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Like offseason, Orioles’ trade deadline evokes questions of whether they could have done more | ANALYSIS

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

The Orioles’ affinity for water has not stretched to the front office. Unlike the Bird Bath section at Camden Yards, it’s no splash zone.For the second time in nine months, Baltimore entered a period of roster fluctuation seen as a team capable of making big moves, with payroll flexibility and the sport’s deepest minor league system seemingly giving the Orioles the capability to add any player available both this past offseason and ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. In both cases, the Orioles made improvements to their roster but not to the level they appeared to have the opportunity to.For the cost of four of their top 30 prospects, the Orioles brought in Oakland Athletics reliever Shintaro Fujinami on July 19 and St. Louis Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty minutes ahead of the trade deadline. The pitchers, each set to be a free agent after this season, reinforce a rotation and bullpen loaded with inexperienced arms approaching unprecedented workloads. The Ori...

The Orioles asked for applicants to work at Camden Yards. Over 550 people showed up for 160 jobs.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

More than 550 people heeded the Birds’ call and lined up at Camden Yards on Tuesday to become ticket takers, ushers and greeters, many in the overflow crowd saying — like one eager fan — that “I just want to be part” of the Orioles’ buzzworthy season.While some industries have struggled with labor shortages in the post-pandemic economy, the Orioles quickly knew they had the easiest of sells in a season that has defied lofty expectations and has fans dreaming of a lengthy postseason run.The Orioles, currently in first place in the American League East and eyeing the playoffs, invited people last month on social media to “come join us and be a part of the team” by attending a job fair during which applicants sat at tables near an upper concourse and filled out forms asking such questions as whether they can “easily stand in a small area for 4-6 hours.”The team, which normally attracts 100 to 300 people to periodic job fairs, ...

Police: 21 shots fired at Burlington apartment complex

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

A Burlington apartment complex was rocked by nearly two dozen gunshots early this morning, but police report that no one was injured in the chaos.Burlington Police headed toward the Avalon Burlington apartment complex at 1 Arboretum Way a little after 3:45 a.m. for reports of shots fired.An initial investigation shows that shooters fired 21 shots from two weapons while standing outside the apartment building and then fled in a car police believe was stolen from Everett earlier in the morning.“The Burlington Police Department believes this is a targeted act that does not pose an ongoing threat,” a spokesperson for the department said in a statement.This is a developing story.

Police dog killed in 'violent shooting'; suspect pronounced dead

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A police dog was killed in what the San Diego Police Officers Association (SDPOA) described as a "violent shooting" Wednesday morning.In a tweet at 4:57 a.m., authorities noted the police dog "saved the lives of the officers and citizens" in the area of San Diego Mesa College in Clairemont. Body found in search for missing hiker on El Cajon Mountain "There was a radio call involving something reporting a gun, some sort of shooting," said Lt. Adam Sharki with the San Diego Police Department. "Officers responded to that. In the course of their investigation, there was contact with a suspect and an officer involved shooting occurred."FOX 5 was at the scene on Mesa College Circle and Armstrong Road Wednesday morning. The area was blocked off and the streets were closed to traffic for an investigation.Police say the shooting incident came to an end in this area and a white Tesla -- the suspect's vehicle -- remained at the scene.SDPD says officers were investigating a poss...

Metrolinx lowering price of PRESTO cards next week

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

Metrolinx is lowering the price of PRESTO cards next week to make it easier for commuters to take transit across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).Starting August 8, the cost of a PRESTO card will be lowered to $4 from the current price of $6. PRESTO cards are available at transit customer service outlets, Shoppers Drug Mart locations, fare vending machines and ticket vending machines.PRESTO cards can be used to pay fares across multiple transit agencies in the GTHA and Ottawa — including GO Transit and UP Express.RELATED: You can now tap your credit card on Presto machines to pay GO Transit faresA Metrolinx spokesperson said after customers purchase a new PRESTO card, they can create an account before loading money onto it. It can take up to 24 hours after purchase before this can be done.Some transit agency discounts, including those for youth, post-secondary students and seniors, are only available with a PRESTO card.One year ago, Metrolinx introduced the option ...

Stock market today: Wall Street falls as year’s big rally loses more momentum

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are falling Wednesday as Wall Street loses more momentum following its torrid run so far this year.The S&P 500 was 1.2% lower in midday trading and heading for a second straight loss after hitting a 16-month high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 235 points, or 0.7%, at 35,395, as of 11:30 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 2% lower.Prices were mixed in the bond market after Fitch Ratings cut the credit rating of the U.S. government. The repeated standoffs in Congress about whether to default on the U.S. debt were among several reasons for Fitch’s cut. The downgrade strikes at the core of the global financial system because U.S. Treasurys are considered some of the safest possible investments.Fitch’s move follows a similar one by Standard & Poor’s in 2011, one that coincided with a European debt crisis to help cause stocks and bonds around the world to swing violently. So far, this most recent downgrade has caused less drama...

Republican National Committee boosts polling and fundraising thresholds to qualify for 2nd debate

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Some Republican presidential candidates haven’t yet met polling and fundraising thresholds for the first debate of the 2024 cycle, and now the qualifications for making it to the second one will be even higher.To get to the second debate, scheduled for Sept. 27 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, candidates will need at least 3% in two national polls or will need 3% in one national poll as well as two polls from four of the early-voting states — Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina — a person familiar with the markers set by the Republican National Committee told The Associated Press on Wednesday.The White House hopefuls must also have at least 50,000 unique donors, with at least 200 of those coming from 20 states or territories, according to the person, who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly on the qualifications and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The new thresholds were first reported by Politico....

Spain says 37.5 million foreign tourists visited in the first half of 2023, up 24% from 2022

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

BARCEL, Portugal — Spain received 37.5 million international tourists in the first half of 2023, a 24% increase from the same period last year, the government announced Wednesday. The figure is lower than for the same period in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic, when 38 million tourists arrived. But officials say the numbers are a sign that international tourism has rebounded strongly since the health crisis. Visitors from Britain topped the tourist list, totaling some 8 million, followed by some 5 million tourists from both France and Germany. Spain is heavily dependent on tourism, which accounts for 12% of gross domestic product. The northeastern region of Catalonia, including Barcelona and the Costa Brava, was the most visited area.The Associated Press

Shock and sadness in Rio favela after Brazil’s early elimination from Women’s World Cup

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

A group of girls and young women gathered early Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro’s working-class Manguinhos neighborhood to watch the Brazilian team compete in the Women’s World Cup and pray for a win in the make-or-break match.Instead, the 0-0 draw against Jamaica knocked Brazil out of the tournament in the group stage for the first time since 1995. The 16 assembled viewers in Manguinhos, who had pinned their hopes on the squad, were wracked with disappointment. “It is sad to see Brazil lose. We didn’t even get to the round of 16,” said 14-year-old Maísa Solano, wearing green-and-yellow face paint and a jersey of veteran star Marta. “We could have gone a little further.”Solano and the others present are among the roughly 60 participants in a project called Stars of Mandela that empowers Manguinhos’ girls and young women through soccer and gives more visibility to the women’s game. The non-profit organized the broadcast of the game at the soccer field where they practic...

A Latino player says his Northwestern teammates hazed him by shaving ‘Cinco de Mayo’ onto his head

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:53 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Ramon Diaz says he was just 17 years old when Northwestern University upperclassmen shaved “Cinco de Mayo” onto the back of his head as the entire football team watched.“The holiday itself has a significant meaning to me and my family and then the Latino community at large,” Diaz told The Associated Press. “I was mocked and ridiculed.”Diaz said he was the only Latino offensive lineman on the team at a time when the athletic department’s culture allowed racist and sexual abuse to thrive and caused psychological and emotional damage to athletes of color. A lawsuit announced on Diaz’ behalf Wednesday is the 10th against the prestigious private university since student journalists at The Daily Northwestern published an article on July 8 that suggested head coach Patrick Fitzgerald may have been aware of hazing, leading to his firing after 17 seasons. Northwestern announced Tuesday that it has hired former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to lead an investig...