Cubs host the Braves on 3-game home win streak

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Cubs host the Braves on 3-game home win streak Atlanta Braves (69-37, first in the NL East) vs. Chicago Cubs (56-53, third in the NL Central)Chicago; Friday, 2:20 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Braves: Max Fried (0-0); Cubs: Kyle Hendricks (4-5, 3.61 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 48 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Braves -172, Cubs +146; over/under is 8 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Cubs, on a three-game home winning streak, host the Atlanta Braves.Chicago has a 56-53 record overall and a 30-27 record at home. The Cubs have a 37-14 record in games when they scored five or more runs.Atlanta has gone 32-17 in road games and 69-37 overall. The Braves lead the NL with 206 total home runs, averaging 1.9 per game.The matchup Friday is the first meeting this season between the two teams.TOP PERFORMERS: Cody Bellinger has 16 doubles, a triple and 16 home runs for the Cubs. Dansby Swanson is 10-for-36 with a double and six home runs over the last 10 games.Ronald Acuna Jr. has 27 doubles, a triple and 25 home runs for the Braves. Austin Riley i...

Brewers bring 1-0 series lead over Pirates into game 2

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Brewers bring 1-0 series lead over Pirates into game 2 Pittsburgh Pirates (48-60, fourth in the NL Central) vs. Milwaukee Brewers (59-51, first in the NL Central)Milwaukee; Friday, 8:10 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Quinn Priester (2-1, 9.19 ERA, 1.72 WHIP, 13 strikeouts); Brewers: Colin Rea (5-4, 4.76 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 83 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Brewers -167, Pirates +141; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Milwaukee Brewers host the Pittsburgh Pirates, leading the series 1-0.Milwaukee has gone 30-24 in home games and 59-51 overall. The Brewers have a 37-16 record in games when they record at least eight hits.Pittsburgh is 48-60 overall and 22-32 in road games. The Pirates are 21-6 in games when they hit at least two home runs.Friday’s game is the eighth time these teams match up this season. The Brewers have a 6-1 advantage in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Christian Yelich has 16 home runs, 51 walks and 63 RBI while hitting .291 for the Brewers. William Contreras is 14-for-42 with six doubles, a home r...

Cardinals begin 3-game series at home against the Rockies

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Cardinals begin 3-game series at home against the Rockies Colorado Rockies (42-66, fifth in the NL West) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (48-62, fifth in the NL Central)St. Louis; Friday, 8:15 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Rockies: Chris Flexen (0-5, 8.08 ERA, 1.93 WHIP, 33 strikeouts); Cardinals: Adam Wainwright (3-5, 7.18 ERA, 1.90 WHIP, 34 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Cardinals -170, Rockies +144; over/under is 9 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The St. Louis Cardinals host the Colorado Rockies on Friday to start a three-game series.St. Louis is 48-62 overall and 24-31 at home. The Cardinals have the 10th-ranked team ERA in the NL at 4.50.Colorado has a 42-66 record overall and a 17-36 record in road games. The Rockies have a 29-15 record in games when they out-hit their opponents.Friday’s game is the fourth meeting between these teams this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Nolan Arenado has 21 doubles, two triples, 22 home runs and 78 RBI for the Cardinals. Lars Nootbaar is 12-for-33 with a double, four home runs and eight RBI over the past 10 games.R...

Knockout round opens at Women’s World Cup with Japanese vs Norway, unproven Swiss faces Spain

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Knockout round opens at Women’s World Cup with Japanese vs Norway, unproven Swiss faces Spain AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Brazil and Canada are out. Same for Italy and Germany, all powerhouse teams already eliminated from the Women’s World Cup following shocking upsets in group play. The United States, meanwhile, hardly looks as dominant as it did in winning the last two consecutive titles. The round of 16 begins Saturday in what’s now a wide-open World Cup with plenty of underdogs still in contention. Morocco, ranked 72nd in the world and in the tournament for the first time, used an unbelievable upset over Colombia to advance. South Africa made it through to the round of 16 for the first time in its history, and same for Jamaica, which needed a GoFundMe campaign to afford the travel to the tournament. Nigeria is through for the first time since 1999, while Colombia and its 18-year-old star Linda Caicedo made it to the round of 16 for the second time in team history and just four years after it failed to qualify for the tournament. There are plenty of heavyweights still in...

Firefighters extinguish blaze at Miami duplex; 1 hospitalized, dog dead

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Firefighters extinguish blaze at Miami duplex; 1 hospitalized, dog dead The City of Miami Fire Rescue Department responded to a duplex blaze that has left one person hospitalized and one dog dead. On Friday, just before 2:30 a.m., fire crews arrived at 3448 SW 15th St. and were met with a two-story residential duplex engulfed in heavy smoke and flames. Firefighters extended hose lines into the building to maintain and extinguish the flames. Within minutes, the fire was extinguished, but responders discovered the lifeless body of a dog within the residence.Paramedics on the scene assessed two adult residents for injuries sustained during the ordeal. One of the occupants, an adult male, endured burns to the arms and face; he was transported to Jackson Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center for treatment. As of the latest update, the patient is in stable condition.The American Red Cross has provided necessary assistance and support for the six people that have been displaced due to the fire. The cause and origin of the fire remain unknown at this time. The M...

NTSB releases report on February runway scare at Logan Airport, says charter jet crew took off without permission

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

NTSB releases report on February runway scare at Logan Airport, says charter jet crew took off without permission Federal investigators said Thursday that the pilot of a charter jet took off without permission, creating a “conflict” with a JetBlue plane that was preparing to land on an intersecting runway at Boston’s Logan International Airport in February.A screen grab from video shot from the JetBlue cockpit captures the moment that the Learjet operated by charter service Hop-A-Jet crossed the runway just in front of the JetBlue plane.Pilots of the JetBlue Embraer jet estimated they were about 30 feet (9 meters) off the ground when they saw a plane cross in front of them — the captain said he couldn’t estimate how close they were to the smaller plane, according to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board. The JetBlue pilots were able to pull up and circle around and land safely.The captain of the Hop-A-Jet said he heard air traffic controllers tell him to line up and wait before taking off — and even repeated the order back to the controller — “but in his m...

Water main break floods street in Dorchester

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Water main break floods street in Dorchester A water main break flooded part of Dorchester early Friday morning. The pipe burst near the intersection of Stoughton Street and Windermere Road. Police had the area taped off as of around 3:15 a.m. and water was also shut off to the area as crews worked to make repairs. Video from the scene showed water flowing over the street with some emergency crews on site. No further information was immediately available.

Trump was told not to talk to witnesses in 2020 election conspiracy case. That could be a challenge

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Trump was told not to talk to witnesses in 2020 election conspiracy case. That could be a challenge WASHINGTON (AP) — It was a routine part of a federal court hearing: The defendant was told not to discuss the case with any witnesses without lawyers present.But there’s nothing routine about this case. The defendant is Donald Trump, accused of orchestrating a conspiracy to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The potential witness pool is vast and includes members of the former president’s inner circle deeply involved in his reelection campaign, including some currently on his payroll. His lies about the election — which form the basis of the charges — are repeated in nearly every speech he gives.“The standard language may not work here, when you have thousands of Americans who could be witnesses and he continues to have daily contact with people who may be involved,” said Laurie Levenson, a law professor at Loyola Law School of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. “Everything is more complicated in this case because of who the defendant is, what he has don...

Stock market today: Global stocks mixed before US jobs update following Bank of England rate hike

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Stock market today: Global stocks mixed before US jobs update following Bank of England rate hike BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets rose Friday before a U.S. jobs update that could influence interest rate plans after Britain’s central bank raised its key lending rate.London, Shanghai, Paris and Tokyo advanced. Oil prices advanced.Wall Street futures rebounded. U.S. stocks fell for a third day Thursday after the Bank of England raised its main lending rate to a 15-year high and indicated it could stay high for a while.Investors were rattled Wednesday when Fitch Ratings cut its credit rating on U.S. government debt, though analysts said it made little difference.Investors were waiting for a U.S. government update on the unexpectedly strong labor market, which Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has cited as a factor in deciding whether more rate hikes are needed to cool inflation.The jobs data have “the potential to tilt the balance towards another rate hike in September,” said Francesco Pesole of ING in a report.In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London rose 0.4% to 7,556.55. Th...

Influencer Andrew Tate released from house arrest while he awaits human trafficking and rape trial

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:06 GMT

Influencer Andrew Tate released from house arrest while he awaits human trafficking and rape trial BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Andrew Tate, the divisive internet influencer who is charged in Romania with rape, human trafficking, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, won an appeal on Friday to be released from house arrest and will instead be put under judicial control measures, his spokesperson said.The exact restrictions that Tate will face were not immediately made public.The decision at the Bucharest Court of Appeal comes after prosecutors formally indicted the 36-year-old Tate in June along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women in the same case. All four were arrested in late December near Bucharest, and have denied the allegations against them.The Associated Press