Associated Press stories, Page 562
As Mets retire his No. 18, Strawberry tells fans ‘I’m so sorry for ever leaving’Video
NEW YORK — Darryl Strawberry stood on the Citi Field grass as his No. 18 was being retired and addressed the New York Mets fans he had jilted 34 years earlier. “I mean this from the bottom of my heart: I’m so sorry for ever leaving you guys,” Strawberry said,...
Kyrie Irving said Mavericks were just getting started — He was right
Kyrie Irving was not making a threat, nor was he boasting, nor was he saying anything that would be considered outlandish. It was the final week of the regular season. He and the Dallas Mavericks had just clinched a division title, and Irving was asked to talk about what it...
Oilers 1 victory away from Stanley Cup chance
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins never has been this close to playing for a Stanley Cup since the Edmonton Oilers took him with the first overall draft pick in 2011. It’s been even longer for the franchise that has won the Cup five times. Edmonton was right in the middle of a span...
Stewart-Haas drivers adjusting to uncertain future with NASCAR team planning to foldVideo
MADISON, Ill. — As he’s trying to race his way into the NASCAR Cup series playoffs, Chase Briscoe now faces a fresh challenge with the potential for his Stewart-Haas Racing team to deteriorate around him. Owners Tony Stewart and Gene Haas announced this week that the four-team garage would cease...
From collapsed plea deal to trial: How Hunter Biden has come to face jurors on federal gun charges
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s son was in federal court, prepared to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax offenses. The culmination of a sprawling investigation, the deal between Hunter Biden and prosecutors was going to spare him a politically explosive trial in the middle of his father’s reelection campaign and likely...
Republicans join Trump’s attacks on justice system and campaign of vengeance after guilty verdict
WASHINGTON — Embracing Donald Trump’s strategy of blaming the U.S. justice system after his historic guilty verdict, Republicans in Congress are fervently enlisting themselves in his campaign of vengeance and political retribution as the GOP runs to reclaim the White House. Almost no Republican official has stood up to suggest...
Mike Tyson’s fight with Jake Paul postponed after Tyson’s health episode
Mike Tyson’s fight with Jake Paul has been postponed after the 57-year-old Tyson fell ill on a flight last weekend. Tyson and Paul said Friday that they will announce a new fight date next week. They were scheduled to meet July 20 in Arlington, Texas. Tyson became nauseous and dizzy...
Florida sheriff’s office fires deputy who fatally shot airman at home
A Florida Panhandle sheriff on Friday fired a deputy who fatally shot an airman at his home while holding a handgun pointed to the ground, saying the deputy’s life was never in danger and he should not have fired his weapon. Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden fired Deputy Eddie Duran,...
U.S. defense secretary says war with China neither imminent nor unavoidable, stressing need for talks
SINGAPORE — United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told a gathering of top security officials Saturday that war with China was neither imminent nor unavoidable, despite rapidly escalating tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, stressing the importance of renewed dialogue between him and his Chinese counterpart in avoiding “miscalculations and...
Hostage families call for cease-fire deal pushed by Biden; Israel says conditions must be met
TEL AVIV, Israel — Families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas called for all parties to immediately accept a proposal detailed by U.S. President Joe Biden to end the nearly 8-month-long war and bring their relatives home, but Israel’s government said conditions for a cease-fire still must be met. Biden...
River ferry sinks in Afghanistan, killing at least 20
ISLAMABAD — At least 20 people were killed when a boat sank while crossing a river in eastern Afghanistan Saturday morning, a Taliban official said. Quraishi Badlon, provincial director of the information and culture department in Nangarhar province, said that the boat sank while crossing a river in Mohmand Dara...
Judge denies petition to recall death sentence of man who killed 12-year-old Polly Klaas
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California judge on Friday denied a petition to recall the death sentence against Richard Allen Davis, who in 1993 killed 12-year-old Polly Klaas after kidnapping her from her bedroom at knifepoint in a crime that shocked the nation. Jurors in 1996 found Davis guilty of...
Ohio explosion caused by cut gas line thought to be turned off, investigators say
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — A crew working in the basement area of an Ohio building intentionally cut a gas line not knowing it was pressurized before a deadly explosion this week, the National Transportation Safety Board said Friday. NTSB board member Tom Chapman said preliminary investigation shows workers were in the...
Running for U.S. president from prison? Eugene V. Debs did it, a century ago
NEW YORK — Following his unprecedented felony conviction, former president and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump has to wait to find out what his sentence will be. But even if it involves time behind bars, that doesn’t mean his campaign to return to the White House comes to an end....
Wichanee Meechai has big start and leads U.S. Women’s Open
LANCASTER — Wichanee Meechai became the latest surprise in a U.S. Women’s Open filled with them. She started Friday with four straight birdies and matched the low score of the week with a 3-under-par 67 for a two-shot lead going into a weekend that won’t include Nelly Korda. Meechai is...
Gable Steveson switches from wrestling to football, joins Bills
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Olympic gold medal wrestler Gable Steveson is seeking to trade the mat for the gridiron by signing a standard undrafted rookie free agent contract with the Buffalo Bills on Friday. The Bills list the 24-year-old Steveson as a defensive lineman in hopes his leverage techniques and...
NBA’s Mavericks and NHL’s Stars chase Dallas double
DALLAS — Dereck Lively II of the Dallas Mavericks tossed the question back at the reporter when the rookie center was asked if he knew why so many fans shouted “Stars” during the national anthem at his home games. “You tell me why,” Lively said, prompting the explanation that supporters...
Stefanos Tsitsipas eases into French Open 4th round
PARIS — Stefanos Tsitsipas was in a reflective mood after beating Zhang Zhizhen, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1, to reach the fourth round of the French Open on Friday. The 2021 runner-up says tennis plays a fundamental part in shaping his thinking. “I get the feeling that without tennis my life would...
President Joe Biden hosts Chiefs, breaks unofficial rule about headwear
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden welcomed the Kansas City Chiefs to the White House on Friday, lauding the back-to-back Super Bowl champion team for its sportsmanship on and off the field, and breaking an unofficial political rule about headwear. He tried on a Chiefs helmet the team gave him as...
Jennifer Lopez cancels summer tour, which included Pittsburgh show: ‘I am completely heartsick and devastated’
NEW YORK — Jennifer Lopez has canceled her 2024 North American tour, representatives for Live Nation confirmed to The Associated Press. “Jennifer is taking time off to be with her children, family and close friends,” they said in a statement. The tour was to be her first in five years,...
Russia, Ukraine exchange POWs for 1st time in months; bodies of fallen also swapped
SUMY REGION, Ukraine — Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners of war on Friday, each sending back 75 POWs in the first such swap in the past three months, officials said. A few hours earlier and at the same location, the two sides also handed over bodies of their fallen soldiers....
Israel confirms its forces are in central Rafah in expanding offensive in southern Gaza city
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military confirmed Friday that its forces are operating in central parts of Rafah in its expanding offensive in the southern Gaza city. Israel launched its ground assault into the city on May 6, triggering an exodus of around 1 million Palestinians out of the city and...
Upside-down American flag reappears as a right-wing protest symbol after Trump’s guilty verdict
CHICAGO — After Donald Trump’s historic guilty verdict, a steady flow of images showing upside-down American flags has appeared on social media as his supporters and right-wing commentators protest his felony conviction. At least one such flag was spotted Friday outside Trump Tower in New York City as the Republican...
Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia registers as independent, citing ‘partisan extremism’
WASHINGTON — Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia announced Friday he has switched his registration to independent, raising questions about his political plans since the move could help his chances should he seek elected office again in a state that has turned heavily Republican. Manchin, 76, has often been...
The NBA Finals are set, with Boston set to face Dallas for the Larry O’Brien Trophy
Kyrie Irving returning to Boston. Luka Doncic’s first trip to the title round. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, getting another chance at a ring. Kristaps Porzingis facing his former team, too. Pick a storyline. There are many in these NBA Finals. The matchup is now set: It’ll be Boston against...
