February 2017 – Page 55 – Welcome to Wyandotte Daily!

T-Bones sign right-handed pitcher

The Kansas City T-Bones announced they have signed Christian Montgomery to a contract for the 2017 season.

Montgomery, 24 (11-20-92), is a 6-foot-1 and 230-pound right hander from Indianapolis, Ind. The New York Mets selected Montgomery in the 11th round of the 2011 MLB June Amateur Draft out of Lawrence Central High School.

He has played five seasons in the Mets’ organization, reaching single-A each of the past two seasons. In 2016, at Columbia, Montgomery went 1-1 with two saves and a 3.34 ERA in 19 appearances (no starts). He struck out 45 and walked 20 in 29 2/3 innings.

“I’m excited to continue to put pieces together for a successful 2017 season,” T-Bones manager Joe Calfapietra said.

Kansas City now has 10 players — five pitchers — signed for 2017.

In January, the T-Bones acquired infielder Eddie Newton, outfielder Daniel Rockett and pitcher Lee Sosa from New Jersey of the Can-Am League for pitchers Evan DeLuca, Sean Furney and Jared Messer, plus infielder Ryan Retz and a player to be determined.

The T-Bones open the 2017 regular season at home on May 19 against Lincoln.

– Story from Matt Fulks, T-Bones

Warmer temperatures will arrive Friday

The National Weather Service predicts an almost 30-degree warm-up on Friday.

Temperatures will jump from Thursday’s high of 37 to a high near 64 on Friday.

The warm and windy weather on Friday will bring with it an increased chance of fires, according to the weather service.

Winds of 15 to 25 mph will combine with relative humidity values in the 35 to 45 percent range on Friday, and outdoor burning is not encourage on either Friday or Saturday, the weather service said. Red flag conditions are not anticipated, however.

Today’s high will be near 37, with a light and variable wind becoming south southeast 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon, according to the weather service.

Tonight, expect mostly clear skies and a low of 31, with a southeast wind of 7 to 14 mph, gusting as high as 20 mph, the weather service said.

Friday, it will be sunny with a high near 64, according to the weather service. A south southwest wind of 13 to 18 mph may gust as high as 30 mph.

Friday night, the low will be around 47, with south southwest winds of 7 to 11 mph, gusting as high as 18 mph, the weather service said.

Saturday, the high will be near 69 with partly sunny skies, according to the weather service. A south wind of 6 to 8 will become west southwest in the afternoon.

Saturday night, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 40, the weather service said.

Sunday, the high will be near 49, with mostly cloudy skies, according to the weather service.

Sunday night, the low will be around 29, with partly cloudy skies, the weather service said.

Monday, it will be sunny with a high near 52, according to the weather service.

Monday night, the low will be around 31 with partly cloudy skies.

Tuesday, expect a high of 51 with mostly sunny skies, the weather service said.

Simulator to show dangers of distracted driving on Friday at KCKCC-TEC

Students at KCKCC TEC will get a glimpse of the dangers of distracted driving during a simulator demonstration Friday.

AT&T’s “It Can Wait” simulator will be at the KCKCC Burke Technical Education Center, 6565 State Ave., in the multi-purpose room, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10. The event will be free and open to the public.

Gary Enrique Bradley-Lopez, a student at KCKCC, said he is planning to try out the simulator on Friday.

“I love the idea of there being a simulator on campus,” Bradley-Lopez said. Students will learn about being distracted and driving, he added. The event will increase awareness on this issue, he said.

“A lot of times we get distracted with our phones, and it’s not the best place to use it,” he said.

Andrica Wilcoxen, director of student activities at KCKCC, said tragedies can’t be undone.

“This is going to be great because we’re not waiting for the tragedy to happen and then do something about it. We’re being proactive,” Wilcoxen said.

Members of the public also may visit the virtual reality “It Can Wait” simulator.

The virtual reality simulator will provide students the opportunity to experience the dangers of taking one’s eyes off the road and looking at the phone while driving, according to information from AT&T.

According to AT&T information, seven in 10 people engage in smart phone activities while driving. They may text or they may be watching videos on their phones while driving, according to the AT&T spokesman. However, it only takes one look at the phone to change everything, according to AT&T information.

AT&T has a campaign called “It Can Wait” that asks drivers to visit www.ItCanWait.com, and pledge to keep their eyes on the road, not on their phones, and share their pledge with others through social media.

The campaign started against texting and driving and has now expanded to any smart phone use while behind the wheel, according to AT&T.