Offbeat

Offbeat Having a ball: Fan catches 2 homers at single game

By RONALD BLUM AP Sports Writer Published: Apr 19, 2013 at 3:52 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 19, 2013 at 3:52 AM PDT

Zack Hample leads the majors in hogging home run balls.

Offbeat Wallabies on the loose in Austria - yes, Austria

By Associated Press Published: Apr 18, 2013 at 4:12 PM PDT Last Updated: Apr 18, 2013 at 4:12 PM PDT

Volunteers are searching for a pair of wallabies hopping through Austria - yes, Austria.

Offbeat New app helps Icelanders avoid accidental incest

By JENNA GOTTLIEB, Associated Press Published: Apr 18, 2013 at 9:12 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 18, 2013 at 9:12 AM PDT

In Iceland, a country with a population of 320,000 where most everyone is distantly related, inadvertently kissing cousins is a real risk.

Offbeat Atomic bomb re-enacting dropped from Ohio air show

By DAN SEWELL Associated Press Published: Apr 18, 2013 at 8:48 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 18, 2013 at 8:48 AM PDT

A popular southwest Ohio air show has canceled plans to stage a re-enactment of the devastating World War II atomic bomb attack on Japan after protests, officials said Thursday.

Offbeat Las Vegas Strip to get New York-style public park

By HANNAH DREIER Associated Press Published: Apr 18, 2013 at 8:29 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 18, 2013 at 12:04 PM PDT

MGM Resorts International announced Thursday that it will sink $100 million into building a park and public promenade outside of its New York-New York and Monte Carlo casinos.

Offbeat Budweiser introducing bowtie-shaped can

By Associated Press Published: Apr 17, 2013 at 7:59 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 17, 2013 at 8:10 AM PDT

The St. Louis-based subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev NV said Wednesday that the new cans will be available in a special 8-pack nationwide beginning May 6.

Offbeat Ex-baseball catcher Piazza rehearsing for ballet role (Photo Gallery)

By JENNIFER KAY Associated Press Published: Apr 16, 2013 at 1:37 PM PDT Last Updated: Apr 16, 2013 at 1:37 PM PDT

Mike Piazza knows that some people think it's funny for a baseball player to take up ballet, but the former catcher hopes to turn whoever is jeering him now into dance fans when he takes the stage with Miami City Ballet next month.

Offbeat India says no to planned Playboy club

By MAYABHUSHAN NAGVENKAR Associated Press Published: Apr 16, 2013 at 8:34 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 16, 2013 at 8:34 AM PDT

After a month of heated debate, the government in the tourist hotspot of Goa refused permission for promoters to open the country's first Playboy club in a 22,000-square-foot open-air property on upmarket Candolim beach.

Offbeat Photos: Cheap cars hit the track at Portland International Raceway (Photo Gallery)

By KATU.com Staff Published: Apr 15, 2013 at 8:56 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 15, 2013 at 10:33 AM PDT

Teams raced $500 cars around Portland International Raceway in the ChumpCar World Series.

Offbeat Woman cited for calling 911 seeking divorce

By Associated Press Published: Apr 15, 2013 at 8:34 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 15, 2013 at 8:34 AM PDT

Police have cited a 42-year-old Pennsylvania woman for disorderly conduct after she called 911 requesting a divorce and police assistance to make her husband leave.

Offbeat Cornered jewelry thief swallows diamond ring

By Associated Press Published: Apr 14, 2013 at 2:36 PM PDT Last Updated: Apr 14, 2013 at 2:36 PM PDT

Police say they've got the $3,200 engagement ring a New Hampshire man allegedly swallowed during an attempted jewelry store theft

Offbeat Judge holds himself in contempt over phone

By Associated Press Published: Apr 15, 2013 at 8:33 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 15, 2013 at 8:33 AM PDT

A Michigan judge whose smartphone disrupted a hearing in his own courtroom has held himself in contempt and paid $25 for the infraction.

Offbeat Ohio police chief gets sick after eating cake laced with pot

By Associated Press Published: Apr 12, 2013 at 7:23 PM PDT Last Updated: Apr 12, 2013 at 7:23 PM PDT

An Ohio police chief says he ate cake left in his kitchen without realizing it was laced with cannabis oil.

Offbeat Top baristas duke it out for national championship

By RODRIQUE NGOWI, Associated Press Published: Apr 12, 2013 at 8:14 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 12, 2013 at 8:14 AM PDT

The U.S. Barista Championship got started Thursday at the Boston Convention Center and runs through Sunday, when one contender's brewing brilliance will reign supreme.

Offbeat Billionaire awarded $380,000 in court fight over fake wine

By LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press Published: Apr 12, 2013 at 8:09 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 12, 2013 at 8:09 AM PDT

A Florida billionaire said he planned to drink a glass of wine to celebrate a federal jury's conclusion Thursday that he was defrauded by a California businessman who sold him two dozen bottles of fake vintage wine at a 2005 auction.