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  • Tears for Fears, rotary phones, flares: Philly’s Bicentennial babies are turning 50 as America turns 250

    Tears for Fears, rotary phones, flares: Philly’s Bicentennial babies are turning 50 as America turns 250

    Gen Xers watched dial-up phones shrink to pocket size, typewriters turn into touch screens, and appointment TV give way to streaming binges.

    But Bicentennial babies are a special group of Xers. Born in 1976, they are celebrating a milestone birthday this year right along with the country. As America turns 250, they are turning 50. And on the cusp of the Semiquincentennial, Philadelphia’s Bicentennial babies are feeling reflective.

    1976 was just three years after Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling giving a woman the constitutional right to end a pregnancy. It came 11 years after the Voting Rights Act of 1965 made it illegal to try to stop Black Americans from voting, and 12 years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended legal segregation.

    Yolanda Wisher, producer of the “Bicentennial Baby” podcast, photographed in the Philadelphia Inquirer studio on May 28.

    These changes to the American landscape gave Bicentennial babies a level of personal freedom and agency when they were coming of age during the turn of the 21st century that their parents and grandparents did not have. But in the last decade, they’ve seen the Supreme Court reverse Roe and weaken civil rights laws to the point that Bicentennial babies’ babies now don’t have the same privileges their parents did.

    “I had been thinking about 2026 and being a Bicentennial baby,” said Yolanda Wisher, Philadelphia’s third poet laureate and host of the Bicentennial Baby podcast, a part of Art Philly’s “What Now: 2026″ festival.

    “I felt like this opportunity was the best way to study this major moment in American history from a personal angle and revisit what it means to be a Bicentennial baby from a Philadelphia perspective,” Wisher said.

    Each of the 10- to 15-minute Bicentennial Baby episodes bubbles with late ’80s and early ’90s nostalgia from the cassette tape centered in the podcast’s logo, to the funky theme music lending to its WDAS Quiet Storm vibe, to references to banana clips and acid-washed jeans.

    At its core, however, Bicentennial Baby is unapologetically Philly.

    Today’s 50-year-olds were in the first grade when Thriller was released, but they also remember 1982 as the year Constance Clayton became the first Black person to serve as the superintendent of Philadelphia public schools. They watched the Flyers on PRISM and music videos on MTV.

    Some of them were born in the Booth Maternity Center.

    Earlier this year, Wisher put a call out on social media asking Philadelphians turning 50 in 2026 to join her in conversation about their unique perspective as they enter middle age.

    “I was interested in finding the diversity of the Bicentennial babies’ experience,” Wisher said. “What does it mean to be a 50-year-old born and raised here? Or to be that person, who wasn’t born here, fell in love with the city, and decided to make it home?”

    A dozen applied. Wisher chose six.

    They are Laurie Allen, a librarian who lives in South Philly; Maleka Fruean, a community journalist who lives in Germantown and is a mom of four; Kenny Guy, who lives in Mount Airy and is a father of six; Michiko Hunt, a development associate at Greene Street Friends School, who lives in Germantown, and is a mom of two; and Stewart Varner, a manager of the University of Pennsylvania’s Digital Humanities Lab who lives in West Philly.

    Naila Mattison was selected to participate in the “Bicentennial Baby” podcast. Mattison died in late February, shortly after the podcast was taped.

    Naila Mattison, a poet, artist, and mom from West Philly, was the guest on the podcast’s first episode, which aired in late May. She died in February of cancer.

    “She came to us with such a sense of urgency,” Wisher said. “She wanted to share her story. I’m so glad we made space for her.”

    The Inquirer invited the Bicentennial babies to our studios earlier this month for a photo shoot. Allen, Fruean, Hunt, and Wisher — in her blazing blue 1976 T-shirt — came in and shared how being born during the Bicentennial impacted their outlook, is shaping their present, and is setting them up to be cool elders.

    The interviews have been edited for clarity.

    On Gen X culture

    Michiko: In Philly, I was always conscious of being a part of this microgeneration because there were literally less of us. In the 1980s, all the entertainment we watched was focused on our parents, L.A. Law, Hill Street Blues, even The Cosby Show. My parents bought Thriller and Bruce Springsteen. But then when I was in my 20s, everything was teen-focused. I mean, Britney Spears? I was too old for that. There were all these kids who were born in 1982 who loved her. And I just missed it.

    Michiko Hunt photographed in the Philadelphia Inquirer studio on May 28. Hunt is featured in the “Bicentennial Baby” podcast, produced by Yolanda Wisher.

    On technology

    Michiko: I went to my father’s office at 19th and Cherry Streets and typed my college applications on his electric typewriter. It was fancy. You could delete mistakes with correction tape.

    Yolanda: My grandmother had a rotary phone. We had a push button phone. I had a pager.

    Maleka: And right around our senior year in high school, that’s when cell phones started to come in.

    Yolanda: And they were huge, like the New Jack City phone … They were crazy expensive like video recorders. Like, if you had one of those …

    Michiko: You were rich!

    On fashion

    Michiko: It’s true: What’s old is new again. What we called flare, my mother calls bell-bottom, and my daughter calls wide-legged. We had a distinct style though. Fashion bubbled up from specific subcultures like goth or hip-hop. Now everything comes from the internet. It’s really flattened style.

    Maleka: And analog is a style now. Analog, as in not digital. It’s a fashion category. Like what people carry in their analog basket is a thing: a pencil and a notebook? That’s just what I put in my backpack.

    Maleka Fruean photographed in the Philadelphia Inquirer studio on May 28. Fruean is featured in the “Bicentennial Baby” podcast, produced by Yolanda Wisher.

    On music

    Michiko: Our music was the best. I still have ticket stubs when I went to see the Roots. We all listened to hip-hop but we also listened to other kinds of music, too.

    Yolanda: Tears for Fears!

    Maleka: The Eurythmics!

    Michiko: MTV!

    Laurie: I remember when the radio was the only thing that mattered. Then we went to tapes, then to CDS, MP3s streaming. Each time I was like, I’m not going to do it. Yet every time I made the switch. Every. Single. Time. But I think it’s going full-circle. I miss playing guilty pleasure music without a digital trail of what I listened to.

    On working

    Yolanda: I watched my mom work hard everyday. When she retired from her job at Merck, all she got was a watch. That said something to me. I watched my mom struggle as a single mom, work her way up, put my siblings and I through college. That job was in the background of our lives our whole life.

    Maleka: My children understand [better than I do]. They are not going to break their backs for a pittance. I’ve worked so hard my whole life. Still, I have no idea what my retirement is going to look like.

    On learning from elders and turning 50

    Yolanda: Womenfolk in my grandmother’s generation were more matronly. My grandmother had a whole closet full of church hats. She kept her house a certain kind of way. She had a routine. She was very straitlaced, at least in public. She had a secret life we didn’t ordinarily see.

    Michiko: We have a blessing of choices. My dad’s mom was Japanese American. She was born in California, a first generation immigrant. She was a teenager during the Depression. Her family worked in a packaged frozen food factory. Today she would have been an artist. She made all of our Cabbage Patch Dolls and all of those beautiful doilies. She had the soul of an artist.

    Maleka: We have access to so much more information. And because of that we have wonder.

    Laurie Allen photographed in the Philadelphia Inquirer studio on May 28. Allen is featured in the “Bicentennial Baby” podcast, produced by Yolanda Wisher.

    On becoming an elder

    Laurie: My body does not look like it does when I was 20, 30, or even 40. And I assumed when I got this age I would want to go back in time. But I don’t. Instead, I’m grateful for the wisdom for knowing who I am. I don’t want to go back to those uncertain times. I may have looked better, but I felt worse.

    On being American

    Maleka: When I was growing up, I had mixed feelings because I saw so many vulnerable people who needed to be protected. I didn’t have the language to define institutionalized or systemic racism. Now that I do, I want America to do better. But I’m still proud to be an American.

    Yolanda: The Semiquincentennial isn’t a one-sided story, but one that celebrates the complicated history of America. The racial, cultural, and social point of view of the people who are running isn’t the only perspective. We should be able to hold all of these voices at the same time and move forward.

    “Bicentennial Baby“ is available on Apple, Spotify, and Amazon Music.

  • New Jersey’s new e-bike law is causing confusion down the Shore. Pennsylvanians are exempt.

    New Jersey’s new e-bike law is causing confusion down the Shore. Pennsylvanians are exempt.

    VENTNOR, N.J. — The e-bike revolution will not be coming to Ventnor’s famously chaotic boardwalk. The city banned motorized bicycles decades ago, and raised the penalties in 2023, citing dangers from the speeds and heavier bicycles.

    Ocean City tried doing the same in 2024, but reversed course on the lowest speed e-bikes after an outcry, particularly from seniors who have grown to cherish the electric bikes that take them farther and faster, and against the wind without breaking a sweat.

    Wildwood allows them but has a 10 mph speed limit for any vehicle. Atlantic City prohibits them.

    But while boardwalk rules vary, the state’s e-bike law, passed in January with a grace period through July 19, requires New Jerseyans with e-bikes to register them and, in some cases, purchase insurance.

    The law was adopted amid a sense of urgency after a 13-year-old Scotch Plains boy on an electric bike was killed in a collision with a landscaping truck. Earlier this month, Chase Sudano, 16, a rising wrestling star at St. Augustine Prep, was killed after he collided with a UPS delivery truck in Southhampton, Burlington County.

    Community mourns 16-year-old killed in e-bike crash

    The law defines two classes of e-bikes: low-speed, where the motor assists only while pedaling and shuts off when the bicycles reaches 20 miles per hour, and a motorized bicycle that is throttle-capable of assisted speeds up to 28 miles per hour.

    All users of both categories must have a permit or driver’s license and wear helmets. Nobody under 15 can ride one at all.

    ‘It’s a mess’

    So far, there is no way to actually comply. The state’s own Motor Vehicle Commission website has no way to register an e-bike. The state now says it will begin taking appointments only after the grace period ends.

    Scott Chambers, owner of Zippy’s Bikes in Wildwood, says the new e-bike law in New Jersey “is a mess,” with no way for people to comply with registration requirements, and confusion over other issues.

    “It’s a mess,” said Scott Chambers, owner of Zippy’s Bikes in Wildwood. “It’s so overwhelming because they created this law, I don’t want to say haphazardly, but they rushed it.”

    Crawford said his customers are reluctant to buy an e-bike until they know they can ride it in compliance with the law.

    He says the law doesn’t mention e-tricycles, so it’s not clear where those might fall. (The state now says the law does not apply to e-tricycles.)

    In Ventnor, there’s a big electronic sign on Atlantic Avenue alerting people to the new law’s helmet, insurance, and registration requirements. A new sign was added to the Boardwalk itself, highlighting two prohibited categories: e-bikes and dogs.

    Ventnor police Lt. Bryan Gaviria says the department will have its hands full, educating and, at some point, enforcing the new e-bike law.

    But first, he said, they need some answers themselves.

    “We’re absolutely waiting for clarity all around,” he said, adding that the city’s bicycle officers are choosing to ride on non-electric bikes because they don’t want to be out of compliance themselves, and they don’t want to be on e-bikes while enforcing an e-bike ban.

    Ventnor installed this sign on the Boardwalk warning that electric bikes were prohibited (as well as dogs). The state’s new e-bike law goes into effect July 19, but Pennsylvanians will not be required to register their e-bikes while in New Jersey, the state says.

    Waiting on the state

    The state recently clarified some of the issues that were causing confusion.

    William Connolly, the press secretary for the N.J. Motor Vehicle Commission, says the MVC will begin offering appointments for e-bike licensing and registration in July. The law’s grace period ends July 19.

    “We will be making an announcement later this month about when appointments will become available, along with offering newly updated resources and step-by-step guidance for e-bike licensing and registration,” he said.

    He said the delay was due to the “extensive IT upgrades” required for new licensing and registration systems, educational resources and testing procedures, not to mention buying new materials such as “specialized license plate stickers,” that will have to be displayed on the registered bikes.

    “We are establishing a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive process for e-bikes,” he said.

    Ventnor installed this electronic sign on Atlantic Avenue to educate people about the state’s new e-bike law. Pennsylvanians will not be required to register their e-bikes while in New Jersey, the state says.

    Connolly said there is one category of e-bikes that will not require insurance, though they will still require registration: the lowest speed e-bikes.

    “These are the low-speed e-bikes with a motor that provide pedal assist only when the rider is pedaling and cease to provide assistance when the e-bike reaches 20 mph,” he said.

    So what if you’re visiting the Shore and bring an e-bike?

    Connolly said: “E-bike registration through the New Jersey MVC is only available to New Jersey residents.” Meaning, Pennsylvanians can bring their bikes and use them without registering them.

    But bicycle advocates say the law is confusing, because it also states that any bike must display a sticker showing that it is registered.

    While the law was prompted by a series of crashes, and particularly by the ubiquitous use by teenagers, it has been seniors that have taken to the e-bikes and urged towns to let them ride on their boardwalks.

    Annamarie, 70, and Mike Carr, 71, of Ventnor are best known for the Jagielky’s candy shops they own, but it’s e-bikes that have become their passion.

    Loading their bikes back onto their truck in Ocean City, where they began and ended a bike ride around various bridges, Mike Carr said he’d be sure to wear a helmet, because he believes that will be the thing that officers will focus in on in the beginning.

    Annamarie said, “Sure we’re upset,” about not being able to ride on Ventnor’s boardwalk, but they recognize the risks from people going too fast, particularly on electric scooters.

    E-bikes have allowed the couple to go on numerous bike rides a week, for upward of 30 or more miles. They’d never do that on a regular bike.

    “We parked here, we went the whole length of the boardwalk, we went down to 29th Street, we went back to Haven Avenue, came back and went over the bridge to go see the birds,” Mike said, describing the couple’s route that day.

    With the e-bikes, they don’t have to worry about the wind, he said. The couple will typically go 13 miles an hour.

    They are hooked on the freedom, distance, and exhilaration that e-bikes have given them, even as they passed 70. They ride all over the bridges of the barrier islands.

    Mike’s got some of his regular routes timed so that he can get over the bridge without getting a red light and without automobile traffic catching him from behind. “When we’re going into Longport, you turn around, you look at the light. When it’s red, you have four minutes to get over. You hit the throttle and you go as fast as you can.”

    He said they’ll try to register the bicycles and comply with the law, once they’re able to:

    “I’ll have to wear a helmet because I’m guessing they’ll look for the guys with no helmet, pull them over.”

    E-bike riders can sign up for direct updates from MVC here.

  • Letters to the Editor | June 21, 2026

    Letters to the Editor | June 21, 2026

    Mixed on strategy

    Solomon Jones’ most recent column regarding his lack of concern about Graham Platner’s ethics was dead on. We need a new generation — warts and all — to fight for us and rebuild the Democratic Party. Just look at some of the wins in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia, etc. Just look at Andy Kim’s challenge to the “County Line” on ballots and his win. I’m only 73, for God’s sake, and I want to see younger, more progressive candidates get in the trenches and fight for us. I want this country to move forward again, not backward. It’s time to remove the bigots, racists, and sexists who are ruining our country and elect some candidates who can truly make us great.

    Vince McGinley, Haddon Heights

    …

    In his recent column, Solomon Jones states that to fight Donald Trump’s presidency we should look past character and apply the same principles the Trump team has. When did character no longer matter? You never fix a wrong with another wrong; it simply doesn’t work. If character no longer matters, have we hit rock bottom?

    Robert Galasso, Cherry Hill

    End Gaza’s suffering

    I appreciated the recent Associated Press story about the continuing crises in Gaza, even though the content is grim and distressing to read. We needed to be reminded that the suffering is not over. We have been distracted by the crazy, dangerous, and damaging actions by a failed presidency that has allowed Israel to continue its devastation of the people of Gaza. Without international pressure to stop, Israel has continued to kill Palestinian civilians, squeeze them into less and less territory, and resist all but token attempts at providing necessary food, shelter, and medical care to the beleaguered populace.

    Since the U.S. was complicit in prosecuting this tragedy, that gives us considerable leverage to end it. We need to stop being war enablers to become war resisters. If the president is incapable of understanding the urgency, we need to tell Congress to take control and to establish a clear policy that calls for an end to bloodshed, and the initiation of a massive, international effort to relieve and rebuild Gaza.

    We are a great country, we’ve done this before, and we can do it again.

    Norman K. Janes, Haverford

    Join the conversation: Send letters to letters@inquirer.com. Limit length to 150 words and include home address and day and evening phone number. Letters run in The Inquirer six days a week on the editorial pages and online.

  • Horoscopes: Sunday, June 21, 2026

    ARIES (March 21-April 19). Your summer superpower is assertiveness. You’ll see the opportunity in each scenario, ask for what you want and seize the moment. Keep the manners, lose the apologies and remember the overall good of the group.

    TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Your summer superpower is timeliness. You’ll plan when it’s necessary, act when you feel it and relax when it’s time to take it all in. Keep the high standards for yourself, lose the expectations of others and remember patience.

    GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Your summer superpower is confidence. You’ll light up rooms, inspire loyalty and attract exactly the attention needed to move your plans forward. Keep the generosity, lose the pride and remember that admiration feels best when it’s shared.

    CANCER (June 22-July 22). Your summer superpower is discernment. You’ll know what’s worth your time, what needs fixing and what should simply be left alone. Keep the devotion, lose the perfectionism and remember that joy is productive, too.

    LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Your summer superpower is connection. You’ll bring the right people together, smooth over tension and create beauty wherever you go. Keep the charm, lose the indecision and remember that harmony sometimes requires honesty first.

    VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Your summer superpower is magnetism. You’ll draw people, opportunities and revelations toward you without forcing a thing. Keep the passion, lose the suspicion and remember that vulnerability creates stronger bonds than control ever could.

    LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Your summer superpower is optimism. You’ll expand your world through travel, risk-taking and saying yes to experiences that wake you up again. Keep the enthusiasm, lose the restlessness and remember that freedom means choosing what matters most.

    SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Your summer superpower is focus. You’ll make steady progress while everyone else gets distracted by heatwaves and chaos. Keep the ambition, lose the rigidity and remember that pleasure can fuel success instead of interrupting it.

    SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Your summer superpower is intuition. You’ll sense what people need before they say a word and create moments that bring everyone closer together. Keep the tenderness, lose the self-protection and remember that not everyone earns access to your inner world.

    CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Your summer superpower is originality. You’ll spot trends before they arrive and imagine possibilities other people completely miss. Keep the independence, lose the detachment and remember that community strengthens your vision.

    AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Your summer superpower is imagination. You’ll dream vividly, create beautifully and pick up on emotional undercurrents other people overlook. Keep the compassion, lose the escapism and remember that boundaries protect your peace, not diminish it.

    PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Your summer superpower is curiosity. You’ll stumble into the right conversations, collect surprising opportunities and charm your way through changing circumstances. Keep the openness, lose the overthinking and remember the value of listening as closely as you speak.

    TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (June 21). It’s a Mystery School Year in the Ancient Greek sense, in which you’re challenged before receiving sacred knowledge. You emerge with sharper intuition, deeper self-trust and the powerful ability to recognize illusion versus truth. More highlights: You’ll connect often with friends for games and laughs. A project gets you seen by people who will pay you well and elevate your work. Pisces and Taurus adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 15, 3, 20, 16 and 7.

  • Dear Abby | Widower boyfriend still acknowledges wedding anniversary

    DEAR ABBY: I have been dating a wonderful man for 10 months. He was married for 45 years until his wife died after a five-year illness. He is kind, thoughtful, smart, generous and romantic. Our relationship is exclusive, and things could hardly be better.

    Recently, he and one of his grown daughters and her family gathered for dinner to commemorate his wedding anniversary. I thought it was a little strange. She has been gone for two years, and I found myself feeling somewhat hurt. I wasn’t invited to the dinner, which doesn’t bother me, but I can’t escape the feeling that, on some level, he still feels married. Accordingly, I feel as though I’m dating a married man, which I would never do.

    As we are not able to easily work through this, he suggested I write you and get your take. Am I being unreasonable and reading too much into this? Is it possible that he is not yet ready for a new relationship? Should I request (or insist) that he refrain from such “celebrations” in the future?

    — NOT A CHEATER IN INDIANA

    DEAR NOT A CHEATER: Your gentleman friend had nearly 50 years of history with his late wife. If he and their adult children chose to celebrate the anniversary of their marriage, it was no skin off your nose and you shouldn’t have taken it so personally.

    If the two of you were to marry, one would hope he and his family would celebrate the present and the future. Even if they didn’t, if you love this man and want to be accepted by his family, you would be foolish to insist he stop something they find comforting. It wouldn’t go down well. Trust me on that.

    ** ** **

    DEAR ABBY: I am in a relationship with a much younger man. We are both adults and love each other. There’s no doubt that we want to be together and enjoy our lives together. But his family keeps trying to get him to leave me, despite his explaining to them that he’s happy and this works for us.

    All of this makes me uncomfortable when the family gets together, but I go to support him, and he wants me there. They love him but they don’t give him support when he needs it. I have been there for him through his toughest times. How do I get them to understand?

    — OLDER WOMAN IN THE MIDWEST

    DEAR OLDER: It is not your responsibility to convince your boyfriend’s family of anything. He should tell his family that he doesn’t want to discuss the subject when they bring it up. He should also refrain from sharing it with you.

    With time, his relatives will realize that your relationship is a lasting one. If, however, they deliberately make you uncomfortable when you have to see them, limit the amount of time you spend in their presence.

    ** ** **

    DEAR READERS: Happy Father’s Day to fathers everywhere — birth fathers, stepfathers, adoptive and foster fathers, grandfathers, and all of you caring men who mentor children and fill the role of absent dads. P.S. Also, a big shoutout to dual-role moms. I applaud you all — today and every day.

    — LOVE, ABBY

  • Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber put on a show in Phillies’ rout of the Mets: ‘What a night to be able to have’

    Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber put on a show in Phillies’ rout of the Mets: ‘What a night to be able to have’

    In three weeks, in the same sold-out ballpark, in front of another national television audience, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper will probably be in the All-Star Game, maybe even the Home Run Derby.

    But they won’t put on a show like this.

    They can’t possibly.

    Can they?

    Whatever happens in the Bank’s All-Star closeup, take this to the bank: The Phillies’ stars put on dueling talent shows for the ages in Saturday night’s 15-3 demolition of the rival Mets. And, no, that isn’t mouth-agape hyperbole over feats we can’t believe we just saw.

    Bryce Harper hits for first-career cycle in five innings, Kyle Schwarber hits three homers vs. Mets

    “They stole the show from me, that’s for sure,” ace Cristopher Sánchez said, laughing, after a one-run, six-inning gem reduced his ERA to 1.84. “It was perfect.”

    It started with Schwarber, who became the fourth player in Phillies history (dating back to 1883, by the way) to smash two homers in one inning before adding a third later in the game for good measure.

    Not to be outdone, Harper tripled in the fifth inning to hit for the cycle for the first time in a career that has spanned 15 seasons and will eventually take him to the Hall of Fame. And it took him only four at-bats, to boot.

    Only once before did teammates do those two things — at least three homers and a cycle — in one game: Lou Gehrig and Tony Lazzeri, Hall of Fame Yankees, in 1932.

    “We were wondering that in the dugout,” Harper said. “We didn’t think there was going to be two guys that did it. But to have those two names up against ours is pretty cool. It’s a pretty awesome moment for both of us.”

    Kyle Schwarber became the fourth Phillies player to homer twice in one inning when he did so in the third.

    Or as Schwarber put it, after he and Harper had four hits apiece in a 17-hit Phillies onslaught: “It was a pretty cool overall night, in general.”

    For Harper, it began a few minutes before 3 p.m. with something he rarely does. He took early batting practice on the field, an exercise he prefers to do underneath the stands in the controlled environment of the indoor cage.

    But Harper was in a 1-for-22 funk, even though he’s been mostly pleased with his approach at the plate. He swung mostly at strikes and hit balls hard, but as he said, “it feels like there’s a big, old glove out there.”

    So, Harper went out to the field with one objective.

    “I was trying to hit home runs,” he said. “Haven’t hit really many balls over the fence in a while, so I felt like just going out there and just trying to hit some balls in the third deck. Sometimes that helps.”

    The Phillies still need a right-handed bat. Let’s take an early dive into some options before the trade deadline.

    OK, but hitting a fastball from Mets ace righty Freddy Peralta into the right-field seats on his first swing of the game for his first homer in 10 days?

    That’s absurd. But it fits with the night’s theme.

    Harper was using different lumber, too. He switched to a 34-inch, 35-ounce bat instead of his usual 34-inch, 31½-ounce model — “My heavy bat from the cage,” he said — because he thought he was out in front of too many pitches.

    “That bat’s from 2023, just an old, heavy bat that I swing every day in the cage,” Harper said. “It’s just my workout-routine bat. I said to [hitting coach Kevin] Long about a month ago, I was like, ‘Man, I should use this thing in a game,’ and I never did. Finally I was like, ‘Screw it. I’m going to do it today.

    “I don’t know if it translated to the game or anything else. But what a night to be able to have.”

    Tell Schwarber about it. He led off an eight-run third inning by golfing a 456-foot drive halfway up the second deck in right field. By the time Schwarber’s spot in the lineup came back around, the Phillies had an eight-run lead. It ballooned to 11-0 with another Schwarbomb, 457 feet to almost the same spot.

    “That was cool,” said Schwarber, who didn’t do anything unusual before the game. “First time I’ve done it in my career.”

    In fact, the only other Phillies players to do it were Andy Seminick (1949), Von Hayes (1985), and Trea Turner (2023).

    Why stop there? Schwarber tacked on a third homer in the seventh inning, skying a ball around the right-field foul pole. It marked the fifth time in his career that he hit at least three homers and raised his majors-leading total this season to 28.

    Phillies weighing options to fill Andrew Painter’s spot in starting rotation; Trea Turner returns to lineup

    “That’s what he tries to do, man,” Harper said of the sport’s most prolific home-run hitter. “It’s way different. Just the way he kind of connects to the baseball. He uses the ground so well. He’s got such a simple, short swing. It’s pretty impressive, you know?”

    Almost as impressive as, say, scoring all the way from first base on Harper’s cycle-capping triple.

    Everyone in the dugout was aware of Harper’s pursuit of the cycle. After his first-inning homer, he was typically overaggressive in hustling to turn a single into a double on a liner to right-center before ripping a single in the third inning.

    “We kind of talked about it before, and I was like, ‘Hey, you’ve just got to aim at Monty’s Angle,’” Schwarber said, referring to the area where the wall juts out in left-center field. “And then he gets up there and he hits the ball to center field. I’m like, ‘I’m going to run through the stop sign.’

    “I was pretty predetermined on going, and I’m glad [third base coach Anthony Contreras] was on the same page, too, with sending me.”

    Not that they had much choice. Harper was intent on not stopping around second base, the helmet flying off his head between first and second.

    Harper joked that Schwarber was well-rested because he “jogged a lot tonight.” And when he slid into third, Harper raised both arms skyward, then pumped his right arm and doffed his helmet.

    It was only the 11th time in 144 seasons that a Phillies player hit for the cycle. J.T. Realmuto and Weston Wilson did it in 2023 and 2024, respectively. But it’s happened only five times in the last 63 years.

    And never to Harper. Well, not since college.

    “Super Regionals,” he said. “Seven-for-seven, four homers and a cycle.”

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    Where does a cycle rank for a two-time MVP with 379 career homers?

    “It’s up there,” he said. “Doing that at the big-league level is really cool.”

    And it makes you wonder what Schwarber and Harper could possibly have in store for an All-Star encore. Neither will commit to the Home Run Derby until they know if they’ll be named to the All-Star team.

    But, really, is there any doubt?

    “A crowd like [Saturday] shows you how electric it’s going to be, for not only that [Home Run Derby] night but the whole week in general,” Schwarber said. “I think it’ll be really special to have the All-Star Game here in Philly, and our fans are going to be able to show up for that.”

    The Phillies’ biggest stars just gave everyone one heck of a preview.

  • Bryce Harper hits for first-career cycle in five innings, Kyle Schwarber hits three homers vs. Mets

    Bryce Harper hits for first-career cycle in five innings, Kyle Schwarber hits three homers vs. Mets

    Fifteen years into a career that will almost certainly take him to the Hall of Fame, Phillies star Bryce Harper did something he’s never done before.

    He hit for the cycle.

    And it took him only four at-bats.

    Harper tripled in the fifth inning of a 15-3 rout of the Mets, and upon sliding into third, he pumped his right arm, then raised both arms skyward. Harper homered in the first inning, then reached on a hustle double and a single in the Phillies’ eight-run third inning.

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    “[Interim manager] Don [Mattingly] and all the coaches came up to me and were like, ‘Hey, if you get a chance, just go do it,’” Harper said. “So, kind of once I had their blessing to just go on any ball, it was kind of the perfect thing.”

    It marked the 11th time a Phillies player hit for the cycle. Harper joined Lave Cross (1894), Sam Thompson (1894), Cy Williams (1927), Chuck Klein (1931 and 1933), Johnny Callison (1963), Gregg Jefferies (1995), David Bell (2004), J.T. Realmuto (2023), and Weston Wilson (2024).

    “Doing that at the big-league level is really cool,” Harper said. “Got close a couple times, but being able to do that, having that moment is really, really cool.”

    The triple capped the cycle, but it wouldn’t have been complete without a signature double from Harper in the third inning. He shot a ball into the gap in right-center and aggressively took second base, never hesitating out of the box. It was the sort of baserunning for which he’s often criticized.

    “I don’t really care what people think about my baserunning because that’s how I’ve always played,” Harper said. “I’ve done it since I was 7 years old. I don’t really play a different way when I know I can try to get to second base. I’ve made mistakes on the bases. I’m going to. Little kids are going to do the same thing. And I’ll preach to them that they just play the game hard. If they get thrown out at second or third, then so be it. If I don’t do that tonight, then I don’t have the opportunity to hit for a cycle.”

    Not to be outdone, Kyle Schwarber crushed three homers, including two in the Phillies’ big third inning, to raise his majors-leading total to 28. He became the fourth Phillies player to homer twice in one inning. The others: Andy Seminick (1949), Von Hayes (1985), and Trea Turner (2023).

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    Both of Schwarber’s third-inning homers landed halfway up the second deck in right field. The first was measured at 456 feet, the second at 457 feet.

    Harper entered with 13 career four-hits games, including two games with five hits. But he hadn’t hit for the cycle since 2010 at the College of Southern Nevada.

    So, when Harper hit a fastball from Mets lefty reliever Cionel Pérez into the gap in left-center field, he had no intention of stopping at second base. The helmet flew off his head between first and second. He went from the batter’s box to third base in 11.8 seconds.

    Schwarber, not known for his speed, even scored from first base.

    “We knew as soon as he hits it and it gets into the gap, that he’s going to go,” Schwarber said. “So, I was just trying to make sure I get home.”

    Said Harper: “He was busting it, so I appreciate it. I mean, he jogged a lot tonight.”

  • Indigenous chef and author Sean Sherman delivers the lost history and sublime story of Indigenous American foods

    Indigenous chef and author Sean Sherman delivers the lost history and sublime story of Indigenous American foods

    Kids today can “name more Kardashians than types of trees,” according to Sean Sherman, a James Beard Award-winning Oglala Lakota Sioux chef, activist, and cookbook author.

    They — and their parents, for that matter — know almost nothing about the forests, plants, and animals that fed Sherman’s Native American ancestors and cultivated whole nations of Indigenous people, he said in a talk Saturday at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

    Sherman was on hand to discuss his new book, Turtle Island: Foods and Traditions of the Indigenous Peoples of North America, which includes 100 ancestral and modern recipes.

    In his career, Sherman has won the 2018 James Beard Award for Best American Cookbook for his book, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen; the James Beard Leadership Award in 2019 for his dedication to revitalizing Indigenous food systems; and the 2022 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant, for his Minneapolis restaurant, Owamni (co-owned with Dana Thompson).

    Sherman is famous for, among other dishes, wild rice-crusted walleye, cedar-braised bison, and hunter’s stew with bear meat (or lamb if bears are scarce).

    He said he learned his craft the hard way.

    “I couldn’t very well go online to learn how to do Native American cooking,” said Sherman, 52, who was born on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, and now lives in Minneapolis. “Nothing was there. So much of it was lost to history so quickly.”

    He read academic books on plants that were used as food and medicines by Native Americans. He learned how to prepare the game meats that provided protein to long-ago ancestors. And he worked in Minnesota restaurants to cook what he calls “colonial food,” derived from European cuisines, to hone his chops in the kitchen.

    Many Native Americans have long been unaware of the knowledge gleaned by their forebears. Showing a slide of a bologna sandwich on white bread, Sherman told the 240 people in his audience, “This was Lakota food when I was young.” Also on the menu: unadorned cans bearing the words, “Beef with juices.”

    Sherman is wry with a biting wit — “lawns are [expletive] stupid, aren’t they?”

    He also shows little reverence for the 250th celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, dismissing the document as a “break-up letter to King George” that described Sherman’s ancestors as “merciless Indian savages.”

    When Sherman was done, the crowd moved outside to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, where ethnobotanist Linda Black Elk, director of education for NATIFS (that’s North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems), was holding court.

    Ethnobotanist Linda Black Elk talks plants with people attending chef Sean Sherman’s event at the Academy of Natural Sciences.

    She showed visitors a garden of plants used by Indigenous people that grow easily in Philadelphia, and can be harnessed for use.

    Anise hyssop can be made into a tea that’s “good for the lungs, and helped during COVID,” Black Elk said.

    Mountain mint, which battles indigestion, was growing near elderflowers, “one of the most antiviral plants in the world,” according to Black Elk. “And you can simply grow it in your yard.”

    Black Elk added that the well-known “three sisters” — squash, corn, and beans — easily grow at Philadelphia’s latitude as well.

    Impressed by the plants, as well as Sherman himself, Lucas Figueroa, 28, of South Philadelphia, an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer, said, “Food connects everybody to culture and the land. I’m so very passionate about this.”

    Sara Marine, 51, an archeologist from Lancaster, praised Sherman for not merely trying to recreate the past, but for “bringing it to life.”

    Salad wraps that included mustard greens, daylilies, and rose petals were sampled during chef Sean Sherman’s event at the Academy of Natural Sciences.

    Steps from the garden, visitors were treated to snacks with Native American roots that can be made today with local ingredients: aronia berry granola (with oats and flax seed); sumac honey spritz (made with seltzer); and cornmeal elderberry cookies (sweetened with maple sugar).

    Sherman said he wanted his audience to understand that he doesn’t like simply telling people, “this is how we cooked in 1491.” Rather, he said, “I want to show people that we’re moving forward … coming up with food that can be beautiful and hopeful.

    “This is real American food. That label isn’t just for the hamburger.”

    Sherman’s appearance was presented in partnership with ArtPhilly’s What Now: 2026 festival and WHYY. The event is connected to the Academy’s new exhibition Botany of Nations, on view through Feb. 14, 2027.

  • Phillies weighing options to fill Andrew Painter’s spot in starting rotation; Trea Turner returns to lineup

    Phillies weighing options to fill Andrew Painter’s spot in starting rotation; Trea Turner returns to lineup

    Andrew Painter has reported to Lehigh Valley, where he will work to improve a fastball that hasn’t overpowered many major-league hitters.

    The Phillies aren’t sure how long it will take.

    “We haven’t put a timetable on it,“ general manager Preston Mattingly said on The Inquirer’s Phillies Extra podcast. “It’s TBD at this point when he comes back. But I think we all know as an organization that we’re going to need him.”

    OK, but in the meantime, the Phillies must fill Painter’s spot. They don’t have many options. Starting pitching depth has been a concern since the offseason. It isn’t an organizational strength.

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    But before the Phillies settle the fifth-starter question, they will slightly rearrange the rotation beyond co-aces Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler. Jesús Luzardo will move back one day to avoid overtaxing the bullpen by splitting up Painter’s spot and Aaron Nola.

    So, after Wheeler starts at home Sunday night against the Mets, the rotation will shape up like this for the upcoming series in Washington: Monday: No. 5 starter; Tuesday: Luzardo; Wednesday: Nola; Thursday: Sánchez.

    As for who will take the fifth (spot), the Phillies seem to have three choices:

    Bryse Wilson: Called up to fill Painter’s roster spot, Wilson threw 29 pitches in two scoreless innings of relief Thursday night against the Mets, which would line him up to start on short rest. The 28-year-old righty had a 6.29 ERA in triple A but also hadn’t allowed a run in 12 innings in his last three starts. He has appeared in 164 major-league games, including 57 starts.

    Alan Rangel is a candidate to join the Phillies’ starting rotation next week.

    Alan Rangel: Despite occasionally spotty command (27 walks in 70 innings), Rangel has been Lehigh Valley’s most consistent starter. He has a 3.99 ERA in 14 games (11 starts) and would be on regular rest Monday.

    Bullpen game/opener: The Phillies have more depth in the bullpen. Interim manager Don Mattingly said he isn’t inclined to pass the baton from reliever to reliever for nine innings. But the Phillies could use an opener before turning to a bulk pitcher, possibly Wilson or Rangel.

    “I don’t know about bullpen-heavy, but obviously there will be usage,” Mattingly said. “There’s no plan to just go two innings and then try to do the whole thing with a bullpen. It won’t be that kind of game. We’ll definitely have bulk in there.”

    The fifth spot in the rotation will come around four times before the All-Star break. Painter isn’t expected back until after the second half opens. He will throw multiple bullpen sessions before making his first start for Lehigh Valley, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said.

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    Painter has a 7.06 ERA and a 1-8 record (the Phillies are 3-9 in his starts). Opponents are batting .404 and slugging .660 against his fastball.

    The Phillies believe it stems mostly from his delivery. He tends to over-rotate toward the first-base side of the mound, rather than striding directly toward home plate, which has affected his ability to command the fastball.

    “Most of it is delivery-oriented,” Dombrowski said. “Because he’s done some things with his delivery, just going more directly to the plate rather than spinning off. He’s had more life, and you see it at times. He threw some pitches that were outstanding but not on a consistent basis.

    “So, the feeling is that when he does that, when he gives that effort going forward, his ball’s got more movement. He’s got more command of his pitches.”

    Trea Turner is back in the lineup after suffering a bruised right calf on Thursday.

    Trea bien

    Trea Turner returned to the lineup Saturday — in his familiar leadoff spot — after leaving Thursday night’s game with a bruised right calf. He got hit by a pitch from Mets lefty Sean Manaea in the first inning.

    When Turner reported soreness and tightness, Mattingly took him out of the game. But after a day off Friday, Turner felt better.

    “For me, the biggest danger with that is him running differently, and then we’re into a hamstring or a hip [injury] or something like that,” Mattingly said. “So, wanted to make sure that he can run. That was his biggest issue, just pushing off. The off-day did him well.”

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    Extra bases

    Lefty reliever Kyle Backhus (elbow) was scheduled to make his fifth injury rehab appearance for Lehigh Valley. The Phillies likely will reinstate him from the injured list early next week. Backhus could fill an important role in the bullpen, with lefty José Alvarado struggling and Tanner Banks getting sent back to the minors. … Gage Wood update: The Phillies’ top prospect has a 3.71 ERA, 25 strikeouts, and only five walks in 17 innings over five starts since his promotion to double A. … Wheeler (6-1, 2.01 ERA) will be opposed Sunday night by Mets lefty David Peterson (3-5, 5.91).

  • A rideshare service driver was shot Saturday while waiting for a customer in Fairmount

    A 38-year-old woman who was working for a rideshare service was hospitalized after being shot during an attempted robbery in Fairmount just after midnight Saturday, police said.

    Around 12:30 a.m., police responded to a call on the 2800 block of Poplar Street, where they found the victim suffering from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. She is in stable condition at Temple Hospital, police said.

    The woman was working as a driver and waiting for her passenger to show up when two young men approached her, police said.

    “One of the suspects tapped on her driver-side window with a small handgun,” police said in a statement. “Without a word exchanged, the victim immediately attempted to drive away to escape, prompting the suspect to fire a shot through her window, striking her shoulder.”

    Police said the two men fled west toward 29th Street, while the injured driver drove to 28th Street to wait for an ambulance.

    Police said the men are in their late teens to early 20s with slim builds, wearing all-black clothing and masks. The motive was robbery, police said.