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Paul Skenes has career-worst start against Cubs

Perhaps it’s just the early-season blahs, or maybe the Chicago Cubs’ significant familiarity with Paul Skenes. Whatever the reason, the reigning National League Rookie of the Year just posted the least dominant and arguably worst start of his career.

Skenes gave up a career-high three home runs, all in the fifth inning, tied a career worst with four walks and struck out a career-low two batters Thursday at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park, a startling turn for a right-hander who six days ago struck out eight in beating the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Skenes, 22, threw just 49 strikes among his 86 pitches, a lack of command and dominance somewhat reflected in his advanced metrics. While Skenes’ fastball averaged 97.5 mph, a tad down from his 98 mph season average, the spin rate was down 1% and down much more significantly on his secondary offerings.

His splitter suffered a 13.6% drop in spin rate and his slider was down 2%.

Skenes previously walked four in a pair of starts last season, against the Cubs and Seattle Mariners, though he managed to complete six innings in the latter affair. And the man who came into his 30th start averaging 9.3 strikeouts per nine notched just two punchouts. His previous low was three strikeouts May 23 against San Francisco and in a last-day two-inning cameo to close the 2024 season.

Skenes gave up solo homers to Dansby Swanson, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki in the fifth, the latter coming back-to-back, in his fifth start against Chicago in less than a calendar year. It was the first time in his seven starts this year he failed to pitch into the sixth inning.

It was the first time both in Skenes’ professional and college career – he pitched at LSU and Air Force – that he gave up three home runs in a game.

The homers erased a 2-0 Pirates lead and the Cubs went on to win 8-3.

‘Good pieces of hitting,’ Skenes told reporters in Pittsburgh after the outing. ‘I probably missed my spot, but good for them.

‘Just execution wasn’t there. Kinda spraying the ball. Got away with it for a little while, obviously showed up a little bit in the fifth, but it is what it is.’

Skenes came into the game leading the National League in WHIP (0.80) and the majors in fielding independent pitching (1.75), having yielded just one home run in 37 2/3 innings coming in.

Thursday’s outing raised his ERA from 2.39 to 2.74.

‘Just execution wasn’t there,’ says Skenes. ‘Kinda spraying the ball. Got away with it for a little while, obviously showed up a little bit in the fifth, but it is what it is.’

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
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Mariano Rivera, wife Clara named as defendants in sexual abuse lawsuit

The teenage girl, born in 2007 and listed as Jane Doe in the complaint, alleges one of the assaults happened at the Riveras’ home in Rye, New York during a barbecue in ‘approximately summer 2018.’

An attorney for the girl told ESPN that the Riveras were added as defendants after it was determined they were not connected with the LLC at the address of their former home, which they sold in 2022. According to the lawsuit, the barbecue was for ‘minor children’ who attended the church and parents were not invited to attend.

The details in the amended suit are not different from what was alleged in the original filing, that the Riveras ignored her claims of sexual abuse and the Riveras “isolated and intimidated” the girl to keep quiet about an alleged assault.

Jane Doe was also allegedly sexually abused in August 2021 by Ruben Tavarez Jr., the son of the Refuge of Hope associate pastor.

The Riveras’ lawyer, Joseph A. Ruta, has called the allegations ‘completely false.’

“Rather than take sufficient action to end the sexual abuse of JANE A DOE, the Riveras each separately isolated and intimated JANE A DOE to remain silent about her abuse,’ the lawsuit states, ‘to avoid causing trouble for REFUGIO and the Ignite Life Summer Internship. In order to avoid the potential scandal of child sexual abuse in its programs and otherwise protect DEFENDANTS above all else, the Riveras, in their capacities as agents and/or employees of DEFENDANTS, assured MOTHER A DOE that JANE A DOE was safe and in no danger at Ignite Life Center, despite actual or constructive knowledge that JANE A DOE remained vulnerable to additional acts of sexual abuse.”

The plaintiff is demanding a jury trial, plus compensatory and punitive damages, saying she has ‘suffered, and will continue to suffer, physical, psychological and emotional injuries, mental anguish and the loss of enjoyment of life’ as a result of the abuse.

The 55-year-old Rivera won five World Series championships with the Yankees and retired in 2013 as MLB’s all-time saves leader. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019, the only player in history to be elected unanimously.

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Browns release video of Shedeur Sanders’ real draft call

Prank calls. Spam calls. Real calls.

It’s hard to come across the latter in the modern age of texting, but some people still prefer to chitchat over the phone.

Of course, buried in between all of that are the calls about extended car warranties, personal loans you never took out, unpaid toll bills and just about every other empty threat under the sun.

For the newest Cleveland Browns quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, those calls also come in the form of NFL team impersonators. ‘Prank call gate’ has dominated the post-draft discussion with plenty of strong feelings on both sides of the issue.

Lost in the shuffle, however, is that the Browns did eventually call Sanders. The team released a video of that call on social media.

‘I know it’s been a long weekend,’ Andrew Berry, the Browns’ general manager told Sanders. ‘We’re going to take you off the board here, alright brother?’

He continued, telling Sanders to put aside everything that happened to that point and work on proving people wrong.

‘You gotta come in, you gotta work hard, you gotta earn your job, earn your keep,’ Berry added. ‘And it doesn’t matter where you’re taken, it matters what you do from this point forward, alright? You’re talented, we spent a lot of time with you. You’re a good kid. Let’s get ready to go to work and prove all of the people who passed on you wrong.’

With the draft in the rearview, the work begins, and Sanders has his work cut out for him.

Cleveland’s quarterback room features five signal callers, with the fifth-round pick Sanders likely the lowest on the totem pole at the moment.

Deshaun Watson is currently out with an injury and might miss the 2025 season, but Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco figure to be the leaders for the starting job heading into training camp.

After that, it’s fellow 2025 draft pick Dillon Gabriel. The Browns took the former Oregon quarterback in the third round, leaving Sanders as the last in the room.

It does seem that the competition is wide open though. Now, it’s up to Sanders to seize the opportunity.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
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NHL awards finalists: Who’s in the running for MVP, other honors

With the NHL playoffs underway, the league is rolling out the names of players who stood out during the regular season.

This week and next, the three finalists will be announced for the following awards: Vezina Trophy (goaltender), Norris Trophy (defenseman), Ted Lindsay Award (MVP as voted by players), Hart Trophy (MVP as voted by writers), Masterton Trophy (perseverance), Selke Trophy (defensive forward), Adams Award (coach), Lady Byng Trophy (sportsmanship) and Calder Trophy (rookie).

The winner of the Willie O’Ree Community Award will be announced on May 12. Finalists for the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year award will be announced after the end of the second round of the playoffs.

Voting took place at the end of the regular season. No date has been announced yet for when the winners will be revealed.

Here are the finalists for the NHL’s major awards and when the finalists will be announced:

Hart Trophy finalists

Who votes: Professional Hockey Writers Association

Finalists (listed alphabetically): Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers; Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets and Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning

Despite missing 11 games, Draisaitl led the league with 52 goals. He set a single-season NHL record with six overtime goals, shared first place in game-winning goals (11) and multi-goal performances (10), ranked second in even-strength goals (36), and tied for second in power-play goals (16). He won the award in 2020.

Hellebuyck led the NHL with 47 victories, one behind the league record. His nine-win edge over No. 2 Andrei Vasilevskiy was the largest gap since 1990-91. Hellebuyck gave up two or fewer goals in 40 of 63 appearances. He led the league (minimum 25 games played) in goals-against average (2.00) and shutouts (eight), was second in save percentage (.925) and starts (62) and ranked fourth in saves (1,539) and high-danger save percentage ( .845). He’s the first goaltender finalist since Igor Shesterkin in 2021-22 and is looking to become the fourth netminder in the expansion era to win, following Dominik Hasek (twice), Jose Theodore and Carey Price.

Kucherov second 121 points, 31 more than closest teammate Brandon Hagel, to capture his second consecutive and third overall Art Ross Trophy as points leader. He finished first in points per game (1.55), power-play assists (38) and power-play points (46) and third in even-strength points (75). He won the award in 2019 and is the only Hart finalist who’s also a finalist for this season’s Ted Lindsay Award.

Ted Lindsay Award finalists

Who votes: Players

Finalists (listed alphabetically): Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning; Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche, and Cale Makar, Avalanche

Kucherov had 121 points to lead the league in scoring for the second year in a row and third time overall. He led the league in points per game (1.55), primary assists (56), power-play points (46) and power-play assists (38). He won the award in 2018-19 and is a two-time finalist.
MacKinnon, last year’s winner, finished second in the league with 116 points. He shared the league lead in assists (with Kucherov at 84), led the league in shots (320) and was second in primary assists (53), even-strength points (78) and power-play points (38).
Makar set a career high in goals (30) and points (92) to lead all defensemen and rank ninth in league scoring. He’s a first-time finalist.

Norris Trophy finalists

Who votes: Professional Hockey Writers Association

Finalists (listed alphabetically): Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks, Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche, and Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets

Hughes led the Canucks in assists (60), points (76), shots on goal (192) and average ice time (25:44). He led the Canucks in scoring by 26 points. Hughes reached the 60-assist mark for the fourth consecutive season, the fourth defenseman in NHL history to do that. He won the Norris last season.
Makar opened the season with a 13-game point streak and went on to lead NHL defensemen in goals (30), assists (62) and points (92). He became the first defenseman to reach the 30-goal mark since Mike Green in 2008-09. Makar is a Norris Trophy finalist for the fifth time in his first six NHL seasons. He won the award in 2021-22.
Werenski, a first-time finalist, became the first Blue Jackets defenseman to lead the team in scoring. He broke his own franchise records for defensemen in goals (23), assists (59) and points (82), leading the Blue Jackets to a 23-point improvement over 2023-24. He led all NHL players in average ice time (26:45). His 59 assists matched forward Artemi Panarin’s franchise record.

Vezina Trophy finalists

Who votes: General managers

Finalists (listed alphabetically): Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets; Darcy Kuemper, Los Angeles Kings, and Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning,

Hellebuyck, last year’s winner, went 47-12-3 with a 2.00 goals-against average, .925 save percentage and eight shutouts to lead the Jets to the league’s best record. The 47 wins tied for second best all-time. He led the NHL in GAA and shutouts and ranked second in save percentage. Hellebuyck, who won in 2020 and 2024, is looking to become the first repeat winner since Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur in 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Kuemper went 31-11-7 with five shutouts in his second stint with the Kings. He finished first in high-danger save percentage (.863), second in goals-against average (2.02) and third in save percentage. He had a stretch of 15 consecutive starts of allowing two or fewer goals from March 5 to April 10. He’s a first-time finalist.

Vasilevskiy went 38-20-5 and ranked second in 38 wins, tied for first in games played (63), was second in saves (1,581) and high-danger save percentage (.853), tied for second in shutouts (six) and ranked fourth in goals-against average (2.18) and save percentage (.921). He became the fastest goaltender in league history to reach 300 wins, doing it in his 490th career game. Vasilevskiy is a finalist for the fifth time and won the award in 2018-19.

NHL awards finalists announcement schedule

Monday, April 28: Vezina Trophy
Tuesday, April 29: James Norris Memorial Trophy
Wednesday, April 30: Ted Lindsay Award
Thursday, May 1: Hart Memorial Trophy
Friday, May 2: Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, Frank J. Selke Trophy, Jack Adams Award and Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
Monday, May 5: Calder Memorial Trophy

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
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Amazon is stepping up to fill a gap in Hollywood’s movie slate

Tech is saving Hollywood — though not in the way you might think.

Back in 2022, e-commerce giant and relative upstart movie studio Amazon promised to spend around $1 billion each year on theatrical releases, a figure that would fund between 12 and 15 films annually. Today, it appears ready to deliver.

Earlier this month, the company, which operates the streaming platform Prime Video and recently acquired MGM studios, took the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas to tout its line-up of movies made just for the big screen.

Amazon’s inaugural presentation at the annual convention of Cinema United — previously known as the National Association of Theatre Owners — wowed exhibitors, marketers and media in attendance with flashy trailers and first-look footage from upcoming films like “Project Hail Mary,” “After the Hunt” and “Verity.”

It also brought some star power with the likes of Ryan Gosling, Andrew Garfield, Julia Roberts, Chris Pratt, Chris Hemsworth, Hugh Jackman and Michael B. Jordan set to headline these cinematic releases.

“I thought the presentation was incredible,” said Brock Bagby, president and chief content, programming and development officer at B&B Theatres. “For their first year out, they pulled out all the stops.”

While the studio won’t have a full slate of more than a dozen films until 2026, it has steadily invested in theatrical content over the last few years. Amazon had one wide release, a film that played in more than 2,000 theaters, in 2023 and five in 2024. This year Amazon has only four wide releases on the calendar so far, but the company is slated to have 14 in 2026 and 16 in 2027.

This surge of theatrical content is just what the domestic box office needs. While blockbuster franchise films have been abundant in the wake of the pandemic, the overall number of wide releases has shrunk over the last decade. Even before Covid and dual Hollywood labor strikes slowed production down, Hollywood was making fewer and fewer movies each year, according to data from Comscore. 

Mid-budget movies — often in the drama, comedy and romantic comedy genres — began disappearing in the mid-2010s as studios sought to invest in bigger budget franchise flicks that could result in higher profits. The comparatively lower-budget films have since been predominantly redirected to streaming platforms in an effort to stock these services with more affordable content. 

Analysts project that the domestic box office has lost around $1 billion each year in total ticket sales as a result of that shift.

At the same time that studios were altering their film slates, movie houses were merging. The most recent union between the Walt Disney Company and 20th Century Fox, first announced in 2017 and finalized in early 2019, resulted in the loss of between 10 and 15 film releases annually, according to data from Comscore.

In 2015, 20th Century Fox released 17 films. After its acquisition, the pandemic and the strikes, it has released fewer than a half dozen titles each year.

“With consolidation in the past of some of the studios, the output numbers have decreased over the past few years, and with fewer releases there is less potential for box office and concession sales,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “More importantly movie theaters need new films to draw customers into their auditoriums.”

Amazon’s commitment to theatrical, alongside the emergence of smaller studios like Neon and A24, should help to close the gap left by 20th Century Fox’s acquisition.

“They’ve filled the gap that we’re missing from Fox, which is so exciting, and it looks like a similar slate to Fox, where there’s a few big titles, but a lot of that mid-range,” Bagby said.

What industry experts have discovered is that the strength of the box office doesn’t just rely on the success of franchise films — superhero flicks, big-budget action fare and the like — but also on the sheer volume and diversity of content.

There is a direct correlation between the number of theatrical releases and the strength of the overall box office. During the pandemic, the decline in box office ticket sales largely tracked nearly in lock step with the percentage decline in film releases.

“The number of movies being released continues to trend in the right direction,” said Michael O’Leary, CEO of Cinema United. “When considering wide releases at 2,000 or more locations, we saw 94 last year, but we expect at least 110 in 2025. Beyond that, distributors have secured release dates as far out as 2028 for movies with plenty of commercial potential.”

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS
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HHS halts work at high-risk infectious disease lab following repeated safety violations

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) implemented a pause on research at one of the nation’s most highly secure research labs, following repeated safety incidents that a source familiar told Fox News Digital have been occurring since the Biden administration.

An HHS official confirmed the pause at Fort Detrick’s Integrated Research Facility, which conducts risky research on deadly infectious diseases like SARS-COV-2 and the Ebola virus, began Tuesday at 5 p.m. 

The facility, which is one of only a handful across North America, is part of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and is located at the U.S. Army base Fort Detrick, outside Washington, D.C. The research there studies treatment and prevention of deadly, ‘high-consequence’ diseases such as Lassa Fever and Eastern equine encephalitis.

According to the HHS official who was willing to speak on the matter under the condition of anonymity, the pause stemmed from a lover’s spat between researchers at the facility, which resulted in one of the individuals poking holes in the other’s personal protective equipment (PPE). That individual has since been fired, the official indicated. 

The HHS official added that the incident is just the latest example of safety incidents at the high-risk laboratory, which they blamed on a poor safety culture at the lab enabled by the previous Biden administration.

‘NIH and HHS take the safety of our facilities and research very seriously,’ HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said. ‘As soon as we found out about this incident, we took immediate action to issue the safety pause until we can correct the safety culture at this facility.’

The latest incident, according to HHS, was preceded by a separate incident that occurred as recently as November.

The facility’s director, Connie Schmaljohn, was placed on administrative leave following the incident. The HHS official familiar with the matter indicated Schmaljohn did not report the incident up the chain of command immediately, causing a delay in remedying the matter.

During this temporary pause, all research at the facility will come to a halt and access will be limited to essential personnel. 

It is unclear how long the pause will remain in effect.   

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Iran talks in Rome not happening this weekend and were never confirmed, State Department says

The U.S. has not committed to participating in a fourth round of denuclearization talks with Iran this weekend despite reports to the contrary, according to the State Department. 

‘The United States was never confirmed to be participating in a fourth round of talks with Iran, which people had believed were Saturday in Rome,’ spokesperson Tammy Bruce said at a news conference Thursday. ‘We expect another round of talks will take place in the near future.’

The U.S. participated in talks with Iranian officials once in Rome and twice in Oman. Envoy Steve Witkoff is the lead negotiator for President Donald Trump’s desired deal that stops Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. 

Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad al-Busaidi, whose nation is trying to help broker a deal, posted on X that the talks had been postponed for ‘logistical reasons.’ 

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said Tehran is still committed to getting to a ‘fair and lasting agreement.’

Iran seeks to have U.S. sanctions lifted, while the Trump team has insisted it will need verifiable proof Iran has stopped enriching uranium to lift any financial penalties. 

Trump has threatened to launch strikes on Iran if talks go sideways. 

On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an ominous threat to Iran over its backing of the Houthis.

‘Message to IRAN: We see your LETHAL support to The Houthis. We know exactly what you are doing,’ Hegseth wrote on X. ‘You know very well what the U.S. Military is capable of — and you were warned. You will pay the CONSEQUENCE at the time and place of our choosing.’

A U.S. official described last week’s talks as ‘positive and productive.’ 

‘There is still much to do, but further progress was made on getting to a deal,’ the official said. ‘We agreed to meet again soon, in Europe, and we thank our Omani partners for facilitating these talks.’

‘This time, the negotiations were much more serious than in the past, and we gradually entered into deeper and more detailed discussions,’ Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said. ‘We have moved somewhat away from broader, general discussions, though it is not the case that all disagreements have been resolved. Differences still exist both on major issues and on the details.’

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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Trump nominates Waltz for high-level post after ousting him as national security advisor

President Donald Trump tapped former national security advisor Mike Waltz for his administration’s ambassador to the United Nations after Waltz was ousted from the National Security Council office earlier Thursday. 

‘I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations,’ Trump posted to Truth Social on Thursday. 

‘From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our Nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role. In the interim, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as National Security Advisor, while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department. Together, we will continue to fight tirelessly to Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN. Thank you for your attention to this matter!’

Waltz posted to X shortly after Trump’s announcement that he was ‘deeply honored to continue my service to President Trump and our great nation.’

Trump added in his post that Rubio will simultaneously serve as his interim national security advisor after Waltz left the role on Thursday. In 1973, then-President Richard Nixon made a similar move when he named national security advisor Henry Kissinger to also serve as secretary of state, State Department records show. 

Waltz and other National Security Council staffers were ousted from their office on Thursday in the most high-profile executive office exits of the second Trump administration. Trump’s announcement on naming Waltz as U.N. ambassador unfolded just hours after the news began circulating. 

The former national security advisor had been at the heart of the Signal chat leak debacle that unfolded in March, when the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine was inadvertently added to a group chat with high-profile Trump officials such as Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe discussing military strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Speculation had mounted for weeks that Waltz would be removed from his position amid the fallout of the chat leak, though the administration has maintained that no classified material was shared in the group chat and that the president had confidence in his National Security Council team. 

Ahead of Trump tapping Waltz for the new administration role, a handful of names had been floated for U.N. ambassador after Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., withdrew her nomination in March, including David Friedman, former U.S. ambassador to Israel; Ellie Cohanim, former deputy special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism at the State Department under the first Trump administration; and special presidential envoy Richard Grenell. Grenell said he was a ‘hard no’ on serving in the U.N. ambassador role ahead of Trump’s announcement. 

Trump announced Stefanik as his original choice for the role in November 2024, just days after his successful election against former Vice President Kamala Harris. The New York congresswoman, however, pulled her nomination last month as concerns mounted in Trump’s orbit that the GOP’s slim majority in the House would grow smaller in her absence. 

Concerns grew ahead of two special House elections in Florida on April 2, which ultimately saw both Republicans victorious, but with significantly slimmer margins than their GOP predecessors in their previous elections. 

Stefank told Fox News’ Sean Hannity in March that she bowed out of the confirmation process to serve as U.N. ambassador due to both the GOP’s margin in the House combined with the need for her to help combat Democratic ‘corruption’ in her home state of New York. 

‘It was a combination of the New York corruption that we’re seeing under Kathy Hochul, special elections and the House margin,’ Stefanik said on ‘Hannity’ in March. ‘I’ve been in the House. It’s tough to count these votes every day. And we are going to continue to defy the political prognosticators and deliver, deliver victory on behalf of President Trump and, importantly, the voters across this country.’

‘The president knows that. He and I had multiple conversations today, and we are committed to delivering results on behalf of the American people. And as always, I’m committed to delivering results on behalf of my constituents,’ she added. 

Trump announced on Truth Social that Stefanik withdrew her nomination to ‘remain in Congress to help me deliver Historic Tax Cuts, GREAT Jobs, Record Economic Growth, a Secure Border, Energy Dominance, Peace Through Strength.’

‘With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat. The people love Elise and, with her, we have nothing to worry about come Election Day. There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations,’ he added. 

During Trump’s first administration, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and former diplomat Kelly Craft served as U.N. ambassadors. 

Upon taking office, the 47th president made cuts to U.S. involvement with programs under the U.N.’s umbrella, including ending U.S. engagement with the U.N. Human Rights Council and banning funding for the U.N. relief agency for Gaza. 

‘I’ve always felt that the U.N. has tremendous potential,’ Trump said in February while signing the executive order that made cuts to U.S. involvement with U.N. groups. ‘It’s not being well-run.’

 ‘A lot of these conflicts that we’re working on should be settled, or at least we should have some help in settling them. But we never seem to get help. That should be the primary purpose of the U.N.,’ Trump continued. 

Fox News Digital’s Julia Johnson and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report. 

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Consumers are not lovin’ it: McDonald’s has its worst quarter since 2020

McDonald’s reported its worst quarterly sales for the United States since the height of the pandemic in 2020, the latest restaurant chain to be affected by America’s turbulent economic environment.

The burger giant reported U.S. same-store sales fell 3.6%, the largest three-month drop since Q2 2020, when they plunged 8.7%. Forecasts had been for a decline of just 1.7%.

‘Consumers today are grappling with uncertainty,’ McDonald’s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement, as the chain cited lower guest counts.

In a follow-up call with investors, McDonald’s executives said that traffic among middle-income diners fell by ‘nearly double digits’ alongside an ongoing drop-off among low-income ones. As an example, they said more people appear to be skipping breakfast entirely to cut back on spending, or eating breakfast at home.

‘People are just visiting less,’ they said.

High-income traffic, meanwhile, remained stable, they said.

That reflects the economy writ large: While less-well-off consumers rein in transactions to focus on essentials, wealthy consumers continue to spend freely.

McDonald’s is the latest restaurant chain to report weak financial results amid signs that consumers are pulling back on discretionary spending. Chipotle, Domino’s, Pizza Hut, Shake Shack and Starbucks all saw slowing or declining sales in their quarter, with many citing particular weakness among lower-income consumers.

McDonald’s also reported revenues that missed forecasts for the third time in four quarters.

The more volatile economic environment that’s been accelerated by President Donald Trump’s tariffs policies is also being felt abroad.

On the call, company officials said that while the McDonald’s brand hadn’t been affected by worsening perceptions of the U.S. by overseas consumers, its internal surveys had picked up a notable uptick in anti-American sentiment, particularly among diners in northern Europe and Canada.

‘We have seen … an increase in people in various markets saying they’re going to be cutting back on purchases of American brands,’ they said.

It nevertheless maintained its full-year financial outlook, including plans to open 2,200 locations, which it said should help boost sales growth by slightly more than 2%. It said a promotional tie-in with the ‘Minecraft Movie’ had been a hit, and that its refreshed value offerings continued to position it strongly compared with competitors.

Still, officials said on the call that they remained “cautious about consumer sentiment.”

Shares fell 1.6% in early trading.

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Tesla denies report that the EV maker is looking to replace Elon Musk

Shares of Tesla were flat in premarket trading Thursday after the EV maker denied a Wall Street Journal report that its board was searching for a replacement for chief executive Elon Musk.

The report, citing comments from sources familiar with the discussions, said that Tesla’s board members reached out to several executive search firms to work on a formal process for finding the company’s next CEO. Shares of Tesla fell as much as 3% in overnight trading on trading platform Robinhood following the news, before paring losses.

Tesla chair Robyn Denholm wrote on the social media platform X that the report was “absolutely false.”

“Earlier today, there was a media report erroneously claiming that the Tesla Board had contacted recruitment firms to initiate a CEO search at the company,” she wrote.

Elon Musk during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday.Evan Vucci / AP

“This is absolutely false (and this was communicated to the media before the report was published). The CEO of Tesla is Elon Musk and the Board is highly confident in his ability to continue executing on the exciting growth plan ahead.”It comes after a sharp drop in the electric vehicle giant’s sales and profits, with its top and bottom lines missing estimates in the first quarter. Musk has admitted that his involvement with the Trump administration could be hurting the automaker’s stock price.

The mega-billionaire said on a Tesla earnings call last week that he plans to spend just a “day or two per week” running the so-called Department of Government Efficiency beginning in May.Tesla’s total revenue slipped 9% year-on-year to hit $19.34 billion in the January-March quarter. This falls short of the $21.11 billion forecast by analysts, LSEG data shows.

Revenue from its automotive segment declined 20% year-on-year to $14 billion, as the company needed to update lines at its four vehicle factories to start making a refreshed version of its popular Model Y SUV. Tesla also attributed the decline to lower average selling prices and sales incentives as a drag on revenue and profit.

Its net income plunged 71% to $409 million, or 12 cents a share, from $1.39 billion or 41 cents a year ago.

Since the start of the year, its shares have plunged over 30%.

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