Chicago Sun Times

White Sox broadcaster Ken Harrelson throws out the ceremonial first pitch before a game between the Red Sox and White Sox, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Chicago. (AP)Nam Y. Huh/AP Photos MINNEAPOLIS – It seemed like a good time to check in on The Hawk.No one lived and breathed the White Sox more than Ken Harrelson, the retired Hall of Fame broadcaster. There is no bigger fan.Maybe it’s a good thing he and wife Aris had been at their Florida home until they returned to Granger, Ind., two days ago. Until watching the Sox’ 7-0 loss to the Twins Monday, Harrelson had followed his beloved online, reading box scores and reports and communicating via other channels as his South Side nine crumbled to an embarrassing 3-19 start.“I’ve never been associated with anything even close to this as a player and announcer,” Harrelson told the Sun-Times Tuesday.“It’s been ugly and I feel bad for our fans, I really do. You can’t hide any of this.”Harrelson’s message to them?“I know it’s tough for our fans to be going through what they’re going through but it will change,” he said.The Sox have been shut out eight times, a major league record through 22 games. Their top two players are injured. The ace of their pitching staff was traded before the season began.Harrelson said there is no such thing as a baseball expert, “but we’ve got fans in the stands who know as much as I do or the managers or coaches or anybody else, because [available information] has changed so much.”Harrelson knows the owner will get little sympathy from said fans, and he has remained close with chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, who, as he tries to get a deal done for a new stadium, is catching much of the blame for the franchise’s plummet from division champion only three seasons ago.“It always reverts back to the owner, whether good, bad, cheap or extravagant,” Harrelson said.“But I know how much he wants to win. I know Jerry very well. There is nobody who feels worse about it. He lost [millions] million last year and this year has the [18th] highest payroll [among 30 teams, per Spotrac].“If you’re going to lose [millions] and get 1,000 fans like they had at the end of that doubleheader [last Wednesday] that’s a hard way to make money.”When the Sox were losing in their last rebuild, the fanbase embraced the tanking and promise offered by a stocked farm system. But it’s not the same now. And trust in ownership and the front office has eroded.“My message is, there is a new adventure for them, because if they hang with us it will change,” Harrelson said.“Can it get any [bleeping] worse? It can’t get worse.”Harrelson, meanwhile, said he thought first-year broadcaster John Schriffen “was very good.” “He handled the [3-18 record] going into it well. As tough as it is [for reporters to] write about, it’s tough to broadcast.”Harrelson can relate to struggling teams, but nothing like Schriffen is right now, he said.“He handled the game well,” Harrelson said. “Didn’t try to be a comedian or fool me or the fans. He was telling it like it was. A good announcer, you can tell by his inflection, the way he speaks, and I told my wife I was really impressed with him.”The Sox are a tough watch but Harrelson planned to tune in Tuesday, he said.“The reason I’m watching is the announcer,” he said.“He impressed me very much, as a rookie, how he handled it. With his tone, wasn’t trying to tell me something that was bull [crap]. I don’t care for those who do.”Harrelson, who retired after the 2018 season, doesn’t have the same jump in his step as he used to – he hasn’t played a round of golf in five years, he said – and he’s obeying doctors’ orders after taking a fall last year.“I’m 82 but you put a speedometer on my ass and I’m 104 with what I’ve been through,” he said. “All the multiple athletics I played and fights I’ve had. Fortunately, I won most of them.”

A man was fatally shot at Sway Bar, 9420 W. Irving Park Road, in Schiller Park on April 19.Google Maps A man was killed in a shooting at a bar Friday in northwest suburban Schiller Park.The shooting occurred about 11 p.m. at Sway Bar, 9420 W. Irving Park Road, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.Jonathan Vallejo, 38, of River Grove, suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at Lutheran General Hospital, the medical examiner’s office said. An autopsy ruled his death a homicide.Schiller Park police did not immediately provide additional information on the incident.

Bulls guard Coby White finishes second to the 76ers’ Tyrese Maxey in the league’s Most Improved Player Award.Charles Rex Arbogast/AP Arturas Karnisovas didn’t have a vote.If the Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations did, it would be a no-brainer in regards to the NBA’s 2024 Most Improved Player Award.“He’s made huge strides,” Karnisovas said of guard Coby White on Saturday. “For me, he’s most improved player this year.”The voters said differently.Prior to Tuesday night’s NBA playoff games, the league announced that Philadelphia guard Tyrese Maxey was voted the Most Improved Player of the Year, beating out second-place White and Houston big man Alperen Sengun.While White’s numbers took a bigger jump from last season to this season’s campaign, where Maxey pulled away was on the national spotlight. Not only did Maxey become an Eastern Conference All-Star, but he kept the 76ers afloat for a playoff spot while former league MVP Joel Embiid was sidelined with injuries.Maxey went from 20.3 points per game in the 2022-23 season to 25.9 while also improving his assists from 3.5 to 6.2 per game.White was coming off a career-low 9.7 points per game last season, but that jumped up big time as his role greatly increased, finishing this season behind only DeMar DeRozan’s 24 points per game and Zach LaVine’s 19.5 (in only 25 games) with 19.1 per game.As for Sengun, he made a jump in both scoring and rebounding, leading the up-and-coming Rockets in both categories.NOTE: According to Bulls PR, several coaching changes were made to the staff on Tuesday, as assistant Chris Fleming, who was one of the few holdovers from the Jim Boylen era, will not return and Maurice Cheeks will move from his full-time bench role to another position in the organization.Josh Longstaff and John Bryant were expected to be promoted with the change.

Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca was remembered as “a loyal and trusted friend who led by example.”Chicago Police Department The off-duty killing of Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca over the weekend was formally classified as a line-of-duty death on Tuesday — what would’ve been his 31st birthday.And funeral services for the young officer were scheduled for next week.In a letter to department members, Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling described Huesca as “a kind spirit who cared deeply for his family, friends and our city.”Huesca was attacked early Sunday in the 3100 block of West 56th Street while driving from work to his Gage Park apartment. He was still wearing his uniform when he was shot multiple times, and his SUV was taken after he was wounded.“Today would have been Officer Luis Huesca’s 31st birthday,” Snelling wrote. “Instead, we are left to grieve the loss of a young officer in the line of duty. Though we are mourning, we will honor and celebrate the man he was and the lasting impact he had on all those who knew him.” Police Officer Luis M. Huesca #18913End of Watch: April 21, 2024On what would have been his 31st birthday, we are mourning the loss of Officer Huesca in the line of duty to the violence he worked to protect our city from. We will forever support his family and carry on his… pic.twitter.com/2epEVTjkLv— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) April 23, 2024 Huesca’s family will now be entitled to additional benefits because of the ruling that he died in the line of duty. The killing of Officer Aréanah Preston, shot during a robbery as she returned home from work last May, was similarly classified as a line-of-duty death.On Monday evening, the police department issued a community alert that included surveillance videos of a person wanted in connection with Huesca’s slaying.The alert asked for the public’s help identifying the male “subject,” who police said should be “considered armed and dangerous.” The videos appear to show him walking down a dark street and wearing different outfits at two convenience stores. Police released these photos and portions of a surveillance video to help identify a person of interest in their investigation into the killing of Officer Luis Huesca early Sunday in the 3100 block of West 56th Street in Gage Park.Provided by the Chicago Police Department In his letter, Snelling reflected on the young officer’s legacy.“Throughout the past two days, I have had the honor of spending time with his family and those who worked alongside him,” Snelling said.“To his family, he was a beloved son and brother. To his family here at CPD, he was a loyal and trusted friend who led by example. To the community, he was a dedicated officer with integrity who represented the best of our department.”Funeral services for Huesca will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at St. Rita of Cascia Catholic Church at 7740 S. Western Ave. in Chicago, according to the Fraternal Order of Police. A wake will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday at Blake-Lamb Funeral Home at 4727 W. 103rd St. in Oak Lawn.

Castaways Beach Club on North Avenue Beach underwent renovations over the last year. The popular bar and restaurant reopens with a revamped menu and decor.Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times file Castaways Beach Club, the popular boat-shaped restaurant and bar on North Avenue Beach, will again welcome customers with a fresher, cleaner look.After closing last summer, the venue, formerly called Castaways Bar & Grill, is set to reopen Memorial Day Weekend, after renovations and changes to its menu. The restaurant, which opens seasonally for the summer, has been a Chicago lakefront destination for more than two decades.“We’re excited that we’re finally at a point where we’ll be able to open this summer [with] a refreshed, new look to what we feel is the best place in Chicago in the summertime,” said Anthony Stefani, managing partner at the Stefani Restaurant Group, which operates the restaurant. Related Full reopening of Castaways, popular lakefront grill, not expected until next year With the $3 million renovation, the restaurant’s dining and bar areas have been redesigned, with patio space and cabanas available for rent and private events. Castaways Beach Club will offer private event options for groups of 25 to 500 and has started booking for the summer. A rendering of the revamped Castaways Beach Club. Courtesy of Castaways Beach Club The boat had looked “beat up,” and was due for a repainting, Stefani said. Stefani, who has worked at Castaways since he was 14, said the restaurant used to have a “sports bar feel,” where customers walked up to the bar to order alcoholic drinks.“For a long time, it was those bright red smokestacks with the bright blue everywhere,” Stefani said. “We modernized it. We made it more of a clean beach club-ish look.”Now, the boat will have accents of nautical blue against a cream background, Stefani said. Owners are going for a “2024 look,” similar to what guests would find at a beach club in the Mediterranean or Miami.Still, the restaurant wants to appeal to “multiple experiences,” from clubbers to families, Stefani said. The north end of the restaurant is geared to customers 21 and older, and the rest of the venue will offer a full-service dining experience.“We wanted to make sure everybody felt comfortable coming up there and getting to enjoy that summertime Chicago feel,” Stefani said.The company also revamped the menu to include dishes with global flavors, like fish tacos and hummus. Prices will likely be on par with restaurants in Lincoln Park, River North and the West Loop, Stefani said.“We’ll also have our handhelds, your typical burger, which will most likely still be the No. 1 seller,” Stefani said.Renovations have been underway since last summer, and the furniture still needs to arrive, Stefani said. But the renovations should be completed in time for Memorial Day weekend. “I would say maybe 80, 85% of the boat is completed. But we still have a good amount of work to do on the painting,” Stefani said.Castaways is a tenant in the building, which is owned by Chicago Park District. Stefani says his company received approval for the renovations from the city, including the Chicago Department of Buildings and Chicago Park District.“We’re all approved with everything that we’re moving forward with,” Stefani said. “Now, it’s just a race against time to make sure we’re open within a few weeks.”