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Nationals host the Mets, try to extend home win streak

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

New York Mets (18-20, fourth in the NL East) vs. Washington Nationals (16-21, fifth in the NL East)Washington; Friday, 7:05 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Mets: Tylor Megill (3-2, 4.33 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 27 strikeouts); Nationals: MacKenzie Gore (3-2, 3.65 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 48 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Mets -131, Nationals +111; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Washington Nationals host the New York Mets trying to continue a three-game home winning streak.Washington has gone 6-12 in home games and 16-21 overall. The Nationals have the fifth-ranked team batting average in the NL at .259.New York is 11-12 in road games and 18-20 overall. The Mets have gone 10-19 in games when they have allowed at least one home run.Friday’s game is the fourth time these teams meet this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Joey Meneses has a .288 batting average to lead the Nationals, and has seven doubles and two home runs. Luis Garcia is 14-for-40 with a home run and three RBI over the past 10 game...

Phillies bring 3-game win streak into matchup with the Rockies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

Philadelphia Phillies (18-19, third in the NL East) vs. Colorado Rockies (16-22, fifth in the NL West)Denver; Friday, 8:40 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Phillies: Taijuan Walker (3-2, 5.97 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 35 strikeouts); Rockies: Austin Gomber (3-4, 6.75 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, 22 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Phillies -147, Rockies +126; over/under is 11 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Philadelphia Phillies will attempt to prolong a three-game win streak with a victory over the Colorado Rockies.Colorado has a 7-9 record at home and a 16-22 record overall. The Rockies are 12-1 in games when they did not give up a home run.Philadelphia is 7-12 on the road and 18-19 overall. The Phillies have the eighth-ranked team on-base percentage in the NL at .323.Friday’s game is the fifth time these teams meet this season. The Phillies are up 3-1 in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Elias Diaz has six doubles, three home runs and 18 RBI for the Rockies. Ezequiel Tovar is 10-for-37 with four doubl...

Physical altercation involving staff member prompts investigation at Mattapan school

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

An investigation got underway Thursday after a physical altercation involving a staff member at a school in Mattapan, school officials said. In a letter sent to parents about the incident, Mattahunt Elementary School Principal Walter Henderson said multiple students witnessed when a staff member had a “verbal and physical altercation” in the school’s cafeteria Thursday afternoon.“School staff contacted BPS Safety Services to provide assistance,” Henderson said. “School leadership will investigate this incident, and if necessary, will take all appropriate actions.”Henderson said students who watched the incident unfold later had an opportunity to voice their concerns and ask questions.“The Mattahunt School, alongside the entire Boston Public Schools, is committed to fostering environments where all students feel safe, respected, and academically challenged,” Henderson continued. “While personnel matters are confidential, please know that all Boston Public Schools staff is held t...

Guregian: Patriots schedule is a doozy no matter which way you slice it

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

FOXBORO – Let’s face it, even though we now know the Patriots schedule, and which order they’re going to play each opponent, it doesn’t change the outlook all that much.Whether they start with the Philadelphia Eagles on Tom Brady night, and close out the regular season with the New York Jets, the degree of difficulty hasn’t changed.The schedule, which includes at least four primetime games, remains a doozy.It was going to be tough no matter which way the games wound up falling. The order is one thing. But the star power under center is another with two-time Super Bowl winner Patrick Mahomes, Philadelphia’s budding star Jalen Hurts, and New York’s Aaron Rodgers included in the mix.Case in point, even sporting a top 10 defense, the Patriots have struggled against the elite quarterbacks in recent years. By extension, they haven’t fared particularly well against the NFL’s high-powered offenses.In 2023, they have to face a boatload of the NFL’s top QBs...

The Orioles’ defense hasn’t been what it was in 2022. They believe that’s starting to change.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

The 2022 Orioles were a winning team because of their defense. The 2023 Orioles, so far, have won in spite of their defense.A year after ranking in the top 10 in several defensive metrics, Baltimore ranks in the bottom 10 in many of them through their first 37 games of this season.Those numbers, however, have been improving in recent weeks, and it’s not just the spreadsheets that suggest the Orioles’ defense is finding its footing. Manager Brandon Hyde and some of the club’s most important defenders believe they’re turning a corner after a rough start.“I feel like we’re getting our feet up under us,” infielder Gunnar Henderson said. “We’re starting to see it come around and we’re seeing us making the plays that you see us normally make.”The Orioles (24-13) ended April with a minus-12 figure, according to FanGraphs, for defensive runs saved, which rates individual players as above or below average on defense. Nine game...

How Robert Williams’ return to starting lineup paid big dividends for Celtics in Game 6 victory

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

PHILADELPHIA — When the Celtics learned that Robert Williams would be returning to the starting lineup for Game 6 on Thursday, they didn’t hide their feelings.“I was excited,” Al Horford said.“I was ecstatic about it,” Marcus Smart said.They’ve been around long enough, and experienced plenty of games, to know how much Williams’ sheer presence on the floor – physically and emotionally – helps unlock the Celtics. After all, they reached the NBA Finals last season with this lineup for a reason.“He’s the kind of guy that brings a level of joy to his teammates,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.Mazzulla’s decision to start Williams over Derrick White as the Celtics faced elimination in Game 6 was somewhat bold, given the stakes. But it was needed. And it was even expected, according to Sixers coach Doc Rivers, who thought the change would come in Game 5.Maybe this series – which will head to Game 7 on Sunday after the Celtics’ 95-86 victory on Thursday – would have unfolded differently if...

Palestinian militants fire more rockets, Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza despite cease-fire efforts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The most violent confrontation in months between Israel and Palestinian militants continued for a third straight day on Friday, as Israeli warplanes struck targets in the Gaza Strip and militants fired rockets toward Jerusalem and southern Israel. There were no immediate reports of casualties on either side Friday, as foreign mediators pressed ahead with efforts to reach a cease-fire. The past few days of fighting have killed 31 Palestinians in Gaza and a 70-year-old man in central Israel. A burst of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip sent warning sirens wailing near the contested capital of Jerusalem, breaking a 12-hour lull that had raised hopes that Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations could soon be able to broker a cease-fire. Residents in Israeli settlements surrounding Jerusalem reported hearing explosions and seeing black smoke rising from the hills after an apparent missile interception. A rocket slammed into an open field in Bat Ayin, a settlement s...

Commerce Department starts process to fund tech hubs across the US with $500 million in grants

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Commerce Department on Friday is launching the application process for cities to receive a total of $500 million in grants to become technology hubs.The $500 million is part of a $10 billion authorization from last year’s CHIPS and Science Act to stimulate investments in new technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biotech. It’s an attempt to expand tech investment that is largely concentrated around a few U.S. cities — Austin, Texas; Boston; New York; San Francisco; and Seattle — to the rest of the country. “This is about taking these places on the edge of glory to being world leaders,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told The Associated Press. “My job is to enhance America’s competitiveness.”The Biden administration has made it a priority to set an industrial strategy of directing government investment into computer chips, clean energy and a range of other technologies. Officials say that being leaders in those fi...

Pope joins Meloni in urging Italians to have more kids, not pets

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis joined Italy’s conservative premier on Friday in encouraging Italians to have more children, denouncing the financial precariousness facing young couples and “selfish, egotistical” choices that have led to a record low birth rate that is threatening the country’s economic future.Francis urged concrete political action to invert the “demographic winter,” which in population terms resulted in the disappearance of a city the size of Bari last year. Blasting couples who have pets instead of children, Francis called for resources to be dedicated to helping couples grow their families, saying it was necessary to “plant the future” with hope.“Let us not resign ourselves to sterile dullness and pessimism,” Francis told an annual gathering of pro-family organizations. “Let us not believe that history is already marked, that nothing can be done to reverse the trend.”Italy recorded a record low number of live births last year, 392,598, which combined with an elevated n...

NYC lawmakers approve bill that bans weight discrimination

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:37 GMT

(The Hill) - The New York City Council on Thursday approved a bill to ban height- and weight-based discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations in the state. The proposal, which the council passed by a 44-5 vote on Thursday, amends the city's administrative code to add a mention of both height and weight — both perceived and actual — among a list of protected categories. “It’s official! The New York City Council has voted to ban weight and height discrimination in NYC!” announced the nonprofit National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance. The bill also has an exemption for “employers needing to consider height or weight in employment decisions” in some cases, where permitted by law or where the physical factors are key to “performing essential requirements of a job and no alternative is available” or where the criteria are “reasonably necessary for the normal operation of the business.”“People with different body types are not only denied jobs and promotion...