For the Record
Won
By the U.S., theBaseball World Cup, with a 10--5 victory over Cuba in Nettuno, Italy, onSunday. Team USA (above), which was managed by Eddie Rodriguez and comprised ofDouble A and Triple A players, won its remaining 14 games following an openingloss to Venezuela in the 22-team tournament. In the gold medal game the U.S.broke a 4--4 tie with a six-run seventh inning. This is the second straightWorld Cup title for the U.S., after Cuba won nine in a row from 1984 through2005. "Other than playing in a World Series, this is as big as itgets," said catcher Lucas May, a Dodgers prospect who homered and drove infour runs in the final. "It feels good to wear a gold medal."
Announced
By Belgium'sJustine Henin, that she is returning to tennis after a 16-month retirement.Henin, 27, the winner of seven Grand Slam events, was the world's No. 1 playerwhen she abruptly put down her racket in 2008. During her time off she servedas an ambassador for UNICEF and also worked to rebuild her serve, hoping morepower and consistency would help her compete if and when she returned. Heninwill rejoin the WTA tour in January and plans to play in the AustralianOpen.
Released
From a Lexington,Ky., hospital on Sunday morning, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, who suffered aconcussion during the Gators' 41--7 win over Kentucky the night before. Tebow,the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner and one of the favorites to win the award thisyear, was injured when he banged the back of his head on a teammate's kneewhile being sacked in the third quarter. As of Monday it was unknown when Tebowwould be able to practice again, or if he would be available for the top-rankedGators' next game, at No. 4 LSU on Oct. 10. If Tebow can't play, sophomorebackup John Brantley would make his first college start.
Signed
By Danica Patrick(right), a three-year contract extension with Andretti Green Racing, endingtalk that the IndyCar star would jump to NASCAR in 2010. Patrick, 27, who isfifth in the IndyCar Series standings heading into the Oct. 10 season finale inHomestead, Fla., has often said that she is interested in switching fromopen-wheel to stock car racing. Patrick's new contract reportedly will allowher to race occasionally in lower-tier NASCAR series but not in the Sprint Cup.Patrick has one win in five years on the IndyCar circuit, at the 2008 IndyJapan 300.
Cut
By Binghamton(N.Y.) basketball coach Kevin Broadus, six players, less than a month beforepreseason practice begins. Last Thursday starting point guard Emanuel (Tiki)Mayben was arraigned on felony charges of cocaine possession and sale; hepleaded not guilty and was released on bail. Broadus banned him from the team,and the next day he kicked off five more players: last year's scoring leader,forward D.J. Rivera; starting guard Malik Alvin; and Corey Chandler, PaulCrosby and David Fine. None of the five have been implicated in the Maybencase; a school spokesman would only say that "their attitude and behavior... is not what we expect." The Bearcats, who last season made their firstNCAA tournament appearance, now have just seven scholarship players thisseason.
Reimbursed
By Oregon footballcoach Chip Kelly, the travel costs of a disgruntled fan who watched the teamlose at Boise State on Sept. 3. After the 19--8 defeat, Tony Seminary, a 1996Oregon alum living in Portland, sent Kelly an invoice for the $439 he spent onthe trip with a note saying, "I feel as though I'm entitled to my moneyback." A few days later a check from Kelly landed in Seminary's mailbox."I think of Coach Kelly as a totally different person now," Seminary,who returned the check, told the website Every Day Should Be Saturday."[He] showed an incredible amount of class."
Attempted
By the Raiders, aban of former QB and current CBS analyst Rich Gannon from their trainingfacility. Gannon, who played for Oakland from 1999 to 2004 and led the team toa Super Bowl, called the Raiders' game against the Broncos on Sunday. The teamasked CBS to keep him off its property beforehand, citing Gannon's frequenton-air criticism of the franchise. Oakland backed off last Friday—but notpolitely. "We gave him the opportunity of a lifetime," spokesman JohnHerrera said. "It's kind of like the dog you have at home. You nurture him,feed him, take care of him, and all he wants to do is bite you."
Apologized
Tennesseebasketball coach Bruce Pearl, after joking at a charity event that some Volsplayers hail from areas known for Ku Klux Klan activity. Speaking in Knoxvillelast week, Pearl described the diversity of his team by saying, "I've gotguys from Chicago, Detroit. I'm talking about the hood! And I've got guys fromGrainger County, where they wear the hood!" (Grainger County, the home offreshman guard Skylar McBee, is in rural northeast Tennessee.) The audiencelaughed, but after a local TV station aired the remark, Pearl apologized."There's no hard feelings at all," McBee's father, Doug, told TheKnoxville News-Sentinel. "We are country up here, but we're not prejudiced.It was a joke."
Go Figure
0
Home runs Red Sox DH David Ortiz hit in 35 games beforeMay 20.
27
Homers Ortiz hit in 108 games since May 20, thethird-most in the majors over that span.
$10,000
Amount Eagles cornerback Sheldon Brown was fined by theNFL for wearing a Friday the 13th Jason mask onto the field during pregameintroductions on Sept. 20.
$1,701
Amount Browns coach Eric Mangini fined an unidentifiedplayer for failing to pay for a bottle of water taken from a hotel room.
$3
Cost of the bottled water.
38,364
Age, in years and days, of Japan's Kimiko Date Krumm,who became the oldest winner of a WTA event in 26 years at the Korea Open onSunday.
13
Years since Date Krumm's last win, the 1996 San DiegoOpen.
THEY SAID IT
David Eckstein
Padres second baseman, on the team's playing inPittsburgh just before the city hosted the G-20 economic summit:
"Some of the guys thought it was the newGatorade."
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GIAMPIERO SPOSITO/REUTERS (TEAM USA)
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DARRELL INGHAM/GETTY IMAGES (PATRICK)
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HUNTER MARTIN/GETTY IMAGES (BROWN)
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PAUL BUCK/EPA (ECKSTEIN)