René Cárdenas, pioneer in Spanish-language broadcasts of MLB games, dies at 96

Serial arsonist gets more jail time, community ban

A serial arsonist who believes controlled burning is his “calling” was sentenced to nine months in jail and barred for two years from a southwestern Manitoba community after he deliberately set multiple grass fires during a fire ban in May.

White-supremacist highway sign casts pall on Steinbach city council campaign

The RCMP is investigating a white-nationalist sign near Steinbach with racist messaging and alleged links to a known Canadian far-right group.

René Cárdenas, pioneer in Spanish-language broadcasts of MLB games, dies at 96

HOUSTON (AP) — René Cárdenas, the first Spanish-language broadcaster for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros and Texas Rangers during a 60-year career, has died. He was 96.

The Astros said Monday that Cárdenas died Sunday at his home in Houston.

Cárdenas joined the Dodgers when they moved to Los Angeles from Brooklyn in 1958. He was part of the first Spanish broadcast of the World Series in 1959 and the All-Star Game two years later.

“We mourn the passing of René Cárdenas, who in 1958 with the Dodgers became the first full-time Spanish-language broadcaster in MLB history and would ultimately spend 21 years behind the mic for Los Angeles,” the Dodgers said Sunday in a social media post.

Jets top line powers win over Wild

Cole Perfetti has made it clear he doesn’t want to get ahead of himself.

The Winnipeg Jets winger has first-hand knowledge on how humbling the NHL can be, coming off a quiet campaign as he worked his way back from a high ankle sprain.

But with the benefit of a full summer of training and a return to health, Perfetti has taken advantage of his promotion to the top line and quickly shown he belongs.

The latest proof came Tuesday, with Perfetti scoring a pair of goals — including the game-winner — in a 5-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild at Canada Life Centre.

Better wait for the next bus if a candidate promises quick, on-budget transit fixes

Winnipeg’s transit system needs fixing. But voters should be skeptical of municipal election candidates who promise to restore old routes, put hundreds of bus stops back where they used to be and somehow make everything better without spending substantially more money.

That’s not a transit plan. It’s wishful thinking.

Winnipeg’s transit network underwent a massive overhaul last year, fundamentally changing how people get around the city.

The new system has some real advantages, depending on where you live and where you need to go. It also has some serious shortcomings, including reduced service and less convenient connections for many riders.

Kinew won’t budge on opposition to criminalizing residential school denialism

Premier Wab Kinew stood by his opposition to the proposed criminalization of residential school denialism Wednesday, after some First Nations leaders criticized his earlier comments and asked him to reconsider.

Kinew said he doesn’t think Canada should make residential school denialism a crime, nor does he think it’s feasible to do, and he’d prefer to see it combated with education.

“When somebody has a question or wants to make a statement from a place of ignorance, the response isn’t to try to criminalize,” he told reporters.

“The response should be to try to heal whatever is going on with them that would cause them to say something hurtful, to try and educate whatever they lack in terms of knowledge about the true history of our country, and ultimately to find a way for us to all live together.”