The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has unanimously approved rules requiring all cell phones to be compatible with hearing aids, a decision that has the potential to give 48 million people access to devices.

After a transition period, the rules will allow people with hearing loss access to the same cell phone models available to all consumers, the FCC said.

The FCC said the rules were made possible through the collaborative efforts of members of the Hearing Aid Compatibility Task Force, an independent organization of wireless carriers, cell phone manufacturers, research institutions and hearing loss advocates.

Jessica Rosenworcel, chairwoman of the FCC, said hearing problems are the most common service-related problem among U.S. military veterans.

“You deserve to have access to a comprehensive range of wireless mobile phones on the market. You deserve to call, connect and live life wirelessly like so many of us do.”

The FCC also introduced a Bluetooth pairing requirement that ensures improved universal connectivity between cell phones and hearing aids. This will be achieved “by encouraging mobile phone manufacturers to move away from proprietary Bluetooth pairing standards”.

Consumers will be informed by labeling at the point of sale whether the handset is certified as hearing aid compatible and whether it meets the requirements for hearing implants or Bluetooth pairing.

The labels also contain information on how to increase the volume of cell phones without having to meet control requirements.

It’s been three years since Bob Woodward’s last book chronicling the power games of the Washington elite—hardly a long interval, especially for an 81-year-old author. But that last book, Peril, published in 2021, was his third in just about as many years (following Rage and Fear).

Why the slowdown? Maybe he’s been waiting for the plot lines to play out. His last three tomes formed a trilogy about Donald Trump’s stormy, improbable presidency. Now we have War, about Joe Biden’s term so far (Woodward cuts off the story in July, with his decision not to run for reelection). It sports all the familiar Woodwardian trademarks—the anonymously sourced accounts of Top Secret meetings, the profanity-laced dialogue (in quotation marks, as if heard by a fly on the wall), the portrait of high politics as a clash of colorful characters: a fun, often compelling first (at times, second) draft of history.

Yet, compared with the previous volumes, this latest is in some ways more interesting (if a bit less sensational), and it offers a more (though far from completely) coherent narrative.

Woodward’s style of storytelling is more episodic than structural. Chapters tend to run for just a few pages. His mantra tends to be “And then … and then … and then … ” as opposed to “And so … and so … and so … ” Still, the stories here hang together, more than they usually do, because of their underlying thread—as the title suggests, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and how Biden and his team dealt with them.

For the most part, Woodward is impressed, concluding that they engaged in “genuine good faith efforts” to “wield the levers of executive power responsibly and in the national interest,” adding, “I believe President Biden and this team will be largely studied in history as an example of steady and purposeful leadership.”

This is an uncharacteristically bold assertion for any author, much less Woodward, who, throughout his 50-year career, has been the less judgmental half of the Woodward and Bernstein team that broke the Watergate scandal and brought down Richard Nixon. In a Playboy interview back in 1989, he admitted that analysis wasn’t his strong point; it still isn’t. But heading into his ninth decade, with nearly two dozen books under his belt, it seems he feels entitled—properly so—to render some verdicts from journalism’s high bench.

He dangled his new assertiveness in 2020, on the eve of that year’s election, when he wrote, as the last line in Rage, “Donald Trump is the wrong man for the job.” The next year, after Trump’s defeat, he ended Peril by musing, “What is your country? What has it become under Trump?”

And even in War, where Trump plays a cameo role as he mulls making another run for the White House, Woodward declares, just before touting Biden’s legacy, “Donald Trump is not only the wrong man for the presidency, he is unfit to lead the country.”

Earlier in the book, Woodward interrupts the narrative to recall a reception he attended in March 2023, where Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, one of the heroes (and, clearly, a main deep-background source) in Peril, approaches him in a state of panic about the prospect of a Trump revival. “No one has ever been as dangerous to this country,” the general exclaimed. “I glimpsed it when I talked to you … for Peril, but I now know it, I now know it. … We have got to stop him! You have got to stop him! … He’s a total fascist. He is the most dangerous person to this country! … A fascist to the core!”

Woodward concludes the digression: “I will never forget the intensity of his worry.” And so War, published on the eve of another election, is meant not only as a look back on the Biden years but a warning about the dangers ahead if Trump is allowed another four years in the White House.

Every Woodward book produces a few big headlines, and the biggest to emerge from War is, in fact, about Trump. As president, it seems, he secretly supplied Russian President Vladimir Putin with COVID test kits, at a time when they were in short supply on the home front. More eyebrow-raising, even after he lost the election, Trump continued to talk with Putin, as many as seven times.

This truly is worthy of headlines. Woodward doesn’t know what the two talked about because Trump told the aide who set up the call—presumably the source of this tale—to leave the room once Putin came on the line. The full scope of Trump’s bromance with the Russian dictator remains mysterious; the fact that they continue to talk heightens suspicions. More than that, these conversations are illegal. Trump’s running mate J.D. Vance dismissed the story, saying at a campaign rally, “Even if it’s true, is there something wrong with speaking to world leaders? No. Is there anything wrong with engaging in diplomacy?”  He seems to be ignorant of the Logan Act, which forbids U.S. citizens, much less political rivals, from unauthorized contact with foreign leaders.

This titillating bit aside, the book’s most interesting sections deal with what it purports to be about—the wars. Woodward uncovers intriguing new facts about the conflicts or, at times, adds color and dimension to stories that others have reported in mere bits and pieces.

For instance, he writes that, in October 2021, four months before Putin invaded Ukraine, the United States gathered “exquisite” intelligence, from a “human source inside the Kremlin,” that the Russians were preparing a multifront assault and that Putin intended to follow through. The intelligence was a major coup for Biden’s intel officials—more detailed and high-level than they had ever seen before.

However, there was a dark side to this treasure trove—intel of  “conversations inside the Kremlin,” that Putin thought he could get away with the invasion in part because of Biden’s “chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.” This, of course, is an oft-repeated charge leveled at Biden by Republican critics. It turns out, according to Woodward’s sources (who seem to be high-level Biden officials) that this critique has basis.

Putin was all the more overconfident because of the lack of any serious resistance he received after annexing Crimea and sending special forces into the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine back in 2014. “The West’s response was slow, weak, and divided,” Woodward writes. “The intelligence indicated Putin was expecting much the same this time.” In one of the book’s scenes, which takes place soon after the invasion, Biden complains to a “close friend” about the Obama administration’s failure to act more forcefully. “They fucked up in 2014,” Biden yells. “That’s why we are here. … Barack never took Putin seriously. We did nothing. We gave Putin a license to continue.” (Woodward doesn’t say so, but as Obama’s vice president, Biden—along with much of the NSC staff—argued strenuously but unsuccessfully for sending Ukraine anti-tank missiles, thinking that, in order to be deterred from invading more deeply, Putin needed to see some body bags coming back to Russian bases.)

Biden did respond to the invasion (as he told his friend, “I’m revoking [Putin’s] fucking license”) while striking a difficult balance: refusing to insert U.S. troops (which would set off World War III) but providing the Ukrainian army with intelligence and arms, while rallying the Western world to do the same, even encouraging Finland and Sweden—which had long observed neutrality in East-West affairs—to join NATO. (This is new, too: that enlarging NATO to include those two neighbors of Russia was Biden’s idea.)

Woodward also reveals that concerns over the possibility of an escalation to nuclear war were not merely hypothetical. In late September 2022, he writes, “new highly sensitive credible” intelligence—again, based on “conversations inside the Kremlin”—showed that Putin “was seriously considering using a tactical nuclear weapon” to avoid a major Russian defeat on the battlefield.

Biden stepped into gear. He spoke with Putin directly, warning him of “catastrophic consequences” if this happened. He also encouraged Chinese President Xi Jinping to put pressure on Putin, which he did. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin did the same with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu.

Another intriguing bit: Biden had said “privately” that, if Putin used tactical nukes on the Ukrainian battlefield, the U.S. “would not respond with nuclear weapons.” Instead, the “catastrophic consequences” would include isolating Russia throughout the world and, more promptly, using America’s vast conventional military power to wipe out Russia’s troops and weapons inside and near Ukraine.

Intelligence showed Putin soon backing away from the nuclear option, though Woodward notes that one reason may have been the fact that, over the next few months, the battlefield stabilized—Russia no longer faced the threat of a dreadful defeat. So who knows what might happen if the balance tipped Kyiv’s way again.

The Middle East takes up the bulk of the book, including its most dramatic scenes and the closest that Woodward comes to trenchant (dare I haul out the A–word?) analysis. The story he outlines—Hamas’ murderous attack of Oct. 7, Israel’s excessive counterblows, the talks (at first productive, then futile) over a cease-fire and a hostage-for-prisoner exchange, the widening of the war to include Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran—will be familiar to any follower of the news. But Woodward fleshes out the conflict (military and political) and adds details.

Biden’s longtime frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is well known. Here it’s dramatized. “What the fuck, Bibi?” Biden says in opening a phone conversation after Israel bombs a target in Beirut. “He’s a bad fucking guy. … He’s a fucking liar,” Biden tells a friend after Netanyahu once again ignores his pleas to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza. One Saturday afternoon, he calls a friend to unload his anger: “I have spent almost five hours going back and forth, back and forth on the phone, with two of the biggest fucking assholes in the world—Bibi Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas [the head of the Palestinian Authority]. The biggest fucking assholes in the world!”

Still, Woodward goes beyond these great anecdotes, which one can imagine him underlining three times after transcribing them in his notebook. He also does something he has often neglected to do in previous books: He supplies context. For all his weariness, Biden has refused to stop supplying Israel with weapons because he knows that, if he made that move, U.S. support of Israel’s basic defense—its right to exist—would seem wobbly and that Iran would take the cutoff as a signal to escalate.

At the same time, Woodward describes the dilemmas faced by the leaders of Israel’s Sunni Arab neighbors. Biden sends Vice President Kamala Harris on a tour to talk with those leaders, and she concludes in a report that all of them detest Hamas and would love to improve relations with Israel—which they see as a powerful ally in their main rivalry with Iran and its Shiite proxies—but they can’t say so without alienating their own people, who take pro-Palestinian rhetoric more seriously than the leaders do; nor can they deepen relations with Israel until there is peace in Gaza and at least a pretense of resuming talks toward a Palestinian state.

Similarly, Brett McGurk, Biden’s chief emissary to the Middle East, tells Woodward that, several times during the cease-fire talks, Hamas’ political leaders, who live in Qatar or Egypt, agreed to a deal—but they had to get approval from Hamas’ real leader, Yahya Sinwar, who has remained hiding in the Gazan tunnels and who rejected every overture.

Woodward probably hoped to finish the book with the celebratory fireworks of a peace deal, especially if some of his sources—particularly Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan—were telling him what they were telling the rest of us over the last several months: that they were very close to a deal.

But it was not to be, and Woodward reports that Biden knew it. Once, earlier this year, after Blinken returned from Israel, enthusiastic that Netanyahu seemed on the verge of accepting a compromise, Biden waved the idea away. “Oh, come on,” he tells his longtime aide, “there’s no way he can do what’s necessary now.” As Woodward puts it, “Biden’s bullshit detector was blinking red.”

And so, Woodward leaves things till the next volume, where either Donald Trump resumes his rampage against the country and the world, or Harris takes the reins. Woodward probably had to rewrite his final chapters after Harris took over as the Democratic candidate. He does note that Biden included Harris in “almost all” of his calls with Netanyahu, and sent her on far-from-trivial diplomatic missions not just to the Sunni Arab leaders but also to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron.

But one message of this book is that the world, especially the Middle East, is a messy place, and no countries—not even former superpowers—have a lot of leverage over its flailings. Biden and his people are talented and well-meaning, but they couldn’t close the deal. Who knows what happens next.

KDKA-TV evening forecast (October 17th)

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Police are searching for a man accused of shooting at Pittsburgh police officers in Penn Hills.

In a post on Facebook Thursday, Allegheny County police said 40-year-old Darrell Barham of Wilkinsburg faces a number of charges in connection with the incident, including aggravated assault and refusing to possess a firearm.

County police said the two Pittsburgh police detectives investigated Barham at a residence on Newfield Drive in Penn Hills around 5:30 a.m. Thursday.

Officials said investigators obtained a court order to monitor Bahman’s vehicle as he left the home and investigators noticed him leaving the area. Police said Burham followed them in a vehicle and investigators “heard multiple gunshots and observed muzzle flashes” from Barham’s vehicle on Hulton Road near Iowa Street.

Barham is on federal probation and is considered “potentially armed and dangerous,” county police said.

Police said if you see him, do not approach him and call 9-1-1. Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call the county police tip line at 1-833-ALL-TIPS.

Michael Guise

Michael Guise is a web producer for CBS Pittsburgh and has worked for KDKA-TV since 2019.

The main villain of the Penacony Trailblazing mission has captured the hearts of Honkai Star Rail players, while the community has been waiting for ages to see the man who almost sent them into an eternal dream of becoming playable in the game. Hoyoverse has finally released the Sunday Drip Marketing, although it would have been poetic to publish it on a Sundayconfirms it for Honkai Star Rail 2.7, as previously leaked. Here we’ve rounded up all the details and leaks available on Sunday and put them together for all future Sunday mains. So read this post to know more about Sunday release date, leaked gear, drip marketing and much more in Honkai Star Rail.

HSR Sunday: Drip Marketing, Rarity, Path and Item Type

Sunday has been confirmed with his latest drip marketing 5-star rarity character of the Harmony Path and Imaginary Element type. After the Harmony Trailblazer, Sunday is the first 5-star Imaginary Harmony unit to be added to the game. As a Harmony unit, we can assume that he is a supporting character, although there is currently very little information about his equipment.

Honkai Star Rail players already know Sunday from the groundbreaking mission of Penacony. He was one of the heads of the Oak family and the organizer of the Charmony Festival. He orchestrated the revival of the Aeon of Order in Penacony, which the Nameless stopped with the help of Acheron, Black Swan, Firefly, Gallagher, and his own sister Robin.

There is always a paradise to be built. This vow is like the sun in the sky – perhaps I will melt and fall before I reach it… But I have some hardships to endure. The dream of the Order has dissipated, but there are still those who do not give up on their original intention – Sunday’s Drip Marketing

Sunday’s future is still up in the air as he was last seen trapped in prison when Jade from the IPC visited him and proposed a deal.

Honkai Star Rail JP leaks Sunday drip marketing

You are probably wondering why Hoyoverse decided to release Drip Marketing earlier on Sunday when the version of Drip Marketing is usually released a few days before the release of the previous version. Since version 2.6 was released on October 22nd, version 2.7 Drip Marketing should be released on October 14th or 15th. However, Honkai Star Rail JP’s YouTube channel mistakenly posted the Sunday drip marketing too early this morning and deleted it later. Players had already started sharing Sunday’s drip marketing, forcing Hoyoverse to release it early.

HSR release date on Sunday

Sunday has been confirmed to be playable in the Honkai Star Rail 2.7 version, what will happen Release around December 1, 2024if we consider Honkai Star Rail’s standard 42-day release cycle. If the drip marketing order is also taken into account, Sunday will likely appear in the first phase of the Honkai Star Rail 2.7 release, although this is more of a calculated estimate. Recent leaks have also mentioned that Tingyun’s new 5-star form will be included along with Sunday in the upcoming Honkai Star Rail 2.7 release, so it will likely be a busy release for HSR players.

Honkai Star Rail Sunday leaked jersey

Very little is currently known about Sunday’s equipment as very few leaks about him have surfaced online. However, I compiled what little I could find from the big-name leakers and tried to work with them to put together an early kit for Sunday. Sources are provided so you can visit and verify the leak source directly. Also keep in mind that this is an early leaked kit and will likely change a lot over time leading up to the official release on Sunday. But we will continue to update his leak in this post as new information and leaks keep coming over time.

A recent leak about Team Mew posted on Reddit and marked as questionable. reveals that Sunday can advance the actions of characters and summons, And can store excess energy from allies as additional energy. Another leak from Seele Leaks gives a more detailed look at his kit:

• Capability: Action advances an ally, and Sunday advances his action as well when the chosen ally acts.
• Ultimate: Charges an ally, converting excess energy into additional energy.
• Technology: Allows Sunday to use his skill immediately after the battle begins, and it is speculated that this works based on team lineup positions.

The most notable thing about this kit leak is the ability to store the excess energy and use it for another ally. If true, it can create some of the most broken ultimate spamming teams with characters like Jingliu, Huohuo, and the 4-star Tingyun. Additionally, all of Sunday’s support abilities can also include enhancing effects such as attack or damage buffs, as we have seen with other Harmony characters.

Honkai Star Rail Sunday leaked Eidolons

We also shared some recent Eidolon leaks from Sunday via Soul Leaks on Reddit.

• E1 and E2 on Sunday potentially increase resistance penetration and reduce enemies’ defense, while also improving energy regeneration.
• His E4 and E6 only work with characters that have a summon, with his E6 having the ability to duplicate a summon. When the Sunday action passes on an ally with a summon, the summon is immediately performed with a duplicate that disappears after the action. The order of action of the original summons remains unaffected.

So that’s everything we currently know about the Sunday release date and the leaked jersey. Let us know what you think about his leaked kit, whether you think it’s accurate or not, and what you think about it. Don’t forget to let us know what you think about Sunday’s Drip Marketing and the possibility of it appearing alongside the new Tingyun in version 2.7.

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Rolling Stone may receive an affiliate commission.

It’s time for it “Take It Easy” in Sin City. The Eagles flew to Las Vegas on September 20 to open their new residency at the Sphere, which now extends through 2025. The legendary American rock group is the latest to play concerts there, following the likes of U2, Phish, and Dead & Company. Tickets for the Eagles’ highly anticipated 20-date concert series went on sale earlier this summer, and the band recently added more dates through the spring due to popular demand.

Quick Answers: Where to Buy Eagles Sphere Tickets Online

Don Henley, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Schmit, Deacon Frey and Vince Gill will play the scheduled fall and winter dates. On the opening night of their Sphere residency, the Eagles performed “Heartache Tonight” during their set, dedicating it to the late singer-songwriter JD Souther, who died on September 18th.

“I want to thank the co-writer of this song that we lost three days ago, Mr. JD Souther,” Don Henley said during the show. “JD is someone who you may know has played a critical role with the Eagles. He wasn’t in the band, but he definitely co-wrote some of our biggest hits.”

Many VIP packages and general admission tickets for the band’s first performances at the new Sin City venue have largely sold out, although there appear to be some seats still available on Ticketmaster.

In late June, the group announced they were adding four new shows to the Las Vegas residency originally scheduled to run through December. Shortly thereafter, the group wasted no time extending their Sphere residency through 2025 with an additional four weekend shows stretching into January. Not surprisingly, the group announced four additional dates for the residency, which it is extending through March 15, 2025.

When will tickets for Eagles Sphere 2025 be available?

The Eagles will now end their Las Vegas residency on March 15, 2025. General ticket sales for the March 2025 shows begin Friday, October 25 at 10 a.m. PT, with all-in ticket stubs starting at $175. Stubs are available by queuing at Ticketmaster (before they inevitably sell out). Advance sales now begin on October 22nd.

Find other Eagles Sphere tickets available online (including seats that have already sold out), as well as sites offering promo codes and ticket discounts.

Where to buy Eagles Sphere tickets online

If you don’t have luck snagging cheap Eagles Sphere show tickets on Ticketmaster, here are other reliable ticket sites to consider.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets at Vivid Seats

Eagles fans can purchase tickets for the Sphere dates on Vivid Seats. If you have not yet purchased concert tickets on the site, the ticket seller guarantees that they only offer authentic, legitimate stubs. Eagles Sphere tickets currently start at around $275 for the closing night of the Las Vegas Residency in January 2025, which gets you a seat in the 100-level section. (This price does not include fees and taxes.) First time buyer? Get $20 off your $200 purchase with promo code RS2024.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets at TicketNetwork

Live music fans can also try to find available Eagles Sphere tickets on TicketNetwork. If you’re looking for a pair of tickets for the September 27th show, tickets start at over $378 each for 400 seats. Combined with the service fee and taxes, the ticket price increases to over $500 each. Readers can use the promo code RS150 for $150 off orders over $500, or RS300 for $300 off $1,000 ticket orders.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets on StubHub

StubHub is another reliable place to look for sold-out Eagles tickets in Las Vegas this fall and winter. As of this writing, fans can find Eagles tickets for approximately $375 each (fees and taxes not included) in the 110 level area for the September 27th residency date. But we also spotted Section 1 tickets near the front of the stage, which cost around $299 each.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets on SeatGeek

Secondary ticket seller SeatGeek currently has Eagles Sphere tickets available on its website starting at $266 for the Sept. 27 concert in Vegas (excluding fees). Would you like a small discount on your Sphere concert tickets? Rolling Stone Readers can use the promo code ROLLINGSTONE10 Receive $10 off eligible ticket purchases valued at $250.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets at Gametime

Eagles fans can also purchase available Sphere date stubs on the resale site Gametime. Tickets for all upcoming dates in 2024 and 2025 are listed on the website. Prices start at $261 (fees not included) for the September 27 concert in Las Vegas.

Buy Eagles Sphere tickets on Viagogo

Another place we found Eagles tickets for the Las Vegas Residency at the Sphere is Viagogo. Ticket prices vary depending on which date you want to attend. However, the website lists two tickets in the venue’s 404 section for about $257 each for September 27th. According to Viagogo, the tickets also guarantee a clear view of the stage, so you don’t have to worry about missing any of the show.

“The Eagles have enjoyed a wondrous 52-year odyssey, performing for people around the world. “We keep the music alive despite tragic losses, upheavals and setbacks of every kind,” the band previously shared in a statement in 2023 for their previous “Long Goodbye” farewell tour.

“Recognition and thanks go to our long-standing management team, our dedicated road crew and our exceptional replacement musicians for their competent and steadfast support over all these years. We know how lucky we are and we are truly grateful. Our long journey has taken much longer than any of us ever dreamed. But there is a time for everything and it is time for us to close the circle.”

When is the Eagles’ Las Vegas Sphere residency? Dates 2024-2025

Here’s the full schedule for the band’s upcoming Vegas residency at the Sphere in 2024, including the newly added December dates.

Friday, September 20, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, September 21, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, September 27, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, September 28, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, October 11, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, October 12, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, October 18, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, October 19, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, November 1, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, November 2, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, November 8, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, November 9, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, December 6, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, December 7, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, December 13, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, December 14, 2024 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, January 17, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, January 18, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday, January 24, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday, January 25, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday March 7, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday March 8, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Friday March 14, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere
Saturday March 15, 2025 (NEW DATE) – Las Vegas, NV @ The Sphere

Eagles Sphere Residency setlist

Here’s an excerpt from the opening night of the Eagles’ Sphere residency setlist.

“Hotel California”
“One of those nights”
“Lyin’ Eyes”
“Go to the limit”
“Witch Woman”
“Peaceful, light feeling”
“Tequila Sunrise”
“In the city”
“I can’t tell you why.”
“New kid in town”
“Seven Bridges Street”
“These shoes”
“Life was good”
“Already gone”
“The Boys of Summer”
“Life in the fast lane”

Encore
“Just take it”
“Rocky Mountain Way”
“Desperado”
“Heartbreak Tonight”

CLEVELAND — For the first seven innings of ALCS Game 3 between the Yankees and Guardians, Cleveland’s tried-and-true method for victory was proceeding as planned.

After Alex Cobb and Tanner Bibee combined to complete four innings as the Guardians’ starting pitchers for Games 1 and 2, veteran lefty Matthew Boyd delivered five solid frames, limiting New York to just one run on two hits. In the bottom of the third, rookie Kyle Manzardo supplied the Guardians their first lead of the series, blasting a two-run homer off Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt to make it 2-1. The Guardians tacked on another run in the sixth against the under-used underbelly of the Yankees bullpen.

For seven innings, little about the affair felt unfamiliar. Sure, there were some unusual moments along the way — Jose Trevino’s first RBI since Sept. 3, Austin Hedges recording an extra-base hit, some Jon Berti defensive adventures at first base — but Cleveland entered the final stages of Game 3 in a position it held so many times over the past six months: with a narrow lead and four of baseball’s best relievers ready to roll. Cade Smith, Tim Herrin, Hunter Gaddis and, of course, Emmanuel Clase would be dispatched by manager Stephen Vogt in some order to secure the game’s final 12 outs.

First came Smith to face Juan Soto, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton in the sixth. It took 10 pitches for the remarkable rookie to dispose of one of the most imposing hearts of the order constructed in recent baseball memory. Nine outs to go.

The lefty Herrin followed and worked around some traffic for a scoreless seventh. Six outs to go.

In came Gaddis for the eighth. The mountain man of a right-hander struck out Austin Wells and got Gleyber Torres to ground out. Four outs to go, with Soto striding to the plate.

It was at this point that Game 3 ceased resembling anything remotely routine. For the next 75 minutes — from the moment Soto stepped into the box with two outs in the eighth until David Fry won the game 7-5 with a walk-off home run in the 10th inning — chaos reigned.

Gaddis sprayed four pitches nowhere near the zone, and Soto took his base. Up came Judge as the tying run, and in came Clase for the four-out save. It was 10 days earlier on this same mound that Clase had faltered in stunning fashion, allowing a go-ahead home run to Detroit’s Kerry Carpenter in an ALDS Game 2 loss. Clase and Cleveland rallied from that rare misstep, with the closer collecting two more saves en route to a comeback series victory.

This, though, was the matchup the baseball world had been anticipating for months. Baseball’s best closer vs. baseball’s best hitter with the game on the line. After Clase didn’t appear in the first two games of the ALCS, it was the ideal scenario for him to make his mark on the series — or for Judge to play Superman.

Clase attacked with his unrivaled cutter at 99 mph, forcing Judge into a quick 0-2 hole. A third cutter missed outside for ball one. A fourth was placed more precisely, this time on the outer half of the strike zone.

It is a pitch with such vicious movement and pinpoint location that it’s practically impossible for a right-handed hitter to pull the ball. Going the other way is just about the only option, particularly with two strikes. Maybe the batter can foul one off and wait for a more hittable pitch or a more favorable count. Maybe a ball is put in play and sneaks through the right side for a single.

Or maybe it’s Aaron Judge, and a picturesque swing produces a low-flying laser beam that sneaks over the right-field wall for a game-tying home run. Such was the case Thursday, leaving the Progressive Field crowd in a state of utter disbelief for the second time in less than two weeks.

Visibly rattled yet with work left to do, Clase summited the mound to try again for the third out of the inning. The game was still tied, after all, and now Stanton stood before him.

A seven-pitch battle ensued, with Clase’s command wavering with every pitch. And just as he had against Carpenter, Clase eventually hung a slider at the worst possible time. Stanton smashed it over the center-field fence, and the Yankees had the lead.

The Cleveland plan that was firmly on track had gone up in flames. Clase had improbably imploded again. The Yankees’ two titanic sluggers had blasted back-to-back homers under the most unfathomable of circumstances, and it was suddenly New York that was six outs away from a commanding 3-0 series lead.

And so, after the Guardians mustered a pair of baserunners in the bottom of the eighth, it was Yankees manager Aaron Boone’s turn to ask his closer for a four-out save. Unlike Clase, who arrived to October with a multi-year track record of late-inning excellence, New York’s preferred game-ender — Luke Weaver, a 31-year-old who had a 5.14 ERA across his first eight big-league seasons as primarily a starting pitcher — has a much shorter history of high-leverage success. Still, he has been tremendous since inheriting the closer role from Clay Holmes in September, and Boone has used him in every game in October thus far, to great effect.

Once again, Weaver answered the call, ending the Cleveland threat by striking out David Fry on four pitches.

Afforded an additional run of insurance in the top of the ninth, Weaver returned to the mound in the bottom of the frame to face the heart of Cleveland’s order. A rally seemingly sparked by a hard grounder from José Ramírez that slipped under the glove of first baseman Anthony Rizzo was quashed when Josh Naylor grounded into a double play. Lane Thomas then fell into an 0-2 hole, leaving Weaver one strike away from locking down an incredible win for the Yankees.

It was one strike too many. Three balls followed, nowhere near the strike zone. Thomas, having already delivered two memorable swings to propel Cleveland to this point, sent another ball soaring toward the 19-foot wall in left field. This one did not quite clear it; it clanged off the top of the video board and into Judge’s grasp. Thomas settled for a double.

With Cleveland still down two runs, it was Jhonkensy Noel’s turn to play hero.

For two months after he was called up at the end of June, Noel’s thunderous, right-handed swing wreaked havoc on opposing pitchers. He hit 13 home runs in his first 45 career games, rapidly becoming a fan favorite. But the man they call “Big Christmas” had gone ice-cold down the stretch. He hadn’t homered since Aug. 30 and was 1-for-15 in October.

Yet the threat of Noel’s massive raw power never dissipated. It remained, lurking during each and every at-bat, despite poor results. It was not a matter of if we would see Noel’s spectacular strength on display again, merely when.

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, the hulking, 23-year-old rookie with the infectious smile and downright delightful nickname was called upon to pinch-hit. There was no secret to the strategy.

As Vogt said after the game: “He pinch-hit to hit a homer. That’s why we sent him up there.”

On the second pitch from Weaver, a horribly located changeup in the certified nitro zone, Noel delivered the swing of his life. In an instant — long before the ball came crashing down into a delirious sea of Guardians fans in the left-field bleachers — everyone in the venue knew what had happened. The sound that followed, a roar possible only in big-league ballparks at this time of year, reflected that reality.

Mayhem. Madness. Tie ball game.

It was a breathtaking two innings, and somehow, the show had to go on. Weaver struck out Andrés Giménez, and to extra innings it went.

Cleveland’s eighth and final pitcher of the evening was right-hander Pedro Avila. Acquired from San Diego for cash back in April, Avila filled the role of low-leverage long relief all season. Though not included on the ALDS roster, he was added for this round and delivered 2 2/3 hitless innings in Cleveland’s Game 1 loss. He has become a beloved figure in the Guardians’ clubhouse, albeit not necessarily one expected to pitch in the highest-leverage moment of the season thus far.

Before Thursday’s game, several Guardians players were wearing freshly printed shirts celebrating their teammate, with a cartoon representation of Avila adorned by a bold graphic caption: “INNING EATER.” Last round, while not on the roster, Avila was one of the most active cheerleaders in the Cleveland dugout. Now here he was, thrust into a high-stakes scenario. His first assignment: that Judge fella.

Not to worry. The soon-to-be MVP swung through a changeup and a slider before watching a sinker for strike three. Easy enough!

Stanton followed with a walk, bringing up Jazz Chisholm Jr. with one out. Chisholm chopped one past the first baseman Naylor, forcing Giménez to range exceptionally far to his left in an effort to corral the ball. He snagged it just before it bounced into right field and uncorked a sensational, spinning throw to first that Naylor was able to acrobatically snare while keeping his foot on the base to ensure the second out.

It was the latest addition to an expanding highlight reel for Giménez, who might soon collect his third Gold Glove Award. “Andrés Giménez is the best infielder on the planet,” Vogt said afterward. “… What Andrés does night in and night out is so much fun to watch. We are spoiled to watch him play second base every day.”

After an intentional walk to Anthony Rizzo, Avila punched out Anthony Volpe with a wicked changeup to keep the game tied heading to the bottom of the 10th.

With Weaver taxed, Boone turned to Holmes to try to extend the game. Bo Naylor, hitless since Sept. 25, did not wait around for Holmes to get settled. He lashed the first pitch into right field for a leadoff single. Brayan Rocchio then bunted Naylor to second, bringing up Steven Kwan with a runner in scoring position. Kwan tapped one back to the pitcher, and Holmes snared it for the second out.

It was then up to Fry, one of Cleveland’s heroes against the Tigers but also the hitter who looked downright foolish against Weaver in his previous at-bat. Fry saw four sinkers from Holmes, each one getting closer to a place in the strike zone where he could do damage.

Holmes’ struggles this year have been well-documented, but they have predominantly been rooted in wildness and untimely base hits. Homers have been few and far between. But Holmes’ fourth pitch to Fry was a touch too homer-friendly. Fry tracked and timed the sinker brilliantly, connecting cleanly with the center-cut offering and sending it high into the Cleveland night sky, its eventual destination the left-field bleachers.

Game over.

That the Guardians rallied late to steal a win isn’t a shock on its own; no American League team authored more comeback victories in the regular season. It is that context that prompts Guardians players and coaches to offer postgame sentiments about the team’s renowned resilience and how they’re unsurprised when they end up on the winning end of a thriller of this ilk.

But for as many come-from-behind wins as this team racked up, the relentless nature with which Game 3 swerved over the final hour of play made for an especially wild ride for those watching in the dugout.

“It’s a different feeling, for sure,” Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee told Yahoo Sports after the game. “So back and forth. I mean, the momentum swung probably as far our way as you could, then as far their way [as it could], then back to our way. And that’s just baseball. That’s our kind of baseball.”

When asked about the biggest moments that swung the game, Bibee had a lengthy list:

“Every single homer that was hit. Manzo’s … that was hours ago. Judge’s was unbelievable. Stanton’s was ‘holy s***.’ Lane’s double was ‘holy s***.’ Jhonkensy … Giménez’s play, [Naylor]’s stretch — which I feel like will go unnoticed, but it shouldn’t. Bo’s ambush leadoff base hit was like, ‘holy s***, we got a shot here.’

“All that led up to [Fry’s homer] is gonna go unnoticed, and it shouldn’t.”

In the Guardians clubhouse postgame, the usual EDM beats thumped as a handful of players lingered about. Some scrolled on their phones. A quartet enjoyed a casual game of cards. Others chowed down on dinner. It was as if the final few innings had unfolded as originally expected, with little drama or heroics. The collective demeanor reflected the kind of victory the Guardians had secured countless times, rather than a singular, seismic experience that will be breathlessly recounted for years to come, an October triumph for the ages.

After a game that sent those in the seats into mass hysterics and left those in the press box in absolute shambles, seeing the players who produced such a classic fall into their traditional postgame routines was both difficult to comprehend and entirely understandable. These players, on both sides, have no choice but to turn the page. Unless your team has played its final game and been eliminated or won it all and raised the Commissioner’s Trophy, there is simply no time to bathe in the beauty of any single enthralling victory or wallow in the despair of an especially devastating defeat. It’s on to the next one.

In this case, that’s 8:08 p.m. on Friday, right back at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

The beauty — and absurdity — of this sport is that these teams will show up on Friday and play again, as if the events of Thursday night don’t require far more time to process. As soon as the first pitch of Game 4 is thrown, the feelings of Game 3 will fade for the players on the field, as a new task of utmost importance emerges before them.

For the Yankees, Game 4 represents an opportunity to take one more step toward the World Series appearance the franchise has been craving for 15 years. As brutal as the outcome of Game 3 was, New York remains in an enviable position, up 2-1 in this best-of-seven.

The Guardians, meanwhile, have a chance to even the series and transform it into a best-of-three just 48 hours after the odds were firmly stacked against them. Game 3 will be reminisced about in living rooms and sports bars across Northeast Ohio for years to come, but its true magnitude within the story of the 2024 Guardians is far from determined.

Perhaps it will be merely a fantastic footnote in another campaign that came up short; perhaps it will be something much, much more.

SOQUEL — There was an understanding in the spring that introducing a new culture wouldn’t immediately transform a struggling football program into a force.

Reality checks have crossed Alvarez’s path as he deals with the growing pains that come with a new regime – his third new football coach in five years.

One of those came Thursday when the Eagles faced defending CIF State Division 4AA champion Soquel — a 35-7 loss, the team’s fourth straight setback.

Judging progress based on the standings, the question arises: What has changed for Alvarez? If you’re in the locker room with first-year head coach Ben Newman, the answer is, “Everything.”

The heart and character of a group of players, some of whom have been dealing with their third coach since arriving on campus, were never in question.

“The progress is there,” Newman said. “We are going in the right direction. It’s just difficult to rebuild a program in the department we’re housed in.”

Which begs the question, why is Alvarez — a program that has gone 19-85 in the major leagues over the last two decades — still in the Gabilan Division?

“Kids have asked me, ‘Why are we still awake?’” Newman said. “I was hired in March. This decision was made four months earlier. We play whoever is in front of us.”

Newman believes that in time the Eagles can be competitive in the Gabilan Division. It’s simply not the job of overhauling a program that has endured five winless seasons in the last 18 years.

In fact, Alvarez has never had a successful season in a major league since 2005; in 2014, the score was 3-3.

“I think we should be a division behind,” Newman admitted. “We have to get something started first. You just don’t start at the top. We’ll come back at some point.”

The Eagles proved they are competitive against teams from both Mission Divisions by defeating Pacific Grove while losing to North County and Monte Vista.

At 0-3 in the Gabilan Division this fall, Newman hasn’t given up on the idea of ​​shocking the world and making the playoffs.

“We just ran the gauntlet of the Gabilan Division,” Newman said. “Not that it will be any easier, but we still have three games left. If we can win two, I think that will take us further.”

The problem is that Alvarez has only won two or more league games six times during his tenure in the top flight and has never beaten Aptos or Palma, two of his three remaining opponents.

“One thing these kids haven’t done is complain,” Newman said. “Our seniors know that they are the foundation for the future. Most have accepted the changes. But it was hard.”

There was no intimidation facing the defending State Division 4AA champions, as the Eagles were actually tied at 7 in the second quarter when Abel Bailon hit Ramon Garcia on a 10-yard touchdown pass.

However, the Knights are undefeated in the Gabilan Division for a reason. From that moment on, they took control and scored the next 28 points of the game by outpacing Alvarez.

“Soquel plays old-school football,” Newman said. “It seems like they only have four formations. But they execute them almost perfectly. It’s another teachable moment.”

Newman, a former Monterey High lineman, has seen enough moments to feel like Alvarez is making small strides despite losing four straight games.

One of those moments came two weeks ago in a loss to Salinas, where the Eagles had a two-point game before a turnover turned into a touchdown and a possible 14-point swing.

“We were in the red zone six or seven times against Salinas,” Newman said. “We just didn’t do anything with it. The progress is there. We just need to learn how to finish drives.”

Alvarez has been hit by adversity in unique ways this fall, such as coming down with food poisoning just hours before the game against Monte Vista.

“I saw a kid get sick and thought it was nerves,” Newman said. “Then another and another. It affected the entire team. We had kids go to the hospital after that game.”

Still, the Eagles trailed by a point between the restrooms and behind the stands before giving up a kickoff return in the final six seconds of a 42-34 loss.

While Newman believes the future holds promise and potential, he has remained in the present and looks for intangibles to build on in the future.

The playbook continues to grow as Garcia chases 1,000 rushing yards by scoring six of Alvarez’s seven rushing touchdowns while catching two touchdown passes.

“He’s just a junior,” Newman said. “It’s a beautiful piece to build around. But we lose most of our offensive line. They are the heartbeat of our offense.”

When Newman looks at the lower levels, he sees the growth of a junior varsity team that is 2-5 and has many first-year players. And a freshmen team that is now learning its system.

“The lower levels all bought in,” Newman said. “That’s where you start. I can’t change this overnight. Overall we were there for most of the games.”

What has pleased Newman down the stretch is the energy in practice. He called the last week and a half of training some of the best Alvarez has had since the foot poisoning.

“It was tough at first,” Newman said. “But the children persevered. You see the vision. We were looking forward to playing in the state championships. Our goal is still ahead of us.”

Grading overpaid vs. underpaid: 5-12
Real value: $464,107,250
Career Earnings: $405,940,020
Difference: $58,167,230 (14.33 percent)

The league’s former MVP Kevin Durant was able to miss an entire season due to injury in his prime and is still considered one of the lowest paid players of all time. He tells you everything you need to know about how great the future Hall-of-Famer is when he’s healthy.

Real Value estimates that Durant was most underpaid in 2009-10, with a $22.1 million difference between his Real Value and his actual salary, which was just $4.8 million that year. This season, Durant was incredibly valuable, leading the league with 30.1 points per game along with 7.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals while appearing in all 82 games. Durant’s Thunder also posted a 50-32 record this season as the Washington, D.C. native’s efforts earned him second place in MVP voting and second place in Most Improved Player, as well as being an all-time honoree. Star and 1st Team All-NBAer.

To do all that and make less than $5 million for the season is really hard to believe in hindsight.

Of course, with Durant now older and still making so much money, Real Value assumes he’s been somewhat overpaid over the last two years, including in 2023-24, when our stats say he’ll be around 11.3 Millions of US dollars was overpaid. Even then, the Phoenix Suns have to be thrilled with what they got out of the veteran scorer in his age-35 season, as Durant is still averaging over 27 points per game on a shooting percentage of 52 in the 2023-24 season. 3 percent while also taking home 2nd NBA and All-Star awards.

Durant’s true value is still extremely high, as our metric showed an output of $36.3 million last season alone. It’s simply because the new-age max contracts (Durant made over $47 million last year) are so massive that even the best players have a hard time topping them.

For more from Kevin Durant Career salary information can be found here.

Amal Neerad is one of the few Malayalam filmmakers today who has a distinctive narrative style. With his wonderful sense of aesthetics, skillful image compositions, effective use of minimal dialogues and, above all, incredible ability to create adrenaline-pumping moments, Amal has successfully built a loyal fan base for his works. His latest film Bougainvillea also has everything you would expect from it. But… do they have the right proportions? Not really. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the film is somewhere in the middle of all the famous Amal Neerad touches.

After exploring the landscape of Idukki beautifully Iyobinte Pusthakam And Varathanthe director takes us back to the mountains. The cold and foggy backdrop is an ideal but often recurring setting for mystery thrillers. For a large part Bougainvilleas In the first half, the narrative moves at a leisurely pace as the focus is on capturing every little detail about the protagonist Reethu and her lokam. These include her fixation on bougainvillea paintings, sudden outbursts, hallucinations and a warm bond with her housekeeper.

Things get heated when Reethu, a clinically diagnosed amnesiac with memory problems, becomes involved in a high-profile case involving the disappearance of several young women. After the wonderfully designed Kishkindha Kaandam (KK), this is the second film in recent memory to feature a main character with amnesia.

There is an element of mystery in both films and as viewers we are faced with the difficult situation of whether to trust their versions or not. Much like KK’s Appu Pilla, Reethu tries with all her might to piece together her fragmented memories, but something stops her from painting a complete picture, and that leads to a fascinating interval deadlock.

Kamala Harris was not present at the traditional Al Smith Dinner in New York on Thursday evening, but comforted attendees via video. Harris hired actress Molly Shannon, who revived her lover Saturday Night Live Character, Catholic schoolgirl Mary Katherine Gallagher.

In the video, Harris begins by talking about the Al Smith Dinner, a tradition every election where presidential candidates grill each other and themselves. As she speaks, Shannon as Mary Katherine Gallagher walks behind her. “Hey, what’s going on?” Harris says. “Who was that?”

Harris then invites Mary Katherine to help her write her speech for the dinner, which she describes as “an important tradition that I am so proud to be a part of.” “My feelings about what you should say tonight are best expressed in a monologue from one of my favorite television shows,” answers Shannon.

“We need a woman to represent us,” says Shannon, adding, “And with that woman we can fly!” She then explains that the quote comes from House of the Dragon and advises Harris not to lie in her speech. “You shall not bear false witness to your neighbor,” says Shannon. She also suggests that Harris not “insult Catholics.”

“I would never do that no matter where I were,” Harris replies. “That would be like criticizing Detroit in Detroit.”

When Harris later advises Shannon, “Don’t let anyone tell you who they are, tell them who you are,” Shannon references Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off.”

On trend

Donald Trump, who attended the event, used his appearance to target Harris for missing the dinner. “My opponent feels like she doesn’t need to be here, which is deeply disrespectful to the event and especially to our large Catholic community,” he said. “Very disrespectful.”

He added: “As per tradition, I’m supposed to tell a few self-deprecating jokes tonight.” So here it is. No. I don’t have anything… I guess I don’t see the point in shooting myself when other people have been shooting at me for a damn long time.”