EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Chargers selected defensive end Akheem Mesidor of Miami with the 22nd pick in the first round of the NFL draft on April 23. Mesidor, a 6-foot-3, 259-pounder from Ottawa, Ontario, became the first Canadian taken in the first round of the draft. He was a first team […]
Associated Press
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More World Cup seats will go on sale after FIFA adds costlier ticket categories
FIFA is putting more World Cup tickets on sale after angering some fans by adding new, more expensive categories. Soccer’s governing body announced on April 21 it will make more tickets available at 11 a.m. EDT Wednesday for all 104 games in Categories 1, 2 and 3 plus the new “front category” pricing it added […]
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Mind if we drop in? Hot air balloon with 13 aboard makes emergency landing in California backyard
A balloon landed in a Southern California backyard — a balloon with 13 people. The enormous hot air balloon, with a pilot and passengers in the basket, descended perfectly Saturday on a small plot of grass at a home in Temecula. Hunter Perrin said he had no idea that he had visitors until a neighbor […]
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Fernando Mendoza leads group of once-overlooked college recruits in the NFL draft
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Jack Endries saw everything the recruiting “experts” missed in Fernando Mendoza almost immediately in 2022. The former California tight end watched his roommate work in the film room and on the field to become a dependable leader, a model quarterback and an unmitigated winner. No, even Endries couldn’t predict Mendoza would become […]
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San Diego Padres are nearing a whopping sale, AP source says
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The family of late San Diego Padres owner Peter Seidler is nearing a sale of the team, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on April 17. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Padres aren’t commenting publicly on the process. The Wall Street Journal […]
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MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson Day as every player wears No. 42 on anniversary of his historic debut
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Major League Baseball honored Jackie Robinson on April 15 with every player, coach and umpire wearing his No. 42 to mark the 79th anniversary of the infielder breaking the sport’s color barrier. Robinson debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. He went on to win Rookie of the Year […]
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The Dodgers shattered MLB’s spending record at $515 million in 2025, 7 times the lowest payroll
NEW YORK (AP) — The Dodgers shattered Major League Baseball’s spending record with a combined $515 million in payroll and luxury tax last year en route to their second straight World Series title, according to final figures compiled by the commissioner’s office, and Los Angeles is projected for the highest total again in 2026. Los […]
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FIFA president Infantino says Iran will participate in World Cup ‘for sure’ despite war
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on April 15 that Iran will participate in the World Cup “for sure” despite its war with the United States. Speaking at CNBC’s Invest in America Forum, Infantino said it is important that Iran participates in the World Cup even though its participation has been in doubt since the U.S. […]
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California cities scramble to comply with or fight major state housing law
For California’s local governments hoping to have some say over where and how large apartment buildings get packed near major transit stops, it’s crunch time. Last fall, state lawmakers made it legal for developers to build mid-rises — some as tall as nine stories — in major metro neighborhoods near train, subway and certain dedicated […]
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Artemis II’s record-breaking journey around the moon ends with dramatic splashdown
HOUSTON (AP) — Artemis II’s astronauts closed out humanity’s first lunar voyage in more than half a century with a Pacific splashdown on April 10, blazing new records near the moon with grace and joy. It was a dramatic grand finale to a mission that revealed not only swaths of the lunar far side never […]
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All-Star Gabby Williams joins the Valkyries on a multiyear deal and Alyssa Thomas returns to Phoenix
All-Star Gabby Williams signed a multiyear deal with Golden State, the Valkyries announced Sunday, while Alyssa Thomas is headed back to Phoenix. Williams averaged a career-high 11.6 points and 4.2 assists and led the WNBA in steals with 2.3 per game for Seattle last season. That effort earned the 29-year-old an All-Star appearance for the […]
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Padres’ Nick Pivetta leaves in 4th inning because of elbow stiffness
SAN DIEGO (AP) — San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta was forced from Sunday’s 7-2 win over Colorado in the fourth inning by stiffness in his pitching elbow. Pivetta retired his first nine batters and threw a 92.2 mph four-seam fastball — 1.9 mph below his season average — on his 46th pitch. Edouard Julien […]
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Dodgers great Davey Lopes, an infield fixture and record-setting base stealer, dies at 80
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Davey Lopes, a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ record-setting infield of the 1970s and ’80s and one of baseball’s premier base stealers, died on April 8. He was 80. The Dodgers were informed of his death by his former wife, Lin Lopes. She told the team Lopes had Alzheimer’s and […]
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Nneka Ogwumike to return to the Los Angeles Sparks, where she spent first 12 years of her career
Nneka Ogwumike is headed back to the Los Angeles Sparks. Ogwumike spent the first 12 seasons of her career in Los Angeles after she was drafted No. 1 by the team in 2012. She won the MVP in 2016 and helped the franchise win the WNBA championship that season. The veteran forward posted on social […]
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Fewer players from outside the Power Four are being selected in the NFL draft
Just like Cinderella teams have become less of a factor at the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, fewer longshots are reaching the NFL draft from small schools. Blame NIL riches and the crowded transfer portal, a combination that has led to a concentration of talent in the power conferences. The SEC, Big Ten, ACC and Big […]
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San Marcos, California Is Crushing Its Housing Goals
In 2004, a developer had an idea to create a downtown where one had never existed before — in the suburbs of San Marcos. The area, adjacent to California State University San Marcos, now spans 200 acres of urban density with a walkable village charm. Thousands of homes, dozens of acres of parks and open […]