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YOUR TURN Got something you’d like to ask 49ers coach Mike Singletary or Kansas basketball center Cole Aldrich? E-mail your questions, Mike Singletary along with your name and hometown, to [email protected]. We’ll pick out five favorites and run their responses in an upcoming issue of Sporting News Magazine.

Scoreboard NHL Stanley Cup finals Detroit 5, Pittsburgh 0 (Detroit leads series 3-2)

Baseball American League Tampa Bay 9, N.Y. Yankees 7 Kansas City 6, Toronto 2 Chicago White Sox 4, Cleveland 2 Seattle 2, Minnesota 1 Detroit 2, L.A. Angels 1 Boston 8, Texas 1 Oakland 9, Baltimore 4 National League L.A. Dodgers 3, Philadelphia 2, 12 innings Florida 5, San Francisco 4 Washington 7, N.Y. Mets 1 Pittsburgh 6, Houston 4 Cincinnati 4, Chicago Cubs 3, 11 innings Colorado 10, St. Louis 1 Milwaukee 3, Atlanta 0 San Diego 6, Arizona 4

NFL > 22

NBA > 10

NHL > 7

NASCAR > 26

COLLEGE FOOTBALL > 25

COLLEGE BASKETBALL > 25

GOLF > 28

NBA DRAFT > 6

Ethier does it again Dodgers OF beats Phils, Lidge for second straight day Page 15

NBA FINALS GAME 2: ORLANDO AT L.A. LAKERS Tonight 8 ET, ABC (Lakers lead series 1-0)

SUNDAY JUNE 7, 2009

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME VOLUME 1 ISSUE 320

JAE C. HONG / AP

STANLEY CUP FINALS S

GAME 5: DETROIT 5

A 25-point loss left Dwight Howard, right, and Stan Van Gundy searching.

PITTSBURGH 0

Momentum swings to Wings BY CRAIG CUSTANCE [email protected]

DETROIT—So much for momentum. With their dominant 5-0 win over the Penguins Saturday night, the Red Wings erased the ugly memory of consecutive losses in Pittsburgh. “I don’t even buy momentum. I tell you guys that all the time and no one listens,” Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. “We won a game today and it’s a huge win for our team.” The Wings also moved to within one win of their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship. Here are four reasons why the Red Wings regained control of the finals: Pavel Datsyuk’s return: He’s one of the finalists for the Hart Trophy, so it shouldn’t be surprising that his return ignited the Red Wings. But it was surprising how quickly he was able to play effective hockey after more than two weeks off. Datsyuk finished with two assists in 17:38 of ice time. “He was

1.

great tonight,” Dan Cleary said. “Didn’t miss a beat.” They left Pittsburgh: The Penguins are tough at home, having lost only once in their last seven games at Mellon Arena. But the Penguins’ struggles during the regular season could catch up with them now. The Red Wings earned home-ice advantage and don’t have to win in Pittsburgh to claim the Stanley Cup. The power play: Detroit had been getting outplayed on special teams, but the Red Wings were dominant on the power play in a crucial Game 5. Detroit scored three power play goals and Valtteri Filppula scored just seconds after a power play expired. “We were focused throughout,” Brian Rafalski said, explaining the improvement. “I thought we shot the puck more. Obviously, having Pavel back helps, too.” They got some time off: The Red Wings were a tired group during their Game 4 loss. Babcock

2.

As Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said, “In any playoff series, it’s up to the team that loses to make the adjustments.” After getting walloped in Game 1, Orlando now must adjust and answer three questions: What’s up with Jameer Nelson? Nelson got significant bench minutes in Game 1 after returning from a shoulder injury. Lakers assistant Brian Shaw says they should maximize him. “I would not be surprised if they start him,” Shaw said. Was Dwight Howard’s Game 1 performance a fluke? He was 1-for-6 from the field. Orlando must do a better job of creating space for him.

3.

4.

List of questions grows for Magic

PAUL SANCYA / AP

Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski led a Detroit power-play that produced three goals. gave his team Friday off and it was enough to recharge some exhausted legs. The final two games will be played over the course of six days, which helps Detroit more. “The

bottom line is everybody will be ready to go next game,” Babcock said. Datsyuk looks strong in return, Page 7

Who’s going to create that space? The Magic can’t afford poor shooting performances from both Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis. The Lakers forced them into off-the-dribble midrange jumpers, but Turkoglu and Lewis must find—and make—open 3s.

— Sean Deveney Time for Magic to change, Page 10

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Tune In Today A quick look at the best sports on TV — all times Eastern

GUIDE ATHLETICS

2 p.m. NBC — Prefontaine Classic, at Eugene, Ore. AUTO RACING

BASKETBALL

Magic at Lakers 8 p.m., ABC The Lakers dismantled Orlando in Game 1. Simple enough. Now, after two days to contemplate what, exactly, went wrong—Dwight Howard’s single field goal is a good starting point—the Magic will hit the court at the Staples Center looking to even the series. Howard could ditch the blue-and-silver sleeve he wore, for starters. “Man, I just wear the sleeve because I like how it looks,” Howard told the Los Angeles Times. “I started wearing it in practice, it felt good one day, and I thought, ‘Man, I should wear this in the game.’ It might make my shot look better.”

TENNIS

French Open, men’s final 9 a.m, NBC Roger Federer has been dominant for so long—he’s one win away from tying Pete Sampras’ record 14 Grand Slam titles—that it’s hard to believe he’s only 27 years old. Today, he takes on Robin Soderling at Roland Garros in his latest, and possibly best, opportunity to win the French Open. Gone from the picture, courtesy of Soderling, is four-time champ Rafael Nadal, who gave Federer fits on clay for years. “It’s nice to play against someone else,” Federer said. “I’m not really going to miss him. Maybe you (the press) are going to miss him but not me.”

GOLF

The Memorial Tournament Noon, The Golf Channel Yes, Tiger Woods is in the hunt, and that always makes for solid Sunday afternoon couch time. Woods made his move on the back nine, highlighted by an eagle on the ninth hole, and is four shots behind leaders Matt Bettencourt and Mark Wilson. Bettencourt in particular is treading unfamiliar ground—his next top-20 finish on the tour will be his first.

— Compiled by Sean Gentille

2 p.m. TNT — NASCAR, Sprint Cup, Pocono 500, at Long Pond, Pa. 3 p.m. FOX — Formula One, Turkish Grand Prix, at Kadikoy, Turkey (same-day tape) 4 p.m. ESPN2 — NHRA, Route 66 Nationals, final eliminations, at Joliet, Ill. (same-day tape) 5:30 p.m. SPEED — GP2 Championship Series, at Kadikoy, Turkey (same-day tape) COLLEGE BASEBALL

Noon ESPN — Regional coverage, NCAA Division I, Super Regionals, game 3 Arkansas at Florida St., if necessary, or game 2 East Carolina at North Carolina 3 p.m. ESPN — Regional coverage, NCAA Division I, Super Regionals, game 3 Virginia at Mississippi, if necessary, or game 2 TCU at Texas 7 p.m. ESPN2 — Regional coverage, NCAA Division I, Super Regionals, game 3 Rice at LSU, if necessary, or game 2 Southern Miss at

MICHEL EULER / AP

At 9 a.m. today, Roger Federer will attempt to win his first French Open and 14th Grand Slam. Florida 10 p.m. ESPN2 — Regional coverage, NCAA Division I, Super Regionals, game 3 Louisville at Cal St. Fullerton, if necessary, or game 2 Clemson at Arizona St. CYCLING

5 p.m. VERSUS — Criterium Dauphine Libere, stage 1, at Nancy, France (same-day tape) GOLF

9 a.m. TGC — European PGA Tour, Wales Open, final round, at Newport, Wales Noon TGC — PGA Tour, The Memorial Tournament, final round, at Dublin, Ohio 1 p.m. ESPN2 — LPGA, State Farm Classic, final round, at Springfield, Ill. 2 p.m. TGC — Nationwide Tour, Prince George’s County Open, final round, at Mitchellville, Md.

2:30 p.m. CBS — PGA Tour, The Memorial Tournament, final round, at Dublin, Ohio 4 p.m. NBC — LPGA, State Farm Classic, final round, at Springfield, Ill. 7 p.m. TGC — Champions Tour, Triton Financial Classic, final round, at Austin, Texas (same-day tape) MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

1 p.m. WGN — Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati 1:30 p.m. TBS — Texas at Boston 8 p.m. ESPN — Philadelphia at L.A. Dodgers

TODAY

POCONO 1:30PM

NBA

8 p.m. ABC — Playoffs, finals, game 2, Orlando at L.A. Lakers TENNIS

9 a.m. NBC — French Open, men’s championship match, at Paris

SUNDAY, JUNE 14 SUNDAY, JUNE 21 SUNDAY, JUNE 28 SATURDAY, JULY 4 SATURDAY, JULY 11

1:30ET 4:30ET 1:30ET 7:30ET 7:30ET

NASCAR SPRINT CUP RACING FROM MICHIGAN TOYOTA/SAVE MART 350 FROM SONOMA NASCAR SPRINT CUP RACING FROM LOUDON COKE ZERO 400 AT DAYTONA POWERED BY COCA-COLA NASCAR SPRINT CUP RACING FROM CHICAGO

Get exclusive camera angles, live pit road coverage and more with TNT RaceBuddy on TM & © 2009 Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. NASCAR® is a registered trademark of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing Inc. Photo: Getty/John Harrelson

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OFF THE FIELD

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Seahawks DT grabs guitar, hits Seattle clubs Seahawks DT Craig Terrill, heading into his sixth NFL season, already is planning for a second career in music. He is fronting the Craig Terrill Band, playing Americana-style music in clubs around Seattle, according to The Seattle Times. Terrell grew up in Lebanon, Ind., and identifies mostly with the music of Indiana native John Mellencamp plus Bruce Springsteen and Bob Seger. His band had played weeknights in smaller clubs, but it’s ready to step up in class. The band played the famed Triple Door on Saturday night. Terrill sings and plays guitar and knows his football fame helps draw crowds. Terrill, who started playing guitar at age 13, says most of his songs are about land, hard work, unspoken love, family and growing up. The group recorded a CD last year titled CT. “If it brings people to the show, that’s great,” Terrill told The Times, “but I want them to keep coming back because of quality of music. “I’d like to play music for the rest of my life.” Terrill, 28, performed with Seahawks and Portland TrailBlazers owner Paul Allen’s band in 2006 at the WaMu Theater as the opening act for Seal. Terrill also has sung a duet with Garth Brooks in 2007 at a fundraiser in Las Vegas. No good deed goes unpunished. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis agreed to host a party for 2,500 honor roll students in Cincinnati Public Schools next week at Paul Brown Stadium. It was to be the

>8D<;8P MAUER,FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP; JOHN, JAE C. HONG / AP

Elton John said Minnesota’s Joe Mauer, left, was the best catcher in baseball.

Elton goes autograph-seeking Baseball fan/music legend Elton John has requested autographed pictures of Twins C Joe Mauer and 1B Justin Morneau, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press. In trade, John says he’d send autographed pictures of himself. According to the Pioneer Press, John told Mauer that he’s the best catcher in baseball and wished he played for the Braves, John’s favorite team.

culmination of a yearlong incentive program sponsored by the Marvin Lewis Community Fund, according to the Dayton Daily News. Automated phone calls, with a message from Lewis, started going out Friday. Instead of the 2,500 deserving students, however, the calls went to 20,000 students. Soon after, Lewis recorded a second message that was sent to the “other” students, apologizing and

:FCC<><=FFK98CC =8EK8JP=FFK98CC ON SALE 6/2/09

ON SALE 6/9/09

GIF=FFK98CC ON SALE 6/23/09

rescinding the party invitation. Magic C Dwight Howard, Raptors F Chris Bosh, Knicks G Nate Robinson and free-agent F Carlos Boozer will lead the NBA’s and FIBA’s Basketball Without Borders camp Sept. 2-6 in South Africa, SportsBusiness Daily reported. In addition, Rockets C Yao Ming will lead a BWB event in China, and Nets F Eduardo Najera will lead on in Mexico.

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

CHRIS CARLSON / AP

Pau Gasol is one of L.A.’s four international players.

International delight There are eight international players on this year’s NBA Finals rosters—one shy of the record, set in 2007. The countries represented: China: Sun Yue, Lakers Democratic Republic of the Congo: DJ Mbenga, Lakers France: Mickael Pietrus, Magic Poland: Marcin Gortat, Magic St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Adonal Foyle, Magic Slovenia: Sasha Vujacic, Lakers Spain: Pau Gasol, Lakers Turkey: Hedo Turkoglu, Magic Source: NBA

YOUR TURN Got something you’d like to ask Kansas Jayhawks center Cole Aldrich? E-mail your question, along with your name and hometown, to yourturn@ sportingnews.com. We’ll pick our five favorites and bounce Cole Aldrich them off Aldrich, who averaged 14.9 points and 11.1 rebounds as a sophomore. Readers’ questions and Aldrich’s answers will run as part of our “5 Questions” feature in an upcoming issue of Sporting News Magazine.

Born: April 8, 1981, in Jacksonville Status: Married Alma mater: Florida What’s on TV: Speed Channel What’s in my iPod: Lil Wayne, Outkast, Jay-Z, T.I., Jeezy, Beyonce What I drive: F-350 Super Duty, Corvette Z06, Benz 550 Favorite flicks: Face/Off, The Matrix What I’m reading: Newspaper, The Bible Bookmarks: Hotmail, Google Worst habit: Biting my fingernails On my office walls: Pictures of my kids and wife Love to trade places for a day with … Hugh Hefner First job: Bag boy at Winn-Dixie, age 15, Jacksonville. I stocked aisles for minimum wage. Summer job. I worked two months. Talent I’d most like to have: Something supernatural Favorite meal: Steak, seafood, pasta Favorite athlete to watch in another sport: Michael Jordan Favorite city to visit: Miami Beach Favorite team as a kid: 49ers Favorite value in others: Honesty Favorite physical attribute about myself: My smile And least … My feet Dream date: Nichole Sheppard My hero: My grandfather, Lovell Sheppard My greatest love: Family My bucket list: Fly in a fighter jet My mottos: 1. Everything happens for a reason; 2. It’s not what you do, it’s how you do it — Jeff D’Alessio

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A Division I head basketball coach at 31? If anyone can do it, it’s Memphis’ Josh Pastner, Sporting News college hoops expert Mike DeCourcy explains in the new magazine.

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BASEBALL / NATIONAL LEAGUE

BASEBALL / AMERICAN LEAGUE

San Diego 6, Arizona 4

Gwynn scores go-ahead run this time SAN DIEGO—Tony Gwynn Jr. kept getting on base and kept getting stranded. Finally, he was able to come across with a big run. Gwynn reached base a career-high five times and scored the go-ahead run in the six-run sixth inning to help the San Diego Padres beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-4 on Saturday night, snapping a fourgame losing streak. The big inning ended a string of 15 scoreless innings for the Padres, who lost 8-0 to the Diamondbacks on Friday night and hadn’t scored since the eighth inning of a 5-1 loss to Philadelphia on Wednesday night. Kevin Correia (2-4) rebounded from a shaky first inning to earn the win, holding Arizona to two runs and five hits in six innings, with four strikeouts and one walk. Heath Bell gave up one run on a walk, a wild pitch and two grounders in the ninth for his 16th save in 17 opportunities. Gwynn was obtained in a trade with Milwaukee on May 21, joining the team his Hall of Fame father played with for 20 years. Gwynn had a career-high three walks, a single, double and a stolen base. “It’s huge,” Gwynn said. “Anytime you continue to get the leadoff guy on, even if it doesn’t work out the first couple times, you keep turning that lineup over like that, you give yourself a good opportunity to score runs. Obviously you’re not going to be able to get the hit all the time, but the guys we have hitting in our RBI spots, they’re not going to miss every single time. The more opportunities you give them, the better off it’s going to be.” Trailing 2-0 after stranding eight runners through the first five innings, the Padres finally broke through against three pitchers in the sixth. Will Venable

Padres 6, Diamondbacks 4 Arizona AB R H BI F.Lopez 2b 4 1 1 0 R.Roberts 3b 3 1 0 0 J.Gutierrez p 0 0 0 0 J.Upton rf 4 1 1 1 S.Drew ss 4 0 1 1 Reynolds 1b 2 1 1 0 C.Young cf 3 0 0 0 Zavada p 0 0 0 0 Rauch p 0 0 0 0 Ojeda 3b 1 0 0 0 Byrnes lf 4 0 1 2 Snyder c 3 0 0 0 c-Montero ph 1 0 0 0 Scherzer p 2 0 1 0 L.Rosales p 0 0 0 0 Schlereth p 0 0 0 0 G.Parra cf 1 0 0 0 Totals 32 4 6 4

Oakland 9, Baltimore 4 BB 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

SO 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 7

Avg. .303 .343 --.317 .232 .270 .178 ----.245 .213 .234 .218 .300 .000 --.293

San Diego AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Gwynn cf 2 1 2 0 3 0 .325 Eckstein 2b 3 1 1 1 2 0 .249 Ad.Gonzalez 1b 3 1 0 0 2 1 .281 Headley 3b 1 1 0 1 1 0 .243 Kouzmanoff 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 .219 Giles rf 5 0 2 2 0 2 .198 Venable lf 5 1 2 1 0 1 .154 H.Blanco c 4 0 1 0 0 1 .197 C.Burke ss 4 1 2 1 0 1 .213 Correia p 2 0 0 0 0 1 .231 a-E.Gonzalez ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .209 Gregerson p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --b-C.Floyd ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000 Mujica p 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 Bell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --Totals 32 6 10 6 8 8 Arizona San Diego

DENIS POROY / AP

While San Diego’s Adrian Gonzalez, left, didn’t homer, he did score in his team’s six-run sixth inning. had two hits, an RBI and scored a run that inning. Venable hit a leadoff double and scored on Chris Burke’s one-out, broken-bat RBI single that bounced off reliever Leo Rosales’ foot and into left field. After pinchhitter Edgar Gonzalez flied out, Rosales made way for rookie Daniel Schlereth. Schlereth (0-2) faced four batters and failed to get an out, allowing four runs on one hit, two walks and a hit batter. He walked Gwynn, allowed David Eckstein’s RBI single to tie it, walked Adrian Gonzalez to load the bases and then hit Chase Headley on the top of his left foot with a pitch to bring in Gwynn with the go-

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SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

ahead run. Brian Giles, who stranded seven runners in his first three at-bats, including four in scoring position, followed with a two-run single to right off Clay Zavada, and Venable had an RBI single. Giles was able to put his shaky start behind him. “You have to erase it,” he said. “You can’t go back and get back what you left out there. There was a lot of game left and I knew I was going to get another opportunity.” — The Associated Press Dodgers rally for victory again, Page 15

200 000 011 — 000 006 00x —

4 6 2 6 10 0

a-flied out for Correia in the 6th. b-struck out for Gregerson in the 7th. c-grounded out for Snyder in the 9th. E: Reynolds (8), Scherzer (1). LOB: Arizona 4, San Diego 12. 2B: Gwynn (2), Venable (1). HR: J.Upton (11), off Mujica. RBIs: J.Upton (34), S.Drew (16), Byrnes 2 (21), Eckstein (17), Headley (22), Giles 2 (21), Venable (1), C.Burke (5). SB: Gwynn (2), C.Burke (4). Runners left in scoring position: Arizona 2 (Snyder 2); San Diego 6 (Giles 4, H.Blanco, Ad.Gonzalez). DP: Arizona 3 (F.Lopez, S.Drew, Reynolds), (S.Drew, Reynolds), (F.Lopez, S.Drew, Reynolds); San Diego 1 (Ad.Gonzalez). Arizona Scherzer L.Rosales H, 1 Schlrth L,0-2 BS,2-2 Zavada Rauch J.Gutierrez San Diego Correia W, 2-4 Gregerson Mujica Bell S, 16-17

IP 5 2⁄3 0 1⁄3 1 1 IP 6 1 1 1

H 3 2 1 2 1 1 H 5 0 1 0

R ER BB SO NP ERA 0 0 5 6 104 4.10 2 2 0 0 16 6.94 4 4 2 0 15 13.50 0 0 0 1 7 0.00 0 0 1 1 24 5.47 0 0 0 0 5 2.90 R ER BB SO NP ERA 2 2 1 4 83 5.13 0 0 0 2 11 3.34 1 1 0 1 17 2.63 1 1 1 0 20 1.61

Schlereth pitched to 4 batters in the 6th. Inherited runners-scored: Schlereth 1-1, Zavada 3-3. HBP: by Scherzer (Headley), by Schlereth (Headley), by Correia (R.Roberts). WP: Bell. PB: H.Blanco. Umpires: Home, Paul Schrieber; First, Chad Fairchild; Second, Joe West; Third, Paul Nauert. T: 2:59. A: 23,592 (42,691).

A’s double up on Orioles OAKLAND—The Oakland Athletics sprayed doubles all over the field. What a change to have the offense clicking like this. “About time, that’s what I’m thinking,” leadoff man Orlando Cabrera said. “We worked on it in batting practice,” quipped Adam Kennedy of the extra-base hits. Jason Giambi hit a three-run double that helped rookie Trevor Cahill end a three-start losing streak, and the A’s won their season-best fifth straight game with a 9-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday night. Cabrera and Kennedy each doubled twice and drove in two runs, including back-to-back doubles in the A’s four-run fourth to chase Orioles starter Jason Berken. The first seven hits by the A’s were doubles, but they saw the end to their streak of six straight games with a home run. Cahill (3-5), who had struggled for run support in recent outings, was staked to a 5-0 lead in the third inning on Giambi’s double against Berken (1-2). Kennedy hit a two-out RBI double, then Jack Cust and Matt Holliday each drew walks to load the bases for Giambi. “You can’t walk hitters to get to a hitter like Jason Giambi,” Berken said. “Those are the things that are really inexcusable.” Cahill struck out five in six innings and didn’t walk a batter for the second time in 12 starts. — The Associated Press

Athletics 9, Orioles 4 Baltimore AB R B.Roberts 2b 5 0 Markakis rf 5 0 Ad.Jones cf 4 0 Scott dh 4 1 A.Huff 1b 4 0 Mora 3b 3 1 Zaun c 4 1 Pie lf 1 0 Reimold lf 3 1 Andino ss 4 0 Totals 37 4

SO 0 1 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 2 9

Avg. .281 .291 .343 .328 .263 .271 .205 .200 .278 .220

Oakland AB R H BI BB SO O.Cabrera ss 4 2 3 2 1 0 Kennedy 2b 5 2 2 2 0 0 Cust dh 4 1 0 1 1 1 Holliday lf 3 1 2 1 1 0 Giambi 1b 3 0 1 3 0 0 Crosby 1b 1 0 0 0 0 1 K.Suzuki c 4 0 1 0 0 0 Cunningham rf 4 1 1 0 0 1 Hannahan 3b 4 0 0 0 0 2 R.Davis cf 3 2 2 0 1 0 Totals 35 9 12 9 4 5

Avg. .235 .343 .243 .291 .219 .203 .283 .163 .173 .218

Baltimore Oakland

H 0 2 2 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 10

BI 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 4

BB 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1

000 000 400 — 104 400 00x —

4 10 0 9 12 1

E: A.Bailey (1). LOB: Baltimore 7, Oakland 6. 2B: Markakis (17), Ad.Jones (16), O.Cabrera 2 (9), Kennedy 2 (9), Holliday (10), Giambi (7), Cunningham (2), R.Davis (2). HR: Reimold (6), off Ziegler. RBIs: Zaun (5), Reimold 3 (14), O.Cabrera 2 (19), Kennedy 2 (17), Cust (32), Holliday (37), Giambi 3 (30). Runners left in scoring position: Baltimore 4 (A.Huff, Ad.Jones, Zaun 2); Oakland 5 (K.Suzuki, Giambi, Crosby 2, Cust). DP: Baltimore 1 (B.Roberts, Andino, A.Huff); Oakland 1 (Hannahan, Kennedy, Crosby). Baltimore Berken L, 1-2 Da.Hernandez Baez Sherrill Oakland Cahill W, 3-5 Ziegler Breslow A.Bailey

IP 3 1⁄3 2 2⁄3 1 1 IP 6 1 2-3 11⁄3

H 7 4 0 1 H 6 2 2 0

R ER BB SO 9 9 3 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 R ER BB SO 2 2 0 5 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2

NP ERA 73 7.04 59 3.95 20 3.64 13 2.38 NP ERA 91 4.21 13 4.18 12 4.84 26 2.04

Cahill pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. Inherited runners-scored: Da.Hernandez 1-1, Ziegler 2-2, A.Bailey 2-0. WP: Da.Hernandez. Umpires: Home, Bill Hohn; First, Bruce Dreckman; Second, Paul Emmel; Third, Gary Darling. T: 2:42. A: 20,267 (35,067).

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Next Gen

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NBA DRAFT

RECRUITING DISH

2009 draft order

Q&A with … F Derrick Brown

All-purpose back picks Sooners Brennan Clay has bypassed nearby Pac-10 schools and opted to play for Oklahoma. Oregon, Washington, Arizona State and Stanford didn’t quite fit Clay, and neither did Michigan and Georgia—which also offered scholarships. When Oklahoma offered, Clay jumped at the opportunity. The 5-10, 190-pound all-purpose running back out of Scripps Ranch (San Diego) is a member of Sporting News’ Top 100 for the class of 2010. As a junior, Clay put up numbers that reminded people of another San Diego-area native, the NFL’s Reggie Bush. Clay rushed for 1,453 yards and 20 touchdowns, while catching 70 passes for 1,055 yards and six touchdowns. He also returned two kickoffs for scores. “A lot of people compare my style of play to Reggie Bush’s,” Clay told SN Today. “But some of the (analysts) say I have more power than Reggie Bush. That’s a great compliment. I think sometimes I’m sort of like Adrian Peterson. He’s one of my favorite running backs. I like him and Larry Johnson.” Clay was offered by Michigan early on. His quarterback from his junior season at Scripps Ranch High was Tate Forcier, who signed with the Wolverines and enrolled early in January. Forcier then proceeded to win the Michigan starting job during spring drills and some thought Clay may follow his former teammate, but it was not to be. He is ready to show Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and his staff what

Degree in tow, junior ready to go pro Derrick Brown was one of the star players for this year’s surprisingly good Xavier bunch. But, he’s finding that in the process of getting ready for the NBA draft, he’s a small fish in a big pond. Still, he’s been climbing up the draft boards Derrick Brown and seems to have locked himself into a first-round position. He talked about the process with Sporting News Today’s Sean Deveney.

Q:

COURTESY OF BRENNAN CLAY

Brennan Clay said his style is often compared to another San Diego-area runner—Reggie Bush. he can do. “I think that one of my strengths is my leadership,” Clay told SN Today. “I’ve been on varsity since I was a freshman, and the other kids I’ve grown up with look up to me, even though we’re the same age. ... Every team has a player that ignites the team, that gets the fire going. I think that’s one of my strengths. I also think it’s a strength that I have the ability to play receiver well, too. I have soft hands, and that helps out a lot. I can get away from tacklers.” Hutchinson (Kan.) DE Geneo Grissom has committed to Kansas, Rivals.com reported. The 6-4, 230pound strongside defensive end also reported a scholarship offer from Colorado State, and interest from several other schools. “His dad told me right from the

beginning that he loves KU and it has always been a dream that his son would end up there,” Hutchinson coach Randy Dreiling told Rivals. com. Winton Woods (Cincinnati) QB Dominique Brown has committed to hometown Cincinnati, Rivals. com reported. The 6-3, 215-pounder also was receiving serious interest from Michigan, Ohio State and Georgia Tech. He has passed for 968 yards the past two seasons, while also rushing for 2,687 yards and 32 touchdowns. “They said they want me to play quarterback,” Brown told Rivals. com. “(The coaching staff) told me that I have to want to be the quarterback. I have to make some little adjustments, but I can definitely compete for the job.” — Brian McLaughlin

You’ve been working out for just about everyone it seems. Any idea where you’re going? I will play for anybody, honestly. I think anyone who needs a versatile, athletic, 6-8 guy who can play D, I am your man. … Anywhere I go, I will be happy with it. Obviously, I know I am not a lottery pick, but I am talking to teams throughout the first round seriously. So that’s exciting.

A:

Q: A:

Does it matter to you whether you get into the first round? Well, obviously, being in the first round, that would be nice. Everybody who is going through this wants to be in the first round, wants to be as high up as they can get. I mean, I’d like to be the No. 1 pick. But I think first round, I would call it probable. I am not projecting myself, I don’t do mock drafts. But I am thinking somewhere between 15 and early in the second round.

Q: A:

You’re not a senior, but you have graduated, right? I am a junior in basketball, so I would be able to go back and play another year. But I got my degree already, I graduated. And I think I am ready for the NBA now. I wanted to get my degree in college, so I got it. I accomplished that goal.

Q: A:

What was your major? I was a marketing major.

Q:

A lot of teams are cutting back on their front offices. You could do marketing during the day, then play for the team at night. The team would save money. You’d be a pioneer. Hey, I would be willing to do that. Sign me up for that.

A:

Q:

Coming into this year, you were known as a great athlete and a fantastic dunker. But you really improved your shot this season. That was something I sort of targeted to improve before the season started. … I didn’t want to leave college as just a dunker and a high flyer. I knew I needed to show I could shoot if I wanted to play at the next level.

A:

6

June 25, New York 1. L.A. Clippers 2. Memphis 3. Oklahoma City 4. Sacramento 5. Washington 6. Minnesota 7. Golden State 8. New York 9. Toronto 10. Milwaukee 11. New Jersey 12. Charlotte 13. Indiana 14. Phoenix 15. Detroit 16. Chicago 17. Philadelphia 18. Minnesota (from Miami) 19. Atlanta 20. Utah 21. New Orleans 22. Dallas 23. Sacramento (from Houston) 24. Portland 25. Oklahoma City (from San Antonio) 26. Chicago (from Denver through Oklahoma City) 27. Memphis (from Orlando) 28. Minnesota (from Boston) 29. L.A. Lakers 30. Cleveland

Second round

31. Sacramento 32. Washington 33. Portland (from L.A. Clippers) 34. Denver (from Oklahoma City) 35. Detroit (from Minnesota) 36. Memphis 37. San Antonio (from Golden State through Phoenix) 38. Portland (from New York through Chicago) 39. Detroit (from Toronto) 40. Charlotte (from N. Jersey through Oklahoma City) 41. Milwaukee 42. L.A. Lakers (from Charlotte) 43. Miami (from Indiana) 44. Detroit 45. Minnesota (from Philadelphia through Miami) 46. Cleveland (from Chicago) 47. Minnesota (from Miami) 48. Phoenix 49. Atlanta 50. Utah 51. San Antonio (from New Orleans through Toronto) 52. Indiana (from Dallas) 53. San Antonio (from Houston) 54. Charlotte (from San Antonio) 55. Portland (from Denver) 56. Portland 57. Phoenix (from Orlando through Oklahoma City) 58. Boston 59. L.A. Lakers 60. Miami (from Cleveland)

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7

NOTEBOOK STANLEY CUP FINALS S

GAME 5: DETROIT 5

PITTSBURGH 0

Datsyuk—and the Red Wings—are just fine DETROIT—Pavel Datsyuk took a pass from Brian Rafalski, calmly navigated through the neutral zone and made the right play with a pass to Dan Cleary. “Not going fast, just executing,” Mike Babcock said. Datsyuk’s assist on Detroit’s first goal offered a clear signal to the Detroit coach that his star forward is going to be just fine. And if the 5-0 final score of Game 5 is any indication, so, too, are the Red Wings. Craig Custance On Saturday night, HOCKEY they got their Hart Trophy finalist back on the ice. It was the equivalent of the Pittsburgh Penguins getting Evgeni Malkin back after a two-week break. So in a tight series where momentum seems to swing in each period, adding a superstar is a huge advantage for the defending champs. Especially when he looks as good as Datsyuk did Saturday night. He had two assists, was a boost on the power play and, even with a banged-up foot, was throwing his body around while playing with his usual physical edge. It was his hit on Malkin that started the whole chain of events that led to Cleary’s goal. “He can run over top of you,” Babcock said. “We haven’t been able to get many on Malkin in the series, so it was good.” Datsyuk’s return was just in time. The Penguins stormed back into the series with consecutive wins in Pittsburgh and looked to have an edge over the Red Wings when they left Mellon Arena after Game 4.

PAUL SANCYA / AP

Red Wings F Pavel Datsyuk looked comfortable from the get-go in his return from a foot injury. But the moment Babcock sent Datsyuk out on the wing with new linemates Henrik Zetterberg and Cleary, that edge

disappeared. An even matchup tilted heavily in favor of Detroit. It was just a matter of Datsyuk proving

he can still be effective. He proved it. “Just having him back, knowing what he brings, the minutes he can log, his ability with the puck, protecting it—he played great in every area. He was great tonight,” Cleary said. “It was amazing to be able to miss that much time and step in and be fantastic. What a player.” The Zetterberg line, with Datsyuk as the newest addition, found the best way to stop Sidney Crosby: Keep him 175 feet away from the goal. When those three were on the ice— often against the Crosby line—they were dominant and spent most of the time in their offensive zone. Crosby, who was so good in Game 4, finished Game 5 minus-2. He had one shot on goal. “They all played well, (Datsyuk) looked good out there, made a play on the first goal,” Crosby said. “We just made mistakes. It doesn’t matter who is out there, we made mistakes.” Babcock said if this had been a regularseason game, there’s no way Datsyuk would have played. He didn’t skate or have the stability he normally does, Babcock explained. But the good news is that his skating and stability will continue to improve. Datsyuk said he was more comfortable as the game went on, and he expects that comfort level to grow even more. Looking back, Detroit did well to keep the series even while their Evgeni Malkin got healthy. Now, they just need one more win. “We bought time so he can come back,” Babcock said. “Ideally, he can help us get over the top.” [email protected]

Talbot’s slash: ‘I went for the puck’ The replay certainly didn’t look good. Pavel Datsyuk was playing his first game in more than two weeks because of an injured foot and, with the Penguins trailing by a large margin, Max Talbot took a whack at his ankle. Talbot was called for slashing—and it certainly appeared he was trying to aggravate Datsyuk’s bad foot. The Pittsburgh forward knows that critics probably will suggest his intentions were bad. “They can suggest whatever they want, I went for the puck and his foot was there,” Talbot explained. Datsyuk said he didn’t know whether the slash was intentional, saying he was just happy it led to a Detroit two-man advantage. Detroit coach Mike Babcock wasn’t making any accusations, either. “I’m not going there,” he said. “The bottom line is they’re doing what they can to win and we’re going to do what we can to win.”

Fleury yanked For the first time in the finals, a team made a goalie change when Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury was replaced by backup Mathieu Garon after Detroit’s fifth goal. Fleury stopped just 16 of 21 shots and, while most of Detroit’s goals came on the power play, Cleary’s first-period goal was one he normally stops. Sidney Crosby said he told Fleury not to worry about the performance after he was pulled. “A goalie’s going to be upset in that situation,” Crosby said. “That’s the competitor in him. But reality is, we didn’t give him a lot of help and he’s got nothing to be mad about. We need him to bounce back in the next game, and we need everybody at their best, including him.” In the opposing goal, Chris Osgood earned his 15th career playoff shutout, which ranks fourth in history, trailing only Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy and Curtis Joseph. —Craig Custance

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STANLEY CUP FINALS S

GAME 5: DETROIT 5

8

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

PITTSBURGH 0

Recharged Red Wings dominate Game 5, take series lead DETROIT—The Detroit Red Wings got exactly what they needed: a big win and long break. After hearing how tired and beat up they were through four games of the Stanley Cup finals, the defending champions busted out with a devastating display of offense and defense and rolled to a 5-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night that put them a win away from another championship. The veteran-laden Red Wings lead the series 3-2 and are closing in on their 12th Stanley Cup title and fifth in 12 seasons. Detroit can wrap this one up Tuesday night in Pittsburgh. “It’s a huge win,” Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. “The biggest part is the extra days off. That’s the best thing that we’ve got to this point. “We’ll be a better team.” Detroit’s two-game losing streak in Pittsburgh quickly became a distant memory as the Red Wings returned to the friendly confines of Joe Louis Arena and blew away the supposedly fresher Penguins. The home team is 5-0 in the rematch of last year’s finals, so the Penguins still have that going for them. “When you don’t play well at all, you have nothing to do but improve, and we have to,” Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby said. “The situation is pretty clear for us. We have to go home and be desperate now.” Pavel Datsyuk made his mark in his first appearance in eight games, notching two assists, drawing a key

penalty, and knocking leading scorer Evgeni Malkin to the ice. The Red Wings made the Penguins pay for a lack of discipline by going 3 for 9 on the power play. Detroit was 1 for 10 on the power play coming into Game 5. Datsyuk even shook off a slash from Max Talbot on his sore right foot. “When I play more, I’m more comfortable,” said Datsyuk, who logged 17½ minutes of ice time. “It’s a little bit hard to start with the final series when I miss a couple of games, but I’m ready to play more.” Chris Osgood, on the verge of his fourth Stanley Cup championship— third as the Red Wings starting goalie—made 22 saves for his 15th playoff shutout, third on the NHL career list. He earned an assist on Valtteri Filppula’s goal for his fifth career playoff point, and improved to 11-4 in the finals. Detroit held a 29-22 shots advantage, the first time the home team had the edge. “The other game is three days away so I don’t know if (the shutout) has much bearing on what’s going to happen in Pittsburgh,” Osgood said. “It’s more important for us to get a little break so we can be at full capacity when we go to Pittsburgh.” This series looked firmly in the Red Wings’ control after they opened with a pair of 3-1 victories, but the Penguins seized momentum with two 4-2 wins that made Detroit appear worn out. “We had no jump in the last game

Pittsburgh Detroit

0 1

0 4

0 0

— —

0 5

First Period: 1, Detroit, Cleary 9 (Datsyuk, Rafalski), 13:32. Penalties: Kronwall, Det (tripping), 7:16; Kunitz, Pit (goaltender interference), 19:39. Second Period: 2, Detroit, Filppula 3 (Hossa, Osgood), 1:44. 3, Detroit, Kronwall 2 (Franzen, Zetterberg), 6:11 (pp). 4, Detroit, Rafalski 3 (Datsyuk, Lidstrom), 8:26 (pp). 5, Detroit, Zetterberg 11 (Hudler, Samuelsson), 15:40 (pp). Penalties: Gonchar, Pit (slashing), 5:53; Malkin, Pit (elbowing), 6:48; Kunitz, Pit (roughing), 13:50; Crosby, Pit (slashing), 17:37; Talbot, Pit (slashing), 17:57. Third Period: None. Penalties: Hossa, Det (roughing), 1:53; Malkin, Pit (hooking), 7:14; Adams, Pit, misconduct, 15:50; Dupuis, Pit (high-sticking), 15:50; Cooke, Pit, misconduct, 18:08; Talbot, Pit, misconduct, 18:08; Malkin, Pit (cross-checking), 18:08; Lebda, Det, misconduct, 18:08. Shots on Goal: Pittsburgh 10-6-6: 22. Detroit 8-15-6: 29. Power-play opportunities: Pittsburgh 0 of 2; Detroit 3 of 9. Goalies: Pittsburgh, Fleury 14-8-0 (21 shots-16 saves), Garon (15:40 second, 8-8). Detroit, Osgood 15-6-0 (22-22). A: 20,066 (20,066). T: 2:28. Referees: Paul Devorski, Dennis LaRue. Linesmen: Derek Amell, Pierre Racicot.

Stanley Cup finals (Best-of-7), All times ET (Detroit leads series3-2) May 30: Detroit 3,Pittsburgh 1 May 31: Detroit 3, Pittsburgh 1 June 2: Pittsburgh 4, Detroit 2 June 4: Pittsburgh 4, Detroit 2 Saturday: Detroit 5, Pittsburgh 0 Tuesday: Detroit at Pittsburgh, 8 p.m., NBC Friday: Pittsburgh at Detroit, 8 p.m., if necessary, NBC PAUL SANCYA / AP

Niklas Kronwall (55) scored one of Detroit’s three power play goals and helped chase Penguins G Marc-Andre Fleury. when they scored all the goals,” Babcock said. “It didn’t look like they had much jump when we scored all the goals. It’s amazing how tired you look when you’re not scoring and they are.”

History suggests the Red Wings will hoist the Cup again as 14 of the 19 previous teams to win Game 5 in a series tied 2-2 have prevailed. Pittsburgh won Game 5 in the Motor City last year in triple

overtime to force the series to six games, but then was eliminated at home. The Penguins are 1-5 in Detroit in the past two finals, and Crosby failed to score a goal in all six games.

The Red Wings broke it open with four goals in the second period—three in a span of 6:42—against beleaguered goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, who left after making 16 saves on 21 shots. — The Associated Press

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GAME 5: DETROIT 5

Desperation mounts for Pens DETROIT—The Pittsburgh Penguins lost their momentum, confidence and composure, their scoring touch and their goaltending. Their stars? They seemed lost, too. Any one of those problems alone might have cost them Game 5 of the Stanley Cup finals against the Red Wings, who played with the desperation and purpose of a champion during a 5-0 victory in Game 5 on Saturday night. All of them together might well have cost the Penguins a series that, only two nights before, looked to be shifting their way after their youth and speed helped them beat the weary-looking Red Wings 4-2 for the second successive game. Maybe the Penguins underestimated how good the Red Wings can be when backed into a corner during the playoffs. Maybe they overlooked the fact they still haven’t won a game yet in Detroit in these finals, getting outscored 11-2. Maybe they felt that Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby simply couldn’t be slowed after they looked nearly unstoppable back on home ice. Or maybe the Penguins simply aren’t ready yet to win a championship, not when the opponent is a victory away from raising the Stanley Cup for the fifth time since 1997 and the second year in a row. Possibly in Pittsburgh’s own building Tuesday in Game 6, just as the Red Wings did a year ago. “The situation’s pretty clear for us: We have to go home and be desperate now,” Crosby said. “It’s nothing new, and we have to

respond right away.” Nothing in a Stanley Cup finals is as fleeting as momentum, as the Penguins proved not only by failing to win Game 5, but by being embarrassed in it, taking retaliatory penalties and losing their poise. They had 48 minutes in penalties, with Craig Adams, Matt Cooke and Max Talbot all drawing 10-minute misconducts. “You’re going to have emotions in a situation where you’re not getting a result, the other team fills the net on you,” coach Dan Bylsma said. “I think our guys were frustrated and then trying to play physical and started to get off the page by trying to run around and be physical. It’s a show of emotion.” That’s not all. Their special teams melted down, goalie MarcAndre Fleury fought anything shot his way while stopping only 21 of 26 shots and Malkin and Crosby disappeared for long stretches. They were held to a combined two shots and neutralized by a Red Wings team that suddenly doesn’t look old or tired, dead-legged or the least bit intimidated. Even if the Penguins do force the first Stanley Cup finals Game 7 in their 42-year history, they still must win in Detroit to win the series. “We won in Game 5 last year in overtime, and we won a regular season game here, so I think we’re pretty confident we can do a job here,” Crosby said. — The Associated Press

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

9

PITTSBURGH 0

INSIDE DISH

Bettman reveals four potential buyers for Coyotes NHL commissioner Gary Bettman revealed in a bankruptcy court filing that the league has received a “preliminary background application” from four potential buyers of the Phoenix Coyotes, including the co-owners of the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts. Bettman said applications have been filed by Argonauts co-owners Howard Sokolowski and David Cynamon, Chicago White Sox and Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and current Coyotes minority owner John Breslow. Bettman also said another unidentified Phoenix businessman has filed. The kicker, according to Bettman, is that each of the four prospective buyers has “indicated an interest in operating the franchise in Phoenix.” He did not provide details of the four proposals, citing confidentiality issues. The revelations came as part of the filing briefs submitted ahead of a midnight Friday deadline set by Judge Redfield T. Baum, who will hear arguments on whether Canadian businessman Jim Balsillie can buy and relocate the Coyotes to southern Ontario in an Arizona bankruptcy court Tuesday. The documents draw out the case each side will make in the bitter fight for control of the Coyotes who, according to current owner Jerry Moyes, have never made a profit in the 13 years since moving from Winnipeg and have lost more than $316 million. The NHL cites the four potential

games and two rounds of playoffs wearing a protective boot, said a screw will be inserted in his left foot to make the bones heal correctly. He added that recovery time will be four-to-six weeks and he should be ready for training camp.

Joe Sacco, who was hired to replace Tony Granato as coach of the Colorado Avalanche earlier this week, was asked the inevitable question: Are you keeping a seat warm for Patrick Roy? “No, I don’t think so,” Sacco told The Denver Post. “No, I feel confident in my ability. Obviously, Patrick would have been a great choice (as coach). Whether I was the second choice or the 10th choice, that doesn’t matter to me.”

DAVID ZALUBOWSKI / AP

Ducks C Todd Marchant will have a four-to-six week recovery ahead after foot surgery. buyers in arguing that maintaining the league’s consent rights in a sale would not adversely affect creditors. Bettman says in his declaration that he expects to get more bidders willing to keep the team in Phoenix.

The Orange County Register reports that C Todd Marchant will undergo surgery next week to repair a broken bone in his foot. Marchant, who was hit by a shot March 22 against Phoenix and played 10 more regular-season

The Associated Press reports that a wrecking crew pulled down the last roof supports on Buffalo’s Memorial Auditorium Saturday morning, leaving only remnants of the building the Sabres once called home. A large section of the building collapsed with a roar in a billowing cloud of dust. The building, known as the Aud, had been empty since the Sabres left for HSBC Arena 12 years ago. The arena was built in the 1940s and hosted hockey games, concerts, circuses and more. The last wall is scheduled to be torn down within days. The downtown Buffalo building is being cleared for new development.

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SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

ORLANDO AT L.A. LAKERS Tonight 8 ET, ABC

Lakers anticipating many Game 2 adjustments LOS ANGELES—There’s been a widespread consensus here at the NBA Finals suggesting that what we saw out of the Orlando Magic in Game 1 is not quite what we’ll see out of the team in Game 2, or beyond. Shooting 29.9 percent, no matter how much credit the Lakers’ defense deserves, is not something the Magic figure to do routinely. Playing lax defense and missing out on loose ball after loose ball is not something we’re likely to see again. “I don’t think we could have played much worse,” said guard Courtney Lee. “They obviously played great on both sides of the ball. But for us, it was like we Sean Deveney were a step slow on everything we did. It wasn’t really us.” PRO BASKETBALL The Lakers are aware of this, and they’re already thinking ahead to today’s Game 2. Any playoff series comes down to adjustments, and Magic coach Stan Van Gundy has plenty of adjustments drawn up on the board. Here’s what the Lakers are anticipating: Speed up the game. “This is a team that works best when they work fast,” said Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw. “You can look at the numbers, and they are a very effective team when they are scoring 100-plus points. When you keep them under that, they’re not nearly as good. “So, we are expecting them to try to run more, because a lot of what they do offensively comes from their ability to get into the fast break and run their offense out of that, to get it going before the defense has time to set up. They will push the tempo much more.” Get Dwight Howard going. This is actually connected to Shaw’s point about speeding up the game because the Magic like to establish Howard—who runs the floor very well for a big man— in the low post in their fast-break sets. That will challenge the Lakers’ big men to run with him. “I think what they’ll do is try to get Dwight into some situations where he can establish position

10

MARK J. TERRILL / AP

Dwight Howard, left, and Kobe Bryant are, predictably, in the spotlight once again for tonight’s Game 2. by out-running us down the floor,” Lakers center Andrew Bynum said. “They didn’t do that quite as much in the first game.” Work for better shots. The Lakers were able to keep Orlando from beating them at the 3-point line in the opener because they consistently challenged the Magic’s shooters. They ran at them to contest jumpers and forced the perimeter players to put the ball on the floor rather than getting the open 3s that have been so effective for them in this series. The Magic will have to adjust to the way the Lakers are running them off the 3-point line. “We can’t let them make 3s,” Shaw said. “We’d rather have (Hedo) Turkoglu or Rashard (Lewis) put the ball on the floor and try to get a shot that way than have them shoot 3s. But I’d expect them to be looking for that now and to be looking

to make the extra pass to find those 3s.” Tighten up on Kobe Bryant’s pick-and-rolls. As brilliant as Bryant was in Game 1, his offense came as much from working off pick-and-rolls as from attacking the basket. The Magic’s plan to guard Bryant oneon-one with Mickael Pietrus and Lee was foiled because Lee and Pietrus were far too easily picked, leaving Bryant for open midrange jumpers. “We need to be more aggressive on him, on the ball, to keep him out of the pick to begin with,” Lee said. “But the man who is helping on the pick-and-roll, who is zoning there, has to be more active and be up a little more. He was coming off the pick, doing one move and getting into his comfort zone and pulling up from the free-throw line. We have to get up on him more than that.” [email protected]

Bryant doesn’t sound like he’s slowing down soon EL SEGUNDO, CALIF.—Behind Kobe Bryant’s stone-faced mask and the icy grimace he’s wearing in these finals, his eyes are laser locked on one target: His fourth NBA title. His vision is so narrow, so sharp that he can’t think about anything but a shiny championship trophy now close enough to touch. To him, these two weeks are all that matters. After that, it’s anyone’s guess. As he and the Los Angeles Lakers practiced in advance of playing the Orlando Magic in today’s Game 2, Bryant, as few as three games from wrapping up his 13th season as a pro, said he has not given any thought about giving up what has been the driving force in his life. “I don’t know,” he said when asked how much longer he’ll play. “I just love the game so much still. “I just feel like there’s still so much out there for me to improve on and work on. My body feels great. God willing, I stay healthy, I’ll just keep going.” Bryant, who will turn 31 in August, has an upcoming decision to make on his future. While he’s under contact to make $23 million next season, he has an early termination option, which he can exercise if he so chooses this summer. The idea of a Bryantless Lakers may be farfetched, but nothing can be assumed. Michael Jordan was just 30 the first time he quit, stepping away

Glance

(Best-of-7) All times, ET (L.A. Lakers lead series 1-0) June 4: L.A. Lakers 100, Orlando 75 Today: Orlando at L.A. Lakers, 8 p.m., ABC Tuesday: L.A. Lakers at Orlando, 9 p.m., ABC Thursday: L.A. Lakers at Orlando, 9 p.m., ABC Sunday, June 14: L.A. Lakers at Orlando 8 p.m., if necessary, ABC Tuesday, June 16: Orlando at L.A. Lakers, 9 p.m., if necessary, ABC Thursday, June 18: Orlando at L.A.

Lakers, 9 p.m., if necessary, ABC

Betting line FAVORITE ..........LINE ...................... UNDERDOG at L.A. Lakers............6½......... (202½)..... Orlando

to chase his dream of playing baseball. Could Bryant, who scored 40 points in Game 1 and has been the closest thing to M.J. the league has seen, follow him and do something else? His coach doesn’t think so. “Kobe is going to play it out for as long as he can,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “He’s just a player that is going to find a way regardless. When his skill level deteriorates, he’s going to find a level to play at that his athleticism is going to allow. I can see him playing to 36, 37.” — The Associated Press

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EL SEGUNDO, CALIF.—Hubie Brown first tried positioning two recorders and a knife on the table in front of him. When that didn’t work, he grabbed a reporter’s notebook and sketched his idea on paper. Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy has his own equipment and undoubtedly spent his Saturday doing what Brown was doing: Trying to draw up ways to make Dwight Howard more effective. After a lackluster start to the NBA Finals, the Magic need Howard to play better—and maybe smarter and harder—when they face the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 2 tonight. “I don’t think I was patient enough in the post. I don’t think that they caused a lot of problems for me. I think it was just rushing and wanting to do so much without being patient,” Howard said. “I think out of all the games I’ve had in the last two playoff series, I was probably the most impatient the last game.” Howard was limited to six shots—six Orlando players took more—made only one, and scored 12 points in the Magic’s 100-75 loss

on Thursday. After dominating the Cavaliers and averaging 25.8 points in the conference finals, Howard found things much more difficult against the Lakers, whose post players are stronger and much more mobile than Cleveland’s. Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao played behind Howard, who bulled his way into good position down low and often just had to spin around and dunk. The Lakers put a defender in front of Howard, and when he was able to catch it, they further threw him off his game by sending double and even triple teams. “Just by fronting this kid the other night, Howard got absolutely frustrated,” said Brown, the former coach turned ESPN commentator. “When your center doesn’t get the ball, he stops rebounding and stops blocking shots. You see the kid the other night? He puts his head down and you sulk as a big guy.” Van Gundy refused to single out Howard, saying his entire team played poorly in the opener. “I wasn’t happy with anything we did on the floor,” Van Gundy said. “I don’t think our effort and intensity was great. I’m not pointing fingers at anybody. I think it was all of us. But to say I was satisfied or happy, no, not at all. I don’t think you can be after a game like that. But that’s not to lay it on one guy.” — The Associated Press

… and it’s Bynum’s task to contain him

Howard vs. Bynum, Game 1 Howard Bynum

FGM-A 1-6 3-8

FTM-A 10-16 3-4

11

ORLANDO AT L.A. LAKERS Tonight 8 ET, ABC

GAME 2:

Howard tries to get going ...

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

REB 15 9

BLK 2 1

PF 3 4

PTS 12 9

MARK J. TERRILL / AP

Magic C Dwight Howard, right, struggled to score against the Lakers’ Andrew Bynum in Game 1.

EL SEGUNDO, CALIF.—Andrew Bynum was helpless to stop the Boston Celtics’ pummeling of the Lakers in the NBA Finals a year ago. He’s finally getting a chance to do something about bringing a title to Los Angeles. Even with an awkward brace on his surgically repaired knee, Bynum had the best start of any Lakers player in the 100-75 Game 1 victory against Orlando. He had eight points and four rebounds playing just under 9 minutes in the first quarter. “That’s what we want, that early inside presence out there in the ballgame, and the combination of Pau (Gasol) and Drew out there gave us that impact,” coach Phil Jackson said. At the same time, Bynum was helping hold down Dwight Howard, who made just one shot in the game. “That was part of our game plan, just keep him away from the basket and make him shoot shots,” Bynum said. Still a pro basketball baby at 21, Bynum has endured two major knee injuries since becoming the youngest player ever drafted three years ago. He was rapidly coming of age in January 2008—shooting a league-best 64 percent—when he went up for a rebound in a game and came down on teammate Lamar Odom’s foot. Bynum underwent surgery and missed the rest of the season while rehabbing. Then injury struck again. Bynum tore the MCL in his right knee on Jan. 31 and missed 32 games. He returned just as the regular season was ending, giving the 7-footer barely any time to prepare for the playoffs. “Playing a handful of games at the end of the season I think was a benefit for him,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “He didn’t fully get to rehab his knee, but he got as close as we can possibly get before he started playing. So that’s one of the things that we’re really concerned, that he fully rehabs after the season is over and he’s 100 percent. But he’s come back and played with a brace which has some limitation.” After Bynum’s strong performance in Game 1, Jackson said he’s looking for him to strike a balance between helping shut down Howard in Game 2 today and stopping penetration. “He’s very animated, intensely focused, on this matchup between himself and Howard, almost too much so, to the point where he still has to help,” Jackson said. “But he really has it in his mind that he’s going to stay attached to him, keep his body off the rim or away from the rebounds.” — The Associated Press

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12

NOTEBOOK NBA FINALS

GAME 2:

ORLANDO AT L.A. LAKERS Tonight 8 ET, ABC

INSIDE DISH

Clippers showcase Griffin at workout PF Blake Griffin showed off the highflying dunks that helped him become college player of the year in a very public predraft workout Saturday for the Clippers. He also showed off his dribbling skills—finishing the hour-long session by handling three basketballs. Whether the Clippers draft Griffin or end up using him as trade bait, they entertained the former Oklahoma star—and over 100 season ticket holders and media members— at their training facility to drum up interest in their top pick. “It’s unusual for us to open up a workout for a player, but in this case we thought it was appropriate,” coach Mike Dunleavy said. Los Angeles previously announced Griffin would be their top selection. But Dunleavy wouldn’t solidify that sentiment again, only throwing out hints on what an addition like Griffin would mean to any team that acquired him. “You can never say never about anything, obviously. Obviously if the word LeBron (James) was spoken by anybody, somebody’s door would open, clearly. There are a few guys in this league that wouldn’t get moved. Most of the times that you’re in the case of a pick like this, 99.9 percent of the time you keep it.” Suns C Shaquille O’Neal, who’s coming off a strong season at age 37, wants to play for a contender. How about the Lakers? According to yahoo.com, multiple league sources, including with the Lakers, believe

O’Neal wants to return to L.A and think that’s why he has spent this season trying to repair his relationship with SG Kobe Bryant. One thing to keep in mind: At February’s All-Star Game, when the two were asked whether they wished they were still playing together, both responded “no.” The Trail Blazers have decided to exercise team options on starting PG Steve Blake and sixth man Travis Outlaw, two key components of last season’s playoff team, The Oregonian reported. By picking up the options, the Blazers will take on roughly $8 million in salary for next season. Blake averaged a career-high 11.0 points and averaged 5.0 assists last season. Outlaw, who finished fifth in the NBA’s sixth-man of the year voting, averaged 12.8 points and 4.1 rebounds. Lakers assistant Kurt Rambis, who’s a candidate for the Kings’ head coaching position, has not negotiated potential terms of an offer, The Sacramento Bee reported. It appears that such discussions would not occur until after The Finals. In the meantime, Paul Westphal, another candidate, is willing to work for two years at $1.5 million per season—lower than the initial number ($1.5 to $2 million) tossed around in the Kings’ front office, The Bee reported. Hornets coach Byron Scott said that C Tyson Chandler’s injured ankle

Howard shares time with Russell at Finals EL SEGUNDO, CALIF.—Dwight Howard shared some time with Hall of Fame center Bill Russell before the Orlando Magic lost Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Howard has long admired Russell, even though his career ended well before the 23-yearold big man became a star. One of the few books Howard said he’s ever enjoyed reading is Russell Rules. “It brought me a little bit closer to him just by reading that book and knowing who he was off the court and how he approached the game of basketball,” Howard said Saturday. “He was always about team first, and basically I’m the same way. My team, that’s the only thing that matters to me.”

Helping Ricky

DONNA MCWILLIAM / AP

While Blake Griffin is thought by many to be the No. 1 pick, the Clippers aren’t exactly saying so. was worse than thought, and Chandler’s rehabilitation from surgery could take four months, close to the beginning of training camp in October, The Times-Picayune reported.

Scott also said the decision not to extend the contract of assistant coach Kenny Gattison, who is leaving the team after six years, was mutual.

Ricky Rubio can count on an assist from Olympic teammate Pau Gasol after the NBA draft. Rubio, who turns 19 in October, has decided to enter the June 25 draft, where he’s projected to be one of the top picks. Rubio has averaged 9.9 points and 5.7 assists this season for Spanish club DKV Joventut. “I wish that he picks the right option and the right team picks him,” Gasol said. “If he decides to come over, I wish him luck, and then of course I’ll try to advise him and help him out in any way I can.”

Superman slam The NBA player first known as Superman isn’t too crazy about his younger namesake. Shaquille O’Neal, who played for Orlando, has said everything that current Magic superstar Dwight Howard has done he copied from O’Neal right down to Howard’s Superman nickname. Howard is unsure why the Phoenix Suns center has singled him out. “I can’t tell you why he’s said a lot of discouraging things,” Howard said. “I wish he wouldn’t say it because he’s one of the few guys that we all look up to.”

Hello, India For the first time, media from India are covering the NBA Finals in person. A record number of media from Spain (32), Poland (14) and Turkey (8) are reporting on the best-of-7 series. They’re here to cover Gasol, Magic swingman Marcin Gortat from Poland and Orlando forward Hedo Turkoglu from Turkey. The Lakers’ Sasha Vujacic of Slovenia and DJ Mbenga of Congo, and Orlando’s Mickael Pietrus of France add the other international flavor. A total of 55 TV and radio stations and Web sites from overseas are covering The Finals, with 14 of them doing live commentary. — The Associated Press

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INSIDE DISH

There’s nothing like a few good shots across the brow to fire a little rivalry. First, Mets CF Carlos Beltran said he was embarrassed that his team was swept by the Pirates. Then Pirates 1B Adam LaRoche said Beltran showed “zero class.” It was Beltran’s turn Saturday, and he didn’t hold back when approached by The Associated Press. “What I said was as a team, we should all feel embarrassed, because, being honest, I don’t care what he said, I believe we’re a better team than

13

THE LAUNCHING PAD

Zambrano announces his five-year plan Following his 100th career win Friday night, Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano, 28, said he plans to be out of baseball in five years. Zambrano was asked about his milestone, in the context of Randy Johnson’s 300th win on Thursday, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Zambrano, who is three years younger than Johnson was when he won his 100th game, responded, ‘’For 300, me? No, I’ll be out of here in five years.’’ Zambrano has a $91.5 million deal through 2012, with a vesting option for 2013 at $19.25 million. But he said that would be it, and to show he was serious even said he’d bet one of the reporters $100 on it. ‘’I want to help this team and do everything possible to win with this team. After five years, or four years, or whatever it is, that’s it. I just don’t want to play. I want to stay at home and see my daughter grow up and be with my family more.” “Let’s see how he feels next week,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella told MLB. com on Saturday. “I think (Zambrano) is going to retire before I do.”

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

What to expect in the major leagues today

list with triceps tendinitis. The Cardinals moved to fortify their bullpen Saturday by recalling rookie RP Blake Hawksworth from Class AAA Memphis and demoting RP Jess Todd to Memphis. The rotation has questions with Joel Pineiro scheduled to pitch today after missing his last start due to back spasms and Brad Thompson making his second straight fill-in start on Monday, this time for injured Kyle Lohse.

AL BEHRMAN / AP

Carlos Zambrano bet a reporter $100 that he’d be done with baseball within five years. them. I don’t care what he said.” The Pirates completed their threegame sweep Thursday, and when LaRoche heard Beltran was embarrassed, he took exception. “I think it shows zero class and zero professionalism,” LaRoche told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “When somebody says that, they know what they’re saying, and they know it’s going to get out. He knows we’re not going to be real happy about it. If you go and say that to your buddies, it’s one thing. If you go to the media and make that public for us to hear? Yeah, that’s no class.” The Braves aren’t the only team apparently interested in Red Sox RP Brad Penny. According to MLB.com,

the Phillies also have been following him closely. Penny is 5-2 this season with a 5.85 ERA. Earlier this week, ESPN reported that Atlanta had talked to Boston about Penny. LP Ryan Rowland-Smith might have to wait to make his season debut with the Mariners after a rough rehab start Friday night. Rowland-Smith, who is scheduled to start Thursday in Baltimore, was tagged for 12 runs and 14 hits over 4 2/3 innings while pitching for Class AAA Tacoma. Manager Don Wakamatsu says a decision will be made in the next couple of days about whether Rowland-Smith needs another rehab start. Rowland-Smith has been on the disabled

The Orioles revealed Saturday that SS Cesar Izturis underwent an appendectomy Friday night after complaining of severe stomach pains earlier in the day. Izturis played in Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to the Mariners and accompanied the Orioles to Oakland for a three-game series against the Athletics. After arriving at the Coliseum early Friday with stomach pain, the 29-year-old Izturis was taken to a hospital for a CT scan. Royals veteran LP Horacio Ramirez, who has never made any secret of his desire to pitch as a starter since being demoted to the bullpen, might get his wish after being designated for assignment to clear roster space for RP Luke Hochevar, who started Saturday’s game against the Blue Jays. It was a simple case of logistics. “We have John Bale and Ron Mahay as our lefthanders (in the bullpen),” manager Trey Hillman said. “Unfortunately, he was the odd man out at this point. We had to have a roster spot.” Ramirez will have to decide whether he wants to pitch—perhaps as a starter—at Class AAA Omaha.

LENNY IGNELZI / AP

Phillies P Antonio Bastardo’s second career start will come under the microscope.

Sunday night spotlight If lefty Antonio Bastardo was excited for his first start last Tuesday at San Diego, he better stay away from the caffeine today. Start No. 2 will come at Dodger Stadium against the team with the majors’ best record in ESPN’s Sunday night game. “It might take him two or three starts to slow the adrenaline. He was wound up, but wound up in a good way,” manager Charlie Manuel told The Philadelphia Inquirer. Bastardo, 23, quelled his nerves enough to beat the Padres by lasting six innings and giving up only one run. His fastball was clocked in the 93 to 95 mph range, up about 4 mph from spring training. He had trouble throwing his slider and changeup for strikes against the Padres, a scenario he will need to avoid to have success against the N.L.’s best offense.

Another hotshot gets his start Early June seems to be the time for hotshot prospects. Baltimore’s Matt Wieters, Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen and the White Sox’s Gordon Beckham all made their big-league debuts in the past 10 days, some with more success (McCutchen) than others (Wieters). This afternoon in Atlanta, the Braves will send out their top pitching prospect, Tommy Hanson, in the final game of a series against the Brewers. The hard-throwing 6-6 righthander struck out 90 and walked 17 in 66 1/3 innings at Class AAA this season. You have to figure a certain 43-year-old lefty, Tom Glavine, will be among the interested observers. Glavine was released Thursday when the Braves opted to try Hanson in the rotation instead of bringing back the 305-game winner.

Doc goes for No. 10 Call this the mismatch of the day. One of the game’s best pitchers, Blue Jays righthander Roy Halladay, meets one of the majors’ coldest teams, the Royals. Halladay (9-1, 2.77 ERA) will be trying to become the season’s first 10-game winner. The Royals are trying to fight out of a 13-losses-in-16-games skid that has derailed what was shaping up as a promising season. Beating Halladay would pick up Royals ace Zack Greinke, who was bashed around for the first time this season Friday night by the Jays. Halladay or Greinke are the early favorites to start for the A.L. in next month’s All-Star game.

— Stan McNeal

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Fantasy Focus

LEAGUE LEADERS Batting Average

Pitcher rankings A.L.

JEFFREY BOAN / AP

Player ISuzuki MiCabrera Youkilis AdJones VMartinez Morneau MYoung

Risers SP Josh Johnson, Marlins. It won’t be easy for Johnson this week (vs. STL, at TOR), but he’s been acing every test all season. SP Joel Pineiro, Cardinals. Ranks second in BB/9 ratio (1.10) and third in GB percentage (70.5), indicating he can continue pitching well. RP Andrew Bailey, A’s. Oakland’s new closer ranks second among relievers with 40 strikeouts.

Fallers SP Dave Bush, Brewers. Bush has struggled lately, giving up at least four runs in each of his past three outings. SP Brian Bannister, Royals. Even with two starts (at CLE, vs. CIN), Bannister’s recent performance suggests he’s a risky play this week. RP Dan Wheeler, Rays. Wheeler has not received any save chances since Troy Percival went on the D.L. — Matt Lutovsky

MORE COVERAGE Get everything you need to dominate your fantasy league at sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseball

Player Tejada Pence Beltran Hawpe DWright HaRamirez Pujols

.354 .354 .349 .343 .342 .338 .335

A.L.

Team Houston Houston New York Colorado New York Florida St. Louis

.356 .347 .346 .344 .340 .338 .337

Player CPena Teixeira Bay NCruz Kinsler Morneau Dye

N.L.

Team Tampa Bay New York Boston Texas Texas Minnesota Chicago

Runs A.L.

Player Pedroia Scutaro Crawford Damon Morneau BRoberts Three tied

Player Ibanez Pujols Zimmerman AdGonzalez Hudson Utley Victorino

45 45 44 44 44 43 42

A.L.

Team Philadelphia St. Louis Washington San Diego Los Angeles Philadelphia Philadelphia

45 44 41 40 39 39 38

Player Crawford Ellsbury Figgins BUpton Abreu Bartlett Span

Player Bay Longoria Morneau Teixeira Kinsler TorHunter CPena

Player Fielder Ibanez Pujols Howard Dunn AdGonzalez Two tied

55 55 51 50 44 43 42

A.L.

Team Milwaukee Philadelphia St. Louis Philadelphia Washington San Diego

54 54 49 46 44 43 42

Player Halladay Slowey Greinke Verlander Buehrle Beckett Blackburn

Player AHill VMartinez Crawford ISuzuki Morneau MYoung Ellsbury

77 76 75 75 72 72 71

9-1 8-1 8-2 6-2 6-2 6-2 5-2

Player Lind MYoung Longoria Byrd Callaspo Scutaro Four tied

Player Tejada Hudson Ibanez Zimmerman Pence HaRamirez FSanchez

A.L.

Team Houston Los Angeles Philadelphia Washington Houston Florida Pittsburgh

79 72 71 71 69 69 68

21 21 20 19 18 18 17

Team Los Angeles San Francisco Washington Florida Milwaukee Arizona Los Angeles

6-0 7-1 5-1 5-1 6-2 5-2 7-3

1.000 .875 .833 .833 .750 .714 .700

Player Verlander Greinke Lester Halladay FHernandez Beckett Two tied

Team Detroit Kansas City Boston Toronto Seattle Boston

Player Tejada AdLaRoche HaRamirez FSanchez Beltran Hudson Rowand

Player JVazquez Lincecum JSantana Billingsley Peavy Haren JoJohnson

97 91 85 82 79 68 66

A.L.

Team Houston Pittsburgh Florida Pittsburgh New York Los Angeles San Francisco

21 19 19 19 17 17 17

Player Fuentes Papelbon Jenks FFrancisco MaRivera Nathan Sherrill

Team Atlanta San Francisco New York Los Angeles San Diego Arizona Florida

15 14 13 12 12 11 11

Player Bell FrRodriguez Hoffman Cordero BWilson Four tied

W 33 32 31 29 24

L 23 23 27 28 32

Pct .589 .582 .534 .509 .429

GB WCGB L10 — — 6-4 ½ — 6-4 3 2½ 4-6 4½ 4 6-4 9 8½ 4-6

Str W-1 L-1 L-1 W-4 L-4

Home 18-7 16-11 20-10 16-11 16-13

Away 15-16 16-12 11-17 13-17 8-19

Central Detroit Minnesota Chicago Kansas City Cleveland

W 29 28 26 24 24

L 25 29 29 31 34

Pct .537 .491 .473 .436 .414

GB WCGB L10 — — 4-6 2½ 5 5-5 3½ 6 5-5 5½ 8 2-8 7 9½ 4-6

Str W-1 L-1 W-1 W-1 L-1

Home 16-11 21-12 14-14 15-15 12-14

Away 13-14 7-17 12-15 9-16 12-20

West Texas Los Angeles Seattle Oakland

W 32 28 27 24

L 23 26 29 30

Pct .582 .519 .482 .444

GB WCGB L10 — — 5-5 3½ 3½ 5-5 5½ 5½ 6-4 7½ 7½ 6-4

Str L-1 L-1 W-1 W-5

Home 18-9 14-12 15-14 13-13

Away 14-14 14-14 12-15 11-17

National League Standings East Philadelphia New York Atlanta Florida Washington

W 32 29 26 27 15

L 22 25 28 30 39

Pct .593 .537 .481 .474 .278

GB WCGB L10 — — 7-3 3 1 5-5 6 4 3-7 6½ 4½ 6-4 17 15 2-8

Str L-2 L-1 L-3 W-1 W-1

Home 12-14 17-9 12-15 13-16 9-19

Away 20-8 12-16 14-13 14-14 6-20

Central Milwaukee St. Louis Cincinnati Chicago Pittsburgh Houston

W 33 31 29 27 26 24

L 23 25 26 26 29 30

Pct .589 .554 .527 .509 .473 .444

GB WCGB L10 — — 6-4 2 — 4-6 3½ 1½ 4-6 4½ 2½ 6-4 6½ 4½ 5-5 8 6 6-4

Str W-2 L-2 W-1 L-1 W-1 L-1

Home 16-9 19-13 14-13 16-10 15-11 13-17

Away 17-14 12-12 15-13 11-16 11-18 11-13

West W Los Angeles 39 San Francisco 28 San Diego 26 Arizona 24 Colorado 23 z-first game was a win

L 19 26 29 32 32

Pct GB WCGB L10 .672 — — 6-4 .519 9 2 7-3 .473 11½ 4½ 3-7 .429 14 7 4-6 .418 14½ 7½ 5-5

Str W-2 L-1 W-1 L-1 W-3

Home 22-7 18-9 18-10 12-19 9-14

Away 17-12 10-17 8-19 12-13 14-18

93 91 89 85 84 78 72

American League L.A. Angels (Saunders 6-4) at Detroit (Porcello 6-4), 1:05 p.m. Tampa Bay (Garza 4-4) at N.Y. Yankees (Chamberlain 3-1), 1:05 p.m. Kansas City (Davies 2-5) at Toronto (Halladay 9-1), 1:07 p.m. Texas (Padilla 3-3) at Boston (Matsuzaka 1-3), 1:35 p.m. Cleveland (D.Huff 0-2) at Chicago White Sox (B.Colon 3-5), 2:05 p.m. Baltimore (R.Hill 2-0) at Oakland (Mazzaro 1-0), 4:05 p.m. Minnesota (Slowey 8-1) at Seattle (Bedard 4-2), 4:10 p.m.

16 15 15 14 14 13

National League The Line Chicago Cubs (R.Wells 0-2) at Cincinnati (Arroyo 7-4), 1:10 p.m. ChC -110 at Cin +100 Milwaukee (M.Parra 3-7) at Atlanta (Hanson 0-0), 1:35 p.m. at Atl -130 Mil +120 N.Y. Mets (Li.Hernandez 4-1) at Washington (Stammen 0-1), 1:35 p.m. NYM -110 at Was +100 Pittsburgh (Snell 1-6) at Houston (F.Paulino 1-4), 2:05 p.m. at Hou -120 Pit +110 Colorado (Jimenez 3-6) at St. Louis (Pineiro 5-5), 2:15 p.m. at StL -125 Col +115 Arizona (Haren 4-4) at San Diego (Geer 1-1), 4:05 p.m. Ari -145 at SD +135 San Francisco (Lincecum 4-1) at Florida (Nolasco 2-5), 5:05 p.m. SF -135 at Fla +125 Philadelphia (Bastardo 1-0) at L.A. Dodgers (Wolf 3-1), 8:05 p.m. at LAD -115 Phi +105

N.L.

Team Los Angeles Boston Chicago Texas New York Minnesota Baltimore

East Boston New York Toronto Tampa Bay Baltimore

Pitching Matchups Today’s Games (All times Eastern)

N.L.

Saves

N.L.

Team Toronto Texas Tampa Bay Texas Kansas City Toronto

Player Broxton Cain Martis JoJohnson Gallardo TPena Billingsley

.900 .889 .800 .750 .750 .750 .714

Doubles A.L.

19 13 13 13 12 12 12

Strikeouts N.L.

Team Toronto Cleveland Tampa Bay Seattle Minnesota Texas Boston

Team Houston Los Angeles Los Angeles New York Pittsburgh Arizona Cincinnati

N.L.

Team Toronto Minnesota Kansas City Detroit Chicago Boston Minnesota

HIts A.L.

Player Bourn Kemp Pierre DWright Morgan Reynolds Taveras

34 23 21 17 15 14 12

Pitching (6 decisions) N.L.

Team Boston Tampa Bay Minnesota New York Texas Los Angeles Tampa Bay

22 19 18 17 16 15 14

N.L.

Team Tampa Bay Boston Los Angeles Tampa Bay Los Angeles Tampa Bay Minnesota

RBIs A.L.

Team San Diego Philadelphia St. Louis Washington Philadelphia Milwaukee Cincinnati

Stolen Bases N.L.

Team Boston Toronto Tampa Bay New York Minnesota Baltimore

Player AdGonzalez Ibanez Pujols Dunn Howard Fielder Bruce

17 17 16 16 15 15 14

14

American League Standings

Home Runs

N.L.

Team Seattle Detroit Boston Baltimore Cleveland Minnesota Texas

Florida’s Josh Johnson may have a hard week. Dan Haren and Chris Carpenter sit atop our SP rankings, but Josh Johnson is right behind them with his highest ranking of the year.

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

Team San Diego New York Milwaukee Cincinnati San Francisco

The Line at Det -130 LAA +120 at NYY -155 TB +145 at Tor -230 KC +210 at Bos -180 Tex +170 at ChW -135 Cle +125 at Oak -125 Bal +115 at Sea -120 Min +110

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Baseball

15

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NATIONAL LEAGUE L.A. Dodgers 3, Philadelphia 2, 12 innings

Ethier’s second homer ends it in 12th LOS ANGELES—Andre Ethier wishes it was last October. Ethier had his second winning hit against the Philadelphia Phillies in two days, hitting his second homer of the game with two out in the 12th inning to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 3-2 victory Saturday. Brad Lidge had his second blown save in less than 24 hours, giving up a tying home run to pinch-hitter Rafael Furcal with one out in the ninth. Last postseason, Lidge was perfect in seven save opportunities. Ethier’s performance against the Phillies this weekend is in sharp contrast to last year’s NLCS, where he had no RBIs in 22 at-bats against Philadelphia. “I can’t believe it—two days in a row,” said Ethier, who hit a game-ending two-run double off Lidge in the ninth inning of Friday night’s 4-3 win. “You can go through half a season, a whole season, without having that opportunity, and I had it two games in a row.” Ethier sent a full-count offering from Chad Durbin (1-2) over the center-field fence to complete his fourth career multihomer game. In the fourth, he drove a 1-2 pitch into the right-field pavilion off Joe Blanton. “I had just let a good pitch go, but I was just staying with the at-bat, staying with the moment,” said Ethier, whose home run Tuesday night against Arizona snapped a 24-game drought.

“On a 3-2 count, you’re just up there trying to put a good swing on a pitch in the zone.” Cory Wade (1-3) pitched two perfect innings of relief for the Dodgers, whose bullpen leads the majors with 17 wins. Lidge converted all 41 save opportunities last year in the regular season. But in this four-game series between the teams with the two best records in baseball, the two-time All-Star has looked more like the pitcher who temporarily lost his closer’s job with Houston in May 2006. “Obviously the breaks went with me last year, and right now they’re not,” Lidge said. “But you’ve got to be careful not to be negative and pessimistic in your mind, because that can hurt you. That’s one of the reasons why I’ll continue to stay optimistic. “I feel good, but I know that something needs to change—in terms of the results,” Lidge said. Lidge has coughed up leads in six of his 19 save attempts this season. He has a 7.27 ERA and has yielded seven home runs in 26 innings. Furcal’s homer was his 85th in the majors and first as a pinch hitter. “Last year’s last year and this year’s this year,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. “He’s got the same stuff he had last year, but that’s baseball. Right when you think you’ve got this game whipped, it can jump right up and bite you. But he’ll always

LORI SHEPLER / AP

Andre Ethier celebrated his second straight game-winning hit for Los Angeles. be my guy. If you do something else with him, I think that could hurt his confidence.” The Phillies have lost consecutive games for the first time since May 13-14. Pinch-hitter Matt Stairs hit a two-run single in the seventh

inning against rookie reliever Ronald Belisario to give the Phillies a 2-1 lead. Hiroki Kuroda pitched two-hit ball over six innings for the Dodgers and struck out five in his second start off the disabled list. — The Associated Press

Dodgers 3, Phillies 2, 12 innings Philadelphia AB R H BI BB Victorino cf 5 0 0 0 0 Werth rf 5 0 1 0 0 Utley 2b 3 0 1 0 2 Howard 1b 5 0 0 0 0 Ibanez lf 4 1 1 0 1 Feliz 3b 5 1 2 0 0 Bruntlett ss 2 0 0 0 1 Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 S.Eyre p 0 0 0 0 0 Durbin p 1 0 0 0 0 Ruiz c 2 0 0 0 0 a-Dobbs ph 1 0 0 0 0 Coste c 2 0 0 0 0 Blanton p 1 0 0 0 0 b-Stairs ph 1 0 1 2 0 Condrey p 0 0 0 0 0 J.Romero p 0 0 0 0 0 Madson p 0 0 0 0 0 d-Rollins ph-ss 2 0 0 0 0 Totals 39 2 6 2 4

SO 1 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8

Avg. .293 .262 .302 .260 .330 .304 .152 ----.250 .297 .191 .229 .067 .324 ------.217

Los Angeles Pierre lf Hudson 2b Ethier rf Martin c Loney 1b Kemp cf Loretta 3b J.Castro ss e-Furcal ph-ss Kuroda p Belisario p c-Hoffmann ph Troncoso p f-Blake ph Broxton p Wade p Totals

SO 0 0 2 2 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 10

Avg. .359 .314 .271 .251 .293 .305 .258 .347 .241 .000 .000 .190 .000 .287 --.000

AB 6 6 5 4 5 5 5 3 2 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 45

R 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

H 1 1 3 0 3 0 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 12

BI 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

BB 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

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Philadelphia 000 000 200 000 —2 6 0 Los Angeles 000 100 001 001 —3 12 1

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Two outs when winning run scored. a-popped out for Ruiz in the 7th. b-singled for Blanton in the 7th. c-singled for Belisario in the 7th. d-lined out for Madson in the 9th. e-homered for J.Castro in the 9th. f-struck out for Troncoso in the 9th. E: Martin (2). LOB: Philadelphia 7, Los Angeles 10. 2B: Utley (11). HR: Ethier (8), off Blanton; Furcal (2), off Lidge; Ethier (9), off Durbin. RBIs: Stairs 2 (10), Ethier 2 (35), Furcal (12). SB: Loney (4). S: Bruntlett, Blanton, Kuroda. Runners left in scoring position: Philadelphia 4 (Victorino 2, Howard, Feliz); Los Angeles 5 (Kemp 3, Pierre, Hudson). GIDP: Howard. DP: Los Angeles 1 (Hudson, Loretta, Loney).

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Philadelphia Blanton Condrey H, 6 J.Romero H, 2 Madson H, 13 Lidge BS, 6-19 S.Eyre Durbin L, 1-2 Los Angeles Kuroda Belisario BS, 4-4 Troncoso Broxton Wade W, 1-3

IP 6 1⁄3 2⁄3 1 1 2⁄3 2 IP 6 1 2 1 2

H 5 2 1 0 1 2 1 H 2 3 1 0 0

R 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 R 0 2 0 0 0

ER 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 ER 0 2 0 0 0

BB SO 1 5 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 2 BB SO 3 5 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 1

NP ERA 107 5.46 8 2.17 12 0.00 25 2.30 16 7.27 18 2.70 36 4.25 NP ERA 94 1.62 18 2.65 31 1.69 14 1.24 23 4.64

Inherited runners-scored: J.Romero 2-0, Durbin 2-0. IBB: off Troncoso (Ibanez). WP: Kuroda 2. Umpires: Home, Mike Winters; First, Tony Randazzo; Second, Chris Guccione; Third, Todd Tichenor. T: 4:03. A: 41,412 (56,000).

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Baseball

16

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NATIONAL LEAGUE Cincinnati 4, Chicago Cubs 3, 11 innings

Fontenot’s errors bookend Cubs’ loss CINCINNATI—Mike Fontenot started Chicago’s game Saturday with a throwing error. The Cubs third baseman ended it with another misguided toss. Jay Bruce scored from third base in the 11th inning when Fontenot’s throw home was high, giving the Cincinnati Reds a 4-3 win Saturday. Sean Marshall (3-5) walked Bruce to lead off the 11th. Bruce went to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on Gonzalez’s sacrifice. After an intentional walk to Ryan Hanigan, pinch-hitter Adam Rosales hit a chopper to Fontenot. His throw to catcher Geovany Soto was high, allowing Bruce to score the winning run on the RBI fielder’s choice. “I’d have liked to have made that play,” Fontenot said. “(Bruce) was between me and Geo. I’m kind of short. I was real close to the line. I don’t know if I had enough time to step away from it. I had to get it over his head.” It originally was ruled an error before being changed by the official scorer. “It doesn’t matter,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “We won the game. That was a good game to watch, a good game to manage and a good game to win.” Fontenot, playing in place of the injured Aramis Ramirez, also committed a throwing error on Cincinnati’s first batter of the game that led to three unearned runs off Ryan Dempster. “Fontenot had a rough night over there,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. “Since Ramirez went down, that’s been a big problem for us—a big problem.” Nick Masset (3-0) walked a batter in two innings for the win. Matt Maloney, making his major league debut before a raucous sellout crowd of

Reds 4, Cubs 3, 11 innings Chicago AB R H BI A.Soriano lf 4 0 1 0 Marshall p 0 0 0 0 Theriot ss 4 1 1 0 D.Lee 1b 5 0 2 0 J.Fox rf 3 0 0 1 Marmol p 0 0 0 0 A.Guzman p 0 0 0 0 Hoffpauir lf 1 0 0 0 Re.Johnson cf 5 0 2 0 Soto c 4 1 1 1 Scales 2b 4 1 1 1 Fontenot 3b 3 0 0 0 Dempster p 2 0 0 0 a-Bradley ph 1 0 0 0 Heilman p 0 0 0 0 Fukudome rf 1 0 0 0 Totals 37 3 8 3

BB 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2

SO 3 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 8

Avg. .243 .231 .285 .268 .300 --.000 .272 .293 .211 .226 .228 .074 .218 --.300

Cincinnati AB R H BI BB SO Hairston Jr. 3b 5 1 2 0 0 0 Dickerson cf 4 1 1 1 0 2 B.Phillips 2b 4 0 0 0 1 2 L.Nix lf 5 0 0 0 0 3 R.Hernandez 1b 4 1 1 2 1 0 Bruce rf 3 1 0 0 2 1 Ale.Gonzalez ss 4 0 2 0 0 0 Hanigan c 4 0 1 0 1 1 Maloney p 2 0 1 0 0 1 Herrera p 0 0 0 0 0 0 b-Owings ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 Weathers p 0 0 0 0 0 0 Cordero p 0 0 0 0 0 0 c-Gomes ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 Masset p 0 0 0 0 0 0 d-A.Rosales ph 1 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 38 4 8 4 5 11

Avg. .258 .241 .278 .265 .271 .212 .217 .321 .500 .000 .281 ----.286 --.230

Chicago 000 100 110 00 3 8 2 Cincinnati 300 000 000 01 4 8 2 One out when winning run scored. a-grounded out for Dempster in the 7th. b-flied out for Herrera in the 7th. c-struck out for Cordero in the 9th. d-reached on a failed fielder’s choice for Masset in the 11th. E: A.Soriano (5), Fontenot (4), Hairston Jr. 2 (5). LOB: Chicago 5, Cincinnati 10. 2B: A.Soriano (13), Re.Johnson 2 (5), Dickerson (3). HR: Scales (3), off Maloney; Soto (2), off Maloney; R.Hernandez (4), off Dempster. RBIs: J.Fox (2), Soto (13), Scales (7), Dickerson (9), R.Hernandez 2 (24), A.Rosales (12). CS: Theriot (5), Ale.Gonzalez (1). S: Dickerson, Ale.Gonzalez. SF: J.Fox. Runners left in scoring position: Chicago 3 (J.Fox, A.Soriano 2); Cincinnati 3 (Dickerson, Hairston Jr., R.Hernandez). DP: Cincinnati 3 (Dickerson, Dickerson, Hairston Jr.), (Hairston Jr., B.Phillips, R.Hernandez), (R.Hernandez). AL BEHRMAN / AP

Cincinnati’s Jay Bruce scored the game-winning run on a throwing error by Cubs 3B Mike Fontenot. 40,194, pitched six solid innings for Cincinnati and singled in his first plate appearance. He started the seventh inning but was lifted when Soto led off with a towering home run off the left-field pole to cut Cincinnati’s lead to 3-2. “I didn’t feel nervous at all,” Maloney said. “I just went out there and tried to do what I had been doing.”

Maloney allowed six hits and two runs with one walk and four strikeouts. He also hit a batter, but was in line for the win until the eighth when the Cubs got back-to-back, one-out singles from Ryan Theriot and Derrek Lee and a tying sacrifice fly by Jake Fox against reliever David Weathers. — The Associated Press

Chicago IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Dempster 6 6 3 0 2 7 84 4.12 Heilman 1 0 0 0 0 1 15 4.88 Marmol 1 0 0 0 0 1 18 3.33 A.Guzman 1 1 0 0 0 1 23 2.36 Marshall L, 3-5 1 1⁄3 1 1 1 3 1 35 4.79 Cincinnati IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Maloney 6 6 2 2 1 4 89 3.00 Herrera H, 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 6 1.61 Weathers BS, 2-2 1 2 1 1 0 1 19 2.75 Cordero 1 0 0 0 0 1 13 1.50 Masset W, 3-0 2 0 0 0 1 2 28 0.86 Maloney pitched to 1 batter in the 7th. IBB: off Marshall (B.Phillips, Hanigan). HBP: by Maloney (Theriot). WP: Marshall. Umpires: Home, Dale Scott; First, Jerry Meals; Second, Damien Beal; Third, Mike DiMuro. T: 3:28. A: 40,914 (42,319).

Colorado 10, St. Louis 1

Stewart heeds Tracy’s words ST. LOUIS—Ian Stewart took a called third strike in his first atbat then got an earful from Colorado Rockies manager Jim Tracy, who wants him to be aggressive when he sees a pitch to hit. “If I have an at-bat like that he kind of jumps me: ‘Come on, swing the bat. It’s a weapon, use it. What are you doing?’ ” Stewart said. “I kind of like that. He’ll pull me aside and get on me a little bit.” Stewart followed orders after that, homering twice and matching his career high with five RBIs while Aaron Cook beat the St. Louis Cardinals for the first time in a 10-1 victory on Saturday night. Stewart has four homers and 12 RBIs the last five games, including all three of Colorado’s three-run homers this season in the last four games. He hit a three-run shot to right on a fullcount pitch in the fourth and a two-run shot to left-center on a 2-0 offering in the sixth, both off Todd Wellemeyer (5-6). A 10-for-17 surge with four straight multihit games has raised Stewart’s average to .231, and he leads the Rockies with 11 homers. Two of his three multihomer games have come this season, the other against the Astros at home on May 12, and 14 of his last 20 hits have been for extra bases. He also doubled Saturday night. Tracy said Todd Helton will a day off Sunday but not the 24-year-old Stewart. — The Associated Press

Rockies 10, Cardinals 1 Colorado AB R H BI S.Smith lf 4 2 2 0 Barmes ss-2b 5 1 2 3 Helton 1b 2 1 0 1 Atkins 3b 2 0 0 0 Tulowitzki ss 2 0 0 0 Hawpe rf 4 2 1 0 Stewart 2b-3b 4 3 3 5 C.Gonzalez cf 4 0 0 0 Bellorin c 4 0 1 0 Cook p 3 0 0 0 a-Spilborghs ph 1 1 0 1 Daley p 0 0 0 0 Totals 35 10 9 10

BB 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

SO 0 1 0 2 0 0 1 2 0 1 0 0 7

Avg. .274 .274 .311 .194 .216 .344 .231 .000 .250 .167 .260 ---

St. Louis Schumaker 2b Ankiel cf Pujols 1b Ludwick rf Duncan lf LaRue c Thurston 3b Hawksworth p Wellemeyer p Br.Ryan ss T.Greene ss-3b Totals

BB 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

SO 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 5

Avg. .295 .230 .337 .241 .249 .257 .254 --.174 .284 .279

Colorado St. Louis

AB 4 3 4 4 3 3 3 0 2 1 3 30

R 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

H 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 4

BI 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

100 302 004 — 10 9 0 000 001 000 — 1 4 1

a-reached on error for Cook in the 9th. E: T.Greene (1). LOB: Colorado 3, St. Louis 3. 2B: Hawpe (16), Stewart (7). HR: Stewart 2 (11), off Wellemeyer 2; Barmes (6), off Hawksworth; Ankiel (3), off Cook. RBIs: Barmes 3 (24), Helton (40), Stewart 5 (32), Spilborghs (26), Ankiel (13). SF: Helton. GIDP: Pujols. DP: Colorado 1 (Barmes, Stewart, Helton). Colorado IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Cook W, 4-3 8 4 1 1 1 4 104 4.50 Daley 1 0 0 0 0 1 8 3.72 St. Louis IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Wellemeyer L, 5-6 7 6 6 6 3 6 112 5.32 Hawksworth 2 3 4 4 1 1 31 18.00 Umpires: Home, Jim Reynolds; First, Angel Hernandez; Second, Bill Welke; Third, Tim Welke. T: 2:27. A: 44,002 (43,975).

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Baseball

17

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NATIONAL LEAGUE Washington 7, N.Y. Mets 1

Milwaukee 3, Atlanta 0

Nationals ride rare gem from Lannan WASHINGTON—It was a rare night when all seemed right at Nationals Park. The weather was splendid after a solid week of rain that played havoc with the schedule. The crowd of 31,456 made the ballpark feel lively for a change. Last-place Washington hit three home runs, and the majors’ worst pitching staff got a near-shutout from John Lannan in a game that took only 2 hours to play. Even the night’s flukiest play favored the Nationals, who wish they could take Saturday’s 7-1 victory over the New York Mets and clone it at will, if only because it temporarily lifted the gloom from a terrible season. “I was so smart today,” manager Manny Acta said. “It was unbelievable how smart you can get in one night when you get a pitching performance like that and an offense like that and a defense like that. We were due for at least good weather, and we got it tonight, and John was just outstanding out there for us and the offense exploded.” Lannan (3-5) pitched his first career complete game, allowing an unearned run and four hits in the first win by a Nationals starter since May 13. He faced the minimum number of batters through the first seven innings and was helped out by a franchise-record-tying five double plays—two 6-4-3s, two 4-6-3s and a head-shaking 9-3-6 that took a while to sort out. “The last couple of innings I felt really good,” said Lannan, who induced 19 groundball outs and threw 61 of his 96 pitchers for strikes. “I haven’t felt that good in a while.” Adam Dunn, Elijah Dukes and Nick Johnson homered for the Nationals, who had lost three straight and nine of 10.

Nationals 7, Mets 1 New York AB R L.Castillo 2b 2 0 Brown rf 4 0 Beltran cf 4 0 Sheffield lf 3 0 D.Wright 3b 2 1 Tatis 1b 3 0 Santos c 3 0 W.Valdez ss 3 0 Maine p 1 0 Takahashi p 1 0 Nieve p 0 0 a-Dan.Murphy ph 1 0 Totals 27 1

H 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 4

BI 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

BB 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

SO 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2

Avg. .277 .200 .346 .259 .340 .273 .261 .250 .200 .000 --.240

Washington AB R H BI BB SO C.Guzman ss 3 1 0 0 1 0 N.Johnson 1b 4 2 3 3 0 1 Zimmerman 3b 3 1 1 1 1 1 Dunn lf 4 1 1 2 0 1 Kearns rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dukes rf-lf 4 1 3 1 0 0 W.Harris cf 3 0 0 0 1 0 A.Hernandez 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 Nieves c 4 0 0 0 0 0 Lannan p 3 1 1 0 1 1 Totals 32 7 9 7 4 4

Avg. .328 .332 .320 .258 .220 .277 .259 .270 .264 .130

New York 000 000 010 — Washington 300 130 00x —

1 4 0 7 9 1

a-grounded out for Nieve in the 9th. E: Dukes (2). LOB: New York 2, Washington 5. 2B: N.Johnson 2 (10). HR: Dunn (17), off Maine; Dukes (5), off Maine; N.Johnson (5), off Maine. RBIs: N.Johnson 3 (30), Zimmerman (39), Dunn 2 (44), Dukes (26). Runners left in scoring position: New York 1 (W.Valdez); Washington 1 (A.Hernandez). DP: Washington 4 (C.Guzman, A.Hernandez, N.Johnson), (A.Hernandez, C.Guzman, N.Johnson), (A.Hernandez, C.Guzman, N.Johnson), (N.Johnson, Dukes, N.Johnson, C.Guzman), (C.Guzman, A.Hernandez, N.Johnson).

ALEX BRANDON / AP

Nationals P John Lannan went the distance, prompting a pat on the back from pitching coach Steve McCatty. Dunn is the only player in the majors with more home runs (17) than his team has victories (15). The three homers helped chase John Maine (5-4) in the fifth, his shortest outing of the season. “I had nothing today,” Maine said. “My whole body—I had nothing. It was awful. It was a waste of a day.”

Mets manager Jerry Manuel said the right-hander doesn’t seem to have his usual oomph on the ball. Lannan gave the Nationals their third complete game of the season, the type of performance desperately needed by a team with a worst-in-majors 5.50 ERA. — The Associated Press

New York Maine L, 5-4 Takahashi Nieve Washington Lannan W, 3-5

IP 4 2 2 IP 9

H 6 2 1 H 4

R ER BB SO 7 7 2 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 2 R ER BB SO 1 0 3 2

NP ERA 69 4.52 34 2.40 22 0.00 NP ERA 96 3.68

Maine pitched to 3 batters in the 5th. Umpires: Home, Brian Runge; First, Derryl Cousins; Second, D.J. Reyburn; Third, Jim Joyce. T: 2:00. A: 31,456 (41,888).

Fielder hits two more out ATLANTA—Prince Fielder’s third two-homer game of the season gave the Milwaukee Brewers all the offense they needed in a 3-0 win over the punchless Atlanta Braves on Saturday. Jeff Suppan (4-4) gave up six hits in 5 1/3 innings as the Brewers took their second straight shutout win over Atlanta and extended the Braves’ streak of scoreless innings to 22. Milwaukee manager Ken Macha called the back-to-back shutouts “very welcome.” “The pitching coach is making the manager look good,” Macha said of Bill Castro. The first-place Brewers moved two games ahead of St. Louis in the N.L. Central. Fielder has 15 career twohomer games, but never has hit more than two in a game. He led off the ninth with a walk from Rafael Soriano. “I wasn’t thinking three home runs,” said Fielder of his last at-bat. Fielder gave Milwaukee a 1-0 lead with his homer off Javier Vazquez (4-5) in the fifth, hitting a hanging changeup. “A mistake pitch,” Vazquez said. “He’s locked in right now.” Milwaukee added a run in the sixth when Jason Kendall singled to right and scored on Craig Counsell’s double. — The Associated Press

Brewers 3, Braves 0 Milwaukee AB R Counsell 2b 4 0 Hardy ss 4 0 Braun lf 4 0 Fielder 1b 3 2 M.Cameron cf 4 0 McGehee 3b 0 0 Gamel 3b 3 0 Hall 3b-cf 1 0 Hart rf 4 0 Kendall c 4 1 Suppan p 1 0 Coffey p 0 0 Stetter p 0 0 b-Gerut ph 0 0 Villanueva p 0 0 Hoffman p 0 0 Totals 32 3

H 2 0 0 2 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8

BI 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

BB 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2

SO 0 1 3 0 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 9

Avg. .315 .232 .307 .299 .277 .265 .262 .209 .246 .215 .118 .000 --.209 .333 ---

Atlanta AB R H BI BB SO K.Johnson 2b 5 0 1 0 0 1 Escobar ss 5 0 1 0 0 1 McLouth cf 3 0 1 0 1 0 C.Jones 3b 2 0 0 0 1 0 Di.Hernandez 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 McCann c 4 0 1 0 0 1 G.Anderson lf 4 0 0 0 0 1 Francoeur rf 3 0 1 0 1 0 Prado 1b 4 0 2 0 0 1 J.Vazquez p 1 0 0 0 0 1 a-Norton ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 O’Flaherty p 0 0 0 0 0 0 Moylan p 0 0 0 0 0 0 R.Soriano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 c-M.Diaz ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 33 0 7 0 4 6

Avg. .249 .286 .251 .311 .143 .301 .248 .249 .258 .095 .125 --.000 --.271

Milwaukee 000 011 100 — Atlanta 000 000 000 —

3 8 0 0 7 0

a-walked for J.Vazquez in the 6th. b-walked for Stetter in the 8th. c-grounded out for R.Soriano in the 9th. LOB: Milwaukee 5, Atlanta 11. 2B: Counsell (7), Gamel (4). 3B: McCann (1). HR: Fielder (14), off J.Vazquez; Fielder (15), off O’Flaherty. RBIs: Counsell (9), Fielder 2 (54). SB: McLouth (8), G.Anderson (1), Francoeur (2). CS: Gerut (1). S: Suppan, J.Vazquez. Runners left in scoring position: Milwaukee 4 (Braun 2, Kendall 2); Atlanta 6 (McCann, K.Johnson 4, Escobar). DP: Atlanta 1 (Prado, Escobar, Prado). Milwaukee IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Suppan W, 4-4 5 1⁄3 6 0 0 3 2 95 4.66 Coffey H, 9 1⁄3 0 0 0 1 1 12 2.33 Stetter H, 10 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 15 3.50 Villanueva H, 8 1 0 0 0 0 2 10 3.33 Hoffman S, 15-15 1 1 0 0 0 0 11 0.00 Atlanta IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA J.Vazquez L, 4-5 6 4 2 2 0 7 80 3.54 O’Flaherty 1⁄3 2 1 1 0 0 4 3.15 Moylan 1 2⁄3 1 0 0 1 1 25 4.22 R.Soriano 1 1 0 0 1 1 19 1.09 Inherited runners-scored: Coffey 2-0, Stetter 3-0, Moylan 1-0. Umpires: Home, Marvin Hudson; First, James Hoye; Second, Lance Barksdale; Third, Randy Marsh. T: 2:57. A: 32,721 (49,743).

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Baseball

18

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NATIONAL LEAGUE Pittsburgh 6, Houston 4

Florida 5, San Francisco 4

Maholm carries Pirates with bat, arm

Miller, Marlins overcome rain

HOUSTON—Paul Maholm’s big hit helped end a difficult stretch on the mound for the left-hander. Maholm pitched seven innings and drove in a run with an infield single, leading the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-4 victory over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Maholm (4-2) allowed four runs and eight hits to pick up his first win since April 22 against Florida. He was 0-2 with five no-decisions in his previous seven starts. “It’s been frustrating,” he said. “But you just have to understand that over 34 starts in a season, you’re going to have little stretches like that. You just have to keep working and not let it bother you. “Sometimes you give up four runs and win and sometimes you give up one and get a no-decision. That’s just the way it goes.” Maholm went seven innings and allowed only one earned run in losing to the Astros just a week ago in Pittsburgh. “He threw the ball well after a little bit of a shaky start tonight,” Pirates manager John Russell said. “I think he got stronger as the game went on. His pitches got a lot better the last two innings.” Jack Wilson doubled twice and drove in a run and Andrew McCutchen delivered a two-run single for the Pirates, who snapped a five-game losing streak at Minute Maid Park. Adam LaRoche and Andy LaRoche each had two hits. John Grabow worked the eighth and Matt Capps finished for his 13th save in 15 tries. Roy Oswalt (2-3) gave up six runs and nine hits in six innings for the Astros, falling to 13-7 with a 2.62 ERA in 26 career games, 25 starts, against the

Pirates 6, Astros 4 Pittsburgh AB McCutchen cf 5 Morgan lf 5 F.Sanchez 2b 5 Ad.LaRoche 1b 4 An.LaRoche 3b 4 Capps p 0 Moss rf 4 Jaramillo c 3 Ja.Wilson ss 4 Maholm p 3 b-Delw.Young ph 1 Grabow p 0 R.Vazquez 3b 0 Totals 38

R 0 0 0 1 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 6

H 1 0 1 2 2 0 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 11

BI 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 6

BB 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3

SO 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 5

Avg. .231 .269 .312 .250 .302 --.263 .275 .273 .125 .306 --.267

Houston Bourn cf Tejada ss Pence rf Ca.Lee lf Berkman 1b I.Rodriguez c Keppinger 3b Maysonet 2b Oswalt p a-Michaels ph Byrdak p Sampson p Hawkins p c-Erstad ph Totals

R 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

H 0 3 2 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 10

BI 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

BB 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

SO 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 4

Avg. .294 .356 .347 .321 .240 .265 .266 .366 .125 .163 --.000 --.135

AB 5 5 4 4 3 4 4 4 2 1 0 0 0 1 37

Pittsburgh 033 000 000 — Houston 201 010 000 —

DAVID J. PHILLIP / AP

Pittsburgh SS Jack Wilson got the force at second, but not without Houston’s Ivan Rodriguez landing on him. Pirates. Oswalt had won seven of his last eight decisions against Pittsburgh. The six runs tied for the most the righthander has allowed versus the Pirates, set July 16, 2002. Hunter Pence hit a two-run homer in the first for the Astros but Pittsburgh responded with three in the second. Maholm hit a slow bouncer to second with the bases loaded that got past Oswalt and drove in Andy LaRoche.

McCutchen followed with a single to right to make it 3-2. Astros manager Cecil Cooper said Maholm’s dribbler was a big turning point. “Roy probably should have made that play,” Cooper said. “Roy will tell you he probably should have made it. It’s big because if he makes the play, we’re out of the inning with zeros. It got away from him a little. It was one of those nights.” — The Associated Press

6 11 0 4 10 1

a-flied out for Oswalt in the 6th. b-grounded out for Maholm in the 8th. c-grounded out for Hawkins in the 9th. E: Keppinger (1). LOB: Pittsburgh 8, Houston 8. 2B: Ad.LaRoche (19), Moss (10), Jaramillo (9), Ja.Wilson 2 (11), Tejada (21), Ca.Lee (12). 3B: Pence (4). HR: Pence (7), off Maholm. RBIs: McCutchen 2 (3), Moss (14), Jaramillo (13), Ja.Wilson (19), Maholm (2), Pence 2 (25), Ca.Lee 2 (37). SB: Morgan (12), Ad.LaRoche (1). CS: Morgan (6). Runners left in scoring position: Pittsburgh 6 (Morgan, Maholm, McCutchen 2, Moss, An.LaRoche); Houston 3 (I.Rodriguez, Berkman, Maysonet). Pittsburgh Maholm W, 4-2 Grabow H, 9 Capps S, 13-15 Houston Oswalt L, 2-3 Byrdak Sampson Hawkins

IP 7 1 1 IP 6 1 1 1

H 8 1 1 H 9 0 1 1

R ER BB SO NP ERA 4 4 1 4 104 3.94 0 0 1 0 19 4.13 0 0 0 0 11 5.30 R ER BB SO NP ERA 6 6 1 3 105 4.66 0 0 2 1 24 3.00 0 0 0 1 15 1.85 0 0 0 0 17 2.28

Umpires: Home, Charlie Reliford; First, Larry Vanover; Second, Dan Iassogna; Third, Sam Holbrook. T: 2:45. A: 26,099 (40,976).

MIAMI—The rain didn’t dampen Andrew Miller’s spirits—or his pitching. Hanley Ramirez hit two of Florida’s five doubles, leading Miller and the Marlins over San Francisco 5-4 Saturday. Miller (2-2) was perfect through four innings, retiring the first 12 batters on just 33 pitches. He allowed one earned run and four hits in 5 2/3 innings and won for the first time in four starts. Most of the game was played in a steady drizzle. “It felt good to go out there and I cruised for a few innings,” Miller said. “The big thing for me was I’ve been struggled a lot out of the stretch lately. I felt like when I was in the stretch I was making a lot of good pitches. I was able to command everything.” Down 5-2, the Giants loaded the bases in the ninth against closer Matt Lindstrom. Reliever Leo Nunez gave up Aaron Rowand’s two-run single before striking out Edgar Renteria to end it and get his second save. “We had the tying run on third and we were still fighting,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “I thought the guys did a good job of battling out there.” The start of the game was delayed 84 minutes because of rain. — The Associated Press

Marlins 5, Giants 4 San Francisco AB Rowand cf 5 Renteria ss 5 Winn rf 3 B.Molina c 4 Sandoval 1b 3 Uribe 3b 4 Torres lf 3 Burriss 2b 3 c-Schierholtz ph 1 J.Sanchez p 2 J.Miller p 0 a-Ishikawa ph 1 Howry p 0 d-Aurilia ph 0 Totals 34

R 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

H 2 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6

BI 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

BB 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4

SO 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 7

Avg. .305 .246 .283 .253 .301 .295 .250 .262 .246 .000 .000 .261 .000 .214

Florida Coghlan lf De Aza lf Bonifacio 3b Ha.Ramirez ss Cantu 1b Uggla 2b C.Ross cf R.Paulino c B.Carroll rf A.Miller p Badenhop p b-Gload ph Lindstrom p Nunez p Totals

R 1 0 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5

H 2 0 1 2 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 9

BI 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 5

BB 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3

SO 0 0 2 0 0 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 8

Avg. .220 .308 .246 .338 .275 .225 .251 .250 .212 .071 .000 .269 -----

AB 4 0 4 4 4 3 3 4 3 3 0 1 0 0 33

San Francisco 000 020 002 — Florida 002 030 00x —

4 6 0 5 9 1

a-lined out for J.Miller in the 7th. b-grounded out for Badenhop in the 8th. c-struck out for Burriss in the 9th. d-walked for Howry in the 9th. E: Bonifacio (10). LOB: San Francisco 7, Florida 7. 2B: B.Molina (9), Uribe (7), Torres (1), Ha.Ramirez 2 (19), Cantu (12), Uggla (10), R.Paulino (4). RBIs: Rowand 2 (27), Torres 2 (4), Ha.Ramirez (26), Cantu (42), Uggla (40), R.Paulino 2 (9). SB: Coghlan (2), Bonifacio (11), C.Ross (3). Runners left in scoring position: San Francisco 4 (J.Sanchez, Uribe 2, Renteria); Florida 4 (C.Ross 3, A.Miller). San Francisco J.Sanchez L, 2-5 J.Miller Howry Florida A.Miller W, 2-2 Badenhop H, 1 Lindstrom H, 1 Nunez S, 2-4

IP 4 2⁄3 1 1⁄3 2 IP 5 2⁄3 2 1⁄3 2⁄3 1⁄3

H 8 1 0 H 4 0 1 1

R ER BB SO NP ERA 5 5 2 7 101 5.19 0 0 1 0 21 2.22 0 0 0 1 30 4.64 R ER BB SO NP ERA 2 1 1 5 73 4.31 0 0 1 0 28 3.86 2 2 2 1 24 6.17 0 0 0 1 13 3.21

Inherited runners-scored: J.Miller 2-2, Badenhop 3-0, Nunez 3-2. IBB: off J.Miller (B.Carroll). WP: J.Sanchez. Umpires: Home, Jim Wolf; First, Brian O’Nora; Second, Fieldin Culbreth; Third, Gary Cederstrom. T: 3:21. A: 16,294 (38,560).

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Baseball

19

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

AMERICAN LEAGUE Tampa Bay 9, N.Y. Yankees 7

Kansas City 6, Toronto 2

Red-hot Rays again get to Rivera NEW YORK—No matter which hitters the Tampa Bay Rays send up against Mariano Rivera, they hardly seem intimidated. Joe Dillon hit a tiebreaking single in the ninth inning and the surging Rays touched up Rivera for the second time this season, beating the New York Yankees 9-7 on Saturday despite committing four errors. B.J. Upton added an RBI single off the star closer, part of a four-run rally that carried the AL champions to their fourth straight victory and sixth in seven games. “I just loved the way we kept fighting back,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. David Price left with a chance to beat CC Sabathia in a much-anticipated matchup pitting a potential ace against an established one. But the Yankees scored twice in the eighth against Tampa Bay’s bullpen, tying it 5-all. Willy Aybar and Ben Zobrist homered for the Rays, who doubled their previous season high for errors in a game. Three were wild throws by AllStar catcher Dioner Navarro. Tampa Bay is 3-0 at the new Yankee Stadium, including an 8-6 victory May 7 when Rivera served up back-to-back homers for the first time in his career. Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria connected for ninth-inning solo shots in that one. This time, injury fill-ins Dillon and Ben Zobrist sparked the burst against Rivera. “I think anytime you do something against a closer and you do it in recent memory, it gives you a little bit of confidence,” said Zobrist, who opened the inning with a triple.

Rays 9, Yankees 7 Tampa Bay AB B.Upton cf 3 Crawford lf 5 W.Aybar 3b-2b 5 C.Pena 1b 4 Zobrist 2b-ss 3 Dillon dh-3b 3 Navarro c 3 Kapler rf 3 b-Joyce ph-rf 1 Brignac ss 3 c-Longoria ph 0 1-Sonnanstine pr 0 Wheeler p 0 Choate p 0 Totals 33

R 2 1 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 9

H 1 2 1 0 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9

BI 1 1 3 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8

BB 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4

SO 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 5

Avg. .220 .329 .250 .221 .304 .444 .204 .169 .231 .212 .322 .250 -----

New York AB R H BI BB SO Jeter ss 4 1 1 0 1 1 Damon lf 4 1 1 0 1 0 Teixeira 1b 5 1 2 3 0 0 A.Rodriguez 3b 3 2 1 1 2 0 Posada dh-c 4 1 0 0 1 1 Cano 2b 4 0 1 1 1 0 Swisher rf 3 0 0 0 1 1 Me.Cabrera cf 4 1 1 1 0 1 Cervelli c 2 0 0 0 0 0 a-H.Matsui ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 Ma.Rivera p 0 0 0 0 0 0 Coke p 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 34 7 7 6 7 5

Avg. .312 .296 .286 .253 .308 .304 .247 .309 .271 .255 -----

Tampa Bay 000 023 004 — New York 010 110 022 — JEFF ZELEVANSKY / AP

Pinch runner Andy Sonnanstine, right, scored one of Tampa Bay’s four runs in the decisive ninth inning. Mark Teixeira homered in the eighth and hit a two-run double in the ninth for New York. Alex Rodriguez also went deep for the Yankees, who had won 17 of 22. Handed a 9-5 cushion, Rays reliever Dan Wheeler gave up three straight hits to start the ninth, then retired Rodriguez and Jorge Posada with Teixeira on second. Ex-Yankee Randy Choate got Robinson Cano on a long fly to center for his third save in eight days—the first three of his major league career, which began in 2000. Upton made a lunging grab to end it. “One of the guys said to me, ‘Only 491 more to go to catch Mo,’” Choate said. Zobrist tripled to left-center and scored on a single by Dillon, a

journeyman who was acquired from Oakland on May 9. Dillon has three hits in each of the past two games, matching his career high each time. Upton added a two-out RBI single off Rivera (0-2), who was then lifted from the game in a rare sight. Crawford hit a run-scoring single off Phil Coke and another run scored on Rodriguez’s error at third. “After the team ties the game, it was tough to go out and do that,” Rivera said. “Especially when you know that you have the top of your lineup coming up. You just want to get three outs and then you look up and it’s four runs.” Rivera hadn’t allowed four runs in a game since April 27, 2007, against Boston. — The Associated Press

9 9 4 7 7 2

a-struck out for Cervelli in the 8th. b-flied out for Kapler in the 9th. c-was intentionally walked for Brignac in the 9th. 1-ran for Longoria in the 9th. E: W.Aybar (2), Navarro 3 (4), A.Rodriguez (2), Damon (2). LOB: Tampa Bay 3, New York 8. 2B: Damon (13), Teixeira (15), Me.Cabrera (7). 3B: Zobrist (3). HR: Zobrist (11), off Sabathia; W.Aybar (4), off Sabathia; A.Rodriguez (8), off Price; Teixeira (17), off Balfour. RBIs: B.Upton (14), Crawford (27), W.Aybar 3 (16), Zobrist (33), Dillon (2), Navarro (13), Teixeira 3 (50), A.Rodriguez (23), Cano (33), Me.Cabrera (23). SB: Jeter (11), A.Rodriguez (1). CS: B.Upton (4), Crawford (3). S: Cervelli. SF: Navarro. Runners left in scoring position: Tampa Bay 1 (Navarro); New York 4 (Teixeira, Swisher, H.Matsui, Cano). DP: New York 1 (Cano, Jeter, Teixeira). Tampa Bay IP Price 5 2⁄3 J.Nelson H, 4 2⁄3 Balfour H, 7 1 Howell W,1-2 BS,4-6 2⁄3 Wheeler 2⁄3 Choate S, 3-3 1⁄3 New York IP Sabathia 8 Ma.Rivera L, 0-2 2⁄3 Coke 1⁄3

H 2 0 1 1 3 0 H 5 3 1

R ER BB SO NP ERA 3 1 5 3 106 2.45 0 0 0 1 18 6.04 2 2 1 0 20 5.68 0 0 1 1 15 2.22 2 2 0 0 22 5.50 0 0 0 0 6 2.70 R ER BB SO NP ERA 5 4 3 5 101 3.56 4 3 1 0 21 3.47 0 0 0 0 13 4.43

Inherited runners-scored: J.Nelson 2-0, Balfour 1-0, Howell 1-1, Choate 1-0, Coke 2-2. IBB: off Ma.Rivera (Longoria). HBP: by Sabathia (Dillon). Umpires: Home, Adrian Johnson; First, Scott Barry; Second, Ted Barrett; Third, Tim McClelland. T: 3:37. A: 46,205 (52,325).

Royals celebrate snapping skid TORONTO—Something was missing as the Kansas City Royals celebrated the end of an eight-game losing streak with the customary on-field handshakes: the coaching staff. Luke Hochevar worked a season-high 6 2/3 innings, Willie Bloomquist hit a three-run triple and the Royals beat Toronto 6-2 on Saturday. Kansas City’s players took to their field to congratulate each other after their first win since May 26, but their coaches snuck off into the tunnel. “We just bailed on them,” manager Trey Hillman said. “We let (the players) celebrate and we were waiting for them in the tunnel, just to change it up a little bit.” The change, and the victory, put everyone in good spirits. “That was great,” Bloomquist said. “Everyone feels good. It’s about time we feel good about ourselves and get a win under our belt.” Mark Teahen homered and drove in three runs for K.C. Called up from Class AAA Omaha to make the start, Hochevar (1-2) won for the first time since July 11, 2008. Blue Jays outfielder Adam Lind said he struggled to see the ball against the righthander. “He’s kind of got a weird release point,” Lind said. “For me, it was hard to pick him up. I couldn’t get my timing with him and that forced me to swing at bad pitches.” — The Associated Press

Royals 6, Blue Jays 2 Kansas City AB R DeJesus lf 4 1 Bloomquist ss-rf 4 0 Butler 1b 4 1 Jacobs dh 3 0 J.Guillen rf 4 1 Pena Jr. ss 0 0 Teahen 3b 4 1 Callaspo 2b 4 1 B.Pena c 4 0 Olivo c 0 0 Maier cf 3 1 Totals 34 6

H 0 1 1 1 1 0 2 1 2 0 0 9

BI 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 6

BB 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3

SO Avg. 1 .232 1 .283 0 .281 1 .234 1 .255 0 .053 0 .276 1 .292 0 .333 0 .242 1 .246 6

Toronto Scutaro ss Bautista 3b Rios rf V.Wells cf Lind lf Millar dh Overbay 1b R.Chavez c Jo.McDonald 2b Totals

H 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 4

BI 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2

BB 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 3

SO Avg. 1 .297 0 .265 0 .263 0 .253 1 .311 1 .252 0 .294 0 .286 1 .227 4

Kansas City 000 050 010 — Toronto 002 000 000 —

6 9 1 2 4 0

AB 4 4 3 3 4 3 2 3 3 29

R 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2

E: Teahen (5). LOB: Kansas City 4, Toronto 3. 2B: Butler (17), Callaspo (18), B.Pena (3), Overbay (16). 3B: Bloomquist (4). HR: Teahen (7), off Richmond; R.Chavez (1), off Hochevar. RBIs: Bloomquist 3 (9), Teahen 3 (20), R.Chavez 2 (4). Runners left in scoring position: Kansas City 3 (Butler, DeJesus, Callaspo); Toronto 3 (Rios, R.Chavez 2). DP: Kansas City 3 (Teahen, Callaspo, Butler), (Butler, Bloomquist, Butler), (Pena Jr., Butler); Toronto 2 (Jo.McDonald, Scutaro, Overbay), (Jo.McDonald, Scutaro, Overbay). Kansas City Hochevar W, 1-2 Farnsworth H, 1 Soria Toronto Richmond L, 4-3 Camp Carlson B.J.Ryan

IP 6 2⁄3 1 1⁄3 1 IP 4 2⁄3 2 1⁄3 1 1

H 4 0 0 H 5 2 2 0

R ER BB SO 2 2 2 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 R ER BB SO 5 5 2 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 1

NP ERA 91 7.85 11 3.15 9 1.74 NP ERA 70 3.99 31 4.03 29 5.14 17 7.43

Inherited runners-scored: Farnsworth 2-0, Camp 1-0. Umpires: Home, Tim Tschida; First, Bob Davidson; Second, Jeff Nelson; Third, Mark Carlson. T: 2:31. A: 16,552 (49,539).

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Baseball

20

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

AMERICAN LEAGUE Boston 8, Texas 1

Detroit 2, L.A. Angels 1

Lester flirts with perfection, gets two-hitter

Jackson continues to shine

BOSTON—Jon Lester certainly knew what was happening. It was right in front of him every time he walked to the mound. Lester had a perfect game for 6 1/3 innings before finishing with a two-hit complete game in the Red Sox’s 8-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Saturday night. “It’s hard not to think about it when you’ve got the Green Monster out there. It’s in your face the whole time,” Lester said about the zeros for runs and hits across the Texas linescore on the leftfield wall. “I was real happy it was a wellstruck ball. It wasn’t an infield hit or anything like that.” Michael Young doubled into the gap in left-center with one out in the seventh to break up Lester’s bid for a perfect game. After letting out a loud groan as the ball rolled to the wall, the sold-out crowd gave Lester a standing ovation. Young also singled in the ninth. Slumping slugger David Oritz and Mike Lowell had solo homers for Boston. Lester (5-5), the club’s most reliable postseason pitcher last year when he threw a no-hitter on May 19 against Kansas City, got off to a slow start this season, giving up 11 runs in his first two starts. But Saturday, he showed how dominating he can be, striking out 11 and walking just two. It was his third career complete game. “I had thoughts of a guy really pitching well,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. “His stuff from the get-go was powerful.” Lester struck out nine of the first 15 batters he faced, getting four swinging at pitches down outside the strike zone—

Red Sox 8, Rangers 1 Texas AB R Kinsler 2b 4 0 M.Young 3b 4 0 An.Jones dh 2 0 N.Cruz rf 4 0 Byrd cf 3 0 B.Boggs lf 3 0 C.Davis 1b 3 0 Saltalamacchia c 3 0 Andrus ss 2 1 Totals 28 1

H 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

BI 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

BB 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2

SO 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 0 11

Avg. .276 .335 .272 .283 .295 .000 .207 .243 .275

Boston Pedroia 2b Ellsbury cf Youkilis 1b Bay lf Lowell 3b D.Ortiz dh Varitek c Baldelli rf N.Green ss Totals

H 2 0 1 1 1 2 1 1 0 9

BI 2 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 7

BB 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 5

SO 1 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 2 7

Avg. .322 .306 .349 .280 .301 .196 .250 .264 .278

Texas Boston

AB 5 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 4 33

R 2 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 8

000 000 001 — 010 034 00x —

1 2 1 8 9 0

E: B.Boggs (1). LOB: Texas 3, Boston 6. 2B: M.Young (21). HR: Lowell (9), off Holland; D.Ortiz (2), off Benson. RBIs: An.Jones (15), Pedroia 2 (23), Youkilis (35), Bay 2 (55), Lowell (37), D.Ortiz (22). SB: Pedroia (10), Ellsbury (23). SF: An.Jones. Runners left in scoring position: Texas 1 (Byrd); Boston 1 (N.Green).

MARY SCHWALM / AP

Boston SP Jon Lester, right, is congratulated by C Jason Varitek after pitching a complete two-hitter. including the side in the fourth. “That was just lights out,” Young said. “That was one of the best games I’ve seen in my career by a pitcher.” Oritz, mired in a season-long slump, connected for the second time this season and first since May 20. Lowell homered— after having his double overturned by video review. “That’s how you get back to hitting balls and start hitting well, put a good swing on a ball,” Ortiz said. “Even though you don’t get the good luck, it will come.”

Texas scored on Andruw Jones’ sacrifice fly in the ninth. Lester, the hard-throwing left-hander once rumored to be possible trade bait when Minnesota was looking to deal lefty Johan Santana, was overpowering early, mixing in a number of sharp curveballs and cut fastballs that made many of the Rangers’ hitters miss badly. “The guy had good stuff and he was in the strike zone with it,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said. “He made us swing the bat.” — The Associated Press

Texas Holland L, 1-3 Benson Mathis Boston Lester W, 5-5

IP 4 2⁄3 2 1⁄3 1 IP 9

H 6 3 0 H 2

R ER BB SO NP ERA 4 4 2 5 91 6.54 4 3 3 1 42 8.46 0 0 0 1 9 0.00 R ER BB SO NP ERA 1 1 2 11 107 5.09

Inherited runners-scored: Benson 1-0. Balk: Holland. Umpires: Home, Ron Kulpa; First, Tim Timmons; Second, Rob Drake; Third, Jeff Kellogg. T: 2:25 (Rain delay: 0:03). A: 37,828 (37,373).

DETROIT—Edwin Jackson finished his second career complete game in style. Throwing fastballs clocked as high as 98 mph, Jackson struck out Bobby Abreu, Vladimir Guerrero and Torii Hunter to complete a four-hitter in Detroit’s 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday night. “It was the end of the game, and I was going to leave everything on the field,” he said. “I knew it was my game to win, and it was only 2-1, so I couldn’t make any mistakes against those three hitters. It felt great.” Jackson (6-3) improved to 5-1 with a minuscule 0.76 ERA in his last six starts. He struck out five and walked one, throwing 109 pitches as Detroit snapped a four-game skid. “That kid has always had a great arm, but he found another gear tonight, the way he finished that game,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “In his last handful of starts, he’s been as good as any pitcher in the game.” Over the last month, Jackson and teammate Justin Verlander have been lights out. Verlander, who is 6-0 in his last eight outings, threw eight shutout innings but didn’t get a decision in Friday’s 2-1 loss to the Angels. “The pitching was great tonight, but we have to get some runs,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. “We still aren’t swinging the bats well.” — The Associated Press

Tigers 2, Angels 1 Los Angeles AB Figgins 3b 4 Abreu rf 4 Guerrero dh 4 Tor.Hunter cf 4 K.Morales 1b 3 J.Rivera lf 3 M.Izturis ss 3 Napoli c 3 Kendrick 2b 2 Totals 30

R 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

H 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4

BI 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

BB 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1

SO 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 5

Avg. .306 .294 .256 .314 .273 .294 .261 .264 .227

Detroit J.Anderson lf Polanco 2b Thomas rf Ordonez dh Granderson cf Inge 3b Larish 1b Laird c Santiago ss Totals

R 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

H 1 2 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 8

BI 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2

BB 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 4

SO 1 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 2 9

Avg. .269 .252 .243 .281 .269 .278 .216 .229 .295

AB 4 2 3 3 2 3 4 3 3 27

Los Angeles 100 000 000 — Detroit 200 000 00x —

1 4 0 2 8 0

LOB: Los Angeles 3, Detroit 8. 2B: Abreu (10), Tor. Hunter (13), Larish (3). RBIs: Abreu (26), Ordonez (21), Granderson (34). SB: Polanco (1), Granderson (10). CS: Figgins (5), Inge (4), Santiago (2). S: Polanco. SF: Granderson. Runners left in scoring position: Los Angeles 2 (K.Morales, J.Rivera); Detroit 6 (Larish, Inge 2, Granderson, Santiago, Ordonez). DP: Los Angeles 3 (Napoli, Napoli, M.Izturis), (Figgins, Kendrick, K.Morales), (Napoli, Napoli, M.Izturis). Los Angeles Escobar L, 0-1 Bulger Oliver Detroit E.Jackson W, 6-3

IP 5 1 2 IP 9

H 4 1 3 H 4

R ER BB SO NP ERA 2 2 4 5 92 3.60 0 0 0 2 19 4.24 0 0 0 2 21 2.92 R ER BB SO NP ERA 1 1 1 5 109 2.16

HBP: by Escobar (Polanco). Umpires: Home, Tom Hallion; First, Jerry Crawford; Second, Dan Bellino; Third, Phil Cuzzi. T: 2:25. A: 32,367 (41,255).

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Baseball

21

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

AMERICAN LEAGUE Seattle 2, Minnesota 1

Chicago White Sox 4, Cleveland 2

Late-inning results making manager anxious

Guillen happy with outcome

SEATTLE—A constant stream of games decided in the final moments can wear down any player or manager. For a first-year skipper, it can be even more nauseating. “They didn’t warn me when I took the job there would be this many games this close,” Seattle manager Don Wakamatsu joked. Ken Griffey Jr. drove in Ichiro Suzuki with a two-out double in the eighth inning and the Mariners edged the Minnesota Twins 2-1 on Saturday. It was the major league-leading 27th one-run game for Seattle in just its 56th game overall. The Mariners have played six one-run games in the last week alone, going 3-3 to move to 15-12 in those contests. “(It’s) because we pitch so well. That’s it,” Seattle starter Jarrod Washburn said. “We’re in every ballgame and the guy who takes the mound to start gives us a chance to win and the bullpen does it’s job after that.” A day after his club-record 27-game hitting streak ended, Suzuki went 3-for-4 against the Twins, including a two-out RBI double in the fifth that tied it at 1. Suzuki also sparked Seattle’s winning rally in the eighth, chopping a leadoff single over the head of lefthander Sean Henn (0-1). Russell Branyan struck out and Adrian Beltre popped up before Griffey came up with his tiebreaking hit. Wakamatsu opted to send the leftyhitting Griffey to the plate against Henn and the Mariners star—hitting just .172 entering the day against southpaws— rewarded his faith with his 511th career double.

ELAINE THOMPSON / AP

Seattle P Jarrod Washburn, right, puts the tag on Minnesota’s Delmon Young at home in the third inning. “You make a mistake they hit you. That’s why he will be in the Hall of Fame,” Minnesota manager Ron Gardenhire said. Washburn was largely responsible for the win even though he didn’t get a decision. He threw six strong innings, giving up an RBI double to Mike Redmond in the fourth and striking out six. Washburn also saved a run in the third when his wild pitch with the bases loaded caromed off the backstop and back to catcher Guillermo Quiroz. He hustled to the plate to take Quiroz’s throw and tag out Delmon Young trying to score from third. Washburn won his first three turns in the rotation but is 0-4 with a 3.65 ERA in eight games since his fast start. Seattle is 1-7 during his winless

stretch. “I don’t care if I get the win or not. I like us to win,” said Washburn, who allowed seven hits, struck out six and walked one against the Twins. “I don’t care if it’s me, but it was getting pretty frustrating every time I pitch and we lose.” Chris Jakubauskas (4-5) got two outs in the eighth to earn the win. The Twins put runners on the corners with two out in the ninth against David Aardsma, who got Denard Span to ground out to finish his ninth save in 10 chances. Minnesota starter Nick Blackburn also couldn’t get any support, missing out on his fourth straight victory. He gave up one run and six hits in seven innings. — The Associated Press

Mariners 2, Twins 1 Minnesota AB R Span cf 5 0 Mauer dh 3 0 Morneau 1b 4 0 Crede 3b 4 1 Cuddyer rf 4 0 B.Harris ss 4 0 Redmond c 3 0 2-Gomez pr 0 0 Delm.Young lf 3 0 a-Kubel ph 1 0 A.Casilla 2b 3 0 b-Buscher ph 1 0 3-Tolbert pr 0 0 Totals 35 1

H 0 0 0 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 2 1 0 9

BI 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

BB 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

SO 3 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 10

Avg. .296 .419 .338 .235 .275 .283 .254 .219 .233 .311 .190 .208 .177

Seattle AB I.Suzuki rf 4 Branyan 1b 4 Beltre 3b 4 Griffey Jr. dh 3 1-Balentien pr-dh 0 Jo.Lopez 2b 4 Cedeno ss 3 En.Chavez lf 3 Quiroz c 3 F.Gutierrez cf 3 Totals 31

H 3 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 8

BI 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

BB 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

SO 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2

Avg. .354 .318 .241 .224 .235 .227 .148 .277 .286 .268

R 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2

Minnesota 000 100 000 — Seattle 000 010 01x —

1 9 0 2 8 1

a-struck out for Delm.Young in the 9th. b-singled for A.Casilla in the 9th. 1-ran for Griffey Jr. in the 8th. 2-ran for Redmond in the 9th. 3-ran for Buscher in the 9th. E: Jo.Lopez (9). LOB: Minnesota 9, Seattle 6. 2B: Redmond (4), A.Casilla (3), I.Suzuki (10), Branyan (14), Griffey Jr. (8). RBIs: Redmond (4), I.Suzuki (17), Griffey Jr. (16). Runners left in scoring position: Minnesota 3 (Delm.Young, Mauer, Span); Seattle 3 (Jo.Lopez 2, Branyan). GIDP: Cuddyer, F.Gutierrez. DP: Minnesota 1 (Crede, A.Casilla, Morneau); Seattle 1 (Cedeno, Jo.Lopez, Branyan). Minnesota Blackburn Henn L, 0-1 Ayala Seattle Washburn Morrow Olson Jakubauskas W, 4-5 Aardsma S, 9-10

IP 7 2⁄3 1⁄3 IP 6 2⁄3 2⁄3 2⁄3 1

H 6 2 0 H 7 1 0 0 1

R ER BB SO 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 R ER BB SO 1 1 1 6 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2

NP ERA 98 3.30 17 3.52 2 4.01 NP ERA 96 3.07 18 7.31 9 4.56 8 5.88 24 1.91

Inherited runners-scored: Ayala 1-0, Olson 2-0. PB: Quiroz. Umpires: Home, Brian Gorman; First, C.B. Bucknor; Second, Angel Campos; Third, Gerry Davis. T: 2:47. A: 30,600 (47,878).

CHICAGO—White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was finally able to find something positive about his team’s offense. Paul Konerko had a sacrifice fly in the first to end the White Sox’s scoreless drought at 23 innings and Gavin Floyd pitched into the seventh, helping the Chicago White Sox end a four-game skid with a 4-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Saturday. “We didn’t have that many hits, but we still played good, we moved the guy over, we bunt a guy over, we got a sacrifice fly when we needed it,” said Guillen, who watched his club score four runs on seven hits. “We got a big couple of stolen bases and obviously the pitching was great.” Floyd (4-5) allowed two runs— one earned—and five hits in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out seven and walked one. He has 1.82 ERA in his last four starts. “Little by little he is getting better through the season. He started real (slow), all of a sudden he has turned the thing around and he is doing a pretty good job,” Guillen said. “The last couple of starts he’s thrown pretty good. Hopefully he continues to do it. I think this kid is strong enough to do it.” Josh Fields put the White Sox ahead in the fourth inning with a solo shot with two outs. It was his third homer of the season and first since May 5 at Kansas City. — The Associated Press

White Sox 4, Indians 2 Cleveland AB R B.Francisco cf-rf 4 0 J.Carroll 3b 4 0 V.Martinez c 4 0 Choo lf 4 0 Jh.Peralta ss 3 1 Hafner dh 4 0 DeRosa rf-1b 4 0 Garko 1b 2 0 1-Crowe pr-cf 1 1 Valbuena 2b 4 0 Totals 34 2

SO 1 0 3 2 2 0 0 1 0 2 11

Avg. .257 .320 .342 .297 .254 .268 .267 .250 .196 .190

Chicago AB R H BI BB SO Podsednik lf 4 1 2 1 0 0 Al.Ramirez ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 Thome dh 3 0 0 0 1 3 Konerko 1b 2 1 0 1 1 1 Pierzynski c 4 0 1 0 0 1 Fields 3b 4 1 2 1 0 1 J.Nix rf 3 0 0 0 0 0 Wise rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 Getz 2b 3 1 2 0 0 1 Bri.Anderson cf 2 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 29 4 7 3 2 8

Avg. .298 .243 .242 .292 .303 .244 .203 .167 .254 .250

Cleveland Chicago

H 1 2 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 7

BI 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2

BB 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1

010 000 100 — 100 101 10x —

2 7 1 4 7 1

1-ran for Garko in the 7th. E: Jh.Peralta (5), Al.Ramirez (4). LOB: Cleveland 7, Chicago 5. 2B: Hafner (6). HR: Fields (3), off Sowers. RBIs: J.Carroll (5), DeRosa (38), Podsednik (9), Konerko (34), Fields (21). SB: Podsednik 2 (7). S: Bri.Anderson. SF: Konerko. Runners left in scoring position: Cleveland 4 (Valbuena, Hafner 2, V.Martinez); Chicago 3 (J.Nix 2, Thome). DP: Cleveland 1 (J.Carroll, Valbuena, Garko); Chicago 1 (Fields, Getz, Konerko). Cleveland Sowers L, 1-3 R.Perez K.Wood Chicago G.Floyd W, 4-5 Dotel Thornton H, 10 Jenks S, 13-14

IP 6 1 2⁄3 1⁄3 IP 6 2⁄3 0 1 1⁄3 1

H 5 2 0 H 5 1 0 1

R ER BB SO NP ERA 3 2 2 5 92 5.40 1 1 0 2 18 12.56 0 0 0 1 3 5.89 R ER BB SO NP ERA 2 1 1 7 105 5.35 0 0 0 0 10 2.41 0 0 0 3 16 1.61 0 0 0 1 11 3.15

Dotel pitched to 1 batter in the 7th. Inherited runners-scored: Dotel 2-1, Thornton 2-0. HBP: by G.Floyd (Garko). PB: V.Martinez. Umpires: Home, Doug Eddings; First, Hunter Wendelstedt; Second, Brian Knight; Third, Dana DeMuth. T: 2:36. A: 30,307 (40,615).

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NFL

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

22

Lions’ cast might not be ready to support a rookie QB BY VINNIE IYER [email protected]

There are only 95 days until the start of 2009 NFL season. Does your team know who its quarterback is? For the Detroit Lions, it’s a question that won’t be answered for a couple of more months. Coach Jim Schwartz has said he and his staff will take a long look at No. 1-overall pick Matthew Stafford and former Pro Bowler Daunte Culpepper before making a decision in training camp. “When he’s the best quarterback and he’s ready, he’s going to start,” Schwartz said of Stafford recently. “He needs to pass both of those.” Here is the bigger question, however: Is the Lions’ supporting cast ready to prop up a rookie quarterback? Stafford might have the physical tools and mental makeup to survive in what will be a long first NFL season, but it might be a risk not worth taking with the franchise’s great hope. Not without any of the three most important elements of his support system in place:

The offensive line. The Lions yielded 52 sacks last season, secondmost in the NFL. They didn’t draft a top lineman and made some desperate free-agent signings at guard and tackle. Last year, the Falcons’ rebuilt line jelled early and it resulted in a run-blocking force and pass-protection improvement (only 17 sacks allowed after 47 in ’07) that greatly benefited then-rookie QB Matt Ryan. It’s unrealistic to expect a repeat in Detroit.

The running game. There is no doubt second-year man Kevin Smith is a talented all-around back. But consider the Lions were 30th in rushing offense last season (3.8 yards per carry) and the continued blocking concerns. In contrast, the Jets’ Mark Sanchez has this major advantage over Stafford in the race to start as a rookie. “With that big offensive line we have and those backs, everything is going good over there,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said this week after seeing Thomas Jones and Leon Washington at work. The Jets ranked ninth in rushing last season, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. Both Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco benefited from even more productive running games last year. Smith is yet to prove himself in the Michael Turner mold, and Detroit lacks Baltimore’s depth. The defense. Flacco also had the benefit of leaning on an elite Ravens defense, turning his rookie year into great team success. The takeawayhappy defense became more dominant under Rex Ryan. As for the Lions’ defense, it allowed the NFL’s most rushing yards, points and total yards last year. It also produced an NFL-low four interceptions. That means there would be undue pressure on Stafford to carry the ’09 Lions, needing to make many plays and few mistakes. Opposing defenses often will be in position to tee off on him. Meanwhile, Rex Ryan’s firsthand knowledge of the grooming of Flacco in Baltimore will further help Sanchez.

QB battles While the Lions mull over Matthew Stafford vs. Daunte Culpepper, six other NFL teams will hold quarterback competitions in training camp: Shaun Hill vs. Alex Smith Kyle Orton vs. Chris Simms Derek Anderson vs. Brady Quinn Byron Leftwich vs. Luke McCown Kellen Clemens vs. Mark Sanchez Tarvaris Jackson vs. Sage Rosenfels

CARLOS OSORIO / AP

Lions rookie QB Matthew Stafford, taking instruction from OC Scott Linehan, will start ‘when he’s the best quarterback,’ his head coach says. About the only advantage Stafford has over Sanchez in ’09 is the ultimate security blanket—an elite receiver in Calvin Johnson. That’s not enough. In a copycat league, the Lions can’t afford to follow what the Falcons and Ravens did and what the Jets are likely to do. There is no blueprint to coming back from a 0-16 season. The Lions might should consider themselves like an expansion team,

and look at those recent models. Tim Couch never lived up to expectations in Cleveland, and David Carr took a physical and mental beating in Houston. In the case of Matt Ryan, Flacco and now Sanchez, their teams’ options at quarterback weren’t that intriguing. There are several good reasons, however, why Culpepper is the ideal alternative to buy time to get the rest of the team ready for

Stafford. Culpepper had his best career success in offensive coordinator Scott Linehan’s scheme. Culpepper is big, strong and has some mobility remaining, allowing him to stand tough against and sometimes elude a constant pass rush. And he has plenty of experience playing in the tough NFC North environments. Most of all, at 32, out of a brief retirement and working with his

third team in four years since being released by Minnesota, Culpepper is starving for a positive result. “This is about me showing, reshowing what I can do,” Culpepper said. “I’m going to work to be the starter. That’s my goal.” So what should be the Lions’ goal? The NFL is known for big turnarounds, but going from winless to the playoffs sounds impossible, especially in such a tough division. No matter whether Stafford plays, the Lions are bound to lose a lot more games this season but can’t afford to lose sight of his big-picture promise.

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Bengals’ Johnson admits he tanked it last season Bengals WR Chad Johnson says he did as little as possible to prepare for the ’08 season. He has been seeking a trade for two-plus seasons now, but remains with the team. “I’m not even going to lie to you, I’m going to say it,” Johnson told NFL Network. “Last year, the offseason, I didn’t lift one weight, I didn’t run one route, I didn’t exercise. I didn’t do nothing because my focus was on getting out of a situation I didn’t want to be in. “And the result of my season, whether we as a team did bad or not, that’s what I get. I get hurt in the preseason. I didn’t lift no weights. If I had been on my right regiment, I guarantee you my collarbone, my shoulder wouldn’t pop out of place. The ankle surgery, you know.” Johnson, 31, struggled through the season with ankle, shoulder and hamstring injuries. He started 10 games and caught only 53 passes, by far his lowest production since his rookie year. “I talked to a lot of different people and at that time when I was in shambles or disgruntled—a word a lot of people like to use—I wasn’t listening to any of the information I was getting that was positive,” he told NFL Network. “I went on a rant on my own and was really fussing about things that were out of my control.” TE Jeremy Shockey, who has made more headlines off the field than on it since arriving in New Orleans last summer, says he plans to participate in the Saints’ final eight voluntary practices. He missed much of last

Saints backup TE Dan Campbell will have arthroscopic knee surgery Monday to repair his MCL, ESPN.com reports. Payton said Campbell will be ready for the start of training camp.

Favre just brings a whole new ballgame to any ballclub. That’s no reflection on the guys that are on their team at quarterback right now, but Brett’s in a different league than most.”

Colts RB Joseph Addai recently disclosed that he underwent offseason arthroscopic knee surgery but told the Indianapolis Star that “it’s feeling good right now.” Addai, who rushed for a career-low 544 yards and five touchdowns last year, is being held out of spring practices. The Colts did draft RB Donald Brown in the first round in April to provide insurance in case Addai, 26, doesn’t bounce back.

Redskins WR James Thrash, 34, could be forced to retire because of a lingering neck injury. He has a bulging disc that starting causing problems during a March 16 workout. “Right now, I’m just trying to get it back to where I feel comfortable,” Thrash told The Washington Times. “If they tell me that I have to have surgery (to be able to play a 13th season), then I’ll have to decide what I’m going to do. Right now, I’m not looking that far ahead. I’ve trained so hard my whole life. This is a different challenge. I haven’t set (a deadline). I try to keep open communication with coach (Jim Zorn), so we’re on the same page.”

Colts star DE Dwight Freeney wants to play on offense. Seriously. “I’m going to talk to Peyton,” Freeney told The Indianapolis Star. “One red-zone play, that’s all I need. Just one. I want to catch the ball.”

BILL HABER / AP

After failing to score a TD in ‘08, TE Jeremy Shockey (88) thought voluntary camp was a good idea. season because of a hernia injury and failed to score a touchdown in the NFL’s top-rated offense. Though he was third on the team with 50 receptions, Shockey didn’t have the kind of impact New Orleans envisioned even as QB Drew Brees passed for the second-most yards ever in an NFL season. Two weeks ago, he was treated at a hospital for dehydration after being found unconscious at a pool party at a Las Vegas resort. He offered few specifics about the

Vegas incident but seemed to confirm that excessive consumption of alcohol mixed with the desert heat. “You know what they say, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” Shockey said. “That’s in the past. I’m looking forward to the future.” Shockey said he has not participated in voluntary practices in his previous seven NFL seasons but plans to do so this year to get better acquainted with Brees and coach Sean Payton’s offense.

Brett Favre’s agent, Bus Cook, said Friday that he is unaware of any pending plans for Favre to make another comeback. Cook said he speaks with Favre every day but claimed the chats aren’t about football. The Vikings have expressed interest in Favre, 39, whose waffling has become an annual summer story around the NFL. But Minnesota coach Brad Childress said at a community service event Friday he isn’t thinking about Favre, when asked if he had a deadline in mind for Favre to make a decision. “I would think they would pull out all the stops if they want to get the guy,” Cook said. “I think Brett

It’s obvious that rookie firstround pick Josh Johnson is not part of the battle to be the Bucs’ starting quarterback. While Luke McCown and Byron Leftwich alternate with firstand second-team units, Johnson has not seen a snap with anyone other than the fringe players, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Bucs backup DE Styles G. White continues to miss practices as he recovers from a Tuesday motorcycle accident. The accident left White bloodied and bruised, but he didn’t sustain any major injuries, according to The Tampa Tribune. White led the ’07 Bucs with eight sacks and recorded five last year.

The Browns have signed OT George Foster, a six-year vet, and waived rookie S Jason Venson. Foster, a ’03 first-round pick by the Broncos, spent the previous two years with the Lions, starting 12 games. Giants MLB Antonio Pierce, who saw his production diminish last season, has trimmed down in an effort to regain his old form. He wouldn’t say how much weight he has lost. “I’m just getting better,” he told Newsday. “It’s going to be the old A.P. It’s going to be a new look. I’m excited about it being a new year, new experience, different guy.”

Brian Jennings will be the 49ers’ long snapper for longer than he ever imagined. The 49ers signed Jennings to a five-year contract extension Saturday. Jennings hasn’t made a glaring mistake in a game since the club drafted him in the seventh round nine years ago. He made the Pro Bowl after the 2004 season. “In a position like mine, longevity is one of your only accomplishments,” Jennings said. “I play a don’t-screw-it-up position. It feels good to be loved, to be wanted, to be appreciated for something I put so much time into.” Despite a report in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Bills officials claim they are not looking into building a new stadium. The Bills’ stadium is the fifth oldest in the NFL but underwent an extensive refurbishing in 1998.

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Texans rookie LB a starter from day one HOUSTON—Texans coaches aren’t worried about throwing rookie linebacker Brian Cushing into the starting lineup immediately. They think he can handle it. If he has any problems with the transition, he can consult middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans, who was in the same situation his rookie year. Ryans was the first pick in the ’06 second round and has started every game since. Ryans was a success from the start, accumulating 155 tackles and earning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. Now, Cushing hopes to follow in his footsteps. “It’s been a privilege already to play next to him,” Cushing said after a recent practice. “He’s just an unbelievable talent. So, I’m just going to try to get everything I can from him.” Ryans is more than a willing teacher, noting that Cushing will receive only support from him and won’t subject him to rookie hazing. “I let him know if he has any questions or anything he can ask me,” Ryans said. “I’m open to just trying to make our defense the best that we can be. A lot of guys try to bring the rookies down, kind of put them down. But to me it’s all about helping those guys because he’s definitely a big part of us winning games this year.” Cushing, the 15th-overall pick, is expected to start at strongside linebacker. He joined the Texans after starting for four years at USC, where he had 74 tackles and three sacks as a senior.

The Texans hope the addition will help improve a defense that allowed more than 336 yards a game last season and ranked 22nd in yards allowed. There’s no doubt Cushing’s talent is an upgrade over the low-drafted strongside linebackers Houston started last season. “That’s a lot of pressure, but that’s what we brought him here for,” coach Gary Kubiak said. “So DeMeco can help him with those expectations and that workload. I think he’ll be a big help.” For now, Cushing is trying to master Houston’s base defense. He knows many hours of studying the playbook are ahead of him. “The biggest thing right now is understanding what I have to do,” he said. “I can’t be coming in here screwing up every single play. There’s a lot expected out of me. I understand that. I have to know the defense inside and out.” Ryans immediately liked what he saw of Cushing (6-2, 243)—even before he took the field. “He’s a very big guy,” Ryans said. “He’s a guy that we need. He’s a true (strongside) linebacker. He’s just a very athletic guy who can drop into coverage, and he covers well.” Though Ryans will likely be the biggest help to Cushing, he has received plenty of support from teammates in spring workouts. “You could tell it’s a tight unit, and everybody wants the best for each other,” Cushing said. —The Associated Press

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; Quinn Gray, Kansas City; Trent Green, St. Louis; Rex Grossman, Chicago; Drew Henson, Detroit; Brad Johnson, Dallas; J.P. Losman, Buffalo; Jamie Martin, San Francisco; Craig Nall, Houston; Marques Tuiasosopo, Oakland; Anthony Wright, NY Giants. Running backs—Shaun Alexander, Washington; J.J. Arrington, Denver; Darian Barnes, New Orleans; Tatum Bell, Denver; Jon Bradley, Detroit; 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; Biren Ealy, New Orleans; D.J. Hackett, Carolina; 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; Marcus Maxwell, Baltimore; Anthony Mix, Tampa Bay; Tab Perry, Miami; Jerry Porter, Jacksonville; Koren Robinson, Seattle; Edell Shepherd, Denver; Travis Taylor, Detroit; Amani Toomer, NY Giants; Reggie Williams, Jacksonville. Tight ends—Courtney Anderson, Houston; Adam Bergen, Denver; Mark Bruener, Houston; Owen Daniels (R), Houston; Nate Lawrie, Cincinnati; Marcus Pollard, Atlanta; Jerame Tuman, Arizona; Daniel Wilcox, Baltimore. Offensive tackles—Anthony Davis, St. Louis; Jon Dunn, Detroit; Wayne Gandy, Atlanta; Kwame Harris, Oakland; Jonas Jennings, San Francisco; Levi Jones, Cincinnati; Fred Miller, Chicago; Rob Petitti, St. Louis; Jon Runyan, Philadelphia; Charles Spencer, Jacksonville; Barry Stokes, New England; Mark Tauscher, Green Bay. Guards—Lennie Friedman, Cleveland; Pete Kendall, Washington; Matt Lentz, Detroit; Terrence Metcalf, Chicago; Edwin Mulitalo, Detroit; Chris Naeole, Jacksonville; Grey Ruegamer, NY Giants; Kendall Simmons, Pittsburgh; Jason Whittle, Buffalo.

MARK J. TERRILL / AP

Rookie Brian Cushing will start at strongside linebacker for the Texans this season.

Centers—Brennen Carvalho, Green Bay; Jean-Philippe Darche, Kansas City; Melvin Fowler, Buffalo; Matt Lehr, New Orleans; Andy McCollum, Detroit; Jeremy Newberry, San

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Diego; Scott Peters, Arizona; 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; Josh Savage, New Orleans; 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, Cincinnati; Casey Tyler, Dallas; 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; Greg Ellis, Dallas; Gilbert Gardner, Chicago; Curtis Gatewood, Kansas City; Morlon Greenwood, Houston; Napoleon Harris, Minnesota; Brad Kassell, NY Jets; Jason Kyle, Carolina; Teddy Lehman, Buffalo; Wesly Mallard, Seattle; Willie McGinest, Cleveland; Ryan Nece, Detroit; Shantee Orr, Cleveland; Antwan Peek, Cleveland; Carlos Polk, Dallas; Junior Seau, New England; Matt Sinclair, Washington; Gary Stills, St. Louis; Terrell Suggs (F), Baltimore; Dontarrious Thomas, Minnesota; Marcus Washington, Washington; Nate Webster, Denver. Cornerbacks—David Barrett, NY Jets; Fakhir Brown, St. Louis; Terry Cousin, Cleveland; Jason Craft, St. Louis; Travis Fisher, Detroit; Reynaldo Hill, Tennessee; William James, Jacksonville; Adam Jones, Dallas; Michael Lehan, New Orleans; Sam Madison, NY Giants; Ricky Manning Jr., St. Louis; 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; DeJuan Tribble, San Diego; Jason Webster, New England; Jimmy Williams, Houston; Stanley Wilson, Detroit. Safeties—Michael Boulware, Minnesota; Mike Brown, Chicago; Oliver Celestin, Kansas City; Corey Chavous, St. Louis; Will Demps, Houston; Mike Doss, Cincinnati; Mike Green, Washington; Terrence Holt, New Orleans; Dexter Jackson, Cincinnati; Sammy Knight, NY Giants; Lawyer Milloy, Atlanta; Chad Nkang, Jacksonville; Pierson Prioleau, Jacksonville; Dwight Smith, Detroit; Jimmy Williams, San Francisco; Cameron Worrell, Chicago. SPECIAL TEAMS Kickers—John Carney, NY Giants; Matt Stover, Baltimore. Punters—Mitch Berger, Pittsburgh; Kyle Larson, Cincinnati; Ryan Plackemeier, Cincinnati.

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Top 100 countdown Sporting News Today is counting down its Top 100 college football teams for 2009, featuring one team each day leading into the season opener Thursday, Sept. 3. Go to SportingNews.com for the previous teams in the countdown.

89 ALBERT DICKSON / SN

New coach Mike Locksley is already facing struggles off the playing field.

NEW MEXICO 2008 record: 4-8 overall, 2-6 Mountain West Coach: Mike Locksley Outlook: The Locksley era didn’t kick off as New Mexico had envisioned—a former administrative assistant accused Locksley of sexual harassment, age discrimination and retaliation last week. The mood in Albuquerque might not improve much this fall, especially when the Lobo defense takes the field. Locksley’s wide-open offense, however, should benefit from a talented trio of wideouts in Bryant Williams, Chris Hernandez and Roland Bruno. — Derek Samson

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INSIDE DISH

INSIDE DISH

Gators get arrested twice as often as general population DB Janoris Jenkins recently became the 24th Florida football player arrested in a four-year period, the Orlando Sentinel reported. The newspaper researched the increasing problem with Florida’s football program and published the following statistics: 1) The team’s arrest rate, beginning in coach Urban Meyer’s first season in 2005, is roughly 10 percent (24 arrests out of 239 players listed on the official roster). That’s more than double the arrest rate for the general population, according to the newspaper. 2) Eighteen of the arrests were players Meyer signed, while Ron Zook recruited the other six players. 3) Since the Gators won the national championship in January, three players have been arrested (a fourth, Torrey Davis, was arrested a few weeks after leaving the team).

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

J. PAT CARTER / AP

Janoris Jenkins is the 24th Florida football player to be arrested in a four-year span.

New Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin and his wife, Layla, have purchased a home for $2.6 million, the Knoxville News-Sentinel reported.

Rams will play the conference’s schedule but will not be eligible for its automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. Fordham will still be able to earn an at-large bid. The school hopes to upgrade its nonconference schedule once it begins offering 60 scholarships. Fordham has already scheduled games with Connecticut in 2011, Navy and Villanova in 2012 and Army in 2014 and 2015.

Fordham will award football scholarships next year for the first time since 1954, according to The Associated Press. Fordham is a Division I-AA member of the Patriot League, which does not offer football scholarships. From 2010 through at least 2012, the

Todd Donnan has been selected for induction into the Marshall Athletic Hall of Fame. Donnan played quarterback for his father, coach Jim Donnan, from 1991-94. Jim Donnan, who coached at Marshall for six seasons, will be inducted into the national hall in July.

Memphis waiting to see if wins count The NCAA met with Memphis officials on Saturday to discuss major violations and the school must now wait at least six weeks for a ruling on whether its 38 wins from the 2007-08 season will count. The most serious allegation taken up at the meeting was whether an unknown person took the SAT for former star Derrick Rose. Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson had no comment as he left the four-hour meeting. Memphis president Dr. Shirley Raines also would not speak, but issued a statement. “Although we cannot comment on the specifics of what occurred during the hearing, I can say that as president, I reiterated the university’s commitment to NCAA rules compliance,” Raines said. “We believe we were able to fully answer the committee’s questions and present the actions we have already taken based upon our internal investigations.” An NCAA spokeswoman said a ruling is expected between six and eight weeks. All-Pac-10 PG Nic Wise decided to return to Arizona for his senior year and withdraw from the NBA draft. Wise made himself available for the draft in April but didn’t hire an agent, leaving the door open for him to return to the program. Wise, who averaged 15.7 points last season, called new coach Sean Miller with the news on Saturday. Coach John Beilein announced that Michigan will begin a home-

rules violation. “It just sort of got to where a few (basketball) players came in and it sort of became like family,” he said. “I just liked taking care of them. I never asked for anything. I just loved the players.”

ERIC GAY / AP

NCAA investigators are asking whether someone took the SAT for Derrick Rose (23). and-home series with Kansas and host Connecticut at Crisler Arena next season. The Wolverines will play the Jayhawks on the road at Allen Fieldhouse on Dec. 19. Kansas will visit Crisler Arena on Jan. 8, 2011. UConn will travel to Ann Arbor to face the Wolverines on Jan. 17. The NCAA banned a Lexington restaurateur from associating with Kentucky athletics for three years after he gave free meals to basketball players, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported. Joe Bologna can neither buy season tickets nor advertise in game programs or other UK publications. Players and recruits are not permitted to eat at his self-titled Italian restaurant. Bologna, who is 64, told officials he did not charge the players for food and knew this was a

The lawyer for a woman accused of trying to extort millions of dollars from Louisville coach Rick Pitino has asked a federal judge to delay her trial. Karen Cunagin Sypher’s attorney, Thomas Clay, said he doesn’t have all the documents prosecutors were supposed to turn over in time to go to trial as scheduled on June 29. Prosecutors have until June 17 to respond to the delay request. The 49-year-old Sypher pleaded not guilty last month to charges of trying to extort money from Pitino and lying to the FBI. A criminal complaint claimed her demands included college tuition for her children, two cars, her house to be paid off and $3,000 per month. The complaint says the demands later escalated to $10 million.

D.J. Magley will transfer to Tulsa after two seasons at Western Kentucky, Tulsa coach Doug Wojcik announced. Magley will sit out next season and will have two years of eligibility left. He averaged 3.7 points and 2.9 rebounds the past two seasons, helping WKU make the NCAA Tournament. Magley is the son of Dave Magley, who played at Kansas and had a brief career in the NBA.

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Bean seeking to gain experience BY BOB POCKRASS SceneDaily.com

LONG POND, PA.—Dexter Bean competed in the NASCAR Sprint Showdown race three weeks ago, and that gave him confidence that he could qualify for the Pocono 500 today at Pocono Raceway. It ended up that Bean didn’t have to do anything to qualify for the race except for his father’s team, BlackJack Racing, to send in its entry blank before the deadline. When rain canceled qualifying Friday, Bean was in the race while drivers Mike Wallace and Tony Raines went home because even though their teams had more attempts than Bean’s team, they were late entrants into the event. NASCAR rules require that teams meet the entry deadline to be eligible to get into a race based on their number of attempts this year. So the 22-year-old Bean is now ready to race. The Wisconsin driver has extensive experience at Pocono in an Automobile Racing Club of America car. “I’m really excited,” Bean said. “We picked Pocono just because I’ve been here a lot. We felt like we were going to make this race. Earlier in the week, we expected rain and thought we’d miss the show, but we didn’t realize there were a couple of late entries and (what) the rule book states.” Bean’s team is running a partial schedule and this is the first race it actually will compete in as Bean has failed to qualify at Las Vegas and Phoenix. Kelly Bires failed to qualify at Daytona, while David Starr missed Auto Club (California). The team has bought four cars from Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. The car at Pocono is the same that Bean drove in the all-star preliminary race. “The biggest thing I learned was confidence,” said Bean, who has nine top-five finishes but no wins in 70 ARCA starts.

LADON GEORGE / SCENEDAILY.COM

Dexter Bean makes his second Sprint Cup start today. “Not only did I learn a lot but the crew chief learned a lot about adjustments during the race. “The biggest thing is I got some experience and seat time in the COT car. … At Charlotte, I was running with the 41 car that J.J. Yeley was driving and I was passing these people and running right there with Scott Speed gave me confidence that I’m ready to do this.” Bean said his team, led by crew chief Ryan Bergenty, hopes to compete at New Hampshire later this month. He said he is approved for every Cup track that is 1.5 miles in length or shorter as well as Pocono. “We’re planning on using this as a test session for us and I plan on racing,” said Bean, whose team has some sponsorship from LiveWire energy chew. “I’m a better racer than I am a qualifier. … We’re in this to learn a lot. I’ve got a crew chief that doesn’t know a lot, we’ve got a driver (in myself) that doesn’t know a lot and you’ve got a whole new team that doesn’t know a whole lot about these new cars. “We’re excited to go out there and learn as much as we can.” [email protected]

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

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Despite rain, Busch hopes to continue success at Pocono BY KENNY BRUCE SceneDaily.com

LONG POND, PA.—Friday’s rain at Pocono Raceway put a crimp in teams’ strategy for today’s Pocono 500. According to Kurt Busch, it also put a damper on efforts to prepare for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ next trip to the 2.5mile track. Cup teams will be back in the Pocono mountains for a second stop here in less than two months. “The biggest thing that we’ll be behind on is just qualifying practice for the next time that we come here in August,” Busch said Saturday. “The other thing is that we usually like to take the first halfhour at every race track that we go to this year and use it as a test session and try some off-the-wall things that we learned from last week or that we’ve wanted to try, just off-the-wall (stuff). “We’re behind on just getting a few items off of our check list.” That doesn’t mean the Penske Racing No. 2 team isn’t focused on the task at hand. Busch enters today’s race fourth in the point standings, and trails leader Tony Stewart by just 91 points. Because qualifying was rained out on Friday, Busch will start third on the 43-car grid. “It’s always good to come to Pocono, with some of the success that I’ve had here,” Busch, a two-time winner at the track, said. “Just the challenges that Pocono always presents ... which corner is the most important? Is it Turn 1? Turn 2? Turn 3? “It’s all about putting down the best horsepower that you can build down these long straightaways.” The two Saturday Pocono practice sessions might have limited what the Pat Tryson-led crew could get done, but Busch was able to post the 10th fastest time in the final session.

Pocono 500 At Pocono Raceway, Long Pond, Pa. When: Today, 2 p.m. ET TV: TNT, 12:30 p.m. ET Radio: MRN/Sirius Satellite Ch. 128 Track layout: 2.5-mile triangle Race distance: 200 laps/500 miles 2008 winner: Kasey Kahne 2008 polesitter: Kasey Kahne Today’s starting lineup (Car number in parentheses)

CAROLYN KASTER / AP

Kurt Busch starts third for today’s Pocono 500. “I just felt like were were behind a little bit due to a lack of practice,” Busch said after bringing his Dodge to the garage for the final time. “We were very loose to start, got somewhat of a handle on it, (but) as you get into the longer runs, the car seems to get a little looser. “We’ve got to make a few adjustments that will balance the car out better throughout the run. The (green-flag) runs aren’t that long here—you only get about 30 laps.” Today’s race will be the first in the Cup series featuring NASCAR’s new doublefile restart format, which places cars a lap or more down behind the lead-lap cars rather than on the inside row. The change could provide for more excitement on restarts, but Busch said it also penalizes the race leader. “That’s going to be a disappointing thing that’s been taken away,” he said, “the ability to be the leader and to take off at a different restart point each time— even though we’re in a box of 90-to-120 feet. “You always want to keep the guy behind you on his toes and you want to try and break away, get those lapped cars in between you and give yourself a cushion. Those things are gone now.” [email protected]

1. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 2nd. 2. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 3rd. 3. (2) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 4th. 4. (39) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 5th. 5. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 6th. 6. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 7th. 7. (17) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 8th. 8. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 9th. 9. (31) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 10th. 10. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 11th. 11. (5) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 12th. 12. (00) David Reutimann, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 13th. 13. (9) Kasey Kahne, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 14th. 14. (42) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 15th. 15. (33) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 16th. 16. (83) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 17th. 17. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 18th. 18. (1) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 19th. 19. (47) Marcos Ambrose, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 20th. 20. (07) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 21st. 21. (26) Jamie McMurray, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 22nd. 22. (20) Joey Logano, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 23rd. 23. (29) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 24th. 24. (43) Reed Sorenson, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 25th. 25. (77) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 26th. 26. (19) Elliott Sadler, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 27th. 27. (96) Bobby Labonte, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 28th. 28. (12) David Stremme, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 29th. 29. (44) A J Allmendinger, Dodge, 2009 Owner Points 30th. 30. (6) David Ragan, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 31st. 31. (55) Michael Waltrip, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 32nd. 32. (98) Paul Menard, Ford, 2009 Owner Points 33rd. 33. (7) Robby Gordon, Toyota, 2009 Owner Points 34th. 34. (34) John Andretti, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Points 35th. 35. (09) Sterling Marlin, Dodge, 2009 Owner Winner. 36. (82) Scott Speed, Toyota, 2009 Owner Attempts 13-36th. 37. (71) David Gilliland, Chevrolet, 2009 Owner Attempts 13-37th. 38. (87) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 2009 Owner Attempts 13-39th. 39. (36) Patrick Carpentier, Toyota, 2009 Owner Attempts 13-41st. 40. (66) Dave Blaney, Toyota, 2009 Owner Attempts 13-42nd. 41. (78) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, Owner Attempts 7. 42. (51) Dexter Bean, Dodge, Owner Attempts 4. 43. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, accident during practice. Failed to qualify 44. (75) Derrike Cope, Dodge, 2009 Owner Attempts 3. 45. (64) Mike Wallace, Toyota, Post Entry. 46. (37) Tony Raines, Dodge, Post Entry.

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NASCAR

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SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

27

Busch a smashing success in Nationwide race Crash puts Stewart in back of pack LEBANON, TENN.—Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch said he thought he was like Ozzy Osbourne after winning Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway. He may have been more like The Who’s Pete Townshend when he slammed the special trophy the track gives to race winners, a Sam Bass-designed Gibson Les Paul guitar. “Ozzy’s done it, right?” Busch said. “(Ted) Nugent,” crew chief Jason Ratcliff suggested. “Pete Townshend?” Busch wondered. “I think Ozzy’s done it, too. I think Kiss has even done it. Everybody’s done it, expect race car drivers. All them sorry saps, they take it home in one piece and put it on their shelf, man. I break that thing up and spread it within the team so everybody’s got a piece.” That’s all he was trying to do, Busch said. He made a promise to his team members last year that if he ever won a race at Nashville, he would give them each a piece of the guitar. “I always said, ‘Man, if I win here, I’d smash that thing.’ I had to stick to my word. It’s karma or something, I guess. I won here, so I tried to smash it up.” The problem was, it didn’t break into many tiny pieces. “It didn’t break according to plan,” Busch said. “I was actually hoping to get more pieces for the guys on the team. We’ll

DONN JONES / AP

Kyle Busch showed off the winning trophy before smashing it into pieces. go back to the shop and cut it up, and they can have nice, smooth pieces of it.” Top rookie finisher Michael McDowell said he felt bad for Bass, who put in “a lot of work” to design the paint scheme on the guitar. Bass, too, was first taken aback by Busch’s impromptu celebration in victory lane. “Just like everybody else in victory lane, I was stunned when it happened,” said Bass, who was brought into the infield media center moments before Busch’s post-race news conference. But then Bass heard Busch’s explanation of the smashed guitar. “When I took a picture with Kyle as I traditionally do, the first thing he said to me was that there was no disrespect to me or the trophy or the speedway or any of the sponsors,” Bass said. “He just

said that he told his guys that he was going to give each one of them a piece of the trophy whenever he won the guitar. “That was his way, in the spirit of rock and roll to break the guitar like a Kiss concert and share it with all the guys on the team. That made me

feel a lot better. As a person that loves rock and roll the way the way I do and appreciates a good show, Kyle Busch put on as great show in victory lane and shocked the world.” Busch probably should be delighted with the victory, for he won for the first time after leading the most laps in the previous three races. Busch won the pole and led the most laps Saturday, but this time nothing went wrong at the end of the race. Busch’s win was his fourth of the season in the series. He extended his point lead to 65 over Carl Edwards. Busch led four times for 173 of the 225 laps around the 1.33-mile concrete track, giving up the lead only for pit stops. He led the final 24 laps and beat Keselowski by 0.891 seconds. — Special to Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

Federated Auto Parts 300 results FINISH

START

TRK. NO.

DRIVER

MAKE

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 10 6 8 12 9 16 3 27 4

18 88 60 1 38 29 66 47 6 20

Kyle Busch Brad Keselowski Carl Edwards Mike Bliss Jason Leffler Stephen Leicht Steve Wallace Michael McDowell Erik Darnell Brad Coleman

Toyota Chevrolet Ford Chevrolet Toyota Chevrolet Chevrolet Toyota Ford Toyota

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Standings: sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=557513 Results: sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=557496

Friday’s qualifying rainout gave Sprint Cup points leader Tony Stewart the top starting spot for today’s Pocono 500. A Saturday practice crash in Turn 2 at Pocono Raceway took the position away. The rear end of Stewart’s No. 14 Chevrolet stepped out as he entered Tunnel Turn (Turn 2) during the first Cup practice session Saturday morning. Stewart slid through the infield grass at the exit of the corner and damaged the front end of his car so severely that it could not be repaired in time for the final session. Forced to go to a backup car for today’s race, Stewart must drop to the rear before the field takes the green flag. The backup car is chassis No. 450, which Stewart drove to a 26thplace finish (his worst of the year) at Las Vegas. “I went off into the grass, but I hit the right front of the splitter with, I guess, one of those access roads or something and ripped the whole nose off of it,” Stewart said. Before the incident, Stewart had posted the third fastest time in the first practice. After switching to the backup car for Happy Hour, he was sixth fastest in the session. “This car will be good,” Stewart promised. — Reid Spencer writes for the Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

Robby Gordon will be joining Stewart at the rear of the field for the start of today’s race, but not because of a car or engine change. Gordon was in and around Ensenada, Mexico on Saturday, competing with codriver Andy Grider in the Baja 500 off-road race in his No. 77 Chevrolet trophy truck. While Gordon was racing in the Mexican desert, Travis Kvapil practiced the No. 7 Toyota at Pocono, where he was 34th fastest in Happy Hour. — Reid Spencer Joey Logano cruised to the victory in the Automobile Racing Club of America race Saturday afternoon at Pocono Raceway. Logano was driving for Venturini Motor-

MARK MORAN / AP

Joey Logano won Saturday’s ARCA race. sports in the event. Among other drivers with NASCAR ties in the race, Penske Racing development driver Parker Kiligerman finished sixth. Among parttime Truck series drivers, Brad Keselowski Racing’s Mikey Kile was eighth, Fast Track Racing’s Brian Silas was 15th and Stringer Motorsports’ Gabi DiCarlo was 30th. Former Cup driver James Hylton was 24th. — Bob Pockrass, SceneDaily.com NASCAR officials said more than $47,000 has been raised for the American Red Cross in Nashville, Tenn. through various efforts designed to benefit the victims of a tornado that roared through nearby Mufreesboro, Tenn., the day before the Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway in April. The Nationwide Foundation made an immediate $25,000 donation to the Red Cross. This weekend, Nationwide teams competed in a Team Challenge to raise money, with driver John Wes Townley’s RAB Racing team winning by raising $13,348. RAB Racing held a bake sale as part of its fund-raising efforts. Money was also raised at an autograph session Saturday at the track, with 20 drivers participating. All total, $47,263.51 was donated to the Red Cross. — SceneDaily.com

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Golf

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Who’s that? Bettencourt latest to share lead DUBLIN, OHIO—For most of a warm and wacky Saturday afternoon at the Memorial, the leaderboard was filled with a “Who’s Who” of this golfing generation, five players with a combined 20 majors, 121 PGA Tour victories and 19 World Golf Championships. Tiger Woods and Ernie Els. Davis Love III, Geoff Ogilvy and Jim Furyk. It ended with a “Who’s That?” Matt Bettencourt, a 34-year-old rookie who had never played a PGA Tour event until this year, steadied himself during some nervous moments on the super slick greens of Muirfield Village for a 4-under 68 to share the lead with two-time tour winner Mark Wilson (69). Bettencourt, who has yet to finish in the top 20 and has missed more cuts than he has made, wasn’t expecting to be atop the leaderboard at the tournament Jack Nicklaus created. The guys chasing him? That was no surprise at all. “The field is so strong here,” Bettencourt said. “Mr. Nicklaus asks you to play, you’re going to play. If you expect to win, you’re going to have to beat the best. And the best are up there.” No one played better than Ogilvy, who was in a

PAUL VERNON / AP W

Matt Bettencourt carded consecutive rounds of 68, including Saturday, to move into a tie for first. tie for 57th and nine shots behind until he turned in a tournament-best 63 as the leaders were finishing up their lunch. He was atop the leaderboard for much of the day until finishing two shots behind. Woods, a three-time winner of the Memorial, made his move on the back nine with a 5-wood into 6 feet for an eagle. Slowed by a careless three-putt bogey on the 17th, he had to settle for a 68 and was four shots behind. Furyk was up-anddown, as were most players, until he steadied himself down the stretch and scratched out a 71, putting him one shot behind with Jonathan

Byrd, who also had a 71. Love chipped in for birdie on the 18th for a 69 and was tied for fifth with Ogilvy. Els was poised to make a move until he chopped up the par-5 15th and took double bogey, putting him in the group at 207 with Woods. Don’t get the idea that Bettencourt or Wilson, who won an opposite-field event in Mexico this year,

are rattled at the moment. “If I take care of what I do ... I will have a great chance of winning,” Wilson said. “If I start thing about what everyone else is doing around me and, ‘Oh my gosh, that guy’s all got these major championships, he should win this, I shouldn’t,’ then you bet I’m going to lose. That’s the big challenge (today).” — The Associated Press

Memorial Site: Dublin, Ohio. Schedule: Today. Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (7,366 yards, par 72). Purse: $6 million. Winner’s share: $1.08 million. TV: Golf Channel (Today, noon-2 p.m., 9:30-11:30 p.m.) and CBS (Today, 2:30-6 p.m.).

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

28

NOTEBOOK

Leaderboard Saturday At Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio Purse: $6 million Yardage: 7,366; Par 72 Third Round Matt Bettencourt 71-68-68 — Mark Wilson 68-70-69 — Jonathan Byrd 69-68-71 — Jim Furyk 67-70-71 — Geoff Ogilvy 72-74-63 — Davis Love III 72-68-69 — Tiger Woods 69-74-68 — Michael Letzig 72-70-69 — Matt Kuchar 73-67-71 — Ernie Els 70-70-71 — Bubba Watson 71-71-70 — Luke Donald 64-76-72 — Stewart Cink 68-72-72 — Hunter Mahan 74-69-70 — Troy Matteson 69-73-71 — Dustin Johnson 73-68-72 — Chris DiMarco 73-67-73 — Steve Marino 68-72-73 — Ryuji Imada 70-69-74 — Mike Weir 69-69-75 — Ben Curtis 71-71-72 — Alex Cejka 73-68-73 — Daniel Chopra 72-69-73 — Rod Pampling 69-71-74 — K.J. Choi 73-70-72 — Jason Day 67-73-75 — Robert Allenby 72-76-68 — Jose Maria Olazabal 74-74-68 — D.J. Trahan 73-74-69 — Mathew Goggin 73-73-70 — Jeff Overton 76-69-71 — Lucas Glover 75-69-72 — Reinier Saxton 69-75-72 — Will MacKenzie 70-73-73 — Kevin Na 71-72-73 — Chez Reavie 71-74-72 — Steve Stricker 70-74-73 — Kevin Sutherland 69-75-73 — Webb Simpson 73-71-73 — Charl Schwartzel 72-68-77 — Marc Leishman 74-74-70 — Steve Lowery 76-71-71 — Camilo Villegas 71-74-73 — Tom Pernice, Jr. 71-74-73 — Woody Austin 75-70-73 — Nick Watney 73-71-74 — Paul Casey 73-70-75 — Martin Kaymer 71-76-72 — Richard Sterne 74-71-74 — John Senden 71-74-74 — Y.E. Yang 73-72-74 — David Duval 71-74-74 — Tom Lehman 71-74-74 — Jerry Kelly 72-72-75 — Zach Johnson 71-73-75 — Johnson Wagner 69-74-76 — Charley Hoffman 71-72-76 — Ian Poulter 75-71-74 — George McNeill 76-69-75 — D.A. Points 75-70-75 — Lee Janzen 72-73-75 — Kenny Perry 72-73-75 — Erik Compton 72-75-74 — Jeff Quinney 75-72-74 — Ted Purdy 67-79-75 — Steve Flesch 73-75-74 — Stuart Appleby 72-74-76 — Nick O’Hern 73-73-76 — Nicholas Thompson 69-75-78 — Bill Haas 74-72-77 — Marc Turnesa 72-73-78 — Tim Herron 75-73-76 — Mark Brooks 75-73-76 — Rocco Mediate 73-70-81 — Brett Quigley 74-73-78 — Jeff Klauk 76-71-79 — Scott McCarron 74-74-82 —

207 -9 207 -9 208 -8 208 -8 209 -7 209 -7 211 -5 211 -5 211 -5 211 -5 212 -4 212 -4 212 -4 213 -3 213 -3 213 -3 213 -3 213 -3 213 -3 213 -3 214 -2 214 -2 214 -2 214 -2 215 -1 215 -1 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 216 E 217 +1 217 +1 217 +1 217 +1 217 +1 218 +2 218 +2 218 +2 218 +2 218 +2 218 +2 218 +2 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 219 +3 220 +4 220 +4 220 +4 220 +4 220 +4 221 +5 221 +5 221 +5 222 +6 222 +6 222 +6 222 +6 223 +7 223 +7 224 +8 224 +8 224 +8 225 +9 226 +10 230 +14

Stolen clubs, ring not putting damper on Bettencourt’s play Matt Bettencourt had his clubs stolen two weeks ago in Texas. That wasn’t even the worst of it; a newlywed, he also had his wedding ring stolen. A day before the start of the Byron Nelson, he put his clubs in his courtesy car and then had breakfast. He was away for just 20 minutes or so, but the thieves had time to break a window and grab the clubs. TaylorMade was able to set him up with a new set of clubs and a bag. Must have been a good fit, because now he’s tied for the lead at the Memorial Tournament with Mark Wilson heading into today’s final round. “It’s actually a blessing in disguise,” he said of the new clubs. But the clubmaker was not able to replace the ring. Luckily, Bettencourt—who was married on March 14—has taken steps in that regard. “I did order one and got it sent home,” he said.

Monday, Monday Many of the pros at the Memorial Tournament aren’t grabbing the first jet out of town after Sunday’s final round. They have to stick around an extra day to walk 36 holes on two courses they barely know in an attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open in two weeks at Bethpage Black. For Tom Lehman, the end justifies the means. “You’d prefer to not have to be

there,” he said of the qualifier at Brookside and The Lakes on Monday. “It’d be nice to be exempt, but it’s such a great tournament that you’re willing to obviously do whatever it takes to get in.” Among those sticking around to play are Davis Love III, David Duval and Jose Maria Olazabal. Sixty-one pros are in the 121man field, with 16 earning spots in the Open. Should Davis Love III win the Memorial—he goes into the final round two shots back of the coleaders—he could cancel the extra night of his hotel. With a victory he would grab one of the final berths in the Open. “All you’ve got to do is win, so that makes it easier,” Love said, joking.

Venting Geoff Ogilvy was suffering after a disappointing 74 in the second round on Friday. “I went to hit some balls,” he said. “You don’t want to go to bed with a bad taste in your mouth. I got some rhythm back in the golf swing and got a little bit of frustration out before I went home and took it out on the hotel room.” That must have been the perfect tonic. Ogilvy came right back in the third round with a 9-under 63, a Memorial record in the third round, that left him two shots off the lead. — The Associated Press

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Tennis

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SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

29

FRENCH OPEN

Federer goes for No. 14 PARIS—All of Roger Federer’s bad memories from past French Open finals could be wiped away today. All of those so-close-yet-so-far bids to win the only Grand Slam title to elude him could fade with just one victory. If he beats 23rd-seeded Robin Soderling of Sweden in the final at Roland Garros, Federer will tie Pete Sampras’ record of 14 major championships and complete a career Grand Slam—at least one trophy from each of tennis’ four most prestigious tournaments. As much as Federer already has done, one French Open championship could forever alter the Swiss star’s place in history. No one knows that better than Andre Agassi, whose 1999 French Open title made him the fifth—and most recent—man with a career Grand Slam, changing the way he and others view his career. “Every surface, every condition, demands something different from you, and also rewards you differently, as well, from the physical challenges that exist, to the mental challenges. It’s highlighted by the fact that it doesn’t get done too often,” Agassi said during an appearance at Roland Garros with his wife, Steffi Graf, to promote their charitable foundations. “I’m pulling for Roger tomorrow,” Agassi added, “because I think he’s earned this opportunity. I think, in many respects, he deserves it.” It must have come as something of a relief for Federer when Soderling upset Nadal in the fourth round last weekend. Forget about Federer’s 9-0 record against Soderling: Playing anyone other than Nadal on the last Sunday in Paris is a welcome difference. “Look, there’s no easy Grand Slam finals,” said Federer, who is in his record-tying 19th such match, while Soderling is appearing in his first. “I cannot, obviously, underestimate Robin ... but obviously it’s nice to see someone else, for a change.” This might be the 27-year-old Federer’s best chance in France, but he is quick to point out that he does not consider it his last opportunity. “I’m not going to say, ‘OK, if I don’t win this year, I’m never going to win,’ ” Federer said after gutting out a 3-6, 7-6 (2), 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 comeback victory over No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina in the semifinals Friday. — The Associated Press

Glance

Kuznetsova easily wins second major PARIS—Svetlana Kuznetsova never struck Dinara Safina as a Grand Slam champion in the making when they were kids in Russia. Kuznetsova showed up for matches toting a 2-liter bottle of soda and wearing rock band T-shirts. As of Saturday, Kuznetsova owns two major titles—and that’s two more than Safina. Far steadier, if not all that spectacular, Kuznetsova took advantage of the No. 1-ranked Safina’s assorted errors and won the French Open final 6-4, 6-2. Hardly a work of beauty, the 74-minute match ended, fittingly, with Safina’s seventh double-fault. “She was too tight. She had so much pressure on her,” said Kuznetsova, who also won the 2004 U.S. Open. “I just played the match. It was just one more match. ... Definitely it was a lot of emotions inside of me, but I control it.” Not at the outset: She lost the first three points and was broken in the first game. Quickly, though, the seventhseeded Kuznetsova took control, yanking Safina from side to side with the same powerful groundstrokes that eliminated Serena Williams in the quarterfinals. More dispiriting to Safina, perhaps, was Kuznetsova’s defense. Time and time again, Safina—sister of two-time major champion Marat Safin—delivered a hard, well-placed shot. And time and time again, Kuznetsova scrambled to get the ball over the net. If the champion seems to have a cyclist’s strong legs, it’s because she does: Kuznetsova’s father coached her mother to six world championships and her brother to an Olympic silver medal in that sport. On a cloudy afternoon with the temperature in the low 50s, Kuznetsova also delighted spectators by showing off her soccer skills, juggling a tennis ball off her right foot and knee for several seconds. Her best work came with her racket, and she broke back at love to make it 1-all, then again to go ahead 5-3. Safina began that eighth game with a double-fault and rolled her eyes. As mistakes accumulated, she muttered to herself or smacked her left palm with her racket. On match point, Safina’s second serve hit the net tape and popped up, sailing beyond the doubles alley. “I was, like, ‘Oh, my God. Double-fault,’ ” Kuznetsova said. When Kuznetsova would allow herself to imagine

PARIS—A look at the French Open on Saturday: Weather: Cloudy. High of 59 degrees. Attendance: 18,455. Women’s Final: No. 7 Svetlana Kuznetsova beat No. 1 Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-2 to win her first French Open championship and second Grand Slam singles title. Stat of the Day: 7 — Double-faults by Safina, including on match point. Quote of the Day: “Hopefully, one day I can win here,” Safina, who lost in the Roland Garros final for the second year in a row. Men’s Final Today: No. 2 Roger Federer vs. No. 23 Robin Soderling. Federer will be trying to tie Pete Sampras’ record of 14 major titles and complete a career Grand Slam. Today’s Forecast: Cloudy, with chance of rain. High of 64 degrees. Today’s TV: NBC, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. EDT.

Results

CHRISTOPHE ENA / AP

Svetlana Kuznetsova had plenty of energy to celebrate her second major. winning the French Open, she always pictured herself dropping to the clay in joy. But the anticlimactic way this one ended didn’t call for such a celebration. Instead, Kuznetsova simply turned to make eye contact with her coach and supporters in the stands, then walked to the net for a handshake and kisses on the cheek. At the other end of the court, Safina covered her forehead with her left hand—disbelief written all over her face—then spiked her racket. “I was a little bit desperate on the court,” said Safina, who appeared to be fighting tears late in the match and during the on-court trophy presentation. “Didn’t stay tough mentally.” — The Associated Press

Saturday At Stade Roland Garros, Paris Purse: $21.8 million (Grand Slam) Surface: Clay-Outdoor Singles Women, Championship Svetlana Kuznetsova (7), Russia, def. Dinara Safina (1), Russia, 6-4, 6-2. Doubles Men, Championship Lukas Dlouhy, Czech Republic, and Leander Paes (3), India, def. Wesley Moodie, South Africa, and Dick Norman, Belgium, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Legends Doubles Round Robin Men Under 45 Sergi Bruguera, Spain, and Richard Krajicek, Netherlands, def. Arnaud Boetsch and Guy Forget, France, 6-1, 7-6 (2). Pat Cash, Australia, and Emilio Sanchez, Spain, def. Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Russia, and Thomas Muster, Austria, 6-1, 7-5. Men Over 45 Mikael Pernfors and Mats Wilander, Sweden, def. John Fitzgerald, Australia, and Guillermo Vilas, Argentina, 6-3, 6-3. Junior Doubles Boys, Championship Martin Draganja and Dino Marcan, Croatia, def. Guilherme Clezar, Brazil, and Huang Liang-chi (4), Taiwan, 6-3, 6-2. Girls, Championship Elena Bogdan, Romania, and Noppawan Lertcheewakarn (2), Thailand, def. Timea Babos, Hungary, and Heather Watson (3), Britain, 3-6, 6-3, 10-8 tiebreak.

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SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

30

WORLD CUP QUALIFYING United States 2, Honduras 1

U.S. beats Honduras on hostile home field CHICAGO—The United States came from a goal behind to beat Honduras 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday, taking a grip on second place in the group. Former Fulham and now Rennes defender Carlos Bocanegra scored on a diving header from Landon Donovan’s corner in the 68th minute for what proved the winner. With five of its ten games played and the top three teams to qualify directly for South Africa 2010, the United States is now five points clear of third-placed El Salvador, with Honduras a further point back in fourth. Both have a game in hand. Coming off a 3-1 loss at Costa Rica on Wednesday, the United States looked in trouble again when Birmingham striker Carlos Costly put Honduras ahead in the fifth minute. Donovan, the best U.S. player throughout the match, equalized from the penalty spot in the 43rd minute after a needless handball by Mario Besta. The winner came when Donovan’s corner was headed down by Fulham forward Clint Dempsey. Bocanegra charged in and dived to head it in from about 3 yards. The defender later limped off with a hamstring strain. “If we don’t respond and win this game, we’re going to be in a bad position. Now we’re halfway through, in second place,” Donovan said. “Right now we’re in good position.” A crowd of 55,647 attended the first-ever qualifier at Soldier Field, site of the 1994 World Cup opener. While the game was played on American soil, the dominant support was for Honduras. Fans in blue and white outnumbered red-clad American supporters by a 4-to-1 margin.

footed shot beat Everton’s Howard from 22 yards. Donovan equalized after Besta batted down a bouncing ball in the area with his left hand. Donovan’s penalty, to the upper left of goalkeeper Noel Valladares, was his American record 11th goal in qualifying.

BACOLET, Tobago—Celso Borges scored twice, including the winner in the 68th minute, to lift Costa Rica to a 3-2 victory over Trinidad and Tobago in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday. The victory keeps Costa Rica on top of the six-team qualifying group from North and Central America and the Caribbean. Costa Rica has 12 points in five matches. Trinidad and Tobago has only two and is almost certain not to qualify for South Africa 2010.

NAM Y HUH / AP

Carlos Bocanegra scored the winning goal on a header in the 68th minute for the U.S. In the final minutes, fans threw a few cups filled with liquid at U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard. “Our performances the first five games haven’t been great—we’ve been OK,” Howard said, “but the positive is we’re still second and we haven’t yet reached our potential.” The United States has lost just one home qualifier in 24 years, 3-2 to Honduras in September 2001 at Washington, D.C. The U.S. team is 16-1-0 at home in qualifying since that defeat.

U.S. coach Bob Bradley changed four starters from Wednesday, inserting right back Jonathan Spector, left back Jonathan Bornstein, midfielder Ricardo Clark and forward Conor Casey. DaMarcus Beasley, Marvell Wynne Jr. and Jose Francisco Torres were benched, and Michael Bradley was suspended. Costly scored after a terrible giveaway by Dempsey in the middle of the U.S. half. Dempsey made a blind backheel that was picked up by Tottenham’s Wilson Palacios. He dished off to Costly, whose left-

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador—Eliseo Quintanilla’s penalty in the 85th minute lifted El Salvador to a critical 2-1 victory over Mexico in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday. The result boosts El Salvador’s hopes of reaching next year’s World Cup finals in South Africa, while plunging Mexico into a deeper hole. Julio Martinez gave El Salvador the lead in the 11th minute, but Mexico’s veteran striker Cuauhtemoc Blanco equalized with a penalty in the 71st. El Salvador visits Honduras on Wednesday, when Mexico hosts Trinidad and Tobago. Mexico continues to struggle despite new coach Javier Aguirre being hired in April to replace fired Sven-Goran Eriksson. — The Associated Press

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Soccer

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WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

2010 World Cup qualifying glance (All times ET)

First teams punch tickets for World Cup

N. AND CENTRAL AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN

FINALS Top three qualify Fourth-place team advances to playoff vs. South America fifth-place team GP W D L GF GA Pts Costa Rica 5 4 0 1 9 5 12 United States 5 3 1 1 10 6 10 El Salvador 4 1 2 1 6 6 5 Honduras 4 1 1 2 5 6 4 Mexico 4 1 0 3 4 7 3 Trinidad 4 0 2 2 5 9 2

ANVAR ILYASOV / AP

South Korea clinched a berth with 2-0 victory at the United Arab Emirates, getting goals from Park Chu-young and Ki Sung-yueng. South Korea will be making its seventh straight World Cup appearance. ALMATY, KAZAKHSTAN—Wayne Rooney scored his sixth goal in World Cup qualifying on Saturday for England to beat Kazakhstan 4-0 and move closer to a spot at next year’s tournament in South Africa. TIRANA, ALBANIA— Bruno Alves scored an injury-time goal to give Portugal a 2-1 win at Albania to revive its hopes of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. Portugal, which was coming off three straight scoreless draws,

is now third with nine points in Group 1—seven behind Denmark and four back from Hungary. BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA— Argentina edged Colombia 1-0 in a crucial World Cup qualifier, winning on Daniel Diaz’s goal in the 56th. The victory improved Argentina to 22 points in the qualifying group, keeping the two-time champions on course for a spot in South Africa. MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY—Brazil ended a three-decade drought in Montevideo with a 4-0 win over Uruguay. The victory was Brazil’s first in 33 years in a World Cup qualifying match in the Uruguayan capital. — The Associated Press

W 5 4 3 3 0 0

D 1 0 1 0 1 1

L 0 1 1 4 4 5

Saturday’s Games At Bacolet, Tobago Costa Rica 3, Trinidad and Tobago 2 At Chicago United States 2, Honduras 1 At San Salvador, El Salvador El Salvador 2, Mexico 1

GROUP FIVE

GROUP ONE Denmark Hungary Portugal Sweden Albania Malta

GP 6 6 6 5 8 7

W 5 4 2 1 1 0

D 1 1 3 3 3 1

L 0 1 1 1 4 6

GF GA 13 2 8 2 8 4 2 2 4 8 0 17

Pts 16 13 9 6 6 1

Pts 16 12 10 9 1 1

GP W Spain 6 6 Bosnia-Herz. 6 4 Turkey 6 2 Belgium 6 2 Estonia 6 1 Armenia 6 0 No games scheduled GROUP SIX England Croatia Belarus Ukraine Kazakhstan Andorra

GP 6 6 5 5 6 6

W 6 3 3 2 1 0

Wednesday’s Game At Goteborg, Sweden Sweden vs. Malta, 1 p.m.

D 0 0 2 1 2 1

L 0 2 2 3 3 5

GF GA 13 2 18 7 6 5 10 11 5 15 3 15

Pts 18 12 8 7 5 1

D 0 2 0 2 0 0

L 0 1 2 1 5 6

GF GA 21 5 12 6 14 7 7 5 6 20 2 19

Pts 18 11 9 8 3 0

Saturday’s Games At Almaty, Kazakhstan England 4, Kazakhstan 0 At Grodno, Belarus Belarus 5, Andorra 1 At Zagreb, Croatia Croatia 2, Ukraine 2

GP W Greece 6 4 Switzerland 6 4 Latvia 6 3 Israel 6 2 Luxembourg 6 1 Moldova 6 0 No games scheduled

D 1 1 1 3 1 1

GROUP THREE GP W Slovakia 6 5 Northern Ireland7 4 Poland 6 3 Czech Republic 6 2 Slovenia 6 2 San Marino 7 0

D 0 1 1 2 2 0

Saturday’s Game At Bratislava, Slovakia Slovakia 7, San Marino 0

L 1 1 2 1 4 5

L 1 2 2 2 2 7

GF GA 12 4 11 6 10 6 10 8 3 13 2 11

GF GA 17 6 12 6 18 7 6 4 5 4 1 32

Pts 13 13 10 9 4 1

Pts 15 13 10 8 8 0

GROUP SEVEN GP Serbia 6 France 5 Lithuania 7 Austria 6 Romania 6 Faeroe Islands 4

W 5 3 3 2 2 0

D 0 1 0 1 1 1

L 1 1 4 3 3 3

GF GA 13 5 7 6 6 6 7 8 7 10 1 5

Pts 15 10 9 7 7 1

Wednesday’s Game At Torshavn, Faeroe Islands Faeroe Islands vs. Serbia, 2:15 p.m. W 4 3 1 1 0 0

D 2 4 5 2 4 3

L 0 0 0 3 2 4

GROUP NINE

GP q-Netherlands 6 Scotland 5 Iceland 6 Macedonia 5 Norway 4

W 6 2 1 1 0

D 0 1 1 1 3

L 0 2 4 3 1

GF GA 14 2 4 6 6 10 2 7 2 3

Pts 18 7 4 4 3

Wednesday’s Games At Skopje, Macedonia Macedonia vs. Iceland, 11:45 a.m. At Rotterdam, Netherlands Netherlands vs. Norway, 2:45 p.m. SOUTH AMERICA Top four teams qualify Fifth-place team advances to playoff against CONCACAF fourth place GP W D L GF GA Brazil 13 6 6 1 23 5 Paraguay 13 7 3 3 19 11 Chile 13 7 2 4 19 14 Argentina 13 6 4 3 19 13 Uruguay 13 4 5 4 21 14 Venezuela 13 5 1 7 15 22 Colombia 13 3 5 5 6 11 Ecuador 12 3 5 4 14 19 Bolivia 13 3 3 7 19 26 Peru 12 1 4 7 6 26

GF GA 9 3 8 5 6 4 6 9 5 8 4 9

Pts 14 13 8 5 4 3

Pts 24 24 23 22 17 16 14 14 12 7

W 4 4 2

D 2 2 1

L 0 0 3

Saturday, June 20 At Nairobi, Kenya Kenya vs. Mozambique, 9 a.m. At Rades, Tunisia Tunisia vs. Nigeria, 1:10 p.m. GROUP C

D 2 2 1 4 1

Zambia Egypt Algeria Rwanda L 0 2 2 1 6

GF GA 11 3 7 5 8 8 6 6 6 16

Pts 14 11 10 7 1

Wednesday’s Games At Seoul, South Korea South Korea vs. Saudi Arabia, 7 a.m. At Tehran, Iran Iran vs. United Arab Emirates, 10:30 a.m.

AFRICA FINALS Winners qualify GROUP A GP Gabon 2 Togo 2 Morocco 1 Cameroon 1

GF GA 9 3 8 0 5 6

W 2 1 0 0

D 0 0 0 0

L 0 1 1 1

GF GA 5 1 1 3 1 2 0 1

Pts 6 3 0 0

Pts 14 14 7

W 2 0 0 0

D 0 1 1 0

L 0 1 0 1

L 0 0 0 2

GF GA 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 1

Pts 4 1 1 1

L 0 1 1 1

GF GA 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 1

Pts 3 1 1 0

L 0 0 1 2

GF GA 5 2 5 0 2 4 0 6

Pts 6 3 0 0

Today’s Game At Blida, Algeria Algeria vs. Egypt, 3:30 p.m.

Sunday, July 5 At Cairo, Egypt Egypt vs. Rwanda, 2:30 p.m. GROUP D Ghana Mali Sudan Benin

GP 1 1 1 1

W 1 0 0 0

D 0 0 0 0

Saturday, June 20 At Omdurman, Sudan Sudan vs. Ghana, 1 p.m. Sunday, June 21 At Bamako, Mali Mali vs. Benin, 3 p.m.

Burkina Faso Ivory Coast Guinea Malawi

GF GA 4 1 0 2 0 0 1 2

GP 2 1 1 2

W 2 1 0 0

D 0 0 0 0

Saturday’s Game At Blantyre, Malawi Burkina Faso 1, Malawi 0

Saturday, June 20 At Libreville, Gabon Gabon vs. Cameroon, 10:30 a.m. At Rabat, Morocco Morocco vs. Togo, noon GP 2 2 1 1

D 1 1 1 1

Saturday’s Game At Chililabombwe, Zambia Zambia 1, Rwanda 0

GROUP E

Today’s Game At Yaounde, Cameroon Cameroon vs. Morocco, 10:30 a.m.

Tunisia Mozambique Nigeria Kenya

W 1 0 0 0

Today’s Games At Contonou, Benin Benin vs. Sudan, 11 a.m. At Bamako, Mali Mali vs. Ghana, 3 p.m.

Saturday’s Game At Libreville, Gabon Gabon 3, Togo 0

GROUP B

GP 2 1 1 2

Saturday, June 20 At Chililabombwe, Zambia Zambia vs. Algeria, 8 a.m.

Saturday’s Games At Pyongyang, North Korea North Korea 0, Iran 0 At Dubai, United Arab Emirates South Korea 2, United Arab Emirates 0

Wednesday, June 17 At Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia vs. North Korea At Seoul, South Korea South Korea vs. Iran

ASIA FINALS Top two teams in each group qualify Third-place teams in each group advance to playoff GP 6 6 6

W 4 3 3 1 0

Saturday’s Game At Rades, Tunisia Tunisia 2, Mozambique 0 Today’s Game At Abuja, Nigeria Nigeria vs. Kenya, noon

Wednesday’s Games At Sydney Australia vs. Bahrain, 5 a.m. At Yokohama, Japan Japan vs. Qatar, 6:20 a.m.

GP q-South Korea 6 North Korea 7 Saudi Arabia 6 Iran 6 Utd Arab Emir. 7

Wednesday’s Games At Quito, Ecuador Ecuador vs. Argentina, 5 p.m. At Recife, Brazil Brazil vs. Paraguay, 7:50 p.m. At Medellin, Colombia Colombia vs. Peru, 7 p.m. At Santiago, Chile Chile vs. Bolivia, 9 p.m. At Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela Venezuela vs. Uruguay, 9 p.m.

q-Japan q-Australia Bahrain

Saturday’s Games At Tashkent, Uzbekistan Japan 1, Uzbekistan 0 At Doha, Qatar Qatar 0, Australia 0

GROUP B

Today’s Game At Lima, Peru Peru vs. Ecuador, 4:30 p.m.

GROUP A

7 1 2 4 4 13 5 7 1 1 5 5 9 4

Wednesday, June 17 At Manama, Bahrain Bahrain vs. Uzbekistan At Melbourne, Australia Australia vs. Japan

Saturday’s Games At Montevideo, Uruguay Brazil 4 , Uruguay 0 At La Paz, Bolivia Venezuela 1, Bolivia 0 At Buenos Aires, Argentina Argentina 1, Colombia 0 At Asuncion, Paraguay Chile 2, Paraguay 0

Saturday’s Games At Marijampole, Lithuania Romania 1, Lithuania 0 At Belgrade, Serbia Serbia 1, Austria 0

GROUP EIGHT GP Italy 6 Ireland 7 Bulgaria 6 Cyprus 6 Montenegro 6 Georgia 7

Qatar Uzbekistan

Saturday’s Games At Sofia, Bulgaria Bulgaria 1, Ireland 1 At Larnaca, Cyprus Cyprus 2, Montenegro 2

Saturday’s Games At Skopje, Macedonia Macedonia 0, Norway 0 At Reykjavik, Iceland Netherlands 2, Iceland 1

Wednesday’s Games At Kiev, Ukraine Ukraine vs. Kazakhstan, 1 p.m. At Wembley, England England vs. Andorra, 3:15 p.m.

Saturday’s Games At Stockholm Denmark 1, Sweden 0 At Tirana, Albania Portugal 2, Albania 1

GROUP TWO

GF GA 18 4 9 3 8 7 5 7 0 5 1 15

Saturday’s Games At Baku, Azerbaijan Wales 1, Azerbaijan 0 At Helsinki Finland 2, Liechtenstein 1 Wednesday’s Game At Helsinki Finland vs. Russia, 1:30 p.m.

EUROPE Winners qualify Top eight second-place teams advance to European playoffs

Shinji Okazaki, left, Yoshito Okubo and Japan qualified for the World Cup with a 1-0 victory over Uzbekistan.

GROUP FOUR GP Germany 6 Russia 5 Finland 5 Wales 7 Azerbaijan 5 Liechtenstein 6

Wednesday, June 3 At San Jose, Costa Rica Costa Rica 3, United States 1

Wednesday’s Games At San Pedro Sula, Honduras Honduras vs. El Salvador, 9:30 p.m. At Mexico City Mexico vs. Trinidad and Tobago, 10 p.m.

The Netherlands, Japan, Australia and South Korea became the first nations to qualify for next year’s World Cup, joining host South Africa in the 32-nation field. The Netherlands grabbed Europe’s first berth, winning 2-1 at Iceland on goals by Nigel de Jong and Mark van Bommel. Earlier in Asia, Japan became the first team to qualify for the second straight tournament, winning 1-0 at Uzbekistan on a ninth-minute goal by Shinji Okazaki. It will be the fourth straight World Cup appearance for the Japanese. Australia will appear for the second straight time following a 0-0 tie at Qatar, the Socceroos’ sixth consecutive shutout in the Asian finals.

31

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

Sunday’s Game At Conakry, Guinea Guinea vs. Ivory Coast, 1 p.m. Pts 6 1 1 0

Saturday, June 20 At Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Burkina Faso vs. Ivory Coast, 2 p.m. Sunday, June 21 At Conakry, Guinea Guinea vs. Malawi, 1 p.m.

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College Baseball

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

NCAA SUPER REGIONALS

Super Regionals glance

Darr sparks Razorbacks with homer, game-winning double TALLAHASSEE, FLA.—Andrew Darr’s two-run double in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted Arkansas to a 9-8 NCAA super regional win Saturday over Florida State and a berth in the College World Series. Darr, who was hitting just .215 coming in, had four of Arkansas’ 10 hits, including his fourth homer. Arkansas (39-22) returns to the CWS in Omaha, Neb., for the first time since 2004 when it also beat Florida State in the super regionals. Arkansas’ Stephen Richards (6-1) got the win. Florida State 000 140 003 — 8 10 2 Arkansas 000 100 512 — 9 10 0 Busch, Parker (7), Gast (7), Marshall (7), Peterson (8), Posey (8) and Lopez. Eibner, Forest (5), Richards (8) and McCann. W: Richards, 6-1. L: Posey, 0-1. HRs: Arkansas, Wilkins 18, Darr 4. Florida State, McGee 19.

LSU 5, Rice 3 BATON ROUGE, LA.—Louis Coleman pitched eight strong innings, Derek Helenihi drove in two runs and LSU beat Rice to win the super regional and clinch the Tigers’ 15th College World Series appearance. Coleman scattered nine hits, struck out five and kept Rice from scoring in the seventh and eighth innings while LSU (51-16) clung to a two-run lead. Matty Ott pitched the ninth, striking out Brock Holt with a man on base to wrap up his 16th save. Helenihi drove in a run in the fourth inning with a single, and hit a solo homer in the sixth. LSU 100 121 000 — 5 10 1 Rice 001 101 000 — 3 9 0 Coleman, Ott (9) and Gibbs; Berry, Rogers (6) and Manuel. W: Coleman, 13-2. L: Berry, 7-2. Sv: Ott (16). HRs: LSU, Helenihi (4). Rice, Holt (12), Seastrunk (7).

Cal State Fullerton 11, Louisville 2 FULLERTON, CALIF.—Jared Clark homered and drove in three runs and Noe

Ramirez struck out a career-high 10 over eight innings, sending Cal State Fullerton to the College World Series. Fullerton (47-14) has won its five NCAA tournament contests by a combined score of 64-11.

At Dick Howser Stadium Tallahassee, Fla. Friday Arkansas 7, Florida State 2 Saturday Arkansas 9, Florida State 8

At Alex Box Stadium Baton Rouge, La. Friday LSU 12, Rice 9 Saturday LSU 5, Rice 3

LSU advances to College World Series

At UFCU Disch-Falk Field

Austin, Texas Saturday Texas 10, TCU 4 Today TCU (39-17) vs. Texas (45-13-1), 3 p.m. Monday TCU vs. Texas, 1 or 7 p.m., if necessary

North Carolina 10, East Carolina 1 CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—Alex White struck out a career-high 12 while getting plenty of help at the plate as North Carolina beat East Carolina to open their NCAA super regional series. Kyle Seager had four hits and a home run for the Tar Heels (46-16), the No. 4 national seed. North Carolina went ahead with a pair of runs in the third inning, then blew the game open with seven more in the sixth.

At McKethan Stadium

Gainesville, Fla. Saturday Southern Mississippi 9, Florida 7 Today Southern Mississippi (39-4) vs. Florida (42-21), 7 p.m. Monday Southern Mississippi vs. Florida, 1 or 7 p.m., if necessary

At Boshamer Stadium

Chapel Hill, N.C. Saturday North Carolina 10, East Carolina 1 Today East Carolina (46-19) vs. North Carolina (46-16), Noon Monday East Carolina vs. North Carolina, 1 or 7 p.m., if necessary

East Carolina 010 000 000 — 1 9 1 North Carolina 002 007 01x — 10 17 1 Maness, Somer (6), Cole (9) and Avchen, Wright; White, Striz (9) and Fleury. W: White, 8-4. L: Maness, 9-3. HRs: East Carolina, Henderson (13). North Carolina: K.Seager (5).

Mississippi 200 001 000 — 3 6 2 Virginia 001 100 02x — 4 8 2 Pomeranz (7) and Goforth; Morey (6), Carraway (8) and Packer. W: Carraway, 8-1. L: Goforth, 1-1. Sv: Packer (3). HR: Mississippi, Power (7).

All times ET (Best-of-3)

Arkansas advances to College World Series

Cal State Fullerton 410 010 500 — 11 12 1 Louisville 010 100 000 — 2 5 1 No.Ramirez, Ni.Ramirez (9) and Garneau; Marks, Self (5), Logsdon (7), Shaw (9) and Arnold, Cheesebrough (8). W: No.Ramirez, 9-1. L: Marks, 11-3. HR: Cal State Fullerton, Clark (12). Louisville, Dominguez 2 (25).

Virginia 4, Mississippi 3 OXFORD, MISS.—Robert Morey pitched four hitless innings after giving up two runs on his first three pitches and Virginia took advantage of an eighth-inning error to keep its bid for the College World Series alive with a win over Mississippi. An errant throw by second baseman Evan Button helped Virginia (47-13-1) to a two-run eighth inning when Franco Valdes drove in one run and John Barr beat out a doubleplay attempt to put the Cavs ahead.

32

At Packard Stadium BILL FEIG / AP

Louisiana State OF Leon Landry leaps on the pile during the postgame celebration that put his team in the College World Series on Saturday. Southern Miss 9, Florida 7 GAINESVILLE, FLA.—Corey Stevens drove in three runs, reliever Jonathan Johnston pitched 3 2-3 scoreless innings and Southern Mississippi beat Florida in their super regional opener. The Golden Eagles (39-24) are one win away from their first CWS berth. So. Mississippi 011 034 000 — 9 12 1 Florida 004 020 001 — 7 12 1 Ballinger, Schlagel (4), Johnston (5), Cargill (9) and Graves. Locke, Keating (5), Larson (7), Davis (8), Poovey (9) and Foster and Munroe (6). W: Johnston, 1-0. L: Keating, 4-4. Sv: Cargill (12). HRs: Southern Miss, Vollmuth (7). Florida, Foster (7).

Texas 10, TCU 4 AUSTIN, TEXAS—Michael Torres hit two home runs and had four RBIs to lead top-seeded Texas past TCU 1in the opening game of the best-ofthree super regional series. Torres, who was 4 for 5, hit a solo homer in the second, giving the Longhorns (45-13-1) a 3-1 lead. His 3-run homer in the seventh broke it open. TCU 100 102 000 — 4 7 1 Texas 210 102 40x — 10 12 0 Winkler, Miller (6), Appleby (6), Maxwell (8) and Holaday; Ruffin and Rupp. W: Ruffin, 10-2. L: Winkler, 7-1. HRs: TCU, Featherston (5), Carpenter (10), Vern (16). Texas, Torres 2 (4).

Arizona State 7, Clemson 4 TEMPE, ARIZ.—Carlos Ramirez singled three times and drove in three runs to help Arizona State beat Clemson in its super regional opener. After the Tigers rallied from two down to tie it, Matt Newman doubled to bring home Ramirez for the go-ahead run in the seventh inning. Clemson 001 010 200 — 4 9 1 Arizona St. 100 021 12x — 7 14 2 Harman, Stoneburner (6), Hinson (8) and Nester; Leake, Lambson (9) and Ramirez. W: Leake 16-1. L: Stoneburner 7-4. Sv: Lambson (5). HR: Arizona St., Kipnis (16).

— The Associated Press

Tempe, Ariz. Saturday Arizona State 7, Clemson 4 Today Clemson (44-21) vs. Arizona State (48-12), 10 p.m. Monday Clemson vs. Arizona State, 7 p.m., if necessary

At Oxford-University Stadium

Oxford, Miss. Friday Mississippi 4, Virginia 3, 12 innings Saturday Virginia 4, Mississippi 3 Today Virginia (47-13-1) vs. Mississippi (44-19), 3 p.m.

At Goodwin Field

Fullerton, Calif. Friday Cal State Fullerton 12, Louisville 0 Saturday Cal State Fullerton 11, Louisville 2 Cal State Fullerton advances to College World Series

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Horse Racing

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

33

BELMONT STAKES

Summer Bird ‘broke like a rocket’ to pull upset NEW YORK—This was a Belmont for the Birds. It was Summer Bird, not Mine That Bird and jockey Calvin Borel, who came roaring down the long stretch and won the final jewel of the Triple Crown on Saturday. For a brief moment on the turn for home, Borel looked like a winner. His tough little gelding took the lead, and even Borel believed his victory guarantee was assured. “I thought I was home free,” he said, “but the other horses galloped by.” They sure did. With the crowd of 52,861 cheering on the leaders in the stretch, Mine That Bird passed Dunkirk. But it was Summer Bird who pulled away from them both for a 2¾-length victory, with Dunkirk second and Mine That Bird third in the field of 10 3-year-olds The upset ended Borel’s bid to become the first jockey to win a personal Triple Crown, and he failed to deliver on a guarantee of victory in the Belmont Stakes. Borel won the Kentucky Derby aboard Mine That Bird, then took the Preakness with the filly Rachel Alexandra. Summer Bird, sent off at 11-1 odds, gave jockey Kent Desormeaux a Belmont victory he desperately wanted. “I hope from now on we’ll talk about winning one,” Desormeaux said. Last year, he won the Derby and Preakness aboard Big Brown, only to have to pull up the colt in the Belmont. And in 1998, he brought Real Quiet into the Belmont for a Triple try only to get beat by Victory Gallop by a nose in a heartbreaking defeat.

Charitable Man was fourth Saturday, followed by Luv Gov, Flying Private, Brave Victory, Mr. Hot Stuff, Chocolate Candy and Miner’s Escape. The winning time for the 1½ miles was 2:27.54. The Triple Crown season ended the way it started—with an upset. Mine That Bird was all but discounted in the Derby, but won at 50-1 odds—and his 6¾-length winning margin was the largest in 63 years. Two weeks later, Borel was obligated to ride Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness for new owner Jess Jackson, and the filly beat Mine That Bird by a length. In the Belmont, Mine That Bird was sent off as the 6-5 favorite, but he seemed a bit more frisky than usual in the paddock and on the walk through the tunnel to the track. And he was a little too eager in the race, pulling Borel into contention sooner than anyone expected. “He might have been a hair higher today coming in here, just a little more amped up,” Mine That Bird trainer Chip Woolley said, “but overall he was the same horse I led up in the Derby. He ran a great race and just got beat, and you have to accept that and go on.” Summer Bird, meanwhile, looked almost regal before the start. The chestnut son of 2004 Belmont winner Birdstone—the same sire as Mine That Bird—took the rail route before breaking outside and into the clear. “The colt broke like a rocket,” Desormeaux said. “He absolutely dragged me around the race track. I had an armchair ride until I found some room. I found room.”

PETER MORGAN / AP

Jockey Kent Desormeaux won the 141st running of the Belmont Stakes atop Summer Bird, a year after pulling up lame while riding Big Brown. Summer Bird won the Belmont in just his fifth career start. Summer Bird, trained by the recently licensed Tim Ice, returned $25.80. $9.30 and $4.70. Dunkirk paid $5.40 and $3.60, and Mine That Bird returned $2.60 to show. Ice seemed stunned by his colt’s accomplishment. “Right now it’s just unexplainable,” he said. “If my career goes nowhere from here, I’ve got a Belmont win.” — The Associated Press

Results Stake Value Of Race $1,000,000. Value To Winner $600,000; Second $200,000; Third $100,000; Fourth $60,000; Fifth $30,000. HORSE WGT PP ¼ ½ 1M 1¼ STR FIN JOCKEY TO $1 Summer Bird 126 4 5-1 6-1 9-2 4-1 4-5 1-2¾ Desormeaux 11.90 Dunkirk 126 2 1-1½ 1-1 1-1 3-2½ 2-1 2-nk Velazquez 4.60 Mine That Bird 126 7 10 10 8-½ 1-½ 1-½ 3-3¾ Borel 1.25 Charitable Man 126 6 4-½ 4-1½ 3-1 2-1 3-1½ 4-3¾ Garcia 4.60 Luv Gov 126 5 9-3 9-1 10 7-½ 6-2 5-4½ Mena 22.40 Flying Private 126 8 6-½ 5-½ 6-½ 5-1½ 5-½ 6-2 Leparoux 17.30 Brave Victory 126 10 8-1 8-2 5-1 9-½ 8-2½ 7-1¼ Maragh 27.50 Mr. Hot Stuff 126 3 3-1½ 3-½ 4-1 6-½ 7-1 8-7 Prado 22.60 Chocolate Candy 126 1 7-1 7-½ 7-½ 8-2 9-14 9-29¾ Gomez 9.50 Miner’s Escape 126 9 2-1 2-1 2-½ 10 10 10 Lezcano 22.00

Belmont Stakes winners 2009: Summer Bird 2008: Da’Tara 2007: Rags to Riches 2006: Jazil 2005: Afleet Alex 2004: Birdstone 2003: Empire Maker 2002: Sarava 2001: Point Given 2000: Commendable 1999: Lemon Drop Kid 1998: Victory Gallop 1997: Touch Gold 1996: Editor’s Note 1995: Thunder Gulch 1994: Tabasco Cat 1993: Colonial Affair 1992: A.P. Indy 1991: Hansel 1990: Go and Go 1989: Easy Goer 1988: Risen Star 1987: Bet Twice 1986: Danzig Connection 1985: Creme Fraiche 1984: Swale 1983: Caveat 1982: Conquistador Cielo 1981: Summing 1980: Temperance Hill 1979: Coastal 1978: Affirmed 1977: Seattle Slew 1976: Bold Forbes 1975: Avatar 1974: Little Current 1973: Secretariat 1972: Riva Ridge 1971: Pass Catcher 1970: High Echelon 1969: Arts And Letters 1968: Stage Door Johnny 1967: Damascus 1966: Amberoid 1965: Hail To All 1964: Quadrangle 1963: Chateaugay 1962: Jaipur 1961: Sherluck 1960: Celtic Ash 1959: Sword Dancer 1958: Cavan 1957: Gallant Man 1956: Needles 1955: Nashua 1954: High Gun 1953: Native Dancer 1952: One Count 1951: Counterpoint 1950: Middleground 1949: Capot 1948: Citation 1947: Phalanx 1946: Assault 1945: Pavot 1944: Bounding Home 1943: Count Fleet 1942: Shut Out 1941: Whirlaway 1940: Bimelech 1939: Johnstown 1938: Pasteurized

1937: War Admiral 1936: Granville 1935: Omaha 1934: Peace Chance 1933: Hurryoff 1932: Faireno 1931: Twenty Grand 1930: Gallant Fox 1929: Blue Larkspur 1928: Vito 1927: Chance Shot 1926: Crusader 1925: American Flag 1924: Mad Play 1923: Zev 1922: Pillory 1921: Grey Lag 1920: Man o’War 1919: Sir Barton 1918: Johren 1917: Hourless 1916: Friar Rock 1915: The Finn 1914: Luke McLuke 1913: Prince Eugene 1912: Not held. 1911: Not held. 1910: Sweep 1909: Joe Madden 1908: Colin 1907: Peter Pan 1906: Burgomaster 1905: Tanya 1904: Delhi 1903: Africander 1902: Masterman 1901: Commando 1900: Ildrum 1899: Jean Bereaud 1898: Bowling Brook 1897: Scottish Chieftain 1896: Hastings 1895: Belmar 1894: Henry of Navarre 1893: Comanche 1892: Patron 1891: Foxford 1890: Burlington 1889: Eric 1888: Sir Dixon 1887: Hanover 1886: Inspector B. 1885: Tyrant 1884: Panique 1883: George Kinney 1882: Forester 1881: Saunterer 1880: Grenada 1879: Spendthrift 1878: Duke of Magenta 1877: Cloverbrook 1876: Algerine 1875: Calvin 1874: Saxon 1873: Springbok 1872: Joe Daniels 1871: Harry Bassett 1870: Kingfisher 1869: Fenian 1868: General Duke 1867: Ruthless

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Back Page

SUNDAY, JUNE 07, 2009

34

IN BRIEF TRANSACTIONS

At Texas, third time again the charm for Castroneves FORT WORTH, TEXAS—Helio Castroneves is now a three-time Texas winner, too. Castroneves, who last month won the Indianapolis 500 for the third time, beat Penske teammate Ryan Briscoe off pit row on the final stop and held on for the final 46 laps Saturday night to win at Texas Motor Speedway. Briscoe was dominating the race, with more than a 10-second lead before a caution flag on the 150th of the 228 laps bunched the field after an extended stretch of green-flag racing. Castroneves worked past Marco Andretti after that restart and was on the tail of his teammate when A.J. Foyt IV crashed 15 laps later. When everybody went into the pits for the final time, Castroneves had a 6-second stop, beating Briscoe and Scott Dixon out by more than a half-second. Castroneves’ winning margin was 0.39 seconds. “It feels fantastic,” Castroneves said. “The last pit stop, I jumped in the front and that was it. That was incredible. ... It was pedal to the metal, let’s drive like we stole it.” It was the 16th career victory for Castroneves, whose racing career was in jeopardy earlier this year because of a federal tax evasion trial before a jury acquitted him on most charges. The remaining count was finally thrown out before his Indy win. Briscoe finished second for the second consecutive week, though took over the season points lead from Scott Dixon, who had won two of the last three races. Marco Andretti was fourth and polesitter Dario Franchitti, the Ganassi teammate of Dixon, finished

fifth. Danica Patrick was sixth, ending her streak of four consecutive top-five finishes. Castroneves climbed the fence again after winning at Texas for the third time the last six races. Penske has won four of the last six on the 1½-mile, high-banked oval and has five victories overall, matching Panther Racing for the most by a team.

Major League Soccer EASTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA Chicago 5 2 6 21 20 17 D.C. 4 2 7 19 20 17 Columbus 3 2 7 16 17 17 Kansas City 4 5 4 16 16 16 Toronto FC 4 5 4 16 17 21 New England 3 3 4 13 10 17 New York 2 8 3 9 12 18 WESTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA Chivas 8 3 2 18 9 27 Houston 6 3 2 15 7 21 Seattle 4 5 3 15 10 17 Colorado 4 5 2 17 14 17 Los Angeles 2 9 1 15 14 15 Real Salt Lake 3 3 6 16 16 12 Dallas 2 3 6 12 17 9 San Jose 2 2 7 12 22 8 NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie. Thursday’s Games Wednesday’s Game D.C. United 2, New York 0 Chivas USA at Houston, 8:30 p.m. Friday’s Games Saturday, June 13 Houston 1, Chicago 0 Chicago at D.C. United, 7:30 p.m. Saturday’s Games New York at Toronto FC, 8 p.m. Los Angeles 2, Toronto FC 1 Houston at FC Dallas, 8:30 p.m. Columbus 2, Kansas City 0 New England at Kansas City, 8:30 Real Salt Lake 1, Colorado 1, tie p.m. Chivas 1, Seattle 0 Real Salt Lake at Los Angeles, 10:30 Today’s Games p.m. San Jose at FC Dallas, 3 p.m. San Jose at Seattle FC, 10:30 p.m. New York at New England, 6 p.m. Sunday, June 14 Chivas USA at Columbus, 3 p.m.

Boxing LONDON—David Haye hopes his world heavyweight title fight against Wladimir Klitschko can be rescheduled for July. The British fighter pulled out of the scheduled June 20 bout against the IBF and WBO champion on Wednesday after injuring his back in training. The fight was scheduled to take place before a sellout crowd of more than 60,000 at Schalke’s soccer stadium in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Haye’s manager, Adam Booth, said Thursday the boxer was returning to Britain for treatment and hoped a new fight date would be arranged. “It looks like there will be only a three-week delay from the original fight date, which hopefully means that Wladimir will only postpone the fight, rather than cancel it,” Booth said in statement. Haye is 22-1 and has recently moved up from cruiserweight. Klitschko, considered the best of the heavyweights, is 52-3.

Golf SPRINGFIELD, ILL.—Cristie Kerr made a big jump into a tie for the lead with Kristy McPherson at the State Farm

TONY GUTIERREZ / AP

Helio Castroneves hit the winner’s circle at Texas Motor Speedway in style. Classic, delivering a dominant showing before a late fade in the windy third round. Four strokes back after the second round, Kerr settled for a 6-under 66 after bogeying two of the final three holes. Then, McPherson (69) stumbled at the end, bogeying her final two holes, and that left them tied at 12-under 204 heading into the last round in the final tuneup for next week’s LPGA Championship at Bulle Rock. LAKEWAY, TEXAS—Bernhard Langer shot a 3-under 69 in warm conditions to maintain a one-stroke lead

after the second round of the Triton Financial Classic. The German star, a two-time winner this year on the Champions Tour, had a 10-under 134 total on The Hills Country Club course. NEWPORT, WALES—England’s Nick Dougherty eagled the final hole for a 1-under 70 and a share of the Wales Open during the rain-delayed third round. Denmark’s Jeppe Huldahl (68) and Spain’s Ignacio Garrido (71) matched Dougherty at 5-under 208s. — The Associated Press

WNBA All Times ET EASTERN CONFERENCE W 1 1 0 0 0 0 0

L 0 0 0 1 1 1 1

Pct 1.000 1.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000

GB — — ½ 1 1 1 1

Los Angeles Minnesota Phoenix Seattle Sacramento San Antonio

W 1 1 1 1 0 0

L 0 0 0 0 1 1

Pct 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 .000 .000

GB — — — — 1 1

Saturday’s Games Los Angeles 78, Detroit 58 Seattle 71, Sacramento 61 Washington 82, Connecticut 70 Atlanta 87, Indiana 86, 2OT Minnesota 102, Chicago 85 Phoenix 90, San Antonio 79

Today’s Games Atlanta at Washington, 4 p.m. Connecticut at New York, 4 p.m. Minnesota at Indiana, 7 p.m. Sacramento at Seattle, 9 p.m. Monday’s Games Los Angeles at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.

Atlanta Washington New York Chicago Connecticut Detroit Indiana WESTERN CONFERENCE

BASEBALL American League DETROIT TIGERS: Activated OF Marcus Thames from the 15-day DL. Optioned 1B Jeff Larish to Toledo (IL). KANSAS CITY ROYALS: Recalled RHP Luke Hochevar from Omaha (PCL). Designated LHP Horacio Ramirez for assignment. National League CINCINNATI REDS: Recalled LHP Matt Maloney from Louisville (IL). Optioned C Wilkin Castillo to Louisville. NEW YORK METS: Activated OF Ryan Church from the 15-day DL. Designated OF Emil Brown for assignment. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS: Recalled RHP Blake Hawksworth from Memphis (PCL). Optioned RHP Jess Todd to Memphis. Eastern League TRENTON THUNDER: Announced RHP Eric Wordekemper was assigned to Staten Island (NYP). Activated RHP Ivan Nova. American Association FORT WORTH CATS: Signed C Matt Combs. Released C Adam Miller. SHREVEPORT-BOSSIER CAPTAINS: Released LHP Jorge Lugo. SIOUX FALLS CANARIES: Released OF Ben Van Iderstine. Can-Am League QUEBEC CAPITALES: Released RHP Orlando Trias. United League RIO GRANDE VALLEY WHITEWINGS: Signed LHP Jorge Lugo. BASKETBALL National Basketball Association NEW ORLEANS HORNETS: Announced the resignation of assistant coach Kenny Gattison. FOOTBALL National Football League SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS: Signed LS Brian Jennings to a five-year contract extension. Canadian Football League WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS: Agreed to terms with WR Terrence Edwards on a contract extension. Released QB Ryan Dinwiddie, DB Derrick Strait, WR Ivan Birungi and LB Bryan Wilson.