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  • The Phillies have made history turning the NL East into a race again: ‘Just want to keep it going’

    The Phillies have made history turning the NL East into a race again: ‘Just want to keep it going’

    The Phillies returned to Citizens Bank Park for Monday’s series opener against the Pirates a season-high 10 games above .500.

    It’s a far cry from where they were in April, as they tumbled as far as 10 games under .500 on April 26. But their improbable rebound has made them the first team in baseball history to bounce back from 10 games under .500 to 10 games over .500 before the end of June.

    Now, they’ve all but erased their dismal start. At the 84-game mark last year, the Phillies had a 49-35 record, and would go on to finish with 96 wins and win the division. This year, they are 47-37 at the same point.

    “This is a 96-win club last year, this is not a club that didn’t show up every day and play every day,” said interim manager Don Mattingly. “You win 96 games, you’re playing good baseball, so nothing that you really didn’t expect to happen is happening. Just want to keep it going.”

    Not only that, but the Phillies have closed within three games of the Braves for the lead in the National League East. It’s a gap that was as wide as 10½ games in May.

    NL East standings

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    It’s helped out that the Braves’ early-season dominance has somewhat faltered, with Atlanta posting a 9-13 record so far in June. But the Phillies have managed to capitalize, and a chasm that seemed insurmountable a month ago is shaping into a race again, with two series remaining between the teams in September.

    “I wasn’t really looking at Atlanta,” Mattingly said. “I was looking more at us getting back to .500 at first, then to five [games over .500], and then trying to get to 10, and now trying to get to 15, and wherever you end up landing is where you land, but obviously you want to win the division. But still day to day, and so much baseball to be played.”

    Bryce Harper has proven he is still elite. Now, it’s Dave Dombrowski’s turn. | David Murphy

    García in town

    Right fielder Adolis García was at the ballpark on Monday to get checked out after undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a torn lat on Wednesday.

    García, who signed a one-year, $10 million deal in the offseason, spent time catching up with his teammates behind the batting cage pregame. His rehab is expected to take place primarily at the Phillies’ facilities in Clearwater, Fla.

    “He’s just coming in to see where he’s at. He’s had surgery a few days ago, he’s not going to be able to do a whole lot, but it’d be good to see him,” Mattingly said.

    Starting pitcher Andrew Painter will likely make his next start for Lehigh Valley on Saturday.

    Painter’s next start

    The Phillies haven’t officially announced when Andrew Painter will make his next start for triple-A Lehigh Valley, but Mattingly said he expects the righty will remain on a regular schedule.

    With the minor leagues having a day off built into their schedule each Monday, that means joining a six-day rotation, which would line up Painter to next appear on Saturday in Rochester.

    “Unless they want to move him, or there’s a reason for us to move him to keep him on a certain day to match up with certain guys,” Mattingly said. “So, in general, I think he’s just one of the boys down there and working on his craft and getting it together.”

    Mattingly said pitching coach Caleb Cotham’s report was that Painter was OK in his first appearance after getting optioned, in which he allowed one run over four innings.

    “Still felt like some of the things that they talked about implementing, he’s starting to be able to do that,” Mattingly said. “We just let it play out now.”

    Phillies won’t rush Andrew Painter’s return to majors. Instead, it’s about ‘getting himself’ right.

    Pham back in action

    Tommy Pham made his first appearance for the Florida Complex League Phillies on Monday after signing a minor league deal with the organization. Pham, who the Phillies picked up as outfield depth after he was released by the Orioles, went 2-for-2 in the Complex League game.

    The 38-year-old outfielder has a .256 career average and .764 OPS across 13 seasons and 10 teams. He went hitless in 13 at-bats across nine games with the Mets this April before being released and catching on with the Orioles’ triple-A affiliate.

    “I know Tommy from the past; I always liked Tommy, he gives you good at-bats,” Mattingly said. “I don’t know what the plan is other than to see where it goes and how he’s swinging and how he’s performing, and what we need.”

    Extra bases

    Gabriel Rincones Jr. was back in the lineup Monday against right-hander Braxton Ashcraft after sitting in the series finale against the Mets. Rincones has a .118 batting average in 32 major league at-bats. “[Sunday] was more of a day off, and kind of a little bit of a reset for Rico, see where it goes,” Mattingly said. … Cristopher Sánchez (9-3, 2.13 ERA) is scheduled to start opposite Pirates right-hander Bubba Chandler (3-7, 4.42) on Tuesday.

  • Police find ‘significant amount’ of blood inside Olney house linked to investigation of missing women, sources say

    Police find ‘significant amount’ of blood inside Olney house linked to investigation of missing women, sources say

    Philadelphia police found a “significant amount” of blood inside the decrepit Olney house linked to the investigation of at least two missing women, multiple law enforcement sources said.

    The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation, said forensic testing has not yet determined whose blood it is or whether it’s even human — a process that could take several weeks to complete. But, the sources said, police are prepared to excavate the front and backyards of the West Chew Avenue home in the coming weeks in search of potential human remains.

    Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore declined to confirm or comment on the discovery Monday afternoon, citing the ongoing investigation. Vanore said Friday that police had not recovered any human remains from the home and were awaiting testing of the tubs of chemicals and other materials found in the basement.

    Forensic investigators search the backyard of 417 W. Chew Ave. on June 27.

    The finding marks the latest development in an unusual saga that began after the arrest of Eugene Albert Horsch, 44, the owner of the Olney home now being searched by law enforcement for a second week in connection with the disappearance of at least two women who have been missing for years.

    Horsch was arrested June 19 after U.S. Park Police saw him parked in his black BMW near Sixth and Market Streets, acting suspiciously. When a ranger approached the car, police said, he heard a woman in the back seat say, “You’re going to hurt me” and saw drug paraphernalia.

    Police searched the car and reported recovering two guns with obliterated serial numbers, as well as cocaine, fentanyl, and marijuana, a cattle prod, switchblade knives, handcuffs, and a fake U.S. Drug Enforcement badge featuring Horsch’s photo.

    A woman missing since 2016 had close ties to the Olney house that’s now the target of a massive investigation

    The woman with Horsch falsely identified herself to the officers as Blair Tonzelli, a 38-year-old woman who had been reported missing in Kensington in 2023, police said.

    The woman, 39, later told investigators that she gave Tonzelli’s name because she had open warrants for her arrest in ongoing drug cases and that Horsch had made her fake identification cards in that name and said she could use it if she was ever stopped and questioned by police, sources said.

    Eugene Albert Horsch, 44, was arrested June 19 for illegal gun possession and drug crimes.

    The woman said she did not know Tonzelli or even that she was missing — but the way Horsch spoke about her and other women made her feel like something bad had happened to her, the sources said.

    Philadelphia homicide detectives then began reviewing that missing woman’s case, and, alongside federal law enforcement, searched Horsch’s home at 417 W. Chew Ave. last week.

    That search produced a trove of bizarre discoveries: a basement with drums filled with chemicals, bottles of unknown substances, Tonzelli’s bank card, the death certificate of another woman, and what appeared to be urns holding at least one of Horsch’s relatives’ cremated remains.

    Investigators also found another handgun, materials used to grow marijuana, and a 55-gallon drum with connections to waterlines leading into a hole in the ground.

    Federal investigators also discovered a multipage, unsigned, handwritten letter that appeared to describe hurting people and referenced the serial killer Ted Bundy, according to the affidavit of probable cause to search the home that was obtained by The Inquirer.

    Eugene Horsch lived at 417 W. Chew Ave. with his father until he died last year.

    Law enforcement sources said police were working to determine whether the writings were part of a novel or screenplay. Horsch’s late father, Raymond “R.C.” Horsch was a known drug manufacturer and erotic filmmaker who had published several works of fiction with violent, masochistic themes, including one described as an “autobiographical memoir of a caring, empathetic serial killer.”

    The probe into the younger Horsch took another twist when investigators learned that Raymond Horsch’s ex-wife Amy McHale was last seen at the Olney property in 2016 and has not since be located. A lawyer for Eugene Horsch and his father said the two men had nothing to do with McHale’s disappearance and said she struggled with substance abuse and mental illness.

    Horsch has been charged with illegal gun possession and drug crimes by Philadelphia authorities.

    He is also facing a federal gun possession charge, court records show. The U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a complaint against Horsch on Friday, charging him with possession of a firearm by a felon and centering their allegations on the guns that park rangers found in his car during an encounter in Center City earlier this month.

    Horsch has not yet been arraigned in that matter, and he remained in a city jail, held on $500,000 bail as of Monday afternoon. But the case could give federal prosecutors an opportunity to argue to a judge that he remain in federal custody until trial.

    This is a developing story and will be updated.

    Staff writers Jesse Bunch, Max Marin, Barbara Laker, and Chris Palmer contributed to this article.

  • She disappeared from Kensington three years ago. A fake ID in her name led police to a disturbing Olney house.

    She disappeared from Kensington three years ago. A fake ID in her name led police to a disturbing Olney house.

    Blair Tonzelli had been missing from Kensington for more than three years when her name turned up somewhere unexpected: on the fake ID of a woman in the backseat of a car parked near Independence Hall.

    The woman showed the ID to U.S. Park Police on June 19 after they found her and Eugene Albert Horsch, 44, seated in his black BMW, with drug paraphernalia, guns, and knives stashed in the car, according to police records. The woman later told officers that Horsch made her the fake ID in Tonzelli’s name and urged her to use it if she ever got into trouble.

    That encounter sparked a sprawling investigation into Horsch and an ongoing search of his Olney home for connections to Tonzelli and at least one other missing woman. Amy McHale — ex-wife of Raymond Horsch, Eugene’s father — was last seen at the Horsch property on West Chew Avenue in 2016.

    The Olney man being investigated for his connections to missing women will be held in federal custody

    Tonzelli was 35 when a friend reported her missing in early 2023. Police records now link her to Horsch following his arrest during the car stop. Philadelphia homicide detectives began probing Tonzelli’s disappearance last week and interviewed at least two women who said they believed something bad may have happened to her, according to police documents.

    One reported that Horsch was “a sociopath,” and that while he had never been violent toward her, he said things that suggested he was to others. According to the police documents, the woman told detectives that Horsch said that he knew of three chemicals needed to melt human remains and that he could make a body “so small it could be flushed down a toilet.”

    The woman told police that Tonzelli was a home healthcare aide who had worked in Horsch’s Olney house, according to the records. She believed Tonzelli and Horsch had a disagreement over money at one point, the records say, and that he still had access to a CashApp account under Tonzelli’s name.

    Horsch remains in a Philadelphia jail after officers searched his car and found two firearms with obliterated serial numbers, as well as cocaine, fentanyl, and marijuana, a cattle prod, switchblade knives, handcuffs, and a fake U.S. Drug Enforcement badge featuring Horsch’s photo. He is being held on $500,000 bail for illegal gun and drug charges.

    ‘A house from a scary movie’: Olney neighbors rattled amid rowhouse raid

    Jerome Brown, an attorney for Horsch, declined to comment on Monday.

    Horsch has not been charged with any crimes linked to Tonzelli’s disappearance. But the statements in law enforcement records raise concerns about her well-being and have provided local and federal investigators probable cause to search the Olney property for more than a week.

    Inside the boarded-up twin, officers recovered several fake IDs in Tonzelli’s name and her bank card, according to police records. Investigators also found drugs, guns, vats of unknown chemicals, a 55-gallon drum, and an unsigned, handwritten letter that graphically described hurting people.

    Police said they have not recovered any human remains at the house, but law enforcement sources on Monday said there was a “significant amount” of blood inside. Investigators are awaiting forensic testing to determine whose blood it is or if it’s even human, a process that could take weeks to complete.

    Police are preparing to excavate the front and backyards of the home, the sources said.

    Police find ‘significant amount’ of blood inside Olney house linked to investigation of missing women, sources say

    Local and federal investigators continued to scour Horsch’s home Monday for additional evidence.

    In the years before her disappearance, Tonzelli struggled with an opioid addiction and floated through the streets of Kensington, spending time in and out of jail on drug and prostitution charges. David McCarty, 72, said that he lived with her for a time in a house on Wensley Street and that their friends would try to look out for one another.

    Even in the throes of her addiction, Tonzelli was fiercely loyal, McCarty recalled. She once threw herself in front of a tow truck to prevent the operator from illegally taking McCarty’s car, yelling “You’re not gonna do this to my friend!”

    But Tonzelli, he said, would disappear for stretches, often with a man from Olney who sold marijuana. She told McCarty she was visiting with a man named Raymond, he said.

    At the time, Eugene Horsch lived with his father, Raymond “R.C.” Horsch, a convicted drug dealer and a producer of erotic films and novels. His work often focused on serial killers and the sexual exploitation of women with substance-abuse problems. The elder Horsch, who died in the Olney house in 2025, often featured women who frequented Kensington in his films.

    Tonzelli typically returned from her trips to see Horsch, McCarty said, but then he didn’t hear from her after August 2022.

    Joseph Gunkel said in an interview that he and a friend called police to report Tonzelli missing in February 2023 after months had passed without hearing from her.

    The friend told police that Tonzelli was last seen at the Olney home of a “sketchy” man who scared her, according to police records. Tonzelli was meant to meet someone one afternoon and never showed up, and none of her acquaintances — from Philly to Florida — had heard from her since, the friend said.

    A woman missing since 2016 had close ties to the Olney house that’s now the target of a massive investigation

    McCarty grew worried as days became weeks. He knew she needed regular medical attention because of a drug-related wound that ran from her armpit down to her knee. McCarty said he replaced the gauze and applied ointment to the open gash twice a day, and Tonzelli needed daily medication to fight off the infection.

    “I can’t tell you how many times I spent visiting her and putting her in the hospital,” McCarty said. ”People make choices. She’s an adult, and it didn’t matter what I’d say or what I’d do to help her.”

    Gunkel said he didn’t hear from police again about Tonzelli until last week, when homicide detectives asked him to come in for an interview about her disappearance. He said he was relieved someone was finally looking into her whereabouts, even if it was three years later.

    “At least reporting her missing helped out some,” he said.

    Tonzelli’s Facebook page says she attended Archbishop Ryan High School. Her mother, who grew up in Fishtown, died when Tonzelli was 18, according to an online obituary.

    Tonzelli’s family declined to speak this week. McCarty said that Tonzelli was estranged from her relatives but that she had a son who she talked about often.

    After she went missing, McCarty urged a mutual friend to file a police report, because he worried no one else would.

    “My soul just believes something was going on,” he said.

  • Near-record heat around 100 degrees is forecast in Philly this week, with July 4th storms possible

    Near-record heat around 100 degrees is forecast in Philly this week, with July 4th storms possible

    Coinciding with the climax of the nation’s 250th birthday celebration, the atmosphere may make a run at history this week as July gets off to a torrid start in much of the nation, with temperatures in Philly aiming toward 100 degrees both Thursday and Friday.

    And while the record-challenging extreme heat may ease some late in the weekend, atmospheric fireworks may threaten Fourth of July events.

    Conditions also favor tropically steamy nights when it may seem that even the fireflies are adding to the heat.

    The National Weather Service has issued an “excessive heat watch,“ in effect from Wednesday afternoon through the day Saturday, for heat indexes up to 110. The watch covers all of New Jersey, Delaware, and most of Pennsylvania.

    The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Council has posted a “code orange” air-quality alert for Tuesday, advising that pollution could affect people with respiratory and heart condtions.

    If the heat wave persists as forecast, the cumulative warmth could become dangerous for people with background medical conditions and older residents who live alone without air-conditioning in the city’s rowhouses.

    The official high in Philly reached 90 on Monday, and the forecasts are calling for highs in the 90s at least through the weekend.

    Both FIFA Fan Festival organizers and SEPTA are preparing for a pending inferno.

    The World Cup afternoon matches on Wednesday and Thursday won’t be shown at the FIFA Fan Festival, said Melissa Ferdinand, spokesperson for Philadelphia Soccer 2026, but the evening matches will be.

    Among other measures SEPTA will be reducing speeds on regional rails, lest extreme heat cause overhead wires to sag and tracks to buckle, said agency spokesperson Andrew Busch.

    The forecasts for the rest of the week

    Philly’s temperatures are likely to reach the low 90s on Tuesday, said John Feerick senior meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc., but that will be just a warm-up.

    Readings will soar well into the mid- and upper-90s on Wednesday, and likely crest at or above the century mark Thursday and Friday.

    “The humidity gets tropical, too,” he said.

    Some showers are possible Friday afternoon and evening and Saturday, the weather service says

    The so-called high-pressure heat dome is forecast to bake about two-thirds of the nation. Philadelphia will be near the eastern edge of the hot zone, and that can become a precarious place to be when the heat backs off.

    The outlook for the weekend and the ‘ring of fire’ potential

    “Ring of fire” thunderstorms, which can generate prodigious amounts of rain, can form along the edges of heat-generating high-pressure systems, the weather service says. This far in advance — or even a day or even hours ahead of time — it isn’t possible to predict where and when such a storm or storms might develop.

    But in its forecast discussion Monday the weather service office in Mount Holly warned that “the environmental setup would be favorable for strong to severe thunderstorms.”

    “We’re seeing chances of thunderstorms,” said Paul Fitzsimmons, meteorologist with the weather service office in Mount Holly.

    Said Feerick, “I think there’s going to be some pretty intense storms. A lot of times, the heat waves come to an end with a bang. That’s a possibility next weekend for sure. The fireworks might be supplied by mother nature, and humans.”

    On Monday morning the weather service advised, “It is important to point out that any holiday weekend festivities could be impacted by thunderstorms — in addition to the extreme heat.”

    But, Fitzsimmons said, “By Sunday, might be getting a little bit cooler.”

    Warmer world, warmer Philly, although 100s have been less frequent

    Philadelphia’s temperature increases have tracked fairly close to the globe’s, which during the last 12 months were about 2 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th century average. Local summers have become increasingly warmer.

    Yet 100-degree readings in Philadelphia have been relatively scarce this century. On average, temperatures of 100 or higher have occurred every four years in Philly, but when it reached 100 last summer, that was the first time in 13 years, the longest 100-less stretch on record.

    That could be mere randomness, or it could be related to increased mugginess, which can retard both daytime heating and nighttime cooling. Warmer air can hold more water vapor.

    Philly summers are getting — and staying — hotter

    In records dating to 1874, it has reached 100 a total of 62 times, according to an analysis of temperature data, in 40 different years. For whatever reasons, they have tended to come in clusters, including a five-year run of 100-degree readings that ended in 1955, and three years, ending in 2012.

    Said Busch, “I guess we could look forward to it next year.”

  • Why is Porter Martone back at development camp? To teach the team’s prospects what it means to be a Flyer.

    Why is Porter Martone back at development camp? To teach the team’s prospects what it means to be a Flyer.

    Porter Martone didn’t intentionally wear a Flyers playoff hoodie to the first day of development camp.

    “It’s the only Flyers hoodie I have,” Martone joked.

    Still, it was a physical expression of just how much has changed for Martone, Denver Barkey, and Alex Bump since the last time they were at development camp 12 months ago.

    Last year, none of the three had made their NHL debut. Martone was freshly drafted and off to college, and Barkey and Bump were headed into their first full pro seasons. Now, all three are bona fide NHL regulars who played key roles in the Flyers’ improbable run to the second round of the playoffs.

    Flyers qualify Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, let six other RFAs walk

    They don’t even need to be here. Martone’s barely had three weeks of rest, following up his playoff run by playing alongside Sidney Crosby and Macklin Celebrini for Team Canada at the World Championships. But it was important for each to come back to Voorhees, both to work on their skills and to help the next group of prospects along.

    “I’m still a young guy here,” Martone said Monday. “I think I could use my learned experiences — and my experience in the playoffs and at the ending stretch there with the Flyers — to help everyone here. I still might be younger than some guys, but I think that’s valuable, to come back here, be a leader, show them what it’s like being a Philadelphia Flyer.”

    Winger Porter Martone said Monday it was important to be at development camp to show other youngsters “what it’s like being a Philadelphia Flyer.”

    Martone didn’t participate in the skill sessions on the first day, choosing instead to focus on power skating and off-ice workouts. Monday was his first day back on the ice since the World Championships. After camp, he plans to return to East Lansing for a week to train with the strength coaches at Michigan State, and then head home to Ontario before training camp in the fall.

    Having guys like Martone, Barkey, and Bump — who know the drills, the facility, and the staff — on hand can be an invaluable resource for the newer members of the organization.

    And there’s still plenty for that trio to learn. Martone said he felt like he had to improve at “everything” this summer to become the power forward he wants to be. Barkey agreed, but had a few more specific things he was getting a jump start on at camp.

    “The biggest thing for me this summer is putting on a couple extra pounds and working on my first three steps,” Barkey said. “Getting in and out of corners, having the weight and the strength to win battles, and then also having the first three steps to get away from the bigger guys, and have a little bit of space to make plays. I think that’ll be my bread and butter, and it takes time, but definitely working toward that.”

    At first glance, the Flyers’ 2026 draft feels underwhelming. Only time will tell.

    Breakaways

    Three of the Flyers’ draft picks, Czech goalies Martin Psohlavec and Marek Sklenička and Finnish defenseman Max Laatikainen, were not able to travel in time for the start of development camp, but they are expected to participate later in camp … Jett Luchanko was not among the players on the ice for the first day of camp. According to Flyers director of player development Riley Armstrong, Luchanko is dealing with a lower-body injury. He is expected to be back skating next week and to be ready for training camp… Assistant general manager Brent Flahr told The Inquirer that Cole Knuble has a good motor. Kind of sounds like Denver Barkey a little bit, no? “I think just growing up, kind of realized that’s the way I’m going to be able to make it, a guy that’s going to go in every battle,” Knuble said. “And I think growing up the emphasis was, not goals or assists, it was always, did you win your 50-50s and did you stick your nose in there. That’s kind of the way I was coached growing up. So yeah, that was just how I’ve always played.” So was it his dad, former Flyers forward Mike Knuble, who taught him that? “Oh, yeah, he used to say if you have 12 eggs in your pockets, they should all be broken.”

  • Flyers qualify Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, let six other RFAs walk

    Flyers qualify Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, let six other RFAs walk

    The Flyers were required to submit qualifying offers to their restricted free agents by 5 p.m. on Monday.

    After the deadline, they announced that they did not provide qualifying offers to forwards Philip Tomasino, Brett Harrison, Tucker Robertson, and Karsen Dorwart, and defensemen Artem Guryev and Christian Kyrou. They will now be unrestricted free agents on July 1.

    They gave qualifying offers to forwards Trevor Zegras and Nikita Grebenkin, as well as defensemen Jamie Drysdale and Hunter McDonald. Drysdale, Zegras, and McDonald are eligible for arbitration.

    According to Puckpedia, Zegras’ qualifying offer is $5.75 million. It is the same amount as his expiring three-year contract signed in 2023 with the Anaheim Ducks. Drysdale is due $2.3 million, the same as the three-year deal he inked with Anaheim in 2023. Grebenkin’s is $850,000, and McDonald’s is $897,750.

    In his first season in Philly, Zegras had 26 goals and 67 points — both were career highs — in 81 regular-season games before adding another six points in 10 playoff games. It was his first playoff experience, as it was for Drysdale, who stepped up his game this past season and had a career high in goals (eight) and tied his career high in points (32). He added two goals and four points in 10 playoff games, scoring the first Flyers playoff goal since 2020.

    Grebenkin has not played since late March due to an upper-body injury. “Initially, we thought it was going to be something short, and it just never got better,” Flyers general manager Danny Brière said at his end-of-season press conference. “Now we’re looking at different options for him. So he’s the only one that I would say maybe [he’s not ready for training camp], if it doesn’t improve.” Brière did not have an update when speaking to The Inquirer at the start of June at the NHL scouting combine.

    McDonald made his NHL debut this season, skating in the season finale, and registered the secondary assist on Oliver Bonk’s first NHL goal. A rugged blueliner, he had six assists in 65 games for the Phantoms.

    “Hunter took a big step last year in his development, and that’s why he played that game late in the season,” Brière told The Inquirer in early June. “I think our coaching staff was really impressed [with] how he took a step forward this year. He put in the work and really elevated his game, earned that NHL game at the end, and he was around the team when we played in the playoffs as well.

    “Really exciting to see him have growth to his development. It’s a big summer for him, but we’re excited about him. A big, physical defenseman like that is not easy to find, and we hope he’s going to be one of those guys, eventually. But he’s going to have to beat someone at some point to earn those minutes.”

    Tomasino was acquired this past season in a swap that sent Egor Zamula to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He potted 12 goals and 41 points in 52 regular-season games between the two teams’ AHL affiliates. A first-round selection of Nashville in 2019, he has 218 NHL games under his belt.

    Traded to the Flyers with Jackson Edward for Alexis Gendron and Massimo Rizzo in March, Harrison had two goals and four points in 12 games with Lehigh Valley. Guryev was part of the deal that sent Ryan Ellis’ contract to the San Jose Sharks, and Christian Kyrou was acquired in a one-for-one, with Samu Tuomaala going to the Dallas Stars.

    Dorwart was signed out of Michigan State as a college free agent in March 2025. He skated in five games after inking his entry-level contract, making his NHL debut in Montreal. Last season, he had 10 goals and 24 points in 70 games for the Phantoms.

  • The legacy of this generation of USMNT players rests on this World Cup’s knockout rounds

    The legacy of this generation of USMNT players rests on this World Cup’s knockout rounds

    IRVINE, Calif. — The assertion on these pages of the importance of this World Cup’s first knockout round for the U.S. men’s soccer team drew a noteworthy response from a history-minded reader.

    “Just because they changed how to make it from 32 to 16 doesn’t automatically make doing it more meaningful,” it said. “Not to be too ‘Bluesky reply guy’ but portraying it otherwise empowers FIFA’s money grab imo. On Wednesday the USMNT will try to do something they’ve done 5 of the last 8 men’s World Cups.”

    Those are fair points, especially the one about FIFA grabbing money. The U.S. men have indeed been among the last 16 teams standing at five of the eight World Cups they played in from 1990-2022: ‘94, 2002, 2010, ‘14, and ‘22.

    So the point that was made here is worth clarifying. It’s not just about being able to claim a title of being one of the best 32, 16, or any fewer national teams based on World Cup finish. It’s about the mentality of knockout soccer on the sport’s biggest stage, and how different it is from anything else.

    Tyler Adams (left) and Walker Zimmerman on the field at the end of the U.S.’ loss to the Netherlands that knocked them out of the 2022 World Cup in the round of 16. This year’s tournament is the first with a round of 32.

    It’s also about whether U.S. players of this era can prove themselves in the way they’ve long told us they can. Lose the round of 32 contest to Bosnia & Herzegovina on Wednesday (8 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo 62), and all the promises go up in smoke.

    That pressure might not be the same as the kind the superstars of Brazil, Argentina, England, and so on face every day. But it’s still a significant burden, and a particular kind for a team with DNA built on fighting for respect.

    The USMNT has one World Cup knockout win ever. Right now is the best chance to change that.

    “I think everyone knows in the back of our minds what this could do for this country,” attacking midfielder Gio Reyna said before Monday’s practice, the last before the U.S. team headed north to the Bay Area for Wednesday’s game in Santa Clara.

    “Not that we’ve really spoke about it or thought about it much — we’re pretty much just focused on each game in front of us at this moment, as it is win or go home,” he continued. But they don’t have to.

    Gio Reyna (right) in action during the U.S.-Turkey group stage finale.

    “We feel the country rallying around us,” he said. “We see the momentum it’s bringing to the sport in this country just through the group stage. But we also understand that if we make a nice run in the tournament, what it could really do for the sport.”

    Reyna and centerback Tim Ream were the two players who spoke Monday. Both were part of the 2022 team that took the U.S. back to the men’s World Cup after failing to qualify for 2018. Now Ream is this team’s captain, and its oldest player.

    The World Cup knockout bracket is set. Here’s what to know.

    “Would it be weird if I told you I don’t really feel too much pressure at this minute?” he said. “I just think there’s so much pressure that we put on ourselves.”

    He acknowledged in his next breath that “it feels very different this time around than 2022, I will say that,” though “not because of the round of 32 or because that was a round of 16.”

    Tim Ream (center) on the field after the Netherlands scored its third goal against the U.S. in 2002.

    Instead it’s because of what is already in the players’ minds.

    “I think we put so much expectation on ourselves as players — and I said this at the beginning of the tournament — but I think we felt more pressure for that first game against Paraguay than anything,” Ream said. “And that’s coming from ourselves, not from anything on the outside.”

    The USMNT’s sour World Cup group stage ending should be motivation for the bigger games to come

    The burden might weigh a little extra on Reyna, too, and not just because of the scandal that engulfed him and his family four years ago. Even if everything back then had been clean-cut, he’d still be the son of U.S. legend Claudio Reyna, who played for the U.S. at the 1998, 2002, and 2006 World Cups — but not in 1994 because of a hamstring injury.

    “I always like to say it’s just another game of football, but at the end of the day, I think everybody knows what this game is,” Gio said. “World Cups only come around every four years, and especially on home soil, this opportunity will really never come back.”

  • No plans to reschedule Kirk Franklin’s canceled concert, Wawa officials say

    No plans to reschedule Kirk Franklin’s canceled concert, Wawa officials say

    Before gospel singer Kirk Franklin could take the stage at Sunday’s “Gospel on Independence” concert, the show was canceled due to severe weather.

    The concert, scheduled for 7 p.m. at Independence Mall, was initially postponed because of lightning and thunder detected in the area.

    Wawa Welcome America officials, who organized the concert, said there were plans to restart the show, but it was ultimately canceled due to inclement weather.

    There are currently no plans to reschedule Franklin’s show.

    Franklin, however, found a way to greet fans as he briefly stood on top of an SUV as the crowd exited Independence Mall.

    A downpour started shortly after his departure.

    In a video posted on his Instagram page, Franklin explained his intention to put on an “incredible concert.” “I was really excited about it,” he said in a video with the caption, “I need the weather to repent! LOL! 😂❤️🙏🏽.”

    “People were really disappointed,” he wrote. “But I need you to know that I’m more disappointed because I was really, really, really ready to go. I love Philadelphia. I’ll get back, man. I can’t let Philly down like that.”

    Fans stood for hours awaiting Franklin’s arrival.

    “My feet still hurting from standing out there waiting,” one fan commented under Franklin’s Instagram post.

    Kirk Franklin accepts the ultimate icon award during the BET Awards in 2025, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

    Not all of Franklin’s interactions with fans on Sunday were as jovial.

    In a now-viral social media video, Franklin is seen arguing with an attendee, who urged the singer to “repent” for his sins. Otherwise, he and his wife, Tammy Franklin, are “going to go to hell,” the attendee threatened.

    Franklin attempted to confront the unidentified man but was held back by several security guards.

    The man was eventually escorted out of the venue by law enforcement officers.

    Before the show’s cancelation, fans enjoyed the opening performances and food vendors at Sunday’s event at the Independence Mall, which was part of this week’s lineup of Wawa Welcome America Festival events and concerts.

    The celebration of the nation’s 250th birthday will continue with Tuesday’s Philadelphia Orchestra’s Pride concert, Thursday’s “Salute to Service” concert, and Friday’s Pops on Independence concert.

    On July 4, the free “One Philly: Unity Concert for America” will take place on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Featuring Christina Aguilera, Jill Scott, The Roots, and others, that show is not part of Wawa Welcome America but counts Wawa among its sponsors.

    For more information, visit july4thphilly.com.

  • Layoffs are ‘inevitable’ at Temple as school looks to cut $60 million, president says

    Layoffs are ‘inevitable’ at Temple as school looks to cut $60 million, president says

    Temple University has asked its schools, colleges, and administrative units to cut a total of $60 million to help offset a projected deficit for 2026-27.

    President John Fry shared the plan in a message to the campus community Friday and said a reduction in employees is “inevitable.”

    The message did not reveal how many layoffs the university is considering as it attempts to close the $85 million projected gap. The board of trustees’ executive committee is scheduled to meet next week to consider the proposed budget. The university’s current budget is $1.3 billion, excluding the health system.

    Temple has lost average of $200 million annually as enrollment slides, and retention rates are a major issue, internal report says

    “Unfortunately, some reduction in force is inevitable, given that nearly 70% of Temple’s operating budget is spent on compensation and benefits,” Fry said in the message. “It is my promise that any employee’s separation from the university will be handled equitably and compassionately.”

    He noted that a faculty retirement incentive program this year drew 77 takers — 3% of full-time faculty — and will lessen the need for layoffs. Those faculty are scheduled to leave by the end of this month and their departures ultimately will save $15 million annually. The elimination of vacant faculty and staff positions also has helped, he said.

    Fry did not detail the cuts that are planned but said that colleges, schools, and administrative units each received a budget reduction target.

    Units were asked to make a 5% cut last year, but this year there is a range of percentages among schools, colleges, and administrative units, a university spokesperson said. The spokesperson declined to say how many layoffs will occur.

    Ursinus College lays off 15% of nonfaculty staff

    Some potential cuts that have stirred discussion include a reduction in adjunct professors and a pause in doctoral student admissions by some programs.

    Jeffrey Doshna, president of the Temple Association of University Professionals, said Fry’s message seemed to address some of the issues the union has been raising, but said more information is needed, including how many people will lose their jobs and from what areas.

    “Hopefully, they will continue to respond to what we are calling for,” he said, including greater transparency, participation in decision-making, and no job cuts.

    Temple has been trying to cope with lost revenue from a precipitous slide in enrollment and uncertainty around federal funding. Fry has been warning since early April that the university “must act decisively and with a sense of urgency” to address the projected deficit. An internal Temple report obtained by The Inquirer in April said layoffs were coming.

    Last July, Temple laid off 50 employees, less than 1% of its workforce.

    Fry reported to the board of trustees last week that this year’s fall enrollment looks promising, with deposits by first-year undergraduate and transfer students up over last year at the same time.

    He said in his campus message that making the $60 million in cuts is “an important first step toward returning the university to a balanced budget over the next three years.”

    Fry acknowledged that the budget reductions “can create uncertainty and anxiety.” But he said the administration has attempted to be transparent and has held meetings with faculty senate, deans, and schools, colleges, and administrative units.

    “Navigating through this stark financial reality is not easy,” Fry said. “I recognize the difficulty of this present moment. We will emerge from this process stronger and on a more sustainable path moving forward.”

  • Comcast plans no big change for its 15,000 Philly workers as company splits in two

    Comcast plans no big change for its 15,000 Philly workers as company splits in two

    Comcast, the $125 billion-a-year media and communications giant based in Philadelphia, is planning to split into two publicly traded companies, one based on the NBCUniversal media group, the other focused on broadband and wireless services.

    Comcast’s consumer and business services and NBCUniversal media now face “distinct” opportunities that are best pursued separately, Brian L. Roberts, chief executive since 2002, told investors in a conference call.

    Shares of Comcast, which had recently been trading near a 10-year low, jumped as much as 17% on the news, before closing at $24.22, a 4.5% gain for the day but well below the stock’s highs earlier this year.

    The split reverses major Comcast media acquisitions.

    “We previously believed that scale and diversification benefits warranted operating these businesses as one company; we’ve now simply changed our mind about that,” said Michael Cavanagh, the former chief financial officer of both Comcast and JPMorgan Chase & Co., who became Comcast’s co-CEO last fall.

    “We’ve now concluded that future success for each of our businesses will depend on focus, speed, and strategic flexibility that this separation will unlock,” said Cavanagh, who will head NBCUniversal, based at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York, after the split.

    Comcast will retain the consumer and business services that employ the majority of the company’s 180,000 workers, including most of its 15,000 Philadelphia-area staff and managers.

    Michael Angelakis when he was CFO of Comcast in 2009. He is returning, this time as CEO, as the company divests NBCUniversal and Sky.

    Comcast’s CEO after the split will be Michael Angelakis, a Gladwyne resident, who was Comcast’s chief financial officer from 2007 to 2015 and has since headed tech investment firm Atairos while also advising Comcast.

    Comcast’s acquistion of NBCUniversal, announced in 2011 and financially structured by Angelakis, was “a brilliant success financially” since Comcast got a bargain price as it was the first multibillion-dollar acquisition after the Great Recession, telecommunications analyst Craig Moffett told clients in a report Monday.

    But it didn’t make much sense strategically, Moffett added. While original media and theme parks did little to boost cable sales, the combination turned investors off, depressing the share price.

    Angelakis’ return to Comcast is “the best part” of the “wonderful, overdue” breakup decision, Moffett said. He noted that the two successor companies were themselves unlikely to become takeover targets in the near future as it would endanger the tax-free structure of the spin-off and likely require long, expensive work to persuade national and state regulators.

    Angelakis told investors on the call: “This place was my home for many years. It’s great to be here. It feels familiar and exciting at the same time.”

    The planned move comes after Comcast announced in November 2024 that it was spinning off cable networks such as USA, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel, as well as CNBC and MSNBC into a new company, Versant. Movie ticketing platform Fandango and the Rotten Tomatoes movie rating site were also included. Versant went public in January at around $45 a share; it has lately traded around $36.

    Like other cable companies, Comcast in recent years has shifted its business emphasis away from traditional cable toward streaming and other sources of revenue, such as its movie studio, theme parks and home wireless and internet services.

    Media and entertainment company NBCUniversal includes a theme parks division, Universal film and television studios, NBC and Telemundo networks, Peacock, and Bravo. Its portfolio will now include European media business Sky.

    Comcast will continue providing internet and phone services to residential and business customers.

    Once the transaction is complete, Comcast shareholders will own shares in both Comcast and NBCUniversal. The separation is expected to be completed in about a year. It still needs final approval from Comcast’s board and is subject to regulatory approvals.

    Comcast expects to keep a stake of up to 19.9% ownership position in NBCUniversal for up to one year after the spinoff is complete.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.