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Rockies lose 4-1 to Astros as first homestand of second half ends with dud

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

A promising homestand ended with a dud Wednesday at Coors Field, when the Rockies forgot their bats at home.Houston two-hit the home team to beat the Rockies, 4-1, splitting the two-game series and erasing the feel-good vibes from Colorado’s series win over the Yankees to start the second half of the season.“We got out-pitched and out-hit by the world champions, but we’ll keep going,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “We play a good team in Miami this weekend, and they’ll be ready to bounce back after a tough series (sweep) by the Cardinals. But we’ve got to hit better, no question.”Austin Gomber was solid for five innings before Chas McCormick broke open the low-scoring affair with a two-run homer, and Gomber got zero run support a day after the Rockies bullpen tossed a club-record eight scoreless innings in a 4-3 win.Gomber and Astros right-hander Brandon Bielak sailed through the first couple of innings, but the Rockies southpaw ran ...

Homeowner, residents of illegal RV encampment in Sylmar ordered to vacate

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

A judge has ordered an illegal RV encampment in Sylmar to be vacated.The homeowner, who illegally houses more than 20 RVs in her backyard, as well as those who live in the vehicles, were ordered to leave the property on the 14000 block of Hubbard Street by Sunday.While some residents praised the homeowner for giving them a place to live at a low cost, neighbors have raised health and safety concerns.The residence is zoned as a single-family home not meant to accommodate so many people.On Tuesday, multiple local agencies were at the property for a court-ordered inspection. As a result, officials determined the power needed to be shut off at the property because of hazards.An aerial view of an illegal RV encampment in Sylmar is shown in a Sky5 photo. (KTLA) Some of the residents said it was a difficult night without air conditioning.In addition to being ordered to vacate the encampment, the homeowner also pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to two misdemeanor charges: unlawfully erecting ...

Homes evacuated as brush fire breaks out in Jurupa Valley

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

Crews are battling a wildfire that erupted in Jurupa Valley on Wednesday afternoon.The Oak Fire was first reported in the 7100 block of Sierra Avenue around 2:02 p.m. according to the CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department.The flames quickly charred 35 acres of light, "flashy" fuels. Around 4:30 p.m., crews were able to stop all forward spread of the blaze.An evacuation order was issued for the area near Alder Avenue and south of Jurupa Avenue on the San Bernardino County side.The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupted in Jurupa Valley in Riverside County on July 19, 2023. (KTLA)The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupted in Jurupa Valley in Riverside County on July 19, 2023. (KTLA)The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupted in Jurupa Valley in Riverside County on July 19, 2023. (KTLA)The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupted in Jurupa Valley in Riverside County on July 19, 2023. (KTLA)The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupted in Jurupa Valley in Riverside County on July 19, 2023. (KTLA)The fast-moving “Oak Fire” erupt...

Police investigating pair of 'smash burglaries' in La Verne

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

Police in La Verne are searching for at least two suspects who are believed to be responsible for two early morning break-ins last week.The break-ins happened at businesses on the 1500 block of Foothill Boulevard on July 15, according to the La Verne Police Department.Security footage shared by the Police Department showed two men smash the window of a Baskin Robbins and then push the broken glass in to gain access to the business. A second business, identified by police as Don Baja Grill, was also broken into under similar circumstances.Police did not specify what, if anything, was taken from either business.Both break-ins are believed to have been committed by the same suspects, police said. The suspected burglars fled the scene prior to police arrival, and detectives are "working diligently" to identify them, police said.Anyone with information about this crime or any other suspicious activity is urged to contact the La Verne Police Department at 909-596-1913.No injuries were rep...

These are California's most competitive rental markets

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

It won’t be easy for Californians to secure an apartment in certain cities across the Golden State.A new study from Rent Café identified the most competitive rent spots across the United States. In California, Orange County, San Diego, the Central Coast and Silicon Valley were listed among the most competitive rental markets in the country.Researchers at Rent Café analyzed Yardi Systems apartment data from 137 rental markets to see which areas were the most sought-after. These are the wealthiest and poorest counties in California Researchers only looked at large-scale multi-family properties with at least 50 units. Affordable housing units weren’t considered.Researchers calculated a score for each area to determine which rental markets were the most competitive. The score was based on five metrics, including apartment occupancy rate, average total days vacant, and renewal lease rate.These are the top 20 most competitive large markets for the start of 2023Mami- Dade County in Flori...

Oakland A’s trade Shintaro Fujinami to Baltimore Orioles

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

The A’s have already traded one of their marquee free agent signings from this past offseason.Oakland announced that it has Japanese pitcher Shintaro Fujinami has been dealt to the Orioles for minor league left-handed pitcher Easton Lucas.Fujinami, 29, signed with the A’s on a one-year, $3.25 million deal last offseason to much fanfare locally after leaving the Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). The A’s hoped the right-hander could be a veteran presence in their bullpen, but he lost each of his first four starts, allowing 24 runs in 15 innings.He was moved to the bullpen and struggled initially, but save for three appearances as an opener, he’s found a groove since June began. During that stretch, Fujinami has thrown 16 2/3 innings coming into games as a reliever and only allowed 10 hits, six walks and three runs while striking out 18. He’s only allowed runs in two of those relief appearances, too.Related ArticlesOakland Athletics | A’s us...

How Oppenheimer’s double-martini and cigarette diet challenged Cillian Murphy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

Maybe it was Cillian Murphy’s way of truly inhabiting the character of J. Robert Oppenheimer that he found himself developing the scientist’s lack of appetite for food, with the actor losing enough weight to embody Oppenheimer’s famously slender frame, which, at times, was viewed as unhealthy.In Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” the Manhattan Project director appears to survive on Chesterfield cigarettes and double martinis, as Murphy said in an interview with The Guardian. In a couple scenes in the movie, the UC Berkeley physicist is seen grudgingly accepting a slice of an orange from his good friend, the future Nobel Prize-winning physicist Isidor Rabi.As explained in “American Prometheus,” the biography on which the film is based, the 5-foot-10 Oppenheimer wasn’t a big eater — sometimes to his detriment. After he was recruited to lead efforts to build the atomic bomb, he took the Army physical, with the idea that all sc...

Letters: Covered cars | Steel facility | Affordability crisis | Recalibrate lines | Delta tunnel

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.Don’t rely on coveredcar promise in coal fightRe: “City goes to trial with developer in ‘coal war’” (Page B1, July 8).Thank you for your timely coverage of the Oakland “coal war.” However, despite his quoted comment about preventing coal dust, Phil Tagami has never committed to using covered cars. For good reason — covers for coal cars are not commercially available. If they were, they would be prohibitively expensive and might lead to the spontaneous combustion of the coal.The Utah coal company behind Mr. Tagami still ships coal in uncovered cars to Richmond, where a recent scientific study documented that those coal trains increase toxic fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) more than other freight trains do.PM 2.5 disproportionately affects infants, children, the elderly, the poor and people of color. It causes cancer, heart and lung disease, dementia, adverse birth outcomes a...

Here’s something you don’t often hear from the IRS: Don’t pay your taxes (yet)

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

By Jon Healey, Los Angeles TimesA ball of confusion — that’s what the IRS is today, at least for many Californians.The Internal Revenue Service announced in early January that taxpayers in disaster-stricken counties would have more time to file their returns and pay their taxes. Since then, it has amended its stance multiple times, adding more counties and extending the payment deadlines — and then seemingly moving up the deadlines and canceling the relief.The latest hiccup: Taxpayers who filed their returns early but delayed paying what they owed are getting “notice and demand” letters from the IRS, telling them they face penalties and interest charges if they don’t pay within 21 days. Only if they read all the way through the four-page letter will they find a paragraph at the end telling them to disregard everything that came before it if they live in an area covered by a disaster declaration — which includes 57 of the state’s 58 counties.Say what?Acc...

Surfboard-hopping sea otter continues to give authorities the slip

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:33 GMT

Wildlife authorities in a small motorboat with an antenna, surfboard and net spent a foggy morning Wednesday drifting by the seaweed beds off the cliffs near the Santa Cruz lighthouse and its legendary Steamer Lane surf break, hoping for a break of their own.For weeks now, they’ve tried to nab Otter 841, an international sensation since images of her commandeering surfboards — and sometimes chewing on them — went viral on social media but raised fears the adorable aquatic fur-ball could pose a risk to the public. After Wednesday’s fruitless effort, the crew packed it in and motored away empty handed.“It’s pretty funny, ” surfer Dylan Reisig, 25, of Santa Cruz, said of the ongoing cat-and-mouse game. With signs posted along the stairways leading down to the ocean warning of the “aggressive sea otter,” Reisig admitted, “I was honestly worried about it a little bit.”But like many other locals and tourists who’ve fl...