The Seattle City Charter says legislation approved under a state of emergency can't be repealed by referendum. Council members can't name every business the new tax would cover, because the state discloses only aggregate payroll data.

Starbucks is planning to “gradually expand” operations at some stores in the U.S., citing progress in the fight to contain the coronavirus.

In the U.S., Starbucks has temporarily closed half its 8,000 company-owned stores. It's planning to reopen 90% of those with modifications by early June.

MLB employees, from players to stadium workers to executives, are participating this week in a 10,000-person study aimed at understanding how many people in various parts of the United States have been infected with the coronavirus.

The Mariners have 10 African-American players on the 40-man roster — the most in MLB.

Nearly every sporting event, major and minor, has been canceled, moved or postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Here’s a look at where things stand with many of the top sports.

Acta spoke candidly is issues in Dominican Republic and MLB players complaining about the proposed restart plan.

Fans holding tickets for MLB games in 2020 could be notified as soon as Wednesday about options for exchanges or in some cases refunds, with specific ticket policies to be decided by individual teams.

Murphy was supposed to be a month into an important season, his first as the Mariners' main catcher. Instead, he waits in a sort of baseball purgatory. “Yeah, I'm definitely struggling with it,” he said.

It was exactly 34 years ago Wednesday that Clemens, at the time a highly promising but still unproven Red Sox pitcher, put himself on the baseball map. On one cool, magical night at Boston's Fenway Park against the Mariners, he mowed down a Mariners lineup that had been struggling all season to make contact.

Single-game ticket buyers will get a refund while season-ticket holders will get credit.

As one of the Northwest's top high-school players, he’s accepted a scholarship to play for Washington State. But under a normal circumstances, Russell and his family would be weighing another option more closely — the 2020 Major League Baseball amateur draft.

Sixteen players will face 16 fans in the first round of the video game tournament, which starts on Tuesday morning.

Major League Baseball is reportedly considering a plan of restarting spring training in early June with the season starting in early July.

While the focus of the sports world is on the possible relaunch of the major-league season, minor-league teams cling to the hope of competing in 2020 while girding for the increasing likelihood that the season will be dormant.

The quality of the games, which include a handful of former big-league players, isn’t great. But it’s real, live baseball being broadcast by ESPN. Beyond the joy of watching baseball, these games provide a glimpse of what Mariners games and other MLB matchups might look like if/when they return.

When it's miserable outside, you can still hit shots inside the recently opened Lounge by Topgolf in Kirkland, where plenty of virtual golf opportunities await.

Nathan Cogswell, a junior out of Kentwood High, opened with a 6-under 65 in the first round Sunday on the 6,577-yard Pacific Dunes course. He slipped to a 72 in the second round Monday for a 5-under 137 total.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Augusta National on Friday postponed the Masters, another massive hit to the spring sports calendar from the new coronavirus that already is responsible for the loss of March Madness and the delay of opening day baseball. So much for that annual rite of spring and the first week in […]

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. (AP) — The house of Hall of Fame golfer Davis Love III was destroyed by fire early Friday morning in a blaze that could not be controlled, even with 16 firefighters arriving within minutes, the fire chief said. No one from Love’s family was injured. “While everyone in our family is […]

Under normal circumstances, this would be a perfect time to sneak in a round or two (or four), but of course, that’s impossible. All courses in the state have been shut down by virtue of Gov. Inslee’s shelter-at-home order March 23.

A satirical look back at some of the quirkiest, most eyebrow-raising things that happened in the sports world this week.

Any course planning to reopen must comply to guidelines developed by the governor's office. The most notable will be the limit of two people per group instead of threesomes or foursomes in groups. The only exception: If all the people are from the same household, a foursome is acceptable.

Folks were teeming with joy Tuesday at Bellevue Golf Course, which booked out within minutes of Gov. Jay Inslee's announcement last week that it was OK to play golf after a two-month shutdown because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Scott and Craig found a good course for a couple of duffers who hadn’t swung a club in weeks.

About 14,800 initial unemployment claims by bartenders were filed from March 8 through April 25, which closely matches the number of people estimated to work as bartenders in Washington in the second quarter of 2020.

Throughout Friday, on this page, we’ll be posting updates from Seattle Times journalists and others on the pandemic and its effects on the Seattle area, the Pacific Northwest and the world.

The suit argues that emergency powers only last for 30 days and after that Brown would have needed legislative approval.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon Lottery officials will slash 60 jobs and furlough most other workers in response to a budget gap that comes in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and state stay-home order. The cuts come six weeks after Oregonians last gambled on video lottery machines, which bring in the majority of the […]

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Byron Mallott, who served as Alaska’s lieutenant governor as part of a “unity ticket” with former Gov. Bill Walker, died Friday. He was 77. Walker called Mallott’s death a “huge shock.” He said they maintained a relationship after leaving office in 2018 and that his last communication with Mallott was about […]

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court rules an effort to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy can move forward.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Supreme Court ruled Friday that an effort aimed at recalling Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy from office can proceed, a movement initially fueled by public outrage over spending cuts he’d proposed. The court had previously allowed the Recall Dunleavy campaign to proceed with a second signature-gathering phase while it heard […]

Five TSA employees nationwide have died of COVID-19, and 516 employees have tested positive, including seven at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Three more people have died from COVID-19, bringing the death total to at least 124 in Oregon, state officials said. The Oregon Health Authority said Friday that another 75 cases were confirmed, and that 3,032 Oregonians have tested positive for the coronavirus. The three newly-reported deaths include an 80-year-old woman and […]

A 70-year-old mother in Portland, Ore., thought she was most at risk in her family for the coronavirus. Her fears became real for her adult son in Utah — and all she could do was stand by for word.

More than 750 immigration detainees at more than 40 detention facilities around the country have tested positive for the disease, a number that activists say may be an undercount given a paucity of testing at some facilities.

Inslee's stay-home order, initially issued in March, bans church and religious services, but permits one-on-one "religious counseling," state lawyers argued.

The man, who was taken into custody on Wednesday night, is in "critical, but medically stable" condition at an Everett hospital.

FALMOUTH, Maine (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic has canceled dozens of spring traditions, from college basketball’s Final Four to Easter Sunday services, but there’s one rite that’s going on largely unfettered — turkey hunting. Every state except Alaska, which is the only state with no turkeys, hosts a spring turkey hunt each year. The birds, […]

Prosecutor Adam Cornell likened the decision by Sheriff Adam Fortney to publicly question and refuse to enforce the stay-home order "to yelling 'fire' in a crowded theater."

One of the hottest debates in the coronavirus pandemic is whether the malaria drugs promoted as possible treatments by President Donald Trump really work. But Americans don’t seem overly eager to help answer the question. Enrollment in several clinical trials of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine — including two by the University of Washington — has been […]

Alan Lund taught music in the Bellevue and Highline School Districts, and directed music for the Seattle Opera Chorus, the Eastside’s Cascadian Chorale, the Boeing Chorale and, most notably, the Seattle Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

While this year’s Mother’s Day weekend promises warm weather, Seattle officials are restricting hours in city parks out of fears that large crowds hoping to enjoy the sun could further spread the novel coronavirus. A recent report shows the COVID-19 transmission rate in Western Washington may be steadily increasing, suggesting that the number of virus cases […]

The defending champions are going back to the Women's World Cup title game. Two early goals from Christen Press and birthday girl Alex Morgan lifted the U.S. past England and into the championship match, where the Americans will face either the Netherlands or Sweden.

Alex Morgan celebrated her go-ahead goal with a cheeky tea-sipping celebration and Alyssa Naeher stopped a late penalty kick to send the United States into the final at the Women's World Cup with a 2-1 victory over England on Tuesday.

As the U.S. women's national soccer team played Japan for the World Cup trophy in Vancouver, Rose Lavelle was 140 miles south eating pizza in Seattle. Four years on, Lavelle is in position to help the United States win another championship.

It has been 20 years since that final, and Sunday the United States will seek its fourth World Cup title. The meaning of Brandi Chastain’s viral celebration has continued to evolve, though, even for Chastain.

The U.S. and Netherlands entered halftime scoreless, but it wouldn't stay that way for long. Megan Rapinoe struck first on a penalty kick to open the first lead of the game and 24-year-old Rose Lavelle added a second goal to clinch the Americans' second straight World Cup title.

The United States won its record fourth Women's World Cup title and second in a row, beating the Netherlands 2-0 Sunday when Megan Rapinoe converted a penalty kick in the second half and Rose Lavelle added a goal.

Megan Rapinoe charmed fans with her waggish personality and utter lack of a rhetorical filter; drew the ire of the President on social media; antagonized officials in FIFA and her own federation, both of whom she has deemed not sufficiently interested in helping the women’s game grow.