loyalties and all

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

FARGO, N.D. – Michael Brodzinski Sr., known in hockey circles as “Big Mike” (as opposed to his son, the former Minnesota Gopher, who is just “Michael”) offered smiles and friendly handshakes in the lobby of Scheels Arena prior to Saturday’s Fargo Regional title game.It pitted his two favorite teams against one another. Big Mike played for the Huskies and two of his sons — Easton and Jonny — played at St. Cloud State under Bob Motzko. Michael Jr. was the family’s odd duck for a time, taking Interstate 35W south (rather than 94 west) from the family home in Blaine to play for Don Lucia’s Gophers.Michael played in an NCAA title game with Minnesota in 2014 and maybe earned the family’s biggest prize during his days in Dinkytown when he asked a talented member of the Gophers women’s team out on a date. In the summer of 2022, Olympic gold medalist Dani Cameranesi and Michael were married. Rumor has it that several college hockey coaches have already inquired to see if the couple might sta...

Twins’ roster rounds into shape with last round of cuts

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 13:00:00 GMT

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Twins’ 26-man roster appears to be set.Two days before the Twins are set to leave Florida for their Opening Day game against the Royals in Kansas City, the club trimmed its roster down once more by optioning Bailey Ober to Triple-A and reassigning Kyle Garlick, Danny Coulombe and Aaron Sanchez to minor league camp, leaving 32 active players remaining in camp.Five players — Jorge Polanco, Alex Kirilloff, Gilberto Celestino, Josh Winder and Ronny Henriquez — technically remain in camp but are not expected to be ready to begin the season due to their respective injuries. Non-roster catcher Tony Wolters is also in camp, but he has been informed that he is not making the team; the Twins wanted to keep him in their major league environment until the end of camp so he could continue to gain familiarity with their pitchers.That leaves 26.“Opening Day, making the club, it’s a big deal and everyone should be excited about that,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “But we also...