Associated Press stories, Page 416
Ohtani wins 3rd MVP award, 1st in NL; Judge wins second AL MVP in 3 seasonsVideo
NEW YORK — Shohei Ohtani won his third MVP Award and first in the National League, and Aaron Judge earned his second American League honor on Thursday. The L.A. Dodgers’ Ohtani was a unanimous MVP for the third time, receiving all 30 first-place votes and 420 points in voting by...
Alex Ovechkin is expected to miss 4 to 6 weeks with a broken left legVideo
Alex Ovechkin has a broken left fibula and is expected to be out four to six weeks, an injury that pauses the Washington Capitals superstar captain’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record. The Capitals updated Ovechkin’s status Thursday after he was evaluated by team doctors upon returning from...
Penn State wins trademark case over retailer’s use of vintage logos, images
PHILADELPHIA — Penn State has won a closely watched trademark fight over an online retailer’s use of its vintage sports logos and images. A Pennsylvania jury awarded Penn State $28,000 in damages on Wednesday over products made and sold by Vintage Brand and Sportswear Inc., two firms co-founded by former...
Republicans rally around Pete Hegseth, Trump’s Pentagon pick, as Gaetz withdraws for attorney generalVideo
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump’s allies on Capitol Hill rallied around Pete Hegseth, Trump’s Pentagon pick, on Thursday even as new details surfaced about allegations that he had sexually assaulted a woman in 2017. The GOP embrace of Hegseth came as another controversial Trump nominee, Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration...
FBI, DHS leaders won’t testify publicly about national security threats before the SenateVideo
WASHINGTON — The leaders of the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security declined to testify publicly at a scheduled Senate committee hearing Thursday on global threats to national security, a break from standard protocol of open testimony before the panel. “Their choice to not provide public testimony about their...
MLB will test robot umpires at 13 spring training ballparks hosting 19 teamsVideo
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball will test robot umpires as part of a challenge system during spring training at 13 ballparks hosting 19 teams, which could lead to regular-season use in 2026. MLB has been experimenting with the automated ball-strike system in the minor leagues since 2019 but is...
NFL issues security alert to teams, players’ union after recent burglariesVideo
The NFL issued a security alert to teams and the players’ union Thursday following recent burglaries involving the homes of Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. In a memo obtained by the Associated Press, the league says homes of professional athletes across multiple sports have become “increasingly targeted for...
A kayaker faked his own death and fled overseas. Now he’s telling how he did itVideo
GREEN LAKE, Wis. — A Wisconsin man who faked his own drowning this summer so he could abandon his wife and three children has been communicating with authorities daily from Eastern Europe, even telling them how he did it, but has not committed to returning home, a sheriff said Thursday....
Elon Musk’s budget crusade could cause a constitutional clash in Trump’s 2nd term
WASHINGTON — When Elon Musk first suggested a new effort to cut the size of government, Donald Trump didn’t seem to take it seriously. His eventual name for the idea sounded like a joke too. It would be called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a reference to an...
West Virginia tries to secure bowl eligibility in final home game against UCF
UCF (4-6, 2-5 Big 12) at West Virginia (5-5, 4-3) Saturday, 3:30 p.m. (ESPNU) BetMGM College Football Odds: UCF by 3. Series record: West Virginia leads 3-0. What’s at stake? West Virginia can become bowl eligible with a win. UCF, coming off a bye week, needs to win both of...
New Hampshire court hears cases on transgender girls playing girls sports and the right to protest
CONCORD, N.H. — Two lawsuits about transgender girl athletes — one challenging a state ban at schools and the other on the right to protest transgender athletes’ participation on girls teams — were the subject of hearings in federal court in New Hampshire on Thursday. The first case is about...
Putin says Russia has tested a new intermediate range missile in a strike on Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Thursday that Moscow has tested a new intermediate-range missile in a strike on Ukraine, and he warned that it could use the weapon against countries that have allowed Kyiv to use their missiles to strike Russia. The Russian strike on Ukraine on...
Georgia AG Chris Carr launches Republican bid in 2026 governor’s race
ATLANTA — Georgia’s Republican attorney general, Chris Carr, said Thursday that he’s running for governor in 2026, becoming the first major candidate from either party to announce a bid. Prominent Republicans and Democrats are eyeing the seat, which will be open in two years after term-limited Republican Gov. Brian Kemp...
Gaetz withdraws as Trump’s pick for attorney general
WASHINGTON — Matt Gaetz withdrew Thursday as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following continued scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation that cast doubt on his ability to be confirmed as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officer. The abrupt withdrawal is a setback to Trump’s push to...
Jussie Smollett’s conviction in 2019 attack on himself is overturned
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday overturned actor Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges that he staged a racist and homophobic attack against himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police. Smollett’s appeal argued that a special prosecutor should not have been allowed to intervene after...
One Tech Tip: How to get started with Bluesky
LONDON — Looking for a new social media platform because X, Threads and Mastodon just aren’t cutting it? You could try Bluesky. People seeking to avoid chaos, noise and political bluster in the aftermath of the U.S. elections are noticing a different mood on the Bluesky social platform, where the...
Has a waltz written by composer Frederic Chopin been discovered in an NYC museum?Video
NEW YORK — The brooding waltz was carefully composed on a sheet of music roughly the size of an index card. The brief, moody number also bore an intriguing name, written at the top in cursive: “Chopin.” A previously unknown work of music penned by the European master Frederic Chopin...
Mali’s ruling military appoints new prime minister, a day after his predecessor was fired
BAMAKO, Mali — Mali’s ruling junta on Thursday appointed a new prime minister from the ranks of the military generals, a day after firing his predecessor for criticizing the military regime. The move effectively consolidates all power in the African country in the hands of military generals. Mali has been...
Bitcoin is at the doorstep of $100,000 as post-election rally rolls on
NEW YORK — Bitcoin topped $98,000 for the first time Thursday, extending a streak of almost daily all-time highs since the U.S. presidential election. The cryptocurrency has rocketed more than 40% in just two weeks. Now, bitcoin is at the doorstep of $100,000 and investors do not appear to be...
U.S. home sales rose in October, notching their 1st annual gain in over 3 years
LOS ANGELES — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in October, the first annual gain in more than three years, with home shoppers encouraged by easing rates and a pickup in properties on the market. Existing home sales rose 3.4% last month, from September, to a seasonally adjusted annual...
International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Hamas officials
THE HAGUE — The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and Hamas officials, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity over their 13-month war in Gaza and the October 2023 attack on Israel respectively. Netanyahu condemned...
Ukraine says Russia launched an intercontinental missile in an attack for the 1st time in the war
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine claimed Thursday that Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile overnight at a city. If confirmed, it would be the first time Moscow has used such a weapon in the war. Ukraine did not provide any evidence that an ICBM was used in the attack on the...
Trump’s against climate action, but some right-wing governments are all for it
BAKU, Azerbaijan — They’re political soulmates except when it comes to climate. President-Elect Donald Trump praised Hungary’s right-wing populist leader Viktor Orbán as respected, smart and a “strong man” in his winning 2024 campaign. During Hungary’s rotation at the top of a council of European Union leaders, Orbán promised to...
Chris Stapleton wins 4 CMA Awards, but Morgan Wallen gets entertainer of the year
Chris Stapleton took home four Country Music Association Awards and hardly left the stage on Wednesday night, while an absent Morgan Wallen was shut out all evening until taking the night’s biggest prize, entertainer of the year. Stapleton’s wins included song of the year and single of the year for...
U.S. regulators seek to break up Google, forcing Chrome sale as part of monopoly punishment
U.S. regulators want a federal judge to break up Google to prevent the company from continuing to squash competition through its dominant search engine after a court found it had maintained an abusive monopoly over the past decade. The proposed breakup floated in a 23-page document filed late Wednesday by...
