Seattle at Arizona

TIME: 09:40 P.M. EST
VENUE: Chase Field

After struggling at home for more than a month, the Arizona Diamondbacks are finally playing well at Chase Field.

The Diamondbacks can move above .500 there for the first time in almost two months with a seventh consecutive home victory Tuesday night against the Seattle Mariners.

Arizona (33-34) went 21 straight innings without a run before scoring three times in the first of Monday's 7-1 win over Seattle. Second baseman Aaron Hill became the fifth player in Diamondbacks history to hit for the cycle and Justin Upton drove in two runs.

"It was nice for us to jump out early and nice to get a win," said Hill, the first Arizona player to hit for the cycle since Kelly Johnson on July 23, 2010.

The Diamondbacks have won nine of 11 at Chase Field following a stretch there where they dropped 14 of 17. With a 16-16 record in the desert, Arizona has a chance to surpass the .500 mark at home for the first time since it was 6-5 on April 23.

"They've got a good attitude," said manager Kirk Gibson, whose team is in the midst of its longest home winning streak since a 15-game run Aug. 9-Sept. 10. "There a lot of good things happening."

Hill has certainly been good, batting .575 (23 for 40) with 11 extra-base hits and nine RBIs during an 11-game home hitting streak. The former Blue Jay has hit .375 with two homers in his last six games versus Seattle.

"A good player, I have seen it for a long time," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. "If you make a mistake, he is going to make you pay for it."

Batting .375 (9 for 24) in his last six games, Upton is 6 for 14 with five RBIs in four career contests against the Mariners.

After Wade Miley threw seven solid innings, Daniel Hudson (3-1, 5.67 ERA) hopes for a second straight strong outing for the Diamondbacks on Tuesday. The right-hander allowed six runs in 1 2-3 innings of a 9-8 win over Oakland on June 8, then bounced back to give up three in seven innings of an 11-3 victory at Texas on Thursday.

"Something can click and your body and your mind, muscle-memory or something like that, you get back to basics," Hudson told the Diamondbacks' official website. "Get momentum, especially getting a lot of guys in a row out, just get in a rhythm. Mechanics are the same every single time, that's what we strive for."

In his only appearance versus Seattle (29-40) on July 19, 2010, Hudson gave up a run in 6 2-3 innings of a 6-1 victory while with the Chicago White Sox.

Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki is 0 for 3 against Hudson, but will be back in the lineup after getting Monday night off. One hit shy of 2,500 for his career, Suzuki is 1 for 12 in his last three games.

Mariners rookie Erasmo Ramirez (0-1, 4.50) hopes for a better performance than in his first major league start Thursday, when he allowed six runs in five innings of a 6-2 loss to San Diego.

"He has that out of the way," Wedge told the Mariners' official website. "It's something to work off of now."

Casper Wells, who had two hits with an RBI on Monday, is 8 for 16 in five games since being recalled by the Mariners on Wednesday.

 

Copyright 2012 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

 

TV Schedule
Away: Root Sports-Northwest	Home: FOX Sports Arizona

 

Standings
Team	Standings	W	L	Pct.	GB	L 10	Strk
Seattle	4th AL West	29	40	.420	12 ½	3-7	L 1
Arizona	3rd NL West	33	34	.493	9	6-4	W 1

Probable Starters
Erasmo Ramirez, HP	2012 stats 16.0 Innings Pitched 39.2 0-1 Wins-Losses 3-1 4.50 Earned Run Average 5.67 5 Walks 10 8 Strikeouts 28 93 Pitches Per Start 94 Career vs. opponent - Innings Pitched 6.2 --- Wins-Losses 1-0 - Earned Run Average 1.35	Daniel Hudson, RHP

BATTER VS. PITCHER (Career) vs Wade Miley Player AB H HR BB SO AVG Furbush 0 0 0 0 0 0 Gutierrez 0 0 0 0 0 0 Hernandez 0 0 0 0 0 0 Iwakuma 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jaso 0 0 0 0 0 0

BATTER VS. PITCHER (Career) vs Hector Noesi Player AB H HR BB SO AVG Hill 2 1 0 0 1 .500 McDonald 2 1 0 0 0 .500 Bell 0 0 0 0 0 0 Blanco 0 0 0 0 0 0 Bloomquist 0 0 0 0 0 0

 

Jered Weaver to be activated from DL on Wednesday

By Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY 

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Angels, winners of 18 of their last 24 games to breath down the necks of the Texas Rangers, could put even more pressure on the AL West Division leaders.

The Angels are bringing ace Jered Weaver back from the disabled list on Wednesday to start against the San Francisco Giants. Weaver, who has been out since May 28 with a lower-back strain, will be limited to 80 to 90 pitches, Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.

The Angels debated about having him make a rehab start, but opted instead to have him return to face big-league hitters.

"We didn't want him to waste bullets in the minor leagues," Scioscia said. "There's no reason he shouldn't get through the fifth or sixth inning."

Weaver, who says he will continue doing lower back exercises, says he feels strong now and believes it was only a fluke injury. Who knows, after already pitching a no-hitter earlier in the year, maybe he's due for another?

"It's great to see,'' Weaver said of the five no-hitters this year. "They cleaned up the game as far as the steroid thing, so now it's a level playing field for everybody.''

Report: Lottery pick Sullinger red flagged by doctors, agent downplays it

 

Kurt Helin

Jared Sullinger, the Ohio State big man who is an expected lottery pick in a deep draft, has been red flagged by league doctors, sources told ESPN’s Chad Ford.

Every draftee undergoes extensive medical exams at the NBA combine, which is where league doctors saw a back issue that disturbed them.

A number of NBA team doctors have reviewed the information from the NBA and have told their front office staff that Sullinger’s back issues could shorten his NBA career and some have advised their teams not to draft him in the first round.

As one would expect, the people around Sullinger are saying this is overblown. His father told Ford that Sullinger had tight hamstrings that were causing some back and hip flexor issues, but these were being addressed by stretching, yoga and more.

Sullinger’s agent, David Falk, said basically the same thing to Sports Illustrated’s Sam Amick.

“Jared has consulted with one of the foremost specialists of backs and spines, who has vast experience treating professional athletes,” Falk told SI.com. “He has explained to us that Jared had extremely tight hamstrings that became tight because he had suffered an injury that I don’t think he was aware of to his hamstring. He needs to maintain vigilance with his flexibility. And if he does that, and keeps his weight at an appropriate level, then he should have absolutely no problems over the next 15 years.”

I’m not a doctor and I’m not going Hawkeye Pierce here. I have no idea how serious this is and what might have caused it.

But this is not going to help his draft status. DraftExpress had him going as high as No. 7, Ford at 10 to the Hornets, our own Steve Alexander suggests 13 to the Suns. He already may have fallen by not coming out last year, as expected, and returning for a sophomore campaign with Ohio State — guys who give scouts another year to pick apart their game often slide. Now he is viewed as a guy who can be a solid, below-the-rim power forward in the league. Not an All-Star, but a guy who can contribute. Think Brandon Bass as a good goal for him.

But this may scare teams off if they like another guy as much. Not sure he falls out of the lottery. Depends on what the doctors say.

Sharks bring back coach Todd McLellan for next year

San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan, top, will be back behind the bench next season. (Paul Sakuma/Associated Press)

Nearly two months after their season ended prematurely with a first-round playoff exit, the San Jose Sharks vowed to be a more aggressive team on the ice next season under coach Todd McLellan.

General manager Doug Wilson and McLellan addressed the media on Monday to preview the upcoming draft and free agency period and formally announce that McLellan will return for a fifth season as coach in San Jose.

The Sharks ownership group announced in early May after the playoff loss to St. Louis that Wilson would be back as general manager and would make changes to make the team a Stanley Cup contender.

Wilson said then that McLellan's status was still under review as he wanted to understand what went wrong during the season and give McLellan time to heal from a concussion he suffered after being hit in the head by a stick while on the bench.

"Todd is our coach, has been our coach," Wilson said. "The process we went through there was to look through this past year. Much like players have injuries and you want them to get healthy and get their honest feedback, I'll be honest with you, with Todd, I liked the idea of giving him a little bit of time not just for his emotions but how he's feeling. He took a pretty good whack in the head and he took another a few weeks after that. We used this time really well to understand what we need to address, where we need to go and how we'll get there."

McLellan said he could be making changes to his staff and had a list of potential assistants he wanted to interview. Wilson said it may be necessary to add a former NHL player to the staff that had just two assistants last season: Matt Shaw and Jay Woodcroft.

McLellan said he learned quite a bit watching the final three rounds of the playoffs. But he stressed the team needs to improve its penalty killing, a more aggressive forecheck, more shot blocking and a stronger defensive emphasis without overhauling the entire system.

"We're aware that we're not chasing a formula," he said. "We have our own formula. That's what we'll continue to do. We'll enhance it, we'll grow it, we'll pull pieces in from other organizations and have our formula and our identity. That's what we'll play to."

Wilson said the major change he wanted from the team was going from one that was "passive and reactive" to one that would be "aggressive and proactive" next season. He believed that many of the problems stemmed from an ineffective penalty killing unit that left players hesitant to play physically or aggressively out of a fear of allowing a power-play goal.

The Sharks had the second-worst penalty-kill unit during the regular season and then allowed six goals in 18 power-play chances in five games against the Blues.

Finding identity

Wilson was particularly upset that no player retaliated at the start of Game 3 following an end-of-game fight in Game 2 that featured St. Louis' Vladimir Sobotka breaking San Jose forward Dominic Moore's nose and Blues defenceman Roman Polak pummeling Justin Braun in another fight.

"One of the bigger issues we talked about initially was the identity of this hockey team," Wilson said. "We got away from it a little bit the passive, reactive. That's not part of our identity and how we want to play it. There are moments it crept in. How you get that out is going to be addressed by approach, clarification from players how you handle situations and different players."

Wilson would not confirm a report by TSN that recently acquired defenceman Brad Stuart had agreed to a three-year contract worth $3.6 per season but said he expected a deal to be reached before Stuart was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent July 1. The Sharks acquired Stuart's rights from Detroit earlier this month for potential free agent Andrew Murray and a conditional seventh-round draft pick in 2014.

"We try to be fairly proactive if there's something we like and we want and think it's a pretty good fit," Wilson said. "To get a left-hand shot guy who is a physical player like him who plays the right way is something we needed. He fits in really well."

Representatives of the ownership group of Sharks Sports & Entertainment also made a rare public appearance Monday with Kevin Compton and Stratton Sclavos acknowledging that the team has been operating under a deficit to achieve the goal of winning the Stanley Cup, including about $15 million this past season.

"That's what the whole business is about," Sclavos said. "We've been spending to the salary cap every year to put the best team on the ice that we can. In aggregate the performance has been good. But you're only known by your last season by the fans and the media and we're very disappointed in what happened this past year. We're going to take the right steps with Doug and the team to make sure we get a better performance on the ice next year."

© The Associated Press, 2012

LaDainian Tomlinson signs 1-day contract with Chargers, retires

The Associated Press

LaDainian Tomlinson acknowledges the crowd at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium in 2009, his last season as a Charger. (Denis Poroy/Associated Press)

LaDainian Tomlinson was in the midst of saying goodbye to the NFL when his young son, Daylen, wandered across the dais and tugged on his pant leg, wanting a little attention.

Tomlinson reached down and lifted him up, holding him as carefully as he used to carry the football.

Joined by his family and several former teammates, Tomlinson ended his brilliant 11-year NFL career the same way he started it — with the San Diego Chargers.

Tomlinson signed a one-day contract with the Chargers on Monday and then announced his retirement.

"It wasn't because I didn't want to play anymore. It was simply time to move on," Tomlinson said.

Tomlinson rushed for 13,684 yards, fifth all-time, and scored 162 touchdowns, third-most ever. His 145 rushing touchdowns are second-most in history. He also passed for seven touchdowns.

Just as importantly, he helped the Chargers dig out from one of their worst stretches to become a force in the AFC West. He played his first nine seasons with San Diego and the last two years with the New York Jets.

Tomlinson, who turns 33 on Saturday, said he knew at the end of last season that he'd probably retire. He said he was still physically capable of playing but mentioned the mental toll it takes to play at a high level.

Tomlinson didn't shed any tears, as he did two years ago after being released by the Chargers.

L.T. recalled the news conference in 2006 when former teammate Junior Seau announced his first retirement.

"He said, 'I'm graduating today.' I've been playing football 20-some years and so at some point it almost seems like school every year where you sacrifice so much and there is so much you put on the line, mentally and physically, with your body, everything," Tomlinson said. "So today, I take the words of Junior Seau: I feel like I'm graduating. I really do, because I've got my life ahead of me, I'm healthy, I'm happy with a great family and I'm excited to now be a fan and watch you guys play."

Seau, who committed suicide on May 2, came out of retirement a few times to play for the New England Patriots.

Tomlinson said this is it for him.

Tomlinson said he has special memories even though the Chargers never got to the Super Bowl during his time with them.

His most memorable moment with San Diego came on Dec. 10, 2006, when he swept into the end zone late in a game against the Denver Broncos for his third touchdown of the afternoon to break Shaun Alexander's year-old record of 28 touchdowns.

His linemen hoisted him onto their shoulders and carried him toward the sideline, with Tomlinson holding the ball high in his right hand and waving his left index finger, while the fans chanted "L.T.! L.T.!" and "MVP! MVP!"

Tomlinson was voted NFL MVP that season, when he set league single-season records with 31 touchdowns, including 28 rushing, and 186 points.

"Those were championship days, for not only myself and my teammates, but my family as well," said Tomlinson, who won two NFL rushing titles. "So I'm OK with never winning a Super Bowl championship. I know we've got many memories that we can call championship days."

Tomlinson was joined on the dais by wife LaTorsha, mother Loreane, son Daylen, who turns two next month, and nine-month-old daughter Dayah.

'My best friends'

Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates were among the several former teammates in the crowd, as were offensive linemen Nick Hardwick, Jeromey Clary and recently retired Kris Dielman. Also in attendance was Ryan Mathews, who replaced Tomlinson as the Chargers' featured back in 2010.

Tomlinson said of his offensive linemen, "They were my best friends."

Dielman retired in March due to a concussion.

"I was a part of greatness," Dielman said of Tomlinson's career. "And it was awesome to be a part of it. It was awesome to watch. I mean, I had the best seat in the house. It was a fun time."

Rivers became the Chargers' starter in 2006 after Drew Brees was allowed to leave as a free agent.

"He carried us," Rivers said of Tomlinson. "He had such a calming effect on the huddle, on myself. When things weren't going good we could always hand it to him. When I was struggling a bit during the first half of that season, it was never, 'C'mon, you've got to get it together.' It was just like, 'You're good, keep going.' I tend to get excited but the game was slow for him. That part was certainly appreciated as a young player."

Team President Dean Spanos said few players have had a bigger role or meant more to the team and the city than Tomlinson.

Spanos recalled being told by then-general manager John Butler on the day before the 2001 draft that the Chargers had traded the No. 1 overall pick to Atlanta for a package that included the No. 5 overall pick.

"I said, 'Great,' and then asked him who he liked with the fifth pick. I clearly remember him telling me, 'Well, there's this great running back from TCU who could help us.'

"It's funny now, but I also remember asking him, 'Is he any good?' And I remember that John said, 'Yeah, he's going to be something special.' I wish John was here today so I could thank him for making what has probably become the most significant trade in the history of the San Diego Chargers."

Butler died in 2003.

Spanos said no other Chargers player will wear Tomlinson's No. 21, and that a retirement ceremony will be held sometime in the future.

Tomlinson and Spanos both signed the ceremonial one-day contract.

"I didn't even check how much it was for. It was worth it," Spanos quipped.

"People and players like LaDainian Tomlinson don't come around very often, if at all," Jets chairman and CEO Woody Johnson said in a statement. "His humility and work ethic made it clear why he will be remembered as one of the game's best players. Without question, his next stop will be the Pro Football Hall of Fame."

Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum said Tomlinson "never took one day for granted when it came to any aspect of his performance. His commitment drew his teammates to him and elevated everyone that came in contact with him."

© The Associated Press, 2012

 

Kyle Busch suffers engine trouble for the third consecutive race

By Nick Bromberg | From The Marbles 

Kyle Busch's crew works on his car's engine at Michigan. (Getty)

Three weeks ago, Kyle Busch was one of the hottest drivers in the Sprint Cup Series. He was on a run of four straight top-5 finishes including a win at Richmond, and looked poised to stay comfortably in the top 10 in the points standings over the summer.

But that optimism has dimmed since, as engine issues have turned the last three races from promising to disastrous, including Sunday's Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan. As a result, he's now 12th in the points standings, 26 points behind 10th place Brad Keselowski.

On Sunday, Busch had some early speed, but was back in the pack after making an extra pit stop under caution to fix some right-side damage after he scraped the wall. But then Busch was forced to take the car to the garage because of his engine. While he was able to get back on track, he finished 32nd, 43 laps down.

At Dover, Busch was 29th. At Pocono, he finished 30th.

Three straight engine-plagued races for any team — let alone a single driver — is troublesome, but it may be especially so for a team like Joe Gibbs Racing, which had engine reliability issues last year. Before this year, the team — which had previously run its own in-house engine shop — merged engine operations with Toyota Racing Development in an effort to increase performance and reliability.

Thanks to that Richmond win, Busch is in line for the first wild card. And while Kasey Kahne's misfortune at Michigan helps, Busch's margin for error has all but disappeared. Kahne, Ryan Newman and Joey Logano each have a win while winless (so far) Carl Edwards is ahead of Busch in the standings.

Dickey Ks 13 in latest 1-hitter; Mets beat O's 5-0

NEW YORK (AP)

R.A. Dickey saved his career by cultivating a knuckleball. Now he's using it to rewrite the Mets' record book as baseball's most dominant pitcher.

Dickey became the first major leaguer in 24 years to throw consecutive one-hitters and Ike Davis hit a grand slam to lead New York past the Baltimore Orioles 5-0 on Monday night.

Coming off a one-hit gem at Tampa Bay last Wednesday, Dickey struck out a career-high 13 and allowed only Wilson Betemit's clean single in the fifth inning. He has not permitted an earned run in 42 2-3 innings, the second-longest stretch in club history behind Dwight Gooden's streak of 49 innings in 1985.

''I don't really feel much more confident than I did the last couple years,'' Dickey said. ''I've always felt like I have a pretty good knuckleball. I worked hard to do that.''

The previous pitcher to spin consecutive one-hitters was Dave Stieb for Toronto in September 1988, according to STATS LLC. The Mets said the last to match the feat - or top it - in the National League was Jim Tobin with the 1944 Boston Braves, according to research by the Elias Sports Bureau. Tobin tossed a one-hitter followed by a no-hitter.

The 37-year-old Dickey (11-1) walked two and became the first 11-game winner in the majors, befuddling Baltimore with knucklers that ranged from 66-81 mph in a game that took just 2 hours, 7 minutes. He fanned the final two hitters and four of his last five, topping his previous career best of 12 strikeouts set Wednesday against the Rays.

''Yeah, it's surreal,'' Dickey said. ''You almost get emotional out there, especially that last hitter. You hear everybody, like one big heartbeat beating. That's the best way I could explain it.''

A longtime journeyman before joining the Mets in 2010, Dickey has won a career-best nine straight decisions and six consecutive starts. He is tied for the major league lead in ERA (2.00), strikeouts (103) and complete games (three).

It was his fourth game this season with double-digit strikeouts, most in the majors, and the fifth of his career. The right-hander has an incredible 71 strikeouts and six walks in his last seven starts.

''I'm going to leave it to you guys to explain it. I'm just going to try to be in the moment with it,'' said Dickey, a deeply religious deep thinker.

Betemit's two-out single in the fifth ended Dickey's franchise-record streak of 13 hitless innings.

''Do I have a chance to appeal that base hit? Did anybody dive for that ball? I got a bad view,'' Mets manager Terry Collins said, drawing laughs.

The only blemish Wednesday night was B.J. Upton's infield single with two outs in the first, a high bouncer that third baseman David Wright tried to field with his bare hand.

After the game, the Mets appealed the official scoring decision to Major League Baseball, asking the commissioner's office to review the play and consider whether Wright should be charged with an error, thus giving Dickey the team's second no-hitter this month. The appeal was denied and Dickey said he was relieved, explaining that there would have been ''an asterisk by it bigger than the no-hitter itself.''

The only active knuckleballer in the majors, Dickey has a 1.21 ERA and 88 strikeouts during his nine-game winning streak. It was his fifth career shutout and second this season, both in June. Pretty amazing for a guy who relies on a seemingly uncontrollable pitch that he throws harder and with more precision than just about anyone else who's made a living on it.

''He has no wild pitches this year. That's impressive,'' Baltimore slugger Adam Jones said. ''He's in a groove.''

The Mets said Dickey has made five straight starts with no earned runs allowed and at least eight strikeouts, the longest streak in major league history, according to Elias.

One of the people Dickey can thank for his incredible success story is Orioles manager Buck Showalter, who was instrumental in persuading the pitcher to remake himself into a knuckleballer when both were with the Texas Rangers.

''He had every attribute of a major league pitcher except the arm,'' Showalter said, his thoughts then turning to the fact that his team was about to face Dickey. ''I wish it hadn't happened.''

After the game, Dickey said he would be remiss not to thank Showalter.

''You know, and this is a tip of the hat to him: It was fairly poetic, I thought. The last game he saw me pitch live I gave up six home runs and tied a modern-day major league record,'' Dickey said. ''It's really incredible.''

A member of the 1996 U.S. Olympic team and a first-round draft pick out of Tennessee, Dickey was devastated when the Rangers reduced their signing-bonus offer from more than $800,000 to $75,000 after they discovered during a physical that he was missing a major ligament in his pitching elbow.

Undeterred, perseverance got him to the big leagues anyway. When he failed, the knuckleball brought him back.

Committed to his craft, Dickey enlisted the help of former knuckleballers like Charlie Hough and Hall of Famer Phil Niekro. Along the way, teammates and fans were introduced to his unique personality: A voracious reader, Dickey climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in January to raise money for charity and released an autobiography that revealed suicidal thoughts and the sexual abuse he endured as a child.

He's even featured in a documentary film called ''Knuckleball.''

Dickey made his mark at the plate on Monday, too, sparking New York's big rally with a leadoff single in the sixth against Jake Arrieta (3-9). Jordany Valdespin doubled with one out and Dickey had to scramble back to third after he initially broke the wrong way on Wright's lineout to shortstop. The pitcher barely beat the throw with a headfirst dive, which turned out to be a crucial play.

Lucas Duda walked and Davis hit the next pitch just to the left of center for his seventh home run of the year and first career slam.

Valdespin tripled off Kevin Gregg in the eighth and scored on Wright's single. The Mets, who lead the NL with seven shutouts, had lost three straight and nine of 13.

Mayweather knocks out Tiger as highest-paid

by USA TODAY feed on Jun. 18, 2012, under USA TODAY News

Floyd “Money” Mayweather‘s nickname fits his new title to a tee: The world’s highest-paid athlete.

Forbes.com named Mayweather its highest-paid athlete over the last year. Mayweather earned $85 million, knocking golfer Tiger Woods out of the top spot that he has held since 2001. Woods fell to third behind another boxer, Manny Pacquiao, who earned $62 million. Woods took home $59.4 million.

Mayweather, who is currently serving an 87-day jail sentence in Las Vegas, earned his $85 million for a little more than an hour’s work in the ring. He knocked out Victor Ortiz in the fourth round last September, earning $40 million, then dispatched Miguel Cotto by a unanimous 12-round decision on May 5, taking home $45 million.

Because Mayweather acts as his own promoter, he maximizes his earnings. His company, Mayweather Promotions, collects all of the revenue from tickets, pay-per-view and sponsorships and covers the costs, including the purse for his opponent. His earnings per fight is about 50% higher than Pacquiao, who is promoted by Top Rank, earns.

None of Mayweather’s earnings came from endorsements. Pacquiao had $6 million in endorsements, while Woods, according to Forbes, made $55 million of his earnings through endorsements.

While Mayweather is one of sports’ most polarizing figures, he also knows how to create a buzz, which causes a lot of people to buy his pay-per-view fights. Mayweather has been a part of the four biggest non-heavyweight PPV events in boxing history. His fight with Cotto generated $94 million in PPV buys.

Pacquiao fought Juan Manuel Marquez and Tim Bradley. which earned him $56 million, including revenue he gets from their broadcast in the Philippines. Pacquiao has become boxing’s biggest advertising magnet, doing endorsements for Nike, Hewlett-Packard, Monster Energy and Hennessy.

LeBron James leads the 13 basketball players who made the cut in the top 100, ranking fourth overall with earnings of $53 million. James had his salary cut 20% by the NBA lockout, but continues to be an endorsement king, making $40 million from sponsors like Nike, Coca-Cola, State Farm and McDonald’s.

Of the 30 NFL players on the list, Peyton Manning is the highest-paid player with earnings of $42.4 million, 10th overall. The Indianapolis Colts paid Manning $26.4 million in 2011 even though he missed the season recovering from neck surgery. Manning continues to be the NFL’s top pitchman, earning $10 million from Reebok, Gatorade, Sony, DirecTV, Wheaties and Papa John’s.

Two women made the top 100, both tennis players. Maria Sharapova ranks No. 26 with $27.9 million in earnings. Li Na ranks 81st with earnings of $18.4 million.

Copyright © 2012 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.

Heat try to tighten grip on Thunder

 

Chris Bosh and the Heat host the Thunder in Game 4 at AmericanAirlines Arena on Tuesday. (Don Emmert/GettyImages)

LeBron James arrived for practice Monday wearing lime-green sneakers, a highly fluorescent shade.

It was the fashion statement du jour for the NBA's three-time most valuable player, much like the eyeglass frames he's been sporting after games throughout this post-season. But those sneakers probably would have remained tucked away in the drawer beneath his locker during last year's NBA finals since very little about James' game would be considered glowing or luminous during those two weeks.

Different year, different story.

For the second straight season, the Miami Heat hold a 2-1 lead in the NBA finals. There's a glaring difference this time around — that being James is playing at the top of his game. And he'll try to help the Heat move within one win of a championship on Tuesday night, when Miami plays host to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of this title series.

"We're a totally different team than we was last year when we was up 2-1," James said. "We're a totally different team.

"We understand what it takes to win, we've used that motivation and we will continue to use that motivation. But last year is last year and we're not going into a Game 4 on someone else's floor.

"We're going into a Game 4 on our floor with a lot of experience in this type of situation. We'll be ready. We love the challenge."

Miami lost Game 4 in Dallas last year, the start of a three-game slide that ended with the Mavericks hoisting the title trophy.

So the Thunder know a 2-1 deficit in a series is hardly insurmountable, even though the home-court roles are reversed this time around. And if Oklahoma City needed more proof, all the Thunder need do is remember the Western Conference finals, when they lost the first two games to San Antonio, becoming the 19th and 20th entries on the Spurs' incredible winning streak. The Spurs didn't win another game the rest of the way.

"We were down 2-0 against San Antonio and everybody thought the series was over," Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said. "But I know our guys.

"They're very competitive, they're very resilient. They've always showed that type of effort every game and we've always been a great bounce-back team.

"I thought [Game 3] was a great bounce-back. It's unfortunate we didn't make a couple plays — and uncharacteristic, also."

Uncharacteristic. That would also be a fine word to describe how James played in the finals last season.

He freely acknowledges that he "didn't make enough plays" against the Mavericks a year ago and the numbers — 17.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game — back that up as do his well-chronicled, fourth-quarter struggles in that series. So far in this year's finals, James is averaging 30.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and four assists and, in the final minutes of Miami's two wins in the series, he's done his part to slam the door on the Thunder.

"He's been aggressive, he's an aggressive player," Thunder guard James Harden said. "He's been aggressive all year, all post-season.

"He's tall, strong and physical, he's a tough matchup. It takes five guys to really lock down on their offence because they're a very offensive team, especially with LeBron and [Dwyane] Wade."

James is shooting 46 per cent in the series, not even close to the 57 per cent clip Kevin Durant is putting up for Oklahoma City. But here's maybe one piece of proof to support that aggression notion Harden was speaking of — James is 25 for 29 from the foul line in the three games, while Durant is just 14 for 19.

James has done much of his work near the rim in the finals. But while it wasn't his most memorable shot, perhaps the biggest one he hit all night in Miami's Game 3 victory was a three-pointer late in the third quarter — one of just five shots that the Heat made from outside the paint in that game. That shot put Miami up entering the fourth and seemed to extend the Thunder defence just enough to allow James, Wade and Chris Bosh to create more in the lane late.

"The biggest evolution of great players is they always stay in constant state of being uncomfortable," Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said. "They don't stay satisfied and LeBron, every summer, has added something to his game.

"I've seen it when I've followed him from afar and, now that I've gotten to know him, he's added two, three, four different elements now to his game — the well-documented one the post-up game, which we needed — but he continues to try to improve and stay uncomfortable. I think that's a sign of greatness."

Another sign of greatness? Rings.

James' first is just two wins away, again. And yes, the memories of what went wrong in 2011 still drive Miami now.

"Experience don't guarantee you anything," Wade said. "It just lets you know I've been here before.

"That doesn't mean it's going to be successful for you so, for us, we've got to continue … to make the game that we're in, the moment that we're in the biggest moment and the biggest game and not look back and not look forward too much. Obviously, the team that was here that lost the championship last year, that burning sensation is going to be inside of us until we change that."

A year ago, the talk was how James shied away from the biggest moments, the brightest moments.

It's not happening now. Miami overcame a 10-point deficit in the third quarter of Game 3, becoming the first team in these playoffs to dig out of that large a second-half hole against the Thunder. James had eight points and four rebounds in the fourth quarter, while no Thunder player had more than four points or two rebounds in those last 12 minutes.

Not pretty, but more than good enough to put the Heat back in the spot where last year's finals went awry.

"I don't give a damn how we get four," James said. "We can win 32-31, it doesn't matter to me.

"We can win any type of game. We can win a gritty game, a high-paced game, but we take every game as its own.

"And at the end of the day, if we play to our identity like Spo always preaches to us, then we'll give ourselves a good chance to win. Yeah, I don't care how we get four."

© The Associated Press, 2012

 

NFL shows bounty evidence

Associated Press

Will Smith, Anthony Hargrove, Scott Fujita, and Jonathan Vilma each attended appeals hearings with Commissioner Roger Goodell at NFL headquarters.

The NFL went public Monday with some of its evidence against the four players suspended for their roles in the New Orleans Saints bounty program. Among the things the league revealed: a prize of $35,000 or more for knocking Brett Favre out of the NFC Championship game in January 2010.

The league also showed a computer slide it got from the Saints, dating from before a playoff game against Seattle the following season, showing photos of three Seahawks with “Now it’s time to do our job. Collect bounty $$$!. No apologies. Let’s go hunting’’ printed on it.

NFL lead counsel Jeff Pash showed reporters the material at the end of a day when the suspended players - Will Smith, Anthony Hargrove, Scott Fujita, and Jonathan Vilma - each attended appeals hearings with Commissioner Roger Goodell at NFL headquarters.

One document showed linebacker Vilma offering “two five-stacks,’’ or $10,000, to knock out Favre in the title game, which the Saints won, leading to their Super Bowl victory over Indianapolis in February 2010.

Vilma left his session after about an hour Monday morning. When that hearing was adjourned until early afternoon, both Vilma and attorney Peter Ginsberg vowed he would not return. He didn’t.

“Roger Goodell has taken three months to tear down what I built over eight years. It’s tough to swallow. I have been linked to a bounty and it simply is not true,’’ said Vilma, who is suing Goodell for defamation. “I don’t know how I can get a fair process when he is the judge, jury and executioner. You’re assuming it will be fair, but it’s not.’’

Tomlinson makes it official

Joined by his family and several former teammates, LaDainian Tomlinson ended his brilliant 11-year NFL career the same way he started it - with the San Diego Chargers. Tomlinson signed a one-day contract with the Chargers Monday and then announced his retirement . . . R.C. Owens, a longtime 49ers front office man and eight-year NFL wide receiver whose impressive leaping ability earned him the nickname “Alley Oop’’ and helped popularize the phrase, died Sunday in Manteca, Calif. He was 78.

England boosted as Walcott heads to training ground ahead of Ukraine game

By Sportsmail Reporter
Theo Walcott travelled to England's training ground ahead of his team-mates on Monday morning as he battled to get himself fit for Tuesday's crunch European Championship clash against Ukraine.
Walcott left the team hotel in a car, which is understood to have been headed for the Hutnik Stadium, while the rest of the squad's outfield players boarded the team bus.
Manager Roy Hodgson revealed on Sunday that winger Walcott was a doubt for England's Group D decider after pulling out of training with a 'tightness in his hamstring'.

 Hoping to be fit: Theo Walcott is struggling with a hamstring injury

Crunch game: England manager Roy Hodgson leaves for training ahead of flying to Donetsk

Ready to go: Wayne Rooney is available for England and could line-up along side Ashley Young in the starting XI 

Match winner: Danny Welbeck, who scored England's third goal against Sweden heads to training 




Wide boys: England full-backs Ashly Cole and Glen Johnson

Hoping to start: Andy Carroll scored the opener against Sweden will hope to keep his place in the starting XI

Leaders: Captain Steven Gerrard and former skipper John Terry head to training

Pointless Dutch buried by rampant Ronaldo

By Eurosport

They came dressed for a funeral, and that is exactly what they got. Though for a fleeting, frantic few minutes it appeared some life remained in Netherlands' Euro 2012 campaign, ultimately the demise of the team wearing their black change strip was confirmed at the hands of Portugal and a deadly Cristiano Ronaldo in a breathless contest in Kharkiv.

Netherlands supporters conducted another Oranje pilgrimage when snaking through town from the fan zone to the Metalist Stadium prior to kick-off in hope of a miracle, but a city the Dutch have made their home over the past week instead hosted a wake. The sober shade of shirt ultimately proved appropriate as Netherlands fans began to mournfully drift away from Ukraine's second biggest city, their dreams dashed. Comprehensively so.

No points, no shape, no idea. This was not a good night to be a Netherlands fan. Not when they finished bottom of a group for the first time in a major tournament and without so much as a point to show from their trip to eastern Ukraine.

The third favourites are out of the competition, the opening 1-0 defeat to Denmark setting the tone for a wasteful, frustrating campaign that will probably end in widespread recrimination. Early Doors can only imagine the scowls on the faces of the players when they fly home, debating who deserves the aisle seat or the last remaining packet of pretzels.

At least coach Bert van Marwijk was willing to admit culpability for a disastrous tournament.

"We had to win with a two-goal difference so we had to take a risk and go forward, it started well but then it didn't go to plan," the Dutch coach said, having sacrificed son-in-law Mark van Bommel to bring in Rafael van der Vaart, who scored a beauty and hit the post with another effort, yet unbalanced the side. "We are disappointed we did not play well today, I am disappointed, I am responsible.

"We started every match well and today the scenario was right when we opened the scoring but then you have to keep that advantage to force your opponent to take more risks. But again we proved not able to do that and then we gave the goals away too easy. I am responsible and therefore failed at this tournament but at this moment I am not thinking about my future."

For ED, the failure of the Dutch to muster so much as a point, and fail to translate ability into achievement, ranks as perhaps the biggest sporting disappointment at Euro 2012. Well, that and Alexander Kerzhakov of course.

As Robin van Persie wasted yet more chances - his domestic form having clearly swapped with Nicklas Bendtner's in some kind of Freaky Friday scenario - and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar drifted aimlessly through the 90 minutes despite having been brought into the side to provide a predatory instinct in the penalty box, two players who had scored 80 goals between them in all competitions this season failed to make a mark.

Instead it was Ronaldo, a man who scored 60 by himself, who brought down a reign of terror on the game. Criticised for his two performances against Germany and Denmark, the Real Madrid forward was at his scintillating best, scoring twice and hitting the post twice as he showed the Dutch how to destroy an opposing team. This was C-Ron bursting through the doors of a party that had been all aquiver awaiting his late arrival, nailing a few pints and taking the three best-looking girls home for the night while flicking the V-sign as he left.

That famous strut was in full effect, and with ED sat in Kharkiv's Metalist Stadium it was truly a wonderful sight to behold: one of the world's great athletes performing at his absolute peak.

While Paulo Bento maintained that "the individual effort of players is not important", Ronaldo's certainly was. The Madrid man has spent a bizarre amount of this tournament being goaded by supporters chanting the name of Messi, or making snide references to his Barcelona rival's Copa America campaign last summer, but this was the night when Ronaldo made it all about himself, again. When he attracted the spotlight in the way that only he really can.

His second goal, scored on the counter when Netherlands in desperation had moved to a virtual 3-2-5 formation as they overcompensated for earlier failures, was his 11th shot of the game — the highest total by any player in a match at the European Championship since records began in 1980. The supreme ego was in full flight; the disorganised Dutch defence in thrall to the world's second-best player.

But while the rest of the Portugal team is happy to be subservient to a player of Ronaldo's extreme ability, fresh concerns will be raised about a Dutch side of whom Wesley Sneijder said earlier in the tournament: "It is time we let go of these pathetic egos."

The Dutch have done a lot of talking in this tournament, but their relevance at Euro 2012 has now expired. As Gregory van der Wiel said in the mixed zone after their elimination:  "We didn't speak after. Everybody was very, very disappointed and everything was quiet."

It was almost funereal.
- - -
QUOTE OF THE DAY: "We're good enough to win it. I know obviously everyone doesn't want us to build up expectations but I firmly believe that we've got the players to do it. You need a bit of luck as well but we've got a good opportunity. We've always believed. A country like ours needs to be in there with a shout of winning major tournaments and I firmly believe that." - Oh, Wayne Rooney.

FOREIGN VIEW: "Denmark played with a stoic calmness and it seemed like they could not care less. I never had the feeling that Denmark were playing to win it. Maybe had we played Holland or Portugal (in the final group game), they would have done more for a win than Denmark did." Joachim Low was never worried that his Germany side would be eliminated.

COMING UP: Tonight it is the turn of Group C to serve up some final-match thrills. Follow Italy v Republic of Ireland and Croatia v Spain at 7:45pm this evening.

Real Madrid target Modric faces ultimate audition against Xavi, Iniesta & Xabi Alonso

The £35m-rated Tottenham playmaker is a leading target for La Liga giants and will face potential future team-mates on Monday night when Croatia take on Spain in Gdansk
Amid all the praise Luka Modric has received this summer from colleagues and opponents alike, one comment made before Croatia’s second Euro 2012 Group C match against Italy would have particularly hit home.

"[Luka] Modric is a great player, but in order to be above [Andrea] Pirlo he has to win something," said Cesare Prandelli, the Italy manager when asked to compare the two playmakers.

Modric is considered one of the leading midfielders in Europe yet at 26, and entering his peak years, he only has medals from the Croatian league to show for his career.

The Tottenham man is hoping for that to change next season as he plans to switch clubs following the Londoners’ failure to qualify for the Champions League next term.

While Spurs refused Modric a move a year ago when he wanted to sign for Chelsea, they accept this time that the little maestro is likely to be sold should a club meet their valuation.
Tottenham want at least £35 million for the former Dinamo Zagreb man but they have every chance of sparking a bidding war as interest mounts from some of the biggest and richest clubs across the continent.

Manchester United have made Modric their top target to improve their midfield, a renewed bid from Chelsea can not be ruled out while Real Madrid, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain are all monitoring his situation.

On Monday night, Modric will have a chance to show his mettle against potential future team-mates when he plays for Croatia against Spain in their final group game of Euro 2012 in Gdansk.

Real Madrid, in particular, are keeping a watchful eye on a player Jose Mourinho believes can dominate matches in central midfield with his passing ability, awareness of his surroundings and comfort in taking possession under pressure.

The midfield battle against Spain, the reigning world and European champions, will be the ultimate test for a player long been considered in the same mould as the likes of Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

Croatia’s place in the next stage hangs in the balance after a victory over Ireland and draw with Italy in their first two matches. If Slaven Bilic’s side are to reach the last eight, they will need their own share of possession - and Modric will be the key to his team’s use of the ball.

It will be a stern challenge against the best passers of the ball in the game, especially given the relative weakness of Modric’s team-mates compared to Spain’s star-studded squad in which Cesc Fabregas is usually named as a substitute.

But he still has the chance to show he belongs in such elevated company, to prove right those people who say he is perfectly suited to La Liga and has the potential to be one of the best creative players in the world.

Spain assistant manager Paco Jimenez claimed last week that Barcelona are scouting Modric during Euro 2012, saying: "He's playing very well; Barcelona have someone watching him.

"He was present at Croatia's game against Italy, but I can not say who he is."

Spurs would rather sell Modric abroad than to a domestic rival, and one of the two Spanish giants would be the perfect place for the him to win trophies and prove his ability as a deep-lying playmaker in the same bracket as Xavi and Pirlo.

They will also have no problem in more than doubling his current £50,000-a-week salary on his Spurs contract, which runs until 2016. Despite his falling out with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy, he would leave with the club's best wishes were he to move to the Bernabeu.

Monday night’s clash in Gdansk could prove the catalyst for the first bid of the summer for his services.

Manchester City begin Premier League defence with Southampton fixture

• Manchester United at Everton on opening day
• Newcastle face Tottenham, West Brom play Liverpool
 

Press Association
guardian.co.uk

Manchester City will begin the defence of their Premier League title with a home fixture against Southampton. Photograph: Tom Jenkins for the Guardian

Manchester City will begin their Premier League title defense with a home match against Southampton face Nigel Adkins's newly promoted side on 18 August at the Etihad Stadium.

United, pipped on the final day of the 2011-12 season by Manchester City, open with a match at Everton before taking on Fulham at Old Trafford the following weekend.

Arsenal, who finished third, start with a home game against Sunderland, before taking to the road with trips to Stoke City and Liverpool.

Two Europa League rivals meet on the opening day at St James' Park, with Newcastle taking on Tottenham Hotspur, currently managerless after the sacking of Harry Redknapp.

Roberto Di Matteo's career as the permanent Chelsea coach starts with a game at Wigan Athletic. Their first home game is against Newcastle.

Brendan Rodgers's Liverpool open at West Bromwich Albion, although the first three Anfield fixtures are more eye-catching, with Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United the visitors. The team Rodgers left, Swansea City, now managed by Michael Laudrup, begin at Queens Park Rangers.

West Ham United's return to the Premier League starts with a home match against Aston Villa, now under the leadership of Paul Lambert. Their fellow newcomers Reading will also have home advantage in their first top-flight game for four years, with Stoke the opening-day opponents.

The other first-day match sees Fulham and Norwich City meet at Craven Cottage in Chris Hughton's first competitive game since replacing Lambert as the Canaries manager.

Boxing Day sees Manchester United face Newcastle, while Sunderland and City meet at the Stadium of Light.

Newcastle against Arsenal is the most notable of the 19 May fixtures, when West Ham and Reading play for what could be three priceless points at Upton Park.

Chicago Fire Defeat New York Red Bulls on June 17: MLS Fan View

By Lana Bandoim | Yahoo! Contributor Network

The Chicago Fire beat the New York Red Bulls with 3-1 on June 17 at Toyota Park. After waiting two weeks for the Fire to return to action, fans finally received relief from the losing streak. Although I think the night should have ended with 4-1, and MLS needs to continue to improve the refereeing, this was still a great game for Chicago.

Goals

The Chicago Fire's Patrick Nyarko started the night on a positive note with an early goal. Although the referee did not allow Dominic Oduro's goal, the team had two more goals from Gonzalo Segares and Chris Rolfe. I think the Fire's ability to start the game strong and show an ongoing effort to score is a vast improvement over earlier matches. Instead of playing catch up and waiting for the second half to come alive, Chicago was taking the lead.

The Referee's Mistake

The referee made the decision to disallow Dominic Oduro's goal in the 65th minute of the game. It was obvious that his shot went past the goal line for fans. However, Baldomero Toledo still did not allow the goal. I think this is a perfect example of the ongoing referee problems that MLS keeps promising to fix. The problem may be eliminated if goal-line technology finally comes to Major League Soccer. Meanwhile, fans and players have to contend with these types of bad calls.

The Return of Chris Rolfe

The June 17 game also featured the return of Chris Rolfe. The Chicago Fire forward was out with an ankle injury but was finally able to join the starting lineup. Head coach Frank Klopas made the right decision to substitute Sebastian Grazzini with Chris Rolfe in the 61st minute. Rolfe immediately scored a goal that helped the team solidify the win over the New York Red Bulls. It was wonderful to finally see Chris Rolfe back on the field.

The Next Game for the Fire

The Chicago Fire will not have a long break before the next game. They will face the Columbus Crew on June 23 at Toyota Park and hopefully start a winning streak.

Lana follows MLS, UEFA and FIFA. She has been a faithful fan of the Chicago Fire since 1998. Follow @Lana_Bandoim on Twitter.

Tebow talks about inspiration from 'Braveheart' at sermon

By Nate Davis, USA TODAY 

Tim Tebow spoke of faith and film at a Father's Day service for Shadow Mountain Community Church at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium on Sunday.

The New York Jets quarterback revealed how his father, Bob, instilled lifelong values in Tebow using the movie Braveheart and Mel Gibson's depiction of William Wallace as a learning tool.

Tim Tebow spoke of faith and film at a Father's Day service for Shadow Mountain Community Church at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium on Sunday.

The New York Jets quarterback revealed how his father, Bob, instilled lifelong values in Tebow using the movie Braveheart and Mel Gibson's depiction of William Wallace as a learning tool.

Tommy Haas stuns Roger Federer to win Halle title

ALLE, Germany (AP) – Wild card Tommy Haas defeated five-time winner Roger Federer 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 Sunday to win the Gerry Weber Open for the second time.

It was Federer's first loss to a German since Nicolas Kiefer's semifinal win, also in Halle, 10 years ago.

"If someone had told me beforehand that I'd win the title here against probably the greatest player of all time I would not have believed it," said Haas, a former second-ranked player whose career has been blighted by injuries.

Now ranked 87th, Haas was the oldest player in the singles draw at 34. He recovered from losing his serve in the opening game of the match and broke decisively in the ninth game of the second set.

"I'm very impressed with how he played today," Federer said. "Tommy deserved to win."

Second-seeded Federer was bidding for his fifth tour title of the season and 75th overall.

It was Haas' first win over his good friend in 10 attempts and his third overall against the 16-time Grand Slam champion in 13 meetings.

"It was a long time coming since I had the chance to get to that point," said Haas, who started the season outside the top 200.

"It's my 13th title … It's probably up there (as the best), if not the sweetest one, especially considering the injuries."

Haas broke to lead 5-4 after a lengthy rally featuring lobs, chips and a drop shot following two unforced errors in succession from Federer that allowed him to force deuce.

Haas last won the grass-court tournament in 2009, beating Novak Djokovic in the final. He hadn't appeared in a final since then, so nerves perhaps played a role in his loss of serve in the first game. Both players had only been broken once this week.

Federer missed another break point in the fifth game to leave the score at 3-2. Haas leveled by breaking in the next after Federer uncharacteristically hit a simple return into the net.

Haas missed two break chances with the score at 5-4 to win the set, sending a return long and not dealing with another. Federer eventually won the game with his fifth ace to level at 5-5.

"I should never have lost the first set, so that hurt. He got momentum after that," Federer said.

The Swiss managed a minibreak in the tiebreaker on Haas' first serve, but the German came back to establish a 4-2 lead.

A fan of Haas called for him to fire an ace, and there was a huge roar from the crowd when he duly obliged to move the score to 5-3.

Another minibreak put the German in a position to win the set, and he didn't let it slip.

"If I thought about it, this would be the perfect way to say goodbye to tennis. Beating Roger, my 13th title. It would be perfect. But I'm not ready mentally," Haas said. "I hope the body holds up for many years to go. I love to play."

It was the first final in the 20-year history of the tournament to feature two players aged 30 or older.

"I'm just really happy for him … happy that he's been able to fight off so many injuries and come back and still believe in himself, still want to travel, still want to sacrifice his family (life) too," said Federer, 30.

Federer's only previous Halle final loss was in 2010 to Lleyton Hewitt.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

 

Teen Hossler falls short in bid to be low amateur at US Open; still has dream week at Olympic

By Associated Press

 SAN FRANCISCO — A standing ovation awaited 17-year-old Beau Hossler as he walked off the 18th green Sunday.

So did future Texas teammate Jordan Spieth, who also offered a well-done handshake to the California kid who couldn’t steal the U.S. Open but won over plenty of hearts along the way.

“I feel bad the way it ended with Beau, I really do,” said Spieth, who ended up as low amateur Sunday after Hossler finished with a double bogey. “It would have been nice for both of us to be standing out there with the week that he had. You’re going to see him not too far from now having plenty of success.”
Spieth closed with rounds of 69-70 to finish at 7-over 287 — two shots better than Hossler, who shot 70-73-70-76 on the tight, twisting layout of The Olympic Club.
While the Texas native scrambled to find his way into the U.S. Open then played virtually unnoticed all week, Hossler earned as much air time as Tiger Woods after briefly taking sole possession of the lead Friday then playing his way into contention after a solid back nine Saturday.
In the process he went from relative unknown high school junior to Hook ‘Em Hossler, the teen who thought he could win the U.S. Open.
Fans cheered him when his name was announced on the No. 1 tee, and thousands chanted “Let’s Go Hoss-Ler” as he walked up to the amphitheater-like eighth green Sunday.
Hossler would take off his Imperial white visor, and tip it to the crowd while his caddie/godfather Bill Schellenberg flashed the Hook ‘em Horns sign.
“To hear them chanting my name, that’s pretty awesome,” Hossler said.
What wasn’t awesome Sunday was his swing.
Instead of playing to the “laser” nickname he earned from Santa Margarita Catholic High School teammates, Hossler had a toe-pull going.
“That’s really what cost me today,” he said. “This is a fader’s golf course. You’ve got to hit it into the slope and you have to have backspin so the ball doesn’t roll through the fairways. I didn’t do that.”
Still, there was magic in the air when he holed-out to save par on No. 1 and got up and down from a bunker on No. 2, sinking the par-saving putt to Tiger-like roars.
Unlike Saturday when he backed each bogey with a birdie, Hossler went bogey-bogey-bogey on Nos. 3, 4 and 5. He made three birdies in the round, but four more bogeys and the double on 18.
On the final hole, he knew he needed par to tie Spieth for low amateur. But he put his drive into the left rough, and his long iron found the right bunker.
With a tricky downhill lie, he ended up leaving it in the bunker then missed his bogey putt after getting out.
“He made double because he went for it and tried to be low (amateur),” his father, Beau Hossler Sr., said afterward. “I’m very proud of him. I’m glad that he went for it. I’m proud of him regardless of what number he puts up.”
Golfers back at his home course, Mission Viejo Country Club, aka Mission Impossible, no doubt felt the same.
On Saturday, more golfers were in front of the TV set than on the course, ordering Beau Burgers and Billy beers after Hossler and his caddie.
On Olympic Club, fans enjoyed seeing the kid in braces walk tall among the cypress and sinking fog.
“Beau Knows Golf,” one shouted. “Can you sign my yearbook?” yelled another.
Hossler, who became the first high school player since Mason Rudolph to qualify for consecutive U.S. Opens, took it all in.
“Just like from last year, it’s only a learning experience and I still have some time before I come out and start doing this for a living,” said Hossler, who finished two back of Woods but seven better than idol Mickelson.
Hossler intends to head back to Santa Margarita to finish his senior year then early-enroll at Texas next year to join Spieth, who said he still plans to be a Longhorn but will go through Q-school as an amateur.
First, there’s the matter of those braces that fill Hossler’s smile. They are coming off in a week.
Then there’s the Cal State Am, the Sahalee Players Amateur, then Junior Worlds, the Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur.
And there’s a new goal of qualifying for three straight U.S. Opens.
“He’s disappointed with the way it ended,” said Spieth, who is a youngster himself at just 18. “But leading the U.S. Open when Tiger’s 1 under and (he makes) birdie to go to 2 under ... for a 17-year-old amateur, it’s out of this world. Looking back on it will give him chills.”
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

 

Astros limp home after sweep in Arlington

 

Manager Brad Mills removes Fernando Rodriguez, who suffered his seventh loss after allowing four runs in 2⁄3 of an inning in the sixth. Photo: TIM SHARP / FR62992 AP  

by Zachary Levine

ARLINGTON - Until we meet again. And again and again and again.
Two series against the Rangers have proved to be a nightmare for the Astros. The good news is there are no more this season; the bad news is this one-sided rivalry is about to go intradivisional, with its games tripling in frequency.
But two series were plenty this year for the Astros, who were swept in ugly fashion with Texas' 9-3 victory Sunday and who were defeated five games to one in the Battle for the Silver Boot. The footwear remains with Texas for a sixth straight year, and the interleague phase of this matchup concludes with Texas holding a 42-30 edge.
No matter what the Astros did well for the early parts of games here, it vanished once the middle innings rolled around, and Sunday's meltdown was particularly graphic. Dallas Keuchel's fine major league debut was washed away in a sea of walks, a strange lapse by the defense and 11 strikeouts from a reeling offense that has averagd 2.8 runs in its last six games, including a perfect game.
"It's nice to be going home right now," catcher Jason Castro said, summing up the 3-6 road trip perfectly.
And out of Arlington, where competitive games turned into blowouts and losses with two five-run innings and, most recently, a seven-run inning.
Keuchel, starting in place of the injured Bud Norris, allowed three hits and four walks but no runs over his first five innings, working out of bases-loaded jams in the third and fourth.
But after a 1-2-3 fifth, the sixth proved to be even more of a nightmare than the undoings of Lucas Harrell and Jordan Lyles the days before.
Keuchel gave up a leadoff single to Nelson Cruz, and Brad Mills came out to get his young lefty at 91 pitches. Enter Fernando Rodriguez, who walked two but was one strike from getting out of it when Ian Kinsler hit a bases-loaded triple to the left-center gap.
Disastrous sixth
A walk to Elvis Andrus, and that was it for Rodriguez, who allowed his first inherited runner to score at an inopportune time. In all, the bullpen allowed eight runs in three innings as the decline from an extremely successful April and May continues.
"When things get away from us like they have on this road trip with Bud getting hurt and a couple other things, three innings or four innings, those innings start piling up for your bullpen," said Mills, who said he pulled Keuchel because of his lack of experience pitching deep into games this year and stressful innings with the bases loaded.
Defensive gaffe
But things would only get worse when David Carpenter entered. Michael Young singled to right, and Andrus scored all the way from first when he just kept running and Brian Bogusevic threw to second base with no urgency.
"It didn't look good, and it can't happen," Mills said in a rare moment of feistiness after three hours and 23 minutes of frustration.
A home run by Adrian Beltre was the capper to a seven-run inning, leaving the Astros with nothing to salvage from this one beyond an encouraging debut for Keuchel.
"I wasn't really nervous; I think I was just ready for it," Keuchel said. "After that first strike call to Kinsler (leading off the game), I settled down right then. I had to battle through some stuff, but overall, I think it went pretty well."
So he can take a pleasant memory of the Metroplex to the American League next year. As for the Astros, well, they will not look forward to returning here again. And again. And again …
zachary.levine@chron.com twitter.com/zacharylevine

L.A. Galaxy beats Portland Timbers, 1-0

By KEVIN BAXTER
Los Angeles Times

CARSON, Calif. -- Josh Saunders was back at work for the first time in two months Sunday. And even though he has never publicly explained where he's been or why exactly he went there, the L.A. Galaxy was clearly glad to have its starting goalkeeper back.

The team hadn't won since late April, when Saunders enrolled in Major League Soccer's substance abuse and behavioral health program to be treated for an undisclosed condition at an undisclosed location. And the team hadn't shut out an opponent since Saunders blanked the Houston Dynamo in last November's MLS Cup final.

Both those streaks came to an end Sunday in a 1-0 win over the Portland Timbers at the Home Depot Center in front of a matinee crowd announced at 20,611.

The only goal came on defender Todd Dunivant's controversial header off a David Beckham corner kick in the 61st minute. Galaxy captain Landon Donovan appeared to block Portland keeper Troy Perkins on the play, a move Perkins vehemently protested to referee Geoff Gamble, earning a yellow card.

And though the score was Dunivant's first in MLS play in more than two years and the assist was Beckham's fifth of the season, much of the talk afterward centered on Saunders.

"It was a big night for him coming back," Dunivant said of the keeper. "It was a kind of big deal."

Said Saunders with a smile: "It felt great. It was very special."

Saunders didn't wait long before being welcomed back to the pitch, with Kris Boyd's wicked left-footed blast from 10 yards - a shot Saunders said he never saw - getting through the keeper's hands and striking him in the face in the seventh minute. Boyd tested the keeper again 18 minutes later, this time with a low right-footed shot from just outside the box that was headed for the corner of the net before a diving Saunders got his right hand on it for the second of his four saves on the day.

"Two big saves like that is what you need in these kind of games," Dunivant said. "We didn't give him a lot of chances, but when we did he bailed us out. And that's what you need out of your goalkeeper."

Beckham, playing for the second time this year in front of British Olympic Coach Stuart Pearce, nearly repaid the favor by getting Saunders an insurance goal in the 72nd minute. But his bending free kick from about 30 yards curled just wide of the near post.

One goal wound up being enough, though, giving the Galaxy its first win in eight tries and lifting it out of the Western Conference cellar to within five points of a playoff berth with 20 games left. With Saunders in goal the team is 4-3-0; without him it's 0-5-2.

"Let's not get carried away," Donovan cautioned. "It's one win. But a great win and everyone feels good about it."