Coughlin refused relates to indicate understand what he would do " In the past, we have done it the way that I thought was best for us to win, and we will continue to do whatever we think is best for us to win " Coughlin said after practice. Associated PressKANSAS CITY, Mo- While failing to get a win on his 24th birthday, Aaron Laffey may have landed a job. He then stole second before Hill drilled Fernando Rodney' s 3- 1 pitch down the left- field line for his 32nd homer " I was looking for a fastball, you have to when a guy can throw that hard " Hill said " But he threw a changeup and it was up " Hill, who leads the A L. McGrady scored 35 points, including the tying shot at the end of regulation and the go- ahead 3- pointer in the second overtime, as Houston beat the Chicago Bulls 109- 108 to stop a seven- game slide. My heart was always here " His return represents a happy ending but also a new beginning for the 34- year- old pass rusher.

8 million Email Print Share ESPN news services The Yankees added to their collection of free- agent relief pitchers, agreeing Wednesday with right- hander Paul Quantrill on a two- year deal worth$ 6 8 million, ESPN' s Peter Gammons reports . Information from The Associated Press was used in this report . Louis Cardinals, McGwire' s last team, suggested calls for McGwire be left with his business manager, Jim Milner A message left Monday at Milner' s office was not returned . Charitable foundations of Fred and Judy Wilpon, and of Jeff and Valerie Wilpon were listed along with several Wilpon family trusts . Baker pitched a two- hitter, Kubel homered and had five RBIs and the Minnesota Twins beat the Cleveland Indians 11- 0.

Fast Facts# 8226& nbsp; The Mavericks won for the third time in their last eight games, improving to 23- 11 since a 2- 7 start to the season# 8226& nbsp; The Pistons had their two- game win streak snapped and lost for the sixth time in their last eight# 8226& nbsp; Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 26 points, his sixth straight 20- point game of the season# 8226& nbsp; The Pistons dropped to 20- 18 with Allen Iverson in the lineup- ESPN research Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points, Josh Howard added 22 and Dallas routed the Detroit Pistons 112- 91 on Friday night, two nights after a 34- point loss in Milwaukee " It was a disappointing loss the other day but a big win tonight " Nowitzki said " We need that confidence when we go to Boston on Sunday to play the world champions " Brandon Bass added a season- high 18 points, and Jason Kidd had 11 points and 10 assists for Dallas, which lost 133- 99 to the Bucks " The last time we were out on the floor, we gave up 133 points, so I don' t think Coach was going to need to say much to make us understand that we needed to come out hard " Kidd said " After Milwaukee, tonight was about pride " Pistons' Roller- Coaster The Pistons have been up and down since Allen Iverson' s first game, posting a disappointing 3- 7 record in their most recent 10- game stretch . That' s the key to this team' s offensive success and it will continue this season . The Bears also listed return man/ wide receiver Devin Hester and wide receiver Brandon Lloyd questionable and they are game- time decisions Both practiced Friday on a limited basis . Last week the Steelers had to release tailback Gary Russell in order to have enough cap room to sign backup quarterback Charlie Batch Timmons was the team' s first- round draft choice in 2007 . I' ve taken care of my business in the field the last three years and hopefully I get treated respectfully, that' s all I ask for " Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. The 24- year- old left- hander allowed two runs and two hits in four innings. Mientkiewicz doubled with two outs in the eighth and scored on Damon' s single.

In addition, Carl Pavano is trying to return from a succession of shoulder, back, buttocks, elbow and rib injuries that have sidelined him since June 2005 Pavano agreed to a$ 39 . The Yankees and Detroit rank 1- 2 in runs- far ahead of everyone else in the majors- but Pettitte( 10- 7) tamed the Tigers all night . Diop was amazed by the finished product " I saw it last night " Diop said " I thought it looked really cool We spent 10 hours making it I was tired, but it was a cool thing . Grudzielanek was put on the 15- day DL with a right ankle sprain and INF Jason Smith was brought up from Omaha . Jason Richardson, who led Golden State with 31 points, pulled the Warriors to 121- 116 with a 3- pointer off the glass with 15 8 seconds left. Van Horn played for the Nets for five seasons, including 2001- 02 when the team reached the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.

We' ll have to sit back and think about it " Game notes Jenkins' grand slam was the fourth of his career . Houston general manager Ed Wade said the Astros couldn' t pass up the opportunity to add Tejada " The reality is when you are talking about a player of this magnitude, you have to go in with every expectation that the asking price is going to be very high and if you want to participate, it' s going to be tough' he said . Detroit' s shot at winning its home finale improved when the game resumed and Minnesota ace Johan Santana did not return to the mound " We weren' t going to take any chances once it got to be 30 or 40 minutes " Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said " We aren' t going to risk him getting hurt " That ended his streak of pitching at least five innings in 123 straight starts dating to 2004 " It had to end sooner or later, but this isn' t the way you would want " Santana said " You just can' t control the weather " In the last 50 years, just Curt Schilling( 147) and David Cone( 145) had longer streaks . Curtis Granderson hit a two- run homer off Rafael Perez in the seventh . Associated PressWASHINGTON- John Baker tilted a slugfest in Florida' s favor, while Burke Badenhop stopped the Nationals cold. Minnesota' s Mark Madsen will undergo surgery on his injured right wrist Tuesday in the Twin Cities Hand specialist Dr Thomas Varecka will perform the surgery Madsen is out for the rest of the season Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Nelson cooked up an impressive game plan for Dallas, doubling Nowitzki to key the defense that forced Dallas' 23 turnovers and erratic shooting.

Orton, who sprained his right ankle last Sunday against the Detroit Lions, was doubtful on the official injury report after working out Friday only during individual passing drills " I can' t go that far " Bears coach Lovie Smith said when asked if Orton' s first practice meant he could start Sunday " He' s making progress . Updated: November 22, 2003, 9: 14 AM ET Escobar reportedly signs with Angels Email Print Share ESPN news services The Angels reportedly have started to revamp their pitching staff . Maddux slid in ahead of the throw and hit the bag awkwardly, twisting his body around . ST LOUIS( AP- A patchwork rotation was supposed to be the St Louis Cardinals' weakness . Updated: February 6, 2009, 2: 35 AM ET Judge seems set to rule for Bonds Comment Email Print Share Learn More# 187; Report a bug# 187; Feedback# 187; Favorable Day For Bonds In Court SAN FRANCISCO- On a windy, rainy day much like the one that cloaked the Bay Area five years ago when Barry Bonds testified before a grand jury and set off a surreal and unexpected odyssey, the seven- time most valuable player appeared to score a major victory in the lead- up to his trial on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. Boston held a 53- 46 halftime lead, but watched Dallas cut the deficit to three points after three quarters of play.

Associated PressWASHINGTON- It' s been awhile since the Washington Wizards won a game without Caron Butler . He didn' t get much playing time for Brown at the Athens Games and admitted that wasn' t all because of Brown " I was a little air- headed " James said " It was my fault also, not knowing what I was getting myself into . Sprint PCS has the option of using Fleury in print and radio advertisements in the future . So we' ll kind of have to factor that into the equation as we go forward " Harbaugh said " But by the same token, he' s had a lot of reps from the very first minicamp on through . Also sitting out were middle linebacker Gary Brackett( team decision, defensive tackle Raheem Brock( rib, wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez( foot, cornerback Kelvin Hayden( illness, cornerback Tim Jennings( concussion, defensive end Robert Mathis( knees, defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock( groin, cornerback Keiwan Ratliff( hamstring, safety Bob Sanders( team decision, and tight end Ben Utecht( shoulder. The 27 athletes allegedly named include Barry Bonds, Giambi, Gary Sheffield, Marion Jones, Tim Montgomery, Kelli White, and Chryste Gaines.

Hunter then stole third base and scored when McCann' s throw sailed into left field for a 3- 1 lead, and Castillo sent him to the showers five hitters later " He was throwing as well as I' ve ever seen him " Braves manager Bobby Cox said " He looked fine to me, but those walks will burn you, no matter where you' re playing " Game notes Braves SS Edgar Renteria did not play . Trot Nixon had a double and single in his first start for the Mets since being acquired from Arizona on Friday night " That was a tough loss " Randolph said " We made a nice comeback The guys fought back really nicely . The 12- year veteran led the NBA in 3- point percentage, shooting 48 . 4 assists, missed three games last season with a sprained right ankle He was not available for comment . To be able to illustrate your city on a worldwide global stage like the NBA is an opportunity not offered to very many mayors in very many cities " Cornett said " It puts us in a level of equality with a lot of cities that we' ve never had that level of equality with before " The mayor said it' s difficult to determine exactly how successful the Hornets have to be for the city to break even. Haynesworth Haynesworth missed his first game this season last weekend in a 28- 13 loss to Jacksonville, and the Titans( 6- 3) gave up a season- high 166 yards rushing without him.

The Bills will be paid$ 78 million- more than double their calculated 2006 operating income- for the eight- game series, which is far more than they could have generated playing in economically troubled Buffalo . SS David Eckstein, just activated off the DL, was not in St Louis' starting lineup Phillies LF Pat Burrell, already the No . His struggles were a matter of trying to muscle his way to the plate in an attempt to overcorrect his off- target pitches, but Slowey eventually settled himself down " He knew exactly what was going on . Lugo grounded out and Ellsbury walked but was thrown out at home on Pedroia' s double, Then Ortiz connected on a 1- 1 pitch, giving Boston a 5- 0 lead . the Braves# 8226& nbsp; These two teams played a 12- inning game Tuesday. Those two had higher grades, better numbers and more publicity than Heyward- Bey, but couldn' t match him in breakaway speed Heyward- Bey was clocked at 4.

Alou led the Giants to the NL West title in 2003 before finishing one game out of the wild- card race last season . Epstein has called Schilling' s move to the bullpen " short term " Foulke went on the 15- day disabled list on Wednesday . Shane Victorino followed his leadoff single in the first with his 12th stolen base of the year- he later got his 13th- and reached third on Alfonzo' s throwing error on a pickoff try . And I thought Pudge called a[ heck] of a game " Tigers manager Jim Leyland said " He changed speeds well He used all his pitches . And my arm felt good enough to do it " When the defending World Series champions offered a deal, he quickly accepted " I want to see if we can get a championship " he said " I didn' t come back to muddle around in last place somewhere " Percival signed on June 8, made six appearances in Triple- A and then was added to the roster on Tuesday. Plate umpire CB Bucknor ruled it a foul ball off the knob of the bat.

Associated PressST . Red Sox manager Terry Francona didn' t think Ramirez was injured seriously " I don' t think there' s any concussion symptoms " Francona said " He was a little woozy . Blanco' s sacrifice bunt in the seventh scored Phil Nevin from third to make it 7- 3 Gonzalez gave up six runs in five innings Game notesMurton had just 10 doubles before Thursday . The Cubs announced they would make up a postponed game against the Astros on June 11 at Wrigley Field at 7: 05 p m CDT . Williams is accused of recklessly handling the shotgun, then trying to make the shooting look like a suicide and persuading others to lie that Christofi shot himself.