SALISBURY, Mass. (AP) — Hurricane Erin never made landfall but left behind rough ocean conditions along the U.S. East Coast. At least two people died after they had been swimming in the heavy current, and a search continued Monday for a man who was missing after his boat capsized.
Beaches were beginning to reopen Friday after Erin, twice the size of an average hurricane, had weakened into a post-tropical cyclone far from land, but was still capable of causing life-threatening surf and rip currents, the National Hurricane Center in Miami had said. Erin's outer bands had already brushed North Carolina, though it caused no widespread damage.
Still, North Carolina’s barrier islands took a beating last week from Erin’s strong winds and swells, leading to breached sand dunes, localized flooding and closures along North Carolina Highway 12, the route linking the Outer Banks to the mainland. State transportation officials said they were poised late Monday to reopen on Ocracoke Island the last portion of N.C. 12 that had remained closed. Vehicle ferry service between Ocracoke and Hatteras Island up the coast also was reopening late Monday.
In Massachusetts, a team of police and U.S. Coast Guard members were resuming their search Monday for a man in his 50s who was missing after a boat capsized off of Salisbury Beach on Saturday. The other person in the boat was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Despite challenging weather and sea conditions including 6- to 8-foot swells, the team performed sonar scans, dives, surface and aerial patrols on Sunday, the state police said in a news release. In Maine, a man was rescued Saturday after his sailboat capsized in high surf in York Harbor.
In New Hampshire, authorities are investigating the death of a 17-year-old boy who had been swimming with family members off of Hampton Beach on Sunday night.
Witnesses said he was pulled away by a strong ocean current and his father unsuccessfully tried to rescue him. Lifeguards brought both to shore and began livesaving efforts on the teen, who was later pronounced dead at a hospital. The father was treated there.
A man drowned Saturday after being caught in a strong rip current off the New York coast, at Sailors Haven in the Fire Island Natoinal Seashore in Suffolk County, authorities said. Ishmoile Mohammed, 59, was visiting from South Carolina.
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Juliette formed Monday in the Pacific Ocean hundreds of miles from Mexico’s Baja California peninsula as Tropical Storm Fernand churned in the Atlantic Ocean.
No coastal watches or warnings were in effect for either storm, the hurricane center said.
Juliette posed no immediate threat to land, forecasters said. The storm was about 470 miles (760 kilometers) southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula. It had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 kph) after strengthening in recent hours.
The storm was moving west-northwest at 14 mph (22 kph). The hurricane center said Juliette was expected to strengthen further in coming hours and had the potential to become a hurricane by Tuesday.
In the Atlantic basin, Fernand formed Saturday but was also far from land and forecast to remain over open ocean waters. It was about 485 miles (775 kilometers) east-northeast of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 kph) and heading north-northeast at 14 mph (22 kph).
The storm was expected to turn more to the northeast as it moves away from Bermuda and weaken starting Monday night.
This satellite image proved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Tropical Storm Juliette in the Pacific Ocean, Monday, Aug. 25, 2025. (NOAA via AP)
This satellite image proved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Tropical Storm Fernand in the Atlantic off the east coast of the U.S. on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025. (NOAA via AP)
CHICAGO (AP) — Matt Shaw was watching TV with his wife when she got a notification on her phone: Alex Bregman had agreed to a contract with the Chicago Cubs.
Shaw was Chicago's regular third baseman during his rookie season, so he wondered what the move meant for him.
“You're kind of looking at it like ‘Oh man, where am I going to play?’ And you get a little anxious about those things,” Shaw said Friday at the team's annual fan convention. "The team knows me good enough at this point to know I just want to be prepared when the season comes around.
“So of course I immediately have questions like ‘Am I going to go here? Am I going to go there?’”
The answer to many of those questions was yes.
Shaw is preparing for a super-utility role after Chicago finalized a $175 million, five-year contract with Bregman on Wednesday. In addition to backing up Bregman at third and Nico Hoerner at second, Shaw also is expected to play in the outfield.
There is always the possibility of a trade with Hoerner, who is going into the last year of a $35 million, three-year contract, or Shaw, a first-round pick in the 2023 amateur draft who turned 24 in November. But the Cubs sound as if they are inclined to hold on to their infield depth as an insurance policy for injuries.
“I don’t think we have enough guys yet,” manager Craig Counsell said with a chuckle. “If you think there’s too many, I don’t know what you’re looking at.”
Counsell said the team was “fortunate” last year in terms of injuries.
“We’re now protecting a lot against what can happen, but I think that’s an important part of building a roster and building a team,” he said.
Hoerner, 28, was a key performer last season as Chicago won 92 games and reached the playoffs for the first time since 2020. He batted .297 with seven homers, 61 RBIs and 29 steals in a career-best 156 games. He also won his second Gold Glove.
Amid increased trade speculation in the wake of Bregman's deal, Hoerner said he loves the Cubs and attributed the rumors to his contract situation and playing in a big market.
“I think, above all, just remembering that it’s not a personal thing and that the team’s job is to always make the best possible roster that they have the ability to do for this year and for years to come,” he said. “And you look at the things that we’ve done this offseason, I think it’s pretty evident that’s their goal. And we’re in a really strong place.”
Dansby Swanson, Hoerner's double-play partner at shortstop, said the second baseman was irreplaceable.
“Nico means the world to me and to this team, just who he is as a person,” Swanson said. “He brings the same type of energy and competitive spirit that Alex does.”
Shaw was relatively inexperienced at third base going into last season, but he was named a Gold Glove finalist in October. Shaking off a slow start and a stint in the minors, he hit .226 with 13 homers, 44 RBIs and 17 steals in 126 games with the Cubs.
Shaw was a shortstop growing up in Massachusetts, but he spent some time as an outfielder early in his collegiate career at the University of Maryland.
“I played outfield growing up a lot, so I look forward to running around out there,” he said. “Outfield's definitely fun. And the at-bat stuff, I think there's at-bats there, and obviously it's up to me as it's up to all the guys to earn their spots and to play well.”
Shaw also is looking forward to playing with Bregman, a two-time World Series champion with Houston.
“We had a great year last year. We had a lot of great pieces,” Shaw said, “and then you add Bregman and it's like, you look at this team up and down and we're in an amazing spot.”
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
FILE - Chicago Cubs' Nico Hoerner hits a sacrifice fly ball during a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sept. 30, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Huh, File)
FILE - Chicago Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw prepares to field the ball during the a baseball game, Oct. 6, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf, File)
