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MLB game time drops 24 minutes to 2:40 with pitch clock. Players steal most bases since 1987

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

By RONALD BLUM (AP Baseball Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — The average time of a nine-inning major league game dropped to 2 hours, 40 minutes in the first year of the pitch clock, a 24-minute decrease in a season of change that resulted in a spike in batting average and the most stolen bases in nearly 40 years.Left-handed hitters benefitted from the new restrictions on defensive shifts, runners took advantage of the slightly decreased distance between bases, and average fastball velocity set another record.The average game time dropped to its 1985 level after passing 3 hours for the first time in 2016. It reached a record 3:10 in 2021 before the introduction of the PitchCom electronic pitch-calling device helped bring it down to 3:04 last year. Over the objections of the players’ association, MLB instituted a pitch clock set at 15 seconds with the bases empty and 20 seconds with runners on base.“It took some getting used to, but once you get used to it the game’s...

All U.S. cellphones, TVs and radios will receive an alert on Oct. 4: Here's why

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Every TV, radio and cellphone in the United States will receive an alert on Wednesday as the Federal Emergency Management Agency tests the Emergency Alert and Wireless Emergency Alerts systems.The national test will be done in two portions, which are both scheduled for about 11:20 a.m. PST. Tax deadline nearing for most Californians The WEA portion of the test will send a message that will read “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed,” to cellphones nationwide. The message will be displayed in either English or Spanish, depending on the phone’s language setting.  All cell phones will receive the message once and will go off even if the device is in silent mode.The EAS portion of the test will send the same message to radios and televisions nationwide.“FEMA and the FCC are coordinating with EAS participants, wireless providers, emergency managers and other stakeholders in preparation for this national test to minimize confusion and...

Kurtenbach: Chris Paul in a Warriors uniform is a funny sight, but don’t joke about his ability to improve Golden State

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Yep, this is going to take some getting used to.Chris Paul has been a Golden State Warrior since July, but on Monday, the future Hall of Famer and longtime Dubs foil walked the halls of Chase Center wearing his famous No. 3 in white, blue, and yellow.That trade was not a mirage. This is not an elaborate practical joke. This is once impossible-to-predict reality is real.Photoshoot fresh #GSWMediaDay pic.twitter.com/l8T9I3LkME— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) October 2, 2023And the jokes about being a fox in the hen house won’t stop coming Paul’s way.“It looks good,” Steph Curry said of Paul’s new Dubs duds. “I like it as opposed to the opposite for sure.”“That’s all I hear,” Paul said Monday. “From the coaches to everybody.”Even the Paul family is in on the ribbing.“The first day I came here, I took a picture of my locker and the uniform and the jersey, and I put it in my family gro...

San Jose Sharks coach strikes realistic tone on Couture’s availability for season-opener

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

SAN JOSE — Logan Couture’s health is improving but any optimism that the San Jose Sharks captain will be fully healthy and ready to play in the team’s regular season opener in 10 days might be starting to fade.Couture, out with an undisclosed lower-body injury, has not practiced so far in training camp and the team is still unsure as to when he’ll begin to skate again.Sharks coach David Quinn said Couture was at the team’s training facility Monday “challenging himself to see if he can continue to take the next step to get on the ice.” But with training camp already at the midway point, Quinn also struck a realistic tone as to whether Couture could be fully healthy for the Oct. 12 opener against the Vegas Golden Knights.“Whether he could go and whether he will go are two different things,” said Quinn, emphasizing that the Sharks will take a cautious approach to Couture’s return. “Every day that goes by, what we’re hearing is, ‘When he’s in, he’s in.’“With ever...

‘Age is just a number’ says 104-year-old skydiver

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Associated PressOTTAWA, Ill. — A 104-year-old Chicago woman is hoping to be certified as the oldest person to ever skydive after leaving her walker on the ground and making a tandem jump in northern Illinois.“Age is just a number,” Dorothy Hoffner told a cheering crowd moments after touching the ground Sunday at Skydive Chicago in Ottawa, about 85 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported.The Guinness World Record for oldest skydiver was set in May 2022 by 103-year-old Linnéa Ingegärd Larsson from Sweden. But Skydive Chicago is working to have Guinness World Records certify Hoffner’s jump as a record, WLS-TV reported.Hoffner first skydived when she was 100. On Sunday, she left her walker behind just short of the plane — a Skyvan — and was helped up the steps to join the others waiting inside to skydive.“Let’s go, let’s go, Geronimo!” Hoffner said after she was finally seated.When she first skydived, she said s...

The top eight most expensive home sales in Oakland, reported the week of Sep. 18

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

A house that sold for $2.3 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Oakland in the past week.In total, eight residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $1.5 million. The average price per square foot was $745.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of Sep. 18 even if the property may have been sold earlier.8. $1.1 million, single-family house in the 300 block of Taurus Ave.The 1,186 square-foot single-family residence in the 300 block of Taurus Ave., Oakland, has been sold. The transfer of ownership was settled in August and the total purchase price was $1,070,000, $902 per square foot. The house was built in 1938. The house features three bedrooms and one bathrooms.7. $1.3 million, single-family residence in the 500 block of Kenwyn RoadThe property in the 500 block of Kenwyn Road in Oakland has new owners. The price was $1,250,0...

Large indoor sports complex breaks ground in this East Bay city

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Basketball and volleyball enthusiasts will likely be happy to know that Pittsburg has broken ground on what is being billed as the largest indoor recreational gymnasium in the region.The city, in partnership with Discovery Homes, marked the event with a celebration last week at John Henry Johnson Park on West Leland Road where the new 45,000-square-foot multi-court sports complex will be constructed. Dubbed “Dream Courts,” it’s the first public facility of its kind to be built in many decades in the city.“I am thrilled to see the construction of the Dream Courts begin,” Pittsburg Mayor Shanelle Scales-Preston. “This project headlines the immense efforts of my colleagues on the City Council and I to bring new opportunities to the youth and young adults in our Pittsburg community.”The mayor said the center will be “capable of serving the recreation needs of all of Pittsburg, with the ability to host basketball leagues and tournaments, volleyball, dance, cheer, pickleball, camps, clini...

Shoplifter who allegedly lit Bay Area store clerk on fire charged with mayhem

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

(KRON) -- A Contra Costa County man accused of pouring lighter fluid on a store clerk and setting the victim on fire has been charged with mayhem.Kendall Lavanon Burton, 38, is facing a slew of felonies in connection to the September 22 attack. According to court documents obtained by KRON4 Monday, prosecutors charged Burton with aggravated mayhem, assault with caustic chemicals, arson causing great bodily injury, and robbery.The incident began in El Sobrante at Appian Food & Liquor when the clerk tried to stop Burton and a second man from shoplifting inside the store. In the middle of the scuffle, Burton threw flammable chemicals on the victim and ignited it using a lighter, according to a criminal complaint.Surveillance video from inside the convenience store shows flames suddenly igniting and burning the victim's head. The victim's co-worker can be seen in the surveillance video grabbing a baseball bat from behind the counter and attempting to fend off the two assailants. The...

Another Oakland business to close, citing 'rising crime'

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

(KRON) -- An Irish pub located in Oakland's Jack London Square has announced it will be closing at the end of the month, citing "rising crime in the area" as a factor. Slainte Oakland will be shutting its doors for good on Oct. 31, the pub announced in a Facebook post Monday."Summer was very slow and between decreasing business and increasing costs of supplies and labor, along with rising crime in the area, we just can't make the numbers work anymore," the post read. "This means that we, like so many others, have made the heartbreaking decision to close on October 31st, 2023." SF Fleet Week 2023: schedule, events, what you need to know Slainte opened in 2017 and boasted "home cooked cuisine," an "impressive whiskey selection," and a "tradition of music, storytelling and celebrating," according to its Yelp page. The pub was founded by Ireland native Jackie Gallanagh who created the menu using family recipes, according to the Slainte website.During its nearly seven years in business...

3 arrested for stabbing Saturday at San Mateo community center

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

(KRON) -- Three people have been arrested in connection to a stabbing that occurred at a San Mateo community center Saturday, the San Mateo Police Department announced Monday. One victim was stabbed in the incident, which was the result of a fight, according to San Mateo PD.Officers responded to a report of a fight at the Martin Luther King Community Center at 10:19 p.m. Saturday. Officers arrived on the scene at 725 Monte Diablo Avenue and located a victim who'd been stabbed. 2 children dead after falling into pool at San Jose day care facility The victim was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.An investigation, police said, revealed that a fight had broken out and escalated, leading to the stabbing. Three suspects were arrested and booked into San Mateo County Jail.They were identified by police as:Jose Guillen Martinez, 19, of San MateoOliver Martinez Mendez, 21, of San MateoSergio Pereira, 24, of San MateoCharges for the three included assault with a deadl...