■ BASEBALL
Red Sox may sign Tazawa
Japanese pitcher Junichi Tazawa moved a step closer to signing with the Boston Red Sox after rejecting offers from three other major league teams. The 22-year-old right-hander contacted the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners and Atlanta Braves on Friday to reject their offers, Kyodo News agency reported. Tazawa is expected to hold a news conference early next week to announce his decision. He reportedly received offers from the Rangers, Braves, Mariners and Red Sox. The hard-throwing Tazawa is a standout in Japan’s corporate leagues. He asked Japan’s professional teams not to select him in this month’s amateur draft so that he could pursue a career in the US major leagues.
■ FORMULA ONE
Hartley to test for Red Bull
New Zealander Brendon Hartley will test for the Red Bull Formula One team next month after regular Australian driver Mark Webber was ruled out with a broken leg. The team said on their Web site that the Formula Three driver would join Germany’s Sebastian Vettel and Switzerland’s Sebastien Buemi for the test at the Jerez circuit in southern Spain on Dec. 15. Hartley, a Red Bull junior driver who has had brief “shakedown” runs in Red Bull cars this year, recently finished third in the Macau F3 Grand Prix after starting in 20th place. The 19-year-old also set a lap record in the process.
■ FOOTBALL
NFL fines Porter US$7,500
The National Football League fined Miami Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter on Friday for unsportsmanlike conduct during his team’s 48-28 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday. Porter was fined US$7,500 for verbally abusing the opponent after play was over. The 31-year-old Porter has 39 tackles and 14.5 sacks this season for the Dolphins, who bring a 6-5 record when they visit the 2-9 St. Louis Rams on today. The game had turned testy in the waning minutes, with Patriots left tackle Matt Light and Miami’s Channing Crowder both ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct after a scuffle.
■ BASKETBALL
Knicks suspend Marbury
The New York Knicks fined and suspended point guard Stephon Marbury on Friday for refusing to play Wednesday in a National Basketball Association game against Detroit. “A player’s central obligation is to provide his professional services when called upon,” Knicks president Donnie Walsh said. “Because he refused the coach’s request to play in the team’s last game, we had no choice but to impose disciplinary action.” Marbury, who reportedly has been told to stay away from the team through the weekend, is expected to file a grievance through the players’ union. The team’s move is the latest in a steadily deteriorating relationship with Marbury, who claimed in the New York Post published on Friday that Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni had manipulated the situation. “If you say I gotta play, I’m going to play,” Marbury told the newspaper on Thursday, before the team’s action was announced.”
■ SWIMMING
Smit breaks 400m record
Julia Smit of the US broke the short course world record in the women’s 400m individual medley on Friday with a time of 4min 25.87sec at the Canada Cup swimming meeting. Smit, winner of two relay medals — silver and bronze — at the Beijing Games, eclipsed the previous record of 4:26.52 set by Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe on April 9 of this year.
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was