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The Orioles are heading to the playoffs. Here’s everything you need to know.

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

For the first time since 2014 and just the third time in the past 40 seasons, the Orioles are division champions.Baltimore clinched the American League East title Thursday night with a 2-0 win over the Boston Red Sox.The Orioles had already secured a playoff berth — their first since 2016 — earlier this month, but the division championship is a rare feat for an organization accustomed to finishing in the AL East’s cellar. It also provides the club advantages heading into the postseason, such as a bye in the wild-card round and, thanks to a 101-61 record that is guaranteed to be the best in the circuit, home-field advantage up to at least the World Series.After the Orioles’ 6-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, the focus shifts to the postseason, which begins this week. After the wild-card round ends, the Orioles will play in their first AL Division Series since 2014, hoping to make it to the AL Championship Series for the first time since that same ye...

AG would ‘resign’ if asked to act on Trump

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Merrick Garland said in an interview that aired Sunday that he would resign if asked by President Joe Biden to take action against Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump. But he doesn’t think he’ll be put in that position.“I am sure that that will not happen, but I would not do anything in that regard,” he said on CBS “60 Minutes.” “And if necessary, I would resign. But there is no sense that anything like that will happen.”The Justice Department is at the center of not only indictments against Trump that include an effort to overturn the 2020 election and wrongly keeping classified documents, but also cases involving Biden’s son Hunter, the aftermath of the riot at the U.S. Capitol and investigations into classified documents found in the president’s home and office. Garland has appointed three separate special counsels.Garland has spoken only sparingly about the cases and reiterated...

Mac Jones to remain Patriots’ starting QB; Bill Belichick clarifies benching

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas — Mac Jones will remain the Patriots’ starting quarterback moving forward, head coach Bill Belichick said Sunday after a 38-3 loss at the hands of the Cowboys.Jones was removed from the game late in the third quarter for backup quarterback Bailey Zappe after turning the ball over three times. One of his two interceptions plus a strip-sack were returned by the Cowboys for touchdowns.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Callahan: Why should you believe in the Patriots anymore? New England Patriots | Mac Jones benched as Patriots get demolished in 38-3 loss to Cowboys New England Patriots | Patriots star Matthew Judon injures elbow Week 4 vs. Cowboys New England Patriots | Patriots rookie standout Christian Gonzalez injures shoulder vs. Cowboys New England Patriots | Patriots’ inactives bring good news for defense against Cowboys “I didn’t think there was any...

Chicago Cubs fans mourn the end of the season as club comes up just short of making the playoffs

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

As Alana Palmer prepared to move into her new apartment in Wrigleyville, the 23-year-old had high hopes for a Chicago Cubs’ playoff run. She watched games from her home in Nebraska, anticipating an exciting game-day atmosphere.But she said she’ll have to wait until next year to catch a game in person after the team’s playoff aspirations ended Saturday night with a Miami Marlins’ victory over the Pirates in Pittsburgh.“It’s kind of sad that they didn’t make the playoffs, but at least they’re close,” Palmer said.“We were really watching intently because it’s like, oh my gosh, you could be moving here when the Cubs could be making history, so we were watching all the Braves games and then the game yesterday where the Marlins were supposed to lose, but then they won,” added her mom, Amy Palmer, while the duo sipped beer outside at the sports bar Murphy’s Bleachers.Some fans still headed to Wrigley...

‘Massachusetts needs help:’ State senate president speaks on migrant crisis

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

Massachusetts Senate President Karen Spilka spoke on the state’s migrant crisis in an interview that aired a NBC aired Sunday, echoing calls for more federal aid and action.“These are families,” Spilka said on NBC’s @Issue. “These are mothers with children. I mean, over half of the migrants are children. And we need to help, but Massachusetts needs help.”Over the last few months, Massachusetts has seen a rise in the number of migrants arriving to the state and living in emergency shelters. Over 6,500 families — including homeless families and migrants — are living in emergency shelters in the state, as of late September.The Healey administration has taken steps including proposing $250 million more for emergency shelters and expanding legal services for migrants living in shelters.But, Spilka said when asked in there’s a limit on what the state can do, federal aid would “certainly help.”The senate president echoed a c...

Chicago White Sox end 2023 with 101 losses — 5 takeaways from the ‘frustrating’ season

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

Manager Pedro Grifol summed up the 2023 Chicago White Sox season as the final days of the year approached.“Frustrating, educational, somewhat embarrassed,” Grifol said Saturday afternoon. “But hungry and committed to get it right.”The Sox had hoped to bounce back after finishing 81-81 and missing the playoffs in 2022. Instead, they suffered at least 100 losses for the fifth time in team history.The Sox lost Sunday’s season finale 2-1 to the San Diego Padres in 11 innings in front of 20,588 at Guaranteed Rate Field to wrap up the year 61-101. They matched the 1948 team (51-101) for the third-most losses in a season. The Sox lost 106 games in 1970 and 102 in 1932.They finished 40 games under .500 for the first time since end of the 1970 season (56-106).There is nowhere to go but up. Here are five takeaways from 2023.1. The team never recovered from a dismal April.The Sox knew April would be a challenge.After opening the season in late March against t...

Here comes the sun

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

A low-precipitation week of weather with higher-than-average temperatures will kick off October for Bostonians, according to the National Weather Service.“It’s going to be a nice, sunny and dry week,” Kyle Pederson, a National Weather Service meteorologist, told the Herald. “We’re looking at high-pressure overhead, so we’re not expecting any rain through at least Thursday.”Pederson said New England can expect highs in the upper 60s and low 70s to kick off the week, with mid and upper-70s highs on Tuesday and Wednesday. Thursday’s high will get back into the mid-to-low 70s, he said.Pederson said the usual high for Boston around this time of year is 68 degrees and the average lows tend to be around 53 degrees. The first week of October for the region should set a trend for the month ahead, Pederson said.“The one-month precipitation outlook for October calls for below-normal precipitation and above-normal temperatures,” he said.Following Monday’s high of 71 degrees, Tuesday will be sun...

Callahan: Why should you believe in the Patriots anymore?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas — The jury has returned.The verdict is in.The Patriots are guilty.Of roster-building arrogance. Of quarterback malpractice. Of deluding a fanbase and themselves they were capable of launching a playoff campaign against the NFL’s hardest schedule.Their sentencing came down Sunday with a calamitous 38-3 loss at Dallas, a game that will live on as a searing reminder, branded into the memory of their fanbase, that the Patriots are not to be trusted.Because why would you trust them?What have they done to deserve your confidence the last three years?Who among them do you believe in?Is it Bill Belichick, who just swallowed the worst loss of his head-coaching career?The Cowboys jumped his defense for 10 points on their first two drives. His special teams got out-foxed on a fake extra point. Belichick is 26-29 since Tom Brady left, and has failed to instill any of the traits that defined the Brady-era teams — playing smart, sound and well under pressure — every season ...

New San Diego MLS team announces historic first for location of training facility

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The new Major League Soccer squad coming to San Diego in 2025 is set to become the first professional sports organization to have a dedicated professional training facility on a tribal reservation, team officials said.Right To Dream Academy will be a residential youth development establishment that will be located in El Cajon on Sycuan tribal land, San Diego MLS said in a news release Sunday. The 28-acre site will be surrounding a portion of the Pine Glen Golf Course and the Singing Hills Hotel.“We couldn’t ask for a more perfect location for our training facility and Right to Dream Academy,” said Tom Penn, CEO, San Diego MLS. “This land is absolutely beautiful – rich with tradition and heritage – which will give us the foundation to achieve our vision to become the epicenter of football excellence and innovation in North America. We are grateful for the unwavering support of our Club ownership Mr. Mohamed Mansour and Sycuan.”  County breaks ground on $13.6M proj...

Roof of a church collapses in northern Mexico, and Catholic officials say some people are dead

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:44:09 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The roof of a church collapsed in northern Mexico during a Mass on Sunday, killing an undetermined number of people among approximately 30 parishioners believed trapped in the rubble, authorities said.The Tamaulipas state police said that about 100 people were in the church at the time of the collapse and that about 30 were still inside. Officials did not immediately say whether there were any casualties. But the Mexican Council of Bishops issued a statement saying that “we join in prayer at the tragic loss of life and those injured,” but did not say how many had died.Bishop José Armando Alvarez of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tampico said the roof caved in while parishioners were receiving communion at the Santa Cruz church in the Gulf coast city of Ciudad Madero, next to the port city of Tampico. “From underneath the rubble, thanks to Divine Providence and the work of the rescue teams, people have been pulled out alive!” Alvarez wrote in the diocese’s soc...