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Pirates meet the Nationals with 2-1 series lead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

Washington Nationals (65-81, fifth in the NL East) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (68-78, fourth in the NL Central)Pittsburgh; Thursday, 12:35 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: Josiah Gray (7-11, 4.13 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 122 strikeouts); Pirates: Mitch Keller (11-9, 4.23 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 191 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Pirates -164, Nationals +140; over/under is 8 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates host the Washington Nationals, leading the series 2-1.Pittsburgh is 68-78 overall and 36-38 at home. The Pirates have a 44-10 record in games when they scored five or more runs.Washington is 65-81 overall and 34-38 on the road. The Nationals have a 24-14 record in games when they hit two or more home runs.The matchup Thursday is the seventh meeting between these teams this season. The Pirates hold a 4-2 advantage in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Bryan Reynolds has a .272 batting average to lead the Pirates, and has 31 doubles, five triples and 21 home runs. Ke’Bryan...

Death investigation underway following possible electrocution in NW Miami-Dade

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

Miami-Dade Police officers and fire rescue crews responded to a neighborhood in Northwest Miami-Dade after a person was found dead near a cement truck lot following reports of a possible electrocution. The incident occurred on Thursday morning at 830 NW 73rd St. after a loud boom was reported. Although it is not clear what occurred, initial calls were received about an electrocution in the area. As a result of this incident, the power went out temporarily in the vicinity. Florida Light & Power officials were also on the scene as they investigated the outage that has reportedly affected 1,496 customers. Live video footage showed the body, covered by a yellow tarp, near the lot and water leaking from a nearby building. Police officers on the scene said there appeared to be an electrical issue in the neighborhood. Commuters in the area are urged to avoid Northwest 73rd Street near Northwest Seventh Avenue as authorities have blocked off the street to investigate the situation. Offi...

Wetter Weather Ahead by this Weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

A sweltering and record-breaking day of heat was endured on Wednesday and more record heat will be possible this Thursday with highs back into the mid 90s at many South Florida locations.This Thursday will feature morning sunshine, then the chance for a few late-day showers and storms. Feels-like temperatures will top off near 100F across much of the mainland and closer to the 105-110F range in the Florida Keys.Now while temperatures will go down by a few degrees this weekend, rain chances will go up because of a weakening cold front moving in from the north. This front will essentially stall across central Florida, trapping plenty of moisture across the peninsula. This will lead to the daily risk of seeing showers and thunderstorms, especially during the afternoon and evening hours.With that daily risk of rain, which could be heavy, the risk for flooding exists for areas that receive several inches of rainfall in a short period of time. A widespread 2-4 inches of rainfall is foreca...

Hunter Biden sues former Trump White House aide over alleged efforts to hack devices

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

(CNN) — Attorneys for Hunter Biden have filed a civil lawsuit against former Trump White House aide Garrett Ziegler, alleging illegal hacking in violation of federal computer privacy laws.The suit, filed in federal court in California, accuses Ziegler of “accessing, tampering with, manipulation, altering, copying and damaging computer data that they do not own and that they claim to have obtained from hacking into Plaintiff’s iPhone data and from scouring a copy of the hard drive of what they claim to be Plaintiff’s ‘laptop’ computer.”Ziegler worked in the Trump White House from February 2019 until January 2021 as a policy analyst and later in the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy under the supervision of former Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro.The lawsuit is part of a more aggressive strategy Hunter Biden’s team is taking against his detractors. As part of this strategy, Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden’s son, has added attorney Abbe Lowell to his defense team. Lowell...

French prosecutors probe Champagne grape-pickers’ deaths in extreme heat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

Public prosecutors in France’s northeastern Champagne region are investigating the deaths of at least four grape-pickers who died while working in extreme heat, according to local media reports.One casualty was a 19-year-old seasonal worker in the Reims region, who died last Friday as the temperature climbed to at least 32 degrees Celsius in the shade, France Bleu Champagne-Ardenne reported, as France was hit by a late summer heat wave that led to record temperatures across the country in early September.“With climate change, the situation is bound to get worse,” Anthony Smith, union representative at the French Labor Ministry, told radio broadcaster RMC. “In France, labor inspectors don’t have the power to stop an activity during severe heat or heat waves.”Around 120,000 seasonal workers head to the Champagne region every year at the end of the summer to pick the grapes used to produce the iconic French bubbly.Another two workers died while harve...

Classes set to resume in Leominster as community cleans up from historic flooding

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

Students are set to return to class in Leominster on Thursday as cleanup efforts continue following severe flash flooding in the area earlier this week. More rain on Wednesday sent water cascading down already washed out roadways and triggered a flood watch for much of Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island as well as parts of southern New Hampshire. And as kids head back to class and the community looks to return to a sense of normalcy, officials say the recovery from flooding may still take months. “It’s going to take a long time to have this all fixed up,” said Leominster resident Ann Godfrey.Floodwaters rose fast on Monday, ultimately washing out roads and damaging homes, businesses and city facilities. First responders from numerous state and local agencies rescued residents from flooded homes. As the sun then rose on Tuesday morning, several roads remained closed due to sinkholes and other damage.Near Hamilton Street in Leominster, railroad tracks still hung over a w...

COVID-19 cases reported on luxury cruise ship MV Ocean Explorer that ran aground in Greenland

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The operator of a luxury cruise ship that ran aground in Greenland with 206 people on board said Thursday at least three passengers have contracted COVID-19. The announcement followed a third failed attempt to free the cruise liner, after a fisheries research vessel attempted to pull the ship free at high tide on Wednesday.“These passengers are currently in isolation. They are looked after by our onboard doctor, medical team and crew, and they are doing well,” the Australia-based Aurora Expeditions said in a statement. The others on the MV Ocean Explorer were “safe and healthy,” it added.Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald quoted a retiree from Australia, Steven Fraser, who is on the ship, saying: “Everyone’s in good spirits. It’s a little bit frustrating, but we are in a beautiful part of the world.”Fraser told the newspaper that he himself had come down with COVID-19 on the ship.The cruise ship ran aground above the Arctic Circle o...

Firefighters fear the toxic chemicals in their gear could be contributing to rising cancer cases

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — Boston firefighter Daniel Ranahan had heard about colleagues getting cancer but he was stunned when doctors discovered a large tumor in his chest.He was only 30 and had been in the Boston Fire Department less than a decade. But as he investigated his diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma in October 2020 and sought successful treatment, he learned he and others wore gear that contained the toxic industrial compound PFAS.“You always hear about the dangers. You just never think it’s going be you,” said Ranahan, who stopped working due to the cancer and is among thousands of firefighters nationwide who sued PFAS manufacturers and companies that make firefighting gear and foam, seeking damages for their exposure.“These guys put this on day in and day out to protect neighborhoods and wherever they are working,” he said.The multi-layered coats and pants worn by firefighters have become the latest battleground over PFAS, or per- and polyfluorinated substances. ...

Thrifty at the top: Orioles and Rays among MLB’s lowest payrolls, highest win totals

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

The Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays each fielded full lineups Wednesday that will be paid less this year than several players on the New York Yankees. Their payrolls haven’t mattered, though. The two thrifty teams have the highest win totals in the American League.Baltimore’s 10 starters in Wednesday night’s 1-0 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals included its highest-paid player, pitcher Kyle Gibson, but their entire lineup combined to total less in payroll than Yankee superstars Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole and Giancarlo Stanton are each paid individually in 2023.Baltimore (91-54) and Tampa Bay (90-57) have piled up victories this season — they’re the only AL teams with 90 wins — with prudent budgets. The teams rank 27th and 28th among MLB player payrolls, according to Spotrac, but have the second- and third-best records in baseball. The Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and Yankees have spent more on players this year, but all sit below the Orioles and Rays...

Orioles ready for high-stakes series vs. Rays in battle for AL East: ‘It’s going to be electric’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:58 GMT

Brandon Hyde is one of the few in the Orioles’ dugout with postseason experience.“It’s totally different,” the former Chicago Cubs assistant and current Orioles manager said. “You’ve got serious adrenaline going.”The upcoming series against the Tampa Bay Rays — the Orioles’ most consequential set in years — will feel as close to playoff baseball as perhaps any in the regular season can.The fate of the American League East is in the balance, and the way the four games at Camden Yards play out will have an outsized impact on determining who will claim the top spot by season’s end. Baltimore owns a two-game lead over Tampa Bay ahead of Thursday’s opener with the potential of clinching its first playoff berth since 2016 as early as Friday.Outfielder Austin Hays, one of several veterans who braved the club’s painful rebuild, said the Orioles have done well at focusing on their games rather than how the Rays are...