BASEBALL
Pudge Rodriguez to retire
Fourteen-time All-Star Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez, who caught in more games than any other MLB player, will retire on Monday, the Texas Rangers said on Thursday. Rodriguez, 40, has scheduled a news conference in Arlington, Texas, where he began his 21-year career with the Rangers in 1991 as a 19-year-old. The Puerto Rican-born catcher last played in the major leagues last year with the Washington Nationals. Rodriguez caught 2,427 games with the Rangers, Florida Marlins, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Houston Astros and the Nationals. He batted .300 or better in 10 seasons and ended his career with a .296 average and 311 homers. Rodriguez was the 1999 AL MVP with the Rangers and the 2003 NL Championship Series MVP with the Marlins, who went on to win the World Series that year.
BASKETBALL
Howard to have back surgery
Dwight Howard will undergo surgery for a bad back, ending his season with the Orlando Magic and likely eliminating him from playing for the US at the London Olympics, the team said on Thursday. Magic general manager Otis Smith told the Orlando Sentinel that the 26-year-old center was to have surgery to fix a herniated disk yesterday in Los Angeles. “After consulting with the two doctors, it’s in his best interests to have surgery sooner rather than later,” Smith said. “Basically, the situation is not getting better. I’m not saying it got worse. It’s just not getting better.”
EQUESTRIAN
Saudi doping hearings done
The International Equestrian Federation has completed hearing doping cases involving horses ridden by members of Saudi Arabia’s Olympic jumping team. The federation said its tribunal heard cases involving Khaled al-Eid and Abdullah Sharbatly on Wednesday and Thursday, and aims to deliver verdicts within 30 days. Al-Eid was the 2000 Sydney Olympics bronze medalist and Sharbatly won silver at the 2010 World Equestrian Games. Al-Eid’s horse Vanhoeve and Sharbatly’s mount Lobster 43 both tested positive for two anti-inflammatory medications at World Cup events in Riyadh and al-Ain in Abu Dhabi respectively, from November last year to February.
BASEBALL
Aybar re-signs with Angels
Gold Glove shortstop Erick Aybar signed a four-year, US$35 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels, keeping him with his only MLB club through 2016. Aybar signed the deal on Thursday, passing on the chance to try free agency this winter. The switch-hitting leadoff man posted career highs of 10 homers, 59 RBIs and 30 stolen bases last season, while winning his first Gold Glove. Aybar will get a US$1 million signing bonus.
ROWING
Man finishes Atlantic trip
A UK-based Colombian rower completed his solo trip across the Atlantic Ocean in Guyana on Thursday, after battling strong winds that blew far him off course. Nicolas Carvajal Uribe, 31, arrived at the wharf in Georgetown at 7:17pm with an escort from the country’s coast guard, a journalist witnessed. “I’m happy to be on land, finally,” Carvajal said. Carvajal left the Canary Islands on Jan. 26 and had hoped to finish his journey in Barbados, but changed plans after being pushed south by strong winds. The rower has said in a statement his aim was to cross the Atlantic “completely unsupported and under nothing but my own power in a rowing boat” to raise funds for Cancer Research UK. He said that he had so far collected about US$40,000.
RUGBY UNION
Lynagh still critical
Former Australia captain and World Cup winner Michael Lynagh is showing positive signs, but remains in a critical condition in a Brisbane hospital after suffering a stroke, his doctor said yesterday. The 48-year-old former flyhalf has been in hospital since Monday after suffering problems with his vision, coordination and balance. “This significant stroke is a rare event for someone of Michael’s age,” neurologist Rob Henderson said. “The next few days are critical, because of swelling in the region of the brainstem, but current signs are positive,” Henderson said of the former Queensland Reds player. Lynagh, who won the World Cup in 1991 and played in 72 Tests for the Wallabies, retired from international rugby in 1995 and moved to England, where he now resides.
SOCCER
Santos go top of group
Neymar scored one goal and set up another as defending champions Santos defeated The Strongest of Bolivia 2-0 to top Group 1 of the Copa Libertadores on Thursday. Fellow Brazilian club Internacional finished second in the group to also advance to the round-of-16. Internacional lost 1-0 to Juan Aurich in Peru, but it still moved on because of the loss by The Strongest. Santos finished with 13 points from six matches, five points ahead of Internacional and six in front of The Strongest. Juan Aurich were last with six points.
GOLF
Giles arrested after crash
Authorities say Australian professional golfer Matthew Giles has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving after he crashed his car into a home southeast of Phoenix, Arizona. A police report says Giles was “traveling at a very high rate of speed and tried to make a left turn” when he lost control of his car and it crashed into a single-family home on Monday. Police say the accident ruptured a natural gas line, but there were no reported injuries. They say Giles was given sobriety tests at the crash scene and results are expected in about two weeks. Giles finished 66th in the Nationwide Tour’s TPC Stonebrae Championship in California the day before the crash.
SOCCER
Contracts agreement signed
Soccer authorities across Europe have agreed on a deal for minimum standards in player contracts that should specifically protect professional players in lesser leagues and minor clubs. The FIFPro global union representing professional footballers agreed with UEFA, leagues and clubs on specific rules on commercial rights and medical issues that should become standard under the new rules. UEFA president Michel Platini was in Brussels on Thursday to sign the agreement, which will bind clubs in the 53 European federations. The rules have been under discussion for years.
SOCCER
Gonzalez to leave Schalke 04
Schalke 04 says Spanish veteran Raul Gonzalez will leave the Bundesliga club at the end of the season when his two-year contract expires. Schalke had made the 34-year-old former Real Madrid and Spain captain an offer to stay, but the club said on Thursday that he has decided to leave. The club says Raul plans to explain his future plans and reasons for leaving. Raul established himself as a fan favorite after joining Schalke last season. He has scored 27 goals in 63 Bundesliga appearances. He won the German Cup and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in his first season with Schalke.
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