Month: July 2022

Monarchs move into division’s first place with sweep of Canaries

by Kaitlyn Sanders, Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs (43-22) completed the sweep of the Sioux Falls Canaries (24-39) with a 4-2 score on Thursday night at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas.

The Monarchs now are in sole possession of first place in the West division, one game ahead of the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks.

Kansas City got runners on base in both the first and second innings but couldn’t bring them in. The first three innings remained scoreless.

Darnell Sweeney warmed the KC bats, going 2-for-2 and reaching third base in the bottom of the third with a triple to deep center field, but once again, the Monarchs left the batter stranded.

Jabari Henry started the fourth inning off hot as his first hit launched a solo home run to left field, giving Sioux Falls its first lead of the game and the series at 1-0.

The Monarchs came back in the fourth as Matt Adams reached second with a double off the wall in left field. J.C. Escarra then punched one deep into the home run hill in right for a two-run home run to give the Monarchs the lead, 2-1, going into the fifth.

In the bottom of the sixth, Casey Gillaspie reached first with a single to right field before Chad De La Guerra hit one to left. Pete Kozma popped a ball to right-center field to bring in Gillaspie for an RBI, the score 3-1.

In the bottom of the seventh, Thompson sent one out to deep right field for a triple, eventually coming home on a wild pitch and extending the Monarchs’ lead to 4-1.

Jeremy Rhoades came to the mound in the top of the eighth and walked Nick Gotta and Osvaldo Martinez back-to-back. After a fly-out to center field Gotta reached third before Jabari Henry’s fielders choice cut the lead in half at 4-2 for the final score.

Monarchs’ starter Lewis Thorpe went 5.0 innings pitched, with 5 hits, 1 run and 2 strikeouts to record his seventh win. Brian Glowicki came in to relieve him in the sixth and struck out three batters. Brandon Koch worked a scoreless inning while Jameson McGrane worked a 1-2-3 ninth for the save (13).

The Monarchs will travel to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to start another three-game series against the Canaries at 7:05 p.m. Friday, July 29. The away game in South Dakota can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:35 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

Secretary of state predicts surge in primary voting driven by abortion amendment

Schwab anticipates 36% of 1.9 million registered voters to take part by Tuesday

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — The Kansas secretary of state predicted Friday competitive races and the proposed abortion amendment to the Kansas Constitution could drive an extra 200,000 voters to the polls in the primary election.

Secretary of State Scott Schwab, who faces a Republican primary challenge tied to election security issues, said 36% of the state’s 1.9 million registered voters would likely participate in the 2022 primary by the time voting ends at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

If Schwab’s estimate holds up, the turnout in Kansas would surpass the previous two election cycles with 702,000 votes cast. That would compare to 636,000 or 34.2% in 2020 and 487,000 or 27.1% in 2018.

So far, compared to the last off-year primary in 2018, twice as many Kansans have voted by mail and three times as many Kansans have voted in-person.


More than twice as many advance voter ballots were mailed to Kansans in 2022 than in 2018.

“This voter turnout prediction is based on 2018 data because we have similar races on the ballot this year, while also keeping in mind we have a constitutional amendment driving voter interest,” Schwab said.

Schwab, who is being challenged in the primary by former Johnson County Commissioner Mike Brown, said other factors woven into the estimate included historical turnout data, advance voting data, the number of registered voters in Kansas and competitive races driving turnout.

Proponents of the constitutional amendment said it would nullify the Kansas Supreme Court’s decision that declared the Bill of Rights of the state constitution included the right to bodily autonomy, including the right to abortion.

Opponents of the amendment argue the amendment would be used to advance unreasonable restrictions on abortion in Kansas, including an outright ban on the procedure.

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/07/29/secretary-of-state-predicts-surge-in-primary-voting-driven-by-abortion-amendment/

Mild weather today, rain possible on Saturday

National Weather Service graphic
The extended forecast calls for hot and dry weather from Aug. 5 to Aug. 11. (National Weather Service graphic)
There is a high risk of excessive heat from Aug. 5 to Aug. 11. (National Weather Service graphic)

Mild weather today will be followed by a chance of showers on Saturday and Saturday night, according to the National Weather Service forecast.

Today’s high will be about 81, the weather service said.

While there are a few chances for storms on Saturday through Monday, severe weather is not expected, according to the weather service.

Extreme heat will return next week, with excessive heat likely by mid-to-late next week, the weather service said.

Today, it will be partly sunny, with a high near 81 and a north wind of 3 to 5 mph, the weather service said.

Tonight, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 63 and a light and variable wind, according to the weather service.

Saturday, there will be a 20 percent chance of showers after 1 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 80 with a calm wind becoming southeast 5 to 8 mph in the morning.

Saturday night, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, increasing after 1 a.m. The low will be around 67 with an east southeast wind of 5 to 7 mph becoming calm after midnight. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is likely.

Sunday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 86 with a calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is possible.

Sunday night, there is a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 71, according to the weather service.

Monday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 93, the weather service said.

Monday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 73, according to the weather service.

Tuesday, it will be sunny, with a high near 95, the weather service said.

Tuesday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 79, according to the weather service.

Wednesday, it will be hot, with a high near 98, the weather service said.