In a blow to the Houston Astros’ pitching rotation, starting pitcher Cristian Javier is set to undergo Tommy John surgery this week, effectively sidelining him for the remainder of the 2024 season. The news, reported by Chandler Rome of The Athletic, follows Javier’s placement on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 24 due to right forearm discomfort.
Tommy John surgery, formally known as ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, is a procedure aimed at repairing the elbow. Javier’s surgery is scheduled for Thursday, with expectations that he will be out until late next season.
The unfortunate announcement comes on the heels of similar news regarding fellow pitcher Jose Urquidy, who is also slated for Tommy John surgery.
The absence of both Javier and Urquidy presents a significant challenge for the Astros’ rotation, already grappling with depth issues. Currently, only three starting pitchers on the MLB roster boast ERAs below 5.00: Ronel Blanco (2.44), Justin Verlander (3.63), and Framber Valdez (3.95). Urquidy has yet to make an appearance this season after starting on the injured list, while Javier had been a relatively dependable presence, maintaining a 3.89 ERA through seven starts.
Despite showing signs of recovery, Javier’s setback became evident when he skipped a scheduled bullpen session over a week ago. This setback follows his previous stint on the 15-day IL due to neck discomfort.
With the Astros’ starting rotation currently ranked 26th league-wide with a combined ERA of 4.73, the team faces an urgent need to bolster its pitching production, whether through trades or promotions from the minor leagues.
El presidente Joe Biden anunció el martes nuevas acciones ejecutivas para limitar el aumento de migrantes que cruzan ilegalmente la frontera sur de Estados Unidos, estableciendo nuevos umbrales para aquellos que buscan asilo.
Biden explicó desde la Casa Blanca que estas medidas buscan lograr una reforma migratoria que los legisladores no han podido concretar. Rodeado por varios funcionarios, incluyendo al Secretario de Seguridad Nacional Alejandro Mayorkas
“He venido aquí hoy para hacer lo que los republicanos en el Congreso se niegan a hacer: tomar las medidas necesarias para asegurar nuestra frontera”.
La decisión llega mientras Biden enfrenta desafíos políticos en inmigración durante la campaña de 2024 y a pocas semanas de debatir con el expresidente Donald Trump.
Estas acciones representan un cambio de política para Biden, quien había dicho anteriormente que había “hecho todo lo que podía hacer” unilateralmente en la frontera. Las nuevas medidas establecerán una regla que rechazará a los migrantes que crucen ilegalmente entre los puntos de entrada y traten de reclamar asilo después de siete días consecutivos con más de 2,500 encuentros. Ese límite se levantará solo si hay 14 días de encuentros con 1,500 o menos, según funcionarios de la administración.
Biden afirmó que los migrantes que no utilicen las vías legales serán restringidos de recibir asilo y permanecer en Estados Unidos. La nueva regla comenzará a aplicarse a partir de la medianoche, aunque se espera que enfrente desafíos legales rápidos, con la Unión Americana de Libertades Civiles planeando llevar a la administración a los tribunales.
Los republicanos han estado presionando a Biden para que use el poder ejecutivo para hacer cambios en la frontera, pero criticaron duramente las nuevas acciones antes de su anuncio. El presidente de la Cámara, Mike Johnson, las calificó de “débiles” y afirmó que si Biden estuviera preocupado por la frontera, habría tomado estas medidas hace mucho tiempo. En el Senado, los republicanos ofrecieron una respuesta similar, con el senador de Texas John Cornyn describiendo la medida como un “juego de trileros” impulsado por la proximidad de las elecciones y los bajos números en las encuestas.
La Casa Blanca, por su parte, criticó a los republicanos por bloquear un proyecto de ley bipartidista que incluía reformas más amplias de inmigración y seguridad fronteriza. Según Andrew Bates, subsecretario de prensa, los republicanos han bloqueado la legislación de seguridad fronteriza más dura y justa de la historia moderna.
No todos los demócratas apoyan las nuevas acciones. Algunos, como la representante Pramila Jayapal, expresaron su preocupación de que la orden ejecutiva confunda el mensaje sobre lo que defienden. Otros, como la representante Nanette Barragán, presidenta del Caucus Hispano del Congreso, calificaron la medida de “error” y sugirieron que debería ir acompañada de acciones positivas y protecciones para los indocumentados que han estado en el país durante mucho tiempo.
En sus comentarios, Biden también destacó las diferencias entre su enfoque de la inmigración y el de Trump, asegurando que nunca demonizará a los inmigrantes ni los separará de sus familias en la frontera. Concluyó enfatizando que no hacer nada no es una opción y que es necesario actuar.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Many defendants involved in a City of Houston Public Works corruption case appeared before a judge Tuesday morning.
Patrece Lee is behind bars on a $460,000 bond and did not attend court, but ABC13 spoke with her lawyer. Lee was arrested last week and faces four charges of bribery and abuse of official capacity greater than $300,000.
Lee was a high-ranking public works employee who, along with her brother and five other accused accomplices, got the city to award them high-level emergency repair contracts for water main breaks.
The money was supposed to hire outside contractors to repair breaks across the city’s water infrastructure.
Issues continue to loom over Houston Public Works after an employee was charged for allegedly funneling money intended for officials to hire contract
Documents state that from January 2023 through November 2023, Lee allegedly solicited kickbacks worth more than $320,000.
The former employee is also said to have defrauded the department out of $400,000 by diverting funds to herself through what is being called a “shell” company.
“I told the judge the situation and reset her for a bond hearing so I can bring some folks down – family members, etcetera, and go against the idea that she’ll be a flight risk for the community,” Lee’s lawyer Jay Dedrick said after Tuesday’s hearing.
Dedrick said Lee’s next bond hearing is set for June 21.
The prosecutor on this case told ABC13 that five of the seven defendants have turned themselves in.
Houston Public Works employee Patrece Lee is charged with bribery after being accused of funneling department funds to a personal account.
Defendant Danielle Hurts, a former City of Houston contract employee; Frank Perkins, a business owner; Joseph Nerie, owner of Nerie Construction; and the attorney for business owner Tiesha Coleman Houston, were all in court Tuesday. Their attorneys talked with the judge about their individual bonds.
Andrew Travis Thomas, Lee’s brother and registered agent of Lu’s Construction and Inspection, and Edelmiro Castillo, owner of Omega Engineering, Inc., are also connected to the case but were not in court.
Of the millions of dollars allegedly stolen, $750,000 was pocketed between the seven people. The full shopping list isn’t being released because it will be used as evidence in an upcoming trial, but the district attorney said multiple new cars were recently purchased.
La principal es asegurar su vivienda con seguro contra inundaciones lo más pronto posible. Ya que hay pólizas que pueden tardar alrededor de 30 días para entrar en marcha.
“Como vimos este mes, no necesitamos un huracán para que ocasione daños a esta ciudad,” dijo Samuel Pena, el jefe del departamento de Bomberos de la ciudad de Houston.
“Tener seguro para huracán contra inundaciones es importante porque a veces dura treinta días antes que la póliza entre en marcha”, aconsejo Pena. “Hagan las preparaciones ahora.”
Si usas generadores, mantenlos al menos 20 pies afuera de tu vivienda
Cuando hay apagones y se usa un generador, el jefe de bomberos recordó mantener los generadores afuera de la vivienda y al menos a 20 pies de distancia.
Solo en mayo, el Departamento de Bomberos de Houston acudió a más de 100 llamadas relacionadas a incidentes de monóxido de carbono.
“No usen los generadores dentro de las cocheras aunque esté la puerta abierta,” afirmo Pena. “El monóxido de carbono puede ser peligroso hasta en bajos niveles. No toma mucho para poder alcanzar niveles que puedan ser letales.”
Preparaciones de rescate
El jefe interino del Departamento de Policía, Larry Satterwhite, dijo que cuentan con 21 camiones de rescate en aguas altas, 30 botes, más de 100 oficiales entrenados para rescates de agua en una rueda de prensa del 3 de junio.
“Estamos mejor preparados hoy que lo estuvimos anteriormente”, afirmó Satterwhite durante la rueda de prensa.
Otros consejos incluyen las siguientes preparativos
Mantener los drenajes libres de escombros que puedan bloquear el drenaje.
Preparar un botiquín de emergencias con artículos de primeros auxilios
Tengan artículos que les dure 3 dias,agua comida
Agua – suficiente para siete dias (un galón por persona por día)
Alimentos no perecederos – para siete días (cambiar el agua y los alimentos almacenados cada seis meses)
Linterna con pilas de repuesto
Radio de pilas
Medicamentos y artículos especiales (analgésicos, pañales, etc.) Herramientas y repuestos
Artículos sanitarios (papel higiénico, productos de higiene personal, etc.)
Cambios de ropa y cobijas
Dinero en efectivo
Documentos importantes (certificados de nacimiento, información de cuentas bancarias/ seguros, etc.)
Alimentos, agua, y medicamentos para sus mascotas.
Casillas o jaulas para las mascotas
“Queremos ser un recurso para ustedes para que entren en preparación y tengan la información necesaria para estar seguros en esta época de huracanes,” dijo Pena.
La temporada de huracanes finaliza el 30 de noviembre. Mantente informado contando con más actualizaciones de parte de las autoridades locales con Que Onda Magazine en redes sociales en Instagram, Facebook, TikTok y X.
Major League Baseball has permanently banned Tucupita Marcano after determining that the infielder placed hundreds of bets on baseball, including wagers on games involving the Pittsburgh Pirates when he was with the team last season.
MLB announced Marcano’s lifetime ban Tuesday, saying that an investigation showed he violated Rule 21(d)(2) of the league’s betting rules and policies.
Marcano appears to be the first active major leaguer banned under the sport’s gambling provision since New York Giants outfielder Jimmy O’Connell in 1924. Pete Rose, baseball’s active career hits leader, famously agreed to a lifetime ban in 1989 after an investigation concluded he bet on Cincinnati Reds games while managing the team.
FILE – San Diego Padres baseball infielder Tucupita Marcano poses for a photo Feb. 20, 2024, in Peoria, Ariz. AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File
“The strict enforcement of Major League Baseball’s rules and policies governing gambling conduct is a critical component of upholding our most important priority: protecting the integrity of our games for the fans,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “The longstanding prohibition against betting on Major League Baseball games by those in the sport has been a bedrock principle for over a century. We have been clear that the privilege of playing in baseball comes with a responsibility to refrain from engaging in certain types of behavior that are legal for other people.”
Marcano, currently a member of the San Diego Padres, was found to have placed 387 baseball bets, including 231 MLB-related wagers, between Oct. 16, 2022 and Nov. 1, 2023, totaling over $150,000.
MLB says 25 of those bets included wagers on Pirates games while he was on the team’s major league roster. However, he did not appear in any of those games because he was on the injured list following a season-ending knee injury. He was receiving medical treatment at PNC Park during that time.
Marcano bet almost exclusively on the outcomes of games and lost all of his parlay bets involving the Pirates, winning just 4.3% of all of his MLB-related bets, according to the league.
Rule 21, posted in every clubhouse, states betting on any baseball game in which a player, umpire, league official or team employee has no duty to perform results in a one-year suspension. Betting on a game in which the person has a duty to perform results in a lifetime ban.
One other big leaguer, Oakland Athletics pitcher Michael Kelly, was declared ineligible for one year on Tuesday for betting on baseball while he was in the minor leaguers. Additionally, minor leaguers Jay Groome of San Diego, Jose Rodriguez of Philadelphia and Andrew Saalfrank of Arizona were banned for one year for betting on major league games.
MLB said it was tipped off about the betting activity by a legal sports betting operator. None of the players punished played in any games on which they wagered, and all players denied to MLB they had inside information relevant to their bets or the games they bet on — testimonies that MLB says align with the data received from the sportsbook.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The heat ridge is back, which means we’ll have fewer storms and hotter temperatures in the days to come. Our northern counties will have the highest rain chance, but even that chance will be low.
The highest heat index values will be in our western counties. A Heat Advisory from 1 pm to 8 pm Tuesday. Heat index values up to 110 expected for inland Jackson, Austin, Brazos, Burleson, Colorado, Grimes, Waller, Washington, and Wharton counties.
By Wednesday morning, we’ll have to monitor, a complex of storms that will approach our northern counties bringing a few scattered showers and storms to our area. The strength of these storms are still uncertain. We’ll continue to keep an eye on it!
Just how intense is this heat going to get?
As temperatures approach the middle 90s this week, feels-like temps will get close to the danger level of 108.
Hurricane season is right around the corner! Anything I should be aware of now?
There’s nothing threatening in the Gulf of Mexico right now. What you need to know is that NOAA released its Atlantic Hurricane Season Outlook for the 2024 season this week. They are predicting an extremely active season with 17-25 named storms, 8-13 hurricanes, and 4-7 major hurricanes possible.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is telling lawmakers that President Joe Biden is preparing to sign off on an executive order that would shut down asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border once the average number of daily encounters hits 2,500 between ports of entry, with the border reopening only once that number declines to 1,500, according to several people familiar with the discussions.
The impact of the 2,500 figure means that the executive order could go into immediate effect, because daily figures are higher than that now.
The Democratic president is expected to unveil the actions — his most aggressive unilateral move yet to control the numbers at the border — at the White House on Tuesday at an event to which border mayors have been invited.
Five people familiar with the discussions on Monday confirmed the 2,500 figure, while two of the people confirmed the 1,500 number. The figures are daily averages over the course of a week. All the people insisted on anonymity to discuss an executive order that is not yet public.
While other border activity, such as trade, is expected to continue, the 1,500 threshold at which the border would reopen for asylum seekers could be hard to reach. The last time the daily average dipped to 1,500 encounters was in July 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Senior White House officials, including chief of staff Jeff Zients and legislative affairs director Shuwanza Goff, have been informing lawmakers on Capitol Hill of details of the planned order ahead of the formal rollout Tuesday. But several questions remain about how the executive order would work, particularly how much cooperation the U.S. would need from Mexican officials to carry out the executive order.
The president has been deliberating for months over how to act on his own after bipartisan legislation to clamp down on asylum at the border collapsed because Republicans defected from the deal en masse at the urging of Donald Trump, the former president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Biden continued to consider executive action even though the number of illegal crossings at the southern border has declined for months, partly because of a stepped-up effort by Mexico.
Biden administration officials had waited until after Mexico’s presidential elections, held Sunday, to move on the U.S. president’s border actions. Mexico elected Claudia Sheinbaum, the nation’s first female leader, and Biden said in a statement Monday that he was committed to “advancing the values and interests of both our nations to the benefit of our peoples.” The two spoke on the phone Monday, although White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to say whether they spoke about the pending order.
“We continue to look at all options on the table,” Jean-Pierre told reporters traveling with Biden on Air Force One on Monday evening.
The executive order will allow Biden to declare that he has pushed the boundaries of his own power after lawmakers, specifically congressional Republicans, killed off what would have been the toughest border and asylum restrictions in some time. Biden’s order is aimed at trying to head off any potential spike in border encounters that could happen later this year, closer to the November elections.
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For Biden’s executive order, the White House is adopting some policies directly from the bipartisan Senate border deal, including the idea of limiting asylum requests once the encounters hit a certain number. The administration wants to encourage migrants to seek asylum at ports of entry by using the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s CBP One app, which schedules about 1,450 appointments per day.
Administration lawyers have been planning to tap executive powers outlined in Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which gives a president broad authority to block entry of certain immigrants into the U.S. if it is deemed “detrimental” to the national interest. It is the same legal rationale used by Trump to take some of his toughest actions on migration as president.
That has advocacy groups already preparing to challenge Biden’s immigration order in court.
“We will need to review the (executive order) before making final litigation decisions,” said Lee Gelernt, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union who led several of the most high-profile challenges to Trump’s border policies. “But a policy that effectively shuts down asylum would raise clear legal problems, just as (it) did when the Trump administration tried to end asylum.”
The White House is also sure to encounter vocal resistance from many Democratic lawmakers. California Sen. Alex Padilla, an outspoken critic of the Senate’s earlier border bill, said the pending executive order was “just not the solution we need and it’s very incomplete as a strategy.”
Padilla, who was also briefed by the White House on the proposal, wants an approach that works with countries throughout Latin America to address the poverty and unrest that drives migration to the United States. In recent weeks, Padilla has also pressed the White House for executive actions that benefit immigrants and said the message he has heard in return is, “We’re working on it.”
Biden will unveil his executive order flanked by several border mayors whom the White House invited for the announcement. Texas Mayors John Cowen of Brownsville and Ramiro Garza of Edinburg both confirmed their invitations, and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s office also said the White House invited the mayor, but he could not attend due to scheduling difficulties.
Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat who said he was briefed on the plan, said he wishes the White House would have taken executive action a long time ago and said cooperation from Mexico would continue to be critical as the administration implements the order.
“If you think about the logistics, where else can they go?” Cuellar said. “If they’re not going to let them in, where do they go? Do they return them (to Mexico), or do they try to deport as many as they can? We did add a lot more money into ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) so they can deport, but the easiest thing, of course, is just send them back to Mexico. You’ve got to have the help of Mexico to make this work.”
Jennifer Babaie, an attorney at Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center in El Paso, Texas, said she would be alarmed if Biden issued formal deportation orders without an opportunity to seek asylum. Advocates worry he may attempt that under the 212(f) provision.
Pandemic-era expulsion authority known as Title 42 had “a silver lining” for migrants because they could try again without fearing legal consequences, Babaie said. But a formal deportation order would expose them to felony prosecution if they attempted again and it would impose bars on legally entering the country in the future.
“This is even more extreme than (Title 42), while still putting people in harm’s way,” Babaie said.
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Associated Press writers Elliot Spagat in San Diego and Fatima Hussein on Air Force One contributed to this report.
Education officials in Texas are looking to standardize what students are taught.
The Texas Education Agency has released thousands of pages of recommended curricula for public schools across the state.
On the TEA’s website, you can give feedback on whether you think this curriculum is fair and factual from Monday, June 3, until Friday, Aug. 16.
This is a brand new curriculum that comes from a law passed last year.
But the idea is familiar.
Decades ago, schools in Texas operated based on state guidelines, and then the control moved to local districts. Now, it looks like there’s a power shift back to the state having control.
ABC13 spoke with Duncan Klussmann, a University of Houston asst. professor who formerly served as superintendent of Spring Branch ISD.
“Textbook wars in Texas are not new. They go way back to the 60s, really when we had many more of these issues when the state completely controlled what you got,” Klussmann explained.
Multiple groups have criticized the proposed curriculum because the language arts section includes several Biblical teachings and references. State leaders have argued that other religious teachings are also included.
Gov. Greg Abbott has praised this curriculum, saying, in order to improve scores in math and reading, curriculum needs to be high quality and the same at all school districts in the state.
“I understand that a lot of people have distrust. I understand that a lot of people may scroll social media and they may see buzz words on articles and they are afraid that their child is going to be indoctrinated if they come to school,” Staci Childs, the state Board of Education member representing Houston and parts of Galveston County, said. “Well, I can assure you as long as I’m on the state board of education that we’re not going to let that happen, but we still need the public to be part of that process so we can get insight on how to make the curriculum more reflective of all the students.”
Schools are not required to use the curriculum.
But, if they do, they will get up to $60 per student in additional state funding.
For more on this story, follow Pooja Lodhia on Facebook,X and Instagram.
CONROE, Texas (KTRK) — A 6-year-old and his grandmother remain in the hospital nearly a week after a downed power line during last Tuesday’s severe weather shocked and burned the two.
According to the family, Nathan and Charlotte Winters were at the Lake Conroe campground where she lives when they encountered the energized line.
Morgan Winters, Nathan’s mother and Charlotte’s daughter, said the grandmother was pointing on the downed line to someone else from a distance when they were burned.
On Monday, ABC13 spoke with Morgan Winters, the boy’s mother and the woman’s daughter, as her loved ones were being treated inside the same hospital at the Texas Medical Center. Eighteen percent of the child’s body was covered in second-degree burns. Charlotte Winters’ injuries were considered more severe, with burns covering 55% of her body.
“My mom had actually called me, but she wasn’t making sense,” Morgan Winters said about the moment she learned about what happened.
Morgan Winters doesn’t believe her son and grandmother were close to the downed line.
“Based on what she remembers and what we talked about, it’s not like they were within touching distance. Like, they were far away based on what she has said,” Morgan Winters said.
She added that her mother uses the little energy she can muster to check in on Nathan.
“She’s automatically like, ‘Morgan, how is Nathan? How’s my baby? How’s my baby? And they FaceTime multiple times a day,” Morgan Winters said.
Video calls were also the time when Nathan Winters saw his facial injuries for the first time.
“He immediately was like, ‘Mommy, I am hideous,’ and I was like, ‘No, you’re just injured right now,'” Morgan Winters recalled.
Nathan was in better spirits during ABC13’s visit. He told Eyewitness News that a reunion with his favorite person is the light at the end of the tunnel.
“What are you looking forward to most when you get out of the hospital?” ABC13 asked.
“Seeing my Nana,” he said.
Emergency responders want to remind people that the ground around downed power lines can be energized up to 35 feet away. Authorities didn’t disclose how far the pair were when they got burned.
For updates on this story, follow Alex Bozarjian on Facebook, X and Instagram.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Authorities closed the westbound North Sam Houston Tollway connector ramp to Interstate 45 after they said a motorist was found shot to death on Monday evening.
The Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office said deputies were called to the tollway about a single-vehicle crash into the wall of the connector ramp to the I-45 North Freeway.
According to the constable’s office, deputies found a person dead as they approached the vehicle. They added the person appeared to have had a gunshot wound.
An investigation is getting underway. Deputies urged drivers to avoid the area.
ABC13 is gathering information from the scene. Watch Eyewitness News for updates.
