NJN/am for Tuesday, July 15

Welcome to Tuesday, and it’s time to head for the polls for most of you…

Weather: Rain, then cooler. We’ll see continued showers and storms today ahead of a cold front, with a high in the lower 80s and a 60 percent chance of rain. That rain will be out of the area by about 3 p.m., and tonight will be mostly clear and cool with lows near 60 – likely breaking the record low of 62 for the date. Wednesday will be sunny and pleasant, with highs in the lower 80s and lows in the upper 50s.

Runoff Day. Polls are now open for primary runoff elections, and in north Jefferson County there are two races to decide, both on the Republican side. The Alabama Senate District 17 race features attorney Brett King of Locust Fork against businessman Shay Shelnutt of Trussville; the winner will be unopposed in the general election. And in the race for the U.S. House of Representatives, state Rep. Paul DeMarco of Homewood is up against conservative think-tank founder Gary Palmer of Birmingham. The winner of that race will face token opposition from a Democratic candidate in the general election, but will be heavily favored in this very conservative district. Polls close at 7 p.m.

Sports: Gus Bus stops at Media Days. The annual circus known as SEC media Days got under way Monday for the first of four days, and the festivities led off with Auburn coach Gus Malzahn. But his appearance was somewhat overshadowed by who didn’t come with him – Nick Marshall, the quarterback who was charged with possession of marijuana last week in Georgia. Marshall had been scheduled to appear at the confab at the Hyatt Regency in Hoover, but was sent home by Malzahn… Baseball: Yoenis Cespedes hit nine homers in the final round and 28 for the night to win the All-Star Home Run Derby in Minneapolis. It’s the second straight win for the Oakland slugger, who is the first back-to-back winner since Ken Griffey Jr. In 1998 and 1999… NFL: A company founded and co-owned by Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Halsam has been fined $92 million for practices that cheated customers out of rebates and discounts. Pilot Flying J, which operates two truck stops in north Birmingham, was charged with cheating customers out of rebates and discounts due on diesel-fuel purchases. The scheme was carried out without Halsam’s knowledge, and there’s no known connection to the Browns aside from their common ownership. Pilot Flying J is based in Knoxville, Tenn., and co-owned by Halsam’s brother Bill, who is also the governor of Tennessee and not involved in the company’s operations.