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Nationals reportedly sign Round Rock's Travis Sykora to $2.6M bonus

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Round Rock graduate Travis Sykora, equipped with a 100 mph fastball, is headed to professional baseball.Sykora signed a letter of intent to pitch for the Texas Longhorns, but the Washington Nationals made him an offer he couldn't refuse. The 6-foot-6 fireballer signed July 17 with the club, and according to MLB.com, his bonus was $2.6 million. It was clear the Nationals made it a priority to get him big money given how they signed other draftees. Lucas Gordon signs with White Sox for $300K, other drafted Longhorns have yet to sign Washington used the first pick of the third round to snag Sykora, the 71st pick overall, and that came with a slot value of $1.02 million. Perhaps that would have been enough to entice Sykora to begin his professional career and not play for the Longhorns, but given how little Washington spent on bonuses for players drafted later than Sykora, there was plenty of money left over to make sure he signed.The Nationals have $14.5 million avail...

City to vote Thursday on $9M contract to use Marshalling Yard as homeless shelter

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin City Council is expected to vote on a one-year contract with Family Endeavors to run homeless shelter operations at the Marshalling Yard, near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. A memo from the city in May showed the city plans to use the location as a temporary shelter for people experiencing homelessness. The contract is worth just north of $9.1 million. According to a city memo, a portion of the 70,000-square-foot building will be used to create up to 300 additional emergency shelter beds. The goal is to use the shelter for roughly a year while more permanent shelter is created, the memo said.The Marshalling Yard was built to be an extension of the Austin Convention Center where trucks could be parked and materials could be stored, according to its website. Austin to use Marshalling Yard as homeless shelter, doubling up at existing shelters Several local groups have vocalized concerns about the plan on social media including the Texas Harm ...

Auto experts share how to prevent car trouble in extreme heat

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

WACO, Texas (FOX 44) -- Central Texas is under an excessive heat warning again and many of us are having car problems on the road.AAA Central Texas representatives say the main roadside calls they're getting from customers are for dead batteries and flat tires."We're in what's called blowout season. The summertime is typically a time where we see more tires blow out," said AAA representative Daniel Armbruster.Kish Complete Car Care Center general manager David Derosier says the extreme heat causes tire treads to fall off."Outer tread strips off the tire you see on the interstate from a lot of big trucks., but passenger cars, those tires fail in the same manner," said Derosier.Derosier says your tires can show warning signs before it's too late."You'll see a lot of small cracking in the tread of the tire. That will give you a sign that this tire is going to fail soon," said Derosier.Dead batteries are another problem."When it gets hot outside, the heat has an impact on the batteries....

City of Georgetown to expand outage texting service to water customers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

GEORGETOWN, Texas -- Starting Aug. 1, Georgetown utility customers will receive a text message letting them know they are enrolled in the city's real-time water outage texting service, according to a news release from the city. MORE: Central Texas cities issue water restrictions Once the texting service launches, enrolled customers will receive real-time updates via text message to and from (512) 930-3640, according to the city. However, water outages must still be reported by phone by calling (512) 930-3640 and press 1, the release said. The city said its phone system will recognize the number if it's tied to the utility account.According to the city, customers should still track water and electric outages on the city’s online outage maps and only report outages not already reflected on the maps. Furthermore, the city will text customers about water outages, and customers can send text messages to the system to learn about status updates, the release said.“We are proud to expand ...

Two men sentenced in violent assault of transgender woman at Minneapolis light rail station

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

Two men who admitted to beating a transgender woman last year at a Minneapolis light rail stop, leaving her critically injured, avoided prison time under sentences handed down this week.Keaten James Morris, 19, of Minneapolis and Kevin Dewayne York, 23, of St. Paul both pleaded guilty in May to felony third-degree assault in the Feb. 27 attack at the Blue Line’s Lake Street Station.Kevin Dewayne York (Courtesy of the Hennepin County sheriff’s office)Aggravated first-degree robbery charges against the men were dismissed as part of plea agreements they reached with Hennepin County prosecutors.Morris was sentenced to a year in the county workhouse on Monday. Judge Peter Cahill then ordered that Morris be furloughed to chemical health treatment, which was recommended in an in-custody substance-use disorder assessment, court records show.Morris’ sentence includes a stay of imposition, meaning the felony conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor if he successfully completes three ...

Children’s Hospital sets national record for heart transplants

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS – St. Louis Children’s Hospital is celebrating a significant milestone. This past May, the hospital’s Washington University Heart Center performed its 600th heart transplant, a nationwide record in pediatric care.“I think as medicine has evolved over time, we’ve become better equipped at being able to do these procedures and provide that kind of care,” said Dr. Marion Ybarra, pediatric transplant cardiologist. Missouri man makes speed bumps to slow traffic Children’s Hospital performed its first heart transplant in 1984. Nearly four decades since, and it’s one of the few heart centers in the entire world to take-on high-risk cases.Courtesy: BJC HealthCareEight-year-old Kyndric Flye has been the recipient of not one but two transplants at Children’s Hospital.“He had one at 4 and the most recent one was (February 2022), at the age of 7,” MaKiyah Mosley-Flye, Kyndric’s mother, said.In 2016, Kyndric was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, a rare disease that causes inflammation...

MoDOT looking for solutions after fatal car crash ends inside Lemay home

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

LEMAY, Mo. – A south St. Louis County family is without a home but grateful to be alive after a car went airborne and crashed into their house along Kingston Drive.Piles of debris sit outside the home. Large sheets of plywood now cover the massive hole of the front-facing wall at 448 Kingston.A structural engineer will be out next week to assess whether the house will be torn down. A crewman at the residence on Wednesday says the damage they’ve seen both inside and out leads him to believe it’s unlikely the home will stay standing.Meanwhile, investigators with the St. Louis County Police Department say this was not an apparent speeding incident, but it could’ve been a medical emergency that caused the fatal crash. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News SIGN UP NOW ...

What Missourians need to know about new OTC contraceptive

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- In the coming months, the country's first over-the-counter daily birth control pill will be on store shelves. Opill is the first contraceptive approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that will no longer require a visit to your doctor. In a state where all but one county is in a health professional shortage, Missouri Family Health Council said this is a step in the right direction in removing some of the barriers Missourians face. "When it comes to the safety net, we're already at capacity and already have many holes," Executive Director for the Missouri Family Health Council Michelle Trupiano said. "We don't have enough resources to meet the demand across the state."With the approval of the first-ever over the counter birth control pill, Trupiano said this will ensure more options for women, especially in healthcare deserts. "The fact is that not everyone can get into a provider or there are not enough providers especially in rura...

CU chancellor Phil DiStefano: Buffs’ goal is to remain member of Pac-12, expects media rights update Thursday

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

Coach Prime or no Coach Prime, the CU Buffs’ preference is to remain a member of the Pac-12, chancellor Phil DiStefano told The Post on Wednesday.But the university’s commitment to the conference it joined a dozen years ago could depend, in part, on a long-awaited Pac-12 broadcast rights deal.DiStefano said clarity on the new media partnerships is expected to be presented to league chancellors and presidents Thursday by conference commissioner George Kliavkoff.“I’m eagerly awaiting to hear what the commissioner has to say (Thursday),” DiStefano told The Post in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon. “But at this point, the 10 (Pac-12) schools are staying together and awaiting a message from the commissioner.”CU is one of four inland Pac-12 members — dubbed the “Four Corner Schools” — that was reportedly targeted by new Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark as potential additions as that Texas-based league is seeking to expand its footprint from coast to coast.The Big 12 reached a ...

Colorado launches free college program for future teachers, firefighters, nurses

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:26:57 GMT

Coloradans interested in careers in nursing, firefighting or construction can now receive a free community college education as part of a $38.6 million state program launched this week that officials hope will shepherd thousands of workers into high-demand industries.The Colorado legislature approved the program — now dubbed Career Advance Colorado — in late April, building upon a similar, health care-specific training effort passed in 2022. This latest iteration, launched by Gov. Jared Polis on Tuesday, covers tuition, books, and other fees at 19 community and technical colleges statewide for students pursuing credentials in education, construction, law enforcement, nursing, forestry and firefighting.The programs generally take six months to two years to complete, depending on the field. The goal is to incentivize more Coloradans to pursue careers in industries that are either growing (like construction or early-childhood education) or bouncing back from the pandemic (l...