The Herald-News from Passaic, New Jersey • C3

Monday, November 19, 2007 BASEBALLSOCCER HERALD NEWS C3 MLS Rivera reportedly near new deal with Yankees Associate says closer will accept club's $45 million, three-year contract expected to finalize his $275 million guaranteed contract with a formal announcement due after Thanksgiving. Catcher Jorge Posada has al By PETE CALDERA Special to the Herald News Three years is a suitable enough length of contract for Mariano Rivera. Today, the Yankees' icon sociate. Last year, Rivera had 30 saves in 7113 innings, with 74 strikeouts and 12 walks. But his 3.15 ERA was high, considering that he'd pitched to an ERA under 2.00 over each of the previous four seasons.

Still, Rivera pitched 4 23 scoreless innings during the AL Division Series against Cleveland and lowered his career postseason ERA to 0.77 in 117 13 innings. according to a source with knowledge of the situation. Still, Rivera never intended to stray from the Bronx. Furthermore, Rivera has told associates that he'll retire the moment he slips below his own standards. In that regard, Rivera would have accepted a two-year deal with a player option, according to an as Bulls want to talk to Osorio Approach Chicago to speak to their coach about opening ready agreed to a four-year, $52.4 million contract.

Back in A I Houston, Andy Pettitte is still contemplating whether to retire or to rejoin the Yankees' ic closer intends to formally instruct his agents to accept was demanding a fourth year, according to someone who spoke to Rivera on Sunday. "I never asked for four years," Rivera said, according to the person that spoke with him. "I asked for three years, they offered me three years. I'm OK with it." Reports had surfaced that Rivera was miffed that Yankees general partner Hank Steinbren-ner had mentioned Rivera's age during the negotiations. Rivera turns 38 later this month, and he'll be 40 in the final year of the contract.

But Rivera's representatives never confirmed nor denied that they sought a fourth year. However, at least two clubs discussed four-year contract offers to Rivera, Art HI4)aM Ofa tU wd www.nortlijersey.com the club $45 million, three-year offer which extends the Bronx Bombers' smashing off-season for re-signing their own free agents. "He's going to take it," said a Rivera associate on Sunday. This afternoon, Alex Rodriguez is expected to be named as the American League's MVP, with the final voting to be officially released. In the coming days, A-Rod is also starting rotation, though club officials are extremely hopeful that he'll return.

Rivera returned home to Westchester, N.Y., on Saturday night, after a week's worth of baseball clinics in the Dominican Republic, where he also met with Yankees' manager Joe Girardi. When he arrived home, Rivera was surprised at the reports that he By IVES GALARCEP Herald News AT. Tile Co. Inc. It's Worth the Trip! Largest Selection in New Jersey SaSSita: a Kc TUMBLE MARBLE PORCELAIN QUARRY TILE LISTELLOS CERAMIC TILE MOSAICS GLASS TILE DECOS CARPET HARDWOOD FLOORS LAMINATES VINYL INLAID TILE SHOWER ENCLOSURES SETTING MATERIALS INSTALLATIONS GLASS TILE 200 Rt.

46 Little Ferry NJ (201)440-0488 (201)440-04945 Fax (201) 440-8251 Open Daily Wed. SThurs. Sat. til 5:00 Ample Parking DIVORCE $299 PLUS COURT FEE $250 WITHOUT CHILDREN OR PROPERTY WITH THIS AD Spouse's Signature Not Needed Final in 4-8 Weeks Guaranteed Lowest Price No Hidden Attorney Fees 28 Years in Business 250 Locations Se Habla Espanol com WWW. I RC Serv'n9 AH New Jersey CENTER 1-800-762-3111 Hudson Wine MARKET SPIRITS LOWEST PRICES PLUS INCREDIBLE SELECTION Chivas Regal 25Yr.

New product $249.99 J.Walker Blue FREE bottle engraving $174.00 Remy Martin Louis XIII $1350.00 CourvoisierXO $89.99 Hennessy VS Patron Silver 1 Party in a bottle! $80.99 Patron Silver 750ml (buy 6 or more bottles) $36.1 0bott. Corzo Silver $39.99 Walker Green 1 Better value size $54.99 Glenlivet 12Yr. $33.99 Glenfiddich 1 2Yr. $32.50 Macallan Fine Oak 1 BYr. $58.99 Dewar's 1.75L HARAZ GHANBARIThe Associated Press The Revolution's Jay Heaps tries to keep the ball away from two Dynamo defenders.

Dynamo: Capture MLS Cup WASHINGTON The Red Bulls' search for a new head coach to replace Bruce Arena has led them to the Chicago Fire, a team that has provided a head coach for the club formerly known as the MetroStars before. The Red Bulls have approached the Fire for permission to speak to Fire coach Juan Carlos Osorio about their vacant coaching position. Chicago has turned down that request but sources say there is a chance the Fire are considering granting that permission. This development has a familiar ring to Red Bulls fans that can remember a similar scenario five years ago, when then-Chicago Fire head coach Bob Bradley left the Fire to become coach of the MetroStars after the 2002 season. The Fire allowed Bradley to leave and received forward Rodrigo Faria as compensation.

When reached for comment on Sunday, Osorio declined to discuss the situation. According to sources, family issues are part of the reason Osorio is open to the possibility of joining the Red Bulls as head coach and leaving Chicago after spending half a season with the Fire. Red Bulls president Marc de-Grandpre declined to comment on the coaching search when asked on Friday. DeGrandpre is aware of Oso-rio's success with Chicago. When asked whether Osorio's success with the Fire played any part in his belief that Arena should have been able to do better with the Red Bulls, deGrandpre answered, "I think it just goes to show that, with the right teacher and chemistry on the bench, you can change things around fairly quickly." Chicago is expected to make a final decision on whether to allow the Red Bulls to speak to Osorio this week.

If the Fire do grant the Red Bulls permission, and the Red Bulls wind up hiring Osorio, Chicago and the Red Bulls will have to agree on compensation because Osorio still has three years left on his contract with the Fire. Osorio joined the Fire during the summer and helped lead Chicago to the Eastern Conference final. A long-time resident of New York and a former assistant coach for the MetroStars, Osorio has previously expressed his desire to eventually be a head coach in New York one day. Osorio's time with the MetroStars was a successful one as he was credited with being one of the keys behind the team's successful 2000 season (the best year in the team's history). Osorio left the Metros in 2001 to take a position with English club Manchester City.

Arena was forced to resign after the Red Bulls were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Arena still had two years left on his contract when he was asked to resign. He guided the team to first-round playoff losses in 2006 and 2007. J. WALKER BLUE 1.75L New Size $325.00 FREE BOTTLE ENGRAVING CRISTAL CHAMPAGNE (buy 3 bottles) $21 5.99bott CALIFORNIA CABERNET Silver Oak Napa '02 Frank Family $37.99 Chimney Rock (with 6 bott.

purchase) Chat. Montelena "Estate" $86.99 Stag's Leap Artemis Dominus Napa Nook $35.99 Spottswoode $115.99 Also: Jordan, Silver Oak "Alex" and Shafer HENNESSY XO MAGNIFICENCE Crystal bottle design $1 50.99 VODKA card rather than a red card. After a pair of missed chances from Twellman, the Dynamo found the game-winner when former MetroStar Brad Davis curled in a cross to DeRosario, who out-jumped Heaps to head the game-winner past Reis from 12 yards out. New England created chances for an equalizer but failed to convert any of them. The Revs came closest in the 87th minute when midfielder Jeff Larentowicz powered a strong header at goal that Onstad was able to get in front of.

"We made chances throughout the game," Revs coach Steve Nicol said. "But you have to take them. "When you're playing against a team like Houston, who is never going to stop, then you have to finish the game," Nicol said. "While it's 1-0, there's always a chance they can find a goal and come right back. We didn't find a second goal and it cost us." Blog: northjersey.comsbi I GWB UJ 5 MAIN ST.

t- (E Borders lu tn tn Hudson Wine 8 Zyr $28.99 Grey Goose $27.09 Stoli Elit $49.99 Imperia 1L $32.99 Belvedere 1 $52.99 Ketel One 1 $36.09 Absolut 1.75L $29.99 Svedka 1.7BL Stoli 1.7BL Skyy 1.7BL Lower price $21 Continued from C1 of 39,859 at RFK Stadium. "We proved how strong of a will we have," DeRosario said. "We never give up." The victory gave Houston its second straight title, making the Dynamo the first team since the 1997 D.C. United to repeat as MLS champions. The loss dropped New England to its third straight MLS Cup final defeat and fourth in the last six years.

DeRosario was named the game's MVP after helping set up Ngwenya's goal and out-jumping Jay Heaps to head home a perfect cross from Davis. The game-winner helped DeRosario win his fourth title and marked his second MLS Cup-winning goal. He also netted the game-winner for San Jose in the 2001 MLS Cup. "This one is more special because we're the second team now to go back-to-back," DeRosario said. New England opened the match in strong fashion, dominating possession and keeping Houston's normally dynamic midfield from creating many chances.

The Revs capitalized on that early control in the 20th minute when midfielder Shalrie Joseph placed a perfect pass to Steve Ralston in the penalty area. Revs forward Taylor Twellman headed home Ralston's subse quent cross to give New England the 1-0 lead. New England could have made it 2-0 just a minute into the second half but Pat Noonan failed to convert a close-range chance as Dynamo goalkeeper Pat Onstad made the first of several key second-half saves. New England's inability to convert chances proved costly as Houston stepped up its play and began creating chances of its own after switching from a 4-4-2 formation to a 3-5-2 in the second half to generate more offense. The tactic worked and the Dynamo eventually broke through in the 61st minute when DeRosario slid a pass to Ngwenya directly in front of goal.

Ngwenya swung to kick the ball but missed. He missed so badly that the ball only rolled a few inches, allowing him to have a second chance at it. Ngwenya didn't miss again. He struck his second chance just underneath Revs goalkeeper Matt Reis to tie the score and awaken the crowd of Houston fans that made the trek to RFK Stadium for the match. The equalizer rattled the Revs, who nearly went a man down when midfielder Khano Smith appeared to head-butt Houston defender Craig Waibel after the two exchanged words.

Referee Alex Prus issued Smith a yellow BEER SPECIALS (24-bottles): CORONA $23.50 HEINEKEN $23.98 201.346.0101 1638 Schlosser Street Fort Lee, NJ 07024 (inside Borders Bookstore Mall) Mon-Thur10-8, Fri-Sat 1 Sunday 11-6 Solaia '03 Super Tuscan "WS 95pts." $1 29.00 Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio Marquis Philips Sarah's Blend $1 2.99 Owen Roe Sharecropper's Kendall Jackson Chard Kim Crawford Sauv. Blc $12.99 Quantities limited. All items are 750ml size unless otherwise noted. Not responsible for typographical errors. DUE TD POPULAR DEMAND OUR 4th TABLE JUST ARRIVED! "UNIFORMS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL" VISIT OUR SHOWROOM DRESS FOR SUCESSS NURSE MATES NEW STYLES JUST ARRIVED! I.

ALBERTA 'white or black Wrongful Termination and Retaliation Whistleblower HarassmentHostile Work Place Family Leave Age, Sex, Race, Disability, Nationality, Religious, Family Status Discrimination Prevailing Wage and Wage and Hour Issues Civil Service Unemployment There's Always Room For Another Success Story! BACALL 'arrives August 25th Dennis Calo, Esq. 201-678-2504 Beverly M. Wurth, Esq. 201-678-2510 BRING THIS AD IN Receive gift "compression trouser socks" with purchase of Nurse Mates shoes lp jfel lantij laging UNIFORM FASHIONS A DIVISION OF SOME'S UNIFORM INC. 31 4 Main Street Hackensack NJ TEL201 -843-1 1 99 -843-301 4 i3 I I44 Eajt ftidgcwood Avenue ftidgewood ii i niu sitf hi 0 I 14 Washington Place, Hackensack, IMJ 07601 LOCATED IN lACKElSHI'S UPPER MAIN DISTRICT uppermain WWW.UPPERH1AIN.ORG ALLIANCE Ii 5fW qJ till piT-S rUL Mm 4H TObMEJ.

fJlJTbUfl mi 0y prj pill ulll ml hill yvr Imbk amjanf..