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After 3 million meals, Mother’s, a gathering place for Ravens fans, will close

NoneEscape To The Country viewers were left outraged after a special celebrity episode. Featuring sprinter Linford Christie, many slammed the BBC for showcasing the athlete's enormous budget. In the episode, Linford and his daughter Briannah joined host Alistair Appleton to search for a property in the countryside of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, with a focus on finding a home that could accommodate the entire family. However, fans were infuriated by the lavish budgets and extravagance displayed in the show, with one taking to social media to express their discontent: "As if Escape to the Country wasn't bad enough with people's ridiculous budgets, BBC1 is now subjecting us to #celebrityescapetothecountry Obscene amounts of money whilst most normal folks are worried about putting their heating on." Another added: "£2 million budget. P*** off BBC, the regular rich ones with £750K+ are bad enough!" whilst a third viewer shared: "Sorry, had to turn off tonight, what's a waste of taxpayers money. Hope Christie wasn't paid to appear in this, all so staged." "The #BBC showing us how out of touch they are with the times with #escapetothecountry Rich celebs looking for £2 million 4 bedroom houses, all ensuite with swimming pools and cinema rooms. Nice to know where the poor people's #tvlicence fee goes," a fourth wrote, as a fifth took to social media to share their thoughts, adding: "Not entirely convinced that #EscapeToTheCountry lends itself to a celebrity version, particularly at midweek prime time." On the other hand, some viewers enjoyed the celebrity special, with one commenting: "Watching #CelebrityEscapetotheCountry This is fun, Linford Christie is looking for a house in the country." Other famous faces set to appear on the show include Steps singer Ian 'H' Watkins, singer Alfie Boe, presenter Anita Rani, Loose Women star Kaye Adams, and The Apprentice's Tim Campbell, who are all on the hunt for their dream rural retreat. BBC Daytime Commissioner Julie Shaw said of the series: "In this series, we get an insight into the celebrities, their careers and their families, essentially the journey they've been on from where they began long before the cameras and spotlights. "We cover the UK, including the beautiful hills and valleys in the Vale of Glamorgan and Stirlingshire, helping people to escape from world-famous cities like Glasgow and London – it’s a magical tour around some of the UK’s most beautiful homes." *Celebrity Escape To The Country airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.Cousins Properties Announces Pricing of Senior Notes Offering

Germany pledges security inquest into Christmas market attackAn original Banksy masterpiece has been wiped out by transport officials over worries it could lead to a surge in graffiti, stunning fans learned today. The iconic mural, depicting three silhouetted monkeys on an invisible line, was sprayed onto a section of a concrete bridge in the capital. But in a move that shocked the artwork's fans, it's been revealed that rail staff have deliberately obliterated the work with a high-pressure hose. Locals in Tower Hamlets, East London watch aghast as the piece was blasted from the arch recently. Situated on Brick Lane, this bridge carries the Windrush Line of the London Overground between Shoreditch High Street and Whitechapel. After being jet-washed, remnants of other tags are still visible - but the Bristolian street artist's monkeys have been obliterated. Following an investigation by The Tab, Transport for London owned up to being responsible for the artwork’s removal. The artwork, which was one of several created by Banksy across the capital this summer, had been protected by a cover, leading some to believe it would be preserved, reports Bristol Live . However, it has now been removed, sparking disappointment among fans. A spokesperson for Transport for London said: "There are rules in place around graffiti or unauthorised art on the TfL network and there are good reasons why these must be followed. "Sometimes graffiti or unauthorised art can attract more graffiti, which encourages trespassing and anti-social activity that poses a danger to the operational railway and customers, so this piece had to be removed." Some thought the three monkeys might have been a reference to the Japanese proverb 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.' A protective cover had previously been placed over the monkeys, which some thought meant the piece would be staying in place. The three monkeys were part of a series of Banksy artworks painted across the country's capital this summer. Other works included a painting of a gorilla letting out animals near London Zoo, and a goat on the side of a building in Richmond, south west London. On social media, users expressed their disappointment. One user said: "It doesn't make any sense what they did, just look how people love it, many tourists coming to Brick Lane must be very disappointed now!" Another user added: "A tragic aspect of British life – rules over joy and entertainment. Very puritanical move!"

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (December 22, 2024) left for home after wrapping up his two-day "successful" visit to Kuwait during which the two countries elevated their relationship to a strategic partnership , marking a new era of bilateral cooperation and growth. "Thank you Kuwait! This visit was historic and will greatly enhance our bilateral relations. I thank the Government and people of Kuwait for their warmth. I also thank the PM of Kuwait for the special gesture of coming to the airport for the see-off," Mr. Modi said in a post on X. Mr. Modi's visit to Kuwait was the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the Gulf nation in 43 years. In a special gesture, Kuwaiti Prime Minister Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah came to see off Mr. Modi at the airport as he left for India. "A historic & successful visit to Kuwait concludes! PM @narendramodi emplanes for New Delhi," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X. During his visit, Mr. Modi held extensive talks with the country's top leadership , including Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, with whom he discussed boosting ties in information technology, pharmaceuticals, fintech, infrastructure and security. "In line with the close ties between our nations, we have elevated our partnership to a strategic one and I am optimistic that our friendship will flourish even more in the times to come," Mr. Modi said in a post on X. Mr. Modi held wide-ranging talks with Kuwaiti Prime Minister Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and Crown Prince Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah with a focus on giving new momentum to the overall bilateral ties. Kuwait also conferred its highest honour — 'The Order of Mubarak Al-Kabeer' — on Prime Minister Modi for his role in strengthening the good relations between the two countries. On Saturday, Mr. Modi addressed an Indian community event and visited an Indian labour camp. The over one million-strong Indian community is the largest expatriate community in Kuwait. The Gulf nation is among India's top trading partners, with bilateral trade valued at $10.47 billion in the financial year 2023-24. Kuwait is India's sixth largest crude supplier, meeting 3% of the country's energy needs. Indian exports to Kuwait reached $2 billion for the first time, while investments by the Kuwait Investment Authority in India exceeded $10 billion. Published - December 22, 2024 09:07 pm IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Kuwait / India / diplomacy / Prime Minister Narendra ModiThe German government pledged Sunday to fully investigate whether there were security lapses before the Christmas market car-ramming attack that killed five people and injured over 200. Political pressure has built on the question of potential missed warnings about Saudi suspect Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a 50-year-old psychiatrist who had made online deaths threats and previously had trouble with the law. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and the heads of Germany's domestic and foreign intelligence services are due to answer questions at parliamentary committee hearings on December 30, a senior lawmaker told AFP. Faeser vowed Sunday that "no stone will be left unturned" in shedding light on what information had been available to security services ahead of last Friday's bloody attack in the eastern city of Magdeburg. She stressed that the attacker did "not fit any previous pattern" because "he acted like an Islamist terrorist although ideologically he was clearly an enemy of Islam". Abdulmohsen has in the past called himself a "Saudi atheist" who helped women flee Gulf countries and charged Germany was doing too little to help them. In online posts, he also strongly criticised Germany for allowing in too many Muslim refugees and backed far-right conspiracy theories about the "Islamisation" of Europe. In one post, he wrote: "Is there a path to justice in Germany without blowing up a German embassy or randomly slaughtering German citizens?... If anyone knows it, please let me know." News magazine Der Spiegel, citing security sources, said the Saudi secret service had warned Germany's spy agency BND a year ago about a tweet in which Abdulmohsen threatened Germany would pay a "price" for how it treated Saudi refugees. Die Welt daily reported, also citing security sources, that German state and federal police had carried out a "risk assessment" on Abdulmohsen last year but concluded that he posed "no specific danger". The city of Magdeburg has been in deep mourning over the mass carnage on Friday evening, when an SUV smashed through a crowd at its Christmas market, killing four women and a nine-year-old child and injuring 205 people. Surgeons at overwhelmed hospitals have worked around the clock, and one health worker told local media of "blood on the floor everywhere, people screaming, lots of painkillers being administered". Scholz on Saturday condemned the "terrible, insane" attack and made a call for national unity, at a time Germany is headed for early elections on February 23. But as German media dug into Abdulmohsen's past, and investigators gave away little, criticism rained down from opposition parties. Conservative CDU lawmaker Alexander Throm charged that "many citizens feel... that the Scholz government has completely failed in terms of internal security". He demanded greater police powers to monitor and analyse data from social media platforms, telecommunications and surveillance cameras with facial recognition technology. The far-right AfD called for a special session of parliament, and the head of the far-left BSW party, Sahra Wagenknecht, demanded that Faeser explain "why so many tips and warnings were ignored beforehand". Mass-circulation daily Bild asked: "Why did our police and intelligence services do nothing, even though they had the Saudi on their radar?... And why were the tips from Saudi Arabia apparently ignored?" It charged that "German authorities usually only find out about attack plans in time when foreign services warn them" and called for sweeping reforms after the election for a complete "turnaround in internal security". Senior MP Dirk Wiese of Scholz's Social Democrats said the December 30 hearings will summon the heads of the BND, the domestic intelligence service BfV and the Office for Migration and Refugees. Media meanwhile reported more details on Abdulmohsen, who had worked at a clinic that treats offenders with substance addiction problems, but had been on sick leave since late October. Der Spiegel reported that in 2013 a court fined him for "disturbing the public peace by threatening to commit crimes" after he had darkly referenced the deadly attack on the Boston marathon. The chairwoman of the group Central Council of Ex-Muslims, Mina Ahadi, said Abdulmohsen "is no stranger to us, because he has been terrorising us for years". She labelled him "a psychopath who adheres to ultra-right conspiracy ideologies" and said he "doesn't just hate Muslims, but everyone who doesn't share his hatred." bur/fz/gv

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — Thirty locators were recognized during the annual Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Mabuhay Business Awards 2024 held at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center (SBECC) on Dec. 13, 2024. SBMA Chairman and Administrator Eduardo Jose Aliño said the 30 awardees out of the 1,909 locators were recognized for their exceptional contribution to the business growth of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone this year. Register to read this story and more for free . Signing up for an account helps us improve your browsing experience. OR See our subscription options.After 3 million meals, Mother’s, a gathering place for Ravens fans, will close

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray was driving to the Arizona Cardinals' practice facility Wednesday when he realized that it had been almost exactly two years since he tore the ACL in his right knee in a game against the New England Patriots. Then another thought crossed his mind: It was the Patriots who were coming to town this Sunday for the first time since the injury. “Yeah, it’s a little weird,” Murray said with a wry grin. "I will try not to have that happen again.” The injury on Dec. 12, 2022, cost Murray roughly 11 months of his career, but he has been healthy this season. And now the Cardinals (6-7) are clinging to playoff hopes when they host the Patriots (3-10) on Sunday. Both teams have lost three straight games. The Patriots are coming off their bye week and haven't played since a 25-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Dec. 1. The Cardinals are trying to move past a brutal 30-18 loss to NFC West rival Seattle which knocked them into a tie for last place in the tightly packed division. Murray is coming off one of his worst games since the injury, throwing two interceptions that each eventually lead to touchdowns for Seattle. It was a rare blemish on an otherwise solid season — he has thrown for 2,862 yards, 15 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Now the Cardinals are pretty much in must-win territory. “For us, all we can do is control what we can control and that’s this weekend,” Murray said. "Today, tomorrow, go out there on Sunday and play good football.” The Cardinals' defense needs a better performance after giving up 409 total yards to Seattle last week, including 176 yards on the ground. Tightening against the run game is particularly important against New England's rookie quarterback Drake Maye, who's averaging 9.1 yards per rush on 38 attempts. The highest rushing average for an NFL quarterback in a single season is 8.5 by Michael Vick in 2006, when he had 123 rushing attempts for 1,039 yards with Atlanta. Maye's far from one-dimensional. He has thrown for at least 220 yards in each of the past three games, improving rapidly. The Patriots took Maye with the No. 3 overall pick out of North Carolina. “Yeah, I think he’s grown since he’s been playing,” coach Jonathan Gannon said. “I think he’s playing probably his best ball right now, probably just because of the experience. So definitely his skillset jumps out. You can see why he was taken so high. He’s a good player and he is ascending.” New England offensive lineman Cole Strange has a new haircut and could make his season debut, possibly at a new position. Strange, who usually sports curly locks, returned from the Patriots’ bye week with a buzz cut. It could coincide with a possible switch to center after he was activated this week, making him eligible to see his first game action since suffering a season-ending knee injury in 2023. A 2022 first-round pick, Strange started 10 games at left guard last season before being placed on injured reserve. Strange has been working at both left guard and center since he returned to practice Nov. 20 and could see his first NFL snaps at the latter position. Longtime Patriots center David Andrews had season-ending shoulder surgery in October. Ben Brown has started the last eight games at center. Murray said the Cardinals can't take the Patriots lightly despite their mediocre record. He compared New England to where Arizona was at last season, when the team was out of the playoff race but playing some good football down the stretch. Murray was particularly complimentary of Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez, saying he was a “big fan.” Both players are Texas natives. “We were kind of in a similar situation as them, then went on the road to Pittsburgh, Philly and (won),” Murray said. "They’re going to come in here and play hard. We understand that and we have to be ready to go.” The Patriots have already been eliminated from playoff contention, but it didn’t stop Maye from spending part of his bye week watching matchups between teams that are still jockeying for postseason position. The reason? He wanted to get a glimpse — even if from afar — of the common traits of the teams still playing meaningful games at this time of the season. “Especially when you haven’t felt it,” Maye said. “I haven’t really experienced a playoff game. You always hear about what it’s been in the past here at the playoff games and the environment here in Gillette ... and watching Tom (Brady) and those guys duke it out. Those runs they had were special. I think you want that feeling and those guys in the locker room, some of them had it. A lot of us young guys haven’t.” Maye hopes it serves as motivation going forward. “I think we’re striving for that and can use these last four games as a challenge and as a step to, ‘Hey, what we have and what we got here on this team and who can help us and who can make some plays?’” he said. AP Sports Writer Kyle Hightower contributed to this story. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLCLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s time for this week’s edition of the Terry’s Talkin’ podcast, featuring cleveland.com columnist Terry Pluto and host David Campbell. On this week’s pod, we open with the Cavs , and how Evan Mobley was taking his game to another level before hurting his ankle on Sunday. We break down the 3-10 Browns , and how we think Kevin Stefanski is feeling about where things stand, and why Jameis Winston should keep playing games to finish out the season. We also talk some Guardians , and their recent signing of veteran starter Shane Bieber. This podcast was taped before reports broke Tuesday evening that Cleveland was trading second baseman Andrés Giménez to Toronto. What was your favorite Cleveland sports moment of 2024? And what are your Cleveland sports predictions for 2025? Send them in via email to us at sports@cleveland.com and put “Terry’s Talkin’” in the subject line, and we’ll feature the best responses in an upcoming podcast. Highlights: Don’t forget: Email us your favorite 2024 Cleveland sports moments, and your Cleveland sports predictions for 2025. Send them to sports@cleveland.com ; The Cavs are 21-4 and on pace to potentially surpass their best season record (66-16 in 2008-09) with 68-69 wins; Will casual Cleveland shift their focus to the Cavs? They should; Evan Mobley is taking off. Here’s what Terry is seeing; Donovan Mitchell’s numbers are down, and that’s good; How is Kevin Stefanski dealing with this 3-10 season; Jameis Winston: A listener asks if he brings back memories of former Browns QB Vinny Testaverde; Shane Bieber’s new Guardians contract -- the right move for both sides? A follow-up on postseason shares for the Guardians and other teams Some listener emails on our discussion last week about the OSU vs. Michigan game, and whether the college pass-interference penalty should become a spot foul, like the NFL, instead of just 15 yards. Here’s the podcast for this week: If the player above doesn’t work, you can listen to this week’s podcast here . If you have a question or a topic you’d like to see included on the podcast, email it to sports@cleveland.com , and put “Terry’s Talkin’” in the subject line. You can find previous podcasts below. The transcript below was generated by a computer, and so it contains many spelling and grammar errors. Stories by Terry Pluto Kevin Stefanski’s been through a lot in 5 years with Browns, but not this – Terry Pluto Yes, we’re back to ‘The Browns is the Browns’ & I hate it – Terry Pluto Browns defense solid, offense iffy as Jameis Winston is up & down – Terry Pluto’s Halftime Scribbles Check out Terry's new weekly newsletter that he's writing exclusively for subscribers. Learn more and sign up here. David Campbell (02:33.525) It’s time for this week’s Terry’s Talking podcast with Plain Dealer columnist, cleveland.com columnist Terry Pluto and I’m your host David Campbell. How you doing Terry? You recovered from your trip to Pittsburgh. Terry Pluto (02:55.35) I’m WellDavid. Yes, I did. So it’s always an interesting thing for me, at least driving around downtown Pittsburgh finding where they thank God that there’s immediate a lot to park in, but they hide it. They tuck it away in corners with construction and one way streets. David Campbell (03:15.397) And all the bridges make it fun too, right? all the... Terry Pluto (03:17.236) Yeah, they do. Yeah, I always get on the wrong, going the other way. I wanted to give myself a lot of time, but I love watching games at that place. I really do. The press box from press by view is really good and it’s a live atmosphere. It’s loud. It’s fun. David Campbell (03:30.473) Yeah, there’s good tailgating scene there in the whole bit. It’s a good place to see a game. Yeah. Terry Pluto (03:32.8) Yeah, it is. Yeah. You know, there’s certain cities you go to, whether you like the opponent or not. I mean, Baltimore is another one, but it’s alive. I mean, it’s a football town. Kansas city is great. Obviously green Bay is legendary. I’m sure I’m missing some, but those Midwestern, towns that it there is just tremendous. love it. David Campbell (03:56.085) Good, good. Well, glad you’re back and able to get a little bit of downtime after the game Sunday. I do want to mention up top, we are taping this on Tuesday the 10th in the afternoon. We’re going to shoot to have a podcast next week, the 17th, and then we’re going to take off for Christmas Eve. And then I was thinking, and we’ve been mentioning this on the podcast on the 31st or that week, we’ll do the predictions maybe. We’ve been inviting listeners to email in. Terry Pluto (04:00.727) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (04:21.385) their favorite sports moments of 2024 and their Cleveland sports predictions for 2025. So we’ll try and do that last podcast of the year before we head into 2025. And also we’ve been getting some good emails of funeral stories of sports related funeral stories of people paying tribute through their sports fandom. So send all that to sports. That’s right. Terry Pluto (04:36.585) well there we are, Terry Pluto (04:42.538) of all the podcasts in the world, only here in the same calendar year will you get foul ball stories followed by funeral stories. David Campbell (04:50.953) We have the funeral, the Cleveland Sports Funeral Market stories covered and cornered on the market. So they can all come to sports at cleveland.com . Just put Terry’s talking in the subject line and we will get into it. So, all right, let’s start with the calves, Terry. Terry Pluto (04:54.265) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (05:06.008) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (05:08.021) 21 and four. And I was doing some math earlier today. I think they are on pace to win 68 or 69 games right now. The franchise record for wins is 66 and 16. So right now they’re still on pace even though they had a hard time in Miami. Take the temperature of Cleveland sports fans for me, Terry. Do you think Cleveland fans are engaged right now with this team in a big way? Terry Pluto (05:16.28) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (05:35.157) or not so much because it’s Brown season or how are you feeling about the way this team is being kind of consumed by the fans and enjoyed by the fans right now? Terry Pluto (05:44.024) Well, the hardcore, the big Cavs fans, mean, they’re loving it. They’re, all into it and they can’t get in, read enough, talk enough about it. But like when I’m at the health club or at the, you know, the shopping center or whatever, people come up to me and 80 % of the time they’re, what about the Browns? What are they going to do about the Brown? This, and finally, I’ve just started telling people last week or two, why don’t you just watch the Cavs for a while? Nobody’s getting fired. Nobody’s getting traded. They’re not making any of the big moves you want to talk about. Now during the football season, meanwhile, all the cows have been doing is winning and it’s, and they are a fun, likable team, not just simply because they’re women. I think that the players, it’s a great group to Kobe Altman put together and the decision to bring any Atkinson in who had the grand plan of I could make this all work or at least I want to try, look super right now. David Campbell (06:45.369) And we should talk about Evan Mobley, Terry, because we’ve been reading for the, ever since the Cavs drafted him about the potential, the potential, the potential. And it’s starting to happen right now. I was just looking at his last five games. Of course he hurt the ankle and he didn’t play much in Miami. But before that, Boston 10 rebounds, nine points. Washington 10 rebounds, 19 points. Denver nine rebounds, 20 points. Terry Pluto (06:47.64) Yeah. Terry Pluto (06:52.803) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (07:14.965) Charlotte 10 rebounds, 41 points. We’re starting to see not just the numbers, but the way he’s getting those numbers. this what you thought could happen at this point of the season? And is it happening the way you thought it might happen? Terry Pluto (07:18.968) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (07:31.892) I was not in the camp that Mobley could become this 20 point score or whatever. I was more, I thought he would be a really good defensive player, know, a 15 to 18 point guy getting double figures and rebounds elite defensively. Which by the way, that could be an all star too. What I just described. And now I, even early in the season, just watching it, for example, the foul line. his release and everything was different. And even though last year he shot fairly well from three point range, I think it was like 34 or 35%. I just still didn’t see that he could really become a pretty good outside shooter. I wasn’t buying it. Now you look at it and you know, he’s shooting 40 % on three, 55 % from the field. So that is big time. David Campbell (08:25.151) What looks different about his release, Terry? I know you get into the mechanics of shooting everything, but what looks different about his release? Terry Pluto (08:29.389) It’s on the, it’s not, it’s on the, it’s on the fingertips. Oftentimes it seemed like it was slipping, come off the palm of his palm of his hand. That’s there’s some other stuff that I’m sure that, basketball coaches listening to this would be able to break down. But to me, that’s the big thing. And he, think he keeps his left hand in the same spot all the time. Cause sometimes that’s what happens. Like a player goes to shoot it is offhand. In other words, he’s right handed. That’s the thing that guys, the ball, but it’s the left hand that holds it. in the right position. I mean, I was always a lousy outside shooter and that was part of the reason I couldn’t get my left hand and the left hand in the right place to help the right hand shoot. So, then again, I remember, I remember there was a play Chris Shackleford played for the nets or whatever. And they asked them about, you know, sometimes you shoot with the right hand and sometimes you shoot with the left hand. said, of course I’m amphibious. David Campbell (09:24.795) That’s right, he’s good on land and water. Terry Pluto (09:26.158) Yeah, I guess I was just amphibious shooting with flippers or something But this guy’s not amphibious and meantime, you know the defense remains there he’s From the moment he came into the league. He was so well schooled in basketball by and I’m sure it’s his father Because his younger brother who’s in the G League now? Just doesn’t have Evans talent or size, but it was the same way he sets greens and blocks out and gets rebounds and all the stuff that you want from a player sees the game the right way. mean, Mobley is, that’s why I think the Caz are just so enamored to him too once they had him. Like he’s just, he’s like no maintenance as a player. Forget woe maintenance, he’s no maintenance. I mean, he’s a young guy, had a lot come his way and you could never tell. mean, he acts like he’s been in the league for 10 years. David Campbell (10:23.905) And your points about his shooting motion, that makes me think of low maintenance too, because I mean, you’ve been out at the Cavs facility, Terry. mean, they have stuff mounted on the walls there that can tell you like your shot is coming off your hand at 42 degrees and it needs to be 45 or whatever. And they can measure the trajectory and I’m pretty sure the rotation of every shot you take. And if Evan Mobley is taking all the variables out of his shooting motion. Terry Pluto (10:26.766) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Terry Pluto (10:41.442) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (10:46.851) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (10:53.503) then the results are going to be more predictable every time. like not having to, having to low maintain or not maintain that shooting action because he’s done it so much. And if he’s got it where he’s really comfortable in seeing results with it, that’s going to just, his shooting percentage is going to stay where it is if not get better because of that consistency. Terry Pluto (10:53.613) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (11:13.946) Also be so tall so tall and so long if he Realizes that that most of time there’s no reason that rushes jumper who’s gonna block it So if you know if you have a little bit of room to shoot just go up and shoot your normal shot if they do go up and try to get it on either probably gonna follow you or They’re just not they’re go off to the side. So you don’t have to worry about that. You know, it’s not like You know, Garland or some of these other guys where you could tell when you’re smaller, sometimes you just have to rush to get that shot off. Cause you know, you’re six foot one, the six foot six guys coming at you. I don’t know when mobile is going to be guarded by anybody who’s taller than him when he’s on the perimeter. Cause most of the time there’s a switch off and, so yeah, that’s exciting to see just for his own confidence. So I could go out and get 41. Not that you. Want that all the time, but that he can. And also that the teammates will see that. And cause this is a guard dominant team in terms of the ball where it is. And when they see that, they’re more willing to really, the coaches could talk about, let’s create opportunities for Evan and that, but the players will look at, he taking advantage of the opportunities to score? If not, I want my shot. David Campbell (12:38.473) Yeah, I’m glad you brought that up, Terry. The Cavs kind of are at the quarter point of the season, right? And it’s, good to take a snapshot, but so their best player, Donovan Mitchell, like basketball is a little different because there’s only one ball. And if one guy takes a shot, that means somebody else isn’t taking it. if Evan Mobley and, and these other guys are getting more usage, that means Donovan Mitchell isn’t. I was kind of interested in like, again, a snapshot of a quarter away through the season. Terry Pluto (12:44.312) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (12:51.403) Mm-hmm. Correct. Terry Pluto (13:06.552) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (13:07.251) Looking at some of Donovan Mitchell’s per game numbers and there’s we’ve been tracking kind of as minutes so far, but there’s some other things I thought were kind of interesting too that I thought I would throw out. And then I wanted to kind of get your impressions of is Donovan Mitchell playing the right way, thinking about things the right way and producing the right way to get this team where it needs to go. But so 31.9 minutes per game this season. That is a career low, which I thought was interesting. His field goal attempts per game. Terry Pluto (13:12.92) Yep. Terry Pluto (13:33.496) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (13:36.213) are at 18.8. That’s the lowest he’s had since his rookie year in Utah when he had 17.2. So he’s only putting up 18.8 shots per game. His three point attempts per game are at 9.1. Yeah, last year, well, the last few years he’s been over nine, nine or above. But if you compare that to back in Utah, he never was, he was 7.0, 6.7, 6.9, 8.7. And you’re right, Terry, ever since he came here, it’s been nine or above. So. Terry Pluto (13:49.762) That’s up. Terry Pluto (13:54.167) Yeah. Terry Pluto (14:01.792) Yeah, that’s what I meant. Yeah, and they want them to get them over 10, actually. David Campbell (14:07.071) Yep, and his two point attempts per game are at 9.7 and he’s never been below 10 in his entire career. So this is kind of what happens when you have your star player trying to keep everybody else engaged, make sure they’re producing. Do you like the way this is working a quarter of the way through the season with Donovan Mitchell and how he’s deferring a little bit and letting these guys have their moments and produce? Terry Pluto (14:33.514) Absolutely, because I mean year ago I was enamored when the ball was in his hands and he was running everything. That was when Garland was hurt and Mobley and that’s that player is still there if that’s needed and we’ve seen sometimes he’ll just take over a quarter. But the big thing you want to do because he you know, he is a physical driver. He goes in there and he could get to the rim. I remember Mike Fratell told me when they tried to for him he goes because I just hadn’t seen a lot of it. I saw the numbers. He said, Terry, you’re going to love the guy. He gets to the rim anytime he wants. He’s got a strong lower body along with the ability to really almost jump out of the gym. And you’ll just see, but it’s a physical style of play. So as he gets older, if he can make more jumpers along with making the analytics people happy, it also will take some stress off the ball off his body. So you have him at 32 minutes, basically mobile at 31 Garland at 30 Allen at 30 and Who’s fifth in the minutes? I would have guessed for, Caris Laverte. Caris Laverte, who is shooting at what on three? This would maybe be the most incredible stat of the season. David Campbell (15:32.725) Kyrus Loverd? okay, I was right. David Campbell (15:43.605) 44. Terry Pluto (15:45.134) Nothing 49 49 and he’s playing 24 minutes a game The evolution of Laverte I think the last two years is really admirable because this is a guy who got into the league by Instant offense going to the rim. You know, he improved his jump shot over the years David Campbell (15:47.335) That was way off. Terry Pluto (16:11.63) But scoring, if I’m going to play 22 minutes, I’m going to get a bunch of shots and try to get 18 points. That’s how can get time. And he was wired that way. And there were players in the NBA that play a long time doing that. But he now, he started last year where he was really handling the ball and his passing. This was a revelation to me last year and his defense, you know, he can go at people. He’s got real long arms and he is very unselfish. And this goes back. to, we probably have mentioned this in the podcast before, but I’ll say it again. When he signed, I forgot what his contract is, something like two years. It’s like 18 million a year or something, which, you know, sounds like really high through the real world, but we’re not talking about the real world. The NBA, we’re talking about the NBA where the average player almost makes 12 million a year for two years. And a friend of mine was a top NBA agent said, Kairos most of actually, you always hear these guys that, you know, I really just wanted to play there and, I didn’t really look at other teams. goes, Keris must have really have done that. goes, I could have got him a longer contract somewhere else. And he didn’t mean there. just meant you hear players say that stuff and then they go and they signed for somewhere else for, you know, a ton of money. But you said this guy, he wanted to be part of it because he took a shorter contract for less money and to fit in at a place where he knows he’s not going to start. David Campbell (17:35.743) Well, part of that, Terry, I think when you’re a free agent in the NBA, you don’t get to look at every team in the league, really. You have to ask yourself, where am I going to be miserable going to work every day? Like there are some teams that guys would never want to play for because it’s just drudgery and you know you’re never going to win. And you’re right, Keras Levert, the deal he took reflects, I think, what the Cavs have going. And he wants to, he wanted to be part of it, which speaks to the organization. Terry Pluto (17:42.434) No. Terry Pluto (17:46.94) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (17:58.05) And and that, and that was, he came back with JB, cause he liked JB. Cause I think now he had bounced from Indiana to, I think it came in with the nets with Kenny, Kenny Atkinson course. He loved Kenny. Then Kenny got fired and that came to the Durant Irving show and they went through a bunch of stuff there. And I remember Caris also had the big heart problem, which was detected. And I believe he was treated at Cleveland clinic. And so that Cleveland always had a soft spot even before he got here. So, Keris Lever shooting 49%. There’s been a lot of incredible things, but to me, because we are a quarter, we’re 100, or excuse me, 25 games into an 82 game season. And he’s been terrific. know, Garland just goes right along with his scoring his 20 points and he does not seem to be showing. Any problems? You know, I have to admit I cringe every time it even looks like he got hit in the face. You know, well, you know, some of these. Rip Hamilton from Detroit when there he was a tall, thin guard a little like. Little like Garland and how he was built. He played differently. He didn’t shoot a lot of threes. He ran a lot off picks and he’s one of the best running creating shots off the ball. David Campbell (19:01.397) my gosh. They need to get him like a space helmet. I’ve never seen anybody like that get hit in the head that much. Terry Pluto (19:24.532) And he kept getting hit in the face. Finally, he just gave up and wore a mask. He did. And he just said, I can’t, you if I want to play, I just can’t deal with the broken noses, the busted jaws. And, and, but I haven’t seen too many other guys wear a mask for very long because it gets so hot and sweaty and steamed up. And, so that’s probably more than anybody wants to know about mask, but there you go. All right. Here’s one, by the way, here’s a surprise to me. David Campbell (19:46.229) All right, Terry. All right. Terry Pluto (19:55.074) The number one NBA team in terms of offensive efficiency is who? David Campbell (20:08.021) Oklahoma City. Terry Pluto (20:10.2) The New York Knicks. David Campbell (20:11.957) alright. Terry Pluto (20:14.07) And the Knicks are scoring a ton of points this year. They have completely transformed their roster and how they play. So it’s funny, the Cavs, you know, realize they had up, go up more up tempo, score more points, partly because of their problems with the Knicks in the past. The Knicks, who then would get to the next round, were in the same problems that the Cavs did. So they transformed their roster. to try and score more. But the Knicks are number one in offensive efficiency, Cavs are number two. And I was just stunned to see that. The Knicks, by the way, you know, they’re 15 and nine. I’ll tell you, he having a really good year as Orlando 17 and nine. And what’s his name? Ben Chero. He’s been hurt forever. Orlando’s really good. And people, because remember last year, I thought it was going be a tough series. I picked the Cavs in seven. Cause I watched Orlando and I just saw how athletic and young they were that they were just going to be a tough out for anybody. And they’re continuing to grow that way. And I liked their coach. And so, there you are, but yeah, the Cavs are 21 and four, then Boston’s 19 and five, Orlando 17 and nine. I’m talking about Eastern conference. the Knicks are 15 and nine. And of course you always get JV for me. JV’s got those pistons at 10 and 15. won only 14 games last year. So it is interesting to me how if you bring the right type of coach in, he can bring some order to these chaotic NBA situations. Cause it’s not like the Pistons went out and brought in a lot of high price free agents or something. They brought in a couple of veterans and they decided much like JB did here. This is the way we play. This is who we are. Now Kenny, take that as he said he built on that. Terry Pluto (22:13.87) Foundation that JB had and now he added his offense to it this is the way we play and this is who we are when we have the ball and They’ve been able to play both sides of it defensively The calves are ninth and defensive efficiency. I’d like to see that be a little higher but not too bad and no, excuse me. They are Yeah, they’re ninth. They’re ninth and they’re ninth and defensive efficiency ninth and pace. So Okay David Campbell (22:43.957) All right. So we’ve talked a lot, Terry, about how young this Cavs roster has been, and I guess still is, think, with Donovan. If you guys are 28. Yeah, Struis is 20. I think Sam Merrill might be 28. But George Niang, like, I didn’t expect this when he came here, but I can’t turn anything on, a TV, a computer, without seeing him with a headset on talking about interesting stuff. What has this guy brought that maybe you didn’t expect? Terry Pluto (22:44.056) Pretty decent. Yep. Terry Pluto (22:52.29) He’s 20. Yeah, he’s 28. Terry Pluto (23:06.89) I know. Did you see this stat says 2020? He’s been on, he has won more regular season games than any player in the NBA. Yeah, George, I’ll tell you all about it. I’m sure, but it is a, yeah, he is first of all, he got in better shape and admitted it. Secondly, he is. David Campbell (23:18.869) That’s something. Terry Pluto (23:34.282) You know, he gets into people’s face a little bit and that, and remember Kenny calls them the connector. He has these guys that are connectors. In other words, they connect by in terms of moving the ball. He likes kneeing either shoots it or passes it once in a while. It takes a couple of dribbles. It goes to the rim. but he’s also a connector with other people, you know, even Tristan Thompson doesn’t play, but it’s like they have like their own show, but on the bench, you could see they are talking to players and they must be saying the right things because the coaching staff. gives them to me a lot of latitude when they, you know, they’re pulling Garland over or whatever it is. So that is another key part of what’s going on where you’re building your culture. yeah, yeah, Nhi Anh, it’s just, you’re right. is, he’s a media star. David Campbell (24:22.259) Yeah, and that kind of gives the team a little bit of a different face and takes some of the media responsibilities off of some of the other guys. And it’s cool. I wasn’t expecting that from him when he came here and it’s kind of been fun. So think fans are having a good time with it. Terry Pluto (24:25.816) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (24:33.504) Yeah, and he’s more physical. know, one now and then they put him on a center or something and he goes out there. Now, now this dose of the NBA, the, the, the nineties when you couldn’t even score a hundred points. I mean, outcome, the elbows, he stepped on a guy’s feet. He shoved them around and he’s never committed a file. Just ask him. So, but you, you have, he’s not dirty, but he’s really annoying. He’s very annoying to when you, when he’s guarding you and. David Campbell (24:52.309) Yeah. Terry Pluto (25:02.284) That is another part that helps. Jared Allen goes along shooting 68%, 13 points, almost 11 rebounds. It’s a fun team. actually there was a guy at where I was working out and he stopped me and he was on the Browns and this said, well, you just watch the Cavs. And I go, well, do you like basketball? goes, well, sort of. I said, sort of will be good enough. If you sort of like basketball, you will enjoy this. It’s not just the winning, it’s the way they play the characters on the team. David Campbell (25:35.839) All right, so the Cavs were in Miami for the game Sunday and they actually are staying in Miami for a few days. They have a break here from Sunday to Friday because of not making the NBA Cup in Las Vegas. So they’re not playing Monday, Tuesday? No, not at all. I was like. Terry Pluto (25:43.405) Yeah. Terry Pluto (25:47.902) Nobody ever parties in Miami when they go down there do they? By when LeBron is a visiting player, I forgot what it is has this horrible record in Miami David Campbell (25:59.198) and the Cavs I don’t think are much better since he’s been gone. It’s like it’s a hard place to win. Terry Pluto (26:00.75) Yeah, right. They were bad when he was here. They were bad. I mean, obviously it’s a good record when he actually played for Miami, but I think with the Lakers, they get beat down there too. David Campbell (26:12.467) Yeah, you get beat by the nightlife the night before, and then you get beat by the heat the next day. Terry Pluto (26:15.36) Yeah, they just, yeah, exactly. You get it. You know, I’m sure all the wives and girlfriends want to make that trip. And so you’re, you’re on the beach and everything else. remember too, even when the guardians went down to Miami this year, Ben Lively pitched the next day. He has such a sunburn you could see on his neck and his arms. He was out on the beach and, he should know better because he’s from Florida. Remember his dad’s a commercial fisherman, I think around Tallahassee or somewhere. David Campbell (26:26.548) Yeah. David Campbell (26:45.492) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (26:45.772) But that didn’t stop him from, think his family was there and they had a great time on beach. He pitched okay, but it just looked painful to me. David Campbell (26:55.359) So they’re going be down there practicing, having some fun. And it’s too bad. They would never allow this. I thought the Cavs could just send the charge to play the Wizards on Friday. Maybe. And that way the Cavs could just go to New York and play at Brooklyn for their game on Sunday. for their next game on Monday, sorry. But that won’t happen. So any of the Cavs will be back home on Friday against Washington. And then they play Monday at Brooklyn. Terry Pluto (27:04.45) Yes Terry Pluto (27:17.166) Mm-hmm. By the way, I thinking of the NBA, did you, who has the best team? Okay, the best record in the West, Dave Campbell. This is all a surprise for me. I mean, I knew they were playing well, but I didn’t realize they were the best. David Campbell (27:31.565) I was going to say OKC as I guessed earlier, but is that not right? OK. Terry Pluto (27:35.727) Yeah, that’s correct. Okay. All right. Here’s a here’s a tricky one and well the next two are tricky number two and number three David Campbell (27:45.621) it’s not Denver Houston Okay, who’s number two? all right Terry Pluto (27:50.296) Houston is three. How about this Memphis? Yeah, that’s what I meant. If you were to name the top three, I would have probably gone OKC because I they were playing well Denver and Golden State now. Yeah, but yeah, so so there you are. The NBA is changing. It is yeah, Boston’s too, but you know you look at calves, you look at Orlando or even look at the top six right now. So you got Casey OKC Memphis and Houston in the West and he got Cleveland Boston in Orlando. Probably the only shoe one for that would have been Boston. David Campbell (28:03.049) Yeah, would have thrown Dallas maybe in there too, but yeah. David Campbell (28:27.273) Right? Yeah. And it’s a lot of these teams building young for the long-term stockpiling draft picks and trying to be good for a long time. So I think the calves might be a little further along in their, in their life cycle than maybe OKC is, but it’s going to be, yeah, it’s going to be fun. The East is going to be hard to get out of. You’re right. This, I think the calves in Orlando could be seeing each other for the next several years. Terry Pluto (28:33.27) Yes, they are. Yeah. Terry Pluto (28:40.302) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (28:48.384) Yeah, they could. And the New York thing is something to watch. That’s why I’m on the word people. They have changed how they play. They changed some of their roster and they changed how they play. You know, they have towns and now they still have Brunson who’s a calf killer, but I have to catch them on TV. I’ve not seen them. And this one, I was looking at these stats. It’s like, you gotta be kidding. I mean, they’re scoring a ton of points and they’re very good offensively where before, you know, they were a clunky team. lot of isolation and that’s all gone away. that is the NBA report. David Campbell (29:23.489) There you go. All right, so let’s take a break, Terry. When we come back, you had a column the last few days about how to evaluate Kevin Stefanski. I want to get into that. I also want to ask you how we should be evaluating Jamis Winston. We’ll get into that. Terry Pluto (29:36.334) and we will have a Vinnie Testa Verde comparison. David Campbell (29:40.566) OK, we’ll get into that and more when we return on Terry’s talking. David Campbell (30:38.259) Hey, welcome back to Terry’s talking. I do want to mention Terry’s newsletter. Comes out every Wednesday, all kinds of great stuff in there, stories, behind the scenes things. Terry does a lot of math in there where he’s crunching contracts and all kinds of stuff that you won’t find on cleveland.com . Sign up by going to cleveland.com slash Pluto. You’ll see all of Terry’s stuff there. At the top, there’s a blue bar. You can click on that. You get a two week free trial and then you can subscribe and. It’ll be worth every penny, I promise, because it’s a great read every week, comes out every Wednesday at noon. all right, time to get into some Browns, Terry. The three and 10 Browns, they are taking on the Chiefs on Sunday at one down on the lakefront. You had a column over the weekend about how to evaluate Kevin Stefanski after everything we’ve seen so far. And why don’t you talk about that for a second and kind of I wonder if you’ve gotten any reaction from fans to that the last couple of days in terms of what the Browns are going through, how he’s handling it. Terry Pluto (31:32.558) I have to admit I am like all over the place and trying to evaluate him so I’m going to ask you to go first. David Campbell (31:41.705) I think he’s having a really hard time with this team for a number of reasons. And I think this off season, we’re going to see a reset in a number of ways. And I think I might’ve hinted at this in previous podcasts. I think we’re going to see the 2025 Browns return to Kevin’s to Fansky football in terms of the offensive approach. I don’t think he’s happy with what they’re doing. I don’t think he’s happy with how they’re doing it. mean, the other day. The Browns got a delay of game penalty. The plays are coming in late. They got a delay of game penalty. And then after the penalty, they almost had another delay of game penalty because the play came in late. I think they snapped the ball with one second left. And I know he hates that stuff. And I don’t know what’s going on in terms of the assembly line of getting the plays into Jameis Winston. But I know he’s not happy with how things are going. I think it’s a combination of things. And I think it’s just time for a total reset for him and the whole. Terry Pluto (32:19.342) Yeah. David Campbell (32:37.703) Anyway, that was long-winded. don’t you just say it? Yeah. Terry Pluto (32:37.794) What? No, it wasn’t not at all. It plays in my point. First of all, I think the entire organization is in an utter state of shock. The last thing they expect to be was three and 10 at this point. They thought this would be a big game. You know, playoff consequences, all that stuff. Well, actually, it’s not for Kansas City. They probably they haven’t probably officially clinched a playoff. So I don’t maybe they have, but it’s over and. It’s the other team. Certainly he’s clenched a non-playoff spot. So it’s over for them. Meanwhile, the Browns kept, mean, Kevin’s never going to be really dynamic or anything, but he, he looks like he just cannot wait to get these press conferences over. He really is in the, the bunker of, know, the, the bill Belichick were on the Cincinnati bunker, you know, whatever question you ask, he’s, know, Kansas city. He, doesn’t want to. He doesn’t even want to talk about like young players he wants to look at or anything. I believe he’s, he’s just really shell shocked. And I probably, if you’ve rolled Andrew Barry out, you would hear the same thing because they don’t know what to make of this. And they’re at the point where you can’t do anything about it. David Campbell (33:56.469) That sums it up. so we need to start looking forward, right? And one of the key questions we’ve just been talking about Stefanski. What about Jamis Winston? We’re learning more and more about him every week. And how do you see him fitting? Well, a, the rest of the season and B going into next year, Kevin Stefanski has been getting questions about why don’t you put DTR and why don’t you put DTR and see what he can do, see what he can do. Terry Pluto (34:02.211) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (34:25.653) What you want to see happen with James Winston the rest of the way? And then how do you feel about him for next season going in? Terry Pluto (34:32.814) Well, to be fair to Jamis, he has played six games and four of them against teams that have been in the rank top six in defense. He’s got Pittsburgh twice and yet the Chargers and he had Denver. The last time I like Chargers and Denver were one and two and Pittsburgh is four. and that is a problem. That’s, that’s real challenge for any of them. Secondly, they can’t run the ball to save their life. So everybody and the defense is. Not anywhere close to being good. You know, some days, sometimes it’s okay. A lot of times it’s mediocre. So that’s put a lot of pressure on him. Now the, would you play him some more as opposed to DTR? Well, if you’re thinking even as a possible quote bridge quarterback for next year, or a guy like Jacoby Berset, when he had to open the season, you want him to get some more starts because this guy. I’m going to be looking, looking at as, as we’re talking now has not, you know, started a ton of games in a season since going back, believe you, when he was in, in, in Tampa Bay, that was 2019. So it’s important for him. If you really want to watch him to see how it plays out over time for him to, go and start some more games and start some more games for this team. And I just really wonder, you know how this will play out for him, but I’m just looking right now at, you know, like how many games he has started in his career. Okay. So he started, started six games this year in 2021. He started seven games for, the saints. This was the most interesting year for him. He was five and two for the saints with 14 touchdowns and three interceptions. How about that? They were five and two and he suffered an ACL. The next year he started three games. 23 didn’t start any games and now he started six. So he hasn’t played more than seven games since 2019 with Tampa Bay. And there you go. He needs to, I think needs to play more so they can evaluate him. He’s not some old guy. I mean, he’s 30. David Campbell (36:53.581) I agree. I mean, and this guy could be your starting quarterback going into next season. I mean, who else will you get that would be better? I don’t think there’s a very good free agent crop out there and certainly nobody who would be better than Jameis Winston. The other thing that I think is really interesting after watching him the last two weeks, Terry, I think this narrative of, it’s the Jameis Winston experience. You’re going to get three touchdowns and three interceptions every game. I think he’s getting really tired of that. Terry Pluto (36:58.881) Exactly. Terry Pluto (37:16.686) Ugh. Terry Pluto (37:20.833) Yeah. David Campbell (37:21.295) And it really hit me the other day after the game. Here’s a guy, Jamis Winston, who is all about his teammates is always trying to lift people up. And he took full responsibility for the pick six situation in Denver and said it was all on him. But after the Steelers game, here was his quote about the interception to Elijah Moore. It was a perfect throw, but we all have to be at the right place at the right time. It’s all about precision passing. I wish I had that one back because I had Jerome Ford. right in front of me when the team plays deep zone like that, you never go broke taking a profit. All right, so I’m looking at the first part of that quote. It was a perfect throw and we all have to be at the right place at the right time. For Jameis Winston, that is the equivalent of standing on top of a mountain and yelling, that was not my fault. And so if fans will watch a game, they’re like, you know what, why is he throwing so many interceptions? Well, you know what, if a receiver pulls up, Terry Pluto (37:58.84) Yeah. Terry Pluto (38:07.862) Exactly, yeah. And that shows what David Campbell (38:17.829) short on a route because he doesn’t want to get I’m not saying that’s what happened here but if a receiver pulls up short on a route or runs the wrong route and doesn’t go to the right spot against his own defense the quarterback takes the stat for the interception but it’s on the receiver and I think Winston was he’s tired of this narrative and he wants to prove that that’s not him anymore and that quote really spoke to me in terms of that so sorry I cut you off there go ahead Terry Pluto (38:19.438) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (38:40.33) No, and then how he didn’t stop there, then he said, you know, I had Ford open in the flat, I should have gone there. And then he did the famous thing that they say in the stock market, you know, the people to play the market, you know, you never go broke taking a profit. You never lose money taking a profit. And so that’s, that is a comment that I did appreciate because had he stopped there, then he kind of hanging them out. But You said you really had to listen closely, but he might’ve been delivering a message, maybe one or two of these guys. And I, I agree this, you know, we go back and I keep harking back to what I saw at that scrimmage with Minnesota. And I was talking to Mike Snyder, WTAM, cause I’m on the air with them three times a week. 10 to seven on Tuesdays and Friday mornings. And then on the Brownsburg game show and Mike. David Campbell (39:15.135) That’s true. Terry Pluto (39:36.938) Along with Jim Donovan, who sat with me for two of those days and was helping me. Mike Snyder was there one day and Mike, Mike didn’t bring it. Mike brought it up himself. He goes, you know, Terry, I just was thinking that that Minnesota thing, there’s just something called disjointed and messed up. said, exactly. This is how it is continued. Like you mentioned the trouble getting plays in and lined up and all this junk. Some of that is on Stefanski. You know, a lot, the plague that hangs over the great clouds, I’ve been harping, beating this thing to death is about Watson, but you go back and you know, maybe breaking up that coaching staff on offense had even more, obviously losing Callahan was a big deal. That was not their fault. Yeah. But in terms of the other stuff, you know, Dorsey and this and. David Campbell (40:23.645) It would have been for anybody losing him, right? Yeah. Terry Pluto (40:32.246) And I’m not blaming Dorsey, just that he was brought in to run a different type of offense. And now, like you said, they’ll probably go back to Kevin’s office, but just because the national media is saying there won’t be any changes and my, my general sense is there won’t be any big changes. They still got four games to go. And this is the Brown. You remember, I hated to write that thing. You know, the Browns is the Browns. Juju Seuss is back from the quote that, hangs over there. when you’re three and 10, you is the Browns losing. Pittsburgh like that and play that kind of game they played. It was really disappointing to me. And meantime, you just watched Mike Tomlin and those guys, a friend of mine was telling me, says, you know, they’re, they’re kind of like the guardians. They’re just like good all the time, or at least they’re never awful. And you just have sense that you have confidence that, okay, maybe they don’t win the whole thing, but they got a clue. And where the Browns is like, yes, they had a clue in 20. And they had a clue in 23, but in 21, you’d go, there’s that lost season playing Baker hurt all the time. Then 22, the suspension season. And now whatever this mess is. David Campbell (41:47.015) all right. Well, we promised fans. I think we’ve said it all. I think we’ve said it all there. Terry Pluto (41:48.718) There’s your chance. I handed you the ball. You felt like Jamus, I’m just running my own pattern. go, where is that going? And so therefore, if you’re Jimmy Haslam, you’re probably trying to figure all that out. And then if you go away from them, where do you go to? David Campbell (42:15.103) Well, the thing is, Terry, whoever was responsible for the Deshaun Watson decision is probably going to see some repercussions this season. like, we don’t know the answer to that really. Like, and that’s the biggest thing that has set this franchise back. There’s three number one draft picks who are not playing for this team right now because of Deshaun Watson. Terry Pluto (42:24.334) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (42:33.399) Yeah, it is. Terry Pluto (42:38.088) And I think a second rounder and a fourth round, I forgot what the other ones were. Yeah. David Campbell (42:40.937) yeah, that’s just the top of the draft. So if you see depth issues, there’s three number one draft picks and more, as you point out. Terry Pluto (42:48.918) And then also then you look at Andrew’s second round picks have been much better than his first. the cause you have Jedrick Wills, he’s done. now Newsome he’s on the injured list, isn’t he? For the pop list or whatever it is. And so he’s just been, I don’t know, how would you evaluate Newsome? David Campbell (43:03.017) Yes, yeah. David Campbell (43:09.395) So so and I mean we saw he wasn’t at his best the other day, but that’s because he got hurt and yeah so Terry Pluto (43:14.286) Yeah. So, you know, whereas like JLK, JLK was on his way to having a breakout season. He made the Pro Bowl last year, I believe. And then I’m sitting there in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh like causes me to like become reflective on the Browns. Usually not in a good way, but I’m sitting there and I’m thinking at this point last year, they started to really click with Flacco and everything else. They ended up, remember 11 and six, they were in such great shape. They didn’t even try to win that last game at Cincinnati. And the season ended and Kevin’s coach of the year and Schwartz’s offensive, excuse me, assistant of the year or coordinator, whatever they call it. And Flacco’s comeback player of the year. And you just look at that. And now you look at this. So did everybody get stupid or what? I don’t have a great answer. I just know that you don’t have these huge swings in Pittsburgh. Now Kansas City, Andy Reid is a great coach. There’s no question about it. He is. But he’s got a great quarterback now, but he was good even before that with being in Philadelphia or that. But he doesn’t have these big swings either. The interesting thing though, by the way, David Campbell (44:24.757) He’s amazing. Terry Pluto (44:43.274) let me ask you this. Will Belichick a Tar Heel coach? David Campbell (44:50.003) Yeah. What do think of that? I think it’d be a great thing. he’s got history there. Well, I think for him, I mean, I think they had some good seasons with Mack Brown. think Belichick could do some good. He’s such a smart football mind. I don’t know how we would relate to college kids. That would be interesting, but, but he’s got some history there and I think they could do a lot worse. I really do. Terry Pluto (44:51.618) Well, I’m asking you. Terry Pluto (44:55.854) For who? Well yeah! Terry Pluto (45:12.494) That’s what I meant for who? Terry Pluto (45:19.542) Well, if he were to go with a bunch of younger assistants and everything else, there’s a possibility there. Now the flip side is bill Belichick without Tom Brady as a very average NFL head coach record wise. I’m not saying it’s all Tom Brady, but a lot of times it’s the marriage of the two. know, Andy Reid was very good. Now Andy Reid is a Mount Olympus with Mahomes. and the bumble yeah there you go John Dorsey will say I wanted to draft my homes you know well Dor you know Dorsey let’s just bring this up I’m not saying he should be there Dorsey’s actually in the right spot you know where he is don’t you David Campbell (45:53.909) It’s all because of the bundle Ruski. Terry Pluto (46:12.872) Yeah, John, John Dorsey, do know where he is? He is number two with the Detroit Lions. He’s been there since he got fired here. think perfect spot for him player evaluation and everything else, but he’s not making the final call because what hurt John, John needed an owner a couple of times to say, Antonio Callaway, this arrest record is not good. David Campbell (46:16.671) No. David Campbell (46:20.882) OK. Terry Pluto (46:42.818) to say, John, know, this is, find me someone else. And meantime, when he comes in and says, I know the rest of the NFL thinks Chubb should go on the third round or lower because of that knee. I love the guy. We’re taking him to second round. See, that’s where he is. And you go back and look at that draft of the quarterbacks in 18. Let’s just bring them out. I’ll just bring them up right now. So yeah, Josh Allen. Well number one was Baker and he had Josh Allen and you had Josh Rosen and you had What’s what’s his names with? Minnesota now from USC Darnal and Then you had a guy nobody talked about which was Lamar Jackson So, how would you rate them right now? David Campbell (47:24.821) Darnold, Sam Darnold. David Campbell (47:35.667) Whoo, that’s a good question. think Lamar probably number one and and then I would go with Josh Allen number two. And then beyond that. Baker number three, I don’t know. Yeah. Terry Pluto (47:37.102) Yep. Terry Pluto (47:44.344) Yep. Terry Pluto (47:51.0) That’s how I would do it because Baker, mean, Donald’s playing really well now. Donald four and to just totally embarrass myself. The guy I liked best out of that draft was, was Rosen. Yeah. Mine was Rosen one Allen to Baker three. I did not like Donald at all because of all the turnovers and everything. He was, he was fumble, itis at USC and Lamar. David Campbell (48:02.357) Josh Rosen. Right. Terry Pluto (48:18.51) Nobody talked about him. I just thought always the second round pick. He’s an athlete I just fell into right into that trap at which everybody else thought except one guy Ozzie Newsom who trapped remember Yeah, and remember he traded up to get him in the same way Dorsey and I think his assistant there got him bowered and read all together. They traded up to get my homes So two of the best David Campbell (48:27.049) Yep, that was one of his last great moves as the player picker there. Terry Pluto (48:46.91) moves for quarterbacks have been guys traded up and guys taken. I believe Mahomes on 11th or something like that in the draft. And Lamar was right at the bottom of the first round. So that’s why when you go, got to have a top three pick to get a really good quarterback. You don’t. David Campbell (49:07.071) You don’t. Yeah. Look at Nick’s in Denver, what he’s doing there. So I got to tell a quick Ozzie story. She just reminded me of it. I saw this podcast a few months ago and they were talking about one of the guys worked with Ozzie. He was like a scouter in their draft room. And he said that the Ravens were interviewing guys on Michigan’s defense one year and they brought a guy in and they said, Terry Pluto (49:10.434) Yeah, exactly. Yes. David Campbell (49:34.111) who runs the defensive meetings when you guys get together at Michigan and look at film? And the guy said, well, I do. And they said, OK, all right. And they brought in another guy from the Michigan defense. And they asked him, who’s the leader in the film room when you guys are watching film? And he goes, I am. And then as he steps in and he goes, who holds the clicker? Terry Pluto (49:42.094) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (49:53.919) Hahaha! Terry Pluto (49:59.584) Yep. David Campbell (50:00.871) And the guy goes, well, this other guy did. And Ozzy goes, well, you weren’t the leader then. And I think they ended up drafting or getting both of those players at one point. But just to show you how Ozzy’s mind would work, most GMs would have just taken that answer on his face. But Ozzy said, who held the clicker in the meeting? I thought that was a great Ozzy moment. I wish I could remember the name of that podcast because it was a good story. Terry Pluto (50:11.202) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (50:16.884) Yeah, who held that? Exactly right. Terry Pluto (50:23.276) Mm-hmm. Yeah, that was they they And see the thing you’re in a division We talked about the Steelers are always good Baltimore’s always good I think they had a seven and nine or you know a few years ago. So it’s not like Tomlin with 17 years without a losing season, but Baltimore’s always good Pittsburgh’s always good. I want the Browns to always be good. I Mean where you’re not sitting there David Campbell (50:50.185) You’re not alone. Terry Pluto (50:51.906) going three and 10 and you’re not sitting there, you know, with quarterbacks or suspended. mean, just sick of this stuff. I really am of that kind of, moves that are so high risk. See the Lamar Jackson thing. It was a great move by Ozzy. You trade up into the first round. They didn’t use a regular first round pick. They traded up to get them. And if it works great and probably thinking of nothing else, I got an athlete here. I could do something with them. but he also had Flacco and I think he thought at the very least I will have a different look than Flacco. And that was a, that was a gutsy pick by Flacco. I think they took him, I forgot what it was 12th or 15th. That you’re out of Delaware and he had always shot been out of the shotgun. And, Kevin Byrne told me this story because we, often make fun of you Jackson, but we got it. We got to give the man credit. So he was like quarterback coach or something. He wasn’t even offensive coordinator for the Ravens. And it was huge job to teach Flacco how to play under center. And he did. David Campbell (51:39.859) Delaware, yeah. Terry Pluto (52:06.094) Because now when you watch Flacco, think that’s how we always play. at Delaware, he was a pure shotgun, heave it down the field quarterback. David Campbell (52:16.169) Well, like you said, Terry, low risk, high reward. And just like the Steelers have right now with their two quarterbacks that they signed for hardly any money at all in terms of quarterback salary. all right. We were talking about Bill Belichick and which ties into the 1990s Browns. And we promised a Vinnie Testaverde thing. I mentioned to you that we got an email about Vinnie Testaverde and this comes from Raleigh Drussi and Raleigh says, hi, Terry, does Winston’s prolific passing numbers? Terry Pluto (52:24.044) Yeah. Terry Pluto (52:27.561) wait, yeah. Terry Pluto (52:31.98) There you are, good. David Campbell (52:44.403) with untimely Terry Pluto (52:50.846) It is, know, big guy, strong arm, great guy. Vinny’s a great guy, by the way. What a wonderful teammate too. He was another one. I remember one game he threw a couple of interpix and it was very obvious. Remember like when, was it Cedric Tillman last year? Of course, two interceptions for Flacco. You could just see. And Flacco, well, one of them, Flacco had enough. For the second time he mentioned it was that, but Vinny would always there. But this is, this is stunning stats. 21 years, first of all, Vinny plate, 275 touchdown passes, 267 interceptions. It was a one to one ratio and James goes, yelling at me. 154 to one away. There I am. David Campbell (53:37.909) Yeah. There was never a Vinnie Testa Verde experience, was there, back in the day? Terry Pluto (53:44.066) No, there was, and it also shows how football has changed the analytics influence on how damaging interceptions are and turnovers, and you don’t want to have those. But I really think it’s unfair to simply take a guy like Jameis Winston, who is a marginal and NFL starter and certainly a terrific backup and teammate, and just put him in the, he throws a bunch of interceptions box. Well, there’s a bunch of guys who are backup quarterbacks in his league. They won’t throw a whole lot of interceptions. They’re not going to throw any touchdown passes. They’re not going to do anything. You’re going to hand off and as, and yeah, check down Charlie’s. That’s what the, I forgot who Joe Thomas was telling me about a quarterback that I, or somebody like that said, called him check down Charlie. That’s what he is. And now granted, you don’t want to like, David Campbell (54:23.039) Check down. Terry Pluto (54:36.61) Vinnie Testa Verde and James sometimes I’m trying one I’m feeling it just let it let it fly but you also don’t want guys that don’t even give it a shot don’t give you a chance to win David Campbell (54:50.933) All right. Well, I, I mentioned drew Aller, the Penn State quarterback last week as a possible guy that the Browns could look at. If he comes out, I think he’s just finishing his third year. So he’s eligible, but he might go back, but he, they lost in the big 10 championship game, but he had, he had one of the best throws of the season. thought the other day, and I’m not just saying that cause he’s from Medina, but he would be one of these low risk, high reward guys, Terry, a former five star recruit, one of the top quarterbacks in his class. And he has a gun for an arm. don’t think he’s maximizing his production there. So. Terry Pluto (54:54.371) Yes. Terry Pluto (54:59.672) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (55:20.575) Keep an eye on him during the playoffs. Terry Pluto (55:20.598) I it, I’ve heard some, I haven’t watched enough of him to have a big opinion other than what you mentioned, the physical stuff and that. But I’ve heard him project a second and third round. I mean, if that’s the case, he probably should come out. David Campbell (55:33.481) probably yeah but he was they were in a in the red zone he was being pulled down by his shirt and stood in there and just delivered a rope into the end zone and they lost so anyway we’ll see how they do in the playoff I’ll be keeping an eye on him so Guardians Terry big news the last few days the signing of Shane Bieber who’s coming back to Cleveland why don’t we start with an email from Steve Ronsky listener who’s from Grayslake Illinois Terry Pluto (55:40.525) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (55:59.369) He says, Hey guys, enjoy the podcast very much. I wanted to get your takes on the Bieber contract. I feel it was an odd deal for a very fiscally conservative organization like the guardians. I wouldn’t have made the deal unless Bieber made a hard commitment beyond 2025, not just the player option. If he has a good second half, he’s gone after the season. All you’ve done is rehab him for the Yankees or some other big market team. Of course, if he pitches great down the stretch and leads the guardians to a world series title, I’ll happily eat my words. Thanks for that Steve. Just for background, so the deal is 10 million in 2025 and there’s a player option for 16 million plus a 4 million buyout in 2026. So how do you feel about all that Terry? Terry Pluto (56:38.422) Here’s how, well first of all, let’s explain how this works exactly. So his salary is 10 million then and his salary for 26 is the 16 million. But if he decides to skip it, he still gets 4 million bucks to leave. It’s not a 4 million buyout. It’s the other way. you’re, it’s correct. It’s a different kind of contract. Drew Rosenhaus did that contract. David Campbell (56:42.037) All right. Terry Pluto (57:04.735) Of Drew Ozenhouse should have signed him for 40 or $50 million that the guardians were offering several Springs ago. My guess is they would decide that here’s what I think they believe that the Bieber, we won’t really know what Bieber’s like till 26, that he may come back and pitch some nice games, much like Matthew Boyd did. But if you watch, they were watching Boyd on like 80 pitches and five innings, and they were very careful. I did the timing on it in my column on Bieber. if it’s a, and Boyd kind of, It’s usually 12 to 18 months, but really is getting closer to 18 months for most of these guys with, with Tommy John Boyd came back in 14 months and he pitched, early August finally in the big leagues is when that was. So if you roll that into Bieber, that would be sometimes around, early July, something like that. Yes. And they would be. David Campbell (58:10.645) was was heard in April, right? Terry Pluto (58:16.077) he’d have to go through the minors and that kind of stuff. So I think the guardians felt that if he’s pretty good, he’ll probably still be with us, but you never know. Scott Borrell’s got $29 million for two years for Matthew Boyd. David Campbell (58:35.925) All right. Well, that’s, I keep think they’ve lost both Cobb and Boyd in this off season already. And you’re right. This, this does feel like that a little bit where it’s, it’s a good deal to get him through the second half of next season. And then they can see where they’re at and they’ve got them signed. So they don’t, they won’t lose him if he decides to, well, unless he decides he wants to leave for more money, which would be hard to make that case in half a season. Yeah. Yeah. Terry Pluto (58:55.118) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (58:59.046) I mean he could, he could, but probably if he does it means he’s pitched very well this year. I think that’s what they’re figuring this upcoming season. By the way, wouldn’t it surprise us thing the Guardians, the Guard Fest is like now at every three years or something? David Campbell (59:06.196) Right. David Campbell (59:13.639) Every three years, yeah. They’ve just announced that this week. We’re trying to find out. It’s a big undertaking, right? And I don’t know if it was a money-loser. There’s a lot of questions about it. But I’ve often found it weird, too, that they’re the only team that does something like that. Like, the other teams don’t have one either. Terry Pluto (59:15.446) What’s that about? Terry Pluto (59:22.637) I guess. Yeah. Terry Pluto (59:31.554) Yeah. The fans, the fans seemed to like it when I went down every year or so. I mean, what do I know? by the way, did you see the, the, Paul Hoynes did not make the hall of fame. Tom, Tom Boswell did from the Washington post. And that that’s probably one of those things where a lot of the people voting, Boswell being at the Washington post, bigger, you know, bigger media outlet and. David Campbell (59:36.735) Yeah. So, yeah. David Campbell (59:43.913) Yes, we’re going to keep pulling for him next year though. Terry Pluto (01:00:00.332) You know, Paul Hoynes is a, he’s the everyday beat guy. Even when I was in Baltimore and. Basel was the quote beat man for the Washington post covering the Orioles. He, there was no Washington, nationals or senators or anything at that point. He really wasn’t there all the time. He would come in and write features and those kinds of things. So he was not a traditional baseball beat guy at all. not to. And Tom is a wonderful, elegant writer and he loves baseball. But it was, when I think about that, that award, think about guys who are, you know, long time beat guys, know, Sheldon Ocher made it from here. Lebowitz was in help. People can think about Hal as a columnist, but early in his career at the old Cleveland news, he covered, he covered the tribe for years and years. You know, Gordon Cobbledick is in another guy playing dealer beat writer for years and years. In fact, I Cobbledick was actually my dad’s favorite writer. He liked Hal too, but he loved Cobbledick. David Campbell (01:01:05.538) Well, Tom Boswell, as you mentioned, Terry is a standing writer and he is a national and he’s got books and a lot of people have read his baseball books over the years and it’s but Hoynes is going to get in one of these years and we know that’s going to happen. So we’ll be pulling for him. To wrap up the Guardians real quick, Terry, I think we got a couple of emails last week or maybe it was one about the players shares for the playoffs and Paul Hoynes, I think it was the next day, got the information and did a story on it. Terry Pluto (01:01:10.349) Yep. Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (01:01:26.487) Yes. David Campbell (01:01:32.501) But MLB has announced the shares for the 12 teams. The Guardians received 15.4, almost 15.5 million as their portion of the gate receipts. they have, yeah, they’re handing out 72 full shares worth $182,663. They also handed out 12.48 partial shares. Yeah, so I just wanted to throw that on there. According to the... Terry Pluto (01:01:43.438) It like 180 grand a player, I think. Terry Pluto (01:01:50.19) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (01:02:00.039) A green basic agreement players and managers get it the certified athletic trainers and the strength and conditioning coaches get a percentage share. So basically teams decide who’s going to get the money and how they’re going to break it up. Terry Pluto (01:02:10.574) You know, for a lot of these guys, well, first of all, it’s a lot of money for anybody, but even if you get, you know, you’re a trainer or something like that and you get say half a share of 90 grand, that probably just doubled your salary or more. And that’s a, and that was always the, in the old days. I remember when I did the book with the, on the 61 Yankees with Tony Kubik and the Yankees, like when he was a younger player, they went to kind of slump and they weren’t playing well. he said, David Campbell (01:02:23.128) yeah. Terry Pluto (01:02:39.982) I forgot who a couple of the veterans were, Yogi Bear and some others pulled Kubik over. think Bobby Richardson said, you guys are messing with our money because we need that World Series share. Because that almost was half of their regular season salary. And the Yankees would tell you this when you would negotiate it. Well, don’t have, you know, we’ll pay you $20,000, but you know, we’re going to make the World Series and that’s at least another 10. It could be even 12,000. David Campbell (01:02:55.807) Crazy. David Campbell (01:03:06.549) Yeah, Hoynsey added in a story. 17 of the 26 players on the Guardians’ playoff rosters were making at or just above the Major League minimum of $740,000. So that’s a big chunk for guys who are making, that’s 50 % of what they made the whole season. The Dodgers’ share for winning it all was $477,441. The Yankees were number two at the... No, not at all. Terry Pluto (01:03:19.085) Yeah? Terry Pluto (01:03:23.298) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (01:03:32.226) Yeah, but they don’t have any high-pay players. David Campbell (01:03:35.413) The Yankees were number two at 354,572 and then the Guardians had the third biggest share at 182,663. Terry Pluto (01:03:43.31) Yeah, I don’t know how they figure that. David Campbell (01:03:46.581) It’s a combination of gate receipts and how many games you win. think I don’t have that but Terry Pluto (01:03:50.466) Yeah, I how many games you play too. David Campbell (01:03:53.641) Yeah, that’s probably part of it and winning matters. The Braves. Terry Pluto (01:03:55.15) because see Cleveland had they had a five they had a five game series with Detroit and the Yankees was a five game series. David Campbell (01:04:01.927) Mm-hmm the Braves were got the lowest that their players got nine thousand five hundred and forty eight because they had a very short run so Do you want to talk about this golden bat proposal real quick Terry? It’s a little timely so we probably should jump on it for a minute just to for background MLB is kicking around this thing where you would have a golden bat at bat once a game and You could pick any player from your lineup and send them up at any time at a key point of the game. I Think they should actually have a gold bat like Terry Pluto (01:04:13.175) A little bit. Terry Pluto (01:04:32.024) Yeah. David Campbell (01:04:32.029) Hey, you ever tour the Louisville Slugger Museum, can paint the bats or whatever, but I think the guy should go up and bat with a gold bat. I think that’d be really cool if they did it. What do you think, Terry, of the golden bat proposal? Terry Pluto (01:04:43.064) Well, first of all, if you do it, if you, all right, let’s, let’s do the, think Joe Noga first mentioned that, this example, you know, it’s the eighth inning and the bases are loaded with one out, guardians are down by a run. Hedges is up. So instead of hedges, Jose gets to bat. Okay. So he gets to bat, see what happens. Now Jose’s batting his regular third spot in the lineup. now one of the proposals be, well, then he also then gets to bat third. No, he doesn’t not under my rule. No, if you pull him out of that spot, you’ve taken them out. You’re not giving your best player an extra lineup appearance. You’re just moving that thing somewhere. And I think it creates now I’m doing the positive part first. it creates a lot of kind of fun, second guessing managers in some ways will hate it because they’ll keep wondering, do I hold it’s almost like a basketball timeouts or something to when do I call it? When do I use it? Who do I even use it with? But it. It does. And some people will say it’s, you know, altering with the, the, the, the sanctity of the game. I remember I’m old enough to remember when they, the pitcher stopped batting, they had this designated hitter thing. What do you mean he’s going to bat and not have to play the field and just keep doing that? Yes. And of course now it’s just, it’s like, you think it’s always been there. So. I would be willing to look at it in the minors. That’s the cool thing about baseball. You have the minors, you could try all this stuff out and sort of see how it goes. But at first I would think, well, that’s stupid, that’s crazy. Then I started thinking about it and whoa, I remember people saying about the designated hitter. And so I’m intrigued enough to try it in the minors, not just there. I know Manford got, I guess, skewered by a lot of people. And Salaki is back in office on the commissioner on this. But he should say, no, let’s look at it in rookie ball or somewhere. Yeah. David Campbell (01:06:38.643) Yeah, what’s the harm? And this is what you explained about starting in the minor leagues. And I think that’s a really good idea is that’s what exactly would happen when the pitch clock came out. All these baseball purists were clutch and clutching their pearls. my, we can’t put a clock on baseball. And they tried it in the minor leagues and it worked and it made the game faster. And now everybody loves it. So. Terry Pluto (01:06:44.834) Yeah. yeah. Terry Pluto (01:06:57.75) As I wrote I wrote a lot about the role changes I challenge you to go back because a Caleb Mackey is one of our listeners said he watched a 2019 game with the Sun on video. I don’t know why he was doing that, but he did And he said it was like he started throwing the ball get in the batter’s box I mean it was painful how slow the pace was and then you look at what do you mean? You’re not allowed to shift players should be able to stand anywhere. They want on the diamond. Well, not anymore David Campbell (01:07:25.907) Yeah. But I mean, it’s, it’s, it’s Rob Manfred’s job to come up with ways to grow the game and make it better. And if he doesn’t throw stuff out like this, like this out, he’s not doing his job like for discussion. Terry Pluto (01:07:27.062) No they’re- no they can’t? Terry Pluto (01:07:37.306) And the fact, mean, the fact is, what do you mean a reliever has to pitch the three batters? Never used to be that way. It is now. Thank goodness. I mean, can you imagine if that rule wasn’t in and we have bullpen games already teams, teams that only have like nine guys on the roster and they’d have, you know, 94 pitchers. So David Campbell (01:07:55.829) Yeah. And now, and look what happened to, were talking about this in the middle of December and people are talking baseball about this golden bad thing in December. So mission accomplished for Rob Manfred, right? Terry Pluto (01:08:03.734) Yeah, and you can look at it. But also, do want to adapt. The fact is, last couple of years with the rule changes, attendance is up everywhere. And I know the Guardian’s internal data showed a lot of people say that it is a better game to watch. It’s a better game to watch moving along so fast. And at first, I thought I wouldn’t like the Ghostrunner on second. I remember when that came out. midway through that season, think it was the COVID season. I’m like, this is really interesting. Let’s see what you’re gonna do. Yes, it did. Yeah. So, I mean, please, so you can move in a bat one, but you don’t let this guy bat, because one guy said, we can just move, judge up one spot in the roster, here in the lineup, and then he gets to bat twice in a row. No, he doesn’t. You can’t have that. No, this is like, if you put him in there, David Campbell (01:08:39.573) And that’s another thing that started in the minor leagues, right? Yeah. Terry Pluto (01:08:59.788) That’s where he bats and he loses that spot in the lineup. And there you go. I don’t know. That’s all I feel. And I’ll tell you another thing, David. I got an email from a fan. said, just what the Yankees need, you know, where they could have put Aaron judge or whatever, anywhere. Actually the Yankees golden bat wouldn’t, don’t think it helps them because they probably have six guys going to hit the ball, the ballpark anyway. It more likely will be a benefit. David Campbell (01:09:05.862) You got like a double switch. Yeah. All right. Well, let’s see where that goes. It’s going to be something to... Terry Pluto (01:09:29.006) to a good mid-marketing Cleveland, Kansas City, et cetera, where you have, you know, they could take Bobby Witt and drop them in somewhere where they want to put them, or you could take Jose and drop them into a spot, because you don’t have three Jose’s in the lineup like the Yankees have. so that’s, I want people to really think about this beyond the, no, you can’t do that. I mean, once upon a time, nobody thought they should have automatic transmission in cars. David Campbell (01:09:48.351) Very interesting. David Campbell (01:10:01.298) That’s really old school Terry that’s going back. All right hey we- Terry Pluto (01:10:03.774) What they did? I won’t even use an indoor plumbing reference. What do you mean this device? What happens if it doesn’t work and we’re inside? David Campbell (01:10:13.973) Alright. Hey, so we are going to close with some Ohio State. We talked a little Ohio State Michigan last week and we did get a couple of listeners who wrote in about that. The first one is from Scott Goodman and he says, Hey Terry, I’m listening to your December 3rd podcast and your discussion of the OSU Michigan game. Terry Pluto (01:10:17.454) Alright, enough of that. David Campbell (01:10:35.445) After watching the game and experts reviewing the tape of the game, I wanted to share my thoughts. You questioned why Will Howard didn’t throw a pass more than 20 yards down the field. I think that was a stat that I mentioned, Terry. Will threw two passes more than 20 yards. Both throws the Michigan defensive backs, grabbed the OSU receiver and gave up 15 yards for penalty for pass interference instead of a large gain or a TD. Another reason the college rules should change pass interference to a spot foul like the NFL as opposed to 15 yards. Terry Pluto (01:10:44.759) Yes. Terry Pluto (01:10:54.304) Aha! David Campbell (01:11:04.925) I agree the play calling was unacceptable, but the offensive line blocking was poor, very poor in the fourth quarter, especially the last drive. Will Howard had immediate pressure in his face right over the backup center. Thank goodness for the Cavs and Jamis Winston to make the Browns games fun to watch since the Browns are out of the playoffs and need high draft picks. Thanks for the articles and podcasts. Best to you and Roberta. Again, that’s from Scott Goodman. And we got another one from Tom Hearn and he says, yeah. Terry Pluto (01:11:28.12) by the way, let’s give Scott some, he had a couple things like, number one was, they went deep and there were the penalties. so that actually, you can keep going deep, you get 15 yards or is it 10? I’ve forgotten the college game, 15, so that’s 15 yards. Secondly, he’s also right about, it should be to the spot of the foul. David Campbell (01:11:40.434) It worked. 15. Yep. David Campbell (01:11:52.981) I agree and Tom Hearn, our next listener says similar sentiments. He says, hi guys, I was listening to last week’s podcast. You and Terry discussed the Michigan game against Ohio State. Made the comment that they did not complete pass down the field. Also you stated that they did not throw many long passes, but they did throw two over 40 and they were tackled by the Michigan player. In college, it’s a 15 yard penalty. This is much different than the pro game, which is a penalty on the two yard line. I see this as a very unfair rule. My friend who was an SEC referee sends me the weekly review of NCAA officials. They discussed this difference, but said that the committee was not interested in changing the rule. I think it’s a terrible decision. so yeah, just like you were saying, Terry, to me, it was proof that it works. And the other thing teams can do, the biggest advantage Ohio state had on offense was that amazing group of receivers. Terry Pluto (01:12:42.551) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (01:12:42.825) That was the biggest advantage they had in the whole game. And we’ve, we see the Browns do this or other teams. When you’re having pass protection problems, you keep in seven, eight guys, you keep in running backs and tight ends and you send one, two or maybe three guys out into a pattern and you max protect and let your receivers win. And I think all the shoes receivers, especially Jeremiah Smith were good enough to win with not as many guys out in patterns and they just didn’t push it down. Ryan Day said this last week, we had too many interior runs was I think a direct quote of what he said. We had too many interior runs. Terry Pluto (01:13:16.398) It’s it’s remarkable that Chip Kelly, not calling the place, not Woody Hays, it’s just astounding to me. Because given his history. David Campbell (01:13:27.049) Yep. Anyway, Ohio State is, that Michigan game is now in the rear view mirror, at least on the schedule. And I’m seeing predictions that they could win the whole thing. That people are thinking they’re going to go on a run that that Michigan loss will set them off on a championship run. So that we will see that is going to be starting a week from Saturday down in Columbus. I have, he’s good. He’s good. I’m trying to think of a comparison. He’s Terry Pluto (01:13:45.742) Have you seen us running back from Boise steak as I have not? And? How good? David Campbell (01:13:58.717) He’s part scat back but he’s also part, he’s got power and he’s not just a third down guy. You know how you see some guys who are a little bit slight? He’s built, he’s built really thick and I think he could be a good pro. I don’t know how high I would take him but he’s a good football player. Terry Pluto (01:14:04.173) Yeah. Terry Pluto (01:14:18.36) Cause I just saw a little bit and you know. David Campbell (01:14:22.495) Sorry, we’re talking about Aston Giante from Boise State. Terry Pluto (01:14:24.246) Yeah, and he is he beat Barry Sanders’s record or where is he on that? He’s like right there. He’s like right there. Yeah. Mm hmm. Italy. Yes. That was in the army. I’ve heard a nice story on him in the Wall Street Journal recently. And see a guy like that to me is intriguing. You know, third round pick, something like that. The Browns. We don’t know what Chubb’s going to be able to do next year. David Campbell (01:14:28.423) I am not sure, but he’s close. Yeah. And it’s interesting. He grew up in Florida. I mean, in Florida, in Italy, playing football. Yeah. Terry Pluto (01:14:52.215) I think we’ve seen enough about Jerome for to think, okay, he’s okay. How’s that? That’s it. So. David Campbell (01:14:58.281) Well, every time I watch the Cowboys return a kick, I think about the Browns. How many guys are on this team right now who can run a kickoff or a pass or a jet sweep 90 yards? How many guys you think are on the team? Maybe Jerry Judy? They have nobody who’s a game breaker in terms of speed like that, and they need guys like that, not just on offense, but to return kicks. So I think somebody like him would Terry Pluto (01:15:14.36) Judy, Judy’s your big athlete, that’s it. Yeah. Terry Pluto (01:15:24.151) Mm-hmm. David Campbell (01:15:26.781) would be a perfect fit. You could do a lot. Terry Pluto (01:15:27.406) I mean, is it, an interesting pick. And if you take him to third round, just, okay. Well, okay. It’s a third round pick. so I, I would like to see them look at a running back third round, fourth round like that, because you’d have other, know, they’ve got to get something. The offensive line going. I really want to tackle one here. well, well, they’re gonna have to one drones back and you have a conch on state healthy. Well, conquest stayed healthy for the first time. We’ll see if he finishes the year healthy, by the way. I don’t mean there just to say, cause he, don’t know when was the last time, but I think 20 was the last time he got through the whole year healthy. And then, the one now the last two years has ended up on the injured list and the season. David Campbell (01:16:09.301) Yeah, you look across the roster, they’re relying on a lot of guys coming back from injury and they need to get younger, bigger, faster and meaner. they’ll be, I’m curious to see how the draft, some years are really good safety drafts. Some years it’s really good running back draft. I’m really curious to see how that shakes out this year when all the declarations come out. So, all right, we’re good, right Terry? We done? All right. Hey, don’t forget again, check out Terry’s newsletter and send us your. Terry Pluto (01:16:16.46) Mm-hmm. Terry Pluto (01:16:31.519) I’m done! David Campbell (01:16:36.885) 2024 favorite moments and your 2025 Cleveland sports predictions, sports at cleveland.com . We will talk to you next week when we return on Terry’s talking.

Tennis season is just around the corner, and if you didn’t get in quick enough to secure on-court seats, we’ve got a competition just for you. Iconic sports and athleisure brand New Balance has partnered with the Australian Open to give two lucky winners the trip of a lifetime. Since tickets to the AO have been so in demand with most selling out at record speed, this could be your opportunity to witness the epic action up close at Rod Laver Arena . Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today The brand is giving one lucky person the chance to win a New Balance x AO adventure for two. Including a flight and accommodation gift card, night session Rod Laver tickets, plus a Riverside Social relaxed cocktail party and more, this competition is not to be missed. As the official performance apparel and footwear partner, expect to see some official merch from New Balance included too. This epic prize is totalled at $4870 and includes the following: Two AO tickets and Riverside Social Package for the January 17, 2025 night session Head straight to New Balance’s website to enter the competition.Conditions in abandoned mine are too dangerous for crew searching for Pennsylvania woman UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (AP) — An abandoned coal mine is too unstable and unsafe for rescuers looking for a 64-year-old Pennsylvania woman who may have been swallowed by a sinkhole. Authorities said Wednesday that the crumbling mine was complicating efforts and endangering the workers searching for Elizabeth Pollard. A state police spokesperson says the integrity of the mine has been compromised and that rescuers are reassessing their tactics to avoid putting themselves in danger. The search began early Tuesday, when Pollard’s family called police to say she had not been seen since going out Monday evening to look for her cat. WWE is seeking a bigger stage and Netflix, pushing for more live events, is providing it WWE will perform on a stage next month that could be vastly larger than its current home on cable television when it makes its “Raw” debut on Netflix. The sports entertainment company is moving to a platform with about 283 million subscribers worldwide as it departs its current home on the USA Network, which averaged 688,000 viewers in prime-time last year, according to the Nielsen company. For Netflix, onboarding the WWE is part of strategic move to air more live events on the heels of a hugely successful fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul that was viewed by more than 60 million people. Michigan court upholds light sentence for woman who killed dad in dispute over ride DETROIT (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals has declined to overturn a light jail sentence for a young woman who killed her father by burning him with a dangerous powder. Prosecutors said Megan Imirowicz was upset when her father couldn’t drive her to a hair appointment before her 18th birthday party. Imirowicz was sentenced to only a year in jail in 2023. She actually spent more than a year in custody because she was locked up before trial and while awaiting her punishment in suburban Detroit. Sumo wrestlers bring 1,500 years of tradition to London as the sport has an international moment LONDON (AP) — London’s Royal Albert Hall is preparing to host a different kind of spectacle: Sumo wrestling. Wrestlers put on an exhibition of heavyweight grappling to promote a tournament scheduled for next October. It marks only the second time an elite five-day tournament will be held outside Japan. The first was held in 1991 at the same venue. Organizers are hoping to whip up the kind of excitement that was generated three decades ago, when the deeply ritualistic sport attracted sell-out crowds and a national television audience. The end of an Eras tour approaches, marking a bittersweet moment for Taylor Swift fans NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The global phenomenon that is Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is coming to an end after the popstar performed more than 150 shows across five continents over nearly two years. Since launching the tour in 2023, Swift has shattered sales and attendance records. It's even created such an economic boom that the Federal Reserve took note. But for many who attended the concerts, and the millions more who eagerly watched on their screens, the tour also became a beacon of joy. It's become a chance not only to appreciate Swift’s expansive music career, but also celebrate the yearslong journey fans have taken with her. Jury revisits key videos in NYC subway chokehold death trial NEW YORK (AP) — Jurors have asked to review police and bystander video at the heart of the New York City chokehold manslaughter case against Daniel Penny. The request came during a second day of deliberations Wednesday. The jury asked for a second look at videos captured by the body cameras of officers who responded to the subway car where Penny grabbed hold of Jordan Neely in May 2023. Neely's agitated behavior and remarks were frightening passengers. Jurors also asked to revisit Penny's interview with detectives and a bystander's video of much of the roughly six-minute restraint. And the jury also requested to rehear part of a city medical examiner’s testimony. Penny's lawyers say his actions were justified. Relatives hunt for the missing after Guinea stadium crush amid fears official death toll is too low CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — Kambaly Kouroumah was searching a local morgue for his teenage brother, Adama, who died after chaos erupted at a soccer game in southern Guinea’s Nzerekore city. Adama, 15, was among 56 people that officials said were killed in Sunday's crush, although rights groups reported a death toll nearly three times higher. Local media, rights groups and witnesses say security forces used tear gas to respond after fans began to throw stones to protest a referee's decision during the soccer game that was organized in honor of Guinea's junta leader, Col. Mamadi Doumbouya. Many of the dead were crushed as they tried to escape through the stadium gates, videos showed. Power shortages in Ecuador are melting away the future of a small town’s ice-cream industry SALCEDO, Ecuador (AP) — Ice-cream production in this quiet Ecuadorian town began in the mid-20th century in a convent for Franciscan nuns. The nuns sold their creamy popsicles in town to gather funds for the poor. But the people of Salcedo saw a business opportunity and began experimenting with new flavors and techniques, establishing a thriving popsicle industry that has made their small town famous among ice-cream lovers. But now, the South American nation is struggling with a relentless wave of power cuts that threaten the future of Salcedo’s ice-cream industry, melting away its dreams of a more prosperous future. Senegalese artisans in the spotlight as they exhibit for the first time at a prestigious art event DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — For the artistic and cultural elites of the West African nation of Senegal, the monthlong Dakar Biennale of Contemporary African Arts is a celebratory moment. But it wasn’t until this year that the local artisans in the Soumbedioune crafts market, just off the Corniche and at the doorstep on the Medina working-class neighborhood, realized what the Biennale was. Craftsmanship is deeply rooted in the country’s culture, but its role has declined in recent years. As living costs rise, many Senegalese opt for cheaper, Chinese-imported products. And those that can afford it buy Western clothes and furniture to mark their social status. Eminem's mother Debbie Nelson, whose rocky relationship fueled the rapper's lyrics, dies at age 69 Debbie Nelson, the mother of rapper Eminem whose rocky relationship with her son was known widely through his song lyrics, has died. She was 69. Eminem’s longtime representative Dennis Dennehy confirmed Nelson’s death in an email on Tuesday. He did not provide a cause of death, although Nelson had battled lung cancer. Nelson’s fraught relationship with her son, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III, has been no secret since the Detroit rapper became a star. Nelson brought and settled two defamation lawsuits over Eminem’s statements about her in magazines and on radio talk shows. In her 2008 book, “My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem,” she attempted to set the record straight.Faruqi & Faruqi Reminds ASP Isotopes Investors Of The Pending Class Action Lawsuit With A Lead Plaintiff Deadline Of February 3, 2025 – ASPI

Where Blue Owl Cap Stands With AnalystsThe German government pledged Sunday to fully investigate whether there were security lapses before the Christmas market car-ramming attack that killed five people and injured over 200. Political pressure has built on the question of potential missed warnings about Saudi suspect Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a 50-year-old psychiatrist who had made online deaths threats and previously had trouble with the law. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and the heads of Germany's domestic and foreign intelligence services are due to answer questions at parliamentary committee hearings on December 30, a senior lawmaker told AFP. Faeser vowed Sunday that "no stone will be left unturned" in shedding light on what information had been available to security services ahead of last Friday's bloody attack in the eastern city of Magdeburg. She stressed that the attacker did "not fit any previous pattern" because "he acted like an Islamist terrorist although ideologically he was clearly an enemy of Islam". Abdulmohsen has in the past called himself a "Saudi atheist" who helped women flee Gulf countries and charged Germany was doing too little to help them. In online posts, he also strongly criticised Germany for allowing in too many Muslim refugees and backed far-right conspiracy theories about the "Islamisation" of Europe. In one post, he wrote: "Is there a path to justice in Germany without blowing up a German embassy or randomly slaughtering German citizens?... If anyone knows it, please let me know." News magazine Der Spiegel, citing security sources, said the Saudi secret service had warned Germany's spy agency BND a year ago about a tweet in which Abdulmohsen threatened Germany would pay a "price" for how it treated Saudi refugees. Die Welt daily reported, also citing security sources, that German state and federal police had carried out a "risk assessment" on Abdulmohsen last year but concluded that he posed "no specific danger". The city of Magdeburg has been in deep mourning over the mass carnage on Friday evening, when an SUV smashed through a crowd at its Christmas market, killing four women and a nine-year-old child and injuring 205 people. Surgeons at overwhelmed hospitals have worked around the clock, and one health worker told local media of "blood on the floor everywhere, people screaming, lots of painkillers being administered". Scholz on Saturday condemned the "terrible, insane" attack and made a call for national unity, at a time Germany is headed for early elections on February 23. But as German media dug into Abdulmohsen's past, and investigators gave away little, criticism rained down from opposition parties. Conservative CDU lawmaker Alexander Throm charged that "many citizens feel... that the Scholz government has completely failed in terms of internal security". He demanded greater police powers to monitor and analyse data from social media platforms, telecommunications and surveillance cameras with facial recognition technology. The far-right AfD called for a special session of parliament, and the head of the far-left BSW party, Sahra Wagenknecht, demanded that Faeser explain "why so many tips and warnings were ignored beforehand". Mass-circulation daily Bild asked: "Why did our police and intelligence services do nothing, even though they had the Saudi on their radar?... And why were the tips from Saudi Arabia apparently ignored?" It charged that "German authorities usually only find out about attack plans in time when foreign services warn them" and called for sweeping reforms after the election for a complete "turnaround in internal security". Senior MP Dirk Wiese of Scholz's Social Democrats said the December 30 hearings will summon the heads of the BND, the domestic intelligence service BfV and the Office for Migration and Refugees. Media meanwhile reported more details on Abdulmohsen, who had worked at a clinic that treats offenders with substance addiction problems, but had been on sick leave since late October. Der Spiegel reported that in 2013 a court fined him for "disturbing the public peace by threatening to commit crimes" after he had darkly referenced the deadly attack on the Boston marathon. The chairwoman of the group Central Council of Ex-Muslims, Mina Ahadi, said Abdulmohsen "is no stranger to us, because he has been terrorising us for years". She labelled him "a psychopath who adheres to ultra-right conspiracy ideologies" and said he "doesn't just hate Muslims, but everyone who doesn't share his hatred." bur/fz/gv

Shehu Sani, a former Senator from Kaduna state, has sent a message to northern elites over President Bola Tinubu's tax reform bills The former senator maintained that the president's economic reform is an opportunity for the country to reset, reconfigure and restructure Sani stressed that emotional outbursts and uninformed opinions would not contribute a meaningful discussions around the tax reform bills CHECK OUT: Don't let unemployment hold you back. Start your digital marketing journey today. Former Senator Shehu Sani has urged northern senators to approach President Bola Tinubu's proposed tax reform bills with an open mind rather than resorting to insults and abuses. According to Sani, the economic reforms present an opportunity for Nigeria to reset, reconfigure, and reshape its economy . He emphasized that emotional outbursts and uninformed opinions will not contribute to meaningful discussions around the bill. Tinubu's tax reform bills: Sani reacts Sani's comments were prompted by the heated debates surrounding the tax reform bills. Some senators have publicly expressed their opposition to the bills, with one senator even admitting to not having read the contents of the bill before commenting on it. Sani's call to action encourages his colleagues to engage with the bill more constructively and informatively. Read also Sanusi finally speaks up on security operatives taking over his palace PAY ATTENTION: Follow us on Instagram - get the most important news directly in your favourite app! The tax reform bills have been a topic of discussion in Nigeria, with some groups expressing their support for the reforms. For instance, the Minister of Information has stated that Nigeria's tax system is long overdue for reform. Similarly, former Governor Babangida Aliyu , Senator Shehu Sani, Sheikh Gumi, and Rev. Hayab have all expressed their support for the tax reform bills. Despite the support from some quarters, the tax reform bills have also faced opposition from various groups. Some have argued that the bills will burden citizens, while others have expressed concerns about the potential impact on the economy. See the video of Shehu Sani's here: Shehu Sani tackles Emir of Kano Sanusi II Legit.ng earlier reported that Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II has been knocked over his comment that he had ordered his daughters to return slaps if their husbands dared to slap them. Read also "His Highness Sanusi should not be encouraging this kind of domestic violence" - Shehu Sani Shehu Sani, a former senator from Kaduna state , said the comment by the Emir of Kano could lead to violence in marital relationships. The former federal lawmaker called for self-control and peaceful conflict resolution in households and warned against the promotion of violence. PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy! Source: Legit.ngDELAWARE, Ohio, Dec. 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Greif, Inc. GEF GEF.B)), a world leader in industrial packaging products and services, today announced fourth quarter and fiscal 2024 results. Fiscal Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights: (all results compared to the fourth quarter 2023 unless otherwise noted) Net income decreased 6.5% to $63.4 million or $1.08 per diluted Class A share compared to net income of $67.8 million or $1.16 per diluted Class A share. Net income, excluding the impact of adjustments (1) , decreased 46.4% to $49.6 million or $0.85 per diluted Class A share compared to net income, excluding the impact of adjustments, of $92.6 million or $1.59 per diluted Class A share. Adjusted EBITDA (2) decreased 2.0% to $197.6 million compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $201.6 million. Net cash provided by operating activities decreased by $16.3 million to $187.2 million. Adjusted free cash flow (3) increased by $8.5 million to $144.7 million. Fiscal Year Results Include: (all results compared to the fiscal year 2023 unless otherwise noted): Net income decreased 27.0% to $262.1 million or $4.52 per diluted Class A share compared to net income of $359.2 million or $6.15 per diluted Class A share. Net income, excluding the impact of adjustments, decreased 35.3% to $233.6 million or $4.03 per diluted Class A share compared to net income, excluding the impact of adjustments, of $361.2 million or $6.19 per diluted Class A share. Adjusted EBITDA decreased 15.6% to $694.2 million compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $822.2 million. Net cash provided by operating activities decreased by $293.5 million to $356.0 million. Adjusted free cash flow decreased by $291.4 million to $189.8 million. Total debt increased by $525.5 million to $2,740.6 million. Net debt (4) increased by $508.7 million to $2,542.9 million. The Company's leverage ratio (5) increased to 3.53x from 2.2x in the prior year quarter, and decreased from 3.64x sequentially. Strategic Actions and Announcements Hosting Investor Day on December 11, 2024, at Convene: 75 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. Completed previously announced business model optimization project to fully leverage our core competitive advantages and facilitate accelerated growth. This operating model change will result in the following four new reportable segments beginning in the first quarter of 2025: Customized Polymer Solutions; Durable Metal Solutions; Sustainable Fiber Solutions; and Integrated Solutions. Related to our new segments, on Thursday, December 5, 2024, we will be releasing online the previous eight quarters of segment financial highlights to assist our investor community in modeling our new reportable segments. This information will be made available at our investor relations site https://investor.greif.com/ . Announcing targeted cost optimization effort to eliminate $100 million of structural costs from the business through a combination of SG&A rationalization, network optimization, and operating efficiency gains. More information on this effort will be provided at our upcoming Investor Day. Commentary from CEO Ole Rosgaard "I am pleased to report a solid fourth quarter and full year 2024 result, particularly in light of the continuation of this extended period of industrial contraction. While managing the business for the present, we also made significant strides under our Build to Last strategy towards the future, and our executive team and I look forward to sharing more information at our Investor Day next week. Our investors can expect an interactive and engaging half day session, and we highly encourage your in-person attendance as we look forward to 2025 and beyond." Build to Last Mission Progress Recently completed our fourteenth wave NPS (6) survey, receiving feedback from nearly five thousand customers globally for a net score of 69, recognized as a world-class score within the manufacturing industry. At our upcoming Investor Day, we plan to further discuss the powerful correlation between NPS, an indicator of our Legendary Customer Service, and financial performance. We thank our customers for their continued feedback, which is critical in helping us achieve our vision to be the best performing customer service company in the world, and we are proud to continue to earn positive feedback from our customers throughout a difficult global operating environment. (1) Adjustments that are excluded from net income before adjustments and from earnings per diluted Class A share before adjustments are acquisition and integration related costs, restructuring charges, non-cash asset impairment charges, non-cash pension settlement charges, (gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net, (gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net, and other costs. (2) Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income, plus interest expense, net, plus income tax (benefit) expense, plus depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, plus acquisition and integration related costs, plus restructuring charges, plus non-cash asset impairment charges, plus non-cash pension settlement charges, plus (gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net, plus (gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net, plus other costs. (3) Adjusted free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities, less cash paid for purchases of properties, plants and equipment, plus cash paid for acquisition and integration related costs, plus cash paid for integration related Enterprise Resource Planning ("ERP") systems and equipment, plus cash paid for taxes related to Tama, Iowa mill divestment, plus cash paid for fiscal year-end change costs. (4) Net debt is defined as total debt less cash and cash equivalents. (5) Leverage ratio for the periods indicated is defined as adjusted net debt divided by trailing twelve month EBITDA, each as calculated under the terms of the Company's Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement dated as of March 1, 2022, filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended January 31, 2022 (the "2022 Credit Agreement"). As calculated under the 2022 Credit Agreement, adjusted net debt was $2,452.3 million, $2,608.5 million, and $1,856.8 million as of October 31, 2024, July 31, 2024 and October 31, 2023, respectively, and trailing twelve month credit agreement EBITDA was $695.0 million, $717.2 million, and $845.9 million as of October 31, 2024, July 31, 2024 and October 31, 2023, respectively. (6) Net Promoter Score ("NPS") is derived from a survey conducted by a third party that measures how likely a customer is to recommend Greif as a business partner. NPS scores are calculated by subtracting the percentage of detractors a business has from the percentage of its promoters. Note: A reconciliation of the differences between all non-GAAP financial measures used in this release with the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is included in the financial schedules that are a part of this release. These non-GAAP financial measures are intended to supplement, and should be read together with, our financial results. They should not be considered an alternative or substitute for, and should not be considered superior to, our reported financial results. Accordingly, users of this financial information should not place undue reliance on these non-GAAP financial measures. Segment Results (all results compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 unless otherwise noted) Net sales are impacted mainly by the volume of primary products (7) sold, selling prices, product mix and the impact of changes in foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar. The table below shows the percentage impact of each of these items on net sales for our primary products for the fourth quarter of 2024 as compared to the prior year quarter for the business segments with manufacturing operations. Net sales from completed acquisitions of Reliance Products Ltd. ("Reliance") and Ipackchem Group SAS ("Ipackchem") primary products are not included in the table below, but will be included in their respective segments starting in the fiscal first quarter of 2025 for Reliance and fiscal third quarter of 2025 for Ipackchem. Net Sales Impact - Primary Products Global Industrial Packaging Paper Packaging & Services Currency Translation — % — % Volume 3.7 % 0.7 % Selling Prices and Product Mix 0.4 % 5.0 % Total Impact of Primary Products 4.1 % 5.7 % Global Industrial Packaging Net sales increased by $65.9 million to $786.9 million primarily due to contributions from recent acquisitions and higher volumes. Gross profit increased by $12.6 million to $167.0 million due to the same factors that impacted net sales, partially offset by higher raw material, labor and manufacturing costs. Operating profit decreased by $0.1 million to $75.0 million primarily due to higher SG&A expenses from recent acquisitions, offset by the same factors that impacted gross profit. Adjusted EBITDA increased by $4.0 million to $109.4 million primarily due to the same factors that impacted gross profit, partially offset by higher SG&A expenses from recent acquisitions. Paper Packaging & Services Net sales increased by $42.9 million to $624.5 million primarily due to higher average selling prices as a result of higher published containerboard and boxboard prices. Gross profit decreased by $0.1 million to $118.7 million primarily due to higher raw material and labor costs, offset by the same factors that impacted net sales. Operating profit increased by $13.4 million to $48.7 million primarily due to lower non-cash impairment charges and restructuring charges related to optimizing and rationalizing operations in the prior year, partially offset by the same factors that impacted gross profit and higher SG&A expenses related to higher health, medical, incentive and pension expenses. Adjusted EBITDA decreased by $8.4 million to $85.3 million primarily due to the same factors that impacted gross profit and higher SG&A expenses related to higher health, medical, incentive and pension expenses. Tax Summary During the fourth quarter, we recorded an income tax rate of 21.8 percent and a tax rate excluding the impact of adjustments of 39.6 percent. Note that the application of accounting for income taxes often causes fluctuations in our quarterly effective tax rates. For the full year, we recorded an income tax rate of 10.6 percent and a tax rate excluding the impact of adjustments of 12.8 percent. Dividend Summary On December 3, 2024, the Board of Directors declared quarterly cash dividends of $0.54 per share of Class A Common Stock and $0.80 per share of Class B Common Stock. Dividends are payable on January 1, 2025, to stockholders of record at the close of business on December 16, 2024. (7) Primary products are manufactured steel, plastic and fibre drums; new and reconditioned intermediate bulk containers; jerrycans and other small plastics; linerboard, containerboard, corrugated sheets and corrugated containers; and boxboard and tube and core products. Company Outlook Our markets have now experienced a multi-year period of industrial contraction, and we have not identified any compelling demand inflection on the horizon, despite slightly improved year over year volumes. While we believe we are well positioned for an eventual recovery of the industrial economy, at this time we believe it is appropriate to provide only low-end guidance based on the continuation of demand trends reflected in the past year, current price/cost factors in Paper Packaging and Services, and other identifiable discrete items which we will discuss during our fourth quarter earnings release call. Call-in details are provided below. (in millions, except per share amounts) Fiscal 2025 Low-End Guidance Estimate Adjusted EBITDA $675 Adjusted free cash flow $225 Note: Fiscal 2025 net income guidance, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to Adjusted EBITDA, is not provided in this release due to the potential for one or more of the following, the timing and magnitude of which we are unable to reliably forecast: gains or losses on the disposal of businesses or properties, plants and equipment, net; non-cash asset impairment charges due to unanticipated changes in the business; restructuring-related activities; acquisition and integration related costs; and ongoing initiatives under our Build to Last strategy. No reconciliation of the 2025 low-end guidance estimate of Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure which excludes restructuring charges, acquisition and integration related costs, non-cash asset impairment charges, and (gain) loss on the disposal of properties, plants and equipment, (gain) loss on the disposal of businesses, net, and other costs, is included in this release because, due to the high variability and difficulty in making accurate forecasts and projections of some of the excluded information, together with some of the excluded information not being ascertainable or accessible, we are unable to quantify certain amounts that would be required to be included in net income, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, without unreasonable efforts. A reconciliation of 2025 low-end guidance estimate of adjusted free cash flow to fiscal 2025 forecasted net cash provided by operating activities, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, is included in this release. Conference Call The Company will host a conference call to discuss the fourth quarter and fiscal 2024 results on December 5, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET). Participants may access the call using the following online registration link: https://register.vevent.com/register/BId6a2105d615e45438d7c615c6b1ce4d5 . Registrants will receive a confirmation email containing dial in details and a unique conference call code for entry. Phone lines will open at 8:00 a.m. ET on December 5, 2024. A digital replay of the conference call will be available two hours following the call on the Company's web site at http://inv estor .greif.com . Investor Relations contact information Bill D'Onofrio, Vice President, Corporate Development & Investor Relations, 614-499-7233. Bill.Donofrio@greif.com About Greif Greif is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services and is pursuing its vision: to be the best performing customer service company in the world. The Company produces steel, plastic and fibre drums, intermediate bulk containers, reconditioned containers, jerrycans and other small plastics, containerboard, uncoated recycled paperboard, coated recycled paperboard, tubes and cores and a diverse mix of specialty products. The Company also manufactures packaging accessories and provides other services for a wide range of industries. In addition, the Company manages timber properties in the southeastern United States. The Company is strategically positioned in over 35 countries to serve global as well as regional customers. Additional information is on the Company's website at www.greif.com . Forward-Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "aspiration," "objective," "project," "believe," "continue," "on track" or "target" or the negative thereof and similar expressions, among others, identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on assumptions, expectations and other information currently available to management. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements have a reasonable basis, the Company can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those forecasted, projected or anticipated, whether expressed or implied. Such risks and uncertainties that might cause a difference include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) historically, our business has been sensitive to changes in general economic or business conditions, (ii) our global operations subject us to political risks, instability and currency exchange that could adversely affect our results of operations, (iii) the current and future challenging global economy and disruption and volatility of the financial and credit markets may adversely affect our business, (iv) the continuing consolidation of our customer base and suppliers may intensify pricing pressure, (v) we operate in highly competitive industries, (vi) our business is sensitive to changes in industry demands and customer preferences, (vii) raw material shortages, price fluctuations, global supply chain disruptions and increased inflation may adversely impact our results of operations, (viii) energy and transportation price fluctuations and shortages may adversely impact our manufacturing operations and costs, (ix) we may encounter difficulties or liabilities arising from acquisitions or divestitures, (x) we may incur additional rationalization costs and there is no guarantee that our efforts to reduce costs will be successful, (xi) several operations are conducted by joint ventures that we cannot operate solely for our benefit, (xii) certain of the agreements that govern our joint ventures provide our partners with put or call options, (xiii) our ability to attract, develop and retain talented and qualified employees, managers and executives is critical to our success, (xiv) our business may be adversely impacted by work stoppages and other labor relations matters, (xv) we may be subject to losses that might not be covered in whole or in part by existing insurance reserves or insurance coverage and general insurance premium and deductible increases, (xvi) our business depends on the uninterrupted operations of our facilities, systems and business functions, including our information technology and other business systems, (xvii) a cyber-attack, security breach of customer, employee, supplier or Company information and data privacy risks and costs of compliance with new regulations may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, (xviii) we could be subject to changes in our tax rates, the adoption of new U.S. or foreign tax legislation or exposure to additional tax liabilities, (xix) we have a significant amount of goodwill and long-lived assets which, if impaired in the future, would adversely impact our results of operations, (xx) changing climate, global climate change regulations and greenhouse gas effects may adversely affect our operations and financial performance, (xxi) we may be unable to achieve our greenhouse gas emission reduction target by 2030, (xxii) legislation/regulation related to environmental and health and safety matters could negatively impact our operations and financial performance, (xxiii) product liability claims and other legal proceedings could adversely affect our operations and financial performance, and (xxiv) we may incur fines or penalties, damage to our reputation or other adverse consequences if our employees, agents or business partners violate, or are alleged to have violated, anti-bribery, competition or other laws. The risks described above are not all-inclusive, and given these and other possible risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. For a detailed discussion of the most significant risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those forecasted, projected or anticipated, see "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of our most recently filed Form 10-K and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements made in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to such risk factors. Except to the limited extent required by applicable law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions, except per share amounts) 2024 2023 2024 2023 Net sales $ 1,417.1 $ 1,308.4 $ 5,448.1 $ 5,218.6 Cost of products sold 1,128.4 1,032.7 4,377.3 4,072.5 Gross profit 288.7 275.7 1,070.8 1,146.1 Selling, general and administrative expenses 157.5 136.8 634.5 549.1 Acquisition and integration related costs 2.4 3.5 18.5 19.0 Restructuring charges 3.8 5.2 5.4 18.7 Non-cash asset impairment charges 0.7 16.9 2.6 20.3 (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (2.4 ) 0.8 (8.8 ) (2.5 ) (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 0.1 (46.0 ) (64.0 ) Operating profit 126.6 112.4 464.6 605.5 Interest expense, net 39.2 24.8 134.9 96.3 Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Other (income) expense, net 0.6 1.4 10.1 11.0 Income before income tax expense and equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net 86.8 82.7 319.6 494.7 Income tax (benefit) expense 18.9 9.9 33.9 117.8 Equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax (0.9 ) (0.5 ) (3.0 ) (2.2 ) Net income 68.8 73.3 288.7 379.1 Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests (5.4 ) (5.5 ) (26.6 ) (19.9 ) Net income attributable to Greif, Inc. $ 63.4 $ 67.8 $ 262.1 $ 359.2 Basic earnings per share attributable to Greif, Inc. common shareholders: Class A common stock $ 1.09 $ 1.19 $ 4.54 $ 6.22 Class B common stock $ 1.64 $ 1.78 $ 6.80 $ 9.32 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Greif, Inc. common shareholders: Class A common stock $ 1.08 $ 1.16 $ 4.52 $ 6.15 Class B common stock $ 1.64 $ 1.78 $ 6.80 $ 9.32 Shares used to calculate basic earnings per share attributable to Greif, Inc. common shareholders: Class A common stock 25.8 25.5 25.8 25.6 Class B common stock 21.3 21.3 21.3 21.5 Shares used to calculate diluted earnings per share attributable to Greif, Inc. common shareholders: Class A common stock 26.3 26.0 26.0 26.0 Class B common stock 21.3 21.3 21.3 21.5 GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS UNAUDITED (in millions) October 31, 2024 October 31, 2023 ASSETS CURRENT ASSETS Cash and cash equivalents $ 197.7 $ 180.9 Trade accounts receivable 757.1 659.4 Inventories 396.8 338.6 Other current assets 197.1 190.2 1,548.7 1,369.1 LONG-TERM ASSETS Goodwill 1,953.7 1,693.0 Intangible assets 937.1 792.2 Operating lease assets 284.5 290.3 Other long-term assets 270.3 253.6 3,445.6 3,029.1 PROPERTIES, PLANTS AND EQUIPMENT, NET 1,652.1 1,562.6 $ 6,646.4 $ 5,960.8 LIABILITIES AND EQUITY CURRENT LIABILITIES Accounts payable $ 530.4 $ 497.8 Short-term borrowings 18.6 5.4 Current portion of long-term debt 95.8 88.3 Current portion of operating lease liabilities 56.5 53.8 Other current liabilities 310.6 294.0 1,011.9 939.3 LONG-TERM LIABILITIES Long-term debt 2,626.2 2,121.4 Operating lease liabilities 230.2 240.2 Other long-term liabilities 537.4 548.3 3,393.8 2,909.9 REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS 129.9 125.3 EQUITY Total Greif, Inc. equity 2,075.7 1,947.9 Noncontrolling interests 35.1 38.4 2,110.8 1,986.3 $ 6,646.4 $ 5,960.8 GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 2024 2023 CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: Net income $ 68.8 73.3 $ 288.7 $ 379.1 Depreciation, depletion and amortization 67.9 61.2 261.3 230.6 Asset impairments 0.7 16.9 2.6 20.3 Pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Deferred income tax expense (benefit) (23.2 ) (27.8 ) (76.8 ) (28.7 ) Gain on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 — (46.0 ) (64.0 ) Other non-cash adjustments to net income 8.9 15.7 50.9 50.4 Operating working capital changes 52.4 57.7 (49.9 ) 151.5 Increase (decrease) in cash from changes in other assets and liabilities 11.6 3.0 (74.8 ) (93.2 ) Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities 187.2 203.5 356.0 649.5 CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: Acquisitions of companies, net of cash acquired (1.2 ) (94.9 ) (568.8 ) (542.4 ) Purchases of properties, plants and equipment (45.1 ) (77.2 ) (186.5 ) (213.6 ) Proceeds from the sale of properties, plants and equipment and businesses, net of impacts from the purchase of acquisitions 93.4 0.6 103.9 113.9 Payments for deferred purchase price of acquisitions — (0.4 ) (1.7 ) (22.1 ) Other (1.6 ) (1.6 ) (5.2 ) (6.0 ) Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities 45.5 (173.5 ) (658.3 ) (670.2 ) CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Payments on long-term debt, net (171.8 ) 47.6 489.4 290.7 Dividends paid to Greif, Inc. shareholders (31.2 ) (29.8 ) (121.0 ) (116.5 ) Payments for share repurchases — — — (63.9 ) Tax withholding payments for stock-based awards — — (10.6 ) (13.7 ) Other (14.4 ) (10.1 ) (33.5 ) (26.9 ) Net cash (used in) provided by for financing activities (217.4 ) 7.7 324.3 69.7 Effects of exchange rates on cash (11.8 ) (14.5 ) (5.2 ) (15.2 ) Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 3.5 23.2 16.8 33.8 Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period 194.2 157.7 180.9 147.1 Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 197.7 $ 180.9 $ 197.7 $ 180.9 GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS BY SEGMENT UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 2024 2023 Net sales: Global Industrial Packaging $ 786.9 $ 721.0 $ 3,124.3 $ 2,936.8 Paper Packaging & Services 624.5 581.6 2,303.5 2,260.5 Land Management 5.7 5.8 20.3 21.3 Total net sales $ 1,417.1 $ 1,308.4 $ 5,448.1 $ 5,218.6 Gross profit: Global Industrial Packaging $ 167.0 $ 154.4 $ 669.4 $ 634.4 Paper Packaging & Services 118.7 118.8 391.6 502.5 Land Management 3.0 2.5 9.8 9.2 Total gross profit $ 288.7 $ 275.7 $ 1,070.8 $ 1,146.1 Operating profit: Global Industrial Packaging $ 75.0 $ 75.1 $ 341.1 $ 334.3 Paper Packaging & Services 48.7 35.3 115.6 264.1 Land Management 2.9 2.0 7.9 7.1 Total operating profit $ 126.6 $ 112.4 $ 464.6 $ 605.5 EBITDA (8) : Global Industrial Packaging $ 108.0 $ 96.2 $ 454.8 $ 415.7 Paper Packaging & Services 83.3 70.4 253.9 398.8 Land Management 3.5 2.6 10.1 9.3 Total EBITDA $ 194.8 $ 169.2 $ 718.8 $ 823.8 Adjusted EBITDA (9) : Global Industrial Packaging $ 109.4 $ 105.4 $ 423.6 $ 425.4 Paper Packaging & Services 85.3 93.7 261.5 387.9 Land Management 2.9 2.5 9.1 8.9 Total Adjusted EBITDA $ 197.6 $ 201.6 $ 694.2 $ 822.2 (8) EBITDA is defined as net income, plus interest expense, net, plus income tax (benefit) expense, plus depreciation, depletion and amortization. However, because the Company does not calculate net income by segment, this table calculates EBITDA by segment with reference to operating profit by segment, which, as demonstrated in the table of Consolidated EBITDA, is another method to achieve the same result. See the reconciliations in the table of Segment EBITDA. (9) Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income, plus interest expense, net, plus income tax (benefit) expense, plus depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, plus acquisition and integration related costs, plus restructuring charges, plus non-cash asset impairment charges, plus non-cash pension settlement charges, plus gain (loss) on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, (gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net, plus other costs. GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION CONSOLIDATED ADJUSTED EBITDA UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 2024 2023 Net income $ 68.8 $ 73.3 $ 288.7 $ 379.1 Plus: Interest expense, net 39.2 24.8 134.9 96.3 Plus: Income tax (benefit) expense 18.9 9.9 33.9 117.8 Plus: Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense 67.9 61.2 261.3 230.6 EBITDA $ 194.8 $ 169.2 $ 718.8 $ 823.8 Net income $ 68.8 $ 73.3 $ 288.7 $ 379.1 Plus: Interest expense, net 39.2 24.8 134.9 96.3 Plus: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Plus: Other (income) expense, net 0.6 1.4 10.1 11.0 Plus: Income tax (benefit) expense 18.9 9.9 33.9 117.8 Plus: Equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax (0.9 ) (0.5 ) (3.0 ) (2.2 ) Operating profit 126.6 112.4 464.6 605.5 Less: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Less: Other (income) expense, net 0.6 1.4 10.1 11.0 Less: Equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax (0.9 ) (0.5 ) (3.0 ) (2.2 ) Plus: Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense 67.9 61.2 261.3 230.6 EBITDA $ 194.8 $ 169.2 $ 718.8 $ 823.8 Plus: Acquisition and integration related costs 2.4 3.5 18.5 19.0 Plus: Restructuring charges $ 3.8 $ 5.2 $ 5.4 $ 18.7 Plus: Non-cash asset impairment charges 0.7 16.9 2.6 20.3 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (2.4 ) 0.8 (8.8 ) (2.5 ) Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 0.1 (46.0 ) (64.0 ) Plus: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Plus: Other costs* (1.8 ) 2.4 3.7 3.4 Adjusted EBITDA $ 197.6 $ 201.6 $ 694.2 $ 822.2 *includes fiscal year-end change costs and share-based compensation impact of disposals of businesses GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION SEGMENT ADJUSTED EBITDA (10) UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 2024 2023 Global Industrial Packaging Operating profit $ 75.0 $ 75.1 $ 341.1 $ 334.3 Less: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Less: Other (income) expense, net 0.9 1.7 11.6 12.6 Less: Equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax (0.9 ) (0.5 ) (3.0 ) (2.2 ) Plus: Depreciation and amortization expense 33.0 25.8 122.3 95.3 EBITDA $ 108.0 $ 96.2 $ 454.8 $ 415.7 Plus: Acquisition and integration related costs 1.1 3.4 17.2 12.2 Plus: Restructuring charges 3.0 — (2.8 ) 4.2 Plus: Non-cash asset impairment charges 0.8 0.4 1.3 1.9 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (2.6 ) 0.2 (2.9 ) (4.4 ) Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 0.5 (46.0 ) (9.4 ) Plus: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 — 3.5 Plus: Other costs* (1.0 ) 1.2 2.0 1.7 Adjusted EBITDA $ 109.4 $ 105.4 $ 423.6 $ 425.4 Paper Packaging & Services Operating profit $ 48.7 $ 35.3 $ 115.6 $ 264.1 Less: Other (income) expense, net (0.3 ) (0.3 ) (1.5 ) (1.6 ) Plus: Depreciation and amortization expense 34.3 34.8 136.8 133.1 EBITDA $ 83.3 $ 70.4 $ 253.9 $ 398.8 Plus: Acquisition and integration related costs 1.3 0.1 1.3 6.8 Plus: Restructuring charges 0.8 5.2 8.2 14.5 Plus: Non-cash asset impairment charges (0.1 ) 16.5 1.3 18.4 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net 0.8 0.7 (4.9 ) 2.3 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net — (0.4 ) — (54.6 ) Plus: Other costs* (0.8 ) 1.2 1.7 1.7 Adjusted EBITDA $ 85.3 $ 93.7 $ 261.5 $ 387.9 Land Management Operating profit $ 2.9 $ 2.0 $ 7.9 $ 7.1 Plus: Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense 0.6 0.6 2.2 2.2 EBITDA $ 3.5 $ 2.6 $ 10.1 $ 9.3 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (0.6 ) (0.1 ) (1.0 ) (0.4 ) Adjusted EBITDA $ 2.9 $ 2.5 $ 9.1 $ 8.9 Consolidated EBITDA $ 194.8 $ 169.2 $ 718.8 $ 823.8 Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA $ 197.6 $ 201.6 $ 694.2 $ 822.2 *includes fiscal year-end change costs and share-based compensation impact of disposals of businesses (10) Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income, plus interest expense, net, plus income tax (benefit) expense, plus depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, plus acquisition and integration related costs, plus restructuring charges, plus non-cash asset impairment charges, plus non-cash pension settlement charges, plus (gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, plus (gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net, plus other costs. However, because the Company does not calculate net income by segment, this table calculates adjusted EBITDA by segment with reference to operating profit by segment, which, as demonstrated in the table of consolidated adjusted EBITDA, is another method to achieve the same result. GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION ADJUSTED FREE CASH FLOW (11) UNAUDITED Three Months Ended October 31, Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 2024 2023 Net cash provided by operating activities $ 187.2 $ 203.5 $ 356.0 $ 649.5 Cash paid for purchases of properties, plants and equipment (45.1 ) (77.2 ) (186.5 ) (213.6 ) Free Cash Flow $ 142.1 $ 126.3 $ 169.5 $ 435.9 Cash paid for acquisition and integration related costs 2.4 3.5 18.5 19.0 Cash paid for integration related ERP systems and equipment (12) 0.2 1.0 1.3 4.6 Cash paid for taxes related to Tama, Iowa mill divestment — 5.4 — 21.7 Cash paid for fiscal year-end change costs — — 0.5 — Adjusted Free Cash Flow $ 144.7 $ 136.2 $ 189.8 $ 481.2 (11) Adjusted free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities, less cash paid for purchases of properties, plants and equipment, plus cash paid for acquisition and integration related costs, net, plus cash paid for integration related ERP systems and equipment, plus cash paid for taxes related to Tama, Iowa mill divestment, plus cash paid for fiscal year-end change costs. (12) Cash paid for integration related ERP systems and equipment is defined as cash paid for ERP systems and equipment required to bring the acquired facilities to Greif's standards. GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION NET INCOME, CLASS A EARNINGS PER SHARE, AND TAX RATE BEFORE ADJUSTMENTS UNAUDITED (in millions, except for per share amounts) Income before Income Tax Expense and Equity Earnings of Unconsolidated Affiliates, net Income Tax (Benefit) Expense Equity Earnings Noncontrolling Interest Net Income Attributable to Greif, Inc. Diluted Class A Earnings Per Share Tax Rate Three Months Ended October 31, 2024 $ 86.8 $ 18.9 $ (0.9 ) $ 5.4 $ 63.4 $ 1.08 21.8 % Acquisition and integration related costs 2.4 0.5 — — 1.9 0.03 Restructuring charges 3.8 0.9 — — 2.9 0.05 Non-cash asset impairment charges 0.7 0.2 — — 0.5 0.01 (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (2.4 ) (0.5 ) — — (1.9 ) (0.03 ) (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 16.0 — — (15.9 ) (0.27 ) Other costs* (1.8 ) (0.5 ) — — (1.3 ) (0.02 ) Excluding Adjustments $ 89.6 $ 35.5 $ (0.9 ) $ 5.4 $ 49.6 $ 0.85 39.6 % Three Months Ended October 31, 2023 $ 82.7 $ 9.9 $ (0.5 ) $ 5.5 $ 67.8 $ 1.16 12.0 % Acquisition and integration related costs 3.5 0.8 — — 2.7 0.04 Restructuring charges 5.2 1.2 — — 4.0 0.08 Non-cash asset impairment charges 16.9 4.1 — — 12.8 0.22 (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net 0.8 0.3 — — 0.5 0.01 (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net 0.1 0.3 — — (0.2 ) (0.01 ) Non-cash pension settlement charges 3.5 0.2 — — 3.3 0.06 Other costs* 2.4 0.7 — — 1.7 0.03 Excluding Adjustments $ 115.1 $ 17.5 $ (0.5 ) $ 5.5 $ 92.6 $ 1.59 15.2 % Twelve Months Ended October 31, 2024 $ 319.6 $ 33.9 $ (3.0 ) $ 26.6 $ 262.1 $ 4.52 10.6 % Acquisition and integration related costs 18.5 4.5 — — 14.0 0.24 Restructuring charges 5.4 1.2 — — 4.2 0.07 Non-cash asset impairment charges 2.6 0.7 — — 1.9 0.03 (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (8.8 ) (2.1 ) — — (6.7 ) (0.11 ) (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net (46.0 ) (1.3 ) — — (44.7 ) (0.77 ) Other costs* 3.7 0.9 — — 2.8 0.05 Excluding Adjustments $ 295.0 $ 37.8 $ (3.0 ) $ 26.6 $ 233.6 $ 4.03 12.8 % Twelve Months Ended October 31, 2023 $ 494.7 $ 117.8 $ (2.2 ) $ 19.9 $ 359.2 $ 6.15 23.8 % Acquisition and integration related costs 19.0 4.6 — — 14.4 0.24 Restructuring charges 18.7 4.4 — 0.1 14.2 0.25 Non-cash asset impairment charges 20.3 4.9 — — 15.4 0.26 (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (2.5 ) (0.3 ) — — (2.2 ) (0.04 ) (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net (64.0 ) (18.4 ) — — (45.6 ) (0.78 ) Non-cash pension settlement charges 3.5 0.2 — — 3.3 0.06 Other costs* 3.4 0.9 — — 2.5 0.05 Excluding Adjustments $ 493.1 $ 114.1 $ (2.2 ) $ 20.0 $ 361.2 $ 6.19 23.1 % *includes fiscal year-end change costs and share-based compensation impact of disposals of businesses The impact of income tax (benefit) expense and noncontrolling interest on each adjustment is calculated based on tax rates and ownership percentages specific to each applicable entity. GREIF INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION NET DEBT UNAUDITED (in millions) October 31, 2024 July 31, 2024 October 31, 2023 Total Debt $ 2,740.6 $ 2,909.5 $ 2,215.1 Cash and cash equivalents (197.7 ) (194.2 ) (180.9 ) Net Debt $ 2,542.9 $ 2,715.3 $ 2,034.2 GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES GAAP TO NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION LEVERAGE RATIO UNAUDITED Trailing Twelve Month Credit Agreement EBITDA (in millions) Trailing Twelve Months Ended 10/31/2024 Trailing Twelve Months Ended 7/31/2024 Trailing Twelve Months Ended 10/31/2023 Net income $ 288.7 $ 293.2 $ 379.1 Plus: Interest expense, net 134.9 120.5 96.3 Plus: Income tax expense 33.9 24.9 117.8 Plus: Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense 261.3 254.6 230.6 EBITDA $ 718.8 $ 693.2 $ 823.8 Plus: Acquisition and integration related costs 18.5 19.6 19.0 Plus: Restructuring charges 5.4 6.8 18.7 Plus: Non-cash asset impairment charges 2.6 18.8 20.3 Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of properties, plants and equipment, net (8.8 ) (5.6 ) (2.5 ) Plus: (Gain) loss on disposal of businesses, net (46.0 ) (46.0 ) (64.0 ) Plus: Non-cash pension settlement charges — 3.5 3.5 Plus: Other costs* 3.7 5.5 3.4 Adjusted EBITDA $ 694.2 $ 695.8 $ 822.2 Credit Agreement adjustments to EBITDA (13) 0.8 21.4 23.7 Credit Agreement EBITDA $ 695.0 $ 717.2 $ 845.9 Adjusted Net Debt (in millions) For the Period Ended 10/31/2024 Trailing Twelve Months Ended 7/31/2024 For the Period Ended 10/31/2023 Total debt $ 2,740.6 $ 2,909.5 $ 2,215.1 Cash and cash equivalents (197.7 ) (194.2 ) (180.9 ) Net debt $ 2,542.9 $ 2,715.3 $ 2,034.2 Credit Agreement adjustments to debt (14) (90.6 ) (106.8 ) (177.4 ) Adjusted net debt $ 2,452.3 $ 2,608.5 $ 1,856.8 Leverage Ratio (15) 3.53x 3.64x 2.2x *includes fiscal year-end change costs and share-based compensation impact of disposals of businesses (13) Adjustments to EBITDA are specified by the 2022 Credit Agreement and include certain timberland gains, equity earnings of unconsolidated affiliates, net of tax, certain acquisition savings, deferred financing costs, capitalized interest, income and expense in connection with asset dispositions, and other items. (14) Adjustments to net debt are specified by the 2022 Credit Agreement and include the European accounts receivable program, letters of credit, and balances for swap contracts. (15) Leverage ratio is defined as Credit Agreement adjusted net debt divided by Credit Agreement adjusted EBITDA. The following table presents net sales by reportable segments and geographic operating segments, depreciation, depletion and amortization expenses by reportable segments, and capital expenditures by reportable segments for fiscal years 2024 and 2023. The following information is unaudited: Twelve Months Ended October 31, 2024 Twelve Months Ended October 31, 2023 (in millions) United States Europe, Middle East and Africa Asia Pacific and Other Americas United States Europe, Middle East and Africa Asia Pacific and Other Americas Global Industrial Packaging $ 1,124.0 $ 1,388.0 $ 612.3 $ 1,093.0 $ 1,310.9 $ 532.9 Paper Packaging & Services 2,261.4 — 42.1 2,218.0 — 42.5 Land Management 20.3 — — 21.3 — — Total net sales $ 3,405.7 $ 1,388.0 $ 654.4 $ 3,332.3 $ 1,310.9 $ 575.4 Twelve Months Ended October 31, (in millions) 2024 2023 Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense: Global Industrial Packaging $ 122.3 $ 95.3 Paper Packaging & Services 136.8 133.1 Land Management 2.2 2.2 Total depreciation, depletion and amortization expense $ 261.3 $ 230.6 Capital expenditures: Global Industrial Packaging $ 70.8 $ 83.9 Paper Packaging & Services 88.9 120.6 Land Management 0.2 1.1 Total segment 159.9 205.6 Corporate and other 9.1 12.6 Total capital expenditures $ 169.0 $ 218.2 GREIF, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES PROJECTED 2025 GUIDANCE RECONCILIATION ADJUSTED FREE CASH FLOW UNAUDITED Fiscal 2025 Low-End Guidance Estimate (in millions) Net cash provided by operating activities $ 371.0 Cash paid for purchases of properties, plants and equipment (166.0 ) Free cash flow $ 205.0 Cash paid for acquisition and integration related costs 17.0 Cash paid for integration related ERP systems and equipment 1.0 Cash paid for fiscal year-end change costs 2.0 Adjusted free cash flow $ 225.0 © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Trump names Andrew Ferguson as head of Federal Trade Commission to replace Lina Khan

( MENAFN - The Conversation) The Australian government recently passed legislation that bans social media for anyone under 16 . Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hailed the legislation for putting “the onus on social media platforms - not young people or their parents” - for protecting youth from online harms. Australia is the first country in the world to pass a nationwide ban of social media for teens, set to take effect in a year . But other measures have been enacted or considered here in Canada and elsewhere. In the United States, it will be illegal for children under 14 in Florida to have social media accounts starting Jan. 1, 2025. Beginning in 2024, Québec began banning cellphones in classrooms . This fall, with the start of the 2024–2025 academic year, Ontario also began banning cell phones in schools . This follows a lawsuit filed by four school boards in Ontario against social media companies for disrupting youth learning. Québec is reportedly considering a social media ban - following Australia's lead - that would limit social media use for teens under 16. Provincial governments recognize that social media and cellphones can be problematic for youth, and they're not waiting on the federal government to take action. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently announced that the proposed Online Harms Act (Bill C-63) , originally introduced in February 2024 , will be separated into two bills . The idea is to pass the part of the bill focused on child protection to address problems like sextortion , image-based sexual abuse, revenge porn and other forms of online sexual violence. Since the Online Harms Act is still being debated, MPs in Canada may look to other countries, like Australia, for guidance on protecting youth from these online harms. Some people in Canada approve of Australia's social media ban and see it as a potential solution , including some teens . This idea has received a lot of traction in public discourse too, including with the book The Anxious Generation that argues social media should be banned until age 16 . Many of us may recall the stories of Rehtaeh Parsons , Amanda Todd and more recently a boy in British Columbia who died by suicide after being cyberbullied and sextorted. Some studies have shown that social media use is related to anxiety and depression among adolescents . Bans or regulations raise important questions about how we, as a society, should respond to social media use among youth and deal with online harms. We are a team of researchers who study technology-facilitated sexual violence among youth aged 13–18 in Canada. We have conducted 26 focus groups with 149 youth from across the country, and launched a nationally representative survey of around 1,000 youth to learn about their experiences with online harms, what they know about the law and which resources work - and which ones don't. Our initial findings show that youth experience a range of harms as they use digital platforms and social media. We also found that algorithms are fueling harms. Youth have emphasized they want tailored supports and resources to help them have safe, healthy and enjoyable experiences with technology. A full ban of social media is not realistic, in part because social media companies have no idea how to implement it . Some ideas are to use facial recognition technology or check someone's age using credit cards . Another idea is to upload government IDs to third-party platforms for age verification. However a ban is implemented, it will almost certainly gather more user data, which raises questions about youth data privacy and security . These measures may also drive youth towards other platforms that are less regulated, such as on the dark web. This could actually make it harder to protect youth from online harms. Bans also don't actually solve the problem . For example, abstinence-based interventions don't work when it comes to sex education . It is unlikely that an abstinence-based approach would work with social media . Furthermore, technology is increasingly integrated into our daily lives, and youth need to be taught about healthy and responsible online interactions. Youth are learning how to become digital citizens . Kicking the problem down the road until they're 16 or older will postpone the consequences, not solve them. This could cause more harm than a ban intends to solve . A ban also frees social media companies, governments and parents from any accountability. Rather than meaningfully addressing the harmful content and their impacts, a ban removes any and all responsibility from the people and institutions whose job it is to protect youth. Technology companies need to develop their products with kids in mind , rather than prioritizing their profits and putting child safety and health second. Kids need guidance and support , and a ban does nothing to remove harmful content or resolve its negative impacts. Rather than bans, we suggest implementing holistic interventions that emphasize digital citizenship and youth rights and responsibilities so people of all ages learn how to have safe and healthy interactions with technology. This requires a consolidated effort across various sectors of society, including schools , community organizations and, importantly, both tech companies and government agencies. While there are resources available for educators, parents and youth about how to have safe and healthy online interactions , we need to act now. Rather than resorting to blanket bans, we should prioritize comprehensive societal changes that address the root causes of these harms. By doing so, we can promote youth safety and help our communities confront online harms. MENAFN22122024000199003603ID1109021834 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.Shehu Sani, a former Senator from Kaduna state, has sent a message to northern elites over President Bola Tinubu's tax reform bills The former senator maintained that the president's economic reform is an opportunity for the country to reset, reconfigure and restructure Sani stressed that emotional outbursts and uninformed opinions would not contribute a meaningful discussions around the tax reform bills CHECK OUT: Don't let unemployment hold you back. Start your digital marketing journey today. Former Senator Shehu Sani has urged northern senators to approach President Bola Tinubu's proposed tax reform bills with an open mind rather than resorting to insults and abuses. According to Sani, the economic reforms present an opportunity for Nigeria to reset, reconfigure, and reshape its economy . He emphasized that emotional outbursts and uninformed opinions will not contribute to meaningful discussions around the bill. Tinubu's tax reform bills: Sani reacts Sani's comments were prompted by the heated debates surrounding the tax reform bills. Some senators have publicly expressed their opposition to the bills, with one senator even admitting to not having read the contents of the bill before commenting on it. Sani's call to action encourages his colleagues to engage with the bill more constructively and informatively. Read also Sanusi finally speaks up on security operatives taking over his palace PAY ATTENTION: Follow us on Instagram - get the most important news directly in your favourite app! The tax reform bills have been a topic of discussion in Nigeria, with some groups expressing their support for the reforms. For instance, the Minister of Information has stated that Nigeria's tax system is long overdue for reform. Similarly, former Governor Babangida Aliyu , Senator Shehu Sani, Sheikh Gumi, and Rev. Hayab have all expressed their support for the tax reform bills. Despite the support from some quarters, the tax reform bills have also faced opposition from various groups. Some have argued that the bills will burden citizens, while others have expressed concerns about the potential impact on the economy. See the video of Shehu Sani's here: Shehu Sani tackles Emir of Kano Sanusi II Legit.ng earlier reported that Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II has been knocked over his comment that he had ordered his daughters to return slaps if their husbands dared to slap them. Read also "His Highness Sanusi should not be encouraging this kind of domestic violence" - Shehu Sani Shehu Sani, a former senator from Kaduna state , said the comment by the Emir of Kano could lead to violence in marital relationships. The former federal lawmaker called for self-control and peaceful conflict resolution in households and warned against the promotion of violence. PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy! Source: Legit.ng

US budget airlines are struggling. Will pursuing premium passengers solve their problems? DALLAS (AP) — Delta and United Airlines have become the most profitable U.S. airlines by targeting premium customers while also winning a significant share of budget travelers. That is squeezing smaller low-fare carriers like Spirit Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday. Some travel industry experts think Spirit’s troubles indicate less-wealthy passengers will have fewer choices and higher prices. Other discount airlines are on better financial footing but also are lagging far behind the full-service airlines when it comes to recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Most industry experts think Frontier and other so-called ultra-low-cost carriers will fill the vacuum if Spirit shrinks, and that there's still plenty of competition to prevent prices from spiking. Bitcoin ticks closer to $100,000 in extended surge following US elections NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin is jumping again, setting another new high above $99,000 overnight. The cryptocurrency has been shattering records almost daily since the U.S. presidential election, and has rocketed more than 40% higher in just two weeks. It's now at the doorstep of $100,000. Cryptocurrencies and related investments like crypto exchange-traded funds have rallied because the incoming Trump administration is expected to be more “crypto-friendly.” Still, as with everything in the volatile cryptoverse, the future is hard to predict. And while some are bullish, other experts continue to warn of investment risks. Australia rejects Elon Musk's claim that it plans to control access to the internet MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian Cabinet minister has rejected X Corp. owner Elon Musk’s allegation that the government intends to control all Australians' access to the internet through legislation that would ban young children from social media. Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Friday that Musk’s criticism was “unsurprising” after the government introduced legislation to Parliament that would fine platforms including X up to $133 million for allowing children under 16 to hold social media accounts. The spat continues months of open hostility between the Australian government and the tech billionaire over regulators’ efforts to reduce public harm from social media. Parliament could pass the legislation as soon as next week. Oil company Phillips 66 faces federal charges related to alleged Clean Water Act violations LOS ANGELES (AP) — Oil company Phillips 66 has been federally indicted in connection with alleged violations of the Clean Water Act in California. The Texas-based company is accused of discharging hundreds of thousands of gallons of industrial wastewater containing excessive amounts of oil and grease. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the indictment on Thursday. Phillips is charged with two counts of negligently violating the Clean Water Act and four counts of knowingly violating the Clean Water Act. An arraignment date has not been set. A spokesperson for the company said it was cooperating with prosecutors. US regulators seek to break up Google, forcing Chrome sale as part of monopoly punishment U.S. regulators want a federal judge to break up Google to prevent the company from continuing to squash competition through its dominant search engine after a court found it had maintained an abusive monopoly over the past decade. The proposed breakup floated in a 23-page document filed late Wednesday by the U.S. Justice Department calls for Google to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser and impose restrictions designed to prevent Android from favoring its search engine. Regulators also want to ban Google from forging multibillion-dollar deals to lock in its dominant search engine as the default option on Apple’s iPhone and other devices. What you need to know about the proposed measures designed to curb Google's search monopoly U.S. regulators are proposing aggressive measures to restore competition to the online search market after a federal judge ruled that Google maintained an illegal monopoly. The sweeping set of recommendations filed late Wednesday could radically alter Google’s business. Regulators want Google to sell off its industry-leading Chrome web browser. They outlined a range of behavioral measures such as prohibiting Google from using search results to favor its own services such as YouTube, and forcing it to license search index data to its rivals. They're not going as far as to demand Google spin off Android, but are leaving that door open if the remedies don't work. Stock market today: Wall Street gains ground as it heads for a winning week NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks gained ground on Wall Street, keeping the market on track for its fifth gain in a row. The S&P 500 was up 0.4% in afternoon trading Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 351 points and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2%. Retailers had some of the biggest gains. Gap soared after reporting quarterly results that easily beat analysts' estimates. EchoStar fell after DirecTV called of its purchase of that company's Dish Network unit. European markets were mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. Crude oil prices gained ground. Apple and Google face UK investigation into mobile browser dominance LONDON (AP) — A British watchdog says Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers. The watchdog's report Friday recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year. The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker’s tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. The CMA’s report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers “the clearest or easiest option.” Apple said it disagreed with the findings. German auto supplier Bosch to cut 5,500 jobs in further sign of carmakers' woes FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Germany's technology and services company Bosch is cutting its automotive division workforce by as many as 5,500 jobs in the next several years, in another sign of the headwinds hitting the German and global auto industries. The company cited stagnating global auto sales, too much factory capacity in the auto industry compared to sales prospects and a slower than expected transition to electric-powered, software-controlled vehicles. Some 3,500 of the job reductions would come before the end of 2027 and would hit the part of the company that develops driver assistance and automated driving technologies. About half those job reductions would be at locations in Germany. At least 15 people are sick in Minnesota from ground beef tied to E. coli recall U.S. health officials say at least 15 people in Minnesota have been sickened by E. coli poisoning tied to a national recall of more than 160,000 pounds of potentially tainted ground beef. Detroit-based Wolverine Packing Co. recalled the meat this week after Minnesota state agriculture officials reported multiple illnesses and found that a sample of the product tested positive for E. coli O157:H7, which can cause life-threatening infections. Symptoms of E. coli poisoning include fever, vomiting, diarrhea and signs of dehydration.