Author: staff

LOS ANGELES — Shea Langeliers is headed to the Hall of Fame, even before his big league debut.A 24-year-old catching prospect, Langeliers was voted MVP of the All-Star Futures Game on Saturday after homering and throwing out a runner trying to steal third base in the American League’s 6-4 victory.AdvertisementHis Victus Pro Reserved DT29 maple bat, size 34-32, is headed to Cooperstown.“It’s crazy, I came into today just excited to be here,” Langeliers said.AdvertisementNew York Yankees prospect Jasson Dominguez and Minnesota’s Matt Wallner hit two-run homers in the third inning off San Francisco’s Kyle Harrison, who took the loss.Dominguez, at 19 the youngest AL prospect at the game, tied the score 3-3 with his 415-foot drive on a slider at the letters. Wallner homered three batters later on hanging sinker for a 5-3 lead, a 115.3 mph drive hit harder than any home run by the major league Twins this year.‘In an ideal world, that’s what I would have done,” Wallner said.Langeliers, the oldest player on either team, added a solo homer in the fourth on a hanging changeup from Atlanta’s Jared Shuster. Langeliers caught Shuster last year at Double-A Mississippi, before Oakland acquired Langeliers in the March trade that sent first baseman Matt Olson to Atlanta.“I know how good he is,” Langeliers said. “He made my job really easy catching last year. It was cool being on the other side of it.”American League’s Shea Langeliers steps on home plate after a solo home run during the fourth inning of the MLB All-Star Futures game against the National League on July 16, 2022. (Mark J. Terrill/AP)He threw out Corbin Carroll, the No. 3 overall prospect, trying to steal third.What was more satisfying?“Throwing the runner out, for sure,” Langeliers said.AdvertisementThe Futures Game attracts top prospects. Julio Rodríguez played in last year’s game and is the youngest All-Star this year at 21, also picked for Monday night’s Home Run Derby.Jack Leiter, son of former major league pitcher Al Leiter, threw a 1-2-3 fourth, Selected second overall by Texas in last year’s draft, Leiter reached 97.5 mph.Darren Baker, son of Houston manager Dusty Baker, entered in the fifth and hit a liner that Chicago White Sox center fielder Oscar Colas grabbed with a tumbling catch.Toronto’s Yosver Zulueta faced one batter and got the win, retiring the Mets’ Francisco Álvarez on a grounder that ended the third.The teams played at Dodger Stadium, three days before the All-Star Game is held at the park.American League players high-five each other at the end of the MLB All-Star Futures game against the National League on July 16, 2022 (Jae C. Hong/AP)Milwaukee’s Joey Wiemer hit a ninth-inning sacrifice fly that Oakland’s Denzel Clark caught against the right-field wall. The Yankees’ Ken Waldichuk got the save by retiring the Brewers’ Jackson Chourio on a flyout.AdvertisementPlayers, excited to be in a big league ballpark, watched while hanging over the dugout railings. Agent Scott Boras and his staff filled the first row a section behind home plate.Dodgers right-hander Bobby Miller struck out three in the first: Dominguez on a changeup, Anthony Volpe on a curveball and Wallner on a changeup.Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn made a 100.5 mph to first to throw out Houston’s Yainer Diaz in the second inning, faster than any throw in a big league game since Statcast started in 2015. The big league high is 97.8 mph by Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz on Thursday.Texas prospect Dustin Harris had an RBI single in the first off Miller, but the NL built a 3-1 lead in the second after the Dodgers’ Diego Cartaya hit a two-out fly to the center field warning track was dropped by Dominguez on the warning track for a two-run error. San Diego’s Robert Hassell III followed with an RBI single that chased Hunter Brown.Dominguez, who learned Thursday he is being promoted from Tampa to Hudson Valley, was relieved when he homered.“My mind said: Everybody forget this error,” he said.AdvertisementThe Cubs were represented by Pete Crow-Armstrong — the 19th overall pick in 2020 — while the White Sox had Oscar Colás — rated sixth in the Sox organization by Baseball America — in the All-Star Futures Game.Cleveland’s George Valera ran into deep left to rob Hassell of a run-scoring extra-base hit in the first.Tony, Olivier and Emmy Award winner Bryan Cranston took a line drive to a shoulder off the bat of Grammy Award winner Anthony Ramos during batting practice before the celebrity softball game.“It’s definitely going to bruise,” Cranston said after recovering in his trailer. “I might be more of a cheerleader in this game.”Actor Simu Liu on his softball ability: “I’m all athleticism, zero technique.”Hunter Pence homered twice for Brooklyn, which beat Cranston’s Los Angeles team 15-13 in the softball. Pence, a former San Francisco Giant, was repeatedly booed.Advertisement___AP freelance writer Jolene Latimer contributed to this report.

Scott Kidd and his wife had always wanted to go on a cruise. But the 63-year-old Episcopal priest from the rural mountains of Georgia wanted something…

Scott Kidd and his wife had always wanted to go on a cruise. But the 63-year-old Episcopal priest from the rural mountains of Georgia wanted something…

Mayor Lori Lightfoot told Chicagoans nearly two years ago that her decision to tie how much the city of Chicago collects in property taxes to the…

Q. What does the city’s new cooling ordinance do?A. On June 22, 2022, the City of Chicago adopted a new ordinance commonly referred to as the…

A tree surrounded by green lawn is a pretty picture for many people, but it’s hard to achieve — and tough on the tree.“Turf grass and trees don’t go together well,” said Stephanie Adams, a plant pathologist at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “It’s not a good situation for either of them.”AdvertisementIn the shade of a tree, where it doesn’t get enough sunlight, grass will usually struggle, becoming patchy and bare. “Grasses are full-sun plants,” Adams said. They are native to open grasslands, such as the steppes of Central Asia, where they evolved to grow in full sunlight with no shade.Most lawn grass needs six to eight hours of sunlight every day. Although some fescue grass species included in seed mixtures labeled for deep shade can get along on as little as two hours, the grasses typically used in American lawns will not thrive in the shade of a mature tree. Where grass is planted under trees, it can also cause problems for the tree. “Turf grass has a mat of shallow, dense roots that intercepts water, nutrients and air,” Adams said.AdvertisementPerennials such as Solomon’s seal, Virginia bluebells and bleeding heart are better choices to plant around a tree than turfgrass, which competes aggressively with the tree’s roots. (Beth Botts/Morton Arboretum)Tree roots grow horizontally, spreading out widely in the top foot or so of soil. Rainwater and air should be able to percolate through the soil to be absorbed by the roots and used to support the growth and health of the tree. But if the tree roots are topped with grass, the turf gets first dibs on water and other resources, and less is available to the tree.Research has shown tree roots grow much better under a wide, even layer of mulch than beneath grass. The mulch imitates the layer of leaf litter that naturally falls onto the soil around the tree and covers the soil containing its roots. Unlike turf, it allows water and air to seep through easily.What if you don’t want a wide circle of bare mulch around every tree? “You can still have plants under trees,” Adams said, “but other plants are better than grass.”Rethinking the area around your tree is an opportunity to extend your garden and make it more diverse, said Julie Janoski, manager of the Arboretum’s Plant Clinic.The best choices, according to Adams and Janoski, are shade-tolerant perennials or small shrubs. “Woody shrubs grow similarly to trees, with the same kind of roots,” Adams said. “They won’t compete with a tree’s roots nearly as much as grass roots do.”The roots of shrubs and perennials grow in clumps, not in a mat, leaving gaps for the tree’s roots. “All the roots will intertwine, and they will be able to share the soil and get what they need,” Adams said.Conventionally, grass is replaced with a wide area of a single ground cover, such as pachysandra, myrtle, or liriope. “That’s better for the tree than grass,” Janoski said, “but it would be even better to be creative and mix it up.”A mixed planting that includes flowering perennials and shrubs will support pollinating insects, birds and other wildlife, as well as being more interesting took at.AdvertisementBe sure to choose plants that can tolerate dry shade. “Because the tree acts like an umbrella and blocks some rain, plants under a tree need to be drought tolerant,” she said. Among the plants to consider are ferns, Solomon’s seal, bleeding heart, lungwort, Virginia bluebells, hostas, hellebores, bishop’s hat, St. John’s wort, fragrant sumac and bottlebrush buckeye. The Plant Clinic can make more recommendations for plants that grow well under trees.The best time to add plants under a tree is when the tree is young, before its roots have grown out wide. When adding plants under a mature tree, use small plants and try to damage as few tree roots as possible.“Put the health of the tree first,” Adams said. “Mature, healthy trees add to your property value, and that’s because they have decades invested in them. Turf grass can be replaced quickly and easily, but it should only grow where it won’t harm your trees.”For tree and plant advice, contact the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum (630-719-2424, mortonarb.org/plant-clinic, or plantclinic@mortonarb.org). Beth Botts is a staff writer at the Arboretum.

Defender Rafael Czichos scored in the 23rd minute and Gaga Slonina made it stand as the Chicago Fire blanked the Seattle Sounders 1-0 on Saturday at Solder Field for their second straight victory.Federico Navarro notched an assist on Czichos’ second goal of the season for the Fire (6-10-5). Both scores have come in the last three matches.AdvertisementThe Sounders (8-10-2) have lost three straight, all by shutouts.Slonina finished with two saves for the clean sheet. Stefan Cleveland had four saves for the Sounders.AdvertisementThe Sounders outshot the Fire 15-9, but the Fire had a 5-2 edge in shots on goal.

ARLINGTON, Texas — All-Stars Kahleah Copper and Emma Meesseman scored 23 points each, and the Chicago Sky pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Dallas Wings 89-81 on Saturday despite missing Courtney Vandersloot.Copper and Meesseman picked up the slack for the defending champions and Vandersloot, who suffered a concussion Thursday in the Sky’s 80-68 win over the Los Angeles Sparks and is in the league’s concussion protocol.AdvertisementCopper grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds for her second double-double of the season as the Sky outscored the Wings 30-16 in the fourth quarter to wrap up their fourth straight win and improve to a league-best 19-6. Meesseman added eight rebounds and seven assists. Allie Quigley pitched in with 16 points and five assists. Candace Parker added 13 points and eight rebounds.Marina Mabrey scored 22 to lead the Wings (11-14), who fell to 5-8 at home. Arike Ogunbowale scored 15 but hit just 4 of 16 shots. Allisha Gray hit both of her 3-pointers and scored 14.AdvertisementThe Wings took a 65-59 lead into the final quarter.

Pete Alonso hit a sacrifice fly in the 11th inning after Adam Ottavino worked out of a tricky jam, helping the New York Mets beat the Chicago Cubs 2-1 on Saturday in the opener of a day-night doubleheader at Wrigley Field.The Cubs lost their eighth in a row.AdvertisementAlonso, who also drove in the Mets’ first run in the fourth, came up with runners on the corners and no outs in the 11th. He lofted a medium flyball to right against Mychal Givens (5-1), and Luis Guillorme scored the go-ahead run.Mets seconds baseman Luis Guillorme slides home safely as the throw gets away from Cubs catcher Willson Contreras in the 11th inning of Game 1 of a doubleheader Saturday at Wrigley Field. It was the winning run in the Mets’ 2-1 win. (Chase Agnello-Dean / Getty Images)All-Star closer Edwin Díaz then got three outs for his 20th save for the NL East leaders.AdvertisementThe Cubs had five hits, one more than the Mets. The Cubs had a chance to close it out in the 10th, but Ottavino (4-2) retired three in a row after pinch runner Nelson Velázquez stole third.“A lot of it depends on where the balls are hit, so it’s not all up to you,” Ottavino said. “But you’ve got to try to attack and do your best with it, and I was lucky to get out of there.”Patrick Wisdom struck out swinging and P.J. Higgins looked at a called third strike. Rookie Christopher Morel then hit a grounder to third, and Eduardo Escobar made a scrambling stop and a one-hop throw that a stretching J.D. Davis backhanded at first.Mets first baseman J.D. Davis stretches for a throw as the Cubs’ Christopher Morel slides headfirst for the third out in the 10th inning of Game 1 of a doubleheader Saturday at Wrigley Field. The Mets won 2-1 in 11 innings. (Chase Agnello-Dean / Getty Images)Davis entered the game when Dominic Smith rolled his right ankle while scrambling back to second as the automatic runner in the 10th.“It was just one of those days where we didn’t score that many runs but played great defense and the pitching did their job,” Davis said.The Mets got another solid performance by Taijuan Walker, who pitched six innings of four-hit ball. The right-hander is 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA in his last seven starts.“I finally feel like I’ve been able to put everything together,” Walker said.Cubs right-hander Marcus Stroman pitched 4 ⅓ innings of one-hit ball in his second start since coming off the injured list. He had been sidelined by right shoulder inflammation.AdvertisementStroman played for the Mets in 2019 and 2021 before signing with the Cubs in December. He brushed off the significance of facing his former team.“It’s the same mentality, mind frame for me going into each and every game,” he said.Cubs manager David Ross was ejected by umpire Ramon De Jesus after the second inning. Each side had issues with De Jesus’ strike zone at various points.Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.Ross also was ejected from the series opener. Friday afternoon’s game was postponed by rain, leading to the doubleheader.“There were two balls to Higgy that were balls, and I was just saying, ‘Hey, that should have been 2-0,’ ” Ross said. “He threw me out. I didn’t cuss or didn’t say anything derogatory. I don’t know if it was a carryover from the other day, getting ejected.”The Mets jumped in front on Alonso’s double in the fourth, a liner into the gap in right-center that drove in Francisco Lindor from first. Alonso’s 15th double this season gave him 75 RBIs, snapping a tie with David Wright for the franchise record before the All-Star break.AdvertisementThe Cubs got their only run in the bottom half. Nico Hoerner reached on a fielder’s choice, stole second and scored when Frank Schwindel beat a shift with a bouncer into center for an RBI single.The Cubs brought up left-hander Steven Brault from Triple-A Iowa. Right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. was sent down, and right-hander Matt Swarmer was designated for assignment.Brault, 30, signed a minor-league contract in March. He missed the first three months of the season with a left triceps strain.Right-hander Anderson Espinoza served as the 27th man for the Cubs for the doubleheader, and right-hander Yoan López was the 27th man for the Mets.

One of the area’s most underrated art treasures is the Lubeznik Center for the Arts (101 W. Second, Michigan City, Indiana), which is free and open…