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Braves look to extend win streak, play the Cubs

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

Atlanta Braves (70-37, first in the NL East) vs. Chicago Cubs (56-54, third in the NL Central)Chicago; Saturday, 2:20 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Braves: Bryce Elder (8-2, 3.18 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 89 strikeouts); Cubs: Javier Assad (1-2, 3.24 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 40 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Braves -151, Cubs +128; over/under is 10 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Atlanta Braves aim to keep their three-game win streak going when they visit the Chicago Cubs.Chicago has gone 30-28 in home games and 56-54 overall. The Cubs have a 47-8 record in games when they out-hit their opponents.Atlanta has a 33-17 record in road games and a 70-37 record overall. The Braves have the second-best team on-base percentage in the majors at .340.Saturday’s game is the second meeting between these teams this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Nico Hoerner has 21 doubles, four triples and eight home runs while hitting .279 for the Cubs. Ian Happ is 9-for-35 with three doubles and four home runs over the last 10 ga...

Reds look to end 4-game losing streak, take on the Nationals

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

Washington Nationals (47-63, fifth in the NL East) vs. Cincinnati Reds (59-53, second in the NL Central)Cincinnati; Saturday, 4:10 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: Joan Adon (0-0); Reds: Andrew Abbott (6-2, 2.35 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 71 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Reds -224, Nationals +185; over/under is 10 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Cincinnati Reds look to end a four-game slide when they play the Washington Nationals.Cincinnati has a 28-27 record at home and a 59-53 record overall. The Reds have a 46-12 record in games when they scored five or more runs.Washington is 25-29 in road games and 47-63 overall. The Nationals have the 10th-ranked team on-base percentage in the NL at .318.Saturday’s game is the sixth meeting between these teams this season. The Reds have a 4-1 advantage in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: TJ Friedl has 17 doubles, three triples and eight home runs for the Reds. Elly De La Cruz is 11-for-44 with a double, a triple and four home runs over th...

Drone attack on tanker shows Kyiv’s intent to hit Russian energy shipments

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

KYIV — An overnight naval drone attack against a Russian tanker in the Black Sea signals a potential new front in the Ukraine war, with Kyiv delivering its strongest message to date that it is willing to target Moscow’s all-important shipments of oil and fuel. The battle for supremacy in the Black Sea is ramping up fast, with massive implications for global energy and food security. The attack on the tanker off Crimea came only a day after another Ukrainian marine drone — a flat, arrowhead-shaped vessel packed with explosives — targeted a Russian naval base near the port of Novorossiysk, badly damaging a warship.“The tanker was damaged in the Kerch Strait during an attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Russia’s state-run TASS news agency reported on Saturday. “The crew is safe, the Maritime Rescue Center informed us. The engine room was damaged. Two tugboats arrived at the scene of an emergency with a tanker in the Kerch Strait, the question of the ...

Red Sox farm report: Song returns to organization, Rafaela turning heads in Worcester, Bastardo shines

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

Another Red Sox Rule 5 Draft gamble has paid off; Noah Song is a member of the organization once again.There was considerable outrage when the Red Sox chose to leave Song unprotected from last December’s Rule 5 Draft, which led to the Philadelphia Phillies scooping him up. But as has been the case for much of the last few years, Chaim Bloom took the long view; the 26-year-old Song hadn’t pitched since 2019 due to his commitment to the U.S. Navy but per the Rule 5 requirements, the reigning National League pennant-winners would have to carry Song on the 26-man roster for the entire season. If not, he could be up for grabs before long.That’s exactly what happened. Song reported to Phillies spring training and began pitching again, but suffered a back strain before the season began, and ended up sidelined for most of the season.Song’s rehab assignment didn’t go well. Over 11 innings between games in A-ball, Double-A, and Triple-A, he struck out 16 batters,...

Pakistani police arrest former Prime Minister Imran Khan after court conviction

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani police on Saturday arrested former Prime Minister Khan at his home in the eastern city of Lahore after a court convicted him in an asset concealment case and handed him down a three-year prison sentence. It’s the second time the popular opposition leader has been detained this year. The prison sentence could see Khan barred from politics as the law says people with a criminal conviction cannot hold or run for public office. His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, condemned the ruling and said it will challenge the decision in a superior court.While a superior court can suspend the conviction, it’s the country’s election body that ultimately disqualifies Khan from politics. The Islamabad court issued the arrest warrant after convicting Khan. Police moved quickly to take the popular politician from his home to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, senior police officer Ali Nasir Rizvi said. It was not immediately clear where Khan was being taken to. Since hi...

South Korea presses on with World Scout Jamboree as heat forces thousands to leave early

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea is plowing ahead with the World Scout Jamboree, rejecting a call by the world scouting body to cut the event short as a punishing heat wave caused thousands of British and U.S. scouts to begin leaving the coastal campsite Saturday.Hundreds of participants have been treated for heat-related ailments since the jamboree began Wednesday at the coastal site in Buan as South Korea grapples with one of its hottest summers in years.Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said during a news conference that South Korea is determined to continue the event as planned through Aug. 12. He promised additional safety measures including more medical staff, air-conditioned vehicles and structures that provide shade. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol promised an “unlimited supply” of air-conditioned buses and refrigerator trucks to provide chilled water.Around 700 additional workers will be deployed to help maintain bathrooms and showers, which some participants have descr...

Niger’s junta rulers ask for help from Russian group Wagner as it faces military intervention threat

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Niger’s new military junta has asked for help from the Russian mercenary group Wagner as the deadline nears for it to release the country’s ousted president or face possible military intervention by the West African regional bloc, according to an analyst.The request came during a visit by one of the coup leaders, Gen. Salifou Mody, to neighboring Mali, where he made contact with someone from Wagner, Wassim Nasr, a journalist and senior research fellow at the Soufan Center, told The Associated Press. He said three Malian sources and a French diplomat confirmed the meeting first reported by France 24.“They need (Wagner) because they will become their guarantee to hold onto power,” he said, adding that the group is considering the request.Niger’s junta faces a Sunday deadline set by the regional bloc known as ECOWAS to release and reinstate the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum, who has described himself as a hostage.Defense chiefs from ECOWAS members...

Ukranine drones hit a Russian tanker transporting fuel near Crimea

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian drones hit a Russian tanker in the Black Sea near Crimea, according to Russian officials. They said that the vessel’s engine room sustained damage in the strike late Friday night in the Kerch Strait. “The Sig tanker…suffered a hole in the engine room near the waterline on the starboard side, presumably as a result of a sea drone attack,” Russia’s Federal Agency for Marine and River Transport wrote on Telegram, adding that there were no casualties among the 11 crew members.Vladimir Rogov, a Kremlin-installed official in Ukraine’s partially occupied southern Zaporizhzhia region, said several members of the ship’s crew were wounded because of broken glass.An official with Ukraine’s Security Service confirmed to The Associated Press that the service was behind the attack on the tanker, which was transporting fuel for Russian forces. A sea drone, filled with 450 kilograms (992 pounds) of TNT, was used for the attack, added the official who spoke...

3 Indian soldiers are killed in Kashmir gunfight on the 4th anniversary of special status revocation

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Three Indian soldiers were killed in a gunbattle with rebels fighting against New Delhi’s rule in Kashmir, officials said Saturday, as authorities stepped up security on the fourth anniversary since India revoked the disputed region’s special status.The battle broke out after soldiers acting on “specific inputs” about the presence of militants launched a search operation in the forests of southern Kulgam area late Friday, an Indian military handout said. It said three soldiers were injured in the exchange of gunfire with rebels, and they later died.The search operation continued in the area, the military said, but did not give any other details. India and Pakistan each claim the divided territory of Kashmir in its entirety.Rebels in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir have been fighting New Delhi’s rule since 1989. Most Muslim Kashmiris support the rebel goal of uniting the territory, either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.The fighting c...

Word Game: Aug. 5, 2023

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:04:51 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — THROTTLED (THROTTLED: THROT-eld: Compressed the throat of or decreased the flow of.)Average mark 35 wordsTime limit 45 minutesCan you find 48 or more words in THROTTLED? The list will be published Monday.YESTERDAY’S WORD — CATAPULTS cast casual catapult catsup causal clap clasp cult cusp actual alas atlas tact talc talus tapa taps taut pact past pasta plat plus putt upcast last lust salp salt scalp scapula scat scaup sculpt scup scut slap slat spat spatula splatTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually exp...