Associated Press stories, Page 2283
Don’t overlook Clemson, Virginia defenses in ACC championship gameVideo
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The offenses deservedly are getting a lot of attention heading into Saturday night’s clash between Clemson and Virginia in the ACC championship game. But the defenses shouldn’t be overlooked. They are among the conference’s best and will play a role in who walks off the field with...
Impeachment takeaways: History lessons, partisan feudsVideo
WASHINGTON — The next phase of the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump moved to the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday with public hearings featuring professors of law who discussed the constitutional origins of Congress’ impeachment power. Three of the lawyers were chosen by Democrats, one by Republicans, and the...
Giants’ Eli Manning likely to start in place of injured Daniel JonesVideo
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J — New York Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones was kept out of practice Wednesday with a high right-ankle sprain, and coach Pat Shurmur said Eli Manning “very likely” will start Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles. Shurmur added that Manning could be the starter for the rest...
Zack Wheeler, Phillies agree to $118M, 5-year deal
PHILADELPHIA — Right-hander Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies agreed to a $118 million, five-year contract, two people familiar with the deal told the Associated Press on Wednesday. Both people spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement, which is subject to a physical, had not been announced. The 29-year-old...
Cole Hamels, Braves agree $18 million, 1-year deal
ATLANTA — Left-hander Cole Hamels agreed to an $18 million, one-year contract with the Atlanta Braves, one of the more active teams of the offseason. The 35-year-old gives the Braves a veteran to replace Julio Teheran, who became a free agent after his $12 million team option was declined. Hamels...
Electric eel powers aquarium’s Christmas lightsVideo
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Visitors to the Tennessee Aquarium may be shocked to learn that an electric eel named Miguel Wattson is lighting up a Christmas tree. A special system connected to Miguel’s tank enables his shocks to power strands of lights on a nearby tree, according to a news release....
Deadly defect found in another version of Takata airbags
DETROIT — BMW is telling owners of some older 3-series cars to stop driving them after another recall of dangerous Takata air bag inflators. A driver in Australia was killed by an airbag malfunction, while another Australian and a driver in Cyprus were injured, according to government documents. The recently...
Clifford, everybody’s favorite big red dog, gets a reboot
NEW YORK — Who’s your favorite big red dog? If you have one, chances are his name is Clifford. Scholastic Entertainment is rebooting the TV series about the giant dog with an equally large heart this week on Amazon Prime Video and PBS, the latter his home since the early...
Buffalo bishop resigns under fire for handling of misconductVideo
NEW YORK — Bishop Richard Malone of Buffalo resigned Wednesday, forced to step aside amid mounting calls for his ouster from his staff, priests and public over his handling of allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. The Vatican said Pope Francis accepted the resignation and appointed Edward Scharfenberger, the bishop of...
Henry Cavill: Door ‘hasn’t closed’ on Superman, but first, ‘Witcher’
WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Henry Cavill is all-in on his Netflix fantasy series “The Witcher,” but he says the “door hasn’t closed”on a return as Superman in the DC cinematic universe. Cavill last played the superhero in 2017’s “Justice League” and it’s unclear whether any upcoming movies will feature the...
Kid Rock’s Detroit eatery closing after his profane comments
DETROIT — Kid Rock won’t renew his licensing agreement for Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit restaurant, the owners of the sports arena in which it’s housed said Wednesday. The news comes after the singer and musician was recently filmed delivering a vulgarity-laced rant against Oprah Winfrey. Chris Granger, group president...
Trump calls Trudeau ‘two-faced’ as palace gossip goes viralVideo
WATFORD, England — NATO leaders professed unity on Wednesday at a summit near London — but a spat over off-the-cuff chitchat at a royal reception rattled their show of solidarity. President Donald Trump branded the leader of America’s northern neighbor “two-faced” after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to gossip...
Bloomberg spending tens of millions more on new ad campaign
NEW YORK — Billionaire Democrat Michael Bloomberg is putting tens of millions of more dollars behind a new television ad casting himself as uniquely qualified to defeat President Donald Trump. The ad is set to begin running Wednesday in all 50 states, including the first four on the presidential primary...
Deadly swine flu outbreak breaks out in Poland near Germany
WARSAW, Poland — Poland’s agriculture minister says 21 wild boars have died as a result of an outbreak of African swine fever close to the German border. The minister said Wednesday that the area is being sealed off with a 34 mile fence and local hunters have been instructed to...
Loaded gun inside baby gift bought at Florida thrift store
CRESTVIEW, Fla. — A woman who bought a baby shower gift at a Florida Goodwill store was shocked when the father-to-be opened the box and found a loaded semi-automatic rifle inside. Veronica Alvarez-Rodriguez told the Northwest Florida Daily News that she and her husband stopped by the store in Valparaiso...
North Dakota-based wall builder who pitched to Trump on Fox News wins $400M contract
BISMARCK, N.D. — Tommy Fisher’s ambitious plan to win a border wall contract included what could be the next best thing to making a pitch directly to President Donald Trump himself — talking to him through his favorite cable TV channel, Fox News. And it just may have worked. Fisher’s...
Dolphins RB Kalen Ballage breaks 1936 record for futilityVideo
MIAMI — Running back Kalen Ballage’s historically unproductive season ended Tuesday when he was placed on injured reserve by the Miami Dolphins. Ballage hurt his left leg in Sunday’s victory over Philadelphia. The second-year pro finishes the season with 135 yards on 74 carries. His 1.8-yard average is the worst...
Google co-founders step down as execs of parent AlphabetVideo
SAN FRANCISCO — The co-founders of Google are stepping down as executives of its parent company, Alphabet, ending a remarkable two decades during which Larry Page and Sergey Brin shaped a startup born in a Silicon Valley garage into one of the largest, most powerful — and, increasingly, most feared...
Ohio St, LSU, Clemson, Georgia in CFP position; Utah, Oklahoma next
Ohio State will go into championship weekend as the top team in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s rankings, followed by LSU, Clemson and Georgia. Utah was fifth, Oklahoma sixth and Baylor seventh in the committee’s second-to-last top 25 released Tuesday. The final rankings that set the pairings for the...
Report: Rudy Giuliani in frequent contact with Devin Nunes, White HouseVideo
WASHINGTON — A new report from Democrats compiling evidence on impeachment revealed contact between President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and California Rep. Devin Nunes, the top Republican on the intelligence committee. The report released Tuesday includes phone records obtained from AT&T and Verizon that show Giuliani also was...
Police: Mother tied son’s hands during California fire
SANTA PAULA, Calif. — Authorities say a woman placed a plastic bag over her 3-year-old son’s head and tied his hands as their Santa Paula home burned. Santa Paula police say 47-year-old Maricela Magana Ruiz and her son were treated for smoke inhalation after the fire on Sunday. Firefighters found...
Undersized Marquette star Markus Howard finds ways to dominate
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Markus Howard continues to find ways to dominate basketball games despite his undersized stature. The 5-foot-11 Marquette preseason All-American and reigning Big East player of the year leads the nation in scoring at 26 points a game. “We need Markus to be the player and...
Masters field could be biggest in more than 50 years
NASSAU, Bahamas — Seven tournaments from the six largest tours over the next three weeks could shape the field for the Masters and, perhaps, pave the way for the largest gathering at Augusta National in more than 50 years. The Masters invites the top 50 from the final world ranking...
New Jersey Devils fire coach John Hynes, formerly of Penguins’ AHL club
The Devils fired coach John Hynes, the former coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, on Tuesday. General manager Ray Shero announced the move roughly 20 minutes before Hynes was to speak to the media before the Devils game against the Golden Knights at Prudential Center. Shero said...
Carolina Panthers fire coach Ron Rivera after nine seasonsVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Ron Rivera era has come to an abrupt end in Carolina. The Panthers fired their all-time winningest coach with the team on a four-game losing streak and headed to its third non-playoff season in four years. “I believe this is the best decision for the long-term...
