Associated Press stories, Page 1359
Locked in: MLB set for delayed openers after a long winter
It’ll end up being 157 days between the moment Freddie Freeman and the Atlanta Braves won last year’s World Series and the start of the 2022 baseball season. Everything in between? Tough to sum that up quickly. A record spending spree on free agents. A bitter work stoppage that delayed...
Bills’ Stefon Diggs agrees to 4-year contract extension
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills receiver Stefon Diggs will never have to feel undervalued again. The fifth-round draft pick who blossomed into one of the NFL’s top playmakers after being traded by Minnesota to Buffalo two years ago agreed to a four-year contract extension worth $96 million, a person...
Nursing home care, funding system need overhaul, report says
NEW YORK — Nursing home residents are subjected to ineffective care and poor staffing, while facility finances are shrouded in secrecy and regulatory lapses go unenforced, according to a report Wednesday that called for wholesale changes in an industry whose failures have been spotlighted by the pandemic. To anyone who...
AP source: Ramírez, Guardians agree on 5-year, $124M deal
CLEVELAND — José Ramírez forced the Guardians to go deep into their pockets. The All-Star third baseman agreed to a $124 million, five-year contract on the eve of opening day with Cleveland, a franchise that hasn’t been able to swing with baseball’s big spenders over the years. Ramírez’s deal runs...
Late Iowa man linked to 1980s killings in Indiana, Kentucky
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana State Police said Tuesday that they used genealogical data and crime scene evidence to link an Iowa man who died in 2013 to the killings of three female motel clerks and sexual assault of a fourth in Indiana and Kentucky from 1987 through 1990. Harry Edward...
Recipe: Apples, nuts, wine make a classic Passover charoset
It’s one of the six symbolic foods on the Passover seder plate — and it’s pretty delicious, too. Charoset (also spelled haroset) is usually made from sweet fruits, nuts and some red wine, all nods to verses in the Bible. You can keep eating it, of course, once its role...
Mariupol’s dead put at 5,000 as Ukraine braces in the east
ANDRIIVKA, Ukraine — The mayor of the besieged port city of Mariupol put the number of civilians killed there at more than 5,000 Wednesday, as Ukraine collected evidence of Russian atrocities on the ruined outskirts of Kyiv and braced for what could become a climactic battle for control of the...
Good friends, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas have same Masters goal
Augusta, Ga. — Jordan Spieth is a little frustrated he has just one green jacket. Justin Thomas is just as frustrated he has only won one major championship — and it didn’t come with a green jacket. If their motivations this week at the Masters are similar it shouldn’t come...
Supreme Court reinstates Trump-era water rule for now
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated for now a Trump-era rule that had curtailed the power of states and Native American tribes to block pipelines and other energy projects that can pollute rivers, streams and other waterways. The justices agreed to halt a lower court judge’s order throwing...
W.Va. Gov. Justice repeatedly late paying mine safety penalties
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has consistently missed deadlines in recent months to pay the U.S. government the millions of dollars he owes in penalties for unsafe working conditions at his coal mines, according to federal court documents. The Republican governor — who owns dozens of companies...
Ed Sheeran wins copyright case over 2017 hit ‘Shape of You’Video
LONDON — Grammy Award-winning songwriter Ed Sheeran won a U.K. copyright battle over his 2017 hit “Shape of You” on Wednesday, then slammed what he described as a “culture” of baseless lawsuits intended to squeeze money out of artists eager to avoid the expense of a trial. The British pop...
Russia’s failure to take down Kyiv was a defeat for the ages
WASHINGTON — Kyiv was a Russian defeat for the ages. The fight started poorly for the invaders and went downhill from there. When President Vladimir Putin launched his war on Feb. 24 after months of buildup on Ukraine’s borders, he sent hundreds of helicopter-borne commandos — the best of the...
Texas takes new border action; ex-Trump officials want more
SAN ANTONIO — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday delivered new orders along the U.S.-Mexico border and promised more to come as former Trump administration officials press him to declare an “invasion” and give state troopers and National Guard members authority to turn back migrants. The two-term Republican governor did...
Court: Browns QB Deshaun Watson must address history with therapists
HOUSTON — Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson must say whether he had sex with 18 massage therapists who supported him last year following criminal complaints, a judge in Texas ruled Tuesday. USA Today reported that Watson has 30 days to comply. He previously would not address his past with the...
Oklahoma state House approves bill to make abortion illegal
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma House gave final legislative approval on Tuesday to a bill that would make performing an abortion a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. With little discussion and no debate, the Republican-controlled House voted 70-14 to send the bill to Republican Gov. Kevin...
Pennsylvania court blocks governor’s carbon emissions plan
HARRISBURG — A Pennsylvania court on Tuesday blocked the centerpiece of Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to fight climate change, the latest challenge to the Democrat’s effort to make Pennsylvania the first major fossil fuel state to adopt a carbon pricing policy. Commonwealth Court, in a one-line unsigned order, said it...
Kansas’ victory most-viewed men’s title game on cable TV
NEW YORK — Kansas’ comeback victory over North Carolina to win the NCAA basketball championship was the most-viewed men’s title game on cable television. The Jayhawks’ 72-69 win averaged 18.1 million viewers on TBS, TNT and truTV. It is also a 4% increase over last year’s title game between Baylor...
Zoos hiding birds as avian flu spreads in North America
OMAHA, Neb. — Zoos across North America are moving their birds indoors and away from people and wildlife as they try to protect them from the highly contagious and potentially deadly avian influenza. Penguins may be the only birds visitors to many zoos can see right now, because they already...
Army Gen. Mark Milley urges more U.S. troops in eastern EuropeVideo
WASHINGTON — The United States should look at the development of more bases in Eastern Europe to protect against Russian aggression, but rotate forces through them rather than make permanent deployments, the top U.S military officer told Congress on Tuesday. Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of...
Kansas wins NCAA title 3 years in the makingVideo
NEW ORLEANS — The Great Kansas Comeback, as it forever will be known in the history books, is about more than just one stifling, scintillating 20-minute stretch of Jayhawks basketball. The championship KU captured Monday night traced its roots to 2020, when the Jayhawks were a team that looked to...
World No. 1 Scheffler playing Masters ‘like it’s my last’Video
AUGUSTA, Ga. — The world’s top-ranked golfer is uncomplicated. He likes board games. He likes to “hang out,” a phrase Scottie Scheffler uses repeatedly when asked what he does in his free time, even if he’s almost pathologically vague on what exactly hanging out entails. “Trying to describe yourself is...
St. Peter’s standouts Daryl Banks, Matthew Lee, Doug Edert enter transfer portalVideo
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Three of the stars of Saint Peter’s remarkable run to the Elite Eight have put their names in the transfer portal after coach Shaheen Holloway’s departure for Seton Hall. Starting guards Daryl Banks III and Matthew Lee and backup Doug Edert tweeted about their moves Wednesday....
Ivanka Trump testifies before House Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — Ivanka Trump, former President Donald Trump’s daughter and one of those closest to him during the insurrection at the Capitol, is testifying before the House panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee’s chairman, said Tuesday afternoon that she had been answering investigators’...
Biden orders push on long covid, pandemic’s shadowy mystery
WASHINGTON — Confronting the pandemic’s lasting shadow, President Joe Biden on Tuesday ordered a new national research push on long covid, while also directing federal agencies to support patients dealing with the mysterious and debilitating condition. Biden assigned the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate an urgent new...
JetBlue makes offer for Spirit Airlines, could spark bid war
JetBlue Airways has offered to buy Spirit Airlines for about $3.6 billion and break up a plan for Spirit to merge with rival budget carrier Frontier Airlines. Spirit said Tuesday that its board will evaluate the JetBlue bid and decide what’s best for its shareholders. JetBlue offered offered $33 per...
