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Phillies opening day, Penn State frat charges dropped | Morning Newsletter

All the local news you need to know to start your day, delivered straight to your email.

It is not a surprise that Aaron Nola is starting on opening day for the Philadelphia Phillies less than four years after being drafted.
It is not a surprise that Aaron Nola is starting on opening day for the Philadelphia Phillies less than four years after being drafted.Read moreYong Kim/Staff Photographer

Good morning, friends. I'm sure baseball fans are waking up with one thing on their minds: it's opening day. We've got plenty of Phillies news below, including a little surprise. Updates on the Penn State hazing death case and the upcoming Bill Cosby retrial are also ahead, plus much more. Let's get to it.

If you like what you're reading, tell your friends it's free to sign up for this newsletter here.

— Aubrey Nagle (@aubsn, morningnewsletter@philly.com)

» READ MORE: It’s opening day! Phillies kick off the season

It's only been a few short weeks since the Eagles won it all. Is Philly ready for its favorite baseball team to take the field? You bet. It's opening day, the Phillies are playing the Atlanta Braves this afternoon, and our coverage team has packed everything you need to know into a special season preview:

  1. How Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola developed one of baseball's best curveballs.

  2. New pitcher Jake Arrieta and his wife say they're glad to be part of a Phillies family that values them.

  3. The Phillies are now a modern baseball team, but columnist Bob Ford worries it could turn them into Chip Kelly's Eagles.

  4. Former managers Charlie Manuel and Larry Bowa are intrigued by manager Gabe Kapler's analytics-based approach.

  5. Need a cheat sheet? Check out the odds, picks, and moves for the National League and the American League.

But that's not all: we've also launched a brand new Phillies newsletter called Extra Innings. Sign up here to get the latest news, analysis, insights and answers to your questions in your inbox each weekday morning.

» READ MORE: Pennsport not impressed by plans for S. Philly Wawa gas station

Developer Bart Blatstein presented plans for a super-sized Wawa gas station on the Delaware waterfront to a large meeting of neighbors Wednesday night. Let's just say it did not go well.

Residents of the Pennsport neighborhood oppose the plans, which would require a zoning exception. Of course, it's not the Wawa they're opposed to (this is Philadelphia) — just the gas pumps.

In other urban planning news, architecture critic Inga Saffron reports that the mayor's historic preservation task force has lost its way. One member even feels it was "organized to provide political cover, not effective recommendations."

What you need to know today

  1. For the second time, a judge has thrown out the most serious charges brought against Penn State fraternity brothers in the February 2017 hazing death of Tim Piazza.

  2. Supermodel Janice Dickinson is among the five additional accusers prosecutors plan to call to the witness stand at Bill Cosby's April 2 sexual assault retrial.

  3. President Trump fired Veteran Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, a Philadelphia-based doctor who was engulfed in scandal at the federal agency, Wednesday. Here's what you need to know about him. 

  4. An 18-year-old student has been arrested for allegedly threatening a shooting at a Delaware County High School. Police found ammunition, a ballistic vest, and more equipment at his home.

  5. The Inquirer and Daily News have learned that a District Attorney Larry Krasner-owned company was once so behind on its taxes that city lawyers attempted to seize control of its property.

  6. Abington Senior High School is getting a new name, thanks to a Wall Street billionaire who gave the school $25 million.

  7. Villanova and Loyola University Chicago both play in the Final Four this weekend. Adding to all the March Madness: the two Catholic colleges are playing on Easter weekend. 

  8. A mumps outbreak has been reported in the region with cases confirmed in Chester and Montgomery Counties, most linked to a Delaware dance party. 

  9. A sweet tribute to cyclist Emily Fredricks, the pastry chef who was killed on her bike late last year, is landing next month; it's part charity bike ride, part pastry scavenger hunt.

Through Your Eyes | #OurPhilly

We want to see what our community looks like through your eyes. Show us the park that your family walks through every weekend with the dog, the block party in your neighborhood or the historic stretch you see every morning on your commute to work.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we'll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!

That’s Interesting

  1. You're not imagining this endless winter. This is the longest cold streak in March the region has seen in 58 years. 

  2. Apparently, Philadelphia does not have enough rooftop bars. Two more are set to top upcoming Center City hotels. 

  3. Attention shoppers: construction at the King of Prussia Mall isn't over. The Plaza is getting a multi-million-dollar upgrade.

  4. The Sixers continued their winning streak last night (their longest since 2003) but Joel Embiid left the game early due to another injury. (By the way, the Sixers have renamed their G-league team. Goodbye, 87ers…)

  5. Eagles running back Corey Clement lent a hand to weatherperson Sue Serio on Fox 29, and he said it's not as easy as it looks. 

  6. Artists battled damp weather to create a 3-D chalk mural at 4th and Market streets on Wednesday. If you want a selfie with it, act fast before the rain washes it all away.

  7. Want to buy some frankly terrifying life-sized wax figures once owned by Dutch Wonderland? Then you're in luck.

  8. Mural Arts asked what they should do with their Frank Rizzo mural, and they received more than 1,000 responses. Meanwhile, the man accused of defacing the city's Rizzo statue has been ordered to complete community service.

Opinions

"In one ruling after another, in one jurisdiction after another, in one case after another, America has taken my face in its hands, looked me squarely in the eye, and screamed at the top of its lungs that black lives have no value."
— Columnist Solomon Jones responds to the news that the Baton Rouge police officer who killed Alton Sterling would not be indicted.

  1. The tragedy in Kemerovo, Russia — where 64 people, most of them children, died in a mall fire — will not turn Putin from his course, writes columnist Trudy Rubin.

  2. Mark Turner, chief executive officer of WSFS Financial Corp, writes that he agrees with Sens. Pat Toomey, Chris Coons, and Tom Carper: the Dodd-Frank financial regulation bill must be modified.

What we’re reading

  1. A People's Light and Theatre production of The Diary of Anne Frank, which ends its run this weekend, is stirring controversy with its multi-racial cast. The Broad Street Review says it's a step in the wrong direction.

  2. You probably shouldn't buy anyone a pet rabbit this Easter. Let Billy Penn explain why. 

  3. Recent New Jersey implants reporting for NJ Advance Media just spilled the 20 things no one tells you when you move to the Garden State. Of course, one of them is "Wawa is worth the hype."

  4. Philadelphia Weekly explains how YouTube celebrity Doug DeMuro, arguably Philly's biggest car enthusiast, creates his beloved car review videos.

  5. Everyone wants to know who bit Beyoncé. Yes, you read that correctly. The Guardian breaks down why we obsess over every Queen Bey rumor.

Your Daily Dose of | Anger Management

Feeling stressed? Step inside the "rage cage" at a North Philly pop-up shop this Friday, where you can smash stuff up for fun. Yes, really.