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Hopes for historic Pacific visit dashed after Biden cancels trip to Papua New Guinea

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Papua New Guinea had declared next Monday a public holiday in anticipation of an historic visit by U.S. President Joe Biden and other leaders from the region.Police were tightening security, billboards were going up, and people were getting ready to sing and dance in the streets. Expectations were high for what would have been the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to any Pacific Island nation.“I am very honored that he has fulfilled his promise to me to visit our country,” Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape had written on Facebook.Those expectations were dashed Wednesday when Biden canceled the visit to focus on debt limit talks at home. To be sure, many of the festivities will still be going ahead. Biden’s planned three-hour stopover — sandwiched between the Group of Seven meeting of wealthy democracies in Japan and a now-scrapped trip to Australia — was timed to coincide with a trip by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who wi...

Cardinals and Brewers play with series tied 1-1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

Milwaukee Brewers (24-18, first in the NL Central) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (17-26, fifth in the NL Central)St. Louis; Wednesday, 7:45 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Brewers: Corbin Burnes (4-2, 3.35 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 39 strikeouts); Cardinals: Matthew Liberatore (0-0)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Brewers -116, Cardinals -104; over/under is 8 runsBOTTOM LINE: The St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers play on Wednesday with the three-game series tied 1-1.St. Louis has a 17-26 record overall and a 7-14 record in home games. The Cardinals have the seventh-best team slugging percentage in MLB play at .435.Milwaukee is 24-18 overall and 11-10 on the road. The Brewers have a 17-5 record in games when they record eight or more hits.Wednesday’s game is the sixth time these teams meet this season. The Brewers are ahead 3-2 in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Nolan Gorman has eight doubles, 10 home runs and 33 RBI while hitting .285 for the Cardinals. Nolan Arenado is 15-for-44 with a tri...

Yogi Berra documentary ‘It Ain’t Over’ opens in DC, celebrating baseball legend of Yankee ‘Yogi-isms’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

Hear our full chat on my podcast “Beyond the Fame with Jason Fraley.” toggle audio on and off change volume download audio WTOP's Jason Fraley previews the Yogi Berra documentary 'It Ain't Over' (Part 1) $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var audio_filename = $('div.wtop-audio-file').data("mp3-url"); ga('send', 'event', 'Audio', 'play', audio_filename); }); }); He won 10 World Series rings and caught the only perfect game in World Series history in 1956, and yet, New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra is best remembered for the countless “Yogi-isms” we still quote today.His ...

Phillies look to stop 3-game road losing streak, play the Giants

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

Philadelphia Phillies (20-22, third in the NL East) vs. San Francisco Giants (19-23, fourth in the NL West)San Francisco; Wednesday, 3:45 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Phillies: Taijuan Walker (3-2, 5.75 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 38 strikeouts); Giants: Ross Stripling (0-2, 7.14 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, 24 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Phillies -114, Giants -105; over/under is 7 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Philadelphia Phillies hit the road against the San Francisco Giants looking to end a three-game road slide.San Francisco is 12-10 in home games and 19-23 overall. The Giants have the 10th-ranked team batting average in the NL at .242.Philadelphia is 9-15 in road games and 20-22 overall. The Phillies have a 9-2 record in games when they hit at least two home runs.The teams play Wednesday for the third time this season.TOP PERFORMERS: LaMonte Wade Jr has four doubles, a triple, seven home runs and 15 RBI while hitting .278 for the Giants. Casey Schmitt is 14-for-32 with four doubles and two home ...

Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals meet in game 2 of series

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

Washington Nationals (18-24, fifth in the NL East) vs. Miami Marlins (21-21, second in the NL East)Miami; Wednesday, 6:40 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: MacKenzie Gore (3-2, 3.29 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 51 strikeouts); Marlins: Edward Cabrera (2-3, 5.35 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, 49 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Marlins -130, Nationals +110; over/under is 8 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Miami Marlins bring a 1-0 lead into the next game of the series against the Washington Nationals.Miami is 21-21 overall and 12-11 at home. The Marlins have the 10th-ranked team ERA in the NL at 4.57.Washington has a 10-10 record on the road and an 18-24 record overall. Nationals hitters are batting a collective .259, the ninth-best team batting average in MLB play.Wednesday’s game is the second time these teams meet this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Jorge Soler has nine doubles, 10 home runs and 22 RBI while hitting .238 for the Marlins. Bryan De La Cruz is 15-for-40 with three doubles and a home run over the ...

Rockies and Reds meet with series tied 1-1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

Cincinnati Reds (19-23, fourth in the NL Central) vs. Colorado Rockies (18-25, fifth in the NL West)Denver; Wednesday, 3:10 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Reds: Graham Ashcraft (2-1, 3.95 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 33 strikeouts); Rockies: Austin Gomber (3-4, 6.30 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 28 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Rockies -119, Reds -100; over/under is 11 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds play on Wednesday with the three-game series tied 1-1.Colorado has a 9-12 record in home games and an 18-25 record overall. The Rockies are 7-1 in games when they hit two or more home runs.Cincinnati has gone 7-14 in road games and 19-23 overall. Reds hitters are batting a collective .246, which ranks ninth in the NL.The teams square off Wednesday for the third time this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Elias Diaz has seven doubles and three home runs for the Rockies. Brenton Doyle is 9-for-34 with a double and four home runs over the last 10 games.Jonathan India has three home runs, 19...

EU confirms 2024 election dates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

It’s official: European voters will head to the polls from June 6-9, 2024 to choose the next class of MEPs.EU diplomats signed off on the election dates Wednesday, according to the Swedish presidency of the Council of the EU.  #COREPERII | The EU Ambassadors just approved setting 6 to 9 June 2024 as the dates for the next European Parliament elections.— Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU (@sweden2023eu) May 17, 2023In selecting some 705 parliamentarians to serve from 2024 to 2029, EU citizens could shake up not just the Parliament, but the EU executive as well. Europe’s political groups are inching toward a historic realignment, as the European People’s Party eyes alliances with the far right, fraying its tacit pro-EU coalition with the center left.  The choice to hold balloting from Thursday, June 6, to Sunday, June 9 next year marks a defeat for Portugal. Lisbon said those dates would depress turnout in Portugal, due to a national holiday on Monday, June 1...

Nicolas Sarkozy loses appeal on corruption conviction

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

PARIS — A Paris court on Wednesday upheld a three-year prison sentence for former French President Nicolas Sarkozy over corruption charges.The Paris Court of Appeals confirmed a 2021 first-instance sentence to three years in jail: two of which will be suspended while one will be served under house arrest, wearing an electronic bracelet. The ruling is unprecedented for a former French president. Sarkozy will also be banned from running for public office for three years. Sarkozy will appeal Wednesday’s decision before France’s top court, the Court of Cassation, French media reported. The former conservative heavyweight, who served as president from 2007 to 2012, had been convicted for having offered a judge a plum job in exchange for confidential information related to another trial he was facing. His lawyer Thierry Herzog, one of France’s most famous criminal lawyers, and judge Gilbert Azibert were handed down the same three-year sentence at the time.Corruption alle...

UK vows to work with ‘friends’ in the EU on cross-Channel migration

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

LONDON — The U.K. and European Union agreed to “strengthen cooperation” on migration, in a move that will see London work with the EU’s border agency.Following talks between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Downing Street announced overnight Wednesday that British agencies will partner with Frontex on “critical operational and strategic challenges including the situation in the Channel.” Brussels and London will exchange intelligence, expertise and personnel to combat people smugglers, No. 10 said, as Sunak faces domestic pressure to curb the number of asylum seekers making the dangerous journey from French to British shores.Sunak has made “stopping the boats” in the English Channel one of his political priorities. But his government’s bill to effectively ban those arriving in the U.K. on small boats from claiming asylum altogether has been criticized by the EU and the United Nations’ re...

WATCH: Group caught on camera riding bikes through O’Neill Tunnel in Boston

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:10:39 GMT

New video captured on Massachusetts Department of Transportation cameras shows a group of people on bicycles riding through the O’Neill Tunnel in Boston last week.In one clip, a group of five people can be seen riding into the tunnel. Another clip shows the group later exiting the tunnel. In a separate clip, members of the group can be seen doing wheelies on their bikes while in between cars inside the tunnel. In a statement, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation said the incident happened on Friday around 5 p.m. The spokesperson said bicyclists illegally entered a ramp at O’Brien Highway into the O’Neill Tunnel. The spokesperson continued, saying the group then got out of the roadway without incident. “It’s just a big distraction,” said Massachusetts driver Craig Tankard this week when asked about the incident. “It’s hard enough to drive around here with all the construction and everything without having to deal with that.”Video clips show...