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Why didn’t the Ravens kick a field goal at end of half vs. Steelers? ‘Miscommunication’ led to surprise snap.

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

It was a weekend of “miscommunication” in Baltimore pro sports.One day after Orioles outfielder Aaron Hicks missed a hit-and-run sign in the ninth inning Saturday, leading to Gunnar Henderson being thrown out attempting to steal second base in a 3-2 loss to the Texas Rangers in Game 1 of the American League Division Series, the Ravens made a costly mistake of their own in a 17-10 defeat to the Pittsburgh Steelers.Leading 10-3 with 30 seconds left in the first half and the clock running, the Ravens faced a fourth-and-2 from the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 23-yard line. With one timeout remaining for Baltimore, it made little sense to risk turning the ball over on downs and coming away with no points.Well, that’s exactly what happened.Quarterback Lamar Jackson lined up in the shotgun with wide receivers Nelson Agholor and Zay Flowers and tight end Mark Andrews in a bunch formation to his right, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. split out left and running back Justic...

Orioles fans filled Camden Yards with optimism this weekend. They left disappointed, clinging to hope.

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

Fans brimming with optimism and bubbling anticipation filed into Oriole Park by the tens of thousands this weekend.They left with anxious disappointment, clinging to shreds of hope.These Orioles — the ones who have enraptured Baltimore all year long with dazzling victories and effortless comebacks, forming one of the most surprising turnarounds in recent baseball history — suddenly find themselves with their backs against the wall.The Orioles lost, 11-8, to the Texas Rangers on Sunday, their pitching betraying them a day after their bats did, and are now staring at a 2-0 deficit in the best-of-five American League Division Series. The more than 46,000 fans who attended sold-out Camden Yards on both Saturday and Sunday, cheering so loudly that Orioles pitcher Kyle Bradish said he could feel the field shaking, are left hoping that they won’t have to wait another year, at a minimum, to witness postseason baseball again.Baltimore will need to pull off three straight...

Instant analysis from Orioles’ 11-8 loss to Texas Rangers in Game 2 of ALDS

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

Here’s what The Baltimore Sun sports staff had to say immediately after the Orioles’ 11-8 loss to the visiting Texas Rangers in Game 2 of the best-of-five American League Division Series on Sunday at Camden Yards.Nathan Ruiz: Among all starters in the postseason, Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez ranked first and second in second-half ERA. The Orioles opened their first postseason appearance in seven years with those young right-handers leading their rotation, and they lost both games. To get back to that pair, Baltimore will rely on Dean Kremer and Kyle Gibson — one of whom likely would be in the bullpen if not for John Means’ elbow injury.Jacob Calvin Meyer: What makes the 11 walks and 11 runs even harder to swallow is the fact the Orioles’ lineup did exactly what it needed to do. They got to Jordan Montgomery early, scored five runs off him and knocked him out of the game in the fifth inning. Then, Aaron Hicks delivered a th...

5 things to know as Israel declares war, bombards Gaza Strip after unprecedented Hamas attack

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Fighting continued in southern Israel early Monday after the government declared war and intensified its bombardment of the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a major surprise attack by Hamas. Special forces soldiers were brought in to try to retake four Israeli sites held by Hamas following its unprecedented weekend incursion, which officials said involved as many as 1,000 fighters. The militants blew through a fortified border fence and gunned down civilians and soldiers in Israeli communities along the Gaza frontier during a Jewish holiday. The rampage included an assault on a crowded music festival where authorities had removed about 260 bodies by Sunday.Israel struck back with airstrikes including one that flattened a 14-story tower that held Hamas offices. At least 700 people were reported killed in Israel and more than 400 in Gaza. Thousands were wounded and some 123,000 displaced people in Gaza were in shelters, the U.N. said.Here are some key takeaways from the ...

Workers at Mack Trucks reject tentative contract deal and will go on strike early Monday

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Union workers at Mack Trucks have voted down a tentative five-year contract agreement reached with the company and plan to strike at 7 a.m. Monday, the United Auto Workers union says.Union President Shawn Fain said in a letter to Mack parent company Volvo Trucks that 73% of workers voted against the deal in results counted on Sunday.The UAW represents about 4,000 Mack workers in three states. Union leaders had reached a tentative agreement on the deal on Oct. 1. The deal included a 19% pay raise over the life of the contract. Fain said in his letter to Volvo Trucks’ head of labor relations that employees working early Monday will exit the factories after performing tasks needed to prevent damage to company equipment.The workers are in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida.The Associated Press

Americans among those killed in attacks against Israel: reports

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

(AP) — Preliminary reports indicate that at least four American citizens were killed in the attacks against Israel and an additional seven were missing and unaccounted for, according to a U.S. official. The numbers were in flux and could change as a fuller accounting is compiled, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss initial reports received by the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. Most, if not all, of those reported dead or missing are dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, the official said. Hamas surprise attack stuns Israel, leaves hundreds dead in fighting, retaliation Earlier on Sunday, Israel’s minister for strategic affairs, Ron Dermer, said American citizens are also among those who were taken captive. But he gave no details about them or those possibly killed.“Unfortunately I can’t. We have a lot of dual citizens in Israel. I suspect there are several, but we’re still trying to sort through all of all this information after this horrific surprise attack...

Austin FC overhauls scouting, player personnel departments after missing MLS playoffs

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A day after they were eliminated from the Major League Soccer playoffs, Austin FC announced changes within its scouting and player personnel departments.Manuel Junco, who has been the club's chief scout since 2020, has left and Sean Rubio, the senior vice president of player personnel, has accepted a job with another MLS club. Rubio also filled in as sporting director after Claudio Reyna resigned. Austin FC eliminated from playoff contention after 4-2 loss to LAFC at home Austin FC also added five new full-time scouts who are "stationed throughout Europe and South America." Coming off a disappointing season where Austin FC failed to make the postseason after making the Western Conference finals last season, Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell reaffirmed his faith in head coach Josh Wolff."Identifying global and national talent is an essential ingredient to achieving long-term success within MLS as it is anywhere else and it is important for Austin FC to view player s...

After 2 debates, does Burgum have a path to the presidency?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

FARGO — After four months of campaigning, millions of dollars on advertising and two debate appearances, Doug Burgum’s presidential campaign presses on with little sign of breaking through.The North Dakota governor continues to lag behind virtually all of the other candidates in national polls, with an average of less than 1% support. His peak was 3% in one late September poll, but he hasn’t repeated that success in the following weeks.Candidates at the rear of the pack will often say it’s the voters who choose the presidential nominee, not polls. But single-percent support levels are not typically predictors of electoral success, and in a typical election, it’s often around this time the field starts becoming significantly less crowded.So with another four months until the official kickoff for the GOP presidential primaries, what’s next for the North Dakota governor’s presidential campaign?If you ask Burgum, it’s steaming ahead to the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire pri...

Broncos rookie WR Marvin Mims Jr., a playmaker early in season, laments two fumbles in loss to Jets

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

Marvin Mims Jr. had a rookie moment in Week 4 against Chicago, but he hit his first real adversity as a professional Sunday against the Jets.The Broncos’ dynamic rookie wide receiver played a key part in two of Denver’s three turnovers in a 31-21 loss to New York, fumbling a first-quarter punt return and mishandling a third-quarter flip from running back Samaje Perine on a trick play.After the Denver defense started the afternoon with a stop, Mims should have called fair catch on a high punt from Thomas Morstead. Instead, he got hit almost immediately and the ball popped out. The Jets only got a field goal out of the ensuing chance, but even still it set an ominous tone.“I mean, I thought I had a little bit of room and just misjudged it, basically,” Mims told The Denver Post. “Just the speed of the game and all that stuff. As soon as I got my hands on it he hit me and it just fell out.”Then later he tried to take a pitch on an end-around from Peri...

Tenants return to the street after clash with police in Boyle Heights

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:01:17 GMT

Just a week after police and protesters clashed in Boyle Heights during a rally against a proposed 9% rent increase in rent-controlled apartments in Los Angeles that injured at least one police officer, demonstrators were back on the streets again this Sunday. So far, one arrest has been made in connection with the Oct. 1 march in which the Los Angeles Police Department said several members of the group were engaging in criminal activities prompting officers to intervene.  “As Los Angeles Police Department Hollenbeck officers attempted to initiate the arrest for the criminal activity, several members of the crowd engaged in a violent altercation with officers attempting to free the individual under arrest,” LAPD said in news release last week.  However, Uniôn de Vecinos, the Eastside Local of the Los Angeles Tenant Union, disputes the department’s report of the incident.  LAPD Hollenbeck Division officers at the scene of a planned tenants rights demonstration where pr...