Ventura County Star from Ventura, California • 24

JC4 SPORTS Friday Feb 27 2009 FC The StarL NFL IN BRIEF LT still a Charger as free-agency deadline nears TOMUNSON ErkRtabsrgAP Mark Loretta begins his slide into home plate to score the Dodgers' fifth run as Giants catcher Bengie Molina waits for the throw during the third inning of Thursday's exhibition game in Scottsdale Ariz The Dodgers won 16-7 Ramirez rejects latest contract offer By Berate WUsee 7 Tu Associated Press SAN DIEGO LaDainian Tomlinson remained with the San Diego Chargers in the hours leading up to NFL free agency and the reopening of the trading period Beyond that there were no specifics coming from either the Chargers or Tomlinson's camp about the future of the 2006 NFL MVP General manager A Smith said Thursday the team was still working to restructure the star running contract in an attempt to lower his base payfbr2009 I can tell you is everything's ongoing" Smith said during his annual news conference before the beginning of free agency got nothing more to add at this time But I will add this: love to have him We hope he returns" Smith refused to describe the tone of the talks with agent Tom Condon or if a time frame in which the team would like to finish a deal with Tomlinson whose contract runs through 2011 just going to let it go for the way it is Everything is Smith said Condon return a call seeking comment If the two sides agree trading or releasing Tomlinson remain options for the Char- forced out of the playoff win against the Colts and sat out against the Steelers the second straight year his postseason was cut short by injury- While his 1110 yards were the lowest of his brilliant eight-year career Tomlinson still finished fourth in the AFC and 10th in the NFL Tomlinson is due $6725000 in 2009 His salary cap number' is $88 million which includes a prorated share of the signing bonus from his 2004 contract Last week the Chargers placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on Darren Sproles virtually assuring the speedy little running backreturner will be back next season Sproles stands to make $662 million next year unless the udes agree to a long-term contract The LT saga has had a few twists and turns In late January Smith said he regretted making comments mocking Tomlinson After Tomlinson said on his Web site that he wanted to stay in San Diego Smith mimicked comments practically word for word Before the postseason run ended the GM was angry that the severity erf Tomlinson's groin injury was revealed calling out the player and his agent Tomlinson the franchise's most brutally honest employee confirmed he had a detached tendon in his gran while the team said only that he had a strained groin Smith said four unrestricted free agents be back: guard Mike Goff linebacker Marques Harris center Jeremy Newberry and defensive end Igor Olshansky BASEBALL NOTES the new closer and a peek at a potential future starter Both pitchers impressed in a 3-1 victory over Oakland Closer Brian Fuentes worked a scoreless inning in front of a sparse crowd of 1643 in Tempe Ariz allowing two hits and striking out one in an inning Right-hander Jordan Walden one of the top prospects struck out three and allowed two hits in his first start of the spring 141 strikeouts led all Angels minor league pitchers last year He posted a 276 ERA over 27 starts at Class-A Cedar Rapids and Rancho Cucamonga Uecocaw Claris agree Is $650000 contract: Tim Lincecum agreed to a $650000 one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants The 24-year-old Lincecum won the National League Cy Young Award in 2008 going 18-5 with a 262 ERA while striking out a mjor league-leading 265 batters in 227 innings Sariasa scratched because ri sort riboan' New York Mets ace Johan Santana was scratched from morning game start against Italy because of tenderness in his pitching elbow Mets manager Jerry Manuel said the decision was precautionary because Santana has a history of feeling elbow soreness this time of the year Santana remains on track to make his regular exhibition game debut Tuesday The Associated Press Manny Ramirez has rejected yet another offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers The Dodgers announced Thursday night the star agent Scott Boras had declined the two-year $45 million offer the fourth this offseason Dodgers owner Frank McCourt says he wants Ramirez back we feel we are negotiating against ourselves General manager Ned Colletti and McCourt met Wednesday in Los Angeles with Boras and offered the free-agent slug-ger a $25 million one-year contract with a $20 million player option for 2010 The offer is similar to the two-year $45 million deal with a buyout or club option that die Dodgers put on the table in November Ramirez refused the offer and the Dodgers withdrew their proposal The team came back with a one-year $25 million offer but Ramirez turned that down as welL Ramirez also turned down salary arbitration with an economy that has substantially eroded since last November out of respect for Manny and his talents we actually improved our offer" McCourt said now we start from scratch" Colletti said there was not necessarily a hard deadline and that Ramirez was not yet needed in spring training the season starting a week later a little bit more flexible than it might have been a year ago" Colletti said Dadgm gat first sprtai wta of 2009: Russell Martin hit his first home run of the spring doubled and drove in three runs as the Dodgers evened their exhibition record at 1-1 with a 16-7 win over the San Francisco Giants at Scottsdale Ariz Dodgers left-hander Randy Wolt who rejoined the team this offseason after spending 2008 with San Diego and Houston retired all six batters he faced in his first start while throwing 21 pitches 15 for strikes Feariae makss debut as Asgah dpssr The Los Angeles Angels got their first look at Smith was pressed several times about Tomlinson during his long question-and-answer session just get it through to you I want to talk about LT anymore" he said testily San Diego made it to the playoffs at 8-8 beat Indianapolis in an overtime wild-card game and then was outmusded by the Pittsburgh Steelers Tomlinson was slowed during the regular season with a toe iqjury then hurt his groin in the season finale He was TENNIS Fish defeats Spadea at Delray Beach tourney Mardy Fish reached the quarterfinals of the Delray Beach (Fla) International Tennis Champum-ships with a 6-4 6-1 win over Vince Spadea on Thursday Fish will next play sixth-seeded Florent Serra who outlasted Mis-cha Zverev 6-3 4-6 6-4 Serra who was behind 0-3 in the third set won the match with an exquisite crosscourt drop volley from his heels In doubles Mike and Bob Bryan needed three sets to defeat follow Americans Scott Lipsky and David Martin in a quarterfinal match 7-6 (7) 3-6 12-10 match tiebreaker Qfriwvk ruches Mai ssaHI its: Top-seeded Novak Djokovic advanced to the semifinals of the $223 million Dubai (United Arab Emirates) Tennis Championship with a straight-sets win over Marin Cilic but No 2 seed Andy Murray withdrew with a viral infection hours before his match Third-seeded Gilles Simon of France defeated compatriot Fabrice Santoro 7-6 (3) 6-1 and will next face Djokovic who defeated Cilic 6-3 6-4 in 1 hour 37 minutes Agassi to play World Teas Tennis this mmsti Andre Agassi will pick up a racket again playing two ihatches for the Philadelphia Freedoms in the World Team Tennis league Agassi will compete for the Freedoms on July 10 in Philadelphia and July 17 in Newport Beach the WTT announced JURISPRUDENCE Official says Vick for home confinement Imprisoned NFL star Michael Vick will be allowed to serve the last two months of his sentence under home confinement because there is no room at a halfway house for him a government official told The Associated Press Vick is serving a 23-month sentence at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth Kan after pleading guilty to bankrolling a dogfighting operation at a home he owned in eastern Surry County He also admitted to participating in the killing of several underperforming dogs lawyers have said they expected him to be moved any day into a halfway house in Newport News Va But because of a lack of space Vick will be released instead to his home in nearby Hampton at some point on or after May 21 said the official who has knowledge of the case but requested anonymity because the individual was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly PRO FOOTBALL City of Industry approves proposal for NFL stadium City Council members in the city of Industry unanimously approved a proposal for a pro football stadium intended to lure a team back to the Los Angeles area The vote helps clear the way for developers of the $800 million venue to begin contacting NFL teams about a possible move to the industrial and warehousing city 15 miles east of Los Angeles GOLF Van Pdt opens with a 63 at Mayakoba Classic Bo Van Pelt birdied seven of his last nine hojes for a 7-under 63 and the first-round lead of the Mayakoba Classic at Playa Del Carmen Mexico He started the run with four straight birdies then birdied three of the final four holes including about a 2-foot putt to close the round in style Chris Riley and Jarrod Lyle opened with 65s Defending champion Brian Gay was tied for 20th at 68 SKIING Vonn falls in training but is OK for World Cup World Cup leader Lindsey Vonn fell during downhill training at Bansko Bulgaria but will be fine to compete in today's race Vonn is already skiing with a protective splint on her hand after cutting her right thumb on a broken champagne bottle OBITUARIES Former Bulls player Van Lier dies at 61 Former Chicago Bulls guard and broadcaster Norm Van Lier was found dead Thursday afternoon in his home authorities said He was 61 Ei-Bufls broadcaster coach Jahacy "Red" Karr dim Johnny Kerr the former Chicago Bulls coach who spent more than three decades as a broadcaster for the team has died He was 76 Saturday re-signs with Colts for three years source says: £lex Rodriguez was told by the New York Yankees to keep his cousin away from the team The message was given to the star third baseman said a person familiar with the situation speaking on condition of anonymity because the team did not make an announcement The message applied both to Spring training and the regular season the person said Woods suffers secOnd-round loss year deal receive $8 million guaranteed and $165 million in the first three years of the contract Bell who has spent his entire five-year career with Miami signed a $20 million four-year contract rather than testing free agency His deal is worth $10 million guaranteed The Jaguars said they will release veteran defensive end Paul Spicer on Friday The 33-year-old Spicer has been with the Jaguare since 2000 playing in 115 games with 63 starts There is plenty of money available on paper But Super Bowls necessarily won with free-agent pickups Pittsburgh for example won this year after losing Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca and adding only low-priced returner Mewelde Moore In 2007 the New York Giants won the title after adding only linebacker Kawika Mitchell The increase in the cap comes through a mechanism in the collective bargaining agreement that was triggered to add about $4 million because for the past several years cash spending on players has been below the 595 percent of total revenue specified in the contract But will the money be spent with an uncapped 2010 a possibility if the league and union do not agree on a new deal before next free-agent period? The minimum a team must spend remains at $1077 million and in this economy many teams don't seem inclined to spend too much more Tampa Bay for example is at nearly $60 million after cutting five veterans on Wednesday including 11-time Pro Bowl linebacker Derrick Brooks General manager Mark Dominik said the object of the cuts was less to save money than make the Bucs younger Still the Bucs may use some of that room to make a push for Haynesworth So might Washington but the Redskins have far less cap room because of previous moves for big-name free agents By Daw Goldberg AP football writer Hours before free agency began the spotlight for once was on linemen Colts star center Jeff Saturday a three-time Pro Bowler agreed to a three-year deal to remain in Indianapolis agent Ralph Cin-drich confirmed the deal to The Associated Press on Thursday night He disclose financial details but said the deal will make Saturday one of the highest-paid centers in the NFL The move came a day after the NFL salary cap increased from $123 million to $127 million tt was also a day after the Colts officially released Marvin Harrison freeing up $6 million under the salary cap Getting the opposite treatment was Derrick Dockery who was released by Buffalo Tvo years ago Dockery a run-of-the-mill guard left the Washington Redskins for a seven-year $49 million deal with Buffalo He was one of several interior linemen who got record-breaking deals that season When he was cut by the Bills Dockery was $28 millkm shut of fulfilling the contract He was a casualty of both his so-so play and the current economic climate in which only the top free agents are likely to strike it rich "If the money go to one particular player i( should go to getting one or two or three players who make your team a better club" said Tennessee general manager Mike Rein-feldt sounding as though he might be resigned to losing one of the premier free agents in this year's class All-Pro defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth The Dolphins were in a spending mood though Miami re-signed Yeremiah Bell on the eve of free agency and acquired Gibril Wilson who landed a big contract for the second year in a row Wilson a five-year veteran released last week by the Raiders signed a $275 million five- G01F From Cl He squared the match with a 10-foot birdie on the next hole and it was tied at the turn Then Clark took over Starting with the par-5 11th he won three straight holes with birdies and was poised to go 4 up when Woods went bun-ker-to-bunker on the 14th hole Then came the biggest cheer of the day when Woods blasted out of the sand and into the cup forbiidie The rally was on And then it ended tee shot on the 331-yard 15th hit a cart path right erf the fairway and headed into the desert Only when Woods reached the ball did he learn it had gone over a fence and out of bounds He flung his Tiger cover off the driver and walked back to the tee to day his third shot Woods was so angry he declined a ride back to the tee At feast he was healthy enough for a long walk Woods drove the green on his next shot to 20 feet but missed the par putt and Clark was again in control Clark's victory means Phil Mickelson coming off a victory last week at Riviera is the highest seed left in the tournament going into the third round Mickelson No 5 again avoided a late meltdown and hung on to beat fellow Masters champion Zach Johnson 1 up Vijay Singh the No 4 seed lost his last three holes and was beaten by Luke Donald of England in 19 holes The only other top-10 players remaining were No 8 seed Geoff Ogilvy who won in 19 holes for the second straight day this timp againaf Shingn Katayama and No 9 seed Camife Villegas who beat Miguel Angel Jimenez 5 and 4 Villegas has played only 26 holes in two rounds It was a big day for England which had five players advance to the third round same aa the Americans Leading the way was Oliver Wilsoa who made eight birdies and needed them all in a 2-and-l victory over Anthony Kim i Woods wound up playing 32 holes and said everything felt great except for losing "I was really pleased walking down these cart paths and obviously playing and getting into the rhythm of playing" Woods said have no soreness have no pain Now it's just a matter of getting back and playing and playing more rounds" Woods again took an early lead with a majestic shot this one a hard draw with a 3-wood around a television tower and onto the green on the par-5 second hole Clark tied the match with a putt that even he didn't think he would make He was on the back end of the fifth green two tiers above the hole when he jokingly asked Woods to move his marker one spot over Moments later however Clark asked him to tamp down his coin Then his putt rolled right over mark down the ridge and broke left toward the cup dark raised his arm and pointed his index finger as the birdie putt made its final turn That squared the match and Woods fell behind on the next hole when he caught a plugged lie in the bunker It was the first time Woods had trailed in this tournament since KJ Choi had a 1-up lead after one hole of their quarterfinal match last year Woods beat Clark 5 and 4 in the second round two years ago That wound up helping the South African knew what to expect" Clark said knew how I reacted to it then and I kind of knew a few things that I had to do differently I just tried to calm myself down" That easy on the 14th when Clark was poised to put him away Woods was in the bunker when he holed it out for birdie and Clark remembered what happened last year when Woods rallied from three holes down with a birdie-bird ie-birdie-eagle blitz against JB Holmes figured here we go It's about to start dark said figured the match was probaMy going to go to 18 even when I was 3-up with three to play You fully expect him to do f- 1.