While four teams are still making

championship drives, the NBA’s 14

non-playoff teams are hoping to

jumpstart their rebuilding with a

little luck in the draft lottery tonight

(8:30 ET, ESPN). Here’s what to watch

for:

Can OKC get a break? PF Blake

Griffin is the big prize, and it so

happens that the Thunder—just 30

minutes north of Norman, home of

Griffin’s Oklahoma Sooners—are in

need of a tough, athletic big man

who can run the floor (and drum up

local interest).

Who’s No. 2? It’s probably

C Hasheem Thabeet or PG Ricky

Rubio, though neither is a sure

thing. Where those guys are chosen

probably depends on who lands

the second pick.

Is there a Portland in the bunch? The Blazers were already

building a playoff team when

they won the lottery in 2007.

Several teams—Phoenix, Toronto,

Washington, Indiana, Charlotte—

would be playoff-bound if their

number comes up.

— Sean Deveney

Lottery history lessons, Page 8

Looking for luck at the NBA lottery

JEFF ROBERSON / AP

Blake Griffin would be a boon to Oklahoma City, on and off the court.

NBA AWARDS

TONY DEJAK / AP

GENE J. PUSKAR / AP

Mike Brown’s reformation of the Cavaliers into a defensive force makes him SN’s NBA coach of the year. Page 5

Evgeni Malkin and the Penguins struck first in the Eastern Conference finals, beating Carolina 3-2 in Game 1. Page 11

SAM HUFF“He’s paid a helluva

price. He’ll carry that

tattoo, so to speak,

for the rest of his life.

What did Clark Gable

say to (Vivian Leigh),

‘Frankly, my dear, I

don’t give a damn?’

That’s almost the way

I feel about Michael

Vick. I don’t know

him, he doesn’t know

me. (Deciding) is the

new commissioner’s

job. That’s why he

makes millions of

dollars.”

PAUL HORNUNG“Let me put it this

way: I love dogs. If

I was the commis-

sioner, I’d be a lot

tougher on these

guys. I’ll go along

with whatever they

decide—and it will

be soft. I’ve got my

own opinion—I just

don’t think he should

get in. It all depends

on who wants him

back and how much

strength they have

with the league.”

RAYMOND BERRY“I’d like to know

a whole lot more of

the facts of his case.

But on a general

philosophy standpoint,

I feel strongly that

the National Football

League needs to take

a much firmer line on

everything in the dis-

cipline area. I think the

integrity of the National

Football League with

the public is at stake. To

(fix) this properly, you

lay it at the feet of the

32 owners.”

HARRY CARSON“Michael Vick was

charged, he was tried,

he was convicted, he

paid the price. I don’t

see any reason why

he should not be able

to come back and

play. I’m not the jury,

I’m not the judge. But

I do know that we all

make mistakes.”

TED HENDRICKS“He’s paid his

debt to society, so I

think he should be

reinstated. I’m sure

he’ll be an asset to

whoever signs him.”

BY MATT CROSSMANmcrossman@sportingnews.com

Twenty-one months after a dogfighting conspiracy landed him behind bars, Michael Vick gets out of prison this week. Sporting News Today asked five Pro Football Hall of Famers: Should the former Falcons QB get a second chance in the NFL?

Vick debate: Ban or reinstate?

CKSs

so I

be

ure

t to

him.”

ick gets outhe former

The feeble five

Vick will be on

a short leash after

release , Page 30

How to repair the NFL’s most defenseless teams, Page 28

SN

Cavs’ Brown is our pick

Top spot for Toronto For the second straight week, the Blue Jays are No. 1 in the Power Poll Page 14

Michael Vick

TUESDAY

MAY 19, 2009

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 301

Scoreboard

Baseball American League

Toronto 3, Chicago White Sox 2

N.Y. Yankees 7, Minnesota 6

Tampa Bay 13, Oakland 4

L.A. Angels 10, Seattle 6

National League

Colorado 5, Atlanta 1

Pittsburgh 12, Washington 7

Milwaukee 8, St. Louis 4

L.A. Dodgers 3, N.Y. Mets 2, 11 innings

Arizona at Florida, ppd., rain

MLB > 13 NFL > 28 NBA > 7 NHL > 10 NASCAR > 35 COLLEGE FOOTBALL > 34 COLLEGE BASKETBALL > 33 GOLF > 39 TENNIS > 36QUICK LINKS:

NHL Playoffs Eastern Conference

Pittsburgh 3, Carolina 2

(Pittsburgh leads series 1-0)

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 2See a Different Game

GUIDEMAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL8:05 p.m.WGN — Chicago Cubs at St. Louis

NBA BASKETBALL8:30 p.m.ESPN — Draft Lottery, at Secaucus, N.J.

9 p.m.ESPN — Playoffs, Western Conference finals, game 1, Denver at L.A. Lakers

NHL HOCKEY7:30 p.m.VERSUS — Playoffs, Western Conference finals, game 2, Chicago at Detroit

Tune In TodayA quick look at the best sports on TV

— all times Eastern

NBA

Draft Lottery8:30 p.m., ESPN

For all the focus on the playoffs, it’s time to celebrate one dreadful team’s newfound fortune. The Kings have the best shot at landing the No. 1 overall pick and thus Oklahoma star PF Blake Griffin, though it’s hardly a guarantee that the worst team ends up picking No. 1. No doubt everyone in the state of Oklahoma is pulling for the Thunder to get the top pick, as their native son wouldn’t have far to travel. Oklahoma City has the fourth-best chance at landing No. 1.

NHL

Blackhawks at Red Wings7:30 p.m., Versus

The Red Wings did a splendid job of holding Blackhawks star Patrick Kane pointless and shotless in Game 1, but it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Kane had only one goal in six regular season games against the Red Wings, proving the youngster has more to learn about how to attack this deep, talented and veteran Red Wings roster. Detroit defensemen Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski just don’t make many mistakes—they’re both in the top 10 in plus/minus rating during the playoff run.

BASEBALL

Cubs at Cardinals8 p.m., WGN

These two rivals faced each other six times in April, with each team winning three. But momentum is on the side of the Cubs, who have gone 11-4 thus far in May compared to the Cardinals, who are 5-10 this month. Ted Lilly should help keep things roll-ing for Chicago, as he’s 3-0 with a 2.66 ERA in three May starts. St. Louis’ Joel Pineiro is going in the other direction, having dropped three straight starts after opening the year 4-0.

— Compiled by Roger Kuznia

‘If it’s going to be a fight, let’s just kick it off now’BY VINNIE IYER

viyer@sportingnews.com

Five things you will learn about the NFL Players Association’s new execu-tive director, DeMaurice Smith, on HBO’s Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel tonight at 10 ET:

1. He is a fighter. Who is DeMaurice Smith? Take it from his own

answer to interviewer Andrea Kremer: “He is the guy who you’ll know will be in the foxhole once the fight starts, and I’ll be there once the fight is over. I’d much rather get to things without it being a fight, but if it’s going to be a fight, let’s just kick it off now.”

Smith has been thrown in the ring right away. If he can’t negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL by next March, the players face a probable lockout in 2011.

2. He is fearless. When working as a prosecutor for the U.S. attor-

ney’s office, a D.C. gang member once put out a contract on Smith’s life. So don’t expect him to be intimidated by anything in negotiations.

“I’m not concerned about threats,” Smith said. “The carryover is: You never lose sight of what your main focus is.”

His immediate focus is getting full financial disclosure from the owners and keeping the players from giving ground.

3. He is a fan of football, and the players already are fans of his. Growing up

in Washington, D.C., Smith rooted for the Redskins and played football through high school but now standing 5-8, 160, avoided enough hits to become a college track star. At Cedarville University in

Ohio, he found his calling as the school’s first African-American student body president and a future in law.

Despite having no NFL playing expe-rience, Smith impressed the players with his presentation to beat out for-mer NFL players Troy Vincent and Trace Armstrong for the job.

“He is the best candidate that we never knew we had,” Giants center Shaun O’Hara said. “He represents a change that I think guys are really refreshed about.”

4. He is friendly. Smith is shown on camera introducing himself to

almost everyone at the NFL draft, and the man who prefers to be called “D” continues to visit teams to become a familiar face to players and owners. The owners who meet him, knowing “D” is on the players’ side, still are well aware that familiarity can breed contempt.

“This business can be very cruel and unforgiving at times,” Patriots owner Robert Kraft said. “Until you get roughed up a little, you’re probably not ready for it.”

5. He has friends in high places. Smith has ties to President Barack

Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Smith served as an assistant U.S. Attorney under Holder before joining Holder as an Obama campaign operative.

Smith said he is unafraid to use those connections, perhaps getting help to persuade Congress to hold hearings on whether to extend the NFL’s federal antitrust exemption.

“(The owners) are dealing not with a former player, with all due respect, but with a very accomplished lawyer,” Holder said. “They better be ready for him.”

Five things about ... DeMaurice Smith

GARY HE / AP

During his time as a U.S. attorney, DeMaurice Smith made important friends and dealt with real threats.

OFF THE FIELD

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 3See a Different Game

The country’s fi rst and only daily digital sports newspaper.

Delivered via email every morning, 7 days a week, Sporting News Today is your one-stop destination for breaking sports stories plus

news about every team, every game and every score from coast-to-coast.

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‘Smart and funny’ Gruden to replace Kornheiser on MNF

BRISTOL, CONN.—Former Bucs coach Jon Gruden is replacing Tony Kornheiser on ESPN’s Monday Night Football broadcast team. Kornheiser cited a fear of flying in his decision to leave after three years.

The network said Monday that Gruden will be in the booth with play-by-play man Mike Tirico and ex-QB Ron Jaworski when the show starts its 40th season this fall.

“If I could handpick a replacement of a football guy, I would cast a net and drag in Jon Gruden,” Kornheiser said in a state-ment. “He is the two things you most want—smart and funny—and has the two things I don’t—good hair and a tan.”

Gruden led the Bucs to the 2003 Super Bowl title but was fired after this past season after his team lost four consecu-tive games to miss the playoffs. He worked as a guest analyst this year with the NFL Network during the draft and NFL Scouting Combine.

“To join Mike and Jaws in the booth and to work alongside this top-notch team is going to be a real thrill,” Gruden said.

Gruden will make his debut with ESPN with a Cardinals-Steelers pre-season game Aug. 13.

Kornheiser will continue to appear on ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption and is relieved it doesn’t require air travel.

“My fear of planes is legendary and sadly true,” he said. “When I looked at the upcoming schedule it was the per-fect storm that would’ve frequently moved me from the bus to the air.”

Gruden was an NFL head coach the past 11 seasons, with Tampa Bay (2002-08) and Oakland (1998-2001). He had a 100-85 record, leading his teams to five division titles.

His best season came in 2002, when the Buccaneers went 12-4 and then beat the Raiders 48-21 in the Super Bowl.

Gruden was 38 at the time and the youngest coach to win a Super Bowl.

Gruden began his NFL coaching career in 1990 when San Francisco 49ers offen-sive coordinator Mike Holmgren hired him as an assistant. When Holmgren was hired to coach the Packers in 1992, Gruden became his wide receivers coach.

After three seasons, Gruden went to the Eagles as an offensive coordinator, and in 1998 became coach of the Raiders at 34.

— The Associated Press

Former MLBer O’Leary takes swing at reality

Former big leaguer Troy O’Leary is ready to jump into the world or reality TV.

O’Leary, who played 11 seasons in the major leagues—primarily with Boston—is staying in an area he knows best: baseball.

He has developed a show titled Play Big or Go Home, an American Idol of sorts show for the up-and-coming baseball player, according to The Boston Globe.

The concept is simple. Fifteen play-ers—five each from the East, Midwest and West regions—will compete for a spring training invitation or to play for an independent league team.

“Some of them, just because nobody’s hear of them or because they didn’t show up on a scout’s radar, or maybe because they went to a small college that wasn’t scouted, they’re not given the chance to even get their foot in the door,”O’Leary told the Globe.

O’Leary has recruited former play-ers Reggie Jefferson, Darren Lewis, John Val-entin, Jeff Cirillo and Rafael Naboa to commit to roles.

Quick hits The WWE may see its Monday Night

Raw pushed out of the Pepsi Center in Denver in favor of Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, and they are not happy. “Even though the Denver Nug-gets had a strong team this year and were projected to make the playoffs, obviously Nuggets and Pepsi Center owner Stan Kroenke did not have enough faith in his own team to hold the May 25th date for a potential playoff game,” said WWE chairman Vince McMahon in a news release.

IRL driver Danica Patrick has

launched a Twitter feed at the behest of watch sponsor Tissot, located @Dani-caPatrick, SportsBusiness Journal’s Eric Fisher reported. She is believed to be the first major athlete to join Twitter in conjunction with a corporate entity, and Tissot will receive extensive expo-sure on her feed.

Buffalo Bills defensive back Donte Whitner says he has videotaped evidence showing he did nothing wrong during an altercation with police outside a Cleve-land nightclub. Speaking after a volun-tary practice Monday, Whitner added he is confident charges against him could be dropped as early as today.

Sounds of Faith: The Wayman Tisdale Story, a documentary focusing on former NBA player Wayman Tisdale’s losing battle with cancer, is scheduled for a November release, the Tulsa World reported. Pro-ceeds will benefit the Wayman Tisdale Foundation. Tisdale, 44, died Friday.

— SportsBusiness Daily, sportsbusinessdaily.com

REINHOLD MATAY / AP

ORLIN WAGNER / AP

After 11 seasons as a head coach, Jon Gruden will work the other side of the microphone for ESPN.

Danica Patrick is the latest high-profile athlete to join Twitter, and she has corporate backing.

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ON NEWSSTANDS NOW

You’re familiar with the players, but who’s pulling the strings in MLB? Get to know five of baseball’s best young general man-agers in the new issue of SN Magazine.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 4My Profile

Lou HoltzFormer Notre Dame football coach

(What you won’t find on Facebook … even if you are approved as a friend)

Born: January 6, 1937, Follansbee, W.Va. Alma mater: Kent StateStatus: Married What I’m up to these days: Work at ESPN, play golf

and do speaking events. I thought I was retired, ESPN found out I was retarded.

What’s on TV: All sporting events, news shows, The First 48

What’s in my iPod: ’50s music, Country & West-ern, Elvis Presley, The Platters, Dean Martin, Johnny Cash

What I drive: For 15 years, a 1990 Tempo. Last year, my wife gave it to charity to auction without my approval. Now I drive a Honda, but looking to buy a Toyota.

Favorite flicks: Patton, Hud, My Cousin VinnyWhat I’m reading: Peaks and Valleys, by Spencer

JohnsonMagazine subscription: Golf Digest

Bookmarks: ESPN, University of Notre Dame, NCAA Division I Football

Superstition: It’s bad luck if you fail to block, tackle and protect the ball.

Worst habit: Smoking a pipe. Never smoked cigarettes or cigars. At age 26, my wife bought me a pipe and I enjoy a pipe.

On my office walls: Pictures of the holes I’ve made a hole-in-one on here at Lake Nona—holes 4, 13 & 17; 4 honorary degrees—from Kent State, Gonzaga, Benedictine & Wingate; pictures of Ara Parseghian and myself, Bo Schembechler and myself, Fr. Hesburgh and myself; picture of Pope John Paul, (wife) Beth and myself; picture of Pope Benedictine and my wife and 2 grandchildren; pictures of myself and 5 presidents—Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush.

Love to trade places for a day with … Tiger Woods. Have never reached a par 5 in 2.

First job: Paper route, age 9. Had 64 customers,

poor section of town. Made $6 a week if everyone paid. East Liverpool, Ohio, paper—El Review. All my earnings went into the family budget. I got 25¢ a week allowance. Best experience of my life now that I look back on it.

Talent I’d most like to have: Play the piano. I took lessons, “Teaching Little Fingers to Play,” but the teacher said I had no chance.

Favorite meal: Filet, french fries, Caesar saladFavorite athlete to watch in another sport: Tiger Woods Favorite value in others: Courage to do what they

know is right and be truthful, not be politically correct and tell you what you want to hear.

Favorite cities to visit: Las Vegas, 2. Orlando—means I am home.

Favorite physical attribute about myself: None. I’m small, weak and unattractive. I am a good listener, good speaker and I see humor in most things.

And least … I look like I have Beriberi and Scurvy.

Dream date: Meghan Kelly—FOX News. But my wife of 48 years would go with me.

My greatest love: 1. My wife, 2. My children, 3. Golf

My hero: My wife Beth of 48 years. Great mother of 4 children, great grandmother of 9. Had stage 4 cancer, 13 hours of surgery, 83 radiation treatments and never complains. Just helps other people.

My bucket list: 1. Go on a photo safari in Africa, 2. Speak two languages, 3. Run for political office

My motto: Don’t run if you can walk. Don’t walk if you can stand. Don’t stand if you can sit. Don’t sit if you can lie down.

— Jeff D’Alessio

if everyoneReview. All get. I got 25¢my life now

no. I tooklay,” but the

ar saladTiger Woods what they politically hear.ando—

one. I’modin

in n for

Don’t walk n sit. Don’t

— Jeff D’Alessio

JOE RAYMOND / AP

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 5Next Gen: Recruiting / Awards

Louis Young was a tentative Stanford commit-ment last fall. Then, this spring, he decided to drop the school and check out the programs that were a little bit closer to his roots in Wash-ington D.C.

It turns out he was right the first time. The Good Counsel (Olney, Md.) DB has committed to Stanford, and this time it’s for good, he told Sporting News Today. The 6-foot, 185-pound cornerback also seriously considered Illinois, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest, among others.

“I’m loving every minute of it, and I just got off the phone with another recruit, Tai-ler Jones, and we’re real happy about everything,” Young told SN Today. “I’m just going to try to start recruiting teammates ... Coach (Jim) Harbaugh is a powerful coach, a strong guy with a lot of charisma, and I like that. He’s a winner and I’m a winner myself.”

As a junior, Young intercepted five passes and had 33 tackles and broke up 13 passes. He also caught 18 passes for 400 yards and four touchdowns on offense. Young is rated a four-star prospect by Rivals.com.

Joining the four-star recruit as Stanford commitments on Monday were Edison (Hun-tington Beach, Calif.) LB Jordan Zumwalt (6-4/220) and Cy-Creek (Cypress, Texas) DT Will Hampton (6-3/270). Zumwalt also had BCS offers from Arizona, Colorado, Washington and Washington State, while Hampton had Northwestern and Nebraska.

Santee (Los Angeles) WR Tevin Carter has committed to Washington, The Seattle Times reported. He also had scholarship offers from California, Oregon, Washington State, Arizona and Arizona State.

Carter (6-3, 190) is the Huskies’ ninth com-mitment for 2010. As a junior, he caught 28 passes for 833 yards, an average of 29.8 yards per reception. He also had 11 touchdowns.

Smithfield (N.C.) Selma Senior ATH Joshua Snead has committed to Duke, Rivals.com reported. He also reported scholarship offers from Louisville, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, Oregon, N.C. State and Wake Forest.

Snead (5-9, 170) is expected to play on offense. He has run a 4.33-second time in the 40-yard dash.

“I plan on going into sports medicine, and Duke gives me that opportunity,” Snead told Rivals.com. “It’s one of the top universities in the country and I can’t pass it up.

Carter (Dallas) S Russell Polk has committed to Texas Tech, Rivals.com reported. He also reported scholarship offers from Nebraska and UTEP.

Polk (5-11, 200) had 78 tackles and four inter-ceptions as a junior.

“They are one of the schools that I’ve fol-lowed; I’ve been a fan of going there,” Polk said of Texas Tech to Rivals.com. “I was happy. I actually found out that Texas Tech offered me from a former player on my team that signed with Texas Tech.”

NBA COACH OF THE YEAR

Mike BrownCleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers’ Mike Brown, who led Cleveland to an NBA-best 66 wins in the regular season, has been selected by league coaches and executives as Sport-ing News’ 2009 coach of the year.

Brown won the award in a vote of 41 coaches and executives. He received 18 votes, 11 more than the Magic’s Stan Van Gundy, whom Brown will face in the Eastern Conference finals. Jazz coach Jerry Sloan was third with six votes; no other coach received more

than two votes.The Cavaliers’ 66 wins were a fran-

chise record, as Brown helped mold LeBron James and a supporting cast into one of the NBA’s best defenses—Cleveland was first in points allowed (91.4) and second in field-goal percent-age defense (.431).

“He treats you like an adult,” veteran Cavs big man Ben Wallace told Sporting News Today. “I think that is the first thing, and you’d be surprised, because you don’t always get that with coaches. … I think players appreciate that he is honest, he holds you accountable, but he always has your back.”

SN’s 2008-09 AWARDSThroughout the week, we’ll unveil our NBA and NHL award

winners. The full package can be found in the new issue of Sporting News Magazine.

Awards scheduleComing this week in Sporting News Today:

Wednesday: NBA, NHL executives of the year

Thursday: NBA, NHL players of the year

Friday: NBA, NHL all-star teams

TONY DEJAK / AP

Cleveland’s Mike Brown was voted coach of the year by his peers after his team won an NBA-best 66 games.

NHL COACH OF THE YEARClaude JulienBoston Bruins

Claude Julien, the man who guided Boston to the top of the Eastern Confer-ence standings, has been named NHL coach of the year by Sporting News in a vote by 39 coaches and executives from throughout the league.

Julien, whose team posted a gaudy 53-19-10 record and 116 points in his second season at the helm, molded the Bruins into a league power by institut-ing a more offensive style and an effec-tive blueprint for dealing with players.

“When things are going well, he doesn’t mess them up,” goalie Tim Thomas said. “He knows how to step back and let go. But if he sees something he wants to do better, he also lets it be known.”

WINSLOW TOWNSON / AP

Bruins coach Claude Julien beefed up the offense.

Corner from Maryland returns to his first choice—Stanford

RECRUITING DISH

COURTESY OF LOUIS YOUNG

The prestige of a Stanford degree helped lure Louis Young.

AMERICAN LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE

Dodgers 3, Mets 2, 11 innings

New York AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Pagan lf 6 1 4 0 0 1 .500Castillo 2b 5 0 0 0 0 1 .278Beltran cf 4 0 0 0 1 0 .367Sheffield rf 3 0 1 1 1 0 .257Putz p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---S.Green p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Feliciano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---d-Reed ph-1b 1 0 1 0 0 0 .379D.Wright 3b 3 1 2 0 2 0 .359Tatis 1b 5 0 0 0 0 0 .286Stokes p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---R.Martinez ss 5 0 0 1 0 0 .000R.Castro c 5 0 0 0 0 1 .254Redding p 2 0 1 0 0 1 .500a-Dan.Murphy ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .269Parnell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Church rf 2 0 2 0 0 0 .276Totals 42 2 11 2 4 4

Los Angeles AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Pierre lf 3 1 0 0 3 0 .403Furcal ss 6 1 2 0 0 2 .237Hudson 2b 5 0 2 1 1 1 .341Ethier rf 5 0 0 0 0 1 .264Troncoso p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Martin c 4 0 0 0 0 0 .272Loney 1b 3 0 1 1 1 0 .273Kemp cf 5 0 0 0 0 0 .277J.Castro 3b 2 0 0 0 1 1 .409b-Loretta ph-3b 1 1 0 0 1 0 .359Wolf p 3 0 0 0 0 1 .105Wade p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Broxton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---c-Paul ph-rf 2 0 0 0 0 0 .273Totals 39 3 5 2 7 6

New York 010 000 010 00 —2 11 5Los Angeles 200 000 000 01 —3 5 0

One out when winning run scored. a-flied out for Red-ding in the 7th. b-popped out for J.Castro in the 8th. c-grounded out for Broxton in the 9th. d-singled for Feliciano in the 10th. E: R.Martinez 2 (2), Beltran (2), S.Green (1), Reed (1). LOB: New York 11, Los Angeles 14. 2B: Pagan (1), D.Wright 2 (12). RBIs: Sheffield (8), R.Martinez (1), Hudson (26), Loney (28). SB: Loney (2). CS: Furcal (3). SF: Loney. Runners left in scoring position: New York 4 (Castillo, Tatis 3); Los Angeles 6 (Kemp 2, Wolf 2, Loretta, Ethier). DP: New York 1 (R.Castro, R.Castro, Castillo); Los Angeles 1 (Furcal, Hudson, Loney).

New York IP H R ER BB SO NP ERARedding 6 2 2 2 4 4 93 3.00Parnell 1 1 0 0 0 1 13 1.96Putz 1 1 0 0 0 0 16 3.68S.Green 2⁄3 1 0 0 1 1 15 7.94Feliciano 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 2 2.81Stokes L, 1-2 1 1⁄3 0 1 0 2 0 35 0.52Los Angeles IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAWolf 7 2⁄3 6 2 2 2 2 96 2.72Wade BS, 4-4 1⁄3 1 0 0 1 0 13 4.50Broxton 1 1 0 0 0 1 14 1.42Troncoso W, 1-0 2 3 0 0 1 1 37 1.82

Inherited runners-scored: Feliciano 2-0, Wade 1-1. IBB: off Redding (J.Castro), off Stokes (Pierre). HBP: by Redding (Martin). WP: Redding. Umpires: Home, James Hoye; First, Dale Scott; Second, Jerry Meals; Third, Mike DiMuro. T: 3:41. A: 37,136 (56,000).

Angels 10, Mariners 6

Los Angeles AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Figgins 3b 5 0 2 1 1 1 .277E.Aybar ss 5 1 2 1 0 0 .309Abreu rf 2 1 0 0 3 0 .289Hunter cf 5 0 2 3 0 1 .313Napoli c 5 0 2 0 0 2 .327Quinlan dh 2 0 0 0 0 1 .150a-Mthws Jr. ph-dh 3 1 0 0 0 1 .272J.Rivera lf 4 3 2 1 1 0 .292K.Morales 1b 5 3 3 3 0 0 .287Kendrick 2b 5 1 2 1 0 2 .236Totals 41 10 15 10 5 8

Seattle AB R H BI BB SO Avg.I.Suzuki rf 5 1 2 0 0 0 .324Jo.Lopez 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 .234Griffey Jr. dh 4 0 2 1 0 0 .219Balentien lf 3 0 1 1 0 1 .288Branyan 1b 3 2 2 1 1 1 .309Johjima c 4 1 1 0 0 0 .250F.Gutierrez cf 3 1 1 1 0 0 .272Y.Betancourt ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 .258Cedeno 3b 3 0 0 1 0 0 .186Totals 33 6 10 5 1 3

Los Angeles 001 052 011 — 10 15 1Seattle 120 111 000 — 6 10 1

E: Napoli (2), Y.Betancourt (7). LOB: Los Angeles 9, Seattle 5. 2B: Figgins (5), Hunter (9), Napoli (8), Kendrick (6), Balentien (8), Branyan (11). HR: J.Rivera (2), off Washburn; K.Morales (7), off Morrow; K.Morales (8), off Stark; Branyan (10), off Lackey. RBIs: Figgins (9), E.Aybar (10), Hunter 3 (30), J.Rivera (12), K.Morales 3 (26), Kendrick (18), Griffey Jr. (8), Balentien (6), Branyan (20), F.Gutierrez (17), Cedeno (3). SB: E.Aybar (1), Abreu (14), Hunter (6). CS: Figgins (3). S: Y.Betancourt, Cedeno. SF: Balentien, F.Gutierrez. Runners left in scoring position: Los Angeles 7 (E.Aybar, Napoli, J.Rivera 2, Hunter 2, Figgins); Seattle 1 (F.Gutierrez). DP: Los Angeles 1 (Abreu, Abreu, Napoli).

Los Angeles IP H R ER BB SO NP ERALackey W, 1-0 5 7 5 4 0 3 82 9.00Oliver H, 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 26 1.47Arredondo H, 11 1 1 0 0 1 0 22 5.19J.Speier 1 1 0 0 0 0 14 6.14Seattle IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAWashburn L, 3-3 5 7 6 6 2 4 94 3.86Morrow 2 4 2 2 1 3 42 9.58Stark 2 4 2 1 2 1 52 11.12

Umpires: Home, Dana DeMuth; First, Doug Eddings; Second, Hunter Wendelstedt; Third, Brian Knight. T: 3:04. A: 17,340 (47,878).

L.A. Dodgers 3,N.Y. Mets 2, 11 innings

L.A. Angels 10, Seattle 6

Mistakes are costly for Mets

Angels’ offense bails out ho-hum Lackey debut

LOS ANGELES—Errors by Gold Glove center fielder Carlos Bel-tran and fill-in first baseman Jeremy Reed in the 11th inning cost the New York Mets, who had the go-ahead run taken away on an appeal play after Ryan Church missed third base in the Los Angeles Dodg-ers’ 3-2 victory Monday night.

The Dodgers have won five of their last six games. They are a major league-best 27-13 over-all, and 14 games over .500 for the first time since finishing the 2006 season 88-74.

New York made five errors and blew a chance to take the lead in the 11th on a play that was right out of the Mets’ 1962 playbook. Church singled with two outs against Ramon Tron-coso and came all the way around on Angel Pagan’s drive to the fence in right-center.

But Church missed third base with his right foot and the Dodgers retired him on an appeal play. So instead of an RBI triple, Pagan had to settle for a single, his fourth hit of the game.

The next half-inning was just as embarrasing for the Mets. Xavier Paul’s fly ball to left-center against Brian Stokes (1-2) fell between Pagan and Beltran—who was charged with an error after the near collision.

— The Associated Press

SEATTLE—As if he hadn’t heard enough ribbing about getting ejected in his sea-son debut after just two pitches, John Lackey heard more. This time, in the visitor’s bullpen before his second start in three days.

“Yeah, I heard plenty about that warming up. I’ll throw a guy a ball if I hear a good one,” Lackey said. “I’ve hooked up guys in New York who had good ones.”

Lackey’s real season debut for the Angels was about like the barbs of Seattle’s fans: not great.

But Torii Hunter hit a three-run dou-ble in a five-run fifth inning and Ken-dry Morales homered twice, rallying Lackey and Los Angeles to a 10-6 vic-tory over the Mariners on Monday night.

The Angels’ ace returned from a strained forearm Saturday for his sea-son debut only to get ejected at Texas for throwing behind and then hitting Ian Kinsler. This time, Lackey slogged through five innings and allowed five runs, four earned.

“For his first time out, his fastball looked good. Maybe his command wasn’t crisp as it will be,” Angels man-ager Mike Scioscia said, dismissing the Texas fiasco as a non-debut. “Hope-fully, this is a good stepping stone for him.

“It’s nice to have a lead dog (again).”Now, Lackey will wait to see if the

commissioner’s office will bite back with a suspension, though he doesn’t expect it to. He does expect a fine that usually comes with an ejection.

“I’d tell you if did something on pur-pose. I didn’t,” Lackey said.

— The Associated Press

TED S. WARREN / AP

Kendry Morales hit two home runs in Monday’s game and finished with three RBIs in the win.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 6Overnight Report

BY SEAN DEVENEYsdeveney@sportingnews.com

FrontcourtIt would be easier to size up the front-

courts if we had some idea what to expect from L.A.’s big men. PF Pau Gasol has been up-and-down. SF Trevor Ariza has been up in odd-numbered playoff games (13.7 points) and down in even-numbered games (7.6 points). C Andrew Bynum has been mostly down, but up a bit lately, perhaps finally putting to rest any notion of re-inserting PF Lamar Odom into the starting five. Gasol pres-ents a difficult matchup for rough-and-tumble Nugs PF Kenyon Martin, and the Lakers need Bynum to be effective, because he is bigger and heavier than Nuggets’ C Nene. The Lakers should have an advantage in the post, but they’ve been nothing but inconsistent this post-season. And with George Karl getting sterling play out of SF Carmelo Anthony, this category belongs to Denver.

Edge: Nuggets.

BackcourtThe Nuggets, of course, would not be

here without PG Chauncey Billups, who, in addition to providing much-needed leadership, has also made 54.1 percent of his playoff 3s and 95.7 per-cent of his free throws. That’s in sharp contrast to Lakers PG Derek Fisher, who is 6-for-31 (19.4 percent) on 3-point-ers in the playoffs, and got himself sus-pended for a game with a boneheaded play in the last series. The Lakers, though, do have SG Kobe Bryant, and though he will have to deal with defen-sive pest SG Dahntay Jones, he is, obvi-

ously, a big Laker advantage. Edge: Lakers.

BenchPhil Jackson still seems to be trying

to figure out his reserves. Odom we know. We’re seeing more of PG Jor-dan Farmar now, and less of G Shan-non Brown. There’s a bit of SF Luke Walton, and who knows what to expect from G Sasha Vujacic? On the other hand, the Nuggets have SG J.R. Smith, PG Anthony Carter, PF/C Chris Andersen and, if needed, SF Linas Kleiza. Karl knows what he is getting out of his reserves, and he needs his bench to outplay the Lak-ers’ backups by a significant margin.

Edge: Nuggets.

Go-to guyThe Nuggets have the advantage of

two go-to guys, with Anthony ranking among the NBA’s best fourth-quarter players (according to 82games.com) and with Billups having the ability to create points at the foul line and the willingness to take big shots. The Lakers, though, have Bryant. He has taken over games when needed, and fizzled a few times, but he’s still the guy most NBA-types would want taking the final shot. That gives Bryant a slight—very slight—advantage over the two guys in powder blue.

Edge: Lakers.

X-factorMartin’s defense against Gasol could

determine this series. Martin, at times, did a good job on Dirk Nowitzki, but there were times when he was lit up by Nowitzki. Gasol could do the same, and

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

REBOUNDSPlayer OFF DEF TOT AVG. AST AVG. PF DQ STL TO BLKBryant 8 52 60 5.0 54 4.5 28 0 26 30 11Gasol 42 87 129 10.8 26 2.2 37 1 9 26 22Odom 33 84 117 9.8 26 2.2 33 1 7 23 18Ariza 9 36 45 3.8 35 2.9 34 0 16 23 6Fisher 1 18 19 1.7 22 2.0 27 0 9 11 1Brown 6 13 19 1.6 11 0.9 20 0 10 7 1Farmar 2 12 14 1.6 19 2.1 9 0 7 8 2Bynum 17 28 45 3.8 5 0.4 35 0 4 12 10Walton 8 19 27 2.7 22 2.2 17 0 9 9 0Vujacic 6 16 22 1.8 9 0.8 25 0 10 7 3Powell 5 8 13 1.3 2 0.2 5 0 0 2 0Mbenga 0 2 2 1.0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 1

TEAM 137 375 512 42.7 231 19.3 270 2 107 161 75OPPONENTS 142 358 500 41.7 244 20.3 260 0 95 185 38

Denver NuggetsLos Angeles Lakers 3-Pnt.Player G MIN FGM-FGA PCT FGM-FGA FTM-FTA PCT PTS AVG HGAnthony 10 37.9 98-204 .480 17-38 57-69 .826 270 27.0 41Billups 10 37.5 61-124 .492 33-61 66-69 .957 221 22.1 36Smith 10 26.9 59-119 .496 24-59 21-33 .636 163 16.3 21Hilario 10 33.3 47-85 .553 0-0 31-49 .633 125 12.5 25Martin 10 33.0 41-78 .526 1-4 16-25 .640 99 9.9 15Jones 10 18.6 27-50 .540 3-10 19-25 .760 76 7.6 12Andersen 9 21.2 21-30 .700 0-0 20-31 .645 62 6.9 11Kleiza 8 14.5 16-36 .444 8-21 11-15 .733 51 6.4 14Carter 10 16.6 16-37 .432 1-9 2-4 .500 35 3.5 12Petro 8 2.9 1-7 .143 0-0 5-8 .625 7 0.9 4Balkman 6 2.8 2-4 .500 0-1 0-0 --- 4 0.7 4Hart 7 2.1 1-2 .500 0-0 0-0 --- 2 0.3 2

TEAM 10 240.0 390-776 .503 87-203 248-328 .756 1115 111.5 124OPPONENTS 10 240.0 324-739 .438 64-196 243-304 .799 955 95.5 119

REBOUNDSPlayer OFF DEF TOT AVG. AST AVG. PF DQ STL TO BLKAnthony 17 47 64 6.4 43 4.3 37 0 20 20 8Billups 3 35 38 3.8 73 7.3 24 0 12 17 3Smith 5 29 34 3.4 25 2.5 27 0 11 13 2Hilario 22 51 73 7.3 25 2.5 37 1 13 22 8Martin 14 37 51 5.1 26 2.6 36 2 12 19 6Jones 6 18 24 2.4 4 0.4 22 0 7 8 4Andersen 17 38 55 6.1 8 0.9 29 1 3 4 17Kleiza 3 18 21 2.6 5 0.6 9 0 3 2 1Carter 8 14 22 2.2 28 2.8 19 0 9 7 1Petro 2 4 6 0.8 1 0.1 4 0 0 1 1Balkman 1 2 3 0.5 1 0.2 2 0 3 0 0Hart 0 3 3 0.4 4 0.6 5 0 2 1 1

TEAM 98 296 394 39.4 243 24.3 251 4 95 119 52OPPONENTS 94 291 385 38.5 174 17.4 259 4 62 164 28

3-Pnt.Player G MIN FGM-FGA PCT FGM-FGA FTM-FTA PCT PTS AVG HGBryant 12 39.1 121-264 .458 17-49 70-81 .864 329 27.4 40Gasol 12 38.9 86-156 .551 0-0 50-74 .676 222 18.5 30Odom 12 31.6 58-102 .569 9-18 22-41 .537 147 12.3 26Ariza 12 30.0 47-86 .547 20-40 17-32 .531 131 10.9 21Fisher 11 26.3 26-71 .366 6-31 21-24 .875 79 7.2 12Brown 12 15.9 27-55 .491 10-17 14-17 .824 78 6.5 14Farmar 9 16.1 19-47 .404 8-18 10-14 .714 56 6.2 13Bynum 12 15.5 27-54 .500 0-0 13-17 .765 67 5.6 14Walton 10 15.6 14-41 .341 4-10 8-10 .800 40 4.0 9Vujacic 12 14.3 18-64 .281 10-33 1-1 1.000 47 3.9 9Powell 10 5.5 8-20 .400 0-0 4-4 1.000 20 2.0 10Mbenga 2 4.0 1-4 .250 0-0 0-0 --- 2 1.0 2

TEAM 12 240.0 452-964 .469 84-216 230-315 .730 1218 101.5 119OPPONENTS 12 240.0 408-952 .429 72-230 233-306 .761 1121 93.4 109

MATT SLOCUM / APCHRIS PIZZELLO / AP

Nuggets F Carmelo Anthony, who rates as one of the NBA’s best in the fourth quarter, averaged 30 ppg in the series against the Mavs.

Lakers G Kobe Bryant, right, has struggled at times in the playoffs, based on his standards—but he’s still the game’s best go-to guy.

could easily get Martin in foul trouble.

SN NumberThe Nuggets ran past the Mavs, aver-

aging 19.8 fast-break points. Denver had a 54-13 fast-break edge in the first two games, after which the Mavericks started to find ways to catch up. By then, it was too late. The Lakers just finished a series against a Rockets team that doesn’t run (Houston averaged 4.1 break points). They’ll have to make an adjust-ment to Denver’s running game. If they wait till Game 3 to figure it out, like Dal-las did, they’ll suffer Dallas’ fate.

Who’s hot? Anthony averaged 30 points and shot 44.0 percent from the 3-point line in the Nuggets’ last series.

Who’s not? Vujacic was 4-for-7 from the field in Game 7, but his playoff shooting percentage is still just 28.1.

OutlookThe Lakers need a stranglehold on

this series, which means sweeping the first two games in L.A. They must keep the momentum from their Game 7 win, and can’t afford to go to Denver—where the Nuggets have been especially dan-gerous—in a 1-1 series. Ultimately, home-court advantage figures to play a big role here, and because the Lakers have that edge, they should take the series.

Lakers in 6.

L.A. LAKERSVS. DENVER

Series glanceToday: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m., ESPN

Thursday: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m.,

ESPN

Saturday: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 8:30

p.m., ABC

Monday: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 9 p.m.,

ESPN

Wednesday, May 27: Denver at L.A.

Lakers, 9 p.m., if necessary,

Friday, May 29: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 9

p.m., if necessary

Sunday, May 31: Denver at L.A. Lakers,

8:30 p.m., if necessary

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 7NBA

No. Team (Lottery chances) Rcrd

tbd. Sacramento (250 of 1000) 17-65

tbd. Washington (178) 19-63

tbd. LA Clippers (177) 19-63

tbd. Oklahoma City (119) 23-59

tbd. Minnesota (76) 24-58

tbd. Memphis (75) 24-58

tbd. Golden State (43) 29-53

tbd. New York (28) 32-50

tbd. Toronto (17) 33-49

tbd. Milwaukee (10) 34-48

tbd. New Jersey (9) 34-48

tbd. Charlotte (7) 35-47

tbd. Indiana (6) 36-46

tbd. Phoenix (5) 46-36

15. Detroit 39-43

16. Chicago 41-41

17. Philadelphia 41-41

18. Miami (to Minnesota) 43-39

19. Atlanta 47-35

20. Utah 48-34

21. New Orleans 49-33

22. Dallas 50-32

23. Houston (to Sacramento) 53-29

24. Portland 54-28

25. San Antonio (to Okla. City) 54-28

26. Denver (to Chi via Okla. City) 54-28

27. Orlando (to Memphis) 59-23

28. Boston (to Minnesota) 62-20

29. LA Lakers 65-17

30. Cleveland 66-16

Second Round31. Sacramento32/33. LA Clippers (to Portland)32/33. Washington34. Oklahoma City (to Denver)35/36. Memphis35/36. Minnesota (to Detroit)37. Golden State (to SA via Phoenix)

38. New York (to Portland via Chicago)39. Toronto (to Detroit)40/41. New Jersey (to Char. via Okla. City)40/41. Milwaukee42. Charlotte (to LA Lakers)43. Indiana (to Miami)44. Detroit45. Philadelphia (to Minnesota via Miami)46. Chicago (to Cleveland)47. Miami (to Minnesota)48. Phoenix49. Atlanta50. Utah51. New Orleans (to SA via Toronto)52. Dallas (to Indiana)53. Houston (to San Antonio)54. San Antonio (to Charlotte)55. Denver (to Portland)56. Portland57. Orlando (to Phoenix via Oklahoma City)58. Boston59. LA Lakers60. Cleveland (to Miami)

Teams that finished the regular season with identical records will select in the second round in the reverse of the order in which they select in the first round. With respect to the ties between the Los Angeles Clippers and Washington (32 and 33); Memphis and Minnesota (35 and 36); and New Jersey and Milwaukee (40 and 41): since the order of selection in the first round for each set of teams may change based on the results of the Draft Lottery, the order of selection in the second round cannot be determined until after the Draft Lottery is conducted on May 19.

2009 NBA draft order/lottery oddsPatrick Ewing and Dwight How-ard worked out at one end of the court, a couple guys who know what it’s like to be the grand prize in the draft lottery.

At the other end Sunday night were the Boston Celtics, who’ve been ruined and resurrected by the NBA’s ultimate game of luck—with-out ever winning it.

After a quarter century of build-ing champions and breaking hearts, the lottery celebrates its 25th birth-day today, with the real party being held by the team that wins it and earns the right to pick Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin.

“I think it’s pretty much accepted by our fans now and our teams get into it,” commissioner David Stern said. “It’s just another way to pro-mote the potential for next season, particularly and for the most part for those teams who have the most need for next season. And that’s what makes it good.”

Sacramento, after finishing with a league-worst 17-65 record, has a 25 percent chance of landing the No. 1 pick. The Kings shouldn’t pre-pare a jersey for the All-American forward just yet, though: Not since 2004, when the Orlando Magic ended up with Howard, has the team with the worst record won the lottery.

That’s why some teams hate it. Jerry West blasted the system in 2007, when his Memphis Grizzlies had the best chance to win one of the most anticipated lotteries ever and ended up falling to the fourth pick.

The Celtics didn’t like it much either that night, since they had the

second-best shot at Greg Oden or Kevin Durant, and settled for the No. 5 pick. That came 10 years after they were heartbroken by missing out on Tim Duncan despite the best odds of winning the lottery.

At least the second time they didn’t let their bad luck lead to more bad play, sending that No. 5 pick to Seattle in a trade for Ray Allen, a move that convinced Kevin Garnett to accept a move to Boston and leading to the Celtics’ 17th NBA title last season.

The easier way is for teams to have the lottery create the luck for them.

No team has done that better than San Antonio, which used lottery wins 10 years apart to land David Robinson and Duncan, starting its run of four NBA titles. Orlando won consecutive lotteries in 1992 and ’93, getting Shaquille O’Neal

the first time and trading the rights to the second for Penny Hardaway, and those two would team on an Eastern Conference championship squad in 1995.

“What we tell our fans is that if a team is well managed and it isn’t doing so well, it will have the oppor-tunity under the NBA system to improve,” Stern said.

Instead of Howard, a high school player, the Magic could have gone for Emeka Okafor, who had a deco-rated career at Connecticut but has been only solid, not spectacular, as a pro. Houston also went for the lesser known in 2002 and it paid off, tak-ing Yao Ming instead of Duke All-American Jay Williams, whose career was wrecked after leg injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

“You’re hoping that the players

turn out to be what you expect them to be. And again, a lot of things play into it,” said Magic guard Rafer Alston, who this season played with both Yao and Howard.

“You remember with Sam Bowie, health issues played a major role, he never overcame health issues so could never become the dominant player he was coming out of Ken-tucky. Ewing just continued to get better and better, and he turned not only a franchise but a whole city around. I think Dwight is on that path, a Ewing path, an (Hakeem) Olajuwon path.”

Ewing was the first lottery prize, going to the New York Knicks in 1985. The NBA changed how the top pick was awarded following the 1984 draft, when Olajuwon and Bowie went 1-2—with Michael Jor-dan going third—after concerns that teams were losing on purpose to finish with the worst record pos-sible and secure a high pick.

The lottery has undergone some tweaks since. It was changed to set only the top three picks, with the remainder of the first round going in inverse order of a team’s finish. The system was later weighted to give teams with the worst record the most chances to win, and modified again in 1993 to further favor the teams that needed the most help after Orlando went .500, just missed the playoffs, and won the lottery.

Washington (17.8 percent) and the Clippers (17.7 percent) follow Sacramento with the best chances for No. 1.

“I think it has become part of the sport’s culture now,” Stern said.

— The Associated Press

Annual event ‘another way to promote the potential’

NBA draft lottery’s first pickThe odds they had of winning2008 Bulls—1.7 percent chance (9th best)2007 Trail Blazers—5.7 percent chance (6th best)2006 Raptors—8.8 percent chance (5th best)2005 Bucks—6.3 percent chance (6th best)2004 Magic—25 percent chance (best)2003 Cavaliers—25 percent chance (best)2002 Rockets—8.9 percent chance (5th best)2001 Bullets—15.7 percent chance (3rd best)2000 Nets—4.4 percent chance (7th best)

Source: NBA

SUE OGROCKI / AP

Oklahoma F Blake Griffin, left, is expected to be taken by the team that wins the No. 1 pick.

Draft lottery, Today, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 8NBA

Playoff glanceCONFERENCE FINALS(Best-of-7)

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Cleveland vs. OrlandoWednesday: Orlando at Cleveland, 8:30 p.m., TNT

Friday: Orlando at Cleveland, 8:30 p.m., TNT

Sunday: Cleveland at Orlando, 8:30 p.m., TNT

Tuesday, May 26: Cleveland at Orlando, 8:30 p.m., TNT

Thursday, May 28: Orlando at Cleveland, 8:30 p.m., if necessary

Saturday, May 30: Cleveland at Orlando, 8:30 p.m., if necessary

Monday, June 1: Orlando at Cleveland, 8:30 p.m., if necessary

WESTERN CONFERENCE

L.A. Lakers vs. DenverToday: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m., ESPN

Thursday: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m., ESPN

Saturday: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 8:30 p.m., ABC

Monday: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 9 p.m., ESPN

Wednesday, May 27: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m., if necessary,

Friday, May 29: L.A. Lakers at Denver, 9 p.m., if necessary

Sunday, May 31: Denver at L.A. Lakers, 8:30 p.m., if necessary

Betting lineToday

FAVORITE .......... LINE O/U ........UNDERDOG

at L.A. Lakers ............6½ (214½) ............Denver

Wednesday

at Cleveland .............8½ (185) .............. Orlando

Odds to Win SeriesL.A. Lakers -280 Denver +240

Cleveland -900 Orlando +600

INSIDE DISH

Celtics know their window’s closingAfter failing to defend their titles—

Eastern Conference and NBA champs—the Celtics will now have to figure out how to make the most of what is a fast-closing window. Coach Doc Rivers admitted that the reason PF Kevin Garnett did not have surgery to repair the right knee he injured in February was to keep alive some hope that, at some point, Garnett would feel healthy enough to play. “Clearly that’s why we didn’t do surgery,” Rivers said. “I think that’s not a secret.” Rivers did say that Garnett would have surgery soon, so getting him rehabbed is the first order of business.

Beyond that, the Celtics will have a fair bit of business to address. PG Rajon Rondo is eligible for an exten-sion, and his agent, Bill Duffy of BDA Sports, told Sporting News Today that he’s ready to start those discussions, “as soon as the Celtics are ready.” But, because the deadline for an extension is not until October 31, Duffy added that the issue would probably wait till later in the sum-mer. The Celtics must also decide what to do with restricted free agent PF Glen Davis, who averaged 15.8 points in Garnett’s absence. March signees (and unrestricted free agents) C Mikki Moore and G Stephon Marbury have expressed interest in coming back to the Celtics, but it’s unlikely either will be kept.

— Sean Deveney

Another player for an ousted conference semifinalist—SF Ron Art-est of the Rockets—also stated, emphatically, that he wants to stay put. As quoted by the Houston

Chronicle, Artest was asked about staying in Houston and said, “Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. That is yes. I just

know this team was so good, I think we’ll grow together.” The Rockets would like to keep Artest and,

presumably, would look for a taker for injured SF Tracy McGrady in a trade, so Artest could remain a starter. Assuming Artest has reasonable salary demands, Houston should be able to get a deal done, because the Rockets are below the league’s lux-ury-tax threshold.

Houston coach Rick Adelman said he has enjoyed coaching Artest, whom he also had with the Kings. “When I first met Ron in Sacramento, I told him the same thing I tell everyone, ‘You have a clean slate,’” Adelman said. “I don’t prejudge anyone. And Ron has been great. I’ve never had a problem with Ron.”

Perhaps not coincidentally, almost immediately after Portland’s Tom Penn withdrew from consider-ation for the Timberwolves’ general manager’s job, he was promoted by the Blazers, from assistant general manager to vice president of basket-ball operations. In a statement released by the team, Portland GM Kevin Pritchard said, “When we talk about team chemistry, it extends to our staff and the role everyone plays in creating a winning culture here. Tom has had a huge hand in our suc-cess, and I’m pleased that he will remain and continue to help us build this franchise.”

Cavaliers C Zydrunas Ilgauskas fig-ures that it will only be a matter of time before PF Anderson Varejao gets under the skin of either Orlando C Dwight Howard or PF Rashard Lewis in the Eastern Conference finals. Ilgauskas should know. “He gets under my skin and I’m his

teammate,” he said. “He is one of those guys, I guess, maybe like Den-nis Rodman was with the Bulls. He does stuff that doesn’t show up in the box score.” Varejao has averaged 5.6 points and 7.8 rebounds (as well as 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks) this postseason.

According to The Associated Press, the Sixers will officially inter-view their second coaching candi-date this week, Boston assistant Tom Thibodeau, in their search for a replacement to interim coach Tony DiLeo. Thibodeau received permis-sion from the Celtics, even though the Sixers are a division rival. Phila-delphia earlier interviewed former Wizards coach Eddie Jordan, who is also being considered for the Sacra-mento job. The Kings are also con-sidering former NBA coach Paul Westphal.

Nets owner Bruce Ratner announced that, after several delays because of financing and legal issues, he expects to break ground on an $800 million Brooklyn arena for the team this year. On Friday, the state Supreme Court’s appellate division struck down a legal chal-lenge to Ratner’s Atlantic Yards development.

The Bucks had some good news on Monday, announcing that the stress fracture in C Andrew Bogut’s back has healed and that he is cleared for workouts. After signing a five-year extension with the Mil-waukee last summer, Bogut played only 36 games this season.

NAM Y. HUH / AP

Even though PF Glen Davis, left, played well in his absence, the Celtics are painfully aware of how important it is to get Kevin Garnett healthy.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 9NBA

Chicago rookie forward Kris Versteeg might have

finished behind Steve Mason in the voting for Sporting

News’ rookie of the year, but he has one serious advan-

tage over the other rookie finalists: He’s still playing.

And that means a lot to Versteeg, who has 11 points

in his first 13 NHL postseason games. He spent a few

minutes with Sporting News Today’s Craig Custance fol-

lowing Monday’s practice.

Q: It’s hard to consider you a rookie anymore considering the experi-

ence you’ve gained this season and in the playoffs. How has the entire experience been?

A: This has been absolutely amazing from start to finish. From the Winter Classic,

to the (YoungStars) game to the nomination and everything. It’s just been a whirlwind season. I’m just so happy to be a part of this organization and to be a part of everything they’ve been going through.

Q: Is it a source of pride to be the last of the Calder Trophy nominees

still playing?

A: There’s a lot of pride there. To say at the start of the season, if anyone even knew

my name, let alone being a part of the Calder nomination—it’s been a whirlwind. I knew I could do it, I knew what I could always do. Some guys get a chance to play a little later and I got my chance a little bit later. I’ve got to stick with it and run with it.”

Q: How valuable a learning experience has this playoff run

been for a young player like you?

A: This has been huge. To win the first two rounds—this isn’t just a learning

experience for us. We’re not taking it as that.

We want to win; we want to win the whole thing. We’re not just happy to be here like some people are saying. We’re here to win and we’re here to stay. We’ve been having so much fun in this whole thing. For myself, it’s been a learning experience and a lot of fun.

Q: Has that been the attitude the whole way, or was there a point

when you guys realized you could advance further than you first thought?

A: Definitely after the first couple ones against Calgary, you could see the

confidence grow in the room. We have a lot of confident guys here. We have one loss but we always seem to rebound with guys that are confident and know what they’re doing. We’ll come out a lot stronger in Game 2.

Q: Detroit coach Mike Babcock was saying that he can’t wait until

Chicago’s young players are making more money and the Blackhawks run into salary cap issues. Do you feel like this is a window to win now with a collection of young, cheap talent that might be hard to keep together because of the cap?

A: I don’t know. I kind of heard about the salary cap issues a bit. That’ll happen

with all the teams, especially the top teams in the league. With a lot of young guys here, that have played really well and exceeded expecta-tions, who knows what will happen with the salary cap?

Q: I know you’re trying to beat them, but can you learn something from

the two-way play of Detroit’s talented forwards?

A: I’ve learned something from them since I was 10 years old and Steve

Yzerman was my favorite player growing up. I’m playing against probably my favorite team growing up, and it has been pretty cool. You have to put that aside and realize you’re here to win and you’re here to stay. You learn from guys like (Pavel) Datsyuk, watching him over the last six or seven years, and (Henrik) Zetterberg. You have to take things from their game and put it in your game as much as you can. You may never be as good as them and things like that, but you always try to take something from great players.

Q: So, do you have a Steve Yzerman poster in your room back home?

A: I have his poster and his jersey and everything. Never met the guy, but he’s

still my favorite.

Q: You know, you really should take that stuff down now that you’re

playing his team.

A: Yeah, I won’t take his stuff down, but any other Red Wings stuff I have is

down.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 10NHL

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

Today’s gameConference finals(Best-of-7), all Times (ET)

Chicago at Detroit, 7:30 p.m., Versus

Betting linesToday

FAVORITE .......... LINE UNDERDOG.......LINE

at Detroit ................-200 Chicago ..............+170

‘We’ll come out a lot stronger in Game 2’Q&A with ... Blackhawks F Kris Versteeg

Kris Versteeg, SN’s runner-up for NHL rookie of the year, has 11 points in his first 13 postseason games.

JIM PRISCHING / AP

PITTSBURGH—Philippe Boucher and Miroslav Satan were missing when the Pittsburgh Penguins made the late-season surge that carried them from 10th place in the Eastern Con-ference to a third consecutive trip to the playoffs.

In the opener of the conference finals, Boucher and Satan proved as important to beating the Carolina Hurricanes as Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby did.

Satan and Boucher scored their first goals of the playoffs and goal-tender Marc-Andre Fleury pre-vented Carolina from getting its offense going, leading the Penguins to a 3-2 victory over the Hurricanes on Monday night.

Game 2 will be Thursday night following the first of as many as three two-day breaks in the drawn-out series.

Malkin and Boucher each had a goal and an assist on a night Crosby, the leading scorer in the playoffs with 22 points, was limited to an assist. Satan and Malkin scored less than 90 seconds apart midway through the first period to make it 2-0 for the Penguins, who are trying to win back-to-back conference champion-ships for the first time since 1991-92.

The Penguins got major contribu-tions from Satan, who fell into such disfavor in March that he was sent to the minors, and Boucher, a defen-seman who sat out 30 games during the second half of the season follow-ing foot surgery.

“We like to believe we’re deep—whoever we dress, we’ve got some good players that are not playing

right now and everybody can come in and help out. It’s good that we both did it,” said Boucher, who played four of the Penguins’ first 13 playoff games.

Boucher, in uniform because Sergei Gonchar’s sore right knee led coach Dan Bylsma to dress seven defense-men, scored what proved to be the decisive goal on a power play at 11:33

of the third, a shot from the left circle that trickled across the goal line.

“He’s been ready, he stayed ready and worked hard,” Bylsma said. “He didn’t get a lot of minutes (8½), but when he did he cashed in.”

Boucher’s goal was his first in the playoffs since April 12, 2004, and proved significant when Joe Corvo scored on a power play with 1:26

remaining for Carolina, which has dropped Game 1 in each of its three playoff series. Eric Staal missed a chance from in close that would have tied it during the final minute.

“It looked like Staal had the whole net, but that’s indicative of the way Fleury played all night,” defense-man Brooks Orpik said.

Fleury didn’t make as many tough

saves as Carolina’s Cam Ward, who turned aside 28 shots, but he kept the Hurricanes from getting any offensive flow going in a game when many of their best scoring chances came in the opening and closing minutes. Fleury made 23 saves.

“Fleury came up with some timely saves early to settle them down and give them the opportunity to get going, and once they get going they’re a very quick team,” Ward said.

The Hurricanes were better than they were in losing Game 1 to New Jersey and Boston, each time 4-1, but played from behind after Satan came out of the penalty box and scored at 9:17 on a breakaway cre-ated by Matt Cooke’s up-ice pass.

“It’s a move I’ve probably used for 25 years,” said the 34-year-old Satan, who shifted from his fore-hand to his backhand before tuck-ing a shot inside the near post.

Cooke had no idea Satan was coming out of the box.

“As soon as I got the puck on my stick, I just tried to get it out to the neutral zone so I could get a (line) change,” Cooke said.

Malkin made it 2-0 at 10:41 on another backhander, to Ward’s stick side, after Boucher found him with a pass to the slot.

“I thought our game was there, and Fleury made some huge saves in the first period,” said Staal, who is competing against Pittsburgh’s Jordan Staal in the first brother vs. brother matchup in the conference finals in 35 years. “We’ve just got to be better, tighten up and not have breakdowns early.”

While the Hurricanes didn’t have a letdown after an emotional seven-game, second-round series against top-seeded Boston, they again lacked goals. That’s been an ongoing problem for a team that came in averaging 2.36 goals per game, far less than Pittsburgh’s 3.46 average.

—The Associated Press

Unexpected duo fuels Penguins’ opening-game victory

Carolina 0 1 1 — 2Pittsburgh 2 0 1 — 3

First Period: 1, Pittsburgh, Satan 1 (Cooke, Gill), 9:17. 2, Pittsburgh, Malkin 7 (Boucher), 10:41. Penalties: E.Staal, Car (interference), 2:37; Walker, Car (interference), 5:01; Satan, Pit (holding), 7:07.Second Period: 3, Carolina, LaRose 3 (Cole, Cullen), 13:04. Penal-ties: Cole, Car (interference), 15:13.Third Period: 4, Pittsburgh, Boucher 1 (Crosby, Malkin), 11:33 (pp). 5, Carolina, Corvo 2 (Whitney, Brind’Amour), 18:34 (pp). Penalties: Cullen, Car (delay of game), 9:50; Orpik, Pit (elbowing), 17:26.Shots on Goal: Carolina 12-6-7: 25. Pittsburgh 9-12-10: 31.Power-play opportunities: Carolina 1 of 2; Pittsburgh 1 of 4.Goalies: Carolina, Ward 8-7-0 (31 shots-28 saves). Pittsburgh, Fleury 9-5-0 (25-23).A: 17,132 (16,940). T: 2:20.Referees: Dave Jackson, Dan O’Halloran. Linesmen: Steve Miller, Jean Morin.

Series glance(Pittsburgh leads series 1-0)

Monday: Pittsburgh 3, Carolina 2

Thursday: Carolina at Pittsburgh,

7:30 p.m., Versus

Saturday: Pittsburgh at Carolina,

7:30 p.m. Versus

Tuesday, May 26: Pittsburgh at

Carolina, 7:30 p.m., Versus

Friday, May 29: Carolina at

Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m., if necessary,

Versus

Sunday, May 31: Pittsburgh at

Carolina, 7:30 p.m., if necessary,

Versus

Tuesday, June 2: Carolina at

Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m., if necessary,

Versus

GENE J. PUSKAR / AP

Miroslav Satan exited the penalty box and beat Cam Ward with a move he said he’s used for ‘25 years’ to get the series’ first goal.

Pittsburgh 3, Carolina 2

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 11NHL

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 12NHL

Playoff glance CONFERENCE FINALS(Best-of-7), all times ET

EASTERN CONFERENCECarolina vs. PittsburghMonday: Pittsburgh 3, Carolina 2

Thursday: Carolina at Pittsburgh,

7:30 p.m., Versus

Saturday: Pittsburgh at Carolina,

7:30 p.m. Versus

Tuesday, May 26: Pittsburgh at Carolina,

7:30 p.m., Versus

Friday, May 29: Carolina at Pittsburgh,

7:30 p.m., if necessary, Versus

Sunday, May 31: Pittsburgh at Carolina,

7:30 p.m., if necessary, Versus

Tuesday, June 2: Carolina at Pittsburgh,

7:30 p.m., if necessary, Versus

WESTERN CONFERENCEChicago vs. Detroit(Detroit leads series 1-0)

Sunday, May 17: Detroit 5, Chicago 2

Today: Chicago at Detroit, 7:30 p.m., Versus

Friday: Detroit at Chicago, 8 p.m., Versus

Sunday: Detroit at Chicago,

3 p.m., NBC

Wednesday, May 27: Chicago at Detroit,

7:30 p.m., if necessary, Versus

Saturday, May 30: Detroit at Chicago, 8

p.m., if necessary, Versus

Monday, June 1: Chicago at Detroit, 7:30

p.m., if necessary, Versus

Betting line Today

FAVORITE LINE UNDERDOG LINEat Detroit -200 Carolina +170

Odds to win Stanley Cup CURRENT OPENINGTEAM ODDS ODDSDetroit 3-2 4-1Pittsburgh 8-5 7-1Chicago 7-2 25-1Carolina 6-1 35-1

INSIDE DISH

Report: Roy is considering offer to coach AvalanchePatrick Roy, a three-time Vezina Trophy

winner and the second-winningest goalten-der in NHL history, is considering an offer to become coach of the Colorado Avalanche, according to sources cited by a story in The Denver Post.

The Post reports that Roy has been offered the job currently held by Tony Granato. The Hall of Fame goalie denied the report to the French language website SRC.ca., but The Post said it talked to multiple sources who confirmed Roy has an offer.

Granato, who has two years remaining on his contract, reportedly has not been told he’s out of a job. Since a well publicized meeting last week between Roy and Ava-lanche president Peter Lacroix, nothing has been said about Granato’s standing with the team. Lacroix recently fired general man-ager Francois Giguere in what was described as a front-office restructuring, but no replace-ment has been named.

Roy is the co-owner, G.M. and coach of the Quebec Remparts of the QMJHL. He has made no secret of his desire to get into NHL coaching and speculation has centered on the Avs and Montreal Canadiens, his two former teams. The Canadiens currently have an opening because interim coach Bob Gainey is returning to his full-time duties as G.M.

“Patrick is a very deliberate guy who ana-lyzes everything,” Jacques Demers, Roy’s for-mer coach, told The Post. “He’s not necessarily going to take the first job that might come along. He’s going to want to go into a situa-tion he thinks is on the right track and that he’s going to feel comfortable with.”

And that might not be Colorado, a team that sank last season to last place in the Western Conference with 69 points—the worst finish since it moved from Quebec to Denver in 1995.

According to The (Toronto) Globe and Mail, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman sent an

internal e-mail to deputy commissioner Bill Daly last month stating that the league should offer the Phoenix Coyotes to Winnipeg before relocating the team anywhere else.

In an e-mail dated April 4, 2009, Bettman described his reaction to news from Earl Scud-der, a lawyer working for Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes, that he had recently heard from Richard Rodier, a Toronto lawyer representing Cana-dian businessman Jim Balsillie, who expressed interest in buying the club and relocating to southern Ontario.

“I told (Scudder) that at some point, if we don’t have an alternative, I will have to start looking at the moving option,” Bettman wrote

in the e-mail, which was filed in court.When Scudder asked specifically about

southern Ontario and Hamilton, Bettman said, “I responded that it’s a league opportu-nity, the building is too old etc. and, frankly, if this team had to move it should first be offered to Winnipeg.”

Phil Kessel and David Krejci, the Boston Bru-ins’ second and third-leading scorers, will undergo surgeries that could keep them from playing in early games next season.

The 21-year-old Kessel, who led the team with 36 goals, will have surgery for a torn rotator cuff and labrum in his shoulder. The

23-year-old Krejci, who finished behind only Marc Savard with 73 points, will undergo hip surgery. G.M. Peter Chiarelli also said D Andrew Ference will have surgery to deal with a torn groin, a bruised pelvis and a hernia.

TSN reports that Philadelphia C Danny Bri-ere will have corrective eye surgery today. G.M. Paul Holmgren says Briere will have a procedure called photorefractive keratectomy and will need only a few weeks to recover.

Briere says his contact lenses bothered him at times during the season so he elected to have the surgery, which will be performed at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia.

DAVID ZALUBOWSKI / AP

Since retiring in 2003, two-time Cup champ Patrick Roy has served as co-owner, G.M. and coach of a junior team in Quebec. Now, he could be on the verge of a return to the NHL.

CHRIS CARLSON / AP

After three games on the bench, David Ortiz returns to Boston’s lineup tonight.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 13Baseball

Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks will miss the rest of the season because of a tear in his left wrist, a severe set-back for the N.L. Central leaders.

Weeks, who had a similar injury to his right wrist in 2006, hurt himself while striking out Sunday in St. Louis. He left Busch Stadium wearing a brace and underwent an MRI exam Monday in Arizona that revealed the extent of the damage.

“We’re going to miss the guy,” manager Ken Macha said before Mon-day night’s game against the Cardi-nals. “He was having a tremendous year, a great start. But nobody’s going to feel sorry for you.”

The Brewers had won 11 of 13 and led the division by 1½ games, recov-ering from a 4-9 start with Weeks as a catalyst.

“I was enjoying myself watching him play,” Macha said. “This is one tough guy, a grinder, very intense. It’s a shame.”

Weeks was hitting .272 with nine home runs and 24 RBIs.

The Brewers said Weeks had a torn sheath in his left wrist and will likely have surgery this week. Recov-ery time is four to six months and surgery is likely on Wednesday.

“Rickie was making progress. He was showing he could be the kind of player we all thought he could be,” general manager Doug Melvin said.

Mets slugger Carlos Delgado will have arthroscopic surgery Tuesday on his right hip, and there’s no immediate word on when he might return to the lineup. The Mets, who entered Monday leading the N.L. East by a half-game over Philadelphia, said Delgado has a bone spur and a torn labrum in his

hip.“The way Carlos was responding to all the things he was trying—and it wasn’t getting any better—I wasn’t too optimistic about it,” Mets man-ager Jerry Manuel said. “What we have to do now is try and find out how we’re going to continue to play good baseball without Carlos Delgado.” Delgado is hitting .298 with four home runs and 23 RBIs in 26 games.

The Rays have put DH Pat Burrell on the disabled list and called up RP Jason Isringhausen to help out their weary bullpen. Burrell, who has been bothered by neck pain, is not expected to be sidelined for long. He was put on the D.L. retroactive to May 11 and could return May 26. Isringhausen is fully rehabbed from September elbow surgery and has made 10 appearances between Class A Mont-gomery and Class AAA Durham.

According to The Detroit News, the mystery surrounding a leave of absence granted to Tigers OF Magglio Ordonez was cleared up Monday when the team announced he will miss at least two games so he can be with his wife, who is undergoing surgery.

The Houston Chronicle reports that Astros closer LaTroy Hawkins was unavailable Sunday after hurting his right hip when he slipped while try-ing to catch an errant throw in the ninth inning of Saturday’s game against the Cubs. “I’m sore every-where,” a limping Hawkins told the newspaper. “I feel like I was in a car accident. Just slipped backing up home plate. I got jarred.”

Orioles SS Cesar Izturis suffered a

groin strain in Sunday’s game against the Royals and says he’s not sure if it will force him out of the lineup. “We’ll see how it feels after the day off (today),” Izturis told The Baltimore Sun. “It’s sore right now. We’ll wait and see what happens.”

Rockies RP Matt Daley will be placed on the disabled list after step-ping on a bat and spraining his left foot in the seventh inning of Sunday’s game against the Pirates.

The Athletics put RP Dan Giese on the 15-day disabled list and recalled lefthander Gio Gonzalez from Class AAA Sacramento on Monday. Giese

has a nerve problem near his right elbow. He is 0-3 with a 5.32 ERA in seven games, including one start this season. Also, IF Nomar Garciaparra ran the bases, fielded grounders at third and took batting practice. Garciap-arra, placed on the 15-day D.L. April 29 due to a strained right calf, might be ready to return Wednesday.

Ranger closer Frank Francisco threw a bullpen session Monday and is scheduled to throw a simulated game Wednesday in Detroit. Fran-cisco, who hasn’t appeared in a game since May 6, went on the disabled list Saturday with right biceps tendinitis.

THE LAUNCHING PADWhat to expect in the major leagues today

The wait is overThe A.L. East’s top two teams finally meet tonight in Boston when the

Blue Jays and Red Sox begin a three-game series. They have split their sea-son series in each of the past two seasons, though this is the first meeting between them this season. (Meanwhile, Boston already has faced Tampa Bay 10 times.) The Red Sox are coming off a tough West Coast road trip, but at 13-4, they have the fewest home losses in the A.L. Tonight also marks the return to the starting lineup for Boston DH David Ortiz, who was benched the past three games in an effort to get him back on track. In 131 career games, Big Papi has 31 homers and 104 RBIs against Toronto.

Triple Crown?Rays third baseman Evan Longoria is a legitimate MVP candidate and

Triple Crown threat. When Tampa Bay begins a three-game series against Oakland tonight, Longoria will be facing a player who won an MVP award and made a run at the Triple Crown just a couple of years ago. A’s outfielder Matt Holliday—then a member of the Rockies—led the N.L. with a .340 average and 137 RBIs in 2007, but his 36 homers were 14 fewer than Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder.

Fear FukudomeThe Cubs and Cardinals have split their first six games this season and will

begin another three-game set tonight at Busch Stadium. In Chicago’s three wins over St. Louis, it has scored 25 runs. In its three losses, it has managed only nine. The Cub who has done the most damage against the Cardinals in 2009 is an unlikely one: Outfielder Kosuke Fukudome is hitting .423 with two homers and 10 RBIs. Meanwhile, seven different Cardinals have homered off Cubs pitching, with third baseman Brian Barden, outfielder Ryan Ludwick and shortstop Khalil Greene going deep twice.

— Chris Bahr

INSIDE DISH

Brewers’ Weeks done for season; Surgery for Delgado

MORRY GASH / AP

Rickie Weeks, right, had been a catalyst for the surging Brewers, but a wrist injury ended his year.

TONY GUTIERREZ / AP

Ian Kinsler (5) and Josh Hamilton are big reasons the Rangers are so hot lately.

BY RYAN FAGANrfagan@sportingnews.com

If you haven’t already, start pay-ing attention to the Rangers.

They’re a legitimate threat to claim the A.L. West title. They have, as always, the hitting. Ian Kinsler is in the conversation about the best leadoff hitter in baseball, and now Josh Hamilton is back in the lineup. Chris Davis and Hank Blaylock both have double-digit homers. They have a defensive con-fidence that had been as scarce as solid starting pitching there, deep in the heart of Texas.

And they have some pretty decent pitching, with a bullpen that has started to get key outs on a regular basis (notice the four-person commit-tee that shut out the Angels on Sun-day?). And more help is on the way. Youngster Derek Holland, a future top-notch starter, is cutting his teeth in the bullpen and fellow neophyte Nef-tali Feliz will follow the same training schedule at some point this season.

There’s a long way to go for the Rangers to get back to the posteason for the first time since 1999, to be sure, but this group of players is starting to believe.

Power Poll

1. Blue Jays (1) Second baseman Aaron Hill, who already has 11 homers and 33 RBIs this season, is just about a lock to win comeback player of the year.

2. Dodgers (4) Young lefty Clayton Kershaw continued his hot-or-not pattern on Sunday, holding the Marlins hitless into the eighth inning.

3. Brewers (6) In their first two games of an N.L. Central showdown in St. Louis this weekend, starters Jeff Suppan and Manny Parra allowed a total of two runs in 13 innings.

4. Rangers (12) Now that was a homestand. The Rangers swept the Mariners and the Angels, and it wasn’t just because of their big bats.

5. Mets (21) Would have been nice to close out a four-game sweep in San Francisco but taking three of four still is pretty good.

6. Red Sox (2) The Big Papi slump is hitting critical stage. Which, at least, has deflected some of the attention from Jon Lester’s crummy start to the season (2-4, 6.51 ERA).

7. Tigers (7) Theses guys have scored at least nine runs in four of their past five games. The concern is about Armando Galarraga, who has allowed at least five earned runs each of his past four starts.

8. Yankees (17) Finally, a bit of magic in the new Yankee Stadium. Walk-off hits in three consecutive games against the Twins could be the spark this team needs.

9. Cubs (10) The loss Sunday to the Astros snapped a five-game winning streak, but there was a silver lining. Struggling Derrek Lee went 4-for-5 with a homer and a pair of RBIs.

10. Phillies (15) Funny how a four-game series against the Nationals can cure what ails a team. Brad Lidge ended his streak of five consecutive appearances with at least one earned run allowed.

11. Cardinals (3) Rough week for the Birds, who lost slugger Ryan Ludwick to the disabled list and four of five games against the Pirates and Brewers.

12. Reds (9) The week that started so well—a road sweep of the hapless Diamondbacks—ended with a road sweep (the wrong kind) by the not-as-hapless Padres.

13. Royals (8) When will Luke Hochevar figure out how to get major league hitters out? Will he ever? He had a 0.90 ERA at Class AAA Omaha, but in two starts for K.C., his ERA is 16.88.

14. Rays (18) The Rays haven’t quite been world-beaters lately, but they’re 8-4 in their past dozen, which is a start. Now, if B.J. Upton can get that average back over .200 …

15. Angels (13) The current 10-game road trip started with a thud, with three losses to the upstart Rangers. Now, four in Seattle and three “on the road” against the Dodgers.

16. Giants (14) This should be the year Bengie Molina earns his first All-Star nod; he’s batting better than .300 and leading the Giants in homers and RBIs.

17. Twins (19) If the Twins had won those three games that the Yankees claimed in dramatic fashion, they’d be tied for first place in the A.L. Central.

18. Braves (20) For all the time the Braves have spent around the .500 mark, they’re still only barely out of first. Winning at home would be a great place to start an upward trend.

19. Marlins (11) The Marlins’ fall from grace has been pretty much a team effort, but if you’re looking to assign specific blame, the top of the order isn’t a bad place to start.

20. Astros (22) This team has issues, but Pudge Rodriguez, the 37-year-old catcher the team brought in as a free agent, hasn’t been one of them.

21. Mariners (16) The Brandon Morrow debacle (pair of blown saves, demotion from closer’s job) is the negative headline for this week in Seattle.

22. Padres (24) Think the Cubs noticed that Jake Peavy pitched a complete-game four-hitter against the Central’s Reds on Sunday? Probably so.

23. Orioles (25) Interleague play (and a series against the Nationals) can’t come soon enough.

24. Pirates (26) The Bucs wrapped up a solid 4-2 homestand with an impressive 10-run seventh inning Sunday against the Rockies.

25. White Sox (21) Just 4-11 in May, the season is starting to show a disturbing trend. You, know, like going 4-11 to start a month.

26. Rockies (27) You know something’s wrong with the pitching staff when a team (the Pirates) tied its single-game scoring high (10 runs) in one inning.

27. Indians (30) At what point is Eric Wedge legitimately worried about his job security?

28. Diamondbacks (23) At what point is A.J. Hinch legitimately worried about his job security?

29. Athletics (28) What’s the over-under on the number of teams Billy Beane already has exchanged Matt Holliday-themed trade ideas with?

30. Nationals (29) After climbing out of this poll’s basement last week, the Nats promptly dropped seven of eight.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 14Baseball

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 15Baseball

American League StandingsEast W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayToronto 27 14 .659 — — 7-3 W-4 16-6 11-8Boston 22 16 .579 3½ — 5-5 L-1 13-4 9-12New York 21 17 .553 4½ 1 8-2 W-6 10-7 11-10Tampa Bay 20 20 .500 6½ 3 6-4 W-4 10-8 10-12Baltimore 16 22 .421 9½ 6 5-5 L-1 11-11 5-11

Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayDetroit 20 16 .556 — — 6-4 W-3 11-5 9-11Kansas City 20 18 .526 1 2 3-7 W-1 13-8 7-10Minnesota 18 21 .462 3½ 4½ 5-5 L-4 14-9 4-12Chicago 15 22 .405 5½ 6½ 2-8 L-5 8-8 7-14Cleveland 14 25 .359 7½ 8½ 3-7 L-3 7-11 7-14

West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayTexas 23 14 .622 — — 8-2 W-7 14-6 9-8Los Angeles 19 18 .514 4 2½ 6-4 W-1 12-8 7-10Seattle 18 21 .462 6 4½ 3-7 L-1 9-9 9-12Oakland 13 22 .371 9 7½ 4-6 L-4 8-10 5-12

National League StandingsEast W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayPhiladelphia 20 16 .556 — — 6-4 W-4 8-12 12-4New York 21 17 .553 — 1 6-4 L-2 12-8 9-9Atlanta 18 19 .486 2½ 3½ 6-4 L-2 6-11 12-8Florida 18 20 .474 3 4 3-7 L-1 7-9 11-11Washington 11 26 .297 9½ 10½ 2-8 L-5 5-12 6-14

Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayMilwaukee 24 14 .632 — — 8-2 W-6 12-7 12-7Chicago 21 15 .583 2 — 7-3 L-1 12-7 9-8St. Louis 21 17 .553 3 1 3-7 L-3 12-8 9-9Cincinnati 20 17 .541 3½ 1½ 6-4 L-3 7-9 13-8Houston 17 19 .472 6 4 6-4 W-1 8-10 9-9Pittsburgh 17 21 .447 7 5 5-5 W-3 11-9 6-12

West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home AwayLos Angeles 27 13 .675 — — 6-4 W-2 15-3 12-10San Francisco 19 18 .514 6½ 2½ 5-5 W-1 13-8 6-10San Diego 16 22 .421 10 6 4-6 W-3 11-6 5-16Colorado 15 22 .405 10½ 6½ 4-6 W-1 7-10 8-12Arizona 14 23 .378 11½ 7½ 3-7 W-1 9-15 5-8

z-first game was a win

Pitching Matchups Today’s Games (All times Eastern)

American League The Line

Baltimore (Bergesen 1-1) at N.Y. Yankees (Sabathia 3-3), 7:05 p.m. at NY -260 Bal +230

Texas (McCarthy 3-1) at Detroit (Willis 0-0), 7:05 p.m. Tex -115 at Det +105

Oakland (Outman 1-0) at Tampa Bay (J.Shields 3-4), 7:08 p.m. at TB -180 Oak +170

Toronto (Tallet 2-1) at Boston (Wakefield 4-2), 7:10 p.m. at Bos -155 Tor +145

Cleveland (Cl.Lee 2-5) at Kansas City (Bannister 3-1), 8:10 p.m. Cle -135 at KC +125

Minnesota (S.Baker 1-4) at Chicago White Sox (Buehrle 5-1), 8:11 p.m. at Chi -140 Min +130

L.A. Angels (Palmer 4-0) at Seattle (F.Hernandez 4-2), 10:10 p.m. at Sea -160 LA +150

National League The Line

Pittsburgh (Karstens 1-2) at Washington (Martis 5-0), 7:05 p.m. at Was -130 Pit +120

Philadelphia (Hamels 1-2) at Cincinnati (Cueto 4-1), 7:10 p.m. at Cin -115 Phi +105

Arizona (Garland 3-2) at Florida (Jo.Johnson 3-0), 7:10 p.m. at Flo -180 Ari +170

Colorado (Hammel 0-2) at Atlanta (Jurrjens 3-2), 7:10 p.m. at Atl -200 Col +185

Milwaukee (Bush 2-0) at Houston (Hampton 2-3), 8:05 p.m. at Hou -105 Mil -105

Chicago Cubs (Lilly 5-2) at St. Louis (Pineiro 4-3), 8:15 p.m. Chi -110 at STL +100

San Francisco (Zito 1-3) at San Diego (C.Young 2-2), 10:05 p.m. at SD -135 SF +125

N.Y. Mets (Maine 3-2) at L.A. Dodgers (Billingsley 5-1), 10:10 p.m. at LA -150 NY +140

MORE COVERAGE Get everything you need to

dominate your fantasy league at sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseball

Fantasy Focus Start ’em, Sit ’em

Start ’em Chris Young, SP, Padres. Young’s

ERA (5.56) and WHIP (1.51) are reprehensible, but he’s maintained 3.14 ERA over 10 career starts against the Giants. Young is 2-0 with a 2.37 ERA at PETCO Park.

Hunter Pence, OF, Astros. Pence will bounce back from Sunday’s 0-for-4, four-strikeout debacle. He is 5-of-11 (.455) with a homer against Milwaukee’s Dave Bush.

Andruw Jones, OF, Rangers. Jones could get a start against Detroit’s Dontrelle Willis. Jones is 15-of-48 (.313) lifetime against the D-Train.

Sit ’em Jhonny Peralta, SS, Indians. Peralta’s

bat finally is warming up, but he’s 2-of-17 (.118) lifetime against Kansas City’s Brian Bannister.

Skip Schumaker, OF, Cardinals. Schumaker is just 1-of-12 (.083) against Chicago lefthander Ted Lilly and is hitting just .211 against lefties this season.

Scott Baker, SP, Twins. Baker’s career ERA against the White Sox (6.81) is a near match with his ERA this season (6.95). Owners trolling for strikeouts will be disappointed.

— Bill Bender

LEAGUE LEADERSBatting Average

Runs

RBIs

Doubles

Triples

Home Runs

Stolen Bases

Pitching (4 decisions)

Strikeouts

Saves

A.L.

Player Team

Longoria Tampa Bay 16

Callaspo Kansas City 15

Byrd Texas 14

Lind Toronto 14

MYoung Texas 14

Markakis Baltimore 13

Polanco Detroit 13

N.L.

Player Team

FSanchez Pittsburgh 15

Hudson Los Angeles 14

HaRamirez Florida 14

Zimmerman Washington 14

Kotchman Atlanta 13

Four tied 12

A.L.

Player Team

Verlander Detroit 69

Greinke Kansas City 65

Halladay Toronto 57

Lester Boston 54

FHernandez Seattle 53

Beckett Boston 46

Garza Tampa Bay 45

N.L.

Player Team

Peavy San Diego 69

JSantana New York 67

JVazquez Atlanta 67

Lincecum San Francisco 66

Billingsley Los Angeles 56

Haren Arizona 56

Harden Chicago 53

A.L.

Player Team

Papelbon Boston 10

Fuentes Los Angeles 9

FFrancisco Texas 9

Jenks Chicago 8

Sherrill Baltimore 7

Soria Kansas City 7

MaRivera New York 7

N.L.

Player Team

FrRodriguez New York 11

Cordero Cincinnati 10

Franklin St. Louis 9

Broxton Los Angeles 9

BWilson San Francisco 9

Bell San Diego 9

Hoffman Milwaukee 9.

A.L.

Player Team

Longoria Tampa Bay 46

Bay Boston 40

Lind Toronto 35

AHill Toronto 34

Markakis Baltimore 34

Three tied 33

N.L.

Player Team

Pujols St. Louis 37

Fielder Milwaukee 36

Ibanez Philadelphia 35

Cantu Florida 33

Hawpe Colorado 32

Dunn Washington 31

Zimmerman Washington 31

A.L.

Player Team

Scutaro Toronto 36

AdJones Baltimore 35

Markakis Baltimore 35

BRoberts Baltimore 33

Bay Boston 32

Three tied 31

N.L.

Player Team

Pujols St. Louis 34

Ibanez Philadelphia 33

ASoriano Chicago 33

Zimmerman Washington 33

Werth Philadelphia 31

Hudson Los Angeles 29

Five tied 28

A.L.

Player Team

VMartinez Cleveland .401

Bartlett Tampa Bay .384

MiCabrera Detroit .375

AdJones Baltimore .370

MYoung Texas .351

AHill Toronto .345

Longoria Tampa Bay .345

N.L.

Player Team

Beltran New York .367

Votto Cincinnati .366

DWright New York .359

Zimmerman Washington .358

Ibanez Philadelphia .357

Hawpe Colorado .345

HaRamirez Florida .343

A.L.

Player Team

CPena Tampa Bay 13

Morneau Minnesota 12

Bay Boston 11

AHill Toronto 11

Kinsler Texas 11

Longoria Tampa Bay 11

Seven tied 10

N.L.

Player Team

AdGonzalez San Diego 15

Ibanez Philadelphia 13

Pujols St. Louis 13

ASoriano Chicago 12

Bruce Cincinnati 11

Dunn Washington 11

Two tied 10

A.L.

Player Team

Crawford Tampa Bay 24

Figgins Los Angeles 17

Ellsbury Boston 16

Abreu Los Angeles 14

BUpton Tampa Bay 12

Bartlett Tampa Bay 11

Crisp Kansas City 11

N.L.

Player Team

Bourn Houston 13

JosReyes New York 11

Burriss San Francisco 10

Fowler Colorado 10

Morgan Pittsburgh 10

Taveras Cincinnati 10

DWright New York 10

A.L.

Player Team

Palmer Los Angeles 4-0 1.000

Frasor Toronto 4-0 1.000

Halladay Toronto 8-1 .889

Greinke Kansas City 7-1 .875

Slowey Minnesota 5-1 .833

Buehrle Chicago 5-1 .833

N.L.

Player Team

Martis Washington 5-0 1.000

Meredith San Diego 4-0 1.000

Broxton Los Angeles 4-0 1.000

Billingsley Los Angeles 5-1 .833

Cueto Cincinnati 4-1 .800

Stults Los Angeles 4-1 .800

A.L.

Player Team

Crisp Kansas City 5

Andrus Texas 3

JBuck Kansas City 3

Crawford Tampa Bay 3

14 tied 2

N.L.

Player Team

Kemp Los Angeles 4

Bourn Houston 3

Morgan Pittsburgh 3

Victorino Philadelphia 3

Winn San Francisco 3

DWright New York 3

19 tied 2

CHRIS PARK / AP

San Diego P Chris Young

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Milwaukee 8, St. Louis 4

Brewers 8, Cardinals 4

Milwaukee AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Counsell 2b 6 0 1 0 0 1 .324Hardy ss 4 2 1 0 1 0 .220Braun lf 3 4 2 1 2 1 .328Fielder 1b 1 1 1 1 4 0 .271M.Cameron cf 2 0 0 1 2 1 .285Hart rf 4 0 0 1 1 2 .248Gamel 3b 3 1 1 3 1 1 .250c-Hall ph-3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 .260Kendall c 5 0 2 1 0 1 .234Looper p 3 0 0 0 0 2 .071DiFelice p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Stetter p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Villanueva p 1 0 0 0 0 0 .500Totals 33 8 8 8 11 10

St. Louis AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Schumaker 2b 5 1 1 2 0 0 .301Stavinoha rf 5 0 2 0 0 0 .273Pujols 1b 3 0 0 0 1 0 .321Duncan lf 3 0 0 0 1 1 .258Y.Molina c 2 0 0 0 0 0 .291McClellan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000b-Br.Ryan ph-ss 2 1 1 0 0 0 .268Rasmus cf 3 1 1 2 1 1 .248Barden 3b 3 1 0 0 0 0 .270Boyer p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---D.Reyes p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---d-K.Greene ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .202Franklin p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---T.Miller p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Lohse p 1 0 0 0 0 0 .214C.Perez p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---a-Robinson ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .240Motte p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---LaRue c 2 0 0 0 0 1 .333T.Greene ss-3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .250Totals 35 4 6 4 3 5

Milwaukee 004 012 010 — 8 8 3St. Louis 000 000 400 — 4 6 0

a-grounded out for C.Perez in the 5th. b-reached on error for McClellan in the 7th. c-struck out for Gamel in the 8th. d-struck out for D.Reyes in the 8th. E: Looper (1), Fielder (1), Gamel (1). LOB: Milwaukee 12, St. Louis 7. 2B: Hardy (5), Braun (9), T.Greene (2). HR: Gamel (1), off Lohse; Rasmus (3), off Looper; Schumaker (2), off DiFelice. RBIs: Braun (29), Fielder (36), M.Cameron (20), Hart (16), Gamel 3 (3), Kendall (14), Schumaker 2 (12), Rasmus 2 (13). SB: Br.Ryan (2). S: Looper. SF: M.Cameron. Runners left in scoring position: Milwaukee 7 (Hart 2, Counsell, Looper 2, Gamel, Hall); St. Louis 3 (Duncan 2, LaRue). DP: Milwaukee 1 (Looper, Counsell, Fielder).

Milwaukee IP H R ER BB SO NP ERALooper W, 4-2 6 3 3 1 2 0 100 4.26DiFelice 2⁄3 2 1 1 1 0 24 1.42Stetter H, 8 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 6 2.92Villanueva 2 1 0 0 0 4 30 4.74St. Louis IP H R ER BB SO NP ERALohse L, 3-3 4 4 4 4 3 5 89 4.66C.Perez 1 1 1 1 3 3 34 3.00Motte 1 1 2 2 3 0 30 4.30McClellan 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 2.60Boyer 1⁄3 1 1 1 0 0 5 12.00D.Reyes 2⁄3 0 0 0 2 1 19 3.65Franklin 2⁄3 1 0 0 0 1 10 1.10T.Miller 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 2 3.27Looper pitched to 3 batters in the 7th. Inherited runners-scored: DiFelice 1-1, Stetter 2-0, D.Reyes 1-1, T.Miller 1-0. HBP: by Lohse (Hardy). Umpires: Home, Tim Timmons; First, Gerry Davis; Second, Jeff Kellogg; Third, Mark Wegner. T: 3:21. A: 39,136 (43,975).

Brewers keep on winningST. LOUIS—Braden Looper had no idea Milwau-

kee Brewers leadoff man Rickie Weeks was out for the season until after he beat his former team. Looper had his own job to worry about.

The righthander carried a two-hitter into the seventh inning, Mat Gamel hit a three-run homer in his first career start and the Brewers completed a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals with an 8-4 victory Monday night.

“Obviously, it’s a huge loss, but to be honest I didn’t know until just a few minutes ago,” Looper said. “I’m in my own world with the headphones, not really knowing what’s going on.

“But you feel for the guy.”Jason Kendall became the eighth full-time

catcher to reach 2,000 hits for the Brewers, who have won 12 of 14 overall and 10 of 11 over the Cardinals the last two seasons. They won their sixth in a row hours after learning Weeks will miss the rest of the season with a wrist injury, and are a major league-best 20-5 since a 4-9 start.

“I love Rickie, and I told everybody that,” Mil-waukee manager Ken Macha said. “He’s a tre-mendous guy but we need to go out and play, too.”

Craig Counsell, who replaced Weeks in the leadoff spot and at second base, was 1 for 6.

Kyle Lohse (3-3) struggled with control on two days’ rest after working two innings in Friday’s rainout, trailing 4-0 after four innings while throwing 89 pitches. Colby Rasmus and Skip Schumaker hit two-run homers in the seventh for St. Louis, which totaled two runs the first two games in the series.

“Everything was up,” Lohse said. “About eight

at-bats went six pitches or more and anytime you have that, you’re working really hard and they’re seeing everything you’ve got.

“You leave one up, and they hit it.”The Cardinals converted Looper (4-2) to a

starter in 2007 and he settled for a free-agent deal with Milwaukee after going 12-14 last year. Rasmus’ third homer off Looper came after first baseman Prince Fielder’s fielding error to start the seventh and represented St. Louis’ first earned run off him in 23 career innings over 17 appearances, the first 16 in relief.

Looper, though 62-60 for his career, is the winningest pitcher at 4-year-old Busch Stadium with a 21-13 record and 3.52 ERA.

“You obviously want to win every game, but I have a lot of friends over there and people I’ve played with for quite a few years,” Looper said. “I’d be lying if I didn’t say it’s a little extra sweet.”

Cardinals pitchers combined for 11 walks in the finale, and 23 in the series. Fielder had an RBI single and walked four times for the second time in his career—the first also came in St. Louis on April 15, 2008.

Looper said umpire Tim Timmons’ strike zone was minuscule for both teams, venting his frustration before leaving the mound.

“Luckily we got the four runs,” Looper said. “So I just kept trying to throw the ball down the middle, to be honest with you, just to get a strike.”

Gamel was recalled from Class AAA Nash-ville on Thursday. He had one at-bat this season before getting the start at third base.

— The Associated Press Mat Gamel’s three-run home run, his first in the majors, in the third inning gave Milwaukee a 4-0 lead.

TOM GANNAM / AP

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 16Baseball

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Rockies 5, Braves 1

Colorado AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Fowler cf 4 1 1 1 0 1 .250Tulowitzki ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 .250Helton 1b 4 1 0 1 0 0 .336Hawpe rf 4 0 0 0 0 1 .345Iannetta c 4 1 2 1 0 0 .244S.Smith lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .294Spilborghs lf 1 0 1 1 0 0 .270Stewart 3b 3 0 0 0 1 0 .198Barmes 2b 4 1 1 0 0 0 .238Marquis p 3 0 0 0 0 0 .235b-Atkins ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .194Street p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Totals 35 5 6 4 1 3

Atlanta AB R H BI BB SO Avg.K.Johnson 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .225O’Flaherty p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Moylan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Escobar ss 3 0 1 0 1 0 .304C.Jones 3b 3 1 1 0 1 0 .314G.Anderson lf 4 0 1 0 0 0 .239McCann c 2 0 1 0 1 0 .282Kotchman 1b 3 0 0 0 0 1 .289Francoeur rf 3 0 0 0 0 1 .247Schafer cf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .215D.Lowe p 2 0 1 0 0 1 .143a-Infante ph-2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 .337Totals 28 1 5 0 3 3

Colorado 001 001 003 — 5 6 0Atlanta 000 100 000 — 1 5 2

a-flied out for D.Lowe in the 8th. b-fouled out for Marquis in the 9th. E: C.Jones (5), Escobar (4). LOB: Colorado 4, Atlanta 3. 2B: Fowler (7). RBIs: Fowler (10), Helton (22), Iannetta (17), Spilborghs (17). SB: Spilborghs (6). Runners left in scoring position: Colorado 2 (Tulowitzki, Atkins); Atlanta 3 (G.Anderson, Schafer, Francoeur). DP: Colorado 4 (Helton, Tulowitzki, Marquis), (Tulowitzki, Barmes, Helton), (Barmes, Tulow-itzki, Helton), (Barmes, Tulowitzki, Helton); Atlanta 1 (Escobar, K.Johnson, Kotchman).

Colorado IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAMarquis W, 5-3 8 5 1 1 3 3 103 4.75Street 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 3.86Atlanta IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAD.Lowe L, 5-2 8 3 2 2 1 3 109 3.58O’Flaherty 1⁄3 1 2 1 0 0 11 2.45Moylan 2⁄3 2 1 0 0 0 21 5.93

Inherited runners-scored: Moylan 2-2. PB: Ian-netta. Umpires: Home, Jeff Nelson; First, Mark Carlson; Second, Tim Tschida; Third, Bob Davidson. T: 2:30. A: 15,364 (49,743).

Colorado 5, Atlanta 1

Fewest fans ever at Turner Field see Braves fall to 6-11 at homeATLANTA—Jason Marquis got the bet-

ter of Derek Lowe in a pitchers’ duel and there weren’t a whole lot of people there to see it.

The righthanders went at it for eight innings before Colorado added three runs against two relievers in the ninth for a 5-1 victory over Atlanta on Monday night.

The Braves dropped to 6-11 at Turner Field this season, and the lat-est loss was in front of 15,364, the smallest paid crowd since the sta-dium opened in 1997.

Marquis had the right strategy to keep Atlanta’s hitters off balance.

“I pounded the bottom of the strike zone,” he said. “I was able to attack the strike zone and put the ball on the ground.”

Marquis (5-3) scattered five hits and allowed one run in eight innings to end a two-start losing streak. He struck out three and walked three.

Marquis gave up 16 runs—14 earned—in his previous two starts, a span of 9 2/3 innings against San Francisco and Houston. Even so, the right-hander believes his talent doesn’t match his career 4.56 ERA.

“I feel like every time I get the ball, I’m going to shut them down,” Mar-quis said. “I’m out there every pitch battling.”

Lowe (5-2) was attempting to become the N.L.’s first six-game win-ner. He allowed two runs, three hits and one walk in eight innings, losing for the first time in five starts. He dropped to 7-7 against the Rockies, but improved his ERA 20 points to 4.50 in 17 career starts.

“They beat us at every aspect of the

game, and that’s ultimately why we came up a little short,” Lowe said. “They did a good job of manufactur-ing a run in the sixth inning and that was the ball game.”

Colorado, which had lost three out of four and seven of 10, snapped a two-game losing streak.

The Braves have lost two straight and three of four.

“We hit three bullets in the eighth inning,” said Braves manager Bobby Cox, whose team grounded into a season-high four double plays. “That was a game-changer. We didn’t have any luck at all. We had one hit less than they did, and they got five runs. Figure that one out.”

Dexter Fowler, who gave Colorado a 1-0 lead in the third with an RBI groundout, doubled leading off the sixth. He moved to third on a ground-out and made it 2-1 on Todd Helton’s RBI fielder’s choice grounder.

Atlanta tied it at 1 in the sixth on a double-play grounder by Casey Kotchman.

The Rockies scored three runs in the ninth. Eric O’Flaherty, who relieved Lowe to start the inning, was charged with two runs after Troy Tulowitzki singled and Helton reached on shortstop Yunel Escobar’s fielding error.

Peter Moylan, who relieved O’Flaherty, gave up consecutive RBI singles to Chris Iannetta and pinch-hitter Ryan Spilborghs. Iannetta scored from third on Clint Barmes’ grounder, which third baseman Chipper Jones misplayed for an error.

Marquis, whom Atlanta drafted between the first and second rounds

in 1996, came up through the Braves’ farm system and made his debut in the majors four years later. He was traded to St. Louis the following win-ter after a 2003 season that included 19 relief appearances, two starts and

a 0-0 record with a 5.53 ERA.“He kept us off balance,” Braves

catcher Brian McCann said. “A lot of

us were swinging at stuff out of the zone.”

— The Associated Press

JOHN BAZEMORE / AP

Colorado 3B Ian Stewart barehands a ball hit by Atlanta’s Yunel Escobar, who eventually reached first base in the first inning.

The Arizona-Florida game was rained out and will be played Wednesday at 5:10 p.m. as part of a doubleheader.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 17Baseball

NATIONAL LEAGUE AMERICAN LEAGUE

Pittsburgh 12, Washington 7 N.Y. Yankees 7, Minnesota 6

Yankees 7, Twins 6

Minnesota AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Span lf 5 1 2 2 0 0 .288B.Harris 2b 5 1 2 0 0 0 .296Mauer c 4 1 1 1 1 0 .417Morneau 1b 5 0 4 1 0 1 .340Crede 3b 4 0 0 0 1 1 .2231-Tolbert pr 0 1 0 0 0 0 .179Kubel dh 4 0 0 0 1 2 .326Cuddyer rf 4 1 1 2 1 0 .252Gomez cf 3 1 2 0 1 0 .242Punto ss 4 0 1 0 0 0 .196a-Redmond ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .250Totals 39 6 13 6 5 4

New York AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Jeter ss 5 1 2 0 0 1 .275Damon lf 4 1 1 0 1 1 .322Teixeira 1b 4 2 2 4 0 0 .239A.Rodriguez dh 3 1 1 1 1 1 .188Swisher rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 .236Cano 2b 4 1 2 0 0 0 .301Me.Cabrera cf 4 1 2 1 0 1 .317R.Pena 3b 4 0 1 0 0 0 .263Cervelli c 2 0 2 1 0 0 .375Totals 34 7 13 7 2 4

Minnesota 200 101 011 — 6 13 1New York 600 000 10x — 7 13 0

a-grounded out for Punto in the 9th. 1-ran for Crede in the 9th. E: Punto (3). LOB: Minnesota 12, New York 7. 2B: B.Harris (4), Morneau 2 (11), Cano (10). HR: Cud-dyer (4), off Pettitte; Span (2), off E.Ramirez; Teixeira (9), off Perkins; A.Rodriguez (4), off Perkins; Teixeira (10), off Ayala. RBIs: Span 2 (20), Mauer (17), Morneau (33), Cuddyer 2 (20), Teixeira 4 (28), A.Rodriguez (8), Me.Cabrera (14), Cervelli (2). SB: Gomez (4). CS: Punto (1), Cano (1). S: Cervelli 2. Runners left in scoring position: Minnesota 6 (B.Harris 2, Kubel 2, Gomez 2); New York 4 (Damon 4). DP: Minnesota 1 (Punto, B.Harris, Morneau).

Minnesota IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAPerkins L, 1-3 2⁄3 7 6 6 0 0 34 5.36Dickey 4 1⁄3 3 0 0 1 1 60 3.63Ayala 1 1⁄3 3 1 1 1 2 23 5.71Breslow 2⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 16 6.75Crain 1 0 0 0 0 0 9 8.25New York IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAPettitte W, 4-1 6 2⁄3 12 4 4 1 3 105 4.18Veras H, 2 1⁄3 0 0 0 1 0 6 6.61E.Ramirez H, 1 2⁄3 1 1 1 1 0 22 5.19Coke S, 1-3 1 1⁄3 0 1 1 2 1 36 4.76

Breslow pitched to 1 batter in the 8th. Inherited runners-scored: Dickey 1-0, Breslow 1-0, Crain 1-0, Veras 2-0, Coke 1-0. HBP: by Pettitte (Gomez). WP: Coke. PB: Mauer. Balk: Perkins. Umpires: Home, John Hirschbeck; First, Wally Bell; Second, Marty Foster; Third, Mike Estabrook. T: 3:29. A: 43,244 (52,325).

Pirates 12, Nationals 7

Pittsburgh AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Delw.Young rf 6 1 2 2 0 3 .351F.Sanchez 2b 5 1 1 0 0 2 .307McLouth cf 4 1 1 1 0 1 .293Monroe lf 5 1 1 3 0 1 .244Ad.LaRoche 1b 3 2 0 0 2 1 .230R.Diaz c 3 1 0 0 1 0 .318An.LaRoche 3b 4 1 1 1 0 1 .261Ja.Wilson ss 4 3 4 2 1 0 .293Ohlendorf p 2 0 0 0 0 1 .059b-Moss ph 1 1 1 1 0 0 .255J.Chavez p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Gorzelanny p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---c-Hinske ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .254Grabow p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---e-R.Vazquez ph 1 0 1 2 0 0 .190Capps p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Totals 39 12 12 12 4 10

Washington AB R H BI BB SO Avg.C.Guzman ss 4 1 2 0 1 0 .385N.Johnson 1b 2 2 1 3 3 0 .336Zimmerman 3b 5 1 2 1 0 0 .358Dunn rf 3 0 0 1 1 1 .286Willingham lf 5 0 2 0 0 1 .221W.Harris cf 5 2 1 0 0 0 .244A.Hernandez 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 .277K.Wells p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Beimel p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---d-Kearns ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .216Hanrahan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---J.Bard c 4 1 2 2 0 0 .208Detwiler p 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000a-Cintron ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .080Mock p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Colome p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Belliard 2b 1 0 0 0 1 1 .200Totals 35 7 11 7 6 4

Pittsburgh 003 005 013 — 12 12 0Washington 000 050 011 — 7 11 4

a-flied out for Detwiler in the 5th. b-doubled for Ohlendorf in the 6th. c-grounded out for Gorzelanny in the 8th. d-struck out for Beimel in the 8th. e-doubled for Grabow in the 9th. E: C.Guzman 2 (5), N.Johnson (5), A.Hernandez (4). LOB: Pittsburgh 7, Washington 8. 2B: McLouth (6), Ja.Wilson 2 (6), Moss (6), R.Vazquez (1), C.Guzman (9), Zim-merman (14), Willingham (5), W.Harris (2), J.Bard 2 (2). 3B: Ja.Wilson (1). HR: Monroe (3), off Detwiler; N.Johnson (4), off Ohlendorf; Zimmerman (10), off Ohlendorf. RBIs: Delw.Young 2 (7), McLouth (29), Monroe 3 (14), An.LaRoche (16), Ja.Wilson 2 (13), Moss (7), R.Vazquez 2 (6), N.Johnson 3 (24), Zimmerman (31), Dunn (31), J.Bard 2 (2). CS: F.Sanchez (1), R.Diaz (1), C.Guzman (2). S: An.LaRoche. SF: Dunn. Runners left in scoring position: Pittsburgh 4 (Ad.LaRoche, Delw.Young 2, Monroe); Washington 5 (Willingham, Dunn 2, C.Guzman, W.Harris). DP: Pittsburgh 1 (Ja.Wilson, F.Sanchez, Ad.LaRoche).

Pittsburgh IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAOhlendorf W, 5-3 5 6 5 5 3 1 91 4.31J.Chavez H, 3 1 2⁄3 2 0 0 1 1 26 2.20Gorzelanny H, 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 5 0.00Grabow 1 2 1 1 1 1 33 5.50Capps 1 1 1 1 1 0 23 7.62Washington IP H R ER BB SO NP ERADetwiler 5 4 3 2 0 6 84 3.60Mock L, 0-2 BS, 2-2 1⁄3 1 3 3 1 0 15 6.92Colome 2⁄3 3 2 2 0 0 20 22.50K.Wells 1 2⁄3 2 1 1 1 2 31 6.00Beimel 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 3 4.50Hanrahan 1 2 3 3 2 2 32 6.75

Inherited runners-scored: Gorzelanny 2-0, Colome 1-1, Beimel 1-0. HBP: by Mock (R.Diaz), by Detwiler (McLouth). WP: Mock, Hanrahan. PB: R.Diaz. Umpires: Home, Paul Nauert; First, Joe West; Second, Ed Rapuano; Third, Chad Fairchild. T: 3:30. A: 14,549 (41,888).

NEW YORK—Mark Teixeira was hitting .198 on May 8 with five homers and 15 RBIs. Since Alex Rodriguez returned to the lineup that night, Teixeira has raised his average to .239, doubled his home run total and increased his RBIs to 29.

“Pitchers are just making a few more mistakes,” Teixeira said. “It puts a lot of pressure on them when Alex is in the lineup and, you know, a pitcher is not going to want to get into deep counts and maybe walk me with a guy like A-Rod behind me.”

Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate, combining with Rodriguez for back-to-back drives in a six-run first inning against ailing Glen Per-kins, and New York beat the Minnesota Twins 7-6 on a chilly Monday night to complete a four-game sweep.

After stringing together three straight walk-off wins for the first time since 1972, the Yankees overcame a 2-0 first-inning deficit and hung on to extend their winning streak to a sea-son-high six. New York improved to 23-3 at home against the Twins during the regular season since the start of 2002.

“I can’t wait to get out of here,” Min-nesota’s Denard Span said. “Not just the stadium, but the whole city.”

Andy Pettitte (4-1) won consecutive starts for the first time this year, allow-ing four runs and 12 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Jose Veras escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh and Phil Coke got four outs for his first career save, finishing as Mariano Rivera was given a night off.

“It’s hard,” Coke said. “I’m com-pletely and totally gassed right now.”

Span homered off Edwar Ramirez in the eighth and Coke faced Justin Morneau with a runner on. Morneau had four hits against Pettitte and had homered off Coke on a slider Saturday but struck out against him this time on fastballs away.

Coke then allowed an RBI grounder in the ninth to Michael Cuddyer before retiring pinch-hitter Mike Redmond on a game-ending grounder.

Coke was so overwhelmed he made a point of finding Rivera in the back of the clubhouse to tell him of his new-found appreciation for the closer’s role.

“Hey, you’re way better at that than me,” Coke recalled telling him.

— The Associated Press

Teixeira starting to get it going for YankeesPirates latest to pick on Nats

WASHINGTON—Jack Wilson already had a single and a pair of doubles when he ripped his first triple of the year, a drive into the right-field corner in the eighth inning.

“I’m not going to lie,” the 31-year-old shortstop said. “I got to third base and said, ‘I’m getting old.’ ”

Not to worry. After all, it was a near certainty that the many of the Pitts-burgh Pirates would get tired running the bases Monday night. They’ve been scoring runs aplenty, and no one gives them up like the Washington Nationals.

The Pirates have tallied 30 runs in a three-game winning streak, and they faced little resistance in a 12-7 win that opened a 10-game road trip. The Nationals made four errors and had another lead-blowing bullpen implo-sion, standard fare for the team with the worst record, pitching and fielding in the majors.

“It was just sad to see the way things are going with our bullpen. I’ve been in the game for a while, and I’ve never seen anything like it before,” Washing-ton manager Manny Acta said. “We have to change it up because it’s not working. We went to young guys, vet-eran guys, and veterans or young, they’re not getting it done.”

A five-run sixth inning spurred Pittsburgh’s win, which ended an eight-game road losing streak. Ross Ohlendorf (5-3) picked up the victory despite allowing four extra-base hits in a five-run fifth, and Craig Monroe hit a three-run homer.

“We’re swinging the bats well,” Pittsburgh manager John Russell said.

So are the Nationals, who have lost five straight despite scoring at least five runs in every game. But they also began the day with 37 errors, five more than any team in baseball.

— The Associated Press

Washington’s Cristian Guzman has the look of frustration as the team gave up three runs in the ninth.

EVAN VUCCI / AP

Mark Teixeira hit two home runs on Monday, including one in the seventh that proved to be the difference against the Twins.

KATHY WILLENS / AP

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 18Baseball

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Rays 13, Athletics 4

Oakland AB R H BI BB SO Avg.O.Cabrera ss 3 1 1 1 0 0 .233Cunningham lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000K.Suzuki c 4 1 1 0 0 0 .320Cust dh 4 1 2 2 0 1 .270Holliday lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .261Hannahan 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 .133Giambi 1b 2 0 0 1 0 0 .200Powell 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 .194Kennedy 2b 4 0 2 0 0 0 .367R.Sweeney cf 3 0 1 0 0 0 .250b-R.Davis ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .179Crosby 3b-ss 4 0 0 0 0 0 .224T.Buck rf 3 1 2 0 0 1 .225Totals 34 4 9 4 0 3

Tampa Bay AB R H BI BB SO Avg.B.Upton cf 3 1 0 0 1 1 .183Gross rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 .254Crawford lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .327a-Kapler ph-cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 .212Longoria 3b 5 2 2 0 0 1 .345C.Pena 1b 2 3 1 0 3 1 .248Zobrist rf-lf 3 1 0 1 2 2 .279W.Aybar dh 2 3 1 1 2 0 .263Bartlett ss 3 3 3 5 1 0 .384Iwamura 2b 4 0 2 3 0 1 .291M.Hernandez c 4 0 0 1 0 2 .258Totals 32 13 9 11 9 10

Oakland 101 000 020 — 4 9 0Tampa Bay 603 022 00x — 13 9 1

a-grounded out for Crawford in the 6th. b-fouled out for R.Sweeney in the 9th. E: Bartlett (3). LOB: Oakland 4, Tampa Bay 5. 2B: T.Buck (2). 3B: Bartlett (2). HR: O.Cabrera (2), off Niemann; Cust (6), off Niemann. RBIs: O.Cabrera (12), Cust 2 (23), Giambi (17), Zobrist (20), W.Aybar (6), Bartlett 5 (22), Iwamura 3 (15), M.Hernandez (8). SF: Giambi. Runners left in scor-ing position: Oakland 2 (Kennedy, Crosby); Tampa Bay 2 (B.Upton, Iwamura). DP: Oakland 1 (O.Cabrera, Kennedy, Giambi); Tampa Bay 2 (Longoria, Iwamura, C.Pena), (Longoria, Iwamura, C.Pena).

Oakland IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAGallagher L, 1-2 2 1⁄3 3 9 7 5 1 76 8.16G.Gonzalez 3 2⁄3 6 4 4 3 6 91 7.27K.Cameron 2 0 0 0 1 3 33 2.45Tampa Bay IP H R ER BB SO NP ERANiemann W, 4-3 8 8 4 3 0 3 110 4.97Isringhausen 1 1 0 0 0 0 17 0.00

Inherited runners-scored: G.Gonzalez 3-3. HBP: by Gallagher (W.Aybar). WP: Gallagher. PB: K.Suzuki. Umpires: Home, Mike Winters; First, Lance Barksdale; Second, Alfonso Marquez; Third, Randy Marsh. T: 2:55. A: 11,420 (36,973).

Blue Jays 3, White Sox 2

Chicago AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Podsednik cf 4 0 1 0 0 1 .271J.Nix lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 .241Dye rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 .273Thome dh 3 1 1 2 1 2 .240Konerko 1b 4 0 1 0 0 2 .316Pierzynski c 4 0 0 0 0 0 .266Al.Ramirez ss 3 0 1 0 1 1 .214Getz 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .238Fields 3b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .224Totals 34 2 7 2 2 8

Toronto AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Scutaro ss 1 1 0 0 2 0 .284A.Hill 2b 3 0 1 1 0 0 .345Rios rf 4 0 1 1 0 0 .265V.Wells cf 3 0 0 0 1 0 .259Lind lf 3 0 0 0 0 1 .322Snider lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 .240Rolen 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 .318Millar 1b 3 1 2 1 0 0 .299R.Chavez c 3 0 0 0 0 1 .241Bautista dh 2 1 0 0 1 1 .301Totals 25 3 4 3 4 3

Chicago 000 000 020 — 2 7 1Toronto 011 000 01x — 3 4 0

E: Podsednik (2). LOB: Chicago 7, Toronto 4. 3B: Pod-sednik (1), Rios (2). HR: Thome (7), off Carlson; Millar (2), off Richard. RBIs: Thome 2 (20), A.Hill (34), Rios (21), Millar (13). SB: J.Nix 2 (2), Bautista (3). S: Scutaro. SF: A.Hill. Runners left in scoring position: Chicago 3 (J.Nix, Thome, Fields); Toronto 2 (Lind, V.Wells). GIDP: A.Hill, Rios. DP: Chicago 2 (Fields, Getz, Konerko), (Rich-ard, Al.Ramirez, Konerko).

Chicago IP H R ER BB SO NP ERARichard 7 3 2 1 3 3 94 4.33Dotel L, 1-1 1 1 1 1 1 0 21 0.68Toronto IP H R ER BB SO NP ERARichmond 7 5 0 0 1 7 109 3.64Carlson W, 1-2 BS, 2-2 1 2 2 2 0 0 18 3.43Downs S, 5-5 1 0 0 0 1 1 16 1.86

WP: Richard. Umpires: Home, Sam Holbrook; First, Charlie Reliford; Second, Adrian Johnson; Third, Dan Iassogna. T: 2:18. A: 24,206 (49,539).

Tampa Bay 13, Oakland 4Toronto 3, Chicago White Sox 2

Bartlett’s hot bat does it againJays rally, continue to hand it to White SoxST. PETERSBURG, FLA.—Jason Bar-

tlett goes about his business quietly with the A.L. champion Rays, content to stay out of the spotlight in a clubhouse full of rising young stars.

The slick-fielding shortstop solidified Tampa Bay’s defense during last season’s run to the World Series. Now, his hot bat is one of the reasons the team has been able to put together a season-best four-game winning streak and is back to .500 for the first time since mid-April.

“I know he played really well last year. But at no point did I see him play this well,” man-ager Joe Maddon said after Bar-tlett drove in a career-high five runs in Monday night’s 13-4 rout of the Oakland Athletics. “I’m talking a complete game.”

Bartlett went 3-for-3 with a walk to raise his batting aver-age to .384. He had a two-run single off Sean Gallagher (1-2) in the first, as well as a run-scoring triple in the fifth and a two-run single in the sixth off Gio Gonzalez.

Jason Isringhausen, who came off the disabled list Sun-day, pitched the ninth for Tampa Bay—his first appearance in a major league game since under-going right elbow surgery in September, when he was with the St. Louis Cardinals.

“It was good to get out there,” said Isringhausen, who had last thrown in a game Aug. 16 at Cincinnati.

— The Associated Press

TORONTO—The Chicago White Sox can’t get out of Canada quickly enough.

Alex Rios hit a go-ahead triple in the eighth inning Monday and the Toronto Blue Jays completed a four-game sweep, beating the Chicago White Sox 3-2.

Chicago lost its season-high fifth in a row and has dropped 10 straight at Toronto.

“It seems like every time we come to Toronto ... we can’t do anything,” Chicago catcher A.J. Pierzynski said.

After Jim Thome tied it in the top of the eighth with his 548th career home run, Toronto bounced back against Octavio Dotel (1-1).

The Blue Jays own the A.L.’s best record at 27-14. They start a nine-game road trip Tuesday night at Fenway Park when they play Boston for the first time this season.

For Toronto’s Kevin Millar, who hit a solo homer, it’s a return to the city where he won the 2004 World Series.

“It’s a part of you, no matter what,” Mil-lar said. “I had some good years back there. It’s a fun place to play, one of my favorite parks and it’s nice going there leading the East.”

Chicago scored just eight runs in this series and went 2-for-23 with runners in scoring position.

“We’ve got guys, especially at the plate, trying too hard and I’m one of them,” Pier-zynski said.”

The White Sox finished 1-6 on its road trip that started in Cleveland, a week that manager Ozzie Guillen described before the game as “horrible.”

“It’s kind of a crazy week,” Guillen said afterward. “I can’t describe it. We’re losing games in different ways all the time, late in the game, early in the game, by a lot of runs, by a few runs. There’s so many

different ways to lose, you can’t describe each of them.”

The White Sox have lost 12 of 15 since May 2 to drop from first to fourth in the A.L. Central.

“We should be embarrassed because I think we’ve got a better ballclub than we’re showing right now,” Guillen said.

Dotel had not allowed a run in 14 games this season, a span of 12 1/3 innings, when he relieved in the eighth with the score 2-all.

Jose Bautista drew a leadoff walk and moved up on Marco Scutaro’s sacrifice. Bautista stole third with one out, racing in without a throw as Dotel looked in for the sign while third baseman Josh Fields played well behind the bag.

Rios scored Bautista with a triple that

skipped past a diving Scott Podsednik in center field.

“You can’t keep bad things in your mind,” Dotel said. “Bad things, you’ve got to throw away as soon as possible and just look for the next day. Today is over, there’s nothing we can do right now. If there was, it would be nice, but there’s nothing we can do. We’ve just got to think about tomorrow.”

Toronto led 2-0 until Thome’s two-run homer. He tied Mike Schmidt for 13th on baseball’s career home run list.

“It’s nice to do things like that but you definitely want to win the game, that’s No. 1,” Thome said. “We’ve got to go back home and get back on track, start swinging the bats and start winning some games.”

— The Associated Press

FRANK GUNN/ AP

Alex Rios hit the go-ahead triple during the eighth inning that gave Toronto the lead for good.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 19Baseball

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 20Baseball

ARIZONADIAMONDBACKS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Parra .385 .429 13 3 5 0 2 1 5 1 0 0 2 0

Roberts .320 .419 25 3 8 1 0 0 3 4 9 1 0 0

Lopez .317 .375 145 18 46 12 0 4 9 13 26 4 1 4

Ojeda .310 .383 71 9 22 4 0 1 3 8 7 0 1 2

Upton .310 .394 116 22 36 8 2 7 19 15 33 3 1 1

Reynolds .244 .338 127 21 31 5 1 8 16 17 47 4 1 7

Montero .240 .321 50 4 12 4 0 2 6 6 13 0 0 4

Drew .214 .297 56 5 12 3 1 2 7 7 11 0 1 0

Snyder .214 .371 70 8 15 4 0 2 13 17 20 0 0 0

Byrnes .210 .257 100 12 21 8 0 4 14 6 10 5 2 0

Tracy .193 .247 88 10 17 7 0 2 9 7 9 0 0 0

Jackson .182 .264 99 8 18 4 0 1 14 11 16 5 0 2

Clark .179 .258 28 3 5 1 0 2 5 3 15 0 0 1

Young .177 .227 124 13 22 9 1 2 8 7 33 4 2 0

Whitesell .115 .258 26 0 3 1 0 0 0 5 7 0 0 1

Team Totals .234 .310 1236 144 289 75 7 38 138 131 287 26 11 28

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Pena 3 1 1.56 18 0 0 17.1 15 5 3 0 5 12

Haren 3 4 2.09 8 8 0 56.0 39 13 13 4 9 56

Schoeneweis 0 0 2.53 19 0 0 10.2 11 3 3 2 4 6

Qualls 0 0 2.57 13 0 8 14.0 13 4 4 1 2 17

Davis 2 5 3.22 8 8 0 50.1 43 19 18 9 16 35

Scherzer 1 3 3.35 7 7 0 37.2 33 15 14 4 17 33

Rosales 0 0 3.38 4 0 0 5.1 5 2 2 0 1 4

Gutierrez 1 2 3.66 18 0 0 19.2 18 8 8 1 7 25

Garland 3 2 5.18 7 7 0 41.2 48 25 24 5 16 16

Vasquez 1 1 5.40 9 0 0 11.2 13 7 7 1 7 9

Rauch 0 0 6.60 18 0 0 15.0 21 13 11 1 9 10

Augenstein 0 1 7.11 1 1 0 6.1 8 5 5 0 2 3

Petit 0 3 8.03 6 5 0 24.2 33 24 22 8 10 19

Webb 0 0 13.50 1 1 0 4.0 6 6 6 2 2 2

Gordon 0 1 21.60 3 0 0 1.2 3 4 4 0 3 0

Team Totals 14 23 4.43 37 37 8 331.0 333 172 163 40 120 256

ATLANTABRAVES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Infante .337 .367 83 12 28 4 0 1 10 5 7 1 0 2

C. Jones .314 .443 105 20 33 6 1 4 14 24 15 1 1 5

Escobar .304 .375 135 21 41 10 0 3 18 13 16 1 1 4

Prado .295 .367 44 4 13 6 0 2 7 5 3 0 1 1

Kotchman .289 .355 128 11 37 13 0 2 15 11 16 0 0 0

McCann .282 .388 71 11 20 5 0 3 12 11 8 1 1 2

Ross .264 .381 53 8 14 4 0 3 9 10 21 0 0 0

Diaz .261 .342 69 8 18 3 1 2 14 8 18 1 0 1

Francoeur .247 .266 146 18 36 4 2 3 19 5 19 0 1 0

Anderson .239 .280 67 6 16 5 0 0 8 5 5 0 0 2

Johnson .225 .306 111 14 25 5 1 3 11 11 17 1 1 2

Schafer .215 .349 121 13 26 7 0 2 4 25 45 1 1 0

Norton .130 .333 23 2 3 1 0 0 2 7 7 0 0 0

Team Totals .259 .342 1241 157 322 74 5 28 146 151 228 7 7 23

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Soriano 0 0 1.59 17 0 3 17.0 10 3 3 1 6 24

Jurrjens 3 2 2.06 8 8 0 48.0 39 12 11 3 17 24

O'Flaherty 0 0 2.45 19 0 0 14.2 10 5 4 0 1 7

Bennett 1 1 2.60 17 0 0 17.1 25 6 5 0 12 13

Lowe 5 2 3.58 9 9 0 55.1 47 22 22 2 20 37

Vazquez 3 3 3.71 8 8 0 53.1 47 23 22 6 13 67

Gonzalez 2 0 3.78 19 0 6 16.2 14 8 7 2 5 23

Parr 0 0 4.50 7 0 0 10.0 10 5 5 0 4 7

Campillo 1 0 5.40 4 0 0 3.1 6 3 2 0 3 3

Kawakami 2 5 5.73 7 7 0 37.2 42 27 24 5 19 35

Moylan 1 2 5.93 20 0 0 13.2 11 10 9 0 10 13

Reyes 0 2 6.58 5 5 0 26.0 25 23 19 4 12 20

Carlyle 0 1 8.27 12 0 0 16.1 25 17 15 3 9 10

Team Totals 18 19 4.19 37 37 9 330.2 314 170 154 26 134 285

CHICAGO CUBS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Ramirez .364 .417 66 8 24 3 0 4 16 5 8 0 0 1

Fukudome .333 .454 114 24 38 9 1 4 17 25 21 4 4 0

Scales .333 .407 24 7 8 2 1 1 5 3 6 0 0 1

Hoffpauir .309 .368 68 9 21 5 0 4 13 7 12 0 0 1

Hill .306 .405 36 5 11 2 0 1 6 5 9 0 0 0

Theriot .294 .366 136 22 40 7 2 5 18 15 23 7 2 4

Soriano .280 .343 150 33 42 9 0 12 25 13 35 4 2 2

Johnson .236 .317 55 8 13 1 1 0 6 4 9 0 0 0

Lee .226 .300 106 15 24 6 0 4 18 12 25 0 0 0

Miles .217 .270 83 12 18 6 0 0 4 6 13 3 0 1

Fontenot .204 .307 108 12 22 4 0 5 17 16 25 1 1 2

Soto .204 .324 93 8 19 3 0 1 10 15 21 0 0 1

Bradley .195 .333 77 11 15 1 0 4 9 13 19 0 0 0

Freel .143 .143 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0

Team Totals .256 .339 1221 182 312 61 5 46 171 144 268 20 11 20

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Wells 0 0 0.00 2 2 0 11.0 9 0 0 0 5 9

Lilly 5 2 3.27 7 7 0 44.0 37 17 16 9 9 38

Guzman 1 0 3.32 16 0 0 19.0 12 7 7 2 6 19

Marmol 0 1 4.00 20 0 3 18.0 12 9 8 1 17 22

Marshall 2 2 4.02 8 5 0 31.1 32 14 14 4 10 20

Zambrano 3 1 4.50 6 6 0 38.0 40 20 19 4 14 33

Dempster 3 2 4.65 8 8 0 50.1 44 27 26 7 21 46

Harden 4 2 4.74 8 8 0 43.2 39 24 23 8 21 53

Heilman 2 2 4.86 18 0 0 16.2 14 10 9 2 12 14

Cotts 0 1 5.87 15 0 0 7.2 9 5 5 1 9 6

Gregg 0 1 6.06 18 0 6 16.1 19 11 11 4 10 19

Ascanio 0 0 6.75 2 0 0 4.0 2 3 3 1 0 5

Patton 1 1 8.03 9 0 0 12.1 13 12 11 2 9 11

Fox 0 0 135.00 2 0 0 0.1 2 5 5 0 3 0

Team Totals 21 15 4.50 36 36 9 319.2 293 167 160 45 148 303

CINCINNATIREDS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Votto .366 .470 112 18 41 10 0 5 27 20 21 2 1 3

Janish .313 .389 32 3 10 3 0 0 2 2 7 0 0 1

Hanigan .311 .360 45 5 14 1 0 0 2 4 2 0 0 0

Nix .294 .338 68 13 20 10 1 3 9 5 22 0 0 0

Taveras .293 .351 133 26 39 6 1 1 7 11 17 10 1 1

Hernandez .283 .349 113 9 32 5 0 1 13 11 13 0 0 2

Rosales .271 .353 59 9 16 2 0 2 6 6 9 0 2 1

Phillips .262 .336 130 18 34 7 0 6 27 16 16 4 3 3

Hairston Jr. .247 .298 97 21 24 7 1 3 9 6 16 4 0 2

Bruce .231 .309 134 22 31 4 0 11 23 13 26 3 0 1

Dickerson .230 .356 74 7 17 2 1 2 7 14 24 0 2 3

McDonald .212 .257 33 4 7 0 1 0 1 2 8 0 0 2

Gonzalez .171 .225 82 4 14 3 0 2 11 5 17 0 0 2

Encarnacion .127 .286 63 2 8 1 0 1 6 13 19 1 1 3

Team Totals .253 .327 1261 167 319 64 6 38 157 129 250 24 10 29

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Rhodes 0 0 0.75 16 0 0 12.0 8 1 1 0 5 9

Masset 1 0 1.23 11 0 0 14.2 5 2 2 0 8 12

Herrera 0 1 1.80 17 0 0 15.0 15 6 3 0 7 14

Cueto 4 1 1.93 7 7 0 46.2 34 10 10 4 13 36

Cordero 0 2 2.40 15 0 10 15.0 14 5 4 0 7 16

Weathers 0 0 2.70 15 0 0 13.1 9 4 4 1 8 9

Harang 3 4 3.44 8 8 0 52.1 55 23 20 5 12 43

Owings 3 4 3.95 7 6 0 41.0 39 22 18 5 17 24

Volquez 4 2 4.25 8 8 0 48.2 32 24 23 6 31 45

Burton 0 0 4.67 16 0 0 17.1 18 9 9 1 10 13

Arroyo 5 3 6.56 8 8 0 48.0 57 35 35 11 19 27

Lincoln 0 0 9.64 12 0 0 14.0 20 15 15 3 11 5

Team Totals 20 17 3.96 37 37 10 339.0 311 161 149 37 148 255

NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSNATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 21Baseball

COLORADOROCKIES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Hawpe .345 .412 113 20 39 11 1 6 32 14 20 0 1 2

Helton .336 .390 125 20 42 7 1 4 22 13 16 0 0 1

Smith .294 .442 68 12 20 3 1 3 8 18 11 2 0 0

Murton .273 .304 22 4 6 2 0 1 3 1 5 1 0 0

Spilborghs .270 .331 126 20 34 10 1 3 17 10 27 6 2 2

Torrealba .257 .341 35 7 9 1 0 2 5 4 7 0 0 0

Fowler .250 .317 112 16 28 7 0 2 10 12 29 10 3 1

Tulowitzki .250 .345 120 18 30 6 2 5 12 17 27 3 3 2

Iannetta .244 .364 90 14 22 4 0 7 17 16 23 0 1 0

Barmes .238 .274 101 20 24 5 0 4 13 4 20 3 0 1

Stewart .198 .288 91 14 18 4 0 7 20 10 29 2 1 1

Atkins .194 .268 124 14 24 5 0 3 14 13 18 0 0 5

Quintanilla .143 .250 14 3 2 1 0 0 0 2 8 0 0 0

Baker .130 .167 23 0 3 0 1 0 3 1 7 1 0 1

Team Totals .255 .330 1241 188 316 68 7 47 181 138 272 28 11 23

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Flores 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 1.1 2 0 0 0 0 1

Grilli 0 1 2.57 17 0 1 14.0 15 4 4 1 6 18

De La Rosa 0 3 3.16 7 7 0 42.2 34 18 15 2 16 45

Morales 1 0 3.38 2 2 0 8.0 7 3 3 3 1 9

Street 0 1 3.86 18 0 5 16.1 16 7 7 3 3 18

Daley 0 1 4.15 9 0 0 8.2 5 4 4 0 4 7

Jimenez 3 4 4.30 8 8 0 46.0 45 22 22 1 23 41

Hammel 0 2 4.62 7 4 0 25.1 35 17 13 4 8 16

Marquis 5 3 4.75 8 8 0 53.0 53 30 28 5 18 23

Speier 0 0 4.76 5 0 0 5.2 6 3 3 0 3 2

Embree 1 2 4.91 17 0 0 11.0 11 8 6 2 5 5

Cook 2 1 5.71 8 8 0 41.0 47 27 26 7 20 21

Corpas 0 3 7.02 18 0 1 16.2 27 13 13 1 3 10

Belisle 1 1 7.63 13 0 0 15.1 18 13 13 4 3 9

Team Totals 15 22 4.70 37 37 7 323.2 356 184 169 36 116 238

FLORIDAMARLINS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Ramirez .343 .421 134 24 46 14 0 6 20 16 26 6 4 2

Baker .277 .370 94 23 26 8 0 5 17 13 23 0 0 2

Cantu .264 .336 125 18 33 8 0 8 33 11 21 1 0 3

Bonifacio .261 .304 157 24 41 3 2 1 9 10 35 7 3 5

Hermida .258 .387 124 15 32 4 1 3 14 25 33 2 1 1

Ross .225 .268 129 14 29 6 0 6 23 6 32 1 1 1

Gload .224 .350 49 10 11 0 1 1 4 10 4 0 0 1

Paulino .224 .345 49 6 11 2 1 1 5 9 11 1 0 1

Amezaga .217 .267 69 6 15 3 0 0 5 5 16 1 1 0

Helms .217 .260 46 3 10 2 0 0 5 3 13 0 0 2

Uggla .190 .309 126 13 24 6 1 4 21 20 31 0 0 4

Coghlan .167 .276 24 3 4 0 0 1 4 4 6 1 0 0

De Aza .000 .000 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Team Totals .237 .317 1298 174 307 60 7 37 166 144 322 21 11 25

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Pinto 2 0 1.02 21 0 0 17.2 14 2 2 0 10 16

Meyer 0 0 1.62 17 0 0 16.2 9 4 3 1 3 21

Nunez 2 0 2.00 17 0 0 18.0 9 4 4 1 8 15

Johnson 3 0 2.50 8 8 0 54.0 48 16 15 3 11 46

Calero 1 0 2.84 22 0 0 19.0 12 6 6 0 10 27

Volstad 2 3 3.35 8 8 0 48.1 39 22 18 8 16 36

Lindstrom 1 1 5.40 16 0 7 15.0 14 10 9 2 10 15

Penn 1 0 5.71 12 0 0 17.1 20 15 11 1 13 23

Sanchez 1 4 5.79 6 6 0 32.2 43 21 21 6 15 25

Miller 1 1 5.94 5 3 0 16.2 18 11 11 0 12 7

Badenhop 2 2 6.00 9 0 0 15.0 19 10 10 2 6 16

Nolasco 2 4 7.78 8 8 0 41.2 58 38 36 6 12 35

Team Totals 18 20 4.59 38 38 7 341.0 348 193 174 36 152 300

Team Totals 18 20 4.59 38 38 7 341.0 348 193 174 36 152 300

HOUSTON ASTROS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Lee .331 .373 139 19 46 10 0 8 29 11 13 1 1 0

Pence .323 .399 133 21 43 8 1 4 15 18 22 5 2 0

Keppinger .321 .400 53 5 17 4 1 1 3 6 2 0 0 0

Tejada .318 .344 148 21 47 12 0 2 21 5 11 1 1 6

Bourn .298 .370 131 24 39 6 3 1 10 14 27 13 3 1

I. Rodriguez .286 .336 112 15 32 6 2 5 19 8 26 0 2 0

Blum .269 .342 104 11 28 5 0 0 12 11 14 0 1 1

Matsui .238 .301 122 15 29 4 1 1 12 10 24 5 3 2

Berkman .230 .367 122 19 28 4 0 8 21 26 27 0 2 3

Michaels .207 .343 29 1 6 4 0 0 2 5 9 1 1 0

Erstad .167 .200 42 4 7 1 1 0 2 2 14 0 0 0

Quintero .133 .133 15 0 2 1 0 0 2 0 4 0 0 1

Smith .000 .000 25 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 9 0 0 0

Team Totals .267 .332 1256 164 335 65 9 30 154 119 224 26 16 18

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

W. Rodriguez 4 2 1.90 8 8 0 52.0 37 12 11 0 15 48

Sampson 2 0 2.22 18 0 1 24.1 21 8 6 1 8 9

Arias 0 0 2.70 7 0 0 6.2 4 2 2 1 0 6

Hawkins 1 1 2.70 18 0 5 16.2 16 5 5 1 6 14

Byrdak 0 0 3.21 15 0 0 14.0 10 5 5 3 6 10

Oswalt 1 2 4.50 9 9 0 50.0 51 25 25 10 14 35

Brocail 1 0 4.76 7 0 0 5.2 5 3 3 2 8 4

Hampton 2 3 5.31 7 7 0 39.0 43 26 23 4 17 29

Ortiz 2 1 5.55 8 4 0 24.1 27 17 15 2 20 19

Valverde 0 1 5.63 8 0 2 8.0 7 5 5 3 3 11

Fulchino 0 0 5.91 8 0 0 10.2 10 7 7 2 4 7

Paulino 1 3 6.93 7 4 0 24.2 36 21 19 3 14 19

Moehler 1 2 7.71 5 5 0 21.0 33 18 18 2 7 16

Wright 1 1 7.71 16 0 0 11.2 20 10 10 2 6 12

Geary 1 3 8.10 16 0 0 20.0 30 19 18 4 10 12

Team Totals 17 19 4.71 37 37 8 328.2 350 183 172 40 138 251

LOS ANGELESDODGERS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Castro .409 .462 22 8 9 2 0 1 4 3 5 0 0 0

Pierre .403 .477 77 17 31 8 1 0 12 9 2 7 3 0

Mientkiewicz .400 .400 5 0 2 1 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0

Loretta .359 .479 39 9 14 2 0 0 7 8 4 0 0 0

Ausmus .346 .393 26 4 9 1 0 0 3 2 6 1 0 0

Hudson .341 .413 164 29 56 14 2 3 26 22 27 4 0 2

Kemp .277 .349 148 23 41 8 4 4 25 16 40 8 2 0

Blake .276 .350 123 21 34 7 1 8 23 13 33 0 0 3

Loney .273 .347 150 16 41 7 0 2 28 18 12 2 1 0

Paul .273 .385 11 3 3 1 0 1 1 2 3 0 1 0

Martin .272 .397 125 18 34 6 0 0 15 24 26 5 3 1

Ethier .264 .369 148 24 39 8 0 6 29 23 28 2 0 2

Furcal .237 .292 156 24 37 6 0 1 9 12 28 3 3 6

Team Totals .285 .371 1390 225 396 82 8 32 212 186 268 32 13 17

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Broxton 4 0 1.42 17 0 9 19.0 5 3 3 0 7 31

Kuroda 1 0 1.59 1 1 0 5.2 4 1 1 0 1 2

Troncoso 1 0 1.82 15 0 2 24.2 20 5 5 0 4 12

Billingsley 5 1 2.30 8 8 0 54.2 37 15 14 1 24 56

Wolf 2 1 2.72 9 9 0 56.1 41 20 17 5 19 46

Belisario 1 2 2.78 19 0 0 22.2 19 9 7 2 9 23

Weaver 2 1 3.38 5 2 0 16.0 16 6 6 1 7 13

Stults 4 1 3.82 7 7 0 37.2 37 16 16 2 16 25

Milton 0 0 4.50 1 1 0 4.0 2 2 2 0 4 3

Wade 0 2 4.50 12 0 0 12.0 12 6 6 0 3 7

Kershaw 2 3 4.60 8 8 0 45.0 32 23 23 4 24 48

Ohman 0 0 5.40 18 0 1 11.2 11 7 7 4 6 6

Kuo 1 0 6.75 7 0 0 5.1 5 4 4 1 4 4

Leach 0 0 8.10 5 0 0 3.1 3 3 3 0 2 4

Mota 2 1 9.00 15 0 0 15.0 22 15 15 2 11 6

Team Totals 27 13 3.72 40 40 12 358.0 293 154 148 27 158 301

NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSNATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 22Baseball

MILWAUKEEBREWERS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Rivera .375 .353 16 0 6 2 0 0 1 0 3 0 0 0

Braun .328 .450 131 28 43 9 0 8 29 23 30 3 3 0

Counsell .324 .413 68 14 22 6 0 1 7 10 9 0 0 2

Cameron .285 .400 123 20 35 11 0 7 20 25 25 2 0 0

Weeks .272 .340 147 28 40 5 2 9 24 12 39 2 2 6

Fielder .271 .429 129 20 35 6 1 9 36 34 40 0 0 1

Hall .260 .336 104 13 27 8 0 4 10 12 29 1 0 3

Gamel .250 .400 4 1 1 0 0 1 3 1 2 0 0 1

Hart .248 .335 141 28 35 9 1 4 16 19 38 3 3 2

Kendall .234 .326 111 14 26 3 1 0 14 12 14 0 1 4

Hardy .220 .313 127 16 28 5 1 5 21 16 26 0 0 3

McGehee .188 .188 16 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0

Duffy .125 .222 32 3 4 1 0 0 3 4 12 0 0 0

Team Totals .254 .352 1250 194 317 66 6 50 190 175 307 11 9 24

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Hoffman 0 0 0.00 10 0 9 10.0 3 0 0 0 0 9

DiFelice 3 0 1.42 18 0 0 19.0 13 3 3 2 4 18

Stetter 2 0 2.92 19 0 0 12.1 8 4 4 1 7 11

McClung 0 1 3.00 14 0 0 18.0 14 6 6 1 14 13

Gallardo 4 1 3.09 7 7 0 46.2 33 16 16 5 16 47

Coffey 1 0 3.26 17 0 2 19.1 21 7 7 1 4 13

Bush 2 0 3.83 8 7 0 47.0 39 22 20 8 10 36

Looper 4 2 4.26 8 8 0 44.1 47 24 21 8 16 27

Parra 3 4 4.57 8 8 0 43.1 43 24 22 4 26 39

Suppan 3 3 4.63 8 8 0 44.2 45 25 23 7 19 23

Villanueva 1 3 4.74 18 0 3 19.0 16 11 10 1 8 16

Julio 1 0 8.49 10 0 0 11.2 11 12 11 2 9 11

Riske 0 0 18.00 1 0 0 1.0 4 2 2 0 0 0

Team Totals 24 14 3.86 38 38 14 337.2 299 157 145 40 134 265

NEW YORKMETS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Pagan .500 .500 8 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0

Reed .379 .419 29 1 11 1 1 0 2 2 7 0 0 1

Beltran .367 .466 147 27 54 11 1 6 28 26 24 6 1 2

Wright .359 .447 145 27 52 12 3 3 27 23 41 10 7 6

Cora .333 .435 51 9 17 4 1 0 4 10 5 3 1 1

Delgado .298 .393 94 15 28 7 1 4 23 12 20 0 0 2

Tatis .286 .342 70 14 20 4 1 2 9 4 5 2 1 0

Reyes .284 .363 141 18 40 7 2 2 15 18 18 11 2 5

Castillo .278 .360 108 19 30 2 2 0 11 15 12 6 1 4

Church .276 .336 116 9 32 6 0 1 8 10 16 2 1 1

Murphy .269 .336 108 19 29 4 1 3 12 12 9 1 0 2

Santos .264 .283 53 8 14 3 1 1 12 3 12 0 0 0

Sheffield .257 .395 70 16 18 4 1 2 8 15 13 1 1 1

Castro .254 .333 67 4 17 3 0 2 12 8 14 0 0 2

Schneider .143 .250 21 3 3 1 0 0 3 3 1 0 0 0

Martinez .000 .000 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2

Team Totals .291 .371 1303 191 379 70 15 26 177 165 215 42 15 31

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Stokes 1 2 0.52 16 0 0 17.1 14 3 1 0 4 7

Rodriguez 1 0 0.96 18 0 11 18.2 11 4 2 1 9 19

Santana 5 2 1.36 8 8 0 53.0 42 14 8 3 13 67

Parnell 2 0 1.96 20 0 0 18.1 21 6 4 0 6 14

Feliciano 0 1 2.81 21 0 0 16.0 14 9 5 3 3 16

Redding 0 0 3.00 1 1 0 6.0 2 2 2 0 4 4

Takahashi 0 1 3.38 6 0 0 8.0 8 3 3 1 2 5

Putz 1 2 3.68 21 0 1 22.0 18 9 9 1 10 15

Maine 3 2 4.24 7 7 0 40.1 30 20 19 3 24 29

Pelfrey 4 1 4.61 7 7 0 41.0 46 21 21 4 17 11

Hernandez 3 1 5.59 7 7 0 38.2 47 24 24 6 12 23

Green 0 2 7.94 18 0 0 17.0 23 15 15 3 11 15

Perez 1 2 9.97 5 5 0 21.2 28 24 24 3 21 20

Team Totals 21 17 3.90 38 38 12 341.2 332 167 148 29 145 263

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Ibanez .357 .425 140 33 50 9 1 13 35 15 21 4 0 1

Stairs .318 .500 22 5 7 1 0 2 7 7 6 0 0 0

Feliz .308 .380 120 15 37 8 0 2 21 15 16 0 0 2

Werth .294 .396 126 31 37 8 1 7 24 19 30 8 1 0

Utley .291 .443 117 28 34 5 0 10 25 24 23 2 0 4

Howard .266 .346 143 25 38 10 1 8 28 16 44 1 0 0

Victorino .256 .304 156 27 40 7 3 4 23 11 14 3 2 0

Ruiz .255 .397 47 0 12 4 0 0 5 11 4 0 1 1

Coste .236 .333 55 5 13 6 0 1 6 7 12 0 0 0

Rollins .222 .268 153 22 34 7 1 2 13 9 20 4 4 2

Bruntlett .138 .206 29 5 4 4 0 0 4 3 7 0 0 0

Dobbs .125 .200 32 1 4 0 0 0 3 3 6 0 0 0

Team Totals .262 .349 1235 207 323 71 7 50 197 151 231 22 8 11

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Escalona 1 0 0.00 1 0 0 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 1

Happ 2 0 2.49 12 0 0 21.2 14 6 6 1 9 17

Condrey 3 0 2.61 20 0 1 20.2 15 6 6 3 6 16

Madson 2 1 3.57 17 0 1 17.2 16 7 7 0 6 18

Taschner 1 1 3.86 13 0 0 18.2 17 8 8 2 14 10

Eyre 0 1 4.00 16 0 0 9.0 5 5 4 2 7 6

Durbin 1 1 4.03 20 0 0 22.1 15 10 10 3 12 20

Myers 3 2 4.50 8 8 0 50.0 51 25 25 12 19 38

Hamels 1 2 5.04 6 6 0 30.1 37 18 17 6 7 31

Blanton 1 3 6.86 7 7 0 39.1 50 30 30 8 16 33

Park 1 1 7.08 8 7 0 34.1 41 27 27 5 17 21

Moyer 3 3 8.15 7 7 0 35.1 52 32 32 11 13 19

Lidge 0 1 8.31 18 0 7 17.1 23 16 16 5 10 18

Team Totals 20 16 5.39 36 36 9 322.0 345 195 193 58 139 252

PITTSBURGHPIRATES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Young .351 .415 37 6 13 3 0 0 7 4 9 1 0 0

Diaz .318 .362 44 5 14 3 0 1 5 1 2 0 1 1

Sanchez .307 .344 150 22 46 15 2 3 12 7 26 3 1 1

Morgan .304 .384 138 22 42 2 3 0 17 16 25 10 5 0

McLouth .293 .380 123 21 36 6 0 7 29 16 17 5 0 0

Wilson .293 .333 75 8 22 6 1 0 13 5 8 1 1 4

Jaramillo .280 .390 50 5 14 7 0 0 5 9 6 1 0 1

An. LaRoche .261 .333 119 13 31 10 0 1 16 10 23 1 0 4

Moss .255 .307 106 19 27 6 2 1 7 7 18 0 0 0

Hinske .254 .353 59 9 15 5 0 0 5 6 15 0 0 0

Doumit .244 .271 45 5 11 4 0 2 9 2 10 0 0 1

Monroe .244 .292 45 6 11 2 0 3 14 3 13 0 0 0

Ad. LaRoche .230 .314 139 21 32 11 1 6 16 17 39 0 0 1

Vazquez .190 .333 58 7 11 1 0 0 6 12 15 0 0 1

Team Totals .265 .334 1288 174 341 86 9 25 167 122 274 22 8 17

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Gorzelanny 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 1

Chavez 0 1 2.20 18 0 0 16.1 13 4 4 1 7 13

Duke 5 3 2.84 8 8 0 57.0 49 20 18 3 13 32

Burnett 1 1 2.95 18 0 0 18.1 12 7 6 2 8 14

Meek 0 0 3.29 10 0 0 13.2 10 5 5 0 10 10

Maholm 3 1 3.51 8 8 0 51.1 50 21 20 2 15 25

Veal 0 0 4.15 4 0 0 4.1 2 2 2 1 9 4

Ohlendorf 5 3 4.31 8 8 0 48.0 43 23 23 7 12 23

Snell 1 5 4.93 8 8 0 42.0 42 25 23 6 25 30

Karstens 1 2 5.06 6 6 0 32.0 32 19 18 6 13 14

Grabow 1 0 5.50 19 0 0 18.0 25 12 11 1 10 16

Hansen 0 0 5.68 5 0 0 6.1 6 4 4 1 4 5

Yates 0 2 7.50 15 0 0 12.0 14 12 10 2 7 9

Capps 0 3 7.62 14 0 7 13.0 20 11 11 2 8 9

Team Totals 17 21 4.19 38 38 7 332.2 318 165 155 34 141 205

NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSNATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 23Baseball

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

LaRue .333 .391 21 5 7 1 0 1 1 1 4 0 0 0

Pujols .321 .427 134 34 43 6 0 13 37 24 12 6 1 5

Schumaker .301 .351 123 19 37 8 1 2 12 10 13 1 1 2

Molina .291 .373 117 13 34 4 1 3 15 15 11 1 1 0

Ludwick .274 .339 106 16 29 4 0 8 26 9 20 2 0 1

Stavinoha .273 .273 11 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0

Barden .270 .329 63 9 17 2 0 3 7 4 10 0 0 2

Ryan .268 .326 41 6 11 3 1 0 3 3 9 2 0 1

Duncan .258 .350 120 13 31 11 2 3 23 18 27 0 1 3

T. Greene .250 .273 32 3 8 2 0 1 2 0 10 2 0 0

Rasmus .248 .333 105 19 26 5 0 3 13 11 22 1 0 2

Ankiel .247 .326 81 11 20 6 0 2 11 7 19 0 0 0

Thurston .242 .339 95 14 23 8 1 1 14 14 18 1 1 4

Robinson .240 .231 25 1 6 1 0 0 1 0 2 1 0 0

K. Greene .202 .283 99 13 20 4 0 2 11 10 14 2 1 6

Team Totals .261 .335 1270 186 331 69 6 42 181 131 220 20 6 28

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Carpenter 1 0 0.00 2 2 0 10.0 5 1 0 0 2 9

Franklin 1 0 1.10 16 0 9 16.1 8 2 2 2 3 14

McClellan 2 1 2.60 17 0 1 17.1 11 6 5 2 11 15

Perez 1 1 3.00 15 0 1 12.0 7 4 4 1 12 15

Miller 1 0 3.27 15 0 0 11.0 11 5 4 2 3 12

Reyes 0 1 3.65 20 0 1 12.1 10 5 5 2 5 13

Wainwright 3 2 3.83 8 8 0 49.1 46 24 21 6 23 40

Pineiro 4 3 4.17 7 7 0 45.1 56 25 21 2 7 14

Motte 1 1 4.30 18 0 0 14.2 14 7 7 0 7 10

Thompson 0 1 4.30 9 0 0 14.2 16 7 7 1 2 6

Lohse 3 3 4.66 8 8 0 46.1 45 26 24 5 16 32

Wellemeyer 3 4 5.87 8 8 0 46.0 59 31 30 4 21 27

Boyer 0 0 7.04 11 0 0 7.2 7 7 6 1 3 7

Team Totals 21 17 4.23 38 38 12 338.1 340 175 159 34 136 245

SAN DIEGOPADRES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Macias .375 .545 8 2 3 2 0 1 2 3 1 0 0 0

Hairston .340 .390 97 10 33 9 1 4 17 7 20 3 0 0

Cabrera .308 .357 13 4 4 1 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0

A. Gonzalez .294 .388 143 28 42 3 0 15 29 21 35 1 0 2

Hundley .258 .355 93 6 24 5 2 2 9 14 23 1 1 2

Rodriguez .256 .396 78 11 20 4 0 1 7 20 9 0 0 2

Headley .246 .307 126 12 31 7 1 3 15 11 34 4 1 1

Eckstein .242 .318 132 14 32 10 1 0 10 13 10 1 0 0

Kouzmanoff .237 .289 139 9 33 6 1 2 11 7 33 1 0 0

Gerut .223 .250 112 17 25 6 0 4 14 5 22 2 0 0

C. Burke .216 .326 37 4 8 4 0 0 1 5 6 2 1 4

Giles .173 .263 139 10 24 5 0 2 15 17 16 1 0 0

E. Gonzalez .163 .255 49 7 8 1 2 3 6 5 9 0 1 2

Blanco .136 .240 44 6 6 0 0 3 4 6 11 0 0 0

Wilson .000 .000 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1

Team Totals .236 .314 1278 145 301 64 8 40 141 140 256 16 4 17

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Bell 1 0 0.00 14 0 9 15.0 7 0 0 0 5 18

G. Burke 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 1

Thatcher 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 1

Mujica 1 1 3.44 15 0 0 18.1 13 9 7 2 5 16

Peavy 3 5 3.82 9 9 0 61.1 49 27 26 7 19 69

Meredith 4 0 3.86 16 0 0 14.0 20 8 6 1 5 12

Gregerson 0 3 4.57 19 0 0 21.2 22 11 11 1 11 21

Perdomo 1 0 4.70 11 0 0 15.1 13 10 8 2 7 7

Gaudin 0 3 4.91 4 4 0 22.0 17 12 12 0 17 18

Correia 1 2 5.06 7 7 0 37.1 36 21 21 3 21 28

Hill 1 1 5.25 3 3 0 12.0 15 7 7 1 3 7

Young 2 2 5.56 8 8 0 43.2 44 28 27 5 22 34

Geer 0 1 5.61 6 5 0 33.2 37 24 21 7 7 14

Silva 0 0 6.52 2 2 0 9.2 10 7 7 2 7 3

Team Totals 16 22 4.75 38 38 9 339.1 329 192 179 38 159 266

SAN FRANCISCOGIANTS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Sandoval .314 .351 140 16 44 12 2 3 17 6 20 2 0 0

Molina .304 .312 135 18 41 7 1 8 30 2 17 0 0 1

Lewis .294 .391 119 21 35 9 1 1 4 15 38 3 2 2

Holm .286 .444 7 1 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0

Burriss .258 .326 128 11 33 3 0 0 6 11 21 10 3 2

Renteria .256 .336 121 21 31 6 0 2 17 14 19 2 2 3

Winn .255 .323 137 20 35 7 3 2 18 14 27 6 1 0

Rowand .248 .331 117 15 29 8 0 3 16 13 24 1 0 1

Ishikawa .236 .296 89 9 21 3 1 0 12 5 28 0 0 1

Torres .222 .417 9 4 2 0 0 1 1 3 3 1 0 0

Schierholtz .217 .245 46 5 10 3 1 0 2 2 8 0 1 0

Aurilia .196 .232 51 3 10 2 0 0 10 3 7 0 0 0

Velez .111 .143 27 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 1

Frandsen .000 .000 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0

Team Totals .256 .316 1253 150 321 64 9 20 139 98 264 25 10 16

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Miller 1 0 2.00 16 0 0 18.0 15 4 4 2 7 12

Affeldt 0 1 2.50 20 0 0 18.0 17 6 5 1 9 17

Cain 4 1 2.65 8 8 0 51.0 44 15 15 6 25 34

Medders 2 1 3.63 16 0 0 17.1 18 7 7 1 12 13

Lincecum 3 1 3.75 8 8 0 50.1 50 22 21 1 16 66

Valdez 1 0 3.75 12 0 0 12.0 12 5 5 1 6 7

Zito 1 3 3.89 7 7 0 41.2 40 18 18 2 15 29

Wilson 2 2 4.12 19 0 9 19.2 18 11 9 2 7 20

Howry 0 2 4.80 16 0 0 15.0 16 8 8 1 6 12

Sanchez 1 3 5.06 7 6 0 32.0 30 20 18 3 25 32

Martinez 1 0 6.75 2 0 0 2.2 4 2 2 0 1 2

Johnson 3 4 6.86 8 8 0 40.2 47 31 31 10 16 42

Misch 0 0 12.00 2 0 0 3.0 4 4 4 0 1 0

Team Totals 19 18 4.27 37 37 9 332.2 332 165 158 33 152 292

WASHINGTONNATIONALS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Guzman .385 .390 122 24 47 9 1 1 10 1 17 1 2 5

Zimmerman .358 .411 162 33 58 14 0 10 31 16 29 0 0 4

Johnson .336 .433 137 25 46 5 0 4 24 22 25 0 0 5

Flores .311 .382 90 13 28 3 2 4 15 11 26 0 0 1

Dunn .286 .425 133 22 38 6 0 11 31 33 41 0 1 4

Dukes .277 .347 112 12 31 8 1 4 24 12 29 2 6 1

Hernandez .277 .364 94 13 26 5 0 0 9 13 15 3 1 4

Nieves .275 .326 40 4 11 1 0 0 3 2 12 0 0 3

Bernadina .250 .400 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0

Harris .244 .397 45 9 11 2 1 1 8 9 9 1 0 0

Willingham .221 .348 77 10 17 5 0 6 9 12 20 0 0 1

Kearns .216 .367 88 14 19 5 2 3 15 18 24 1 0 0

Bard .208 .240 24 2 5 2 0 0 2 1 5 0 0 0

Belliard .200 .245 50 4 10 1 1 1 4 3 14 0 0 2

Cintron .080 .148 25 1 2 0 0 0 0 2 7 0 0 1

Team Totals .280 .364 1345 199 376 72 8 46 193 167 312 14 10 41

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Villone 1 0 0.00 7 0 0 6.0 3 0 0 0 2 1

Detwiler 0 0 3.60 1 1 0 5.0 4 3 2 1 0 6

Lannan 2 3 4.00 8 8 0 45.0 50 24 20 7 16 22

Martis 5 0 4.10 7 7 0 41.2 40 20 19 3 17 21

Beimel 0 2 4.50 16 0 0 14.0 20 7 7 2 3 6

Cabrera 0 5 5.95 8 8 0 39.1 48 39 26 4 32 16

Wells 0 1 6.00 14 0 2 18.0 16 12 12 1 14 13

Tavarez 0 3 6.32 19 0 1 15.2 15 15 11 1 11 17

Zimmermann 2 1 6.35 6 6 0 34.0 40 24 24 5 11 32

Hanrahan 0 1 6.75 18 0 3 17.1 21 13 13 3 8 22

Mock 0 2 6.92 13 0 0 13.0 16 10 10 0 8 6

Olsen 1 4 7.24 8 8 0 41.0 60 36 33 8 18 29

Colome 0 0 22.50 4 0 0 2.0 6 5 5 0 1 1

Team Totals 11 26 5.90 38 38 6 334.0 392 247 219 42 171 221

NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 24Baseball

BALTIMOREORIOLES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Jones .370 .426 127 35 47 12 1 8 26 10 25 3 2 2

Markakis .336 .414 146 35 49 13 0 6 34 19 18 1 1 3

Scott .303 .384 99 14 30 6 0 5 15 12 19 0 0 0

Roberts .294 .374 153 33 45 11 0 5 16 20 23 9 3 2

Huff .281 .355 146 19 41 11 0 7 33 18 21 0 3 2

Mora .262 .319 84 6 22 1 0 2 15 7 13 1 2 2

Andino .250 .280 24 4 6 0 0 0 1 1 5 1 0 0

Izturis .243 .281 115 12 28 5 1 1 13 4 7 8 0 4

Reimold .235 .235 17 0 4 1 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0

Montanez .217 .288 46 4 10 4 0 1 6 4 9 0 0 0

Moeller .216 .256 37 1 8 2 1 1 1 2 5 0 0 0

Wigginton .210 .254 119 7 25 4 0 2 11 5 17 1 1 2

Pie .203 .284 79 9 16 2 1 2 4 9 20 1 2 0

Zaun .198 .294 96 11 19 6 0 1 3 12 14 0 0 3

Team Totals .270 .339 1303 192 352 78 4 41 181 128 202 25 14 24

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Baez 2 1 2.11 13 0 0 21.1 11 5 5 2 9 17

Walker 0 0 3.12 17 0 0 8.2 12 3 3 2 0 9

Hill 1 0 3.18 1 1 0 5.2 7 2 2 0 2 6

Sherrill 0 1 3.45 16 0 7 15.2 17 6 6 3 7 14

Uehara 2 3 4.34 8 8 0 47.2 47 26 23 6 9 35

Johnson 2 2 4.42 18 0 0 18.1 19 9 9 2 5 11

Bass 2 1 5.04 12 0 0 25.0 32 16 14 5 7 22

Guthrie 3 3 5.21 8 8 0 46.2 53 30 27 8 16 29

Bergesen 1 1 5.27 5 5 0 27.1 40 18 16 4 8 14

Ray 0 0 5.68 14 0 0 12.2 17 8 8 1 9 15

Hendrickson 1 4 6.03 8 7 0 31.1 45 29 21 7 13 22

Sarfate 0 0 6.39 8 0 0 12.2 13 11 9 3 7 10

Eaton 2 4 7.93 7 7 0 36.1 48 32 32 7 16 27

Simon 0 1 9.95 2 2 0 6.1 8 7 7 5 2 3

Team Totals 16 22 5.49 38 38 7 331.1 399 225 202 56 123 244

BOSTONRED SOX

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Youkilis .393 .505 89 23 35 11 0 6 20 16 18 1 0 1

Lugo .333 .407 48 8 16 1 1 1 4 6 5 1 0 3

Pedroia .317 .412 145 30 46 11 0 1 13 22 12 4 3 1

Green .302 .368 86 10 26 8 0 1 13 4 18 1 2 8

Ellsbury .300 .331 160 20 48 6 1 1 13 8 16 16 4 0

Bay .295 .434 132 32 39 9 1 11 40 31 34 4 0 0

Lowell .289 .321 149 19 43 12 1 6 28 6 18 0 0 5

Drew .261 .384 115 23 30 9 1 6 20 22 34 0 1 1

Varitek .231 .315 108 12 25 9 0 5 16 12 22 0 0 1

Ortiz .208 .318 130 14 27 10 1 0 15 20 30 0 1 0

Baldelli .200 .243 35 4 7 0 0 1 4 2 13 0 0 0

Bailey .182 .318 55 8 10 2 1 2 7 8 17 0 0 2

Kottaras .143 .265 28 4 4 2 0 0 3 5 10 0 0 0

Lowrie .056 .150 18 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 8 0 0 0

Velazquez .000 .333 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

Team Totals .274 .363 1316 208 361 90 7 42 200 166 264 27 11 26

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Bard 0 0 0.00 2 0 0 3.1 3 0 0 0 1 1

Ramirez 4 1 0.86 20 0 0 21.0 9 2 2 1 6 11

Delcarmen 1 1 0.96 17 0 0 18.2 17 5 2 0 8 15

Papelbon 0 0 1.06 16 0 10 17.0 14 2 2 1 10 19

Okajima 2 0 2.89 19 0 0 18.2 12 6 6 2 9 22

Saito 0 0 3.86 14 0 2 14.0 16 6 6 2 4 12

Wakefield 4 2 4.03 7 7 0 44.2 38 20 20 3 21 27

Masterson 2 2 4.57 10 6 0 41.1 45 21 21 3 14 35

Beckett 4 2 5.85 8 8 0 47.2 56 33 31 5 23 46

Lester 2 4 6.51 8 8 0 47.0 60 34 34 10 16 54

Penny 3 1 6.69 7 7 0 36.1 45 31 27 5 16 20

Jones 0 0 8.00 8 0 0 9.0 10 8 8 2 4 7

Matsuzaka 0 1 12.79 2 2 0 6.1 14 9 9 3 5 5

Team Totals 22 16 4.77 38 38 12 339.1 360 190 180 38 147 281

CHICAGO WHITE SOX

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Konerko .316 .362 136 18 43 12 0 4 23 9 20 0 0 0

Anderson .288 .383 52 6 15 2 0 0 4 8 14 2 3 1

Dye .273 .324 128 20 35 4 0 8 20 9 34 0 2 1

Podsednik .271 .294 48 3 13 2 1 0 2 2 3 1 1 2

Pierzynski .266 .298 109 11 29 3 1 4 10 5 8 1 0 2

Betemit .250 .325 36 2 9 5 0 0 3 4 13 0 0 2

Nix .241 .324 29 2 7 1 0 2 3 4 4 2 0 0

Thome .240 .367 100 19 24 5 0 7 20 20 37 0 0 0

Getz .238 .296 105 13 25 5 1 0 6 6 12 3 1 2

Wise .238 .238 21 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 1 0

Quentin .229 .333 118 19 27 4 0 8 18 11 15 1 0 1

Fields .224 .302 125 13 28 2 2 2 12 12 41 0 2 5

Ramirez .214 .254 117 7 25 3 0 1 13 7 15 6 1 2

Miller .207 .281 29 4 6 2 0 0 5 3 7 0 0 0

Lillibridge .162 .260 68 7 11 2 0 0 0 8 21 4 1 2

Team Totals .246 .315 1233 144 303 52 5 36 139 111 253 21 12 25

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Dotel 1 1 0.68 15 0 0 13.1 8 1 1 0 9 15

Linebrink 1 2 2.08 13 0 0 13.0 14 3 3 0 5 11

Thornton 1 1 2.63 15 0 0 13.2 14 4 4 1 7 22

Jenks 0 1 2.77 13 0 8 13.0 11 5 4 2 5 13

Broadway 0 1 2.84 7 0 0 12.2 12 4 4 0 7 7

Buehrle 5 1 3.00 7 7 0 45.0 37 15 15 5 12 30

Carrasco 1 0 3.00 14 0 0 27.0 33 10 9 1 7 16

Gobble 0 0 3.86 2 0 0 2.1 2 1 1 0 0 5

Colon 2 3 4.21 7 7 0 36.1 38 19 17 4 14 25

Richard 0 0 4.33 14 2 0 27.0 32 14 13 3 11 15

Danks 2 3 4.82 7 7 0 37.1 40 20 20 5 11 34

Floyd 2 4 7.71 8 8 0 44.1 60 39 38 6 23 35

Team Totals 15 22 4.76 37 37 8 321.2 356 179 170 32 136 248

CLEVELANDINDIANS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Carroll .417 .417 12 1 5 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1

Martinez .401 .478 152 31 61 12 1 7 26 24 14 0 0 1

Cabrera .311 .376 148 29 46 9 2 1 19 16 31 6 0 2

Choo .286 .412 133 21 38 8 1 5 23 26 32 6 0 3

Hafner .270 .370 63 10 17 5 0 4 8 8 18 0 0 0

Dellucci .263 .326 38 3 10 3 0 0 1 2 11 0 0 0

Garko .258 .352 89 5 23 4 0 2 15 13 11 0 0 1

Peralta .257 .322 136 15 35 8 0 1 16 12 39 0 0 3

Francisco .248 .322 109 18 27 6 0 4 13 8 24 7 1 1

DeRosa .242 .313 149 23 36 8 0 6 25 14 34 0 1 5

Sizemore .220 .302 159 21 35 8 0 7 25 19 41 6 6 0

Shoppach .210 .364 62 9 13 2 0 2 7 7 27 0 0 0

LaPorta .194 .278 31 7 6 1 0 1 3 3 7 1 0 1

Valbuena .105 .261 19 2 2 2 0 0 0 4 5 0 0 0

Team Totals .269 .354 1359 203 366 79 5 40 186 159 309 27 9 21

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Aquino 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 2.1 1 0 0 0 2 1

Herges 0 0 2.08 5 0 0 8.2 3 2 2 2 1 10

Lee 2 5 3.00 8 8 0 54.0 63 18 18 3 13 42

Laffey 2 0 3.41 8 4 1 31.2 28 12 12 1 18 18

J. Lewis 2 3 4.50 17 0 1 20.0 22 11 10 6 6 18

Betancourt 1 1 4.95 18 0 0 20.0 21 14 11 3 10 21

Carmona 2 4 5.70 8 8 0 47.1 47 32 30 5 26 27

Wood 1 1 5.84 14 0 5 12.1 13 8 8 2 6 18

Pavano 3 4 6.33 8 8 0 42.2 56 30 30 5 10 32

Reyes 1 1 6.88 7 7 0 35.1 39 29 27 5 17 21

Smith 0 0 7.11 8 0 0 6.1 7 6 5 0 5 6

S. Lewis 0 0 8.31 1 1 0 4.1 7 4 4 2 1 3

Huff 0 1 17.18 1 1 0 3.2 7 7 7 0 4 2

Vizcaino 0 1 --- 1 0 0 0.0 1 1 1 1 0 0

Team Totals 14 25 5.65 39 39 7 341.0 380 225 214 45 156 251

AMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSAMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 25Baseball

DETROITTIGERS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Cabrera .375 .444 136 25 51 7 0 8 30 16 18 1 2 4

Santiago .352 .386 54 9 19 3 1 3 19 3 15 0 1 2

Thomas .311 .392 45 8 14 3 1 0 5 6 8 1 0 0

Everett .306 .333 85 14 26 7 0 1 16 3 13 2 1 4

Anderson .297 .338 64 11 19 3 2 0 9 4 9 6 1 1

Inge .279 .389 122 27 34 4 0 10 27 18 35 1 2 4

Larish .278 .409 36 12 10 0 1 4 5 8 8 0 0 0

Polanco .264 .311 140 16 37 13 1 0 15 9 12 0 1 1

Granderson .259 .345 147 27 38 4 1 10 24 20 32 5 1 0

Ordonez .256 .340 133 18 34 5 0 2 17 17 22 0 0 1

Thames .222 .250 18 2 4 1 1 0 2 1 6 0 0 0

Laird .219 .315 96 15 21 4 1 1 9 10 19 1 0 0

Guillen .200 .267 90 11 18 4 0 0 6 8 15 1 0 0

Raburn .167 .265 30 5 5 1 0 2 9 4 7 0 0 1

Sardinha .063 .059 16 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 7 0 0 0

Treanor .000 .071 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0

Team Totals .270 .343 1225 201 331 60 9 41 194 128 230 18 9 18

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

French 0 0 0.00 2 0 0 3.0 0 0 0 0 3 3

Zumaya 1 0 1.74 7 0 0 10.1 8 2 2 1 0 5

Jackson 3 2 2.42 8 8 0 52.0 43 18 14 4 11 41

Perry 0 1 2.76 16 0 0 16.1 11 7 5 0 13 16

Porcello 4 3 3.86 7 7 0 39.2 36 18 17 6 13 25

Rodney 0 0 4.20 15 0 6 15.0 13 7 7 1 4 11

Verlander 3 2 4.29 8 8 0 50.1 43 27 24 3 17 69

Miner 3 1 4.61 9 4 0 27.1 35 19 14 4 15 21

Seay 0 1 5.40 16 0 0 11.2 11 7 7 0 3 7

Galarraga 3 3 5.62 8 8 0 41.2 43 26 26 7 23 33

Robertson 1 0 6.30 8 0 0 10.0 10 7 7 0 6 7

Lyon 1 3 6.89 13 0 0 15.2 16 12 12 3 11 5

Willis 0 0 7.71 1 1 0 4.2 8 4 4 1 2 0

Team Totals 20 16 4.16 36 36 6 318.1 309 170 147 36 131 260

KANSAS CITYROYALS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Callaspo .341 .396 126 19 43 15 1 2 16 12 11 0 0 3

Bloomquist .333 .410 72 13 24 1 2 1 5 10 8 6 1 2

Teahen .289 .368 135 19 39 8 0 4 14 13 26 1 0 1

Guillen .279 .398 86 11 24 3 0 3 15 14 12 1 0 1

Butler .278 .359 126 20 35 11 0 3 18 16 22 0 0 0

Maier .267 .405 30 5 8 2 0 0 0 7 6 2 0 0

Jacobs .262 .338 122 15 32 7 0 8 22 12 37 0 0 2

Crisp .245 .361 139 28 34 8 5 3 14 25 17 11 2 3

DeJesus .237 .288 135 16 32 8 2 3 15 8 27 0 1 0

Buck .236 .309 72 7 17 4 3 3 19 8 19 0 0 4

Olivo .222 .250 81 6 18 1 1 3 12 1 28 1 1 0

Aviles .194 .221 108 9 21 3 1 1 8 4 22 1 0 4

Hernandez .167 .286 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

Gordon .095 .269 21 2 2 0 0 1 3 3 8 1 0 1

Pena Jr. .000 .083 11 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 1

Team Totals .260 .337 1277 173 332 73 15 35 163 135 247 24 5 26

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Greinke 7 1 0.60 8 8 0 60.0 40 5 4 0 10 65

Cruz 3 0 1.45 16 0 1 18.2 7 3 3 1 10 13

Wright 0 1 1.66 15 0 0 21.2 19 11 4 2 5 14

Bannister 3 1 1.80 5 5 0 30.0 23 9 6 1 12 17

Soria 1 0 2.08 8 0 7 8.2 8 3 2 0 4 10

Tejeda 0 0 2.87 11 0 0 15.2 11 5 5 0 12 23

Mahay 1 0 3.38 15 0 0 13.1 17 7 5 1 5 15

Waechter 0 0 4.50 3 0 0 4.0 5 2 2 2 1 3

Meche 2 4 4.60 8 8 0 47.0 51 27 24 1 16 38

Farnsworth 0 3 4.73 14 0 0 13.1 13 7 7 2 4 12

Davies 2 2 5.01 8 8 0 46.2 45 26 26 6 21 33

Ponson 1 4 6.16 8 6 0 38.0 48 28 26 4 16 22

Ramirez 0 1 6.59 11 1 0 13.2 19 11 10 2 6 9

Hochevar 0 1 16.88 2 2 0 5.1 10 11 10 1 5 2

Team Totals 20 18 3.59 38 38 8 336.0 316 155 134 23 127 276

LOS ANGELESANGELS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Willits .333 .333 6 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0

Napoli .327 .419 107 16 35 8 0 6 17 16 23 2 3 2

Hunter .313 .397 134 29 42 9 1 9 30 19 21 6 2 0

Aybar .309 .323 94 9 29 7 2 1 10 3 9 1 1 3

Rivera .292 .331 113 11 33 5 0 2 12 7 9 0 0 0

Abreu .289 .390 135 14 39 6 1 0 14 23 17 14 0 2

Morales .287 .327 136 20 39 10 1 8 26 9 28 0 2 2

Figgins .277 .366 141 24 39 5 1 0 9 21 24 17 3 5

Matthews Jr. .272 .307 81 13 22 4 1 0 12 5 18 0 0 1

Izturis .262 .289 84 14 22 3 0 0 11 3 9 4 0 2

Mathis .259 .313 58 8 15 1 0 0 12 5 18 0 0 1

Guerrero .250 .314 32 3 8 0 0 1 3 3 3 0 0 0

Kendrick .236 .287 127 19 30 6 1 3 18 6 26 5 0 2

Quinlan .150 .150 20 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0

Team Totals .283 .344 1277 185 361 65 8 30 175 121 210 50 11 23

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Oliver 0 0 1.47 10 1 0 18.1 14 3 3 0 3 13

Weaver 3 2 2.59 8 8 0 55.2 41 17 16 7 13 42

Palmer 4 0 3.38 4 4 0 26.2 16 11 10 2 10 16

Saunders 5 2 3.59 8 8 0 52.2 49 23 21 7 13 26

Moseley 1 0 4.30 3 3 0 14.2 20 8 7 3 3 8

Fuentes 0 2 4.97 14 0 9 12.2 15 7 7 1 6 16

Arredondo 1 0 5.19 18 0 0 17.1 20 10 10 0 5 20

Loux 2 3 5.40 8 6 0 38.1 52 24 23 2 14 14

Santana 0 0 5.40 1 1 0 5.0 7 3 3 0 3 5

Speier 0 1 6.14 12 0 0 14.2 13 10 10 2 7 13

Bulger 1 1 7.30 13 0 0 12.1 14 10 10 2 8 11

Shields 1 3 7.90 16 0 1 13.2 13 13 12 1 12 9

Lackey 1 0 9.00 2 2 0 5.0 7 6 5 1 0 3

Team Totals 19 18 4.68 37 37 10 327.0 344 186 170 35 120 216

MINNESOTATWINS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Mauer .417 .521 60 13 25 3 0 6 17 13 7 0 0 0

Morneau .340 .414 150 30 51 11 0 12 33 19 25 0 0 0

Morales .333 .385 48 7 16 3 0 0 2 4 7 0 0 2

Kubel .326 .366 132 20 43 11 1 5 20 9 24 0 0 0

Harris .296 .341 81 12 24 4 0 2 7 6 14 0 0 0

Span .288 .373 153 21 44 4 2 2 20 19 25 9 2 1

Cuddyer .252 .352 139 19 35 6 2 4 20 22 28 4 1 2

Redmond .250 .321 48 2 12 1 0 0 3 5 7 0 0 0

Gomez .242 .320 66 12 16 4 1 0 2 7 16 4 3 0

Crede .223 .292 103 14 23 6 0 5 15 10 18 0 0 1

Buscher .217 .351 46 5 10 2 1 1 7 9 11 0 0 0

Punto .196 .306 102 12 20 2 0 0 9 16 18 4 1 3

Tolbert .179 .283 39 6 7 2 0 0 4 6 13 0 0 0

Team Totals .272 .349 1334 189 363 61 8 38 177 155 252 25 9 14

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Mijares 0 1 2.25 11 0 0 12.0 9 3 3 1 4 12

Nathan 1 1 3.07 15 0 6 14.2 11 5 5 2 5 15

Dickey 1 0 3.63 11 1 0 22.1 27 9 9 3 12 16

Guerrier 1 0 3.92 19 0 0 20.2 14 9 9 4 4 14

Blackburn 2 2 4.38 8 8 0 49.1 55 28 24 4 14 23

Slowey 5 1 4.50 8 8 0 48.0 65 24 24 8 4 35

Liriano 2 4 5.21 8 8 0 46.2 42 28 27 6 22 39

Perkins 1 3 5.36 8 8 0 47.0 50 28 28 6 12 26

Ayala 1 1 5.71 16 0 0 17.1 26 12 11 2 6 12

Breslow 1 2 6.75 16 0 0 13.1 11 11 10 3 11 10

Baker 1 4 6.95 6 6 0 33.2 38 26 26 8 6 25

Crain 2 2 8.25 15 0 0 12.0 12 11 11 3 7 8

Team Totals 18 21 5.20 39 39 6 346.1 376 207 200 53 113 241

AMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSAMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 26Baseball

NEW YORKYANKEES

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Cervelli .375 .400 24 2 9 0 0 0 2 1 4 0 0 0

Damon .322 .390 146 30 47 9 2 10 27 16 26 3 0 1

Cabrera .317 .374 104 17 33 5 0 4 14 10 15 3 1 1

Posada .312 .402 77 10 24 6 0 5 20 12 19 1 0 1

Cano .301 .337 156 23 47 10 0 6 19 9 13 1 1 2

Nady .286 .310 28 4 8 4 0 0 2 1 6 0 0 0

Jeter .275 .351 153 22 42 6 0 5 15 16 22 8 1 2

Molina .273 .333 44 5 12 2 0 1 6 4 6 0 0 1

Pena .263 .311 57 7 15 2 1 0 4 4 9 1 0 3

Matsui .261 .357 111 11 29 8 1 4 13 15 18 0 0 0

Gardner .244 .315 82 16 20 3 2 2 8 8 14 6 1 0

Teixeira .239 .358 134 24 32 7 0 10 28 24 30 0 0 0

Swisher .236 .367 123 22 29 9 1 8 22 24 38 0 0 3

Rodriguez .188 .395 32 4 6 0 0 4 8 10 7 0 0 1

Ransom .180 .226 50 4 9 5 1 0 6 3 15 1 0 2

Berroa .167 .167 12 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 2

Cash .100 .100 10 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0

Team Totals .272 .351 1343 205 365 77 8 59 194 157 248 24 4 20

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Aceves 2 0 2.16 4 0 0 8.1 5 2 2 1 2 9

Rivera 0 1 2.76 16 0 7 16.1 18 5 5 4 1 22

Bruney 2 0 3.38 9 0 0 8.0 3 3 3 0 2 12

Sabathia 3 3 3.70 8 8 0 56.0 48 25 23 3 20 37

Chamberlain 2 1 3.76 7 7 0 40.2 40 20 17 5 21 40

Tomko 0 0 3.86 3 0 0 2.1 4 1 1 1 0 0

Pettitte 4 1 4.18 8 8 0 51.2 59 26 24 6 16 28

Coke 1 2 4.76 18 0 1 17.0 13 12 9 4 7 12

Albaladejo 2 1 4.82 17 0 0 18.2 19 12 10 3 10 10

Burnett 2 1 5.02 8 8 0 52.0 48 29 29 7 25 43

Ramirez 0 0 5.19 15 0 0 17.1 18 11 10 6 15 16

Veras 2 1 6.61 17 0 0 16.1 13 12 12 2 12 13

Hughes 1 2 7.56 4 4 0 16.2 23 15 14 4 12 10

Marte 0 1 15.19 7 0 0 5.1 9 9 9 3 3 6

Wang 0 3 34.50 3 3 0 6.0 23 23 23 2 6 2

Team Totals 21 17 5.32 38 38 8 343.1 359 218 203 53 164 272

OAKLANDATHLETICS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Kennedy .367 .424 30 4 11 1 0 1 3 3 3 1 0 1

Suzuki .320 .367 128 18 41 12 0 2 15 8 8 1 1 1

Cust .270 .372 126 22 34 5 0 6 23 20 37 1 0 1

Holliday .261 .331 134 17 35 5 1 4 23 11 25 1 0 0

Sweeney .250 .304 144 19 36 7 0 2 10 11 24 2 2 1

Cabrera .233 .283 146 17 34 4 0 2 12 11 12 1 3 6

Garciaparra .231 .262 39 5 9 1 0 1 7 2 7 0 0 0

Buck .225 .295 71 6 16 2 0 1 6 7 16 1 1 0

Crosby .224 .348 76 9 17 3 2 0 8 13 14 1 0 5

Ellis .206 .265 63 6 13 2 0 0 9 5 10 2 1 2

Giambi .200 .329 115 19 23 6 0 3 17 19 26 0 0 3

Powell .194 .250 36 2 7 4 0 0 9 3 9 0 0 2

Davis .179 .258 28 2 5 0 0 0 0 3 10 3 2 0

Hannahan .133 .212 30 4 4 3 0 1 4 3 7 0 0 0

Chavez .100 .129 30 0 3 1 0 0 1 1 7 0 0 0

Cunningham .000 .000 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0

Team Totals .239 .311 1229 153 294 57 3 23 148 120 221 14 10 27

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Bailey 3 0 1.54 17 0 1 23.1 7 4 4 2 9 28

Wuertz 2 1 1.83 18 0 2 19.2 12 5 4 1 3 17

Cameron 0 0 2.45 7 0 0 11.0 8 3 3 0 3 9

Springer 0 1 2.76 18 0 0 16.1 18 6 5 3 7 18

Casilla 0 1 3.07 11 0 0 14.2 8 6 5 1 6 9

Braden 3 5 3.64 8 8 0 47.0 55 21 19 4 15 32

Ziegler 0 0 3.86 13 0 4 16.1 21 8 7 0 6 12

Outman 1 0 4.05 7 5 0 26.2 25 14 12 5 12 25

Cahill 2 3 5.01 8 8 0 41.1 46 24 23 6 22 14

Giese 0 3 5.32 7 1 0 22.0 22 13 13 5 9 11

Anderson 0 4 6.03 6 6 0 31.1 39 29 21 5 11 15

Gonzalez 0 0 7.27 2 0 0 8.2 11 7 7 0 7 7

Gallagher 1 2 8.16 6 2 0 14.1 21 16 13 1 7 10

Team Totals 13 22 4.50 35 35 7 321.2 341 183 161 36 136 225

SEATTLEMARINERS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Suzuki .324 .361 139 14 45 2 1 4 12 7 13 5 3 1

Branyan .309 .372 123 24 38 11 0 10 20 11 37 1 0 2

Balentien .288 .325 73 10 21 8 0 1 6 5 12 1 0 0

Chavez .273 .336 110 11 30 2 0 1 8 11 15 6 1 1

Gutierrez .272 .349 114 17 31 3 0 3 17 13 26 2 2 0

Betancourt .258 .284 128 9 33 5 1 2 14 5 11 2 0 7

Johjima .250 .271 68 7 17 2 0 2 9 2 2 1 0 1

Sweeney .246 .297 69 7 17 4 0 2 9 3 9 0 0 1

Lopez .234 .280 145 18 34 6 0 3 19 9 19 0 1 6

Griffey Jr. .219 .342 96 11 21 4 0 3 8 18 20 0 0 0

Beltre .211 .242 152 18 32 10 0 2 15 6 28 5 2 7

Johnson .206 .227 63 4 13 3 1 0 8 2 19 0 1 1

Cedeno .186 .239 43 6 8 1 1 1 3 3 12 1 1 1

Team Totals .255 .307 1336 156 341 61 4 34 148 96 226 24 11 33

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Rowland-Smith 0 0 0.00 1 1 0 3.1 4 2 0 0 4 1

Vargas 1 0 1.29 4 2 0 14.0 15 3 2 2 6 8

Aardsma 1 1 1.45 18 0 4 18.2 10 3 3 1 12 19

Kelley 1 1 1.54 10 0 0 11.2 11 2 2 2 1 11

White 0 0 2.50 13 0 0 18.0 12 6 5 2 12 7

Bedard 2 1 2.53 7 7 0 42.2 39 14 12 3 11 43

Batista 2 0 2.61 14 0 0 20.2 22 10 6 1 12 19

Hernandez 4 2 3.53 8 8 0 51.0 47 21 20 5 15 53

Washburn 3 3 3.86 8 8 0 51.1 47 23 22 5 15 37

Lowe 0 1 4.15 17 0 0 17.1 21 12 8 1 7 16

Olson 0 1 4.85 4 1 0 13.0 14 8 7 3 7 7

Jakubauskas 2 4 7.13 8 6 0 35.1 41 29 28 4 11 15

Corcoran 1 0 7.27 8 0 0 8.2 13 7 7 0 9 4

Silva 1 3 8.48 6 6 0 28.2 38 27 27 5 9 10

Morrow 0 3 9.58 11 0 6 10.1 13 11 11 3 11 12

Stark 0 1 11.12 5 0 0 5.2 10 8 7 2 6 4

Team Totals 18 21 4.29 39 39 10 350.1 357 186 167 39 148 266

TAMPA BAYRAYS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Bartlett .384 .423 138 27 53 9 2 5 22 8 21 11 1 3

Longoria .345 .405 148 31 51 16 0 11 46 16 36 2 0 3

Crawford .327 .383 159 28 52 10 3 1 18 13 30 24 0 1

Iwamura .291 .358 134 16 39 12 0 0 15 14 27 8 1 5

Zobrist .279 .374 86 15 24 7 1 7 20 13 21 3 1 0

Aybar .263 .358 57 8 15 4 0 0 6 8 10 0 0 0

Hernandez .258 .281 31 2 8 2 0 1 8 1 5 1 1 0

Gross .254 .365 63 12 16 3 0 1 7 11 14 2 1 0

Burrell .250 .349 108 9 27 4 0 1 17 16 25 1 0 0

Riggans .250 .250 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1

Pena .248 .373 141 28 35 8 1 13 33 27 50 0 1 5

Kapler .212 .288 52 5 11 6 0 0 2 6 11 2 0 1

Upton .183 .294 131 25 24 7 0 2 6 21 41 12 2 0

Navarro .179 .205 112 13 20 4 0 1 7 2 20 1 0 1

Team Totals .275 .351 1377 221 378 93 7 45 210 157 314 67 8 24

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Isringhausen 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0

Cormier 0 0 2.17 14 0 1 29.0 25 7 7 1 7 12

Howell 0 2 2.60 18 0 1 17.1 17 5 5 1 6 20

Shouse 1 1 3.29 17 0 0 13.2 14 5 5 2 2 8

Garza 4 2 3.50 8 8 0 54.0 36 22 21 5 23 45

Shields 3 4 3.98 8 8 0 52.0 56 26 23 8 15 35

Percival 0 1 4.91 13 0 6 11.0 13 6 6 3 3 7

Niemann 4 3 4.97 8 8 0 41.2 47 26 23 7 21 21

Balfour 1 0 5.60 18 0 1 17.2 18 11 11 0 12 17

Wheeler 1 0 5.79 16 0 0 14.0 13 9 9 4 4 12

Nelson 0 0 5.94 17 0 2 16.2 15 11 11 4 12 17

Kazmir 4 3 6.97 8 8 0 41.1 52 34 32 7 25 32

Sonnanstine 2 4 7.36 8 8 0 40.1 58 34 33 5 14 24

Team Totals 20 20 4.79 40 40 11 349.2 365 196 186 47 144 250

AMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSAMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 27BaseballSPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Baseball

TEXASRANGERS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Vizquel .378 .425 37 6 14 4 1 0 6 3 4 2 0 0

Young .351 .392 148 25 52 14 0 7 17 10 24 3 1 3

Kinsler .314 .385 153 31 48 11 1 11 32 17 24 9 1 3

Byrd .309 .333 123 15 38 14 0 2 17 5 16 2 0 0

Jones .297 .439 64 14 19 7 0 4 11 16 14 1 0 0

Andrus .276 .315 105 18 29 2 3 2 8 6 16 4 0 7

Cruz .271 .322 133 18 36 7 0 7 22 11 34 4 0 3

Saltalamacchia .267 .315 101 13 27 5 0 3 16 7 33 0 1 1

Hamilton .241 .296 87 14 21 1 2 5 19 7 23 3 0 0

Blalock .237 .271 131 20 31 7 1 10 24 5 25 0 0 0

Davis .227 .283 128 21 29 4 0 10 21 8 54 0 0 0

Teagarden .206 .308 34 3 7 1 0 0 3 4 15 0 0 0

Murphy .203 .293 64 11 13 4 0 1 8 9 16 1 2 0

Team Totals .278 .334 1309 209 364 81 8 62 204 108 299 29 5 19

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Francisco 1 0 0.00 14 0 9 14.2 7 0 0 0 4 13

O'Day 1 0 2.00 11 0 1 9.0 7 2 2 1 1 10

Millwood 4 3 2.93 8 8 0 58.1 53 21 19 7 13 32

Jennings 1 1 3.24 11 0 0 16.2 14 9 6 2 7 11

Wilson 2 2 3.86 18 0 2 16.1 16 12 7 1 9 10

Feldman 2 0 4.04 8 5 0 35.2 30 16 16 3 12 19

Harrison 4 2 4.23 7 7 0 44.2 48 21 21 4 13 24

Padilla 3 2 4.71 8 8 0 49.2 50 27 26 4 20 26

Holland 1 1 4.85 7 0 0 13.0 13 7 7 2 6 6

McCarthy 3 1 5.92 7 7 0 38.0 39 25 25 10 16 29

Eyre 0 0 6.23 3 0 0 4.1 5 3 3 0 3 1

Guardado 0 1 6.23 14 0 0 8.2 13 6 6 2 4 4

Benson 1 1 8.36 3 2 0 14.0 21 14 13 4 6 8

Madrigal 0 0 13.50 3 0 0 2.2 1 4 4 0 5 1

Team Totals 23 14 4.54 37 37 12 331.1 331 179 167 43 125 196

TORONTOBLUE JAYS

BATTERS AVG OBA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS E

Hill .345 .382 177 30 61 6 0 11 34 11 27 2 1 5

Lind .322 .398 152 25 49 14 0 7 35 19 30 0 0 0

Rolen .318 .381 132 22 42 10 0 3 15 12 17 2 0 4

Barajas .310 .339 113 14 35 11 0 3 22 6 16 0 0 4

Bautista .301 .427 73 15 22 4 0 1 6 15 20 3 0 0

Millar .299 .338 67 10 20 5 0 2 13 4 10 0 0 1

Scutaro .284 .415 155 36 44 10 1 5 20 35 19 3 2 0

Rios .265 .326 170 23 45 9 2 5 21 14 30 3 0 1

Wells .259 .317 170 27 44 10 1 5 21 15 17 6 0 0

Overbay .247 .357 93 13 23 8 0 5 19 17 16 0 0 0

Chavez .241 .241 29 1 7 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 1

Snider .240 .291 96 12 23 6 0 3 12 7 24 1 0 1

McDonald .235 .235 17 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0

Barrett .167 .211 18 3 3 0 0 1 2 1 5 0 0 0

Team Totals .289 .357 1462 234 422 93 4 51 222 156 235 20 3 20

PITCHERS W L ERA G GS SV IP H R ER HR BB SO

Frasor 4 0 0.64 16 0 1 14.0 9 1 1 0 1 9

Cecil 2 0 1.80 3 3 0 20.0 17 5 4 2 4 15

Downs 0 0 1.86 18 0 5 19.1 13 5 4 1 2 22

Halladay 8 1 2.78 9 9 0 68.0 63 23 21 5 8 57

Wolfe 1 0 3.00 2 0 0 3.0 3 1 1 0 0 3

Carlson 1 2 3.43 21 0 0 21.0 17 8 8 2 6 12

Ray 1 1 3.60 3 3 0 20.0 17 10 8 3 5 9

Richmond 4 2 3.64 8 8 0 47.0 44 21 19 6 17 38

Camp 0 1 4.20 13 0 0 15.0 16 8 7 2 7 7

League 1 1 4.50 16 0 0 18.0 16 9 9 1 8 13

Tallet 2 1 4.68 10 6 0 42.1 33 23 22 7 21 31

Litsch 0 1 9.00 2 2 0 9.0 14 9 9 4 1 8

Ryan 1 0 9.45 7 0 2 6.2 8 7 7 2 6 6

Team Totals 27 14 3.85 41 41 8 373.2 340 174 160 41 127 284

AMERICAN LEAGUE TEAM STATSTHROUGH MONDAY’S GAMES

TEAM BATTING AND FIELDING(Through May 18)

CLUB BA SLG OBP G AB R H TB 2B 3B HR RBIToronto .289 .462 .357 41 1462 234 422 137 93 4 51 222

L.A. Angels .283 .417 .344 37 1277 185 361 116 65 8 30 175

Texas .278 .494 .334 37 1309 209 364 114 81 8 62 204

Tampa Bay .275 .450 .351 40 1377 221 378 157 93 7 45 210

Boston .274 .449 .363 38 1316 208 361 172 90 7 42 200

Minnesota .272 .415 .349 39 1334 189 363 142 61 8 38 177

N.Y. Yankees .272 .473 .351 38 1343 205 365 141 77 8 59 194

Baltimore .270 .431 .339 38 1303 192 352 170 78 4 41 181

Detroit .270 .434 .343 36 1225 201 331 92 60 9 41 194

Cleveland .269 .423 .354 39 1359 203 366 157 79 5 40 186

Kansas City .260 .423 .337 38 1277 173 332 137 73 15 35 163

Seattle .255 .383 .307 39 1336 156 341 148 61 4 34 148

Chicago White Sox .246 .384 .315 37 1233 144 303 147 52 5 36 139

Oakland .239 .347 .311 35 1229 153 294 98 57 3 23 148

CLUB SH SF HBP BB IBB SO SB CS GDP LOB SHO E DP TPToronto 10 15 9 156 11 235 20 3 43 597 0 20 40 0

L.A. Angels 14 15 6 121 7 210 50 11 20 461 1 23 36 0

Texas 7 13 9 108 4 299 29 5 17 511 1 19 41 0

Tampa Bay 7 12 12 157 9 314 67 8 22 547 2 24 42 0

Boston 0 11 24 166 15 264 27 11 43 559 1 26 26 0

Minnesota 10 14 11 155 7 252 25 9 34 569 3 14 30 0

N.Y. Yankees 13 10 12 157 8 248 24 4 30 542 0 20 38 0

Baltimore 3 7 12 128 5 202 25 14 20 467 1 24 30 0

Detroit 13 8 12 128 6 230 18 9 40 466 2 18 32 0

Cleveland 7 11 26 159 5 309 27 9 29 609 3 21 51 0

Kansas City 11 6 16 135 11 247 24 5 34 503 1 26 43 0

Seattle 17 11 8 96 9 226 24 11 38 460 3 33 33 0

Chicago White Sox 3 9 17 111 1 253 21 12 29 496 6 25 26 0

Oakland 6 11 13 120 2 221 14 10 23 484 4 27 32 0

TEAM PITCHING(Through May 18)

CLUB W L ERA G CG SHO SV INN H R ERKansas City 20 18 3.59 38 4 4 8 336.0 316 155 134

Toronto 27 14 3.85 41 2 3 8 373.2 340 174 160

Detroit 20 16 4.16 36 1 5 6 318.1 309 170 147

Seattle 18 21 4.29 39 1 3 10 350.1 357 186 167

Oakland 13 22 4.50 35 0 0 7 321.2 341 183 161

Texas 23 14 4.54 37 3 2 12 331.1 331 179 167

L.A. Angels 19 18 4.68 37 4 3 10 327.0 344 186 170

Chicago White Sox 15 22 4.76 37 0 2 8 321.2 356 179 170

Boston 22 16 4.77 38 2 0 12 339.1 360 190 180

Tampa Bay 20 20 4.79 40 0 1 11 349.2 365 196 186

Minnesota 18 21 5.20 39 0 1 6 346.1 376 207 200

N.Y. Yankees 21 17 5.32 38 2 2 8 343.1 359 218 203

Baltimore 16 22 5.49 38 1 1 7 331.1 399 225 202

Cleveland 14 25 5.65 39 0 1 7 341.0 380 225 214

CLUB HR HBP BB IBB SO WP BKKansas City 23 11 127 4 276 20 2

Toronto 41 16 127 4 284 12 0

Detroit 36 6 131 7 260 13 0

Seattle 39 13 148 4 266 19 1

Oakland 36 5 136 9 225 8 0

Texas 43 19 125 5 196 12 4

L.A. Angels 35 12 120 5 216 14 1

Chicago White Sox 32 7 136 12 248 16 1

Boston 38 27 147 8 281 10 1

Tampa Bay 47 12 144 6 250 18 1

Minnesota 53 10 113 5 241 13 2

N.Y. Yankees 53 24 164 8 272 17 1

Baltimore 56 13 123 14 244 8 1

Cleveland 45 12 156 9 251 12 1

American League National LeagueTEAM BATTING AND FIELDING(Through May 18)

CLUB BA SLG OBP G AB R H TB 2B 3B HR RBIN.Y. Mets .291 .427 .371 38 1303 191 379 118 70 15 26 177L.A. Dodgers .285 .424 .371 40 1390 225 396 123 82 8 32 212Washington .280 .448 .364 38 1345 199 376 173 72 8 46 193Houston .267 .404 .332 37 1256 164 335 162 65 9 30 154Pittsburgh .265 .404 .334 38 1288 174 341 151 86 9 25 167Philadelphia .262 .452 .349 36 1235 207 323 106 71 7 50 197St. Louis .261 .424 .335 38 1270 186 331 122 69 6 42 181Atlanta .259 .395 .342 37 1241 157 322 163 74 5 28 146Chicago Cubs .256 .427 .339 36 1221 182 312 108 61 5 46 171San Francisco .256 .370 .316 37 1253 150 321 116 64 9 20 139Colorado .255 .434 .330 37 1241 188 316 128 68 7 47 181Milwaukee .254 .436 .352 38 1250 194 317 117 66 6 50 190Cincinnati .253 .404 .327 37 1261 167 319 138 64 6 38 157Florida .237 .379 .317 38 1298 174 307 131 60 7 37 166San Diego .236 .392 .314 38 1278 145 301 111 64 8 40 141Arizona .234 .398 .310 37 1236 144 289 122 75 7 38 138

CLUB SH SF HBP BB IBB SO SB CS GDP LOB SHO E DP TPN.Y. Mets 24 17 11 165 21 215 42 15 35 559 1 31 29 0L.A. Dodgers 13 16 13 186 24 268 32 13 37 596 0 17 33 0Washington 16 8 15 167 9 312 14 10 27 628 1 41 29 0Houston 20 16 12 119 8 224 26 16 28 480 4 18 42 0Pittsburgh 17 10 18 122 9 274 22 8 20 513 4 17 41 1Philadelphia 13 13 21 151 3 231 22 8 24 481 2 11 24 0St. Louis 20 16 20 131 9 220 20 6 25 490 1 28 38 0Atlanta 20 12 11 151 12 228 7 7 32 512 3 23 27 0Chicago Cubs 9 10 15 144 6 268 20 11 24 511 2 20 27 0San Francisco 15 13 17 98 12 264 25 10 28 479 2 16 40 0Colorado 13 13 9 138 6 272 28 11 27 471 3 23 32 0Milwaukee 15 14 22 175 7 307 11 9 31 533 1 24 28 0Cincinnati 26 11 15 129 9 250 24 10 28 473 1 29 31 0Florida 19 8 12 144 9 322 21 11 18 501 2 25 21 0San Diego 21 7 9 140 9 256 16 4 26 478 3 17 38 0Arizona 9 9 9 131 9 287 26 11 16 489 3 28 37 1

TEAM PITCHING(Through May 18)

CLUB W L ERA G CG SHO SV INN H R ERL.A. Dodgers 27 13 3.72 40 1 3 12 358.0 293 154 148Milwaukee 24 14 3.86 38 1 2 14 337.2 299 157 145N.Y. Mets 21 17 3.90 38 0 2 12 341.2 332 167 148Cincinnati 20 17 3.96 37 1 6 10 339.0 311 161 149Atlanta 18 19 4.19 37 0 2 9 330.2 314 170 154Pittsburgh 17 21 4.19 38 1 4 7 332.2 318 165 155St. Louis 21 17 4.23 38 1 1 12 338.1 340 175 159San Francisco 19 18 4.27 37 0 5 9 332.2 332 165 158Arizona 14 23 4.43 37 1 4 8 331.0 333 172 163Chicago Cubs 21 15 4.50 36 0 1 9 319.2 293 167 160Florida 18 20 4.59 38 1 0 7 341.0 348 193 174Colorado 15 22 4.70 37 1 1 7 323.2 356 184 169Houston 17 19 4.71 37 0 2 8 328.2 350 183 172San Diego 16 22 4.75 38 1 0 9 339.1 329 192 179Philadelphia 20 16 5.39 36 0 0 9 322.0 345 195 193Washington 11 26 5.90 38 1 0 6 334.0 392 247 219

CLUB HR HBP BB IBB SO WP BKL.A. Dodgers 27 20 158 16 301 18 0Milwaukee 40 19 134 8 265 14 0N.Y. Mets 29 11 145 15 263 11 6Cincinnati 37 17 148 7 255 10 1Atlanta 26 15 134 15 285 11 0Pittsburgh 34 17 141 9 205 9 1St. Louis 34 15 136 2 245 9 4San Francisco 33 9 152 15 292 17 2Arizona 40 8 120 4 256 17 0Chicago Cubs 45 12 148 6 303 16 3Florida 36 8 152 15 300 15 1Colorado 36 11 116 11 238 9 1Houston 40 16 138 5 251 10 1San Diego 38 10 159 16 266 13 1Philadelphia 58 22 139 8 252 7 0Washington 42 19 171 10 221 22 2

Defenseless: NFL’s five worst overhaul coaches, personnelBad defense is difficult to

overcome. The Lions discovered that last

season. Not only were they winless, but in many games they looked defenseless. Detroit had the NFL’s worst defense, allowing 404.4

yards per game, followed by the Chiefs (393.2), Seahawks (378), Broncos (374.6) and Rams (371.9).

Not surpris-ingly, none of those teams made the playoffs. Not surprisingly, all

five have new head coaches, new defensive coordinators and plenty of new personnel.

Here’s a closer look at what the feeble five have done in the offseason:

Detroit Lions What’s different: New coach Jim

Schwartz does not want to hear about last season. Linebacker Larry Foote, who left the Steelers to sign as a free agent, has the kind of atti-tude Schwartz seeks.

“I think the first thing he brings is a couple Super Bowl rings and success in the league,” Schwartz said of Foote. “That’s street cred, instant credibility, whatever you want to say.”

The Lions have revamped the linebacker corps, signing Foote and Cody Spencer and trading for Julian Peterson. Two more veterans, defensive tackle Grady Jackson and cornerback Phillip Buchanon also have been added, and the coaches have high hopes for rookie safety Louis Delmas.

Why they should worry: When you finish 0-16, you are a long way from being good. The Lions spent their two first-round picks on offense—QB Matthew Stafford and tight end Brandon Pettigrew. Why not help the offense? Fixing the defense is a long-term project.

“Quite honestly, we needed to improve special teams and offense also,” Schwartz said. “It wasn’t like we were in a situation maybe like Denver. I think they were second in the league on offense and down toward the bottom in defense. We weren’t real high on offense, either. So there were a lot of things to address.”

Kansas City Chiefs What’s different: New G.M. Scott

Pioli has a strong draft record, and he liked defensive end Tyson Jack-son enough to make him the No. 3-overall pick. Jackson, who got his first taste of the NFL at a recent minicamp, sounds realistic about the work he must do to become an impact rookie.

“Everything’s much faster, guys are bigger, stronger,” Jackson said. “You’re a professional now. You got to get adjusted quick. I have to step up my game a lot more. I can’t con-tinue playing the college game and bring it to the NFL.”

Pioli also added three veteran line-backers—Mike Vrabel, Zach Thomas and Monty Beisel—to accelerate the switch to a 3-4 scheme. Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast gets another chance after being fired by the Cardinals despite their Super Bowl run.

Why they should worry: After a disappointing rookie year, defen-sive tackle Glenn Dorsey might not

be a good fit at nose tackle or end in a 3-4 defense. The Chiefs had the worst pass rush in the league with just 10 sacks, and on paper they have not improved.

Seattle Seahawks What’s different: The coaches

expect linebacker Aaron Curry, the No. 4-overall pick, to start immedi-ately. Cornerback Ken Lucas was signed as a free agent, and they traded for defensive tackle Cory Redding. New defensive coordina-tor Casey Bradley will bring some of the cover-2 principles he learned under former Buccaneers’ coordi-nator Monte Kiffin.

Why they should worry: The Sea-hawks allowed more passing yards than any team, despite having a decent pass rush. They still have question marks in the secondary. If defensive end Patrick Kearney does not fully recover from shoulder and elbow surgeries, the pass rush too could suffer.

Denver Broncos What’s different: Veterans like

safety Brian Dawkins and line-backer Andra Davis should add swagger. Rookie Robert Ayers expects to see time at outside line-backer and defensive end. With 22 years of NFL coaching experience, defensive coordinator Mike Nolan will be leaned on heavily by new coach Josh McDaniels.

Why they should worry: The Bron-cos’ front seven still has serious question marks. If Redskins rookie defensive end Brian Orakpo becomes a star, the Broncos might regret passing on him with the No. 12 pick.

St. Louis Rams What’s different: New coach Steve

Spagnuolo did a superb job as the Giants’ defensive coordinator. This is a tougher job. Strong safety James Butler and rookie middle line-backer James Laurinaitis are fresh

faces, and second-year defensive end Chris Long should be improved.

“We’re taking from a lot of differ-ent teams—five, six teams we’ve been watching tape of,” Long said. “Hopefully we can do a little bit of everything.”

Why they should worry: The Rams have won only five games the last two seasons, and the defense has been weak for years. When a team sinks this low, rebuilding usually takes time.

cliftonbrown@sportingnews.com

Clifton BrownPRO FOOTBALL

GENE J. PUSKAR / AP

Former Steelers LB Larry Foote will try to bring a Super Bowl swagger to his hometown Detroit Lions.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 28NFL

Scouts’ views

Fullback rankings: Jaguars’ Jones the most versatile in NFLBack in the days of John Facenda, the full-

back essentially was an extra lineman. He had

to be a big bodied runner with quick foot-

work and a nose for contact. That remains a

major requirement, but the fullback job has

evolved into a role that requires a good deal

of athletic ability and varied skills.

Most of today’s best fullbacks also are

capable receivers, run with power between

the tackles and move the pile as a blocker in

short-yardage situations. Some on this list

also can run like halfbacks when necessary.

The importance of each skill varies between

offensive schemes, but versatility is critical.

RealScouts, SN Today’s team of former NFL

scouts, rank their top 10 fullbacks for ‘09:

1. Greg Jones, Jaguars. A former running back, Jones has

turned himself into an elite lead blocker. He also is a tough inside runner in short-yardage and goal-line situations and is a solid receiver. Jones will get more carries in ’09, too, after the team released Fred Taylor.

2. Le’Ron McClain, Ravens. At 260 pounds, McClain is a punish-

ing blocker. Last season, when injuries crippled the running back position, he showed the athleticism to become the featured ballcarrier and led the team in rushing. He can fill multiple roles within the offense, critical in the Ravens’ run-first attack.

3. Ovie Mughelli, Falcons. Mughelli doesn’t rack up big personal

statistics, but the Falcons were second in the NFL in rushing average last season—152.7 yards per game. Mughelli is aggressive and strong enough to deliver blows between the tackles and athletic enough to make open-field blocks. He also has

improved in pass protection, which will become more important as QB Matt Ryan matures.

4. Justin Griffith, Seahawks. Griffith was Mughelli’s

predecessor in Atlanta from 2004-06, when the Falcons led the league in rushing for three consecu-tive seasons. In ’07, he moved to Oakland and the woeful Raiders ranked sixth and 10th in his two years with the team. It’s no coinci-dence. He’ll immediately upgrade Seattle’s running game under new coach Jim Mora, who was with Griffith in Atlanta.

5. Lousaka Polite, Dolphins. Polite initially made his name in the

NFL as a special teams ace for Bill Parcells in Dallas. A hard-working, physical player who likes contact, he endeared himself to Parcells and ended up in Miami and emerged as a starter in ’08. Coach Tony Sparano says Ronnie Brown will be the focus of the offense this season, and he will have Polite to thank for many of the yards he gains.

6. Madison Hedgecock, Giants. Scouts were shocked when the

Rams released Hedgecock in ’07, and he was quickly signed by the Giants. As the lead blocker, he turned the Giants’ running game from good to devastating. Though he touched the ball only nine times last year, he is a 265-pound bowling ball of a blocker with good receiving skills.

7. Heath Evans, Saints. He is the short-yardage back New

Orleans has needed. He runs with

power and can move the pile. He also is strong enough to take on linebackers on isolation blocks and has adequate athleticism to get outside and lead perimeter runs. Though he hasn’t done a lot of it, he also is a capable receiver.

8. Mike Karney, Rams. A hard-working, lunch-pail type of

player, Karney isn’t particularly athletic but can be effective between the tackles as a runner and blocker in short-yardage situations. New coach Steve Spagnuolo has promised that the offense will revolve around Steven Jackson, using more two-back sets. Karney will play a significant role in ’09.

9. Leonard Weaver, Eagles. The Eagles’ biggest struggles in

’08 came in short-yardage situa-tions. Weaver is a power back who can pick up those yards as a runner and be a physical lead blocker for Brian Westbrook, who could use help in deflecting initial contact between the tackles. Weaver, a former tight end, might be the best receiver on this list and regularly makes plays after the catch.

10. Peyton Hillis, Broncos. Hillis is a versatile back who

makes plays as a runner and receiver, but he also is a willing blocker. That wide range of skills will be put to good use in new coach Josh McDaniels’ system.

—RealScouts analyze NFL and college players,

coaches and teams exclusively

for Sporting News Today.

MARK HUMPHREY / AP

Jacksonville FB Greg Jones, left, entered the NFL as a big tailback, but has developed into an elite lead blocker.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 29NFL

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 30NFL

RICHMOND, VA.—Even though Michael Vick is leaving prison this week, he won’t exactly be a free man.

For two months, the suspended NFL star will be largely confined to his Hampton, Va., home and will wear an electronic monitor that allows federal probation offi-cials to track his movements.

He will be allowed to go to his full-time construction job and likely will be allowed about five hours a week for other court-ap-proved activities, according to Ed Bales, managing director of Fed-eral Prison Consultants, an inmate rehabilitation advocacy group.

Permissible activities for inmates on home confinement typically include things like medical appointments, religious obliga-tions and meetings with probation officials. No dinners out. No chill-ing at a friend’s house.

And definitely no bars.“He’s going to be pretty much

read the riot act: ‘If we catch you in one situation like that, it’s back to you know where,’ ” Bales said.

The tight restrictions are designed to ease Vick’s transition from the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kan., back into the community. He is serving a 23-month sentence for a dogfight-ing conspiracy and is expected to be released from federal custody on July 20.

After that, Bales said, Vick will have 72 hours to report to the probation officer to find out what new rules he will have to follow during three years of supervised probation. Typically, those rules include travel restrictions, hold-ing down a job and avoiding known criminals.

To reenter the NFL, commis-sioner Roger Goodell has said Vick must show true remorse and that he has learned from his mis-takes and is prepared to live a dif-ferent life. Only then would Goodell consider lifting Vick’s indefinite suspension.

One restriction tailored specifi-cally for Vick: He never again can own a dog. U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson made that deci-sion when he sentenced Vick. He also ordered enrollment in a sub-stance abuse program if Vick’s parole officer deems it necessary.

During the day, Vick will earn $10 an hour as a general laborer at one of W.M. Jordan Co.’s 40 commercial construction sites, company president John R. Law-son has said.

Bales said less than 5 percent of

federal inmates are transferred directly from prison to home con-finement. The more usual scenario is a transfer to a halfway house, but all the beds in the area were booked beyond Vick’s release date.

In some ways, Bales said, a halfway house is an easier gig than home confinement. Resi-dents generally have a couple of hours of free time after work and are furloughed on weekends, he said. The downside: “You’re with other people, and there are prob-lems that can occur,” Bales said.

The only people Vick will be with during his home confinement are his fiancee and their children. The five-bedroom, 3,538-square-foot brick home has an assessed value of $748,100, according to Hampton city tax records.

— The Associated Press

FT. LAUDERDALE, FLA.—New Orleans could get back in the Super Bowl rotation this week. NFL owners will award the 2013 Super Bowl to New Orleans, Glendale, Ariz., or South Florida.

The Super Bowl has been staged in New Orleans nine times, tied with Miami for the most years hosting the big game. Miami will break that tie in February.

But bringing the Super Bowl back to the bayou for the first time since 2002 not only would be a boon to the Louisiana city but would display the NFL’s satisfaction with how New Orleans has recovered as a sports city from Hurricane Katrina.

A few weeks ago, the state and the Saints announced a lease extension through 2025 that, if approved by the state legislature, also will include $85 million in upgrades to the Superdome in time for the 2013 game.

“In a lot of ways, we’re providing a new stadium with the advantages of the old stadium,” Saints vice presi-dent Ben Hales said.

Other issues that could be discussed:

Expanded season. The owners could vote on a proposal to expand the regular season to 17 or 18 games. Commissioner Roger Goodell has mentioned in the last few months the need to replace preseason games in which few star players get on the field with “meaningful” football.

“The idea has merit, I think,” he said last month. “You are taking the quality and improving it, taking two meaningless games and making them meaningful within the

20-game framework.”In late March, Goodell said he

hoped a plan for restructuring the schedule could be presented to the owners in Fort Lauderdale. Regard-less, there will be discussion of the matter.

“A vote has not been ruled out,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said.

Sponsorships. Owners plan to vote on proposals to allow teams to sell lottery and alcohol sponsor-ships. Current league rules prohibit clubs from selling in those areas. With teams struggling to find spon-sorships in an ailing economy, clubs are unlikely to pass on the opportu-nity to sell new categories. Each of the sponsorships could be worth up to $1 million annually per club.

Pension changes. The owners are likely to be questioned about changes in the pension plan for

coaches after two longtime Colts assistants, Tom Moore and Howard Mudd, retired last week rather than lose benefits. The owners voted in March to make the pension, the 401K and the supplemental retire-ment plan non-mandatory for the clubs. Nine teams have dropped the program.

Tampering. Possible modifications to the league’s tampering rules would create a window before free agency begins in which teams could contact the representatives of unrestricted free agents and enter contract negotia-tions. No contract could be executed during that time period.

NFLPA. New players union execu-tive director DeMaurice Smith is expected to address the owners.

— The Associated Press & SportsBusiness Journal

New Orleans seeks to land 2013 Super Bowl at owners’ meeting

Vick must follow strict rules upon release

STEVE HELBER-POOL / GETTY IMAGES

ROB CARR / AP

For two months, Michael Vick will be confined to his home, save mostly for a construction job.

The Superdome has hosted nine Super Bowls and could be in for a major pre-2013 makeover.

5 things about DeMaurice Smith, Page 2

INSIDE DISH

Retired QB Brett Favre reportedly has scheduled an appointment today to meet with famed orthopedic sur-geon Dr. James Andrews at his Birming-ham, Ala., office.

Favre, who turns 40 on Oct. 10, is considering another comeback to the NFL but has a partially torn biceps tendon in his throwing arm. Accord-ing to The (St. Paul) Pioneer Press, Andrews will examine Favre and determine if surgery to sever the ten-don is necessary. If so, the paper reports the surgery could be per-formed later this week.

However, ESPN.com reported that Favre doesn’t have an appointment with Andrews, and does not feel that surgery is imminent, instead focus-ing on non-surgical options to release the tendon.

Rehabilitation from such a surgery typically is 6-8 weeks. If the surgery eliminates his pain, Favre would be ready to throw before the start of training camp in late July.

The Vikings are considered his likely destination should his arm bounce back. Should Andrews find more significant damage in the throwing shoulder, Favre is expected to stay retired rather than undergo major surgery.

Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson has taken an indefinite leave of absence while he continues treatment for a cancerous tumor on his spine.

Johnson, who turns 68 next week, complained of back pain in early January. He coached from the press box in a playoff win over the Giants and in the Eagles’ loss to the Cardi-nals in the NFC championship. An

MRI after the playoff win against the Giants on Jan. 11 alerted doctors that something might be wrong. Johnson was treated for melanoma in 2001. Following the Arizona loss, the team announced the cancer had returned.

“Jim and I agreed that he needs to concentrate all of his efforts on his recovery,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said Monday. “He’s struggling, but he’s a tough guy and a true battler.”

Secondary coach Sean McDermott will run the defense in Johnson’s absence.

Vikings DE Kenechi Udeze reports he is fully recovered from his battle with leukemia and ready to partici-pate in offseason workouts and prac-tices, which begin today.

“I feel really good,” Udeze told The Star-Tribune. “I don’t know exactly what they’re going to have me doing, because they kind of want to ease me into this offseason minicamp sched-ule. Whatever they throw me into, I think I’ll be capable of doing.

“Honestly, I wouldn’t be attempt-ing this again or if I had a negative test, if I knew my health was at risk. My health is doing just fine now.”

No stranger to attention, Bills WR Terrell Owens drew plenty of it Monday as he joined his new team-mates for a voluntary practice. After the workout, Owens filmed seg-ments for his VH1 reality show and held a press conference at an art gal-lery, where he was presented the key to the city by Buffalo mayor Byron Brown.

“This is nothing,” Owens said with a smile following practice while standing in front of 12 TV cameras.

“I played in Philly, played in Dallas, this is light.”

On one play during practice, Owens, a 13-year veteran, burst up the right sideline and beat CB Terrence McGee to make a catch and tiptoe into the end zone.

“I thought I was going to get my hands on the ball, but when I missed it I didn’t think he was going to catch it,” McGee said. “When I’m diving and I see it in his hands, it was a great throw and a great catch.”

Chiefs G Brian Waters, in a

meeting with new coach Todd Haley on Monday, again has asked to be traded or released, according to The Kansas City Star.

The Dolphins are considering using WR Ernest Wilford in more of a tight end/H-back role in ’09, accord-ing to his agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

The Ravens signed WR Kelley Washington to a one-year contract Monday. Washington, a six-year vet, spent the past two seasons with the Patriots after being released by the

Bengals. Last season, Washington caught one pass and blocked a punt.

Browns WR/KR Josh Cribbs plans to skip the Browns’ offseason prac-tices, which begin today, in an effort to get an upgraded contract. Cribbs claims both owner Randy Lerner and former G.M. Phil Savage had promised to redo his contract but new G.M. George Kokinis has been unwilling, sources told ProFootballTalk.com.

Cribbs is under contract for four more seasons with base salaries of $620,000, $635,000, $650,000 and $790,000. He can earn up to $400,000 in incentives each year .

Vikings rookie WR Percy Harvin, who missed his rookie minicamp with flu-like symptoms, is expected to practice today, when the team’s full-squad workouts begin.

So why did the Raiders pass on Michael Crabtree, the consensus top receiver in the draft, and instead select WR Darrius Heyward-Bey? One theory, according to the Contra-Costa Times, is that the team already had a player similar to Crabtree and saw Heyward-Bey as a complement.

That speaks to the confidence the coaches have in second-year man Chaz Schilens. At 6-4, Schilens is 2 inches taller than Crabtree, is faster and has a 43-inch vertical leap. The coaches say Crabtree and Schilens would have had to be used similarly on short and intermediate routes, but Hey-ward-Bey is more of a big-play guy.

Schilens did play more down the stretch of his rookie year, catching 15 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns.

Packers NT B.J. Raji’s college coach, Jeff Jagodzinski, says to hold off on those comparisons to Warren Sapp—for now.

“I think (Raji) will be pretty darn good,” Jagodzinski told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Especially with what they’re asking him to do, he’s so strong at the point of attack. He can hold the point because he’s so strong and he’s built low to the ground, I mean he’s so thick. He’s a 600 pound squat guy, too, I think.

“I remember Warren Sapp—you couldn’t block him now. I mean you couldn’t. He was such a disruptive force. I mean, (Raji) has yet to take a snap. That’s a pretty hefty compari-son. Warren is going to be a Hall of Fame player.”

Favre may meet with Andrews; Eagles’ Johnson takes leave

Minicamp schedule

A listing of upcoming NFL minicamps (all include rookies and veterans unless other-wise noted):

Buffalo—June 9-11Cincinnati—June 18-20Cleveland—Today-Thursday (voluntary); May 26-28 (voluntary); June 11-13Dallas—June 16-18Denver—June 12-14Detroit—June 23-25 (voluntary)Green Bay—June 23-25Houston—June 15-17Indianapolis—June 5-7Kansas City—June 5-7Miami—June 12-14 Minnesota—May 29-31New England—June 10-12New Orleans—June 5-7N.Y. Giants—June 16-18N.Y. Jets—June 9-11St. Louis—June 5-7San Francisco—June 5-7Seattle—June 10-12Tampa Bay—June 16-18Note: Teams are allowed to have rookie minicamps separate from the full-squad minicamp, and teams with first-year head coaches are allowed to add up to two volun-tary minicamps.

DAVID DUPREY / AP

Terrell Owens filmed reality TV segments after his workout with the Bills Monday afternoon.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 31NFL

Remaining free agents A quick look at the remaining NFL free agents by position

(R-restricted free agent, F-franchise tagged player):

OFFENSE

Quarterbacks—Brooks Bollinger, Dallas; Ken Dorsey,

Cleveland; Gus Frerotte, Minnesota; Charlie Frye, Seattle;

Drew Henson, Detroit; Quinn Gray, Kansas City; Trent Green,

St. Louis; Rex Grossman, Chicago; Brad Johnson, Dallas; J.P.

Losman, Buffalo; Jamie Martin, San Francisco; Craig Nall,

Houston; Marques Tuiasosopo, Oakland; Anthony Wright,

NY Giants.

Running backs—Darian Barnes, New Orleans; Tatum

Bell, Denver; Brian Calhoun, Detroit; Jesse Chatman, NY

Jets; P.J. Daniels, Baltimore; Reuben Droughns, NY Giants;

Warrick Dunn, Tampa Bay; DeShaun Foster, San Francisco;

Samkon Gado, St. Louis; Nick Goings, Carolina; Ahman

Green, Houston; Andre Hall, Denver; Kay-Jay Harris, NY

Giants; Maurice Hicks, Minnesota; Edgerrin James, Arizona;

Rudi Johnson, Detroit; Deuce McAllister, New Orleans; Travis

Minor, St. Louis; Chris Perry, Cincinnati; Andrew Pinnock,

Denver; Michael Pittman, Denver; P.J. Pope, Denver; Cecil

Sapp, Houston; Aaron Stecker, New Orleans; Selvin Young,

Denver.

Wide receivers—Drew Bennett, St. Louis; Marty Booker,

Chicago; Drew Carter, Oakland; Jason Carter; Carolina; Keary

Colbert, Detroit; Jayson Foster, Denver; D.J. Hackett, Caro-

lina; Dante Hall, St. Louis; Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis; Ike

Hilliard, Tampa Bay; Darrell Jackson, Denver; Nate Jackson,

Denver; Matt Jones, Jacksonville; Joe Jurevicius, Cleveland;

Ashley Lelie, Oakland; Brandon Lloyd, Chicago; Dane

Looker, St. Louis; Anthony Mix, Tampa Bay; Ben Obomanu

(R), Seattle; Tab Perry, Miami; Jerry Porter, Jacksonville;

Kevin Robinson, Kansas City; Koren Robinson, Seattle; Edell

Shepherd, Denver; Travis Taylor, Detroit; Amani Toomer, NY

Giants; Kelley Washington, New England; Todd Watkins

(R), Oakland; Harry Williams, Houston; Reggie Williams,

Jacksonville; Wallace Wright (R), NY Jets.

Tight ends—Courtney Anderson, Houston; Adam Bergen,

Denver; Mark Bruener, Houston; Scott Chandler, San Diego;

Owen Daniels (R), Houston; Nate Lawrie, Cincinnati; Michael

Merritt, Kansas City; Chad Mustard, Denver; Jeff Robinson,

Seattle; Derek Schouman (R), Buffalo; Stephen Spach (R),

Arizona; Daniel Wilcox, Baltimore; Kris Wilson, San Diego.

Offensive tackles—Tyson Clabo (R), Atlanta; Anthony

Davis, St. Louis; Jon Dunn, Detroit; Wayne Gandy, Atlanta;

Kwame Harris, Oakland; Jonas Jennings, San Francisco; Levi

Jones, Cincinnati; James Marten (R), Oakland; Fred Miller,

Chicago; Rob Petitti, St. Louis; Jon Runyan, Philadelphia;

Ephraim Salaam, Houston; Charles Spencer, Jacksonville;

Barry Stokes, New England; Mark Tauscher, Green Bay; Mark

Wilson (R), Oakland.

Guards—Lennie Friedman, Cleveland; Adrian Jones,

Kansas City; Pete Kendall, Washington; Matt Lentz, Detroit;

Terrence Metcalf, Chicago; Edwin Mulitalo, Detroit; Chris

Naeole, Jacksonville; Tutan Reyes, Jacksonville; Grey

Ruegamer, NY Giants; Kendall Simmons, Pittsburgh; Rob

Sims (R), Seattle; Jason Whittle, Buffalo.

Centers—Brennen Carvalho, Green Bay; Jean-Philippe

Darche, Kansas City; Melvin Fowler, Buffalo; Matt Lehr, New

Orleans; Andy McCollum, Detroit; Jeremy Newberry, San

Diego; Scott Peters, Arizona; Bryan Pittman, Houston; Cory

Withrow, St. Louis.

DEFENSE

Defensive ends—Kevin Carter, Tampa Bay; Earl Cochran,

Houston; Sean Conover, NY Jets; Nick Eason, Pittsburgh;

Kalimba Edwards, Oakland; Ebenezer Ekuban, Denver;

John Engelberger, Denver; Simon Fraser, Atlanta; Roderick

Green, San Francisco; Travis LaBoy, Arizona; Jayme Mitchell,

Minnesota; Jerome McDougle, NY Giants; Julius Peppers

(F), Carolina; Anthony Weaver, Houston; James Wyche,

Jacksonville.

Defensive tackles—Kenderick Allen, Minnesota; Gary

Gibson, Carolina; La’Roi Glover, St. Louis; Vonnie Holliday,

Miami; Antwan Lake, New Orleans; Langston Moore,

Detroit; Kindal Moorehead, Atlanta; Dewayne Robertson,

Denver; Orpheus Roye, Pittsburgh; Hollis Thomas, New

Orleans; Josh Thomas, Indianapolis; John Thornton, Cincin-

nati; Darwin Walker, Carolina; Ellis Wyms, Minnesota; Brian

Young, New Orleans; Jeff Zgonina, Houston.

Linebackers—Rufus Alexander, Indianapolis; Jason

Babin, Kansas City; Rocky Boiman, Kansas City; Derrick

Brooks, Tampa Bay; Khary Campbell, Washington; Anthony

Cannon, Detroit; Dan Cody, Baltimore; Rosevelt Colvin, New

England; Donte’ Curry, Carolina; Donnie Edwards, Kansas

City; Keith Ellison (R), Buffalo; Troy Evans, New Orleans;

Gilbert Gardner, Chicago; Curtis Gatewood, Kansas City;

Morlon Greenwood, Houston; Marques Harris, San Diego;

Napoleon Harris, Minnesota; Abdul Hodge (R), Cincinnati;

Mike Humpal, Pittsburgh; Brad Kassell, NY Jets; Jason Kyle,

Carolina; Teddy Lehman, Buffalo; Paris Lenon, Detroit; Wesly

Mallard, Seattle; Jim Maxwell, Cincinnati; Willie McGinest,

Cleveland; Marques Murrell (R), NY Jets; Ryan Nece, Detroit;

Shantee Orr, Cleveland; Antwan Peek, Cleveland; Carlos

Polk, Dallas; Junior Seau, New England; Matt Sinclair, Wash-

ington; Gary Stills, St. Louis; Terrell Suggs (F), Baltimore;

Dontarrious Thomas, Minnesota; Pisa Tinoisamoa, St. Louis;

Marcus Washington, Washington; Nate Webster, Denver.

Cornerbacks—David Barrett, NY Jets; Dre’ Bly, Denver;

Fakhir Brown, St. Louis; Terry Cousin, Cleveland; Jason Craft,

St. Louis; Travis Fisher, Detroit; Reynaldo Hill, Tennessee;

Roderick Hood, Arizona; William James, Jacksonville;

Michael Lehan, New Orleans; Sam Madison, NY Giants;

Ricky Manning Jr., St. Louis; Derrick Martin (R), Baltimore;

Chris McAlister, Baltimore; Mike McKenzie, New Orleans;

R.W. McQuarters, NY Giants; Deltha O’Neal, New England;

Dunta Robinson (F), Houston; Lewis Sanders, New England;

Duane Starks, Jacksonville; Brandon Sumrall, NY Giants;

DeJuan Tribble, San Diego; Jason Webster, New England;

Jimmy Williams, Houston; Stanley Wilson, Detroit.

Safeties—Oshiomogho Atogwe (F), St. Louis; Michael

Boulware, Minnesota; Mike Brown, Chicago; John Busing,

Cincinnati; Oliver Celestin, Kansas City; Corey Chavous,

St. Louis; Keith Davis, Dallas; Will Demps, Houston; Mike

Doss, Cincinnati; Hiram Eugene, Oakland; Mike Green,

Washington; Rodney Harrison, New England; Terrence Holt,

New Orleans; Dexter Jackson, Cincinnati; Sammy Knight, NY

Giants; Marquand Manuel, Denver; Marlon McCree, Denver;

Lawyer Milloy, Atlanta; Chad Nkang, Jacksonville; Jarrad

Page (R), Kansas City; Pierson Prioleau, Jacksonville; Chris

Reis (R), New Orleans; Dwight Smith, Detroit; Cameron

Worrell, Chicago.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kickers—John Carney, NY Giants; Matt Stover, Baltimore.

Punters—Mitch Berger, Pittsburgh; Mike Dragosavich,

Indianapolis; Sam Koch (R), Baltimore; Kyle Larson, Cincin-

nati; Ryan Plackemeier, Cincinnati.

BY LIZ MULLENSportsBusiness Journal

The average annual value of the contracts of NFL unrestricted free agents this year increased 13 percent over last year’s free agents, an NFL Players Associa-tion official said last week.

The average value for 205 play-ers who signed free-agent con-tracts from the start of free agency until May 6 was $2.2 million, ver-sus $1.95 million for 207 NFL unrestricted free agents who signed in the same period last year, said Mark Levin, director of salary cap and agent administration.

There were fewer free agents

available this year, so it is signifi-cant that about the same number signed, Levin said.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello declined to comment.

“I think it was a good market for front-line players,” agent Drew Rosenhaus said. “For young starters, it was a great market. But it was a tough market for veteran backups. For 30-something players, it was difficult.”

Despite the economic crisis, teams “are not spending less at all,” Rosenhaus said. “But I think there is a movement in the league to paying younger players in their prime and lesser amounts to older players. I definitely notice that.”

The vibrancy of the NFL mar-ket is a stark contrast to Major League Baseball, where the value of the average annual free-agent contract fell nearly 2 percent, to $4.68 million. The average over-all value declined almost 15 per-cent in baseball, from $13.35 million to $11.38 million, and average contract length was down about 12 percent, to 2.43 years.

Comparing the baseball and football free-agent markets, how-ever, is like comparing apples to oranges for a number of reasons, agents said, including that base-ball contracts are fully guaranteed.

lmullen@sportsbusinessjournal.com

Top free agents enjoying up year despite down economy

Redskins DT Albert Haynesworth signed a deal worth up to $115 million, including $41 million guaranteed.

ALEX BRANDON / AP

BY DANIEL KAPLANSportsBusiness Journal

The Detroit Lions might be paying No. 1-overall draft pick Matthew Stafford $41.7 million in guaranteed money, but that’s not enough to gain the quarterback a starring role in the team’s forthcoming market-ing campaign.

Lions president Tom Lewand said individual players will not be high-lighted in the campaign, which is expected to hit midsummer. The cam-paign will not carry a tag line either, Lewand said.

“This is not a city looking for marketing slogans,” Lewand said of eco-nomically struggling Detroit. “The product will speak for itself.”

Lewand declined to reveal details of the campaign other than noting that it would be built around the themes of delivering on-field results and quality to fans. The Lions are coming off a season in which they became the first team in NFL history to go 0-16.

Some season-ticket pitches already have been mailed to existing ticket holders, Lewand said, but the big sales push will begin in a few months.

Last month, the team unveiled a new logo and new uniforms.dkaplan@sportsbusinessjournal.com.

Lions’ marketing approach: ‘Product will speak for itself’

REED SAXON / AP

Lions rookies Derrick Williams (12), Brandon Pettigrew (84) and Matthew Stafford model the team’s new uniforms for the upcoming season.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 32NFL

Listen on Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 127, online at SportingNews.com or check your local listings for broadcast times in your area.WEEKDAYS 1–4PM ET

Sean Miller has been in Tucson less than two months, and already he talks like a Chamber of Commerce lifer. Perhaps it is force of habit. Part of his job description as Arizona head coach is to sell the place to recruits, and now he is pitching a visit to the desert to an old acquaintance.

It is there in his voice: Miller is convinced he made the correct decision in taking on the responsi-bility of returning Ari-zona basketball to the stature its fans believe the program should occupy. (And some fans believe it still does). It wasn’t easy to leave what should be a

terrific Xavier team, and it won’t be easy to make the Wildcats great again, but Miller is energized by the opportunity.

He’s been an Eastern time zone guy almost his entire life, save one year spent working for Stu Jackson as a graduate assis-tant at Wisconsin. But he rapidly is grow-ing to love his new home in the West.

“Living in the desert is an adjustment. You start falling in love with certain things about it,” Miller said. “The one thing that really is amazing is the incredible love for the basketball program. I don’t think that part is nationally as known because it’s so far in the Southwest. And Lute (Olson) was such a dynamic figure that it was him everybody thought about it.

“But when you start talking about Law-rence, Kansas; Lexington, Kentucky—the madness that follows those programs, that is here.”

A little patience will be required from the

people who matter most, however. There is the false perception that because the Wild-cats have made the NCAA Tournament for 25 consecutive years they have continued to reach the same standards of excellence and dominance in recent seasons. Not true.

Arizona advanced to the second weekend of the tournament only twice in the past six years. The Wildcats were plagued by self-ish players, problem players and under-achievers. They’ve had a different head coach in each of the past three seasons.

Most important, Olson’s leave of absence two seasons ago and his sudden retirement before last season ruined consecutive recruiting classes, leaving the Wildcats with virtually no replacements for center Jordan Hill, forward Chase Budinger and, possibly, point guard Nic Wise–depending on whether he remains on the NBA’s early entry list.

One of the concerns about taking on this job—for every coach approached—was whether the first year or two would be spent in a situation similar to what Mick Cronin experienced early on at Cincinnati or Tom Crean endured this past season at Indiana.

Cronin was, literally, a few miles up the highway from Miller when he won just two Big East games his first season after inher-iting a near-empty roster. That isn’t even the hardest part of it, though. It’s that the journey back from such hardship might not be immediate, and it’s difficult to take for fans unaccustomed to struggle.

Miller’s early recruiting success has infused a degree of Pac-10 talent into the program. Wait. That’s putting it too nicely. He averted an absolute disaster by landing three players in his first few weeks.

Center Kyryl Natyazhko of Florida’s IMG Academy and wings Solomon Hill of Los Angeles and Kevin Parrom of Connecticut are all top-100 types. They’ll join athletic forward Jamelle Horne and serviceable guard Kyle Fogg to give the Wildcats a decent core. If Wise were to return, he could provide the group with direction.

“I like the guys we got,” Miller said. But he will not be signing a few more players just to add some bodies he’d wish to dump in a few years. Those scholarships are bet-ter reserved for the classes of 2010 and 2011. Miller only will pursue players he believes can help the program their entire careers.

It’s unlikely Arizona will add guard Lance Stephenson, the New York prep star who lists the Wildcats among his finalists. Stephenson is a talent, but Miller will con-centrate on landing players who have a seri-ous future with the program.

Arizona’s conference affiliation and brand recognition are improvements over Xavier. One advantage that’s less obvious is that Miller was able to hire his brother, Archie, as assistant coach. A nepotism rule prevented that five years ago at Xavier. Miller also brought along assistants James Whitford and Book Richardson from his Musketeers staff and will fill his director of basketball operations position once he finds the right person with West Coast connections.

“Having so many kids coming out of here and doing well helps us in recruiting,” Miller said. “It’s such a credible place. It’s not a hard sell, especially if you do things the right way.”

decourcy@sportingnews.com

Miller’s challenge of raising Arizona likely to take time

Mike DeCourcyCOLLEGE BASKETBALL

MATT CILLEY / AP

Sean Miller has already landed some prized recruits, but most the the Wildcats’ top talent has opted to go pro early.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 33College Basketball

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 34College Football / College Basketball

COLLEGE FOOTBALL COLLEGE BASKETBALL

INSIDE DISH INSIDE DISH

Paulus will compete for Syracuse’s starting QB job Ole Miss signs former Hoosiers starting guardFormer Indiana starting G Nick Williams is transfer-

ring to Mississippi.Rebels coach Andy Kennedy announced Williams’

signing on Monday. Williams will have to sit out next season because of NCAA transfer rules and will have three years of eligibility beginning in 2010-2011.

“Nick is a talented, versatile wing who we are fortu-nate to welcome into our program,” Kennedy said in a prepared statement. “The experience he gained as a freshman at IU, coupled with his outstanding prep career, make him exactly what we were looking for in filling our last scholarship.”

Williams averaged 8.9 points and 4.5 rebounds as a freshman last season at Indiana. He played in all 31 games, starting in 29.

Louisville will need more than production from senior Gs Jerry Smith and Edgar Sosa next season. Both will be co-captains and both need to be leaders, coach Rick Pitino says, on a team that will be full of younger players.

Smith and Sosa each played in all 37 games last season in Louisville’s run to the finals of the Mid-west Regional. Smith averaged 7.8 points and 2.1 rebounds in 21.2 minutes per game, and Sosa aver-aged 7.3 points and 2.4 assists in 19.8 minutes per game.

“Jerry’s always been a quiet type of guy,” Pitino told The (Louisville) Courier-Journal. “But now both guys have to step up, because they’re going to have eight or nine (freshmen and sophomores).”

Pitino said Sosa gained a better understanding of playing to his strengths toward the end of last season.

“He was Muhammad Ali trying to fight like George Fore-man,” Pitino told the newspaper. “He had to under-stand where his skill levels lie.”

Notre Dame coach Mike Brey is in favor of speed-ing up the pace of games.

One way to do that, he said: take 5 seconds off the current 35 on the shot clock.

“Anything we can do to keep moving this game

along, get the ball going to the basket more, is a good thing,” Brey told The (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette.

Brey, who is on the NCAA rules committee, said he thought the idea would have generated more dis-cussion at the recent committee meetings.

“You look, most shots are taken before 30 any-ways, but we do need to examine that,” he told the newspaper. “Next year, that would be something I would really want to talk about, bringing that shot clock down.”

Western Kentucky coach Ken McDonald says rising senior F Jeremy Evans is trying to add some weight to help him hold up better inside.

Evans, who was the Sun Belt Tournament MVP in 2008, was listed at 190 pounds last season, but McDonald said it was 185. Evans averaged 8.8 points and 5.7 rebounds in 34 games.

“We have to continue to hope that over time that he will fill out a little bit,” McDonald told The Cou-rier-Journal. “Part of his success is not having to play as many minutes. After banging for a while at 185, that’s tough.”

Syracuse coach Doug Marrone said Monday he has never seen new Orange QB Greg Paulus throw a football in person. And NCAA rules dictate Marrone won’t get that chance until August.

“I can’t judge him on that,” Marrone told Sporting News Today. “But the reports have come out, from peo-ple I respect, that he’s thrown the ball well.”

Still, Marrone sounded confident Monday that Pau-lus could contribute for the Orange this season. The coach pledged in an interview that the transfer from Duke would receive enough snaps in August to com-pete for the starting spot.

“We know he’s a talented player,” Marrone said. “He just has to get his mind and body right to play football.”

More paperwork and NCAA approval remain before Paulus is allowed to begin his battle with redshirt freshman Ryan Nassib for the No. 1 job. Paulus could start working out with his Orange teammates and team strength coach Will Hicks by the end of the week.

Marrone said he’s encouraged by two factors—posi-tive reports about Paulus’ workout for the Green Bay Packers and the football aptitude Paulus showed dur-ing his April official visit to Syracuse.

“He’s showed us maturity, leadership and knowl-edge of the sport,” Marrone said. “He had tremendous recall of what he had done in high school. And the con-cepts we have are similar.”

— Dave Curtis

Where will Georgia and Florida play in 2011?That question might be answered this summer.The current contract with Jacksonville, Fla., where

the game has been played all but twice since 1933, runs through 2010.

“I’d venture a guess that over the summer we would need to make a decision,” Georgia athletics director Damon Evans told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Why move the game from Jacksonville?Georgia coach Mark Richt said recently that he doesn’t

consider the Gator Bowl a neutral site. And the Atlanta Sports Council has said it wouldn’t mind having the game in the Georgia Dome once every four years.

How about playing on the campuses?“I’m going to sit back and listen to the city of

Jacksonville and look at the pros and cons of everything involved,” Evans told the newspaper.

Prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against Connecticut junior LB Scott Lutrus, a co-captain and two-year starter.

Lutrus was arrested last month and charged with interfering with police following a fight at an off-cam-pus apartment complex.

What would the late Bo Schembechler think of Rich Rodri-guez? It’s impossible to know, but the son of the legendary Michigan coach doesn’t seem entirely sold on the Wolver-ines’ second-year head man.

“I’m not here to say Rich has done a bang-up job,” Glenn “Shemy” Schembechler, a scout for the Washington Redskins, told The Columbus Dispatch. “I know what he has said (about Michigan lacking talent), but he brings in a certain offense and tries to (force it). There is a learning curve, so it’s not so cut and dried.”

Schembechler, 39, made the comment at the Michi-gan Alumni Club of Central Ohio spring dinner last Thursday.

AL GOLDIS / APSTEPHEN MORTON / AP

Nick Williams averaged nearly 9 ppg his freshman season at IU.Georgia and Florida are still looking for a place to play in 2011.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 35NASCAR

Joe Gibbs Racing development driver Matt DiBenedetto is sched-uled to make his Nationwide Series debut at Memphis Motor-sports Park in October.

DiBenedetto, who last month won the NASCAR Camping World Series East race at Tri-County (N.C.) Motor Speedway in his second start in the series, turns 18 in July.

“With testing out of the way, it’s a lot harder to bring guys along, but everything he has done has been real encouraging,” JGR president Joe Gibbs said. “We’ve watched him for years. He’s got a real gift. He went and tested with our guys last year and did a great job.”

JGR isn’t afraid to put young drivers in cars. One of its Sprint Cup drivers, Joey Logano, turns 19 on Sunday.

“It would be good for the sport, too, to get some young guys in there,” Gibbs said about the upcoming Nationwide debut for DiBenedetto. “We throw them in there. We learn real quick, sink or swim—but (DiBenedetto) can swim pretty well.”

— Bob Pockrass, SceneDaily.com

Forty-six teams are on the preliminary entry list for this weekend’s Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Part-time drivers entered in the race are David Starr, Mike Bliss, Max Papis and Bill Elliott. Also, Tony Raines remains in the Front Row Motor-sports Chevrolet; regular driver John Andretti is competing in the Indianapolis 500.

Ten drivers will be competing for the seven spots available to

those not in the top 35 in owner points. Elliott is locked into the field, if he fails to earn a berth through qualifying, by virtue of being the most recent past cham-pion not in the top 35. Starr, Bliss, Papis, Raines, Scott Riggs, Todd Bodine, Dave Blaney, David Gilliland, Scott Speed and Joe Nemechek will vie for those seven positions.

— SceneDaily.com

Fifty-two cars are on the pre-liminary entry list for this week-end’s Carquest Auto Parts 300 at

Lowe’s, one of the largest entry lists for a Nationwide Series race this season, although one has already withdrawn.

On the entry list are 13 full-time Sprint Cup drivers: Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., David Ragan, Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton, Brian Vickers, Kevin Harvick, Paul Menard, Logano, Gilliland, Nem-echek and Speed.

Gilliland replaces regular Smith-Ganassi driver Kenny Hen-drick in the team’s No. 42 Dodge.

— SceneDaily.com

What was Jeremy Mayfield thinking?

Suspended indefinitely May 9 by NASCAR for a positive drug test and subsequent positive second sample, the Sprint Cup owner/driver certainly wasn’t maintaining a low profile dur-

ing Saturday night’s Sprint All-Star Race festivities at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Deliberately visi-ble at the National Guard hospitality coach parked in the infield near the backstretch tunnel,

Mayfield made sure he was spotted, and when members of the media descended on his position, he willingly answered questions, insisting the posi-tive result of the test administered May 1 at Richmond International Raceway was not produced by an illegal substance.

Mayfield’s presence was a distrac-tion, to say the least. For one thing, it stole some of the thunder from the best racing we’ve seen in NASCAR’s new racecar.

The race itself will be remembered for the final 10-lap shootout, and the memories are indelible—Kyle Busch splitting the two front-row cars on a late restart; Busch, Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman running three wide through Turn 4, with Gordon spin-ning out of control and losing his chance at a record fourth win in the event; Tony Stewart passing Matt Kenseth on the next-to-last lap to secure his first victory in the all-star race and his first as an owner/driver.

Tempering the excitement was Mayfield’s summit at the motor coach, which was preceded by the appear-ance of a plane circling the speedway

pulling a banner that read: “Free Jer-emy.” In comments to SceneDaily.com’s Bob Pockrass, Mayfield denied prior knowledge of the airplane display.

NASCAR has labeled Mayfield’s failed drug test as a “serious” offense. Dr. David Black of Aegis Sciences Corp., who administers NASCAR’s testing program, characterized the substance that showed up in Mayfield’s urine as a “drug of concern.” Mayfield, on the other hand, says he took Clari-tin-D, an allergy medication, in con-junction with a prescription drug he declined to name.

Mayfield has contended since receiving news of the positive test that the combination of a prescription drug and an over-the-counter medi-cation triggered the positive test. Dr. Black has rejected that explanation.

Unlike the governing bodies of other major sports, NASCAR chooses not to name specific substances responsible for suspensions of its competitors. NASCAR cites privacy considerations as justification for the policy, but the practice has a downside.

Keeping the results a mystery expands the latitude a competitor has in questioning the credibility of a

positive test or in presenting an alter-native explanation in the court of pub-lic opinion, as Mayfield has done.

Failing to identify the substances in question also tars all suspended competitors with the same brush. Shooting heroin carries a much greater social stigma than abusing Adderall, but under NASCAR’s pol-icy, fellow competitors and fans who look up to the stars of the sport won’t know who did what.

If talk show host Rush Limbaugh, for example, had admitted an addic-tion to crack cocaine rather than to prescription painkillers, his audience likely would have deserted him, and his days on the radio would have been in jeopardy.

Mayfield has indicated he does not need and will not participate in a rehabilitation program, the first step toward reinstatement as a NASCAR owner and driver. Mayfield’s position is understandable, if he interprets participation in rehab as an admis-sion of guilt, which comes with a heavy price.

“This sport is one in which you have to have support of corporate America,” said driver Jeff Burton in arguing that a competitor who tests positive ought to have every opportunity to prove his innocence. “You cannot have the image of a drug abuser and make it in this sport, I don’t think.”

On the other hand, you can’t flout NASCAR’s authority, either, and that’s what Mayfield was doing with his appearance at the track on Satur-day night.

Mayfield may not have good choices at this juncture, but his flirtation with the point of no return is ill-consid-ered—particularly when NASCAR can make “no return” his permanent reality.

rspencer@sportingnews.com

INSIDE DISHMayfield’s All-Star visit was an ill-conceived surprise

Reid SpencerTHE COOL DOWN LAP

HAROLD HINSON FOR SN

REINHOLD MATAY / AP

Jeremy Mayfield’s appearance at Saturday’s All-Star race was a big distraction.

Joe Gibbs has proven before that he isn’t afraid to put teenagers in Sprint Cup cars.

Gibbs development driver to debut in October

1. Rafael Nadal, Spain

Last week’s result: The ATP World Tour No. 1 reached the final at the Madrid Open where he lost to rival Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4. … In the semifinals he saved three match points in the longest three-set singles match on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era, prevailing in four hours and three minutes over Novak Djokovic 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9). … The loss ended a 33-match winning streak on clay going back to May 7, 2008. … It was also only his second loss in a clay final in his career (25-2), both coming to Federer. … Has a 150-5 clay mark since 2005.

Year in review: The 22-year-old Spaniard has won an ATP World Tour-best five titles in seven finals en route to a 41-4 record (19-1 on clay). … He captured his sixth Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, his first on hard courts, with a five-set victory over Federer. ... Also won titles in Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Rome.

2. Roger Federer, Switzerland

Last week’s result: The Swiss native broke nearly a seven-month title drought by earning his 15th career ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title in Madrid with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over rival Rafael Nadal. … Broke a five-match losing streak to the Spaniard with

his 58th career title in his 80th final. … Has won at least one ATP World Tour title for nine straight years. … Along the way also beat No. 16-ranked Blake, No. 6 Rod-dick and No. 5 del Potro. … Only lost his serve twice in 55 games.

Year in Review: The 27-year-old star has compiled a 26-6 match record (9-2 on clay) in his first seven tournaments. … He reached the final at the Australian Open (l. to Nadal in five sets), his first loss in a Grand Slam hard court final (8-1). … He’s one title short of tying Pete Sampras’ all-time record of 14 Slam titles. … Also reached the semifinals in Doha (l. to Murray), Miami (l. to Djokovic) and Rome (l. to Djokovic).

3. Andy Murray, Great Britain

Last week’s result: The 22-year-old Scot reached the quar-terfinals in Madrid, losing to No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro 7-6(4), 6-3.

Year in review: The British star is off to a career-best 31-5 start, includ-ing an 8-3 mark vs. Top 10 opponents (losing twice to Nadal and once to No. 5 del Potro). … In his first nine tour-naments, he’s won three ATP World Tour titles (Doha, d. Roddick; d. Rot-terdam, d. Nadal; Miami, d. Djokovic) and reached another final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l. to Nadal). ... He opened the season by defending his title in Doha

ATP top 10 rankingsHere’s an updated look at the top 10 players in the South Afri-

can Airways 2009 ATP Rankings as of Monday. The top eight players in the Nov. 17 rankings qualify for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London to be held Nov. 23-29. The ATP World Tour Champion will be named to the No. 1 player at the end of the season.

— ATPWorldTour.com

with back-to-back wins over No. 2 Federer (SF) and No. 8 Roddick (F). ... Held serve 47 of 50 games through-out the tournament. … In March to reach the final at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, falling to World No. 1 Rafael Nadal 6-1, 6-2.

4. Novak Djokovic, Serbia

Last week’s result: The Belgrade native reached the semifinals in Madrid where he lost to No. 1 Nadal 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9), after holding three match points in the final set tie-break. … The four hour and three minute match was the longest three-set singles match

on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era.

Year in review: The 21-year-old Serb (turns 22 on Friday) has a 37-11 match record on the season (15-5 on clay) and 2-3 in finals. … He has reached the final in four of his past five tournaments (Miami, Monte-Carlo, Rome, Belgrade). … He picked up his first ATP World Tour title of the year on Feb. 28 in Dubai (d. Fer-rer). … The Monte-Carlo resident opened his clay court campaign by reaching the final at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (l. to Nadal). … Then advanced to the final in Rome (l. to Nadal) before winning title in his

hometown of Belgrade (d. Kubot).

5. Juan Martin del Potro, Argentina

Last week’s result: The towering Argentine reached his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final of the season in Madrid where he beat No. 11 seed Stanislas Wawrinka and No. 3-ranked Andy Murray in the quarter-finals before losing to eventual champion Roger Federer 6-3, 6-4.

Year in review: The 20-year-old is the youngest player in the Top 10 and he’s off to a career-best 24-8 start, reaching the quarterfinals or

better in eight of nine tournaments. … He began the season by capturing his fifth career ATP World Tour title in Auckland (d. Querrey) ... He followed by advancing to his second straight Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open (d. Cilic, l. to Federer). ... In March, reached the quarterfinals in Indian Wells (l. to Nadal) and followed with semifinal in Miami where he beat No. 1 Nadal (l. to Murray). … On clay, reached quarterfinals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome (l. to Djokovic).

DANIEL OCHOA DE OLZA / AP DANIEL OCHOA DE OLZA / AP

Rafael Nadal saved three match points against Novak Djokovic in the Madrid semifinals. Roger Federer knocked off a quartet of top-20 players, including Nadal, in the Madrid Open.

Players 6-10, Page 37

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 36Tennis

6. Andy Roddick, United States

Last week’s result: The top American made his season clay court debut in Madrid and beat former No. 2 Tommy Haas in his opening round (saving two match points) before losing to eventual champion Federer in three sets in the quarterfinals.

Year in Review: The Austin, Texas resi-dent has a 27-6 record on the ATP World Tour. … He opened the season by reaching the final in Doha (l. to Murray) and advanc-ing to his fourth semifinal at the Australian Open (d. No. 3 Djokovic, l. to Federer) … Continued success in February with semi-final in San Jose (l. to Stepanek) and title in Memphis (d. Hewitt in SF, Stepanek in F). ... Improved his title streak to nine consecu-tive years (since 2001). … In March, he led the U.S. to a 4-1 first round Davis Cup vic-tory over Switzerland with two wins . … Then reached the semifinals (l. to Nadal) and quarterfinals in Miami (l. to Federer). … Married Brooklyn Decker on April 17 in Austin.

7. Gilles Simon, France

Last week’s result: The 24-year-old lost in the third round (after a bye) in Madrid where he lost to Ivan Ljubicic in three sets.

Year in review: The top Frenchman has compiled an 18-13 record and advanced to the quarterfinals or better four times this season. … In January reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Austra-lian Open (l. to eventual champion Nadal). … Then advanced to back-to-back semifi-nals in Marseille (l. to Llodra) and Dubai (l. to eventual champion Djokovic). … In March, reached the fourth round (after a bye) in Miami with wins over former ATP World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt and No. 29 seed Rainer Schuettler (l. to Tsonga). … On clay, reached the third round in Rome and followed with quarterfinals showing in Estoril, losing to eventual champion

Albert Montanes of Spain (after holding one match point).

8. Fernando Verdasco, Spain

Last week’s result: The Madrid native performed well in his hometown by reaching the quarterfinals for the first time, losing to countryman Nadal 6-4, 7-5 (after holding a 4-0 lead in the second set).

Year in review: The Spanish lefthander is off to a career-best 23-8 start and he reached a career-high No. 7 on Apr. 20. … Has advanced to the quarterfinals or bet-ter in all eight tournaments. … He opened the first month of the season winning nine of 11 matches, highlighted by his first ATP World Tour hard court final in Bris-bane (l. to Stepanek). … Then followed with a career-best SF showing at Austra-lian Open. ... Posted back-to-back wins over No. 4 Murray in five sets in 4th Rd. and No. 6 Tsonga in QF before falling in an epic five-set marathon to Nadal. ... Played longest singles match in tourna-ment history (5:14) and afterwards broke into Top 10 for first time at No. 9 (from No. 15) on Feb. 2. … Also quarterfinalist in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Bar-celona and Rome.

9. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, France

Last week’s result: The 23-year-old Frenchman lost in the second round in Madrid, beating former No. 1 Marat Safin before losing to Ivan Ljubicic in straight sets.

Year in review The No. 2 Frenchman has advanced to the quarterfinals or better in seven of 10 tournaments this season en route to a 26-7 match record, which is tied for sixth on the ATP World Tour. … Last year he didn’t win his 26th match until late-October in Lyon…Has already captured titles in Johannesburg (d. Chardy) and Mar-seille (d. Llodra) in the first two months. ... In March, reached the quarterfinals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami,

defeating countryman Gilles Simon in three sets before falling to eventual finalist Novak Djokovic. … In his season clay court debut in Rome, lost in the first round to country-man Richard Gasquet.

10. Nikolay Davydenko, Russia Last week’s result: The 27-year-

old reached the third round in Madrid, winning both matches in straight sets before withdrawing vs. Roddick due to a leg injury.

Year in Review: The top Russian has played in only seven tournaments this year (12-5 record, 10-4 on clay) due to a left heel injury he suffered in the first week

in Chennai where he withdrew from his second round match. ... Also withdrew from Indian Wells and the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami where he captured the title last year due to a left heel injury. … Also withdrew from Australian Open, breaking a streak of 29 consecutive Grand Slam tour-naments played (since ‘01 US Open) ... After a two-month absence, returned in mid-April to reach the quarterfinals at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, (d. No. 12 Nal-bandian, l. to No. 4 Murray). … Followed with semifinals in Barcelona (l. to Nadal) and also in Estoril (l. to Blake) … Fell out of the Top 10 on Apr. 27 for the first time since May 23, 2005.

ATP top 10 rankings: 6-10 ATP World Tour schedule/winnersJan. 4-11 — Brisbane International, HO (Radek Stepanek)Jan. 5-10 — Qatar ExxonMobil Open, HO (Andy Murray)Jan. 5-11 — Chennai Open, HO (Marin Cilic)Jan. 12-17 — Medibank International, HO (David Nalbandian)Jan. 12-17 — Heineken Open, HO (Juan Martin del Potro)Jan. 19-Feb. 1 — Australian Open, HO (Rafael Nadal)Feb. 2-8 — Movistar Open, CO (Fernando Gonzalez)Feb. 2-8 — PBZ Zagreb Indoors, HI (Marin Cilic)Feb. 2-8 — SA Open, HO (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga)Feb. 9-14 — Brasil Open, CO (Tommy Robredo)Feb. 9-15 — SAP Open, HI (Radek Stepanek)Feb. 9-15 — ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, HI (Andy Murray)Feb. 15-22 — Open 13, HI (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga)Feb. 16-22 — Regions Morgan Keegan Championships, HI (Andy Roddick)Feb. 16-22 — Copa Telmex, CO (Tommy Robredo)Feb. 23-28 — Abierto Mexicano Telcel, CO (Nicolas Almagro)Feb. 23-28 — Barclays Dubai Championships, HO (Novak Djokovic)Feb. 23-March 1 — Delray Beach International Championships, HO (Mardy Fish)March 2-8 — Davis Cup IMarch 12-22 — BNP Paribas Open, HO (Rafael Nadal)March 25-April 5 — Sony Ericsson Open, HO (Andy Murray)April 6-12 — U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships, CO (Lleyton Hewitt)April 6-12 — Grand Prix Hassan II, CO (Juan Carlos Ferrero)April 12-19 — Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, CO (Rafael Nadal)April 20-26 — Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, CO (Rafael Nadal)April 27-May 3 — Internazionali BNL d’Italia, CO (Rafael Nadal)May 3-10 — Estoril Open, CO (Albert Montanes)May 3-10 — BMW Open, CO (Tomas Berdych)May 4-10 — Serbia Open, CO (Novak Djokovic)May 10-17 — Mutua Madrilena Masters Madrid, CO (Roger Federer)May 17-23 — Interwetten Austrian Open, Kitzbuehel, AustriaMay 17-23 — ARAG ATP World Team Championship, Duesseldorf, Germany, COMay 24-June 7 — Roland Garros, Paris, COJune 8-14 — Gerry Weber Open, Halle, Germany, GOJune 8-14 — AEGON Championships, London, GOJune 14-20 — Ordina Open, Den Bosch, Netherlands, GOJune 14-20 — AEGON International, Eastbourne, England, GOJune 22-July 5 — The Championships, Wimbledon, England, GOJuly 6-12 — Davis Cup IIJuly 6-12 — Campbell’s Hall of Fame Championships, Newport, R.I., GOJuly 13-19 — Catella Swedish Open, Bastad, Sweden, COJuly 13-19 — Mercedes Cup, Stuttgart, Germany, COJuly 19-26 — Indianapolis Championships, Indianapolis, HOJuly 26-Aug. 2 — Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad, Gstaad, Switzerland, COJuly 27-Aug. 2 — LA Tennis Open, Los Angeles, HOJuly 27-Aug. 2 — Studena Croatia Open Umag, Umag, Croatia, COAug. 2-9 — Legg Mason Classic, Washington, HOAug. 10-16 — Rogers Cup, Montreal, HOAug. 16-23 — Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, Mason, Ohio, HOAug. 23-29 — Pilot Pen Tennis, New Haven, Conn., HOAug. 31-Sept. 13 — U.S. Open, New York, HOSept. 14-20 — Davis Cup IIISept. 21-27 — Open de Moselle, Metz, France, HISept. 21-27 — BCR Open Romania, Bucharest, Romania, COSept. 29-Oct. 4 — Thailand Open, Bangkok, Thailand, HIOct. 5-11 — China Open, Beijing, HOOct. 5-11 — Japan Open, Tokyo, HOOct. 12-18 — Shanghai ATP Masters, Shanghai, China, HOOct. 19-25 — If Stockholm Open, Stockholm, Sweden, HIOct. 19-25 — Kremlin Cup, Moscow, HIOct. 25-Nov. 1 — St. Petersburg Open, St. Petersburg, Russia, HIOct. 26-Nov. 1 — Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon, Lyon, France, HIOct. 26-Nov. 1 — Bank Austria Tennis Trophy, Vienna, Austria, HINov. 2-8 — Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel, Basel, Switzerland, HINov. 2-8 — Open de Tenis Comunidad Valenciana, Valencia, Spain, HINov. 8-15 — BNP Paribas Masters, Paris, HINov. 22-29 — Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, HINov. 30-Dec. 5 — Davis Cup Final

PAUL WHITE / AP

Andy Roddick in 27-6 so far this year, but lost to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals at the Madrid Open.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 37Tennis

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 38Lacrosse / IRL

INDIANAPOLIS—Alex Lloyd’s most important race this weekend might not come at the Indianapo-lis 500.

It could be rushing his expect-ant wife safely to the hospital. Or making that mad dash on a golf cart to the track’s infield medical center. Or helping her deliver their second child.

Fathers around the world know this drill well: Stay on high alert, be prepared for a surprise and when the call comes, don’t ask questions. Just drive.

So as Lloyd prepares for the biggest event of the IndyCar sea-son, his wife, Samantha, will be sitting patiently and quietly along pit road hoping the doctors got that May 24 due date wrong.

“When they told us, I thought, it’s just typical,” Samantha Lloyd said, laughing in her husband’s garage. “We already have a name picked out, Bethany. But if she arrives on race day, we’ll probably have to switch and go with some-thing with a little more racing flavor.”

The convergence of a due date and race date may be unprece-dented in Indianapolis’ 100-year history, at least among drivers’ families.

Longtime track historian Don-ald Davidson said he could not recall any babies being delivered at the 2.5-mile oval, but speedway officials do not have documents to verify whether it would be a new track record.

Regardless, the Lloyds are pre-pared for all contingencies.

The 24-year-old Englishman has not lined up a relief driver and

does not intend to look for one before race day. He does not want crew members providing in-race updates if Samantha suddenly goes into labor, and he’s comfort-able with somebody else making the quarter-mile journey from pit road to the medical center, if nec-essary. There are no plans to induce labor.

After the race, Lloyd will imme-diately focus on his fatherly duties.

“I’m just going to drive faster and when I get the checkered flag, then they can tell me if something has happened,” he said. “If they tell me, I’m just going to tell them to open the gates and let me go because I can get there in this car a lot faster than I can in another car.”

Samantha Lloyd thinks it’s much ado about nothing because she’s convinced the doctors are wrong about the date.

After watching his wife endure 28 hours of labor when their first child, Ava, was born in October 2007, Lloyd figures he has plenty of time to finish the race and get to the hospital.

“I’d probably have time to fin-ish the race, chill out, have a cup of tea and still have 12 hours to go,” he said, likely drawing the ire of pregnant women everywhere.

Just don’t tell Lloyd how much quicker those second births can go.

Whatever happens, Samantha Lloyd has promised not to speak on the radio Sunday. She doesn’t want anything—even the impend-ing birth—to distract her husband from his job.

Lloyd will start 11th Sunday, the middle of Row 4 between Danica Patrick on the inside and rookie Raphael Matos on the outside, after qualifying with a four-lap average of 222.622 mph.

That’s a big jump from starting 19th last year, when he finished 25th as an Indy rookie.

— The Associated Press

BY SEAN BURNSInsideLacrosse.com

More than 23,000 lacrosse fans watched the NCAA Quarterfinals this past weekend at Hofstra and Navy. That number should more than double this weekend at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., for the NCAA’s championship weekend. Here’s four storylines to follow.

Who plays in goal for Syracuse?Al Cavalieri stepping in goal for

the ailing John Galloway and sti-fling Maryland’s offense in an 11-6 win was even more impressive considering the junior didn’t know it was going to happen until about three minutes before game time. How did he respond in his first career start? Fourteen saves and six goals allowed, with a few high-light-reel stops for good measure. Now the question is, if Galloway is less than 100 percent this week, does Cavalieri start against Duke?

What’s next for the Brattons?One of the big stories from this

season has been the continued emergence of Shamel Bratton as an offensive force. That continued Sunday with a career-best five goals for Shamel, but Virginia got another encouraging sign out of brother Rhamel, who appeared to be over some midseason injuries that hampered his production. The two goals gave the brothers a com-bined seven in the 19-8 win over Hopkins and increased Rhamel’s point-scoring streak to five games. A healthy Rhamel makes an already deep Virginia offense that

much tougher to defend.

How deep is Cornell’s midfield?Everybody knew about Cornell’s

Max Seibald and John Glynn com-ing into the playoffs. Not only are the dynamic do-it-all middies are among the nation’s most well-rounded players, but they had 60 combined points coming into Sat-urday’s Quarterfinal matchup with Princeton. The Tigers held the duo to just one goal from Glynn, yet the Big Red midfield stepped up big-time with two goals from Rocco Romero, a goal and an assist from Jonathan Thompson and another goal from George Calvert in the 6-4 win. Cornell will need that kind of

scoring depth if it expects to upset top-seeded Virginia on Saturday. The Big Red got just two goals from their midfield (one each from Seibald and Romero) in a 14-10 loss to Virginia in March.

Can Syracuse limit Duke’s Ned Crotty?

Tewaaraton Trophy finalist Ned Crotty posted a workman-like two goals and six assists in Sunday’s 12-11 edging of ACC-rival North Carolina. The mark, which moved him ahead of Billy Bitter for the NCAA points lead (Crotty owes Mike Manley something if he takes that title home, since the sopho-more held UNC’s sophomore attacker to a pair of assists), also leaves Crotty just three points shy of tying former teammate Matt Danowski’s Duke and ACC single-season assists record of 59. Crotty makes Duke’s offense go, so Syra-cuse needs to find an answer for him Saturday.

Final fourSaturday at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass. All Times (ET)

Syracuse (14-2) vs. Duke (15-3), noon, ESPN 2

Virginia (15-2) vs. Cornell (12-3), 2 p.m., ESPN 2

ChampionshipMonday, 1 p.m. ESPN

Four things to watch at the final four

MORE COVERAGE For more Tournament coverage, go to:

InsideLacrosse.com

Indianapolis500 lineupRow 11. (3) Helio Castroneves, 224.864.2. (6) Ryan Briscoe, 224.083.3. (10) Dario Franchitti, 224.010.ROW 24. (02) Graham Rahal, 223.954.5. (9) Scott Dixon, 223.867.6. (11) Tony Kanaan, 223.612.ROW 37. (5) Mario Moraes, 223.331.8. (26) Marco Andretti, 223.114.9. (12) Will Power, 223.028.ROW 410. (7) Danica Patrick, 222.882.11. (99) Alex Lloyd, 222.622.12. (2) r-Raphael Matos, 223.429.ROW 513. (15) Paul Tracy, 223.111.14. (14) Vitor Meira, 223.054.15. (18) Justin Wilson, 222.903.ROW 616. (27) Hideki Mutoh, 222.805.17. (20) Ed Carpenter, 222.780.18. (4) Dan Wheldon, 222.777.ROW 719. (41) A.J. Foyt IV, 222.586.20. (16) Scott Sharp, 222.162.21. (67) Sarah Fisher, 222.082.ROW 822. (44) Davey Hamilton, 221.956.23. (06) r-Robert Doornbos, 221.692.24. (8) Townsend Bell, 221.195.ROW 925. (17) Oriol Servia, 220.984.26. (19) Tomas Scheckter, 221.496.27. (24) r-Mike Conway, 221.417.ROW 1028. (43) John Andretti, 221.316.29. (13) E.J. Viso, 221.164.30. (23) Milka Duno, 221.106.ROW 1131. (00) r-Nelson Philippe, 220.754.32. (21) Ryan Hunter-Reay, 220.597.33. (36) r-Alex Tagliani, 221.115.

JOHN MECIONIS / AP

Syracuse junior Al Cavalieri got the win in goal in last week’s win over Maryland.

Lloyd wrestling with due date vs. race dateIndianapolis 500, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, ABC

PGA Tour scheduleJan. 8-11 — Mercedes-Benz Championship (Geoff Ogilvy)

Jan. 15-18 — Sony Open in Hawaii (Zach Johnson)

Jan. 21-25 — Bob Hope Chrysler Classic (Pat Perez)

Jan. 29-Feb. 1 — FBR Open (Kenny Perry)

Feb. 5-8 — Buick Invitational (Nick Watney)

Feb. 12-15 — AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (Dustin Johnson)

Feb. 19-22 — Northern Trust Open (Phil Mickelson)

Feb. 25-March 1 — WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship (Geoff Ogilvy)

Feb. 25-March 1 — Mayakoba Golf Classic (Mark Wilson)

March 5-8 — The Honda Classic (Y.E. Yang)

March 12-15 — WGC-CA Championship, (Phil Mickelson)

March 12-15 — Puerto Rico Open (Michael Bradley)

March 19-22 — Transitions Championship (Retief Goosen)

March 26-29 — Arnold Palmer Invitational (Tiger Woods)

April 2-5 — Shell Houston Open (Paul Casey)

April 9-12 — The Masters (Angel Cabrera)

April 16-19 — Verizon Heritage (Brian Gay)

April 23-26 — Zurich Classic of New Orleans (Jerry Kelly)

April 30-May 3 — Quail Hollow Championship (Sean O’Hair)

May 7-10 — The Players Championship (Henrik Stenson)

May 14-17 — Valero Texas Open (Zach Johnson)

Thursday-Sunday — HP Byron Nelson Championship, TPC Four Seasons Resort, Irving,

Texas

May 28-31 — Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, Colonial CC, Fort Texas, Texas

June 4-7 — The Memorial Tournament, Muirfield Village GC, Dublin, Ohio

June 11-14 — Stanford St. Jude Championship, TPC Southwind, Memphis, Tenn.

June 18-21 U.S. Open, Bethpage State Park (Black Course), Farmingdale, N.Y.

June 25-28 — Travelers Championship, TPC River Highlands, Cromwell, Conn.

July 2-5 — AT&T National, Congressional CC (Blue Course), Bethesda, Md.

July 9-12 — John Deere Classic, TPC Deere Run, Silvis, Ill.

July 16-19 — The Open Championship, Turnberry (Ailsa Course), Turnberry, Scotland

July 16-19 — U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, Brown Deer Park GC, Milwaukee

July 23-26 — RBC Canadian Open, Glen Abbey GC, Oakville, Ontario

July 30-Aug. 2 — Buick Open, Warwick Hills G and CC, Grand Blanc, Mich.

Aug. 6-9 — WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Firestone CC, Akron, Ohio

Aug. 6-9 — Legends Reno-Tahoe Open, Montreux G and CC, Reno, Nev.

Aug. 13-16 — PGA Championship, Hazeltine National GC, Chaska, Minn.

Aug. 20-23 — Wyndham Championship, Sedgefield CC, Greensboro, N.C.

Aug. 27-30 — The Barclays, Liberty National GC, Jersey City, N.J.

Sept. 4-7 — Deutsche Bank Championship, TPC Boston, Norton, Mass.

Sept. 10-13 — BMW Championship, Cog Hill GC, Lemont, Ill.

Sept. 24-27 — The Tour Championship, East Lake GC, Atlanta

Oct. 1-4 — Turning Stone Restort Chamnpionship, Atunyote GC at Turning Stone

Resort, Verona, N.Y.

Oct. 8-11 — The Presidents Cup, Harding Park GC, San Francisco

Oct. 15-18 — Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, TPC Summerlin,

Las Vegas

Oct. 22-25 — Frys.com Open, Grayhawk GC, Scottlsdale, Ariz.

Oct. 29-Nov. 1 — Viking Classic, Annandale GC, Madison, Miss.

Nov. 12-15 — Children’s Miracle Network Classic, Walt Disney World Resort (Magnolia

Course, Palm Course), Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

BY KATHERINE CROMER BROCKDallas Business Journal

DALLAS—The PGA Tour’s classic Texas two-step has a little less bounce this year.

The Dallas-Fort Worth area’s golf tournaments this week and next— the HP Byron Nelson Cham-pionship, which traces its roots to 1944, and the Crowne Plaza Invitational at the Colonial, which dates to 1946—are struggling with ticket sales and corporate sponsorships. In response, both have opened up marketing efforts to new demographics.

The Byron Nelson last year brought in $13 mil-lion and donated $6.1 million to the Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers. Two weeks before the tournament organizers typically are announcing a sellout; this year’s event, which starts Thursday at the TPC Four Seasons Las Colinas, saw sales top $10 million last week, roughly 15 to 18 percent lower than the same time last year.

A more clear indicator: For the first time in more than a decade, tickets will be sold at the gate.

“I can pretty much assure you,” said 2009 Nel-son tournament chair Charley Spradley, “we won’t be setting any sales records.”

Spradley said he expects to see total attendance hit 250,000 this year, but not until tickets are sold at the event.

“There was a rapid change in the economic landscape,” he said.

That change affected how businesses spend their marketing and sales dollars, and many have pulled away from spending on networking at golf outings—a longtime standard of the corporate world.

“We had a bit of a challenge to keep delivering the message that has been previously delivered so clearly: This is a very legitimate event that serves a very important purpose,” Spradley said.

Tracy Cobb, spokeswoman for the Byron Nel-son, said PGA Tour events across the board are reporting revenue 15 to 25 percent lower revenues than last year.

The Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, next

week in Fort Worth, is seeing similar trends, director of sales Michael Tothe said.

Declining to discuss specific financial details, Tothe said corporate sales are down 15 percent from 2008. Overall sales are about $200,000 shy of the goal of $2 million. And speculation has arisen that title sponsor Crowne Plaza may exit its agreement after 2010.

In a typical year, 125,000 attend the event at Fort Worth’s historic Colonial Country Club.

Some longtime business clients, including financial institutions and energy companies, will not be there this year, Tothe said. Normally, the tournament has a turnover of four or five major clients. This year, it’s about 10, he said.

This year, the Dallas-Fort Worth tournaments are marketing toward families and young adults, not considered the stereotypical golf fan.

For the Byron Nelson, a daily grounds ticket costs $45 for adults and children under 13 are free.

A weekly pass costs $90. To attend the Colonial, an adult day pass costs $30 or $45 and a youth ticket, for children ages 7-17, is $15. A weekly Colonial pass is $100.

The Nelson has a KidsZone for children and nightly concerts to appeal to a younger audience. Both tournaments have been using Internet social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, to reel in fans.

“We’re focusing on a person that’s never been to Colonial,” Tothe said. “We’re shifting gears from corporate, to getting folks on the grounds.”

Spradley said the Byron Nelson is being mar-keted as a spring social event.

“With the Memorial Day Weekend in this econ-omy, there will be a base that will not be traveling as much and looking for entertainment that is accessible,” he said. “We think we will be the rite of spring even more than in previous years.”

kcromerbrock@bizjournals.com.

Two Texas tournaments fight economy

LM OTERO / AP

With less fans attending, the TPC Four Seasons Las Colinas has been forced to do something rare, offer tickets at the gate.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 39Golf

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009 40Back Page

CHARLOTTE—Michael Phelps is heading to the mountains.

Eat. Sleep. Swim. That’s about all the winningest Olympian will be doing dur-ing his time at the U.S. training center in Colorado Springs.

He can’t wait.“The next three weeks are going to be

real important when we go to altitude,” Phelps said. “That’s going to be a big part of the summer.”

He already crossed the first major threshold of his post-Beijing career this past weekend, competing in five events at the Charlotte UltraSwim. Phelps won two and was runner-up in two others, losing to a couple of world-record holders. He swam only the preliminaries of his fifth event (50-meter freestyle), using it as training run for his new straight-arm stroke.

Considering Phelps had not raced since the Olympics—the nine-month layoff was by far the longest of his career—and he was coming off a wave of bad publicity over that infamous photo of him using a marijuana pipe, this was certainly an encouraging start to the final chapter in his master plan.

“I’m happy to be back in the pool,” Phelps said. “I’m happy to have that first meet under my belt.”

CyclingCUNEO, ITALY—Lance Armstrong was

apologetic and avoided launching into a verbal war with race organizers following the protest that marred the ninth stage of the Giro d’Italia.

“It’s an unfortunate situation, an accumu-lation of days and days of frustration and I think fear on a lot of people’s parts and then this war of words and this war of power afterwards that we have to avoid,” Arm-strong said in a video message posted late Monday, the Giro’s first rest day.

Armstrong played an integral role in a group protest that ended up annulling times in Sunday’s stage because riders considered the city circuit through down-town Milan overly dangerous.

Armstrong was seen discussing the perils of the circuit with the race organi-zation’s car as he pedaled through Milan, and he stood next to overall leader Danilo Di Luca when the Italian addressed the fans in the middle of the stage with a microphone to explain the protest, inter-rupting the race briefly.

SoccerTURIN, ITALY—Juventus fired coach Clau-

dio Ranieri on Monday, saying a shake-up was the only way to salvage what’s left of a disappointing season in which the Turin club has gone winless in its last seven games.

WEMBLEY, ENGLAND—David Beckham teamed up with Prime Minister Gordon Brown to launch England’s bid for the 2018 World Cup on Monday, saying that win-ning the right to host would be as satisfying as anything he’s accomplished on the field.

VolleyballLAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND—A high-profile

women’s volleyball championship will go ahead this summer in Mexico despite con-cerns about swine flu.

The outbreak of the virus has been blamed for 68 deaths in Mexico and 10 elsewhere.

The FIVB, volleyball’s governing body, said Monday that the women’s junior world championship would be played in the border cities of Tijuana and Mexicali on July 16-25 as scheduled.

— The Associated Press

TRANSACTIONSIN BRIEFCollegiate Baseball pollTUCSON, Ariz.—The Collegiate Baseball poll with

records through May 17, points and previous rank-ing. Voting is done by coaches, sports writers and sports information directors: Record Pts Pvs1. U.C. Irvine 40-12 490 12. Louisiana St. 41-15 487 23. Arizona St. 41-11 485 34. North Carolina 41-14 483 45. Cal. St. Fullerton 38-14 481 56. Texas 38-12-1 479 67. Florida St. 40-14 478 78. Mississippi 40-15 473 139. Florida 38-18 470 1110. Oklahoma 40-16 467 2011. Rice 35-15 464 912. Alabama 37-17 462 1013. Clemson 39-17 459 1714. Georgia Tech. 34-15-1 458 815. Missouri 32-23 457 1416. Miami, Fla. 35-18 453 2117. Louisville 40-14 450 2818. East Carolina 41-15 446 3019. Texas Christian 35-14 443 2320. South Carolina 37-19 441 —21. Virginia 39-12-1 439 1222. Kansas St. 39-15-1 437 1823. Ohio St. 39-15 434 —24. Minnesota 35-15 433 2425. Cal Poly 35-17 430 2226. Coastal Carolina 42-13 428 —27. Washington St. 28-22 426 —28. Missouri St. 32-19 425 —29. Texas St. 38-14 423 2530. George Mason 40-10 420 29

Baseball America Top 25 pollDURHAM, N.C.—The top 25 teams in the Baseball

America poll with records through May 17 and previous ranking (voting by the staff of Baseball America): Record Pvs1. UC Irvine 40-12 12. Louisiana State 41-14 23. Arizona State 41-11 34. Cal State Fullerton 38-14 55. Texas 38-12 66. North Carolina 41-14 87. Mississippi 40-15 98. Oklahoma 40-16 159. Florida 38-18 1310. Texas Christian 35-14 1411. Rice 35-15 412. Florida State 40-14 1713. Clemson 39-17 1914. Georgia Tech 34-15 715. East Carolina 41-15 2016. Virginia 39-12 1017. Kansas State 39-15 1118. Alabama 37-17 1219. Cal Poly 35-17 1820. Louisville 40-14 2321. Minnesota 35-15 2122. Elon 37-14 2223. Miami 35-18 2424. Missouri 32-23 2525. South Carolina 37-19 NR

Phelps takes training to the mountains

Michael Phelps is headed to Colorado Springs.

GERRY BROOME / AP

Major League SoccerEASTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GAChicago 3 0 6 15 16 11D.C. 3 1 6 15 17 15Kansas City 4 4 2 14 14 12Toronto FC 3 3 4 13 13 15New England 2 2 4 10 7 13New York 2 5 3 9 10 12Columbus 1 2 5 8 11 14

WESTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GAChivas USA 7 1 2 23 14 5Seattle 4 2 3 15 12 6Colorado 3 2 3 12 11 9Houston 3 2 3 12 8 6Real Salt Lake 3 5 1 10 14 13Los Angeles 1 1 6 9 10 10San Jose 1 5 2 5 8 16FC Dallas 1 6 2 5 8 16

NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie.All times ET.May 16Chicago 2, Toronto FC 0New England 1, Colorado 1, tieNew York 1, Houston 1, tieFC Dallas 1, Seattle FC 1, tieKansas City 2, Real Salt Lake 0Chivas USA 2, D.C. United 2, tieMay 17Los Angeles 1, Columbus 1, tie

Saturday’s gamesNew England at Toronto FC, 4 p.m.Real Salt Lake at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m.CD Chivas USA at Kansas City, 8:30 p.m.Los Angeles at FC Dallas, 8:30 p.m.San Jose at Houston, 8:30 p.m.Seattle FC at Colorado, 9:30 p.m.Sunday’s gameChicago at New York, 3 p.m.

BASEBALL

American League

DETROIT TIGERS: Announced

RHP Juan Rincon refused his

outright assignment and elected

free agency.

OAKLAND ATHLETICS: Placed

RHP Dan Giese on the 15-day

DL, retroactive to May 16.

Recalled LHP Gio Gonzalez from

Sacramento (PCL).

National League

COLORADO ROCKIES: Placed

RHP Matt Daley on the 15-day

DL. Purchased the contract of

RHP Joel Peralta from Colorado

Springs (PCL). Designated RHP

Steven Register for assignment.

FLORIDA MARLINS: Purchased

the contract of RHP Brian

Sanches from New Orleans

(PCL). Designated LHP John

Koronka for assignment.

NEW YORK METS: Activated

RHP Tim Redding from the

15-day DL. Designated RHP

Nelson Figueroa for assignment.

Purchased the contract of INF

Ramon Martineaz from Buffalo

(IL). Placed INF Alex Cora on the

15-day DL.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES: Agreed

to terms with C Paul Bako on a

minor league contract.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES: Claimed

RHP Steven Jackson off waivers

from the N.Y. Yankees. Released

RHP Jimmy Barthmaier.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS:

Placed LHP Scott Olsen on the

15-day DL, retroactive to May

17. Recalled LHP Ross Detwiler

from Harrisburg (EL).

Can-Am League

AMERICAN DEFENDERS: Signed

RHP Brett Palanski, INF Boomer

Berry and C Argenis Tavarez.

United League

LAREDO BRONCOS: Acquired

OF Selwyn Langaigne from the

Shreveport-Bossier (AA).

SAN ANGELO COLTS: Announced

the retirement of 2B John

Anderson.

BASKETBALL

Women’s National Basketball

Association

DETROIT SHOCK: Signed F Kris-

ten Rasmussen and G Sequoia

Holmes.

FOOTBALL

National Football League

ARIZONA CARDINALS: Agreed to

terms with WR Edward Gant.

BALTIMORE RAVENS: Signed WR

Kelley Washington to a one-year

contract. Released WR Marcus

Maxwell.

DALLAS COWBOYS: Signed DT

Jonas Seawright.

HOUSTON TEXANS: Signed S

John Busing and G Adrian Jones.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS: Signed FB

Nehemiah Broughton.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: An-

nounced defensive coordinator

Jim Johnson has taken an

indefinite leave of absence.

Signed QB Adam DiMichele and

DT Jervonte Jackson.

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS: Signed

S Curtis Taylor to a four-year

contract. Released S Jimmy

Williams.

LACROSSE

Major League Lacrosse

MLL: Suspended Chicago D

Steve Holmes and coach John

Combs one game apiece for the

use of illegal equipment in a

May 16 game against Denver.

COLLEGE

METRO ATLANTIC ATHLETIC

CONFERENCE: Announced it is

adding the University of Detroit

as a men’s lacrosse member

beginning next season.

EASTERN NEW MEXICO: Named

Dr. Jeff Geiser athletics director.

KANSAS STATE: Named John

Currie athletic director.

MINNESOTA: Announced the

resignation of women’s assistant

basketball coach Marisa Moseley

to take a similar job with Con-

necticut.

NEWBERRY: Named Brad

Edwards athletic director.

ST. AUGUSTINE’S: Announced

the retirement of men’s golf

coach Lawrence Coleman.

TENNESSEE: Announced the

retirement of Bill Webb, track

and field coach, at the end of

the current season.

UTAH STATE: Fired softball coach

Candi Letts.