NEW YORK (AP) — Free agent pitchers Luis Gabriel Moreno and Alejandro Crisostomo were suspended for 80 games each by Major League Baseball on Friday following positive tests for performance-enhancing substances under the minor league drug program. Moreno tested positive for Nandrolone, and Crisostomo tested positive for Boldenone and Nandrolone, the commissioner’s office said. A 26-year-old right-hander, Moreno was released by the New York Mets’ Class A Brooklyn Cyclones on Tuesday. He was 5-1 with a 5.33 ERA in 12 relief appearances this season for Brooklyn after spending 2016-23 in the San Francisco Giants organization. Crisostomo, a 24-year-old right-hander, was released by Minnesota on Aug. 24 after going 0-1 with a 7.13 ERA this year with the Florida Complex League Twins. He signed with Boston in 2017, spent 2018 in the Dominican Summer League with the Red Sox, then signed with Minnesota and spent 2023 with the Twins DSL team. Nineteen players have been suspended this year for positive drug tests, including eight under the minor league program and nine under the new program for minor league players assigned outside the United States and Canada. Two players have been suspended this year under the major league drug program. Noelvi Marté , a 22-year-old infielder who is the Cincinnati Reds’ top prospect, missed the first 80 games following a positive test for boldenone. Toronto Blue Jays infielder Orelvis Martínez was suspended for 80 games on June 23 following a positive test for the performance-enhancing drug clomiphene, an announcement made two days after his major league debut . AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli troops stormed one of the last hospitals operating in northern Gaza on Friday, forcing many staff and patients outside to strip in winter weather , the territory’s health ministry said. The army denied claims it had entered or set fire to the complex and accused Hamas of using the facility for cover. Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit multiple times over the past three months by Israeli troops waging an offensive against Hamas fighters in surrounding neighborhoods, according to staff. The ministry said a strike on the hospital a day earlier killed five medical staff. Israel's military said it was conducting operations against Hamas infrastructure and militants in the area and had ordered people out of the hospital, but said it had not entered the complex as of Friday night. It repeated claims that Hamas militants operate inside Kamal Adwan but provided no evidence. Hospital officials have denied that. The Health Ministry said troops forced medical personnel and patients to assemble in the yard and remove their clothes. Some were led to an unknown location, while some patients were sent to the nearby Indonesian Hospital, which was knocked out of operation after an Israel raid this week. Israeli troops during raids frequently carry out mass detentions, stripping men to their underwear for questioning in what the military says is a security measure as they search for Hamas fighters. The Associated Press doesn’t have access to Kamal Adwan, but armed plainclothes members of the Hamas-led police forces have been seen in other hospitals, maintaining security but also controlling access to parts of the facilities. The Health Ministry said Israeli troops also set fires in several parts of Kamal Adwan, including the lab and surgery department. It said 25 patients and 60 health workers remained in the hospital. The account could not be independently confirmed, and attempts to reach hospital staff were unsuccessful. “Fire is ablaze everywhere in the hospital,” an unidentified staff member said in an audio message posted on social media accounts of hospital director Hossam Abu Safiya. The staffer said some evacuated patients had been unhooked from oxygen. “There are currently patients who could die at any moment,” she said. Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesman, denied the accusations. “While IDF troops were not in the hospital, a small fire broke out in an empty building inside the hospital that is under control,” he said Friday night. He said a preliminary investigation found “no connection” between military activity and the fire. The Israeli military heavily restricts the movements of Palestinians in Gaza and has barred foreign journalists from entering the territory throughout the war, making it difficult to verify information. “These actions put the lives of all of these people in even more danger than what they faced before,” U.N. spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay told journalists, and noted colleagues' reports of “significant damage” to the hospital. It should be protected as international law requires, she added. A largely isolated north Since October, Israel’s offensive has virtually sealed off the northern Gaza areas of Jabaliya, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya and leveled large parts of them. Tens of thousands of Palestinians were forced out but thousands are believed to remain in the area, where Kamal Adwan and two other hospitals are located. Troops raided Kamal Adwan in October, and on Tuesday troops stormed and evacuated the Indonesian Hospital. The area has been cut off from food and other aid for months , raising fears of famine . The United Nations says Israeli troops allowed just four humanitarian deliveries to the area from Dec. 1 to Dec. 23. The Israeli rights group Physicians for Human Rights-Israel this week petitioned Israel’s High Court of Justice, seeking a halt to military attacks on Kamal Adwan. It warned that forcibly evacuating the hospital would “abandon thousands of residents in northern Gaza.” Before the latest deaths Thursday, the group documented five other staffers killed by Israeli fire since October. Israel launched its campaign in Gaza vowing to destroy Hamas after the group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people and abducted some 250 others. Around 100 Israelis remain captive in Gaza, around a third believed to be dead. Israel’s nearly 15-month-old campaign of bombardment and offensives has devastated the territory’s health sector. A year ago, it carried out raids on hospitals in northern Gaza, including Kamal Adwan, Indonesian and al-Awda Hospital, saying they served as bases for Hamas, though it presented little evidence. Israel’s campaign has killed more than 45,400 Palestinians, more than half women and children, and wounded more than 108,000 others, according to the Health Ministry. Its count does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Deaths from the cold in Gaza More than 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians have been driven from their homes, most now sheltering in sprawling tent camps in south and central Gaza. Children and adults, many barefoot, huddled Friday on the cold sand in tents whose plastic and cloth sheets whipped in the wind. Overnight temperatures can dip into the 40s Fahrenheit (below 10 Celsius), and sea spray from the Mediterranean can dampen tents just steps away. "I swear to God, their mother and I cover ourselves with one blanket and we cover (their five children) with three blankets that we got from neighbors. Sea waters drowned everything that was ours,” said Muhammad al-Sous, displaced from Beit Lahiya in the north. The children collect plastic bottles to make fires, and pile under the blankets when their only set of clothes is washed and dried in the wind. At least three babies in Gaza have died from exposure to cold in recent days , doctors there have said, and the Health Ministry said an adult — a nurse who worked at the European Hospital — also died this week. Khaled and Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Narions contributed to this report.Controversial American firebrand Candace Owens has scored a big win in her ambition to promote a hard right political vision to crowds across Australia and New Zealand, with New Zealand authorities reversing an earlier decision to block her from entering their country. New Zealand’s immigration department had originally declined to grant Ms Owens a visa after Australian Immigration Minister Tony Burke blocked her from entering Australia on character grounds. But this week, New Zealand Associate Minister for Immigration Chris Penk overturned that decision following a request from Ms Owens. “The Minister has granted Ms Owens a visa following a request for Ministerial Intervention,” a spokesman for Mr Penk told NewsWire. “Immigration New Zealand originally declined her visa application on the basis of section 15(1)(f) of the Immigration Act following Ms Owens being denied entry to Australia. “Subsequently, Ms Owens requested intervention from the Associate Minister of Immigration to exercise his discretion and grant her a visa.” Ms Owens said she was “thrilled” about the opportunity to travel to the South Pacific nation “to speak with the people, share ideas and engage in meaningful conversations”. “I applaud the minister for standing up for the rights of individuals to engage in political discourse without fear of being silenced,” she said. Ms Owens was initially scheduled to tour both countries across November but following Mr Burke’s intervention, the shows were rescheduled for early 2025. The first date on the Candace Owens Live tour is listed for Auckland on February 28 and then Brisbane on March 4, Sydney on March 6, Perth on March 8, Adelaide on March 9 and then Melbourne on March 10. Ms Owens remains blocked from entering Australia. “From downplaying the impact of the Holocaust with comments about Mengele through to claims that Muslims started slavery, Candace Owens has the capacity to incite discord in almost every direction,” Mr Burke said in October on announcing his decision to block her visa. “Australia’s national interest is best served when Candace Owens is somewhere else.” Ms Owens blasted Mr Burke’s decision as a “petty act of vandalism” and launched an appeal. She has suggested her application was blocked due to her coverage of attacks on Palestinians in Gaza. “I just wanted to make sure that every person knows that despite me being fired, demonised, spoken ill about, I haven’t changed my position,” she said. “That’s what this really is, a petty act of vandalism. No one’s worried about me coming to Australia because they’re angry that they’ve put this narrative out about me and my listeners haven’t accepted it.” NewsWire understands the appeal process is ongoing. Ms Owens’ Ticketek page has stated ticket holders will be refunded if the Australian shows don’t go ahead. The influencer, who split from mainstream US conservative commentator Ben Shapiro and his news outlet The Daily Wire in March this year, counts 5.8 million followers on Twitter and some five million on Instagram. Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim called on Mr Burke to cancel Ms Owens’ visa, arguing she failed the character test under the Migration Act. “At a time of unprecedented strains on the cohesiveness of Australian society, which is very largely the outcome of ignorant and malicious comment on social media, the last thing we need to be importing into our country is yet another so-called celebrity who has made racist and bigoted comments about Jews and other vulnerable groups,” he said. Free speech advocates have applauded New Zealand’s reversal. “We applaud Chris Penk for doing the right thing and defending the speech rights for Candace Owens and all Kiwis,” Free Speech Union chief executive Jonathan Ayling said. “It was appalling to see Immigration New Zealand follow in the footsteps of Australia and deny Owens’ entry on spurious grounds. It’s a dangerous situation to be in when the State begins to cherrypick which voices we hear from.”
Arguments over whether Luigi Mangione is a 'hero' offer glimpse into unusual American momentStacey Kent saw Irwindale Speedway built literally from the ground up. She worked for the team that helped construct the short track circuit in the late 1990s. Next weekend, Kent and the entire Southern California racing community will see the track take its final bow after 25 years as a staple of the San Gabriel Valley, and a draw for scores of visitors from around Southern California. On Saturday, Dec. 21, Irwindale Speedway is hosting a “Farewell Extravaganza” starting at 1 p.m., which will include a NASCAR short-track series, Night of Destruction events like Figure 8-s and trailer races, a Drift invitational and the ARCA Menards Series West. It will be another blow for the region’s racing culture, which now adds Irwindale to a roster of now long-lost eulogized sites, such as Ontario Motor Speedway and Riverside International Raceway. The closure of the iconic venue is to make way for the Speedway Commerce Center Specific Plan , a proposed project to turn the speedway site into a industrial/commercial/business park. “I’m sad for the city of Irwindale, too, because frankly that’s something that helps put Irwindale on the map,” Kent said. “Another in the how many hundreds of industrial parks and industrial buildings that they have in Irwindale. What does that do for them?” A little over a week before the last event at the speedway, Kent recalled the grand opening. It was a cold night in March 1999 with a packed house full of excited racing fans. “You could just feel it in the air,” Kent said. It’s the passionate racing fans, drivers and participants that Kent feels for the most. “They put their blood, sweat and tears and their hard earned money into being in events at Irwindale Speedway and I’m really sad for them,” Kent said. IDS Real Estate Group purchased the 63 acres of land in 2022 . The plan splits the site into a 56 acre industrial business park development and a 7.3 acre area for commercial development. Prior to the speedway, the Pacific Road Quarry mined sand and gravel for construction on the site through the 1960s. The quarry was then backfilled as part of the Nu-Way Landfill that operated from 1973 until 1993. This history has led to environmental headaches for future developers. But it’s also been rich in car culture. Irwindale’s racing history stretches back to the 1960s and 1970s when the San Gabriel Valley Speedway, later dubbed the 605 Speedway, hosted events. For years, it has joined a larger racing community in Southern California , where fans have seen the loss beloved tracks. The Ontario Motor Speedway opened in August 1970, at a cost of $25.5 million. At the time, the state-of-the-art facility was designed to be the “Indianapolis of the West.” The 800-acre venue made its mark, hosting races including Indy-style open-wheel, stock cars, and drag racing. But it fell victim to disappointing revenues and rising land values. It closed in December 1980. The Riverside International Raceway opened in September 1957. It was known as one of the finest tracks in the country, before it closed in July 1989 to make way for a shopping center and residential homes. Auto Club Speedway in Fontana built in 1997, remains the Inland Empire’s only large-scale auto racing facility. But 2023’s Pala Casino 400 was said to be the last for NASCAR on the 2-mile track as the site will be redeveloped. A short track is supposed to be on the site when it’s completed. The Perris Auto Speedway opened in 1996 near Perris, maintains racing on its half-mile oval track, and the historic Orange Show Speedway still hosts a variety of races. Back in Irwindale, a page on the city’s website with information about the project includes in a message in all caps and bolded which reads, “The city of Irwindale does not own the Irwindale Speedway.” “The City takes great pride in the contributions that the Irwindale Speedway has made to the racing community and will fondly look back on the memories created on the track and in the grandstands of the Irwindale Speedway,” a statement from the city read. NASCAR driver Ryan Vargas was 9 years old when his dad took him to Irwindale Speedway. From his seat in the grandstands seeing the cars whoosh by, Vargas became a NASCAR fan. “My dad takes me to Irwindale Speedway and I fall in love with the sport and I fell in love with racing,” Vargas, now 24, said. Next weekend, Vargas, originally from La Mirada, will be driving the #23 Swann Security/Sandy Vans pro late model car as part of the track’s farewell event. It’s a full-circle moment for Vargas, who took his first laps around the speedway at age 12 in a Bandolero race car powered by a 30-horsepower Briggs and Stratton lawn-mower engine. The #23 car has a bit more juice. The pro late model’s 602 crate engine has about 350-370 horse power. Vargas called Irwindale the perfect short track and fun to race because of its width. “You could choose from several different lanes to make a pass,” Vargas said. “I love a race track where you can make moves and pass and dictate your own runs and Irwindale is that.” In addition to the track, the speedway’s drag strip provided an opportunity for people of all ages to take part in legal street racing and sanctioned competitions. Mike Gonzaga runs the junior drag racing program for children 6 to 17. His connection with the speedway started about 10 years ago because of his daughter Jacelyn’s passion for drag racing. Jacelyn got her NHRA license at 8 and now 17, she recently won the final junior comp championship held at Irwindale Speedway. “I won’t be here forever. For her, I think she wants to take her career to the next level,” Gonzaga said. “She will always forever have that memory and we will always have that memory together there.” Gonzaga said Irwindale’s location made it unique in bringing people together from all over Southern California to one place. He likened the environment at the track to Sam Malone’s bar in the T.V. series “Cheers.” “Everybody knows your name and it was home for a very long time,” Gonzaga said. “That was the type of community that it was.” He called Irwindale Speedway President Tim Huddleston and his staff first class and the reason for the welcoming feeling. “They knew everybody by first name. They treated everybody the same and it was just fantastic,” Gonzaga said. “They made everybody feel at home” In a statement announcing the final event, the speedway said its assets and events will transition to Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway in Bakersfield for 2025. Vargas said while the loss of short tracks like Irwindale is disheartening, the West Coast continues to have healthy racing series. He said local racing fans should visit Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, what Vargas described as a West Coast version of North Carolina’s Bowman Gray Stadium. He urged fans to support their local short tracks. “At the end of the day they’re not the NASCAR tracks where people don’t show up, ‘well the T.V. dollars are coming in,’” Vargas said. “No, these tracks rely on not just the competitors but they rely on fans to be there.” For more information, visit irwindalespeedway.com . History of Irwindale Speedway: May 1993: Nu-Way Landfill closed and decommissioned March 1999: Irwindale Speedway opens 2015: Plans to turn the site into a 700,000-square-foot outdoor mall approved. December 2017: Tim Huddleston and his team save the speedway from it’s slated January 2018 closure. 2022: IDS Real Estate purchases the speedway property Dec. 21, 2024: Irwindale hosts its “Farewell Extravaganza”
Sportscaster Greg Gumbel dies from cancer at age 78