SEATTLE — Scoring runs was not supposed to be a problem for the Angels.

Then again, this wasn’t the lineup the Angels were supposed to be using.

On the day the Angels announced that third baseman Anthony Rendon would be out for the rest of the season because of wrist surgery, their patchwork lineup did little in an 8-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Friday night.

The Angels didn’t have a hit against reigning Cy Young winner Robbie Ray until Max Stassi’s infield hit in the seventh inning.

It was the third time this month that a pitcher flirted with a no-hitter against the Angels. Dodgers lefty Tyler Anderson was just two outs away before Ohtani tripled in the ninth inning on Wednesday night. Back on June 2, the Angels had no hits against New York Yankees starter Jameson Taillon until the eighth.

The Angels were expected to have one of the best lineups in baseball, but that group has been together infrequently, and Rendon was just one of the missing pieces on Friday night.

Interim manager Phil Nevin also gave Shohei Ohtani the night off because he’d pitched on Thursday night and Nevin wanted him to play both games of the doubleheader on Saturday. First baseman Jared Walsh was out because he was sick, Nevin said.

It left a lineup with just three players who were projected to be starters before the season began: Mike Trout, Taylor Ward and Max Stassi.

Matt Duffy hit third and Luis Rengifo hit fourth against Ray, whose only jam came in the first inning.

Trout drew a walk and then Rengifo was hit by a pitch with two outs. Ray got Stassi on a groundout to strand the runners, and the Angels did not have another baserunner until Stassi’s hit, and that was a borderline hit.

Stassi hit a comebacker, and Ray …read more

Source:: Los Angeles Daily News

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

A Dallas Judge prevented Texas AG Ken Paxton from intervening in a case involving trans healthcare. 
The case involved a children’s hospital in Dallas suing to provide care for trans youth. 
Paxton has argued that gender-affirming care for trans youth is “child abuse.”

A judge prevented Attorney General Ken Paxton from further intervening in a case regarding healthcare for transgender youth. 

Dallas County Judge Melissa Bellan said on Friday that she could not find evidence that Paxton or the state of Texas had the authority to intervene on behalf of individuals in the case, CNN reported.

The decision comes after Bellan provided an injunction and a restraining order allowing Dr. Ximena Lopez at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas to continue providing gender-affirming health care for transgender youth in the state.

Paxton’s office argued that they should be allowed to bring experts to support a claim from Paxton that gender-affirming healthcare constitutes “child abuse,” which he wrote about in a February opinion.

The state of Texas has clamped down on healthcare for transgender youth in recent months. In February, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive ordering the state’s Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate parents and guardians who permitted children to receive gender-affirming care.

On June 11, a judge reinstated an injunction on Abbott’s directive, saying there was reason to believe plaintiffs would “suffer immediate and irreparable injury” if the law was enforced, the AP reported. 

Medical studies show that gender-affirming care is linked to lower rates of suicide and depression among trans youth. 

In response to legislation targeting LGBTQ youth across the country, President Joe Biden signed an executive order Wednesday. The order would give states guidance on policies that would expand physical and mental healthcare for LGBTQ youth, according to …read more

Source:: Businessinsider

A teen girl was shot June 17, 2022, in South Chicago.

Sun-Times file photo

A 17-year-old girl was wounded in a shooting Friday in South Chicago. 

She was in a ride-hailing vehicle about 9:50 p.m. in the 8800 block of South Mackinaw Avenue when someone opened fire from an SUV, Chicago police said. 

The teen was shot in the shoulder and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition, police said. 

Area Two detectives are investigating.

…read more

Source:: Chicago Sun Times

Adobe Stock Photo

A 17-year-old boy is facing charges in connection with a mass shooting on the near North Side last month that left two people dead and seven others wounded. 

The teen turned himself into police Thursday and was charged with one felony count of unlawful possession of a weapon, Chicago police said. 

He is expected to appear in juvenile court Saturday. 

Jaylun Sanders, 21, was previously charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder in connection with the shooting on May 19 near a notorious trouble-spot at Chicago Avenue and State Street. 

A second man, 20-year-old Kameron Abram, who was arrested shortly after the shooting, was charged with unlawful use of a weapon and trespassing on CTA property, according to police. Both men were being held without bail.

Related

‘A gun-crime crisis’ — Chicago’s top cop on defensive again after mass shooting at Near North Side trouble spot

Police said the incident …read more

Source:: Chicago Sun Times

TORONTO —  Anthony Rizzo is willing to take one for the team. Or, the Yankees first baseman will take one for himself actually. Rizzo, who has been hit more times than any other batter in the majors since he arrived in the big leagues, sparked the Yankees big fifth inning by getting plunked. He ended the rally with his sixth career grand slam as the Bomber beat up the Blue Jays 12-3 at the Rogers Centre Friday night.

“Just the way I take the pitches and see ‘em  is just different when I get hit,” Rizzo said. “I’ve said the last few weeks I just need to get hit. I went in a  big slump of not getting hit for like two or three weeks and just being inside joking here but just the way I take pitches is different I guess.”

Whatever it is, the Yankees offense powered them to their eighth-straight win and their 15th out of their last 16 games. The Yankees (48-16)  maintained the best record in baseball and continued to build their lead in the American League East. With the win, the Bombers hold a 12-game lead over the Blue Jays (37-27) and 13 over the Rays, whom they just swept. The Yankees improved to 23-20 against AL East opponents and have the best record in baseball against their own division.

“I know what it is, so I guess I do look at it, but yit’s not something that you want to get too caught up in here in the middle of June,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.  You just want to keep stacking up as many victories as you can to continue to make sure you guys are in a good place to go perform the way  they’re getting it done.”

The Yankees are rolling to a historic …read more

Source:: The Denver Post

Hey Larry, Vinny, Dante, Ellis and Big Cat, meet C.J. Cron. Back in the day, he would have fit in quite nicely with the Blake Street Bombers.

Simply put, the guy’s a beast at the ballpark at 20th and Blake.

Cron hit two home runs and a single and drove in five runs Friday night in the Rockies’  10-4 win over the Padres at Coors in front of 34,304 fans. Cron is hitting .355 at home and 12 of his 16 homers have been launched in LoDo.

And check out this stat: Of any Rockies player who has played at least 100 games in Colorado, he’s got the best home run ratio. He’s hitting one home run for every 12.72 at-bats. Andres Galarraga ranks second at 13.61.

The Rockies snapped their seven-game home losing streak. The Padres, batting the Dodgers for the National League West title, have lost eight consecutive games at Coors, their longest active streak of futility at one ballpark.

Cron’s first homer was a two-run shot to right in the first inning off rookie left-hander MacKenzie Gore. It traveled a mere 399 feet. His second dinger, a two-run blast in the fifth, again off Gore, was tape-measure worthy. It traveled 486 feet and almost made the concourse in left field.

On a hot, dry night when the ball was jumping — the teams combined for 22 hits and four homers — Colorado needed Cron’s firepower. It also needed a gutsy, seven-inning performance from Kyle Freeland.

The left-hander pitched four scoreless innings before San Diego teed off for four runs in the fifth. The Padres’ big inning included a leadoff homer by Trent Grisham, a triple by Jose Azocar and RBI doubles by Manny Machado and Luke Voit.

Freeland, however, allowed just one baserunner in his final two innings. Since April 19, a span of 11 …read more

Source:: The Denver Post

Actor and comedian Robert Smigel performs as Triumph the Insult Comic Dog in the hallways outside the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol hearing in the Cannon House Office Building on June 16, 2022 in Washington, DC

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog was at the Capitol with a production team Thursday to record a comedy segment.
The team was found unescorted in the Longworth House Office Building and detained by Capitol police.
“Their interviews at the Capitol were authorized and pre-arranged,” said a statement from CBS. 

Actor and comedian Robert Smigel, best known for his role puppeteering Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, along with six other staffers from “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert were arrested Thursday at the US Capitol for illegal entry. 

The group of seven staffers were on the Capitol grounds Wednesday and Thursday filming interviews for an upcoming comedy segment on “The Late Show,” according to a statement from CBS provided to Insider, when they were detained.

“Their interviews at the Capitol were authorized and pre-arranged through Congressional aides of the members interviewed,” read the statement from CBS. 

US Capitol Police said in a statement to Insider that upon responding to a call about a disturbance, officers saw the individuals, unescorted and without Congressional ID, in a sixth-floor hallway of the Longworth House Office Building. 

“The building was closed to visitors, and these individuals were determined to be a part of a group that had been directed by the USCP to leave the building earlier in the day,” read a statement by the US Capitol Police public information officer, who confirmed the group was charged with unlawful entry. 

Smigel, as well as other members of the detained group, did not respond to Insider’s requests for comment.

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog was originally a character on …read more

Source:: Businessinsider

Gov. Ron DeSantis in April signed a bill banning most abortions in Florida after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

A Florida law set to take effect on July 1 will ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
A synagogue in Palm Beach County if suing the state, arguing it violates religious freedoms.
In Jewish law, abortion is sometimes required, including to protect the mother, the lawsuit says.

A synagogue in Florida is suing the state over a new law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, arguing it infringes upon their religious freedom and violates the Jewish faith.

The lawsuit was filed last week by the Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor of Boynton Beach, located in Palm Beach County. Under Jewish law, abortion is “required if necessary to protect the health, mental or physical well-being of the woman” and for other reasons that would not be allowed under the bill, according to the lawsuit.

Florida previously allowed abortions up to 24 weeks into a pregnancy, but Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the 15-week abortion ban into law in April and it’s set to take effect on July 1. The bill does allow abortion to save the life of the pregnant person or prevent serious injury to them.

“The act prohibits Jewish women from practicing their faith free of government intrusion and this violates their privacy rights and religious freedom,” the lawsuit said, adding: “Forcing parenthood upon women against their will harms women, their families, our society, and the religious freedom of those who do not share the views reflected in the act.”

The lawsuit is the second challenge to the Florida bill, with Planned Parenthood and other reproductive care providers filing a lawsuit against the state on June 1.

The bill is among the latest abortion bans to be enacted in …read more

Source:: Businessinsider

LOS ANGELES ― It is not unusual for a Major League Baseball player to live in one city during the offseason and work in another most of the year. Thousands of miles can separate their personal and professional lives.

Therein lies the irony of a minor league rehabilitation assignment taking Andrew Heaney to Oklahoma City. The pitcher was born there. He still lives there in the offseason. This was not lost on Heaney, who has spent the vast majority of his nine major league seasons on the West Coast.

“It was interesting being at home, driving to the field in Oklahoma City,” he said. “That was kind of strange. It was one of those things, like, I got to see family and hang out at my house. It didn’t really change anything I was doing. It was still a business trip kind of feel.”

Heaney will resume his usual routine with the Dodgers on Sunday, when he will be activated from the injured list to start against the Cleveland Guardians. It will be Heaney’s first start since April 17.

In two starts before he was sidelined with left shoulder inflammation, Heaney did not allow an earned run across 10⅓ innings. He used a revamped slider to strike out 16 batters.

Following two rehab starts with Triple-A OKC, Heaney threw five shutout innings Tuesday for Double-A Tulsa. The left-hander threw a side session Friday and is stretched out to pitch six innings on Sunday, Manager Dave Roberts said.

Heaney’s primary breaking ball is now more of a “sweeper,” featuring more horizontal movement than the traditional slider he threw for the Angels from 2015-21. His success going forward could hinge on the efficacy of that one pitch.

“Throwing fastballs is what I do well and what I’m most comfortable with,” Heaney said. “The slider’s a different grip, different thought …read more

Source:: Los Angeles Daily News

NBAE via Getty Images

The Sky had won only one game without Candace Parker entering play Friday at Wintrust Arena. It came in the second game of last season against the Dream.

In their second game against the Dream this season, the Sky squandered an 18-point lead before escaping with a 106-100 overtime victory.

The Sky was clinging to a one-point edge when former Sky forward Cheyenne Parker made two free throws with 30 seconds left to put the Dream ahead 91-90.

But Sky star Kahleah Copper went to the line moments later and split two free throws to send the game to overtime tied at 91. She led the Sky with 23 points and 10 rebounds.

The Sky struck first in overtime on a 15-foot jumper by Emma Meesseman and never relinquished the lead on their way to finishing with a season high in points.

“We’ll figure it out,” general manager/coach James Wade said. “We have a little time, but we have to finish teams off when we have those big leads. That’s a big concern for my part. I know Candace will help that.” 

Candace Parker was ruled out for the game because of a knee injury, but Wade said it was more precautionary than anything.

Wade attributed some of Parker’s needed recovery to the minutes she put in during the Sky’s recent three-game road trip. She led the Sky in minutes with 34 in their victory against the Sun and played 27 against the Mystics and 21 against the Liberty.

Wade’s intent, he said, is to have his roster intact when it matters.

‘‘It’s nothing that should affect her longterm,” Wade said. “If this was …read more

Source:: Chicago Sun Times

With his No. 1 fan in the house, Francisco Lindor put on a show.

Lindor’s mom, Maria Serrano, watched him play at Citi Field for the first time since he signed with the Mets last year. And, in his first at-bat of the night, Lindor belted a three-run home run to straightaway center field, just a few feet west of the Home Run Apple. Lindor let out a roar as he rounded first base, then pointed to his family’s suite, positioned just behind home plate, when he crossed the dish.

The shortstop’s 10th home run of the year sparked a big offensive night for the Mets in their 10-4 win over the Marlins on Friday at Citi Field. The Amazin’s exploded for a seven-run rally in the sixth inning, punctuated by Pete Alonso’s grand slam. Carlos Carrasco was strong through 6.1 innings and 98 pitches.

Lindor’s wife, Katia, set up the surprise for his mom to visit New York during Father’s Day weekend. When Lindor was summoned into the press conference room hours before first pitch on Friday, he had no idea his mom would be there. Serrano lives in Florida, while other family members also visited Lindor from Puerto Rico on Friday.

The Mets’ $341-million man padded his offensive numbers with his mom in town. Lindor’s 49 RBI on the season lead all shortstops, and he’s three RBI shy of tying Asdrubal Cabrera for the most RBI by a Mets shortstop in the first half of a season.

For good measure, Lindor also flashed the leather on a couple of terrific plays in the dirt. Since the start of the 2020 season, Lindor leads all shortstops with 30 Outs Above Average (OAA). For infielders, OAA measures how far the fielder has to go to reach the ball, how much time he has to get …read more

Source:: The Denver Post

Robert Smigel operates the Triumph the Insult Comic Dog puppet in the hallways outside the Jan. 6 committee hearings Thursday at the U.S. Capitol.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Seven people working in a comedy segment starring Triumph the Insult Comic Dog were arrested Thursday night at a congressional office building on the U.S. Capitol grounds and charged with unlawful entry.

The people identified themselves as being affiliated with CBS’ “Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

Another person familiar with the matter provided the AP with a list of nine people who had been stopped by Capitol Police. They included several producers, along with Robert Smigel, the former Chicago comedian who operates and voices Triumph the Insult Comic Dog.

The two people who spoke with the AP could not discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The incident Thursday night followed the third public hearing by the House panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.

U.S. Capitol Police said Friday they received a call about a disturbance in the Longworth House Office Building around 8:30 p.m. “Responding officers observed seven individuals, unescorted and without Congressional ID, in a sixth-floor hallway,” the agency said in a statement. “The building was closed to visitors, and these individuals were determined to be a part of a group that had been directed by the USCP to leave the building earlier in the day.”

In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, CBS said the production team was at the Capitol Wednesday and Thursday to record a comedy segment featuring Triumph.

“Their interviews at the …read more

Source:: Chicago Sun Times

A man was shot dead June 17, 2022, in Stony Island Park.

Sun-Times file photo

A man was fatally shot Friday in Stony Island Park on the South Side. 

He was sitting on a porch about 8:30 p.m. in the 8400 block of South Bennett Avenue when someone opened fire, striking him multiple times, Chicago police said. 

The 30-year-old was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said. 

No arrests have been made. Area Two detectives are investigating.

…read more

Source:: Chicago Sun Times

Juneteenth, or June 19, became a federal holiday in 2021. The holiday marks the date in 1865 when Union Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and issued General Order Number 3, which ended the enslavement of Black people in Texas — a full 2½ years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

The Emancipation Proclamation was limited in many ways. It applied only to states that had seceded from the U.S., leaving slavery untouched in the loyal border states. It also expressly exempted parts of the Confederacy that had already come under Northern control and the freedom it promised depended upon Union military victory.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery in the nation, it fundamentally transformed the character of the war. After Jan. 1, 1863, every advance of federal troops expanded the domain of freedom. The proclamation announced the acceptance of Black men into the Union Army and Navy, enabling the liberated to become liberators. By the end of the war, almost 200,000 Black soldiers and sailors had fought for the Union and freedom. A lack of Union troops in the rebel state of Texas made the order difficult to enforce and the Civil War did not end until April 9, 1865.

Gen. Granger’s Order No. 3 stated, “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either …read more

Source:: Los Angeles Daily News

As I got ready to walk the dog the other day, I thumbed the screen of my phone to return to the audiobook I had been listening to…and couldn’t remember where I was supposed to click next.

Was it the book I had on Libby, the library app? Or the one on hoopla digital? Audible or Volumes? Or maybe it was Libro.fm? (I have books going on all those apps, so maybe confusion is understandable. Or at least inevitable.)

If you found yourself listening to audiobooks much more often these days, you aren’t alone. Audiobook revenue rose 25 percent in 2021 – the 10th straight year of growth – and 61% of parents said their children listened to audiobooks, which is way up from 35% in 2020, according to data released last week from the Audio Publishers Association.

So audiobooks are kind of a big deal, is that it?

This graphic may be suggesting that audiobooks are listening to other books. (Getty Images)

“Audiobooks are a gateway to a life of books,” says Mark Pearson, the CEO and co-founder of Libro.fm. “The books can come with you, so if you’re commuting or cleaning your home or exercising, you can be listening to a book at the same time. And that’s why audiobooks are the fastest-growing category in publishing and even surpassing the growth of ebooks.”

Maybe I was just filled with the festive spirit of Audiobook Appreciation Month – yes, that’s a thing and I will be celebrating it – but I’d been interested in learning about Libro.fm, which positions itself as an independent alternative to that Large Online Audiobook Seller (much the way the newer Bookshop.org does, as well).

So this week, I reached out to Pearson and Albee Romero, …read more

Source:: Los Angeles Daily News