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Big Ben's Wednesday Rumors & Notes

Baseball Rumors & Notes

To watch the Mets is to sense that something terribly important is missing. What's missing is passion for a common goal. Sharing a goal requires coming together, and the Mets look more like a collection of players than a team. Most of the players have proven themselves as ballplayers, have attained financial security for generations, and by all appearances have lost their edge.

The Yankees closed the doors to their clubhouse an hour before last night's game, and Joe Torre ripped into his team for what he labeled a lack of concentration, execution and hustle, according to team sources. The Bombers then ripped the Orioles.

Statistics may indicate a potential physical problem with Pedro Martinez, but pitching coach Tony Cloninger believes the Red Sox ace when he says there is nothing wrong with his shoulder.

Royce Clayton has been replaced as the White Sox starting shortstop, and he's not happy. "At this point, there's nothing I can do," he told Chicago reporters. "I can't trade myself to a team that wants a (good) shortstop. I'm a Chicago White Sox."

Andy Pettitte could make his return to the Yankees rotation a week from tonight against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Cardinals placed starting pitcher Garrett Stephenson on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday for the second time this season because of acute pain believed related to a hamstring condition that has plagued him since spring training. Bud Smith was recalled from Class AAA Memphis to replace Stephenson on the roster.

Pittsburgh Pirates first-base coach Tommy Sandt on the Expos leaving Montreal: "The only thing I'll miss about it is leaving," said Sandt. "When we leave here, it'll be my happiest day of the season. I'll feel joy about not having to come back."

Detroit Rookie Ramon Santiago led off the first inning with a home run Tuesday night and made Tigers history. He became the first Tiger to hit the first three homers of his career within a two-game span. He's the 15th big leaguer to do it, and the first since Pittsburgh infielder Freddy Garcia in 1997. He became the third Tiger to hit first-inning leadoff homers in consecutive games. The others were Dick McAuliffe in 1969 and Lou Whitaker in 1983.

Sophomore Jinx? Not for Ichiro, who at 28 is just entering his prime. Through Sunday he was riding an 11-game hitting streak and leading the majors with a .375 batting average. His on-base percentage had improved by 65 points to .446, which also leads the league by a wide margin.

Ivan Rodriguez, Frank Catalanotto and Jay Powell are all likely to be activated off the disabled list by the Texas Rangers this weekend, which will put the Rangers close to having their Opening Day lineup for the first time since mid-April. They are 23-33 and have lost 14 of their past 19 games. The only American League teams with worse records are Toronto, Tampa Bay, Kansas City and Detroit.

Twins SS Cristian Guzman is supposed to report for rehab five days a week. When he wasn't in the trainer's room at 3 p.m., Manager Ron Gardenhire yanked him from the lineup.

"He has a responsibility to this team," Gardenhire said. "He has to be accountable. He didn't make it in today so he is automatically out. You don't show up, you are out. It's automatic."

Jason Giambi of the Yankees is proud to be named Mr. May. Wonder if he thought about Dave Winfield.

Former Dodger Chan Ho Park woke up at 4:30 a.m. Pacific Time on Tuesday to watch his home team, South Korea, beat Poland 2-0 in World Cup soccer. It was the first ever World Cup win for the Koreans.

Derek Jeter had a 45-minute photo shoot at the Stadium yesterday afternoon with model Michelle Behennah. The photos will appear in "O" — Oprah Winfrey's magazine.

Pitcher Josh Beckett is the most exciting thing in the Marlins' organization, the golden child most capable of enduring greatness, all fluid efficiency and high-octane vapor . . . until that blister pops, short-circuiting everything. It is hard to appreciate the rose when your view keeps getting obstructed by the godforsaken thorn.

Confirmed heterosexual but gay-friendly New York Mets player Mike Piazza will get to enjoy a sampling of Atlanta's diversity tonight. The 85 members of the Atlanta Gay Men's Chorus will sing the national anthem before tonight's matchup at Turner Field.

The Twins had their starting second baseman back in the lineup Tuesday night for the first time since April 3.

Bobby Higginson didn't start Tuesday night for the Tigers because he had a wisdom tooth extracted Tuesday afternoon. "They had to cut into his gum," Manager Luis Pujols said.

The Mets had their first casualty of their poor start yesterday. Utility man Mark Johnson, a Dartmouth product, was designated for assignment, and the team called up Tony Tarasco from Triple-A Norfolk.

Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, who already owns the successful Double-A Round Rock Express, has submitted a bid to purchase the Rangers' Triple-A Oklahoma team. Gaylord Entertainment, which owns the RedHawks, recently accepted bids to purchase the team. There is no official timetable for closing the potential sale.

This Date in Baseball History: 1955: New York's Mickey Mantle hit a home run off Chicago's Billy Pierce that traveled an estimated 550 feet. The ball cleared the left field upper deck at Comiskey Park.

The Tribe's chartered jet was forced to stall for time Monday night while a runway was cleared at Twin Cities International Airport. An emergency arose when a plane landed without its landing gear being totally down and locked, closing one of the runways. The Indians' charter took a roundabout route to South Dakota before landing an hour late.

It wasn't huge news that the Pirates made Bryan Bullington the junior right-hander from Ball State University the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 draft. That had been the strong rumor for at least a couple of weeks. The real news will come when the Pirates sign Bullington. Which could be next week, next month or August.

B.J. Upton, regarded as draft's top player, gives Tampa Bay first star-caliber shortstop. Tampa also took troubled Hillsborough High outfielder Elijah Dukes and controversial but talented pitcher Matt Harrington. The Rays believe they have three potential impact players on the way in Rocco Baldelli, Carl Crawford and Josh Hamilton, but all three play the outfield.

Prince Fielder, a husky high-schooler from Florida who is the son of former big-league slugger Cecil Fielder was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers. Unlike his father, a three-time all-star, former American League home run champ and the only man ever to hit a ball completely out of County Stadium, Prince Fielder bats left-handed. He was rated by Baseball America Magazine as the top first baseman available in the draft and the 24th best prospect overall.

Scott Moore a shortstop at Cypress High in Orange County, Calif after the Tigers made him the eighth overall pick Tuesday in baseball's amateur draft. "My friends and I went out to buy seven Tigers caps," said Moore, "But we could only find four of the right sizes."

The Royals' first-round pick this season, Zach Greinke should be rested. Against the advice of some baseball observers, Greinke took off all of last summer, normally a time when draft hopefuls strut their stuff for scouts.

The Indians selected right-hander Jeremy Guthrie is said to be the most polished draft-eligible pitcher in this year's lottery of amateur players, which began Tuesday and concludes today. In 17 appearances for Stanford University, Guthrie is 11-1 with a 2.34 earned-run average and only 30 walks but 119 strikeouts in 134 1/3 innings. Guthrie's agent is Scott Boras.

Jeremy Hermida, a high school outfielder from Marietta, Ga., with the 11th overall pick by the Florida Marlins in Tuesday’s amateur baseball draft. The Marlins compare him to Paul O'Neill. He compares himself to the Dodgers Shawn Green.

The Rangers gave Alex Rodriguez a 10-Year $252 million dollar contract. So of course they took a college shortstop out of South Carolina with the 10th overall pick in the draft. Word is that Drew Meyer is polite and soft-spoken, and has a habit of baking fresh chocolate-chip cookies for the umpires before every game.

Matt Harrington was a 13th-round pick by the Rays. Last year he turned down the Rockies' top offer of $3.7-million, had a nasty split with agent Tommy Tanzer, pitched for St. Paul in the independent Northern League, signed on with agent Scott Boras, went back in the draft and turned down $1.25-million from the Padres when they took him in the second round last year, and is pitching his way back into shape with the Long Beach Breakers in the independent Western League.

This is Cole Hamels' story, and one of these days, it should become a Philadelphia story. The Phillies used their first-round pick - 17th overall - on Hamels yesterday, and some people will tell you it was a risky decision. Playing street football, he ran into a pickup truck and felt pain in his left arm. Despite the soreness, he continued to pitch in a San Diego area summer league. The pain did not go away. In his third summer-league start, his arm popped. He had a fractured humerus bone, the same injury that ended the careers of former major-league pitchers Dave Dravecky and Tony Saunders.

The Cardinals didn't select until the third round of Tuesday's first-year player draft but were still able to pick the player they most coveted, North Carolina prep shortstop Calvin Hayes. He demonstrated skills that invited comparisons to another North Carolina product, Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Pokey Reese.

On the first day of the amateur draft, Braves general manager John Schuerholz drafted his son, Jonathan, a shortstop at Auburn, in the eighth round with the 245th overall pick. Jonathan, a Lovett graduate, hit .302 with 17 RBIs this year but committed 16 errors (an .898 fielding percentage).

Pirates Manager Lloyd McClendon on the Baseball Draft: "If you look at the choices we had over the last five, six or seven years, we haven't had an opportunity to take the best player because we couldn't afford it. They never hit one ball to prove they're going to make it at this level. Things are out of hand. It's certainly an area they can shore things up and give the smaller markets a chance to sign their top picks."

Barry Bonds takes on the New York Yankees this weekend. Bonds or the Bronx Bombers, talk about a fan's nightmare.

NFL Rumors & Notes

The Chiefs were in jerseys and helmets for a practice session Tuesday morning, but two players who weren't in uniform drew the most attention. Tight end Tony Gonzalez, who carries the team's franchise tag but is looking to land a long-term deal, stopped by the Arrowhead practice facility and traded hellos with teammates and coaches. Gonzalez was joined on the sideline by free-agent wide receiver Keenan McCardell, a player the Chiefs have their eye on to help them fill a big hole. McCardell was released by Jacksonville in a salary cap-saving move Monday.

The Washington Redskins signed free agent defensive tackle Santana Dotson to a one-year contract yesterday. Club officials tentatively penciled in Dotson as a starter alongside tackle Dan Wilkinson, filling the biggest remaining hole on their defense, but NFL sources said the team will continue to pursue Pro Bowl defensive tackle Sam Adams in free agency.

The search for a backup defensive end may soon end. Dolphins officials are optimistic a contract agreement with Baltimore's Rob Burnett will be finalized this week.

In a move that had been anticipated, the New Orleans Saints released outside linebacker Keith Mitchell on Tuesday.

Linebacker Keith Mitchell, a salary-cap casualty of the New Orleans Saints, will visit the Houston Texans today and eventually could become the final piece of what would be a solid group of starting linebackers. Atlanta, Kansas City, Philadelphia and Detroit also are interested in Mitchell.

The Ravens are prepared to go on the offensive to hold on to their top two defensive players. After the agent for linebackers Ray Lewis and Peter Boulware said that he doesn't expect contract extensions to get done this year, the Ravens talked about their plans to keep both of them around for the next two seasons.

The Buccaneers have scheduled workouts for wide receivers Keenan McCardell and Derrick Alexander later this week.

Former Green Bay Packers general manager Ron Wolf was at minicamp on Tuesday but he said it wasn't to evaluate the team. Wolf, 63, is still under contract with the Packers as a consultant. He's in the second year of a three-year agreement that pays him $500,000 per year. But all of his former duties were inherited by coach Mike Sherman.

Tight end Alonzo Mayes' chances of making the Dolphins roster were damaged when he twisted his right ankle Monday night while running at home. At least that was Mayes' version. The Dolphins believe Mayes hurt himself playing basketball. Mayes denied that.

In an attempt to deepen their offensive line, the Rams signed veteran guard Heath Irwin on Tuesday. Irwin began his NFL career with the New England Patriots before playing for the Miami Dolphins.

Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said Kennison missed practice because he had to attend a hearing over a contract dispute with the Denver Broncos. Kennison was with Denver for eight games last season before leaving the team on the eve of its Nov. 11 game against San Diego. Denver released Kennison on Nov. 15, and he signed with the Chiefs on Dec. 3.

Don't mess with success. That is the prevailing theme from the Green Bay Packers when it comes to Pro Bowl running back and notorious lefty Ahman Green. The National Football League scouting report on the powerful and reliable Green is well known by now: he carries the ball in his left hand. Always. The fifth-year back cradled his carries in the crook of his left arm for a career-high 1,387 yards last season.

Maybe massive Cowboys offensive tackle Aaron Gibson gets it now. A disappointment for two and a half years in Detroit and for much of his stay in Dallas since being picked up midway through last season, the 6-foot-6, 380-pound Gibson is finally getting positive reviews for his work ethic.

Bruce Matthews is expected to retire but has yet to officially notify the Titans, nor has he turned in his retirement paperwork to the NFL. ''We'll try to touch base with him this week to see where he is on that,'' Jeff Fisher said. ''I'm sure he's been working out, and if for some reason he wanted to come back, I'm sure he could be ready.''

Cowboys offensive coordinator Bruce Coslet readily acknowledges that running back Emmitt Smith's chase for Walter Payton's NFL career rushing record will impact his play calling in 2002. To that end, Coslet said, "I'm going to try my best to get him the record as fast as we can get it."

Markus Steele from USC was a 4th round pick by the Cowboys last season. After Week 5, having finally rid themselves of the distraction known as Darren Hambrick, the Cowboys thrust Steele, into the starting lineup at strong-side linebacker. This year Steele will have to be patient as he backs up Kevin Hardy.

Former Redskins owner George Preston Marshall, was the last NFL owner to field an intergrated team, finally relenting in 1962.

Tony Siragusa former Raven on joining Fox Sports: "I like that the show is going to Saturday night, that we can get a bigger audience," Siragusa said. "This is going to be a perfect situation for myself, my personality. The booth isn't the place for me. I want to be on a show where I can be me, have fun, do crazy things ... and entertain people."

NBA Rumors & Notes

Byron Scott Nets Coach: "It seems like everything we did in the regular season didn't matter," Scott said. "Now that we are here, it has not changed. I know we are the biggest underdogs in the history of the NBA Finals. Once the guys heard that, the guys started smiling."

Phil Jackson was a Net once and a Net assistant once. But that's about as much as he is willing to admit to concerning his time in the Garden State. "I try not to think about my time in New Jersey as a player or a coach. Those are rather bleak times," said Jackson.

NBC's Bill Walton says New Jersey can pull the upset of upsets and dethrone the Lakers. "Because of Jason Kidd," said Walton, who then said the Nets are armed with ample motivation.

Shaquille O'Neal, 30, scored 76 points in the two games and vaulted the Lakers into position to win three straight NBA titles, a feat only the Minneapolis Lakers, Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls can boast. That feat would propel O'Neal into the rarefied air of NBA greats George Mikan, Bill Russell and Michael Jordan.

Four ways that the New Jersey Nets can beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals.

Jerry West the Memphis Grizzlies president of basketball operations previews tonight's start of the Lakers-Nets championship series.

Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal cautioned everyone that just because the Lakers, on paper, appear on the verge of steamrolling the Nets, things are not always as they appear.

"HOLLYWOOD VS. HACKENSACK" Finals matchup a contrast of LA's glitz vs. New Jersey's blue-and-gray gloom.

Sixers coach Larry Brown gives Nets coach Byron Scott advice on how to beat the Lakers in the NBA Finals.

Since 1991, when the Chicago Bulls won the first of their six NBA titles, no Eastern Conference team without somebody named Michael Jordan has won the title. The teams that failed included the New York Knicks twice, the Indiana Pacers and 76ers.

Shaq is still an Orlando guy (in the summer) -- make no mistake. Now 30, he says he'll retire to his Isleworth mansion, maybe with (ouch) a half-dozen titles, although he can't say when. His desire has always been sooner than later, preferring not to become a dinosaur on exhibit like Patrick Ewing. But Tuesday he said he would play past his current contract, which ends after the 2005-06 season "if I can get new max [maximum] money."

Game 7 of the Lakers-Kings Sunday night had a national rating of 14.4, the highest rating ever for a Western Conference telecast. It broke the previous record of 13.1 set on April 14, 1972, in Game 3 of the Lakers-Bucks series in a Western final.

Phil Jackson mentioned: the victory cigars Red Auerbach used to light when the Celtics were in control of a game. ''Lighting his cigar at the end of games and blowing smoke at the end of games irritated a lot of people,'' Jackson said. ''He was the kind of coach who irritated a lot of people in those days.'' He then paused, and added, ''and still is capable of doing it.''

One of the shops on Venice Beach was selling a bright yellow T-shirt yesterday that featured purple block letters declaring: "L.A. LAKERS VARSITY BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS 2001-2002" Sales were reported as "very brisk."

The Story of Nets Coach Byron Scott's real dad.

A final chance for NBA draft hopefuls to showcase their skills in a truly competitive environment begins today. But many of the players will pass on the opportunity. "A lot of players believe in a myth that if you're not in Chicago, that means you are above that group and you should be drafted ahead of those guys," Orlando Magic General Manager John Gabriel said. "That is not necessarily true."

The Rockets' next step toward taking Yao Ming with the first draft pick could be their longest. The Rockets hope to send a group of team officials to Shanghai, China, to meet with Chinese basketball officials, although there are no plans yet to work out Yao, and Rockets representatives may not even see him.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar coaches against his son who plays for the USBL's Brooklyn Kings.

After coaching more than 1,200 games in 30 seasons of basketball, winning an NCAA title at Kansas, and leading the 76ers to the NBA Finals last season, Larry Brown has achieved his greatest honor. Today, Brown will be introduced as a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, an NBA source said yesterday.

College Rumors & Notes

Former Fresno State and UNLV basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but he said yesterday he's maintaining an optimistic attitude after learning it was discovered early.

Prized University of Miami football recruit Nate Harris, a senior at Miami Edison High, might lose his scholarship after being arrested last Thursday. According to the Miami-Dade police report, Harris, 19, and Antwan Evans, 19, robbed a victim at gunpoint.

Terry Don Phillips stepped down from his job as athletics director at Oklahoma State and accepted the same job at Clemson on Tuesday. Phillips will replace Bobby Robinson, who is retiring at the end of June after 17 years at Clemson. Robinson is the longest serving athletic director currently in the ACC.

The search for a permanent athletic director at Temple finally appears to be reaching a conclusion. Several sources have indicated that the two finalists will be on campus early next week for final interviews. They are De Paul AD Bill Bradshaw, who previously held that position at La Salle in the early 1980s, and Kevin Anderson, the Associate Athletic Director for Development at Cal-Berkeley.

Odd Notes & Stuff

Bryan Trottier, perhaps the greatest Islander in franchise history, will become the next head coach of the Rangers.

The list of available candidates to coach the Washington Capitals continues to shrink, leaving Portland, Maine, coach Glen Hanlon as not only the leading candidate but perhaps the only one.

Mike Tyson's co-trainer Stacey McKinley's on Lennox Lewis: "He's a coward," McKinley screamed to scores of media after a Tyson workout that was closed except for the final minutes when Tyson was winding down his work. "He's going to knock Lewis out between [round] one and five," McKinley shouted to the media throng. "Lennox Lewis cannot take Mike Tyson's punches. Lennox Lewis's chin ain't strong enough." Certain that his words would reach Lewis, McKinley vowed: "All hell is coming."

Home, sweet home? Not this NHL postseason. Through the first three playoffs rounds, teams were a mediocre 45-41 at home.

Everybody has a price, except for Wings fans.

The Mellon Mario Lemieux Celebrity Invitational will be tomorrow through Sunday at the Club at Nevillewood with the star-studded field competing for a $225,000 purse and all proceeds benefiting the Mario Lemieux Foundation. Michael Jordan will be there. So will Charles Barkley, Dan Marino, John Elway, Kordell Stewart, Jerome Bettis, Bill Cowher, Steve Spurrier, Mike Shanahan and defending champion Rick Rhoden. Approximately 70 celebrities will compete in the pro-am and the tournament.

Boxing deaths have occured in 65 countries or mandated territories, and at sea. Here are names of countries where at least 10 deaths occured.

Turkey lost to mighty Brazil 2-1 in World Cup action inside Munsu Stadium in Ulsan, South Korea. Instead of just announcing a big crowd, there was a big crowd -- with thousands of South Koreans waving Turkish flags. Come again? Yes, they were members in good standing of the CSS -- Citizens Supporters Squad -- who are recruited by their country to help avoid the embarrassment of small crowds being seen on TV around the globe.

Rumor: Britney Spears' next movie will have her portraying a NASCAR driver. That's believable.

The U.S. Olympic Committee said yesterday it plans to trim the field of domestic candidates for the 2012 Summer Olympics from four to two by September. USOC officials long had held out the possibility of making some cut to the field of 2012 finalists — Washington, bidding jointly with Baltimore; San Francisco; New York. permalink