East Greenbush/ New York City — The New York Yankees have signed infielder Kevin Smith, a native of East Greenbush, to a minor league deal. Smith played in 49 games with the Oakland Athletics last year, finishing with a career-best OPS of .546. He also played with the Athletics in 2022 and saw 36 plate appearances with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021. 

Smith graduated from Columbia High School in East Greenbush, about ten minutes outside of Albany. After playing at the University of Maryland, College Park, he was drafted in the fourth round of the 2017 MLB draft by Toronto. 

Saratoga Springs/ Atlanta — Anthony Weaver, a former Saratoga Springs High School football player and member of the Blue Streaks Hall of Fame, interviewed for the Atlanta Falcons’ head coaching position on Sunday. While at Saratoga, Weaver won the National Football Foundation scholar-athlete award. He’s also a member of the Capital Region Hall of Fame.

Weaver is currently the assistant head coach and defensive line coach for the Baltimore Ravens. He has 12 years of coaching experience, including stints with the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, and Houston Texans. Prior to coaching, he played as a defensive end for the Ravens and Texans. He was a second-round pick in the 2002 NFL Draft.

According to ESPN reporter Adam Schefter, the Washington Commanders have also requested to interview Weaver for their head coaching job.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is overhauling its review process. Starting this year, the Historic Review Committee will only consider candidates for induction if they were active during a specific era. In prior years, the committee considered all candidates throughout racing history, as long as they had been out of competition for more than 25 years.

In 2024, only pre-1900 horses, jockeys, and trainers will be candidates for induction. In 2025, the period of 1900 through 1959 will be reviewed. In 2026, the 1960-2000 era will be up for consideration. Then in 2027, the process will cycle back to pre-1900. Each year, the Historic Review Committee is able to select a maximum of three inductees. All inductees need 75% approval from the committee.

“Based on feedback from members of the various Hall of Fame committees and the committee chairs, I believe these changes will make for a more effective evaluation process for historic candidates being considered for the Hall of Fame,” said Brien Bouyea, the Museum’s Hall of Fame Communications Director, in a statement. “These specialized review committees will no longer have to compare candidates from vastly different eras. Evaluating the achievements of a horse or human from before 1900 alongside one from perhaps a century later is an apples vs. oranges exercise that we wanted to improve upon.”

This year’s pre-1900 Historic Review Committee will include Michael Veitch, Edward L. Bowen, Ken Grayson, Jennifer Kelly, Dorothy Ours, Josh Pons, Mary Simon, and Gary West. The 2024 Hall of Fame class will be announced in late April. 

For more on The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame visit racingmuseum.org.

SCHUYLERVILLE — Luke Sherman, Schuylerville High School’s varsity basketball star, is on the brink of breaking two all-time school scoring records. 

As of Jan. 16, when a snowstorm canceled a scheduled home game against Queensbury, Sherman had netted 1,283 career points with the Black Horses. This placed him 35 points shy of breaking the boys’ basketball scoring record set by Eric Stover in 1978. Sherman may also surpass Carol Cheney’s 1986 boys and girls scoring record of 1,566.

Sherman’s next game is on Friday, Jan. 19 at Glens Falls. As of press time, the Jan. 16 home game had not yet been rescheduled.

GLENS FALLS — Adirondack Thunder All-Star Patrick Grasso has set the record for the most goals scored in team history. Grasso broke Brian Ward’s old record of 77 with his 78th goal against the Maine Mariners on January 6. 

Grasso also competed in the 2024 Warrior/ECHL All-Star Classic on January 15. Grasso scored a goal in the third period to give the ECHL All-Stars a five-point lead. The All-Stars won the game 18 to 11.

For more about Adirondack Thunder visit echlthunder.com

Tara Sweeney is a student and teaching assistant at the Saratoga Springs Youth Ballet who performed with the New York City Ballet at SPAC in productions of “Coppélia” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Currently a senior at Johnstown High School, Sweeney will attend Vassar College this fall to study English and Dance. 

Saratoga TODAY asked Sweeney about her many accomplishments, as well as her future plans.

Q: What was it like performing with the New York City Ballet (NYCB)?

A: Performing with the NYCB was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Not only were the instructors kind and considerate but so were the dancers. I was expecting them to ignore us children in the ballet but they talked and welcomed us and it made the experience memorable. It was a new experience dancing for four or more hours a day, every day, and it heightened my love for ballet.

What are some things about ballet that the general public might not understand?

A: Most people in the general public do not understand how much of a commitment dance is. I dance every single day after school and on Saturdays and it is extremely time consuming, if not more than a school sport. I dedicate my time to coming to dance class every week and preparing for my numerous performances throughout the year. Something people may also not know is that dance is not just during the school year. In order to maintain your ballet technique over the summer break, dancers attend summer intensives where we dance all day long for at least 5-6 weeks of the summer.

What are your future career plans/goals? 

A: In my future, I plan to have a writing career of some sort in the form of journalism, article writing, publishing and editing, or novel writing. I also enjoy literature and could imagine a career in library studies or museum work. My passion for dance persists and I will be dancing in college and I hope to either continue dancing in my future or become a dance teacher. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Springs City School District needs your help naming honorees for its ninth annual Hall of Distinction. In a statement, the district called it a “wonderful opportunity to honor and celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of the graduates of our school district.”

Potential candidates must have graduated from the Saratoga Springs High School at least ten years ago. The district said nominees should “exemplify our District’s educational philosophy through an outstanding social contribution to the broader community, by making a difference in the lives of others; and/or outstanding professional contribution to, or achievement in, their field of endeavor.”

Past Hall of Distinction recipients include actor David Hyde Pierce, golfer Dottie Pepper, writer Joseph Bruchac, and aviator Margaret Stoddard Perkins.

Nominations will be accepted through Jan. 31. To learn more or to nominate an alumni, visit saratogaschools.org/about-us/hall-of-distinction/.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — After two years of negotiations, the Saratoga Springs City School District and the Saratoga Springs Teachers Association (SSTA) have reached a new, five-year contract agreement. 

The SSTA ratified the agreement on January 4, and the district’s Board of Education (BOE) approved it at a meeting on January 11. The contract will last until June 2027 and cover nearly 600 teachers.

The agreement includes annual salary increases of 4.5% inclusive of step increments, as well as employee health insurance contribution increases. The contributions will increase by 2% in 2024, 1% in 2025, and 1% again in 2027.

“Our membership has always been committed to providing the best education it can for the students in our community, and it has been a priority of ours to be able to recruit and retain the best teachers as they are the cornerstone of learning,” said Tim McGuiggan, president of the Saratoga Springs Teachers Association, in a statement. “We think this agreement will help the Saratoga Springs City Schools live up to that commitment.”

At the BOE meeting on Jan. 11, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael Patton said that “it took us a little longer than anticipated, but in the end, we got to a spot that was mutually beneficial to both parties. This new contract supports our current faculty members and continues to help our school district remain highly competitive in our recruitment and retention efforts.”

Tony Krackeler, president of the BOE, said that the agreement “really acknowledges the incredible commitment and devotion of the teachers to the students of this district while also recognizing the fiscal reality of budgetary stress that’s pretty much prevalent everywhere in every institution right now. So I think we came to an agreement that works for all sides.”

Last year, SSTA members called upon the district to increase both salaries and healthcare contributions. Dozens of supporters marched from the Caroline Street Elementary School to downtown Saratoga in protest of failed contract negotiations.

ALBANY — Hattie’s, the Southern cuisine restaurant based in Saratoga Springs, needs new employees for its upcoming location in Albany.

A six-day job fair is currently being hosted at 121 Madison Ave in Albany until Sunday, January 21. The fair is open from 10am to 5pm. Some of the full-time and part-time openings include dining room supervisors, prep cooks, line cooks, servers, bartenders, barbacks, and dishwashers. Prospective employees can begin their applications online at BFG.org/careers.

“As we move toward the grand opening of Hattie’s Albany, building our team is an extremely exciting step!” said Chief Operations Officer of Hospitality, Richard DeJesus in a statement. “Being hired at Hattie’s is an opportunity to work for a beloved brand in an awesome environment. We look forward to continuing to provide delicious chicken in another Hattie’s location, all while staying true to the roots of Miss Hattie Moseley Austin’s vision.”

Hattie’s restaurant is located at 45 Phila Street in downtown Saratoga. Additional locations have subsequently opened in the Wilton Plaza and at the Saratoga Race Course. The new Albany restaurant is scheduled to open this year.