A 34-year-old Philadelphia man was arrested and charged with ethnic intimidation after he allegedly trespassed at a synagogue with a preschool, tried to open doors, and made antisemitic statements, authorities said Friday.
Angel Viera was taken into custody and also charged with defiant trespass and disorderly conduct, court records show. His bail was set Friday at $25,000 unsecured.
Police said that around 10 a.m. Thursday, officers responded to the Germantown Jewish Centre in West Mount Airy for a report of a disturbance involving an unidentified man who was refusing to leave the property.
The man, later identified as Viera, “had been pulling on doors and attempting to gain entry to the school and synagogue,” a police spokesperson said in an email Friday.
“Security personnel instructed the male to leave the property, but he refused. While on the property, the male made several derogatory and antisemitic statements directed toward Jewish people,” the police spokesperson said.
Viera was then arrested, police said.
Nina Peskin, executive director of the Germantown Jewish Centre, said in a phone interview that a security guard first noticed Viera allegedly standing across the street and appearing to take photos or videos with a phone of the property.
Viera then allegedly crossed the street and a lawn area to attempt to open several doors, Peskin said. The security guard, who called police, allegedly told Viera that he was on private property and that he should leave.
Viera then sat on a curb of the property’s driveway and allegedly refused to leave until after police arrived within three minutes of being called, Peskin said.
He allegedly said “F— the Jews” and questioned the security guard for working for a Jewish institution, Peskin said.
However, this time a man allegedly tried to enter the property while children were attending the synagogue’s preschool, Peskin said.
“This felt different,” Peskin said, adding that the incident has rattled “our whole community.”
Viera is represented by the Defender Association of Philadelphia. George Jackson, a spokesperson for the association, declined Friday to comment on the case.
Philadelphia police have offered to provide an increased presence at the synagogue and preschool, Peskin said.
Although no one was injured, Peskin said she fears the situation could have been much worse.
“If he had entered the building, it would have been a different story,” Peskin said.
Bill Giles, the longtime Phillies executive who helped create the Phillie Phanatic and used a tightrope walker to sell tickets before becoming a part owner, died Friday. He was 92.
Mr. Giles joined the Phillies in 1969, just as they were readying to move to Veterans Stadium. The team lacked star power, but it was Mr. Giles’ job to fill the seats when the cavernous stadium opened in April of 1971. So Mr. Giles, the son of a Hall of Fame baseball executive, got creative.
Karl Wallenda walked a tightrope across the stadium between games of a doubleheader, Benny the Human Bomb exploded, fire trucks drove relief pitchers from the bullpen, and Kite Man tried to deliver the first ball one season before crashing into empty seats.
A news report once described Mr. Giles as “Philadelphia’s resident combination of P.T. Barnum and Walt Disney.” And Mr. Giles’ biggest draw was the Phanatic, the mascot he green-lighted in 1978.
“I always wanted to make people happy,” Mr. Giles said in 2022. “So anything I could think of I would try.”
William Yale Giles was born on Sept. 7, 1934 in Rochester, N.Y. His father, Warren, was the president and general manager of the Cincinnati Reds before becoming the president of the National League. Mr. Giles knew as a kid that he wanted to work in baseball and started working for the Reds as a teenager.
He met his wife, Nancy, when they were students at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. Mr. Giles told Nancy after their first date that they’d be married one day and honeymoon in Hawaii. He was right. Mr. Giles graduated from Denison in 1956 and spent three years in the Air Force before working for a Reds farm team. He moved to Houston in 1962 to be the publicity director for the Colt .45s, a first-year expansion team that soon became the Astros. Seven years later, he came to Philly.
Bill Giles, signing autographs in 2011, was named chairman emeritus in 2015.Gene J. Puskar
“Bill was the heart and soul of the organization for over two decades,” Phillies great Mike Schmidt said in a statement. “He was a close personal friend to so many of us. He will always be a big part of Phillies history. Prayers go to the Giles family in this time of mourning.”
Mr. Giles helped the Phillies close Connie Mack Stadium, which included his idea to have a helicopter land on the field after the final game to retrieve home plate and transport it to South Philly. He gave fans that day wooden seat back slabs from the stadium, which many used as tools to remove seats and toilets. The Phillies moved the following April to the Vet, where the promotions became wackier.
“In the early ’70s, we didn’t win a lot of games,” said Larry Bowa, who slapped the first hit at the Vet. “So we had to get people in there. It was like a circus.”
Phillies general manager Lee Thomas (left), manager Jim Fregosi (center), and president Bill Giles celebrate after winning the NLCS in 1993.Phila. Phillies
The 1972 Phillies won just 59 games, 27 of which were wins by Steve Carlton. So Mr. Giles drummed up ticket sales by having Wallenda walk 640 feet across the stadium between games of a doubleheader. He didn’t know Carlton was starting Game 1, which meant the doubleheader would be a rare game that season where the baseball was the draw. The show went on.
There were 38 people — 19 on each end — holding the wire to make it taut, but that was not enough to steady it as Wallenda took his first steps. Two weeks earlier, his son-in-law Richard “Chico” Guzman had died after he fell 50 feet before a performance in West Virginia. Guzman’s widow, Carla, started screaming for her father to back out. The Vet didn’t seem safe.
“I was sold on the idea and wasn’t at all fearful,” Giles said. “Until we got the wire up there and it was swaying a little bit. I said, ‘Oh, [bleep].’ I got really nervous.”
Karl Wallenda crosses Veterans Stadium on a tight rope on Aug. 13, 1972.UPI
Wallenda thought about quitting but kept going. He walked about 35 feet and sat down, motioning for the 38 people to pull tighter.
“When he sat down on the wire, I started thinking, ‘Oh, what’s going to happen now?’ You never sit down on a wire,” Bill Hall, a promoter who booked Wallenda, said in 2022. “I started to pray to God to get us through this, but then I thought, ‘Wait a minute, God didn’t tell us to come up here.’”
Wallenda stopped again in the middle of his walk, performed a headstand on the rope, and finished. Giles was relieved. A few years later, Dennis Lehman, then a member of the front office, saw the San Diego Chicken and told Mr. Giles that the Phillies should try a mascot. Mr. Giles said OK and assigned Lehman and Frank Sullivan, the team’s promotions director, to pursue it.
The Phillie Phanatic surveys an empty Veterans Stadium ahead of the start of the 1991 season.George Widman/AP fi;e photo
The Phillies worked with Bonnie Erickson and Wayde Harrison to create the green, flightless bird from the Galápagos Islands. Mr. Giles tapped Dave Raymond, then an intern in the sales department, to play the part. The Phanatic arrived in April of 1978 and has never left.
Mr. Giles brought Astros broadcaster Harry Kalas to Philadelphia in 1971 and helped convince Pete Rose to join in December of 1978, which helped lead to the 1980 World Series championship. He organized a group in 1981 to purchase the Phillies and served as team president until 1997. He then became the team’s chairman. The Phils won National League crowns twice during Mr. Giles’ presidency, which was mostly marred by low payrolls and losing seasons.
Bill Giles (right) helped convince free agent Pete Rose to sign with the Phillies in 1978.Al Schell
Mr. Giles said often that the Phillies were losing money and needed a new ballpark to compete. That arrived in 2004. The payrolls rose, the winning returned, and the Phils won their second world championship in 2008. Two weeks earlier, Mr. Giles — then the honorary president of the National League — presented the team with the National League championship trophy named for his dad. The Phillies soon started a sellout streak of 257 games. They no longer needed any wacky promotions. A winning team sold the tickets in a new stadium that Mr. Giles helped build.
“The Phillies family lost an icon today,” Phillies managing partner and CEO John Middleton said in a statement. “Bill helped to reshape our franchise from a traditional baseball club into a highly visible entertainment and business operation. His profound impact in overseeing one of the greatest eras in franchise history, both on and off the field, will forever be his legacy. Our hearts are heavy for the Giles family and all those who had the privilege of knowing Bill.”
The boos began in the first inning, when the team with nothing left to play for took the lead over the team that still had everything.
With the best record in the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays have already secured a bye to the AL Division Series. Their final three regular season games at Citizens Bank Park were nothing more than a playoff tuneup — and perhaps an opportunity to play spoiler against the Phillies.
The 40,133 home fans were already getting restless when the Rays hit three straight two-out singles against Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez to take a 1-0 lead in the first. The boos became more widespread an inning later, when Tampa Bay eight-hole hitter Nick Fortes hit just his sixth homer of the season.
And they really started to catch on when Trea Turner and Brandon Marsh struck out to end the third and fourth inning, respectively, each stranding a runner. As the Phillies offense slogged along in the eventual 2-0loss to the Rays, boos became a familiar soundtrack.
“Whatever happened tonight,” said interim manager Don Mattingly, “we’re not getting back, and so we got to be ready to play tomorrow. That’s all there is to it.”
The magic number has not budged from two, where it has stood for the last three games. In that span, the Phillies have scored two runs.
Focus has shifted from who the Phillies might play next week to whether they might play anyone at all. The Padres, who are still fighting for home-field advantage for the wild-card series, could have helped them out later Friday night by beating the Diamondbacks. But instead, Arizona won, 11-4, to move within a game of the Phillies for the final wild-card spot.
The Rays’ Nick Fortes waves at the crowd after hitting a solo home run in the second inning.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
While the Phillies are experiencing a protracted collapse, the Diamondbacks are surging. Arizona is on a six-game winning streak.
“I guess I’d rather be in our spot than theirs because we can still control our own destiny,” Mattingly said. “So, I mean, at this point, none of that matters. How daunting it looks or what it looks like. We just got to win a game.”
The Rays only led by two after the second, as Sánchez started to get on a roll the deeper he got into the game. He struck out the final seven Rays he faced. His 100th pitch of the game — a changeup — dove beneath the bat of Jorge Mateo to end the seventh.
But two runs may as well have been Mount Everest for the Phillies offense.
Sánchez struck out 10 and limited the Rays to five hits. He concluded his regular season with a 2.91 ERA in 207 innings, a worthy sequel to his Cy Young-runner up finish in 2025. It’s out of the lefty’s hands now whether he will get another start this year.
“We lost, so that’s what I’m focused on,” Sánchez said through team interpreter Diego D’Aniello. “An up and down year, with a lot of highs and lows. We rolled through it. But two games remaining, we will keep fighting, and we just have to keep going and try to win.”
The Phillies’ bats only truly threatened in the sixth inning, when consecutive singles from Turner and Bryce Harper put two runners on with no outs. But Alec Bohm grounded out and Bryson Stott and Bryan De La Cruz lined out to leave them there.
NL wild-card standings
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Ahead of Friday’s game, the Phillies gathered for a hitters’ meeting. Mattingly addressed the group but declined to share his message with reporters.
Now, there’s not much left to say.
“We know the situation,” Kyle Schwarber said. “We know where we’re in. We want to do it our way. We want to have the ball in our court, and we didn’t get it done today. And that’s the thing. That’s the reality of situation. And now we move on to tomorrow.”
Schwarber pushed back on the notion that the Phillies are pressing at the plate. The club has been experiencing a power outage, with three home runs in its last nine games. Schwarber hasn’t homered since Sept. 15 and is hitting .165 this month.
Phillies Cristopher Sánchez pitches during the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies Cristopher Sánchez watches as Rays # 40 Nick Fortes waves at the crowd after hitting a solo home run in the second inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerRays # 40 Nick Fortes waves at the crowd after hitting a solo home run in the second inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhils Trea Turner tags out Rays Chandler Simpson who was trying for second base after a throwing error to first by Edmundo Sosa in the fourth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies Bryce Harper tried to rally the dugout after he got a hit in the fifth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies Brandon Marsh strikes out to end the fourth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerThe grounds crew repairs the pitching mound after Phillies pitcher Jhoan Duran found it unsatisfactory when he came into the game in the eighth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies fans begin to leave after Bryce Harper struck out to end the eighth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies Alec Bohm in the dugout as the game ends with a loss after the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026. The Rays beat the Phils 2-0.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff PhotographerPhillies fans begin to leave after Bryce Harper struck out to end the eighth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies MLB baseball game at Citzens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, September 25, 2026.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
With another hitless night, catcher J.T. Realmuto’s slump has reached 0-for-32.
“I wouldn’t say there’s not frustration. Sure, there’s frustration,” Schwarber said. “We want to win baseball games, at the end of the day. We expect to win a baseball game anytime we walk out of the locker room. But it doesn’t matter if it’s a loss in April, a loss in June, July. They all mean the same. We’re all frustrated whenever you come out with the loss. But I feel like our team is well-versed in knowing how to separate that and to come out the next day and be ready to go.”
In a desperation move, the Phillies called on closer Jhoan Duran for the eighth to keep the deficit at two. He delivered a clean inning, using 14 pitches, and if the offense could get something going he would have returned for the ninth. But instead, Schwarber, Turner, and Harper went down in order, with Harper striking out on a cutter outside to end it.
“We got to score,” Mattingly said. “At this point of the year, I mean, taking thousands of swings, taking thousands of ground balls, guys have worked all year. It’s not about that. We just got to be able to get it done now.”
Tim Mayza pitched the ninth instead of Duran. Boos chorused again when he gave up a single and a walk to put two runners on, but he struck out Fortes looking to finish the inning.
In the bottom of the frame, the offense again went down in order, with a lineout and two flyouts to make it 12 consecutive Phillies retired by the Rays pitching staff. By then, most of the 40,133 had already left. But boos could still be heard.
Temple returned to Lincoln Financial Field on a short week following its collapse to Toledo last week. However, the Owls opened American Conference play with a 21-17 loss to Army on Friday.
The Black Knights scored on quarterback Cale Hellums’ 3-yard touchdown run with 1 minute, 41 seconds left to give his team the four-point lead and cap a 12-play drive.
The Owls tried to respond on their final drive, but a fourth-and-3 pass from quarterback Ajani Sheppard to Jayce Freeman fell incomplete at Army’s 23-yard line with 29 seconds remaining.
“They made one more play than we did,” Temple coach K.C. Keeler said. “I just thought the kids battled all day long, and even when [Army] scored there at the end, our guys battered a drive. We just had to make one more play, and we didn’t make that play.”
After receiving the opening kickoff, Temple (1-3, 0-1) secured two first downs on its first three plays. Running back Keveun Mason and wide receiver Colin Chase combined for 36 yards in that stretch before running back Sam Brown added a first down of his own.
The Owls’ drive stalled out after Army (2-1, 1-0) made a fourth-down stop on a Brown run.
The Black Knights took over on offense and used their option attack for moderate gains on the ground to move into Temple territory. Hellums and Samari Howard consistently exposed holes in Temple’s defensive line.
After Army entered the red zone, Hellums capped the 12-play drive with a 15-yard touchdown run to give the Black Knights a 7-0 lead.
Sam Brown (5) got Temple on the scoreboard with a 78-yard receiving touchdown.Isaiah Vazquez / For The Inquirer
The Owls quickly tied the score. Sheppard connected on a play-action pass with Brown, who fled from the pack and scored a 78-yard touchdown to put Temple on the board.
“I think they had like two guys over top of Peter [Clarke], which left me open, and Ajani gave me a shot,” Brown said. “At that point, it was just beating the safety.”
On its next possession in the second quarter, Temple ended its series with a missed a 42-yard field goal from Carl Hardin with 8:20 left in the half. Over the next five drives between the two teams, neither team scored again before the halftime break.
Big gains
After halftime, Army found itself with a fourth-and-1 on its own 27-yard line, but a Hellums 2-yard rush extended the drive. That quick rush proved consequential for Temple.
Army used runs of 8 and 11 from Howard and Jake Rendina, respectively, to reach Temple’s 38-yard line. Its final three plays of the drive combined for 40 yards and a touchdown. Hellums capped off the series with a quarterback keeper, faking a handoff to burst to his right and score from 12 yards out to give Army a 14-7 lead.
In similar fashion to the first quarter, the Owls quickly responded. Sheppard found Chase deep on the fourth play of the drive for a 67-yard touchdown to tie the game at 14 with 3:43 left in the third quarter.
“The corner was low so I knew Ajani was going to give me a shot,” Chase said. “So I kept my angle skinny, and fully over the defense and got the perfect ball.”
Colin Chase (1) scored a 67-yard receiving touchdown in the third quarter.Isaiah Vazquez / For The Inquirer
After stalling Army’s next drive, Temple used a 47-yard Brown run and a 22-yard Ryder Kusch reception to reach field goal territory before the drive stalled. Hardin buried the kick to give Temple a 17-14 lead with 7:38 left in the game, which preceded Army’s late score.
Brown finished as the team’s leading rusher (10 carries, 96 yards) and receiver (78 yards), while Sheppard finished 11-of-20 for 212 yards and two touchdown passes. Hellums led Army with 104 yards on 22 carries.
Temple outgained Army on offense, 459-315.
Up next
Temple will hit the road to face South Florida next Saturday (7:30 p.m., ESPNU).
Despite dropping out of the Eagles’ Week 2 win against the Tennessee Titans with a stinger, a nerve injury in the neck, Saquon Barkley said he’s “good to go” for Monday night’s game against the Chicago Bears.
Barkley, the 29-year-old running back, sustained the injury on the first play of the contest and missed the rest of the first half. He returned in the second half, but was not on the field for most of the fourth quarter, including the game-winning drive orchestrated by Jalen Hurts.
Going into the second half, Barkley said he felt like he had his strength back. He dropped out again because “it didn’t go the way I thought it was going to go,” he said.
Barkley said he will likely continue wearing the cowboy collar — a neck protection device — that he sported when he returned to the Titans game. But with an extra day to prepare this week before leaving for Chicago, Barkley said the stinger shouldn’t affect him on the field.
“That’s why I’m rehabbing my [butt] off to get as strong as it needs to be,” Barkley said on Friday. “I feel like I’m in a really good spot. I know they wouldn’t let me go up there if I wasn’t able to do it. So I feel like I’m in a good spot, and I’m just going to let the game come. And I’m going to go out there and play fearless.”
Barkley underwent an MRI during the week to ensure that his injury wasn’t worse than the initial diagnosis. He acknowledged that he has a history of stingers, but this is the first “bad one” he has had in a long time.
Saquon Barkley was limited to four carries for nine yards last week after he suffered a stinger on the first offensive play vs. the Titans.David Maialetti / Staff Photographer
Five days after sustaining the injury, Barkley said his strength is back and he’s calmed down the nerve that he agitated. He was upgraded to a full participant in Friday’s practice after participating in a limited capacity on Thursday.
In his ninth NFL season, Barkley said he has a “super active” focus on maintaining his lower body and promoting his longevity. But he conceded that he hasn’t put an equal emphasis on his neck stability and strength to this point.
Barkley said the injury has served as a “wake-up call” in that regard. Now, with the training staff’s help, he’s making his neck a priority in his routine.
“They put together a great game plan for me, and I’ve just been trying to follow that to the best of my abilities, and I’m excited for another opportunity this week,” Barkley said.
Barkley and the Eagles’ blocking unit have another opportunity to make strides in the run game amid an average start to the season. Through two games, the Eagles rank in the middle of the pack of the league in expected points added per rush, according to Next Gen Stats.
The new-look Eagles offense under Sean Mannion places an emphasis on marrying the run with the pass. If the run game can’t get going, and if the Eagles can’t stay on schedule when negative plays and penalties put them behind the sticks, then building the play-action pass game off the threat of the run becomes more difficult.
But Barkley didn’t express concern about the state of the Eagles’ run game heading into their third game of the year. He said the run game is not a finished product — nor should it be at this point.
Saquon Barkley’s stinger last Sunday kept him out of the entire first half.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
“It’s all relatively new to all of us in the run game,” Barkley said. “As we’re learning and trying to continue to buy into something new, we’re going out there and we’re seeing some funky looks, some weird looks. It’s a sign that the defense [is] still respecting the run game, which has opened up other things. But it’s going to be a beautiful thing when we’re all firing on the same page.
“And talking to [Jalen Hurts] and the guys about it, and talking to the O-line, it’s not like a sense of any panic. Everybody wants the big numbers, but I’m in a good spot of knowing that the work that’s being put in, and just continue to focus on our process, and the results will come.”
Leonard Bernstein’s big, audacious, belief-shaking Mass has never slotted easily into the choral/symphonic repertoire, requiring Broadway and rock music resources as well as orchestral ones, with a confrontational message that echoes beyond its 1971 premiere.
Bernstein himself once wondered if the populist, many-faceted Mass should be performed in a gymnasium.
But the newly created suite heard Friday, played (and commissioned by) the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Kimmel Center, is a much more viable version. And it’s not a secondhand encapsulation but an entity unto itself.
And not a day too soon.
No single work has been more closely identified with the now-closed Kennedy Center: Its 1971 opening was the Bernstein Mass premiere. In preperformance comments, music and artistic director Yannick Nézet-Séguin made that connection, calling Mass a statement about “why arts and culture are worth fighting for.”
Pianist Alexandre Kantorow performs with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Marian Anderson Hall on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pa.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
I agree in spirit. But among listeners, you either got the Bernstein Mass gene or not. I did not (and was most excited to hear Alexandre Kantorow play the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 that began the program).
Though Mass’ individual songs are indeed lovable, the scrupulously unconventional whole (where the original Mass text is a distant point of reference) is puzzling to me. Why the counterfeit rock music? (Bernstein followed The Rolling Stones and knew better.) Why such glib philosophical conclusions? (Such as “I believe in God but does God believe in me?”)
Nézet-Séguin has not been one to tone down any such element, fearlessly embracing the abrasive modernism lurking around the sides. Garth Edwin Sunderland, vice president for artistic projects at the Leonard Bernstein Office, refashions the piece into Four Symphonic Rituals from MASS, richly scored for orchestra (no singers) that’s a close cousin to Symphonic Dances fromWest Side Story, but with a harder-edge sound palette.
“My solution was to focus each movement on one of the musical concepts, punctuated by interjections from the others,” wrote Sunderland in the program notes.
Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and pianist Alexandre Kantorow perform with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Marian Anderson Hall on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pa.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
With a bit of editing, these Rituals may well have longevity. The opening moments establish the lyrical but nervous character of the piece, bringing out the jazz that wasn’t so obvious in the original — and is very welcome since Bernstein spoke jazz as a first language.
One could write a dissertation on Sunderland’s choices, but the total effect is that of a concerto for orchestra that touches as many bases as possible. Too many, in fact. The last 10 minutes are so splintered that the through line is intermittently lost.
But one unexpected conclusion is that the sung words aren’t missed (except “I Go On” and “Simple Song”). In fact, much of the music seems liberated without words. Electric guitars are still there but blended in as part of the larger sound texture.
What would Bernstein think? It’s worth asking.
(Later tonight, I’ll be near his grave site in Brooklyn where Green-Wood Cemetery is hosting an event for the Missy Mazzoli opera Lincoln in the Bardo.)
Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and pianist Alexandre Kantorow take a bow after their performance at Marian Anderson Hall on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pa.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
Brahms piano concerto soloist Kantorow has been called a fire-breathing virtuoso, and he has that quality, but the Gilmore Artist Award he received goes to pianists who have much more than that.
Whether playing solo, chamber music or with orchestra, the 29-year-old French pianist (making his Philadelphia Orchestra debut in these concerts) is thoughtful, highly personal, but never eccentric. He brings an extra depth to Brahms’ early-period concerto from having spent much time with the composer’s three early piano sonatas, finding in them surprising maturity but also youthful rage that carried over into the more stentorian parts of the concerto.
Pianist Alexandre Kantorow performs with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Marian Anderson Hall on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pa.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
Throughout the first movement, one felt part of a searingly direct conversation with Brahms. The second movement lost me for a bit; Kantorow was too inward to be outwardly communicative. The final movement had reckless chemistry.
When a Philadelphia Orchestra performance lacks complete coordination, you know musicians are deep in the moment and not falling back on remembered emotion.
The program will be repeated at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Kimmel Center. Tickets: $29-$232, philorch.ensembleartsphilly.org or 215-893-1999.
Philly Youth Basketball, a nonprofit that hosts a range of programming within the sport and outside it from its massive Nicetown facility, is expanding its footprint.
On Friday, it announced a $50 million workforce development project called the Generator. The 40,000-square-foot building will be constructed next door to Philly Youth Basketball’s home, the Alan Horwitz “Sixth Man” Center, located at 4250 Wissahickon Ave.
The Generator is designed to help adults from ages 18 to 29 build pathways to careers in skilled trades like carpentry and welding, healthcare, tech, and entrepreneurship. Its offerings will include hands-on training and certification, a small-business accelerator, and clinical health and mental health resources.
The Generator will also focus on developing its young adults’ soft skills, through services like career coaching and job placement, financial literacy education, and supplementary essentials like driver’s education and academic support. Philly Youth Basketball estimates 600 young people each year will be involved in its certificate programs.
The organization plans to break ground next fall, with an estimated opening in early 2029.
“In our city, it is entirely too hard for young adults, especially those who’ve not gone to a well-resourced K-12 schooling experience, who’ve not had a college diploma, who don’t come from an affluent, high social capital family … to build a career and to transcend one’s circumstances,” said Kenny Holdsman, president and CEO of Philly Youth Basketball.
“And we think we can do something about that on a really big scale,” he said.
A rendering created by Voith & Mactavish Architects of The Generator, Philly Youth Basketball’s planned $50 million workforce development hub, slated to open in early 2029. The Generator will help young adults build careers in the skilled trades, healthcare, tech and entrepreneurship.Voith & Mactavish Architects
Philly Youth Basketball has raised $10 million for the project so far, largely through philanthropic donations. As part of the overall funding,$1.5 million has come through the state’s Redevelopment Capital Assistance Program, including a newly announced additional $500,000 from Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration. Other money has come from the Small Business Administration. It is unclear where the rest of the funding will come from.
“What happens here is different than what happens anywhere else. I believe this is a special place,” Shapiro said Friday at an event announcing plans for the workforce hub.
“Here in Pennsylvania, we recognize all pathways to success and opportunity, and we invest in them. Whether you go to college, you go to the military, you go to a union training hall, all of those pathways deserve our respect and all of them deserve our investment,” he said.
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said expanding career pathways in the trades was especially valuable, given that artificial intelligence would not easily replace those jobs. She said the Generator would help young people who might otherwise face barriers to economic mobility.
“We’re teaching young people how to fish. Our city will be safer when folks are going to bed at night and waking up in the morning to do a job that will allow them to take care of their families, go on a vacation, live with a sense of dignity and pride,” she said.
Skills for life
Philly Youth Basketball has been running programs throughout the city for over a decade, but it did not have a permanent space until it opened the Sixth Man Center in 2024. The facility was designed to use basketball as a means of positively impacting Philly youth and exposing them and their families to opportunities outside the sport.
The Sixth Man Center features not just six full-size courts and basketball programs for all ages, but also a healthy foods cafe, and spaces and programs focused on education, mental health, and entrepreneurship. Holdsman said the 100,000-square-foot facility welcomes about 1,400 visitors a day, and even more when it has hosted other community events, like a recent Eid celebration that drew 8,000.
There is action on six courts during a Philly Live event on Sunday, June 30, 2024, at the Alan Horwitz “Sixth Man” Center.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
The Generator represents the culmination of Philly Youth Basketball’s mission to go beyond athletics. Holdsman said the nonprofit identified a need to help young people not only growing up, but after high school, too. Organizers chose to focus their work on careers in the trades, healthcare, and tech, Holdsman said, because the fieldsdemonstrated growth, reliable credentialing, trainers and educators who could be relatable to young adults (and especially young Black men), and pathways for economic mobility.
Amin Ray, 17, has embodied the organization’s “kinder to career” model. The Germantown high school senior has been involved with nearly every program Philly Youth Basketball has to offer, beginning with basketball when he was 11 and then branching out to off-court offerings.
Now, he is part of the first cohort of the organization’s Varsity Trades Academy, which will serve as an on-ramp to the Generator before it opens. Ray and the 49 other academy participants have received instruction in various trades, and he has become most fascinated with carpentry.
Gov. Josh Shapiro and Philly Youth Basketball Varsity Trades Academy students watch as Kenny Holdsman and Amin Ray hold up a flag at the future site of the Generator on Friday.Bastiaan Slabbers/ For the Inquirer
“It’s something about — after you finish a job … and you ride past, that satisfaction. You’re telling yourself, ‘Yeah, I built that,’” he said, pointing out a set of wooden benches he and the cohort built that people attending the event were sitting on.
He will finish with the academy in December, and start working in a manufacturing program in partnership with Community College of Philadelphia in February while he finishes his virtual school program. Twelve others from the academy have already been placed in jobs through the program.
“As human beings, we’re never done learning. We’re always still growing. So as much knowledge as you can possibly obtain, the more valuable you can be as a human being,” Ray said.
Trevor Zegras has been one of the bigger personalities and characters in the NHL since he entered the league in 2021.
Whether it’s his California surfer guy resemblance to Fast Times at Ridgemont High’s Jeff Spicoli, his creative nicknames for teammates — see “Taco” for coach Rick Tocchet — or his silly intermission interviews, Zegras is always good for a chuckle.
So it was no surprise that Zegras, a day after he was penalized for tucking in his jersey in the Flyers’ preseason game against the Boston Bruins, took to social media Friday to vent his frustrations over his delay-of-game penalty for “improperly wearing his equipment.”
Trevor Zegras heads to the box for a two-minute minor for "improperly wearing equipment" as he started his shift with his jersey tucked into his pants 🫣 pic.twitter.com/WTDe9BEkXr
On his Instagram story, Zegras posted two pictures of him playing with a tucked-in jersey, first as a kid and later in his teens. This backed up his comments Thursday night that he’s always worn his jersey that way.
“I started the game with it tucked; that’s how I usually play,” Zegras said. “Must have just went back down the bench and came out and forgot.”
But after posting the two pictures with the tucked-in jersey, the New York native and proud Giants fan (yuck) couldn’t resist getting another jab in. This time, the Flyers center posted a picture of old Super Bowl rival Tom Brady and the “tuck rule” play against the Oakland Raiders that ultimately kick-started the New England Patriots’ dynasty.
Trevor Zegras posted a photo of him playing from his youth with his jersey tucked, and then a Tim Brady photo from the “Tuck Rule” game 🤣 pic.twitter.com/uuMmYJbofE
While we know Hall of Fame defensive back Charles Woodson is no fan of the NFL’s tuck rule, he has yet to weigh in on the NHL’s iteration.
Don’t be surprised if you see more tucking infractions on the ice this season either, as Tocchet told reporters Thursday that the NHL has warned teams that they will be enforcing this type of delay-of-game penalty. It’s also worth noting that Zegras received a warning from referee Jon McIsaac earlier in the game before his saunter to the penalty box.
We guess whether to tuck or not to tuck is no longer a question.
The day after Luis Arraez limped off the field, unable to put weight on his left leg, the report from the Phillies’ training room was summed up with four words.
“Not a great one,” interim manager Don Mattingly said.
An MRI on Friday confirmed the results of an X-ray the night before: Arraez has a sprained left ankle. Mattingly said he didn’t have specifics, including a classification (high or low) or degree of the sprain, but noted that Arraez was “stiff and sore.”
“We’ll see if, over the course of the day, it gets better,” Mattingly said. “See if he’s going to be able to do anything.”
Arraez was unavailable before Friday night’s series opener against the Rays.
If Arraez got hurt at any other point in the season, the Phillies likely would put him on the 10-day injured list. Doing so now would cause him to miss the three-game wild-card series and leave him ineligible until at least Oct. 5 — or Game 3 of the divisional round.
For now, then, the Phillies will hold off on a roster move. Mattingly said he would be “a little surprised” if Arraez is able to play over the weekend.
“You don’t feel great about it because he was so sore this morning,” he said. “It depends where it goes, but you could also see, in a couple days, if you feel a lot better, you could wrap it and see what happens.
“If it’s something that we know he’s not going to be able to play, then we’re going to have to [make a move]. You don’t want to play short. We’ll just see where it goes. We’ve got to give it a day.”
Phillies second baseman Luis Arraez was being treated Friday after spraining his left ankle Thursday night.Jose F. Moreno / Staff Photographer
In Arraez’s absence, Bryson Stott returned to second base and utilityman Edmundo Sosa started at third against the Rays. Mattingly chose to keep Alec Bohm at first base and Bryce Harper in right field.
Arraez was the Phillies’ headline addition at the Aug. 3 trade deadline, coming over from the Giants for two minor leaguers, including 21-year-old pitching prospect Ramon Marquez. The Phillies shuffled three-quarters of their infield to accommodate Arraez at second base.
In 46 games, all in the cleanup spot, Arraez is batting .278 with a .678 OPS for the Phillies. Overall, the three-time batting champion leads the National League with a .310 average, narrowly ahead of Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno (.308).
“Obviously Luis is a guy who can really, really hit, so it’s a blow to your offense,” Mattingly said. “He’s a guy that’s come in and got his hits. He’s been a kind of stabilizer, kind of mixes our lineup up a little bit. He’s a different kind of guy, so I think any time you lose a guy that’s hitting .300, getting on base, that type of thing, it hurts you.”
Said shortstop Trea Turner: “He’s kind of locked down that four hole for us and just kept the line moving. Whether people are on or he’s leading off, it feels like he’s making us a lot better. And the defense has been really good, too. So, I think that’s going to be a little bit of a blow.”
The Phillies continue to try to get Jesús Luzardo ready for the playoffs.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Luzardo on track
In more encouraging Phillies injury news, Jesús Luzardo didn’t report any problems with his left shoulder after throwing a bullpen session Thursday. He played catch in the outfield.
The Phillies are aiming for Luzardo to face hitters over the weekend, likely in a simulated game setting, to get him ready for the postseason.
One potential snag: It’s supposed to rain all weekend.
Mattingly said the Phillies have discussed contingencies, including finding an indoor space for Luzardo to face hitters. Luzardo hasn’t pitched in a game since a 109-pitch shutout of the Braves on Sept. 7.
“I don’t know if it’s a must,” Mattingly said, “but it would still be nice.”
Meanwhile, rain could play havoc with the Phillies’ final two regular-season games against the Rays, especially given the stakes. Entering play Friday, the Phillies needed any combination of two wins or Diamondbacks losses to clinch a playoff spot. Seeding was also up for grabs.
But while MLB preemptively scheduled doubleheaders Friday in Boston (Cubs-Red Sox) and New York (Orioles-Yankees), no such plans were made in Philadelphia.
“I guess it’s just coming further north,” Mattingly said. “But yeah, I heard there’s some [rain] coming.”
Video: Matt Klentak breaks down how the Phillies acquired Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sánchez
Extra bases
Depending on the stakes, veteran lefty Nestor Cortes “could be” called up to eat innings over the weekend, Mattingly said. The Phillies took a flier on Cortes in August. The 31-year-old posted a 4.76 ERA over 5⅔ innings in triple A. He’s among a group of players who are participating in the Phillies’ “stay ready” camp in Allentown. … The Phillies haven’t named a starter for Saturday night, though recently acquired righty José Urquidy (2-2, 4.54 ERA) is expected to pitch multiple innings as part of a bullpen game. Right-hander Griffin Jax (8-10, 3.62) is scheduled to start for the Rays.
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration will rescind a series of proposed vaccination and disease-tracking regulations that reignited public outrage toward restrictive pandemic-era policies in Pennsylvania — a decision made after receiving more than 10,000 comments opposing the changes, the Pennsylvania Department of Health said Friday.
The department will withdraw the regulations, incorporate feedback, and resubmit the public health rules “once Pennsylvanians’ feedback has been adequately incorporated,” Neil Ruhland, a spokesperson for the department, said in a statement.
Shapiro’s administration earlier this year submitted the proposed regulations aimed at combating infectious diseases to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission, a little-known board that assesses and approves new state regulations, requiring public input before they can be implemented. These regulations had been in progress for years, but were not introduced to the public until June 4.
The public comment period coincided with a high-profile clash between Shapiro and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over two infant deaths that Pennsylvania attributed to measles — the first deaths from the highly contagious and preventable disease in the state in 35 years. And it quickly refueled public disapproval of government mandates enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 502-page proposed regulations would have expanded the state health department’s investigatory powers deemed necessary to track, prevent, contain, or mitigate a contagious disease. Republican state lawmakers and thousands of enraged constituents were especially concerned by a provision that would allow the state health department or local health authorities to enter schools or private properties to investigate alleged outbreaks or review vaccination records. They also criticized the health department’s effort to change references to a “pregnant woman” to a “pregnant individual” throughout the policy, claiming it was an effort to remove women from the state’s public health rules.
The pushback comes at a time when federal health officials, under Kennedy, who has a history of anti-vaccine activism, have worked to reduce the number of childhood vaccination recommendations — and as childhood vaccination rates hit new lows in Pennsylvania. The effort has prompted Shapiro and other Democratic governors to sign executive orders to protect vaccine access. Setting vaccination mandates for schoolchildren falls to the states, not the federal government.
The proposals rescinded Friday will not affect federal or state executive orders related to vaccination access.
State House Minority Leader Jesse Topper (R., Bedford) during a news conference at the Capitol in Harrisburg Feb. 3, 2026.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
House Minority Leader Jesse Topper (R., Bedford) was among the first officials last month to raise alarm about the proposed regulations. In a statement Friday, he said it was the “correct and logical conclusion” for the health department, following the outpouring of public opposition.
Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana) called Friday’s announcement “a tremendous victory for the grassroots efforts of Pennsylvanians.”
”This is a stark reminder that we must continue to be vigilant when the Executive Branch attempts overreach,” Pittman said in a statement. “We cannot and will not allow actions like we saw taken by the Executive Branch during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to be put in place again.”
Nearly all of the members of the Republican caucuses in Pennsylvania’s Senate and House submitted letters in opposition to the proposed regulations, arguing they were more restrictive than the ones enacted during the COVID-19 public health emergency and would infringe on Pennsylvanians’ constitutional rights.
“The proposed regulations represent executive-branch overreach reminiscent of what we experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic — but this time, the rules would be permanent,” Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R., Westmoreland) said in a statement last week. “Every Pennsylvanian should understand these regulations and how they could impact their lives.”
At least one Democrat — State Rep. Dan Frankel (D., Allegheny), who chairs the House Health Committee — submitted his support during the public comment period for updating the state’s existing communicable disease rules. Even so, his remarks recommended several changes to the proposed regulations, including to how the state would evaluate some vaccination exemptions to consider how children will be affected if their parent forgoes the preventive measures.
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D., Allegheny) said in a statement Friday he was looking forward to continuing the conversation about the regulations, adding that “public trust and buy-in is crucial to effective governance.”
Beth Rementer, a spokesperson for House Democrats, said Friday that Shapiro’s administration was “acting responsibly” by considering public opinion.
“After all, that’s how government is supposed to work,” Rementer said.
Shapiro’s administration has rescinded at least 11 other regulation proposals since taking office in 2023, according to administration officials. But a deluge of feedback is rare, and most proposed regulations receive around five public comment submissions, a Shapiro administration official said.
Monday was the final day for public comment submissions. As part of their opposition campaign, Republican lawmakers encouraged their constituents to voice their opinion as part of public comment. By the end of the day, the review commission had received more than 10,000 comments opposing the regulations.
“The Department of Health received a historically high volume of feedback during the public commentary period, and it is clear additional stakeholder input is needed,” Ruhland said in the statement.
Shapiro, a Democrat, is seeking reelection in November. His GOP challenger, State Treasurer Stacy Garrity, has criticized Shapiro over the proposed regulations, calling them “mandates that would make draconian COVID-era restrictions blush.”
On Friday, Garrity celebrated the regulation withdrawal, and in a statement called Shapiro “the least transparent governor in America” who “got caught trying to sneak a 502 page invasion of privacy and parental rights through.”
A spokesperson for Shapiro declined to comment Friday, deferring to the state health department.
