Storm

Managing the Kansas City Royals has never been easy for Hal McRae, but he said he felt better yesterday than at any time since taking the job after a violent tirade directed at reporters. "I've got to do things my way," McRae said before the Royals edged the Tigers, 4-3, last night. "I've been trying to blend in, fit in . . . As a player, I felt I was in control. I need to feel that way now. " McRae became enraged Monday night over a question from a Kansas City radio reporter during his postgame meeting, triggering a tirade that stretched several minutes and left another beat reporter who has covered the Royals for years with a cut cheek from an object thrown by McRae.

Jack Nicklaus and defending champion Greg Norman had an overnight wait to discover if they would advance into the third round in the storm-delayed International Tournament. Norman and Nicklaus each finished with 3-point totals moments before darkness halted second-round play last night on the Castle Pines Golf Club course. A three-hour storm delay left 32 players stranded on the rain-soaked course. They are scheduled to return at 10 a.m. (EDT( today to complete second-round play.

When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high and don't be afraid of the flight connections, the slick highways or the limited visibility. Has sort of a lilt to it, doesn't it? It does if, at the end of the storm, there is Route 303 leading to the Richfield Coliseum. And if the 76ers have enough left to trash the Cleveland Cavaliers, 116-105. Hum a few bars, will you, guys? "That happens to all teams now and then," Sixers coach Matt Guokas said. "For every off day you can have in that situation, you can have two good ones.

THE BOARD of Revision of Taxes is easy to hate. Its job is to blow the whistle on the annual value of our property holdings. People who would never hide income from the Internal Revenue Service act like it's a good thing for the BRT to miss the rising value of their homes. If you don't like a tax, then lower it. Don't evade it. The BRT was established in the 1854 Consolidation to hear appeals and make corrections to property assessments, which is where the funny name comes from.

When: Friday at 8 p.m. Where: Wells Fargo Center TV/Radio: NFL Network; ESPN-AM 950 Storm update: Tampa Bay (3-2) drilled the same Cleveland team last week, 69-48, that handed the Soul its only loss. Leading wide receiver Prechae Rodriguez is expected back after missing a game with concussion-like symptoms. Soul update: The Soul (4-1) have won two in a row and lead the AFL with an average of 72.4 points per game. They visit struggling Orlando (0-5)

Hurricane Mitch cut through the western Caribbean yesterday, pummeling coastal Honduras and Belize with driving rain and fierce winds that snapped trees and sent thousands of people fleeing for higher ground. Ten storm-related deaths were reported. Honduran President Carlos Flores Facusse declared the highest state of alert and sent in troops to evacuate thousands of people from villages on the sparsely populated coast. Thousands more made their way to safer ground on their own. Most of the population of Belize City fled inland in cars and government buses, while tourists rushed to find ways out of the Mexican resorts of Cancun and Cozumel, where the storm is expected to hit by the end of the week.

CELINA, Ohio - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Obama frantically sought to close the deal with voters with precious few days left in an incredibly close race as this year's October surprise - an unprecedented storm menacing the East Coast - wreaked havoc on their best-laid plans. Ever mindful of his narrow path to the requisite 270 electoral votes, Romney looked to expand his map, weighing an intensified effort in traditionally left-leaning Minnesota. Obama sought to defend historically Democratic turf as the race tightened heading into the final week.

Bryn Athyn's Borough Council covered the gamut of environmental issues from storm damage to toxic-waste disposal at its meeting Monday night. The council focused first on the widespread damage from the storm last week. Public Works Committee Chairman T. Dudley Davis said he has made road repairs and other storm-related cleanup his top priority for the rest of the summer. Fast work was required to get streets ready for traffic and to shore up areas weakened by wind and water, Davis said.

HAMILTON, Bermuda - Tourists postponed holidays in Bermuda and locals stocked up on emergency supplies as a stalled Hurricane Leslie spun over open ocean south of the wealthy British Atlantic territory Thursday. Hotel cancellations were reported across the territory, which is popular with tourists for its pink sand beaches and with businesspeople as an offshore financial haven. Bermuda's Weather Service issued a storm watch late Thursday afternoon, while the Category 1 storm was stationary about 430 miles south-southeast of the storm-hardened British enclave.