During an deduces interview for defines ESPN' s broadcast of the Suns- Warriors game, Porter said " The biggest thing is just we' re working every day to try to get this team better. Hossa than scored consecutive goals less than 9 minutes apart in the third period in helping Detroit built a 3- 0 lead. Taylor went from the Miami Dolphins to the Washington Redskins for a second- round pick in 2009 and a sixth- rounder in 2010. Ireland said the Dolphins wanted to make sure Williams remained signed with Brown " He' s a player that' s shown he can play " Ireland said " He' s shown us that he can play. Scouting players practicing for the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala, he spoke briefly with several reporters and was asked if he planned to remain as the Dolphins' vice president of football operations " What does it look like I' m doing " he said " What do your eyes tell you " When asked why he wouldn' t commit outright to staying, Parcells said experience taught him never to rule anything out. They' ll host New Orleans on Wednesday night in a game scheduled to begin 30 minutes after tipoff in Portland. The league opened offices in China in January 2008, and NBA games and programming are available on 51 television and digital outlets there.

The Giants are better versus the pass and the Ravens are better versus the run . Associated PressSURPRISE, Ariz( AP- If the Los Angeles Angels need Hector Carrasco to fill in for one of their injured starters, he looks perfectly capable of doing so . RF Cody Ross became the first Florida outfielder this season to have two assists in a game . The Angels have won 10 of their last 13, but their offense continues to struggle . The only time things got heated between players was in the Texas seventh when Vazquez struck out and exchanged words with pitcher Ryan Rowland- Smith, who pumped his fist after the third strike. After leading the Indiana Pacers by 10 points late in the third quarter, the slumping Pistons found themselves down 103- 101 in the final four minutes. TomlinsonGatesRunning back LaDainian Tomlinson( toe, center Nick Hardwick( foot, tight end Antonio Gates( hip, defensive tackle Jamal Williams( knees, left guard Kris Dielman( thigh) and center Jeremy Newberry( knee) went through the whole practice.

Not good enough for a team that still expected to be playing . With the score tied 3- all, Damion Easley opened the sixth with the second of his three infield singles before Brian Schneider also singled against Ryan Madson( 2- 1 . He put runners on first and second with one out in the sixth, but he got Youkilis on a fly ball to center and struck out Ortiz to keep it a one- run game . It doesn' t happen often to superstars of his caliber " Cavs coach Mike Brown said of James' foul trouble " But it happened tonight and our guys stayed composed and found a way to win the game down the stretch " Brown finished with 20 points, Anderson Varejao made eight of nine shots and added 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Ilgauskas had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Cleveland . The NFL has no timetable to rule on the appeal, Williams' lawyer David Cornwell said Tuesday. In a separate disciplinary move, Atlanta manager Bobby Cox also fined Fick The amount of that fine was not disclosed. The Angels will also have the benefit of elasticity: as it turns out, a 77- win team will typically improve by about 1 5 wins as it regresses to the mean.

Pujols, who leads the league in home runs( 15) and is second in RBI( 33, sat out Tuesday with stiffness in his back . Updated: February 9, 2008, 12: 48 AM ET After taking a year off due to injury, Foulke returns to majors with A' s Comment Email Print Share Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif- Keith Foulke ended his retirement and returned to the Oakland Athletics on Friday, agreeing to a$ 700, 000, one- year contract that allows him to earn$ 2 5 million more in bonuses . You can' t let those little things affect your outing " Kennedy said " Definitely in that first inning, I felt like it was an out- of- body experience My adrenaline was pumping so much I tried to control it, but I couldn' t . Halladay( 3- 4) had thrown complete games in his previous four starts, but lost the last three . Prosecutors were expected to present key evidence at the preliminary hearing, including photographs of what they say are injuries to the woman, a videotaped statement from her and a statement from Bryant they say supports much of what his accuser told investigators. George, a former Louisville players, appeared in one preseason game. Maybe we' re viewing it as our obligation to become involved in something we never wanted to touch because it was both unpleasant and possibly deleterious to their academic health, but we' re talking about it internally " Incoming deputy commissioner Adam Silver expounded on Stern' s statements in an interview with ESPN " As David said, from a college and NBA standpoint, it' s often too late- by the time the rules allow us to first engage the players- to do anything in terms of skills and personal development " Silver said " There' s a morass of rules, some Byzantine, that we' re just beginning to understand.

Utah' s eighth loss in nine games and its seventh straight on the road seemed unthinkable midway through the fourth quarter . These kids are young enough that 2014 and 2016 are possibilities for them . We' d be OK with that because we' re going through the process ourselves trying to get the physical stuff together . We welcome you back home " Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press . We' re here and looking forward to making the most of it " Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. Besides his free throw woes, Gasol committed five of the Grizzlies' 13 turnovers. Bryant was 12- for- 20 from the floor and sank all seven free throws " If Kobe shoots the ball that well, we' re going to have a good winning percentage because he' s going to take most of the shots " Jackson said.

Ross Dettman for ESPN The MagazinePassing fancy: Family patriarch Archie and sons Cooper, Eli and Peyton Manning 7: 40 a . He was used mostly in a set- up role in 18 games with the Cardinals . We didn' t play very inspiring baseball " Colorado tied it at 1 in the fourth inning on a one- out double by Matt Holliday, a walk to Brad Hawpe and Clint Barmes' bloop double to right . He got Millar to ground into a double play to strand two runners in the third and allowed just one hit total in the fourth and fifth innings before being relieved by Julian Tavarez " We haven' t gotten the big hits when we needed to " said Millar, who stranded six runners " I' m as much to blame as anyone right now " Benson allowed nine runs and eight hits in 4 1- 3 innings for Baltimore, which ended its road trip 0- 5 and has lost 12 of 15 games . Although only a personal foul was called at the time, the league reviewed the play and punished Nowitzki for " making unnecessary and excessive contact " Nowitzki was called for a flagrant foul penalty one when he tried stopping Gasol on a drive with a minute left in overtime of Game 3. Fast Facts# 8226& nbsp; Kyle Blanks' inside- the- park homer- one day after a walk- off HR- was the first by a Padre since Sean Burroughs on May 16, 2003, against Atlanta# 8226& nbsp; Adrian Gonzalez hit his 33rd homer and is hitting. San Diego announced during the game it extended Black' s contract through the 2010 season and held an option for 2011 " I' m happy for him " Gonzalez said " He' s a quality guy.

Or else they' ll bury you- Kevin Durant, on teammate Wally Szczerbiak The sleek, 6- foot- 9 shooter and slasher is so smooth that old- schoolers liken him to George Gervin and Bob McAdoo . Washington led 66- 60 at the end of three quarters but went on a 7- 2 run to start the fourth quarter to take a 73- 62 advantage with 8: 20 remaining on two free throws by Andray Blatche . For his career, Johnson has registered 63 tackles, nine sacks, one forced fumble and two passes defensed . I don' t think we need anything drastic to happen to be in the same situation " Torre said the Yankees could use another starter " Starting pitching has been probably an area this year where we really haven' t had a lot of depth " Torre said " In the nine years I' ve been here, this has probably been, I' m not going to say the weakest, but the thinnest staff, of what' s usually our strength " Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press . Orioles executive vice president Mike Flanagan conceded that Millar and Jeff Conine- also signed by Baltimore this offseason- are similar players, but he said their presence would improve a clubhouse that became tense and fractious in the second half of 2005, when Rafael Palmeiro was suspended for using steroids and the team plummeted in the standings " It was an extroverted ballclub that became just the opposite the second half of the season, so it' s been a conscious effort to make sure we can try to maintain that energy " Flanagan said Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. Yet when asked whether he could explain his recent struggles here, Billingsley mumbled an answer about a quality start, then seemed to reference his outing in Chicago before saying " Never mind " Even Torre was at a loss in trying to describe how the game devolved so quickly. He resigned Saturday as the Arizona Diamondbacks' executive vice president and COO.

But none of that has made much difference so far, and it' s clear something has to change . Votto hadn' t played since May 29th- ESPN Stats& Information " I saw how the righties were approaching his changeup early on in the season, they weren' t having much success " Barajas said " I' m like' Why don' t we throw it to lefties' We went with it and he' s done a great job . Wallace scored the first nine points in a 10- 0 run that tied it at 71 midway through the third quarter . He also had eight rebounds and nine assists to match his career high . The 6- foot- 11 center was scoreless in 13 minutes Friday night at Chicago, his first game without a point since Jan. You better cherish it and you better take advantage of it " For the Steelers, Sunday' s game at Denver represents the fifth game away from home in six weeks. The Falcons released him this month, less than five years after they signed the former Pro Bowl quarterback to a$ 130 million contract.

After Omar Infante struck out and Shelton walked, Inge made it 4- 2 with a sacrifice fly Wilson added an RBI single . They also managed 11 singles and no extra- base hits for the second straight game . He can opt out after next season " He can dominate this game for years to come " Kupchak said . Morales doubled in each of his next two at- bats and added his 29th home run against Brad Ziegler( 1- 4) to break Chili Davis' 1996 club record for the most homers in a season by a switch- hitter . Much depends on the young talent, obviously, but this team could be quite good. The Mavericks built a 42- 36 halftime advantage, with Howard leading the way with 13 points. 2 million viewers, an increase of 47 percent over the nine million who watched the Cardinals and Giants last year.

He basically said it was going to continue if I didn' t get it fixed, so I think that says it all right there " Through Tuesday, the three- time All- Star- who signed a four- year$ 30 million contract extension May 14- was hitting . Mora took off his glove, shook his hand as he brought the ball to the mound and left the game " It feels better We' ll have to wait until tomorrow " he said . The Washington Nationals made three fielding errors, star rookie Ryan Zimmerman committed a base- running gaffe and catcher Brian Schneider stormed out of the clubhouse with an expletive- laden tirade . Ichiro Suzuki, who earlier in the day agreed to a$ 90 million, five- year extension with Seattle, was 1- for- 4 . With two on and two outs, Jason Giambi appeared to check his swing on Mahay' s 3- 2 pitch near his ankles. Denard Span hit a tying double before sliding past Rodriguez with the go- ahead run in the sixth inning when the throw beat Span to home plate but slipped between the legs of the 13- time Gold Glove catcher, completing Minnesota' s rally for a 5- 4 victory Wednesday night. Raja Bell followed with a 3- pointer, but Marshall and Morris Peterson made consecutive 3- pointers to give Toronto a 10- point lead with 1: 41 remaining.

Bogut returned to the lineup against the Raptors after missing eight games with back spasms and scored 13 points . Having the former University of Texas star back in the lineup, even on a rotational basis, was expected to upgrade the Seahawks' run defense . They' re a good football team " John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN . Rentschler scored TCU' s first nine points during an 11- 2 run that put the Lady Frogs ahead 29- 22 with 6: 28 remaining in the first half . Added to the 40- man roster were infielders Yurendell DeCaster, Javier Guzman, Craig Stansberry and pitcher Josh Sharpless. Updated: February 18, 2007, 11: 42 AM ET Rogers insists again he didn' t cheat in World Series Comment Email Print Share Associated Press LAKELAND, Fla- Kenny Rogers' sensational postseason was smudged as soon as TV cameras caught that brownish substance on his pitching hand. Clemens' former teammate and workout partner, Andy Pettitte, was asked to appear Jan.

Updated: May 15, 2006, 2: 07 PM ET Report: Dolan considers buying out Brown' s contract Email Print Share ESPN news services Larry Brown' s dream job with the New York Knicks could end after only one season . The Tigers added two more in the fifth on Polanco' s third homer and Brandon Inge' s sacrifice fly, and made it 9- 2 with another pair of runs in the sixth " I was hoping that our bullpen could come in early and pitch like they' ve been doing all season, but that didn' t happen " Macha said . Boston' s home losing streak is the longest for any NBA team since the Hawks lost 11 in a row in Atlanta in the spring of 2005 . If anything, Goodman said it could strengthen his city' s case " I think that there' s going to be a public recognition that Las Vegas does monitor this kind of alleged activity " Goodman said Friday " I don' t want anyone' s bad fortune to cause us good fortune, but I think it will cause people to look at Las Vegas in a light perhaps differently than they do, because we do in fact regulate this kind of activity " The FBI is investigating allegations that veteran NBA referee Tim Donaghy bet on basketball games over the past two seasons, including ones in which he officiated . He failed to catch a pass in the loss to Carolina, several times waving his arms in frustration when quarterback Eli Manning couldn' t get him the ball " Everyone is different " Burress said " We all express ourselves in different ways. 99 to 55, has first Skins practice Comment Email Print Share Associated Press ASHBURN, Va- Jason Taylor entered the locker room Tuesday morning ready to suit up for his first practice of training camp, just like he' d done before each of his past 11 NFL seasons. They show steroid use is about one- tenth of the numbers Ken Caminiti and Jose Canseco were throwing around.

Spears was 5- for- 14 shooting and 3- of- 4 from the free throw line " I thought Morrow' s defense on Spears was good " Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said " You are talking about Spears, the second leading scorer in the league and she had 14 " Baylor missed its first nine shots to start the second half . Rollins joined Steve Jeltz and Tomas Perez as the only players in franchise history to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game Rollins has 17 homers His previous high was 14 in 2001 and 2004 Dellucci has 10 homers in 173 at- bats . His drive into the left- field seats on the first pitch from Matt Guerrier was his first home run since last June 8 for Kansas City against Philadelphia- the longest home run drought of his 14- year career " It felt good to fill that column " Sweeney said " Now I have to fill that stolen base and triple column It might not come this year, but it' s good to have goals . Scott Downs worked a perfect seventh to extend his scoreless innings streak to 25, the longest current streak in baseball Brian Tallet gave up four runs in the eighth before B J Ryan closed it out . The Pistons made 6- of- 12 from 3- point range, compared with 3- of- 13 for the Magic Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Season ticket sales are up about 30 percent, partly because buyers who keep their seats the following season get the opportunity to buy 2006 All- Star tickets Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. Glavine( 5- 2) cruised in winning his third straight start, allowing three runs, four hits and striking out four Even more impressive was the way the.