National Sports

Mets' Perez offered arbitration

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:02:13 GMT

New York Mets pitcher Oliver Perez was offered salary arbitration prior to the midnight (et) deadline Monday night.

The 27-year-old left-hander has until the conclusion of Sunday to accept the arbitration offer. If Perez signs with another team, the Mets will receive two compensatory draft picks.

Perez went 10-7 with a 4.22 ERA in 34 starts this season.

The Mets also didn't offer arbitration to any of their other players who filed for free agency: Pedro Martinez, Luis Ayala, Damion Easley, Moises Alou, Orlando Hernandez, Tony Armas Jr., Ramon Martinez, Trot Nixon, Ricardo Rincon and Matt Wise.

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Phillies pass on arbitration for Burrell, Moyer

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 07:40:50 GMT

The Pat Burrell era in Philadelphia took one step toward its possible conclusion after the World Series champion Phillies balked at offering he and 16-game winner Jamie Moyer arbitration prior to the midnight (et) Tuesday morning deadline.

Burrell, who made $14 million last season, hit 33 home runs and drove in 86 runs for the Phillies last season, yet routinely came out of games in the late innings for defensive purposes and struggled during the postseason.

The decision to forgo an arbitration offer to Burrell does not completely close the door on his return, but does keep the club out of a financial corner with the outfielder in case he accepted arbitration if offered, leaving the Phillies strapped for cash with raises for pitching ace Cole Hamels, first baseman Ryan Howard and outfielder Shane Victorino likely coming soon.

Moyer, who finished 16-7 with a 3.71 earned run average last season, is 46 years old, but the two sides have a desire to work out a contract.

The Phillies also didn't offer arbitration to a pair of veteran relievers, Tom Gordon and Rudy Seanez.

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Mariners' Ibanez offered arbitration

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 07:31:57 GMT

Seattle Mariners left fielder Raul Ibanez was offered salary arbitration by the team prior to Monday night's midnight (et) deadline.

"With the deadline tonight, offering Raul arbitration keeps all of our options open," Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "We can continue our conversations with any, or all, of our free agents but, by rule, we had to offer Raul arbitration by today to guarantee we could receive draft-pick compensation if he ends up signing elsewhere."

Seattle chose not to offer arbitration to its other two eligible free agent players, utility men Willie Bloomquist and Miguel Cairo.

Ibanez played all 162 games with Seattle last season. He hit .293 with 43 doubles, 23 home runs and 110 RBI.

Ibanez has until the conclusion of Sunday to accept the offer. The Mariners will receive two extra draft picks next year if Ibanez should sign with another team.

©2008 Sports Network. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Beasley comes up big as Heat shock Warriors in OT

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 06:57:35 GMT

Michael Beasley made a veteran play in his rookie season, stepping front of an inbounds pass, getting fouled and draining the winning free throw with 3.6 seconds left in overtime, as Miami downed Golden State, 130-129, sending the Warriors to their seventh straight defeat.

It happened in stunning fashion, as Golden State appeared ready to win in both regulation and overtime. Udonis Haslem, who scored 21 points with 13 rebounds, put back a Beasley miss just before the buzzer to force overtime. Miami grabbed 21 offensive rebounds overall, and outrebounded the Warriors, 51-36.

Chris Quinn then hit a game-tying three out of the right corner before Beasley's steal and free throw. Jamal Crawford, who scored 40 points in his first home game as a member of the Warriors, saw his running floater roll off the rim at the horn.

"We felt like in overtime we came out we played catch-up for the first minute or two and then we kind of took control of the game and we fought, and we fought so hard," said Crawford. "We could've came out with a win, we deserved to win, but we just came out on the short end of the stick."

Dwyane Wade scored a team-best 37 points to go along with 13 assists, Shawn Marion added 21 points and 15 rebounds and Beasley donated 19 points. The Heat are 2-2 on their road trip, which ends Wednesday in Utah.

"I wish we had more games like that," said Wade. "I don't want to score 30 a night. I would love to pass the ball more. It's big to see guys step up with confidence. The three by Quinn was huge and the play by Michael was bigger."

Corey Maggette made 17-of-18 free throws to support his 29-point night, and Brandan Wright added 15 points. Andris Biedrins totaled 17 points and 15 rebounds in defeat.

Miami opened up a 30-27 lead after one stanza, but fell behind by the time 24 game minutes were in the books. A pair of Stephen Jackson free throws put the Warriors in front, 36-35, and the edge reached five points, 44-39, on a Crawford rare four-point play with 6:24 on the clock.

Crawford converted a more conventional three-point play for a 47-41 advantage with 5:59 to go and Wright's slam along with Crawford's floating runner capped a quick 7-0 stretch for a 51-41 edge with 5:08 remaining.

Quinn's jumper cut the deficit to 58-54, and the deficit remained at four points, 64-60, at the half.

The game seemed to reach a crescendo late in the fourth quarter. Wade's running jumper brought the Heat within 114-113 then Maggette made 1-of-2 free throws for a two-point edge with 1:12 on the clock.

Wade drove into the lane on the next possession, but Daequan Cook missed a good look at a trey after Wade kicked it out to the deep right elbow. After the Warriors failed to score, Beasley was blocked on a drive, but the made scramble came out to the Heat, who called timeout with 14.8 ticks to go .

Wade missed a three-point heave at the end of the shot clock, but Miami again got another chance when the ball bounced out of bounds off the Heat with 7.8 seconds left. Beasley missed a game-tying baseline jumper, but Haslem collected the rebound and laid the ball up and in just before the red light to send the game into overtime.

Haslem and Maggette exchanged buckets to start overtime, and Beasley's power move and conversion put the Heat up 119-117. C.J. Watson's deep two-pointer jumper again squared the contest, but Beasley powered inside again for a basket and the lead. Crawford floated a short jumper over Beasley to again tie the game, then Watson made a steal and tossed a pass to a streaking Maggette, who was fouled but made both for the lead with 1:57 to play.

Wade came off a high pick and buried a game-tying jumper, but Crawford answered moments later with a contested jumper from the left wing. Miami didn't convert on the other end, but Maggette failed to score. Quinn missed a go-ahead three and Beasley was stripped after corralling the offensive board.

Wade again toiled amongst the big men in the lane, but three defenders altered his shot, forcing an erratic attempt. Biedrins grabbed the rebound and got the ball to Maggette, who drained both for a 127-123 edge with 18.4 seconds left.

Miami's star took the ball to the rim, and Wade got the shooter's touch and buried the free throw after a foul with 15.1 seconds left. Crawford was immediately fouled and made both for a 129-126 edge with 13.5 seconds to play.

Wade missed a three, but Crawford rolled out of bounds with the ball. Quinn hit a three with 7.1 ticks to go, and Beasley stole the inbounds pass.

The rest is history, resulting in another Warriors' loss.

Game Notes

Golden State's defense has been a major concern, as it had given up 109.1 points per game (an NBA worst) entering Monday's game...Miami has won 13 of the last 18 matchups in the series...The Heat made 28-of-31 free throws, but Golden State was even better at 47-of-52...Wade had three blocks...Crawford also dished out seven assists...The 47 made foul shots were the most for the Warriors since they made the same number at New Jersey on March 28, 1992.

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Marvelous Monday night debut: Slaton carries Texans past Jags

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 05:13:37 GMT

Steve Slaton was ready for prime time with 130 yards on the ground and two touchdowns, and the Houston Texans opened up the offense in their first-ever Monday Night Football appearance, leading to a 30-17 victory over Jacksonville.

"They drafted me to be a third down guy," said Slaton, a rookie from West Virginia. "I thought in any situation they put me in I can play. I just want to prove everybody I could do that."

Mario Williams, the defensive end taken ahead of Reggie Bush in the 2006 NFL draft, also played up to the spotlight with three sacks and a forced fumble. Sage Rosenfels was an efficient 14-of-24 for 200 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Texans (5-7), who also got 75 yards receiving and a touchdown from top target Andre Johnson.

The Jaguars' rushing duo of Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew combined for 116 yards and a Taylor touchdown on 21 carries. David Garrard piled up most of his passing stats late in the contest, completing 25-of-35 attempts for 287 yards with one touchdown and an interception.

Matt Jones caught a game-high eight passes for 104 yards for Jacksonville (4-8), which began the season with high expectations only to drop into the AFC South basement with the loss.

The Texans marched 69 yards on six plays to paydirt on their opening possession. Rosenfels' deep ball followed 15-, 7- and 4-yard bursts by Slaton. Johnson came back to the football on a deep in, turned cornerback Rashean Mathis around and sprinted to the left sideline and into the end zone for a 31-yard score.

Mathis responded with an interception of Rosenfels on Houston's next drive, but Garrard gave the football right back as his pass intended for Jerry Porter was intercepted.

Houston took advantage with a seven-play march that ended with Kris Brown's right foot adding three points to the scoreboard. Rosenfels found Owen Daniels for 14 yards early in the drive, but the Jaguars defense held and Brown was true from 38 yards away.

Josh Scobee misfired wide right from 43 yards away early in the second stanza and the teams exchanged punts for the remainder of the half.

Jacoby Jones' 28-yard punt return set up Houston's first second-half series at the Jaguars 38-yard line. The Texans didn't pick up a first down, but Brown drilled a 50-yard field goal attempt through the uprights for a 13-0 lead.

Jacksonville finally got on the scoreboard thanks to a time-consuming, 12-play march. Garrard's 17-yard strike to Matt Jones highlighted a mostly dink-and- dunk drive that took up 6:43 of game time. The march stalled in the red zone, and Scobee connected from 29 yards out.

Curiously, Jags head coach Jack Del Rio tried to maintain the momentum with an onsides kick, but it failed, setting the Texans up with great field position. Brown's 20-yard field goal and a 16-3 lead were the result of Del Rio's gamble.

Jacksonville typified its season the rest of the way. It marched to the Texans five-yard line early in the fourth, even converting a 4th-and-2 attempt deep in Houston territory. However, on 4th-and-goal, Garrard was tripped by an offensive lineman's leg, got up and heaved a desperation attempt into the end zone that fell to the turf. On the play, the slot receiver fell down and Matt Jones was jammed at the line of scrimmage and stopped running his route.

"The execution is not crisp," said Del Rio. "We struggled to score points when the game was on the line. We had several opportunities, but I thought overall defensively, other than the first drive and the last drive, we played pretty good. I thought we gave ourselves a chance."

Garrard was sacked by Williams and fumbled as the game clock ticked under five minutes. Slaton slashed off right guard for a seven-yard score on the first play after the turnover for a 23-3 margin.

Each team reached the end zone in garbage time. Taylor capped a 73-yard march with a four-yard burst with 2:14 left, then Slaton had a shifty 40-yard run that started off guard and ended in a foot race down the right sideline for the score.

Jacksonville scored again, after totaling just three points over the first 57- plus minutes. Reggie Williams cradled in an 18-yard scoring pass from Garrard for the final margin.

Game Notes

The Jaguars star cornerback Mathis left the game at halftime with a sprained right knee and did not return...Reggie Williams caught five passes for 55 yards in defeat...The game marked the first Monday Night game in Houston since the Oilers hosted the Giants on November 21, 1994 -- the debut for Houston's interim head coach Jeff Fisher, who is now the NFL's longest-serving head coach with the 11-1 Tennessee Titans..Slaton's performance pushed him to 904 rushing yards on the season and into 10th place in the league, just behind San Francisco's Frank Gore and ahead of Green Bay's Ryan Grant...Each team ran for 126 yards, and Jacksonville actually outgained Houston, 388-326.

©2008 Sports Network. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

A's don't offer arbitration to Thomas

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 04:40:41 GMT

The Oakland Athletics declined to offer salary arbitration to any of their four free agents, including designated hitter Frank Thomas.

Left-handed pitcher Alan Embree, right-handed pitcher Keith Foulke, and outfielder Emil Brown were also not offered arbitration. The A's can continue to negotiate with all four players, but won't receive compensation if any of the free agents signs with another team.

The 40-year-old Thomas was signed as a free agent on April 24 after his release by Toronto and hit .263 with five home runs and 19 RBI in 55 games with Oakland. He also had two stints on the DL and missed a total of 81 games while earning $12.56 million.

Embree led the A's with 70 games pitched last year and was 2-5 with a 4.96 ERA, while Foulke was 0-3 with a 4.06 earned-run average and one save in 31 appearances. He had two stints on the disabled list with neck stiffness and right shoulder inflammation -- with his 31 innings thrown representing a career-low. Brown batted .244 with 13 home runs and 59 RBI in 117 games.

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Rangers offer Bradley salary arbitration

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:39:30 GMT

The Texas Rangers want draft picks if Milton Bradley does not return next season, as the club offered the outfielder salary arbitration on Monday.

Bradley, the Type-B free agent, batted .321 with 22 homers and 77 runs batted in during 126 games last season. If he declines arbitration and signs elsewhere, the Rangers will be rewarded with a supplemental first-round pick in the June 2009 draft.

The club also announced that pitchers Jason Jennings and Jamey Wright along with infielder Ramon Vazquez were not offered salary arbitration.

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Knicks tell Marbury to stay away

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:29:34 GMT

The New York Knicks have told disgruntled guard Stephon Marbury to stay away from the team until his contract situation can be worked out.

Marbury, who is being paid $21.7 million this season and is in the final year of his contract, was suspended for one game, without pay, for refusing to play in last Wednesday's game against Detroit. Marbury and NBA Players' Association representative, Hal Biagas, met Monday with Knicks president Donnie Walsh, trying to resolve the issue on a possible contract buyout.

"After meeting with Stephon and his representative this afternoon, we have directed Stephon not to participate in practice or attend games until further notice," Walsh said in a statement. "We want to continue to meet with him to discuss a long-term resolution."

The enigmatic Marbury has not played this season and has been at odds with new coach Mike D'Antoni, who had apparently planned to use the Brooklyn native in a very limited role this year.

Marbury did not play the season-opener against Miami, then was placed on the inactive list. The roster situation changed dramatically recently when the Knicks traded guards Jamal Crawford and Mardy Collins, and last week lost guard Nate Robinson to a groin strain.

According to the New York Post, last Wednesday was the second instance in which Marbury was asked to play and refused.

The Knicks are on the hook for Marbury's huge salary this season. If the club waives him, Marbury will inevitably clear waivers in two days and become a free agent.

Marbury averaged 13.9 points and 4.7 assists per game last season. A two-time NBA All-Star, Marbury has averaged 19.7 points and 7.8 assists in 823 games over his 12-year career with Minnesota, New Jersey, Phoenix and New York.

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Thabeet dominates as No. 2 UConn rolls past Delaware State

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:15:34 GMT

Hasheem Thabeet had 10 points, 17 rebounds and four blocked shots, as second-ranked Connecticut rolled past Delaware State, 79-49.

Gavin Edwards scored 17 points in a reserve role, Jerome Dyson netted 15 and Jeff Adrien scored 12 points to go with six rebounds for the Huskies (7-0), who bolted to a huge first half lead.

"It was a tough game to play in for our kids," said UConn coach Jim Calhoun. "I still would like to see to see them develop a little more suffocating and prideful defensive philosophy, and better ball movement. When we moved the ball well, we shot the ball exceptionally well. And when we moved it poorly and did some individual stuff, we obviously didn't score anywhere near the way we're capable of scoring against a team that we're superior to."

Donald Johnson scored 25 for Delaware State (1-9), which struggled by going 7- of-31 from the field in the first half and fell behind 44-18 at intermission. The Hornets finished the game at 31.3 percent from the field.

"I thought we made some key adjustments at halftime," said Hornets coach Greg Jackson. "We got our guards more involved in the flow of the offense. We turned the ball over entirely too many times in the first half, especially against the number two team in the country."

Johnson's three-pointer had the Hornets within 14-11 with 12:21 remaining in the first half, but UConn drew away by scoring the next 11 points. Kemba Walker capped the spurt with a three-pointer. Dyson's layup moved the margin to 40-16 with 1:40 left in the half.

The Huskies remained comfortably ahead the entire second half, and Scottie Haralson's three-pointer moved the difference to 76-43 with 1 1/2 minutes left.

Game Notes

The Huskies shot 49.1 percent from the field...Delaware State was 7-of-29 from three-point range...Edwards was 7-of-9 from the floor...The Huskies play at Buffalo on Thursday, while Delaware State's next game is the same day versus Maryland-Eastern Shore.

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Pierce keys Celtics' ninth straight win

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:12:41 GMT

Paul Pierce scored 17 of his team-high 24 points in the third quarter, as the Boston Celtics rolled to their ninth straight win by beating Orlando, 107-88.

Ray Allen scored 21 points, Rajon Rondo netted 16 points and 12 assists, and Kevin Garnett posted 15 points and nine rebounds for the defending NBA champions, who moved to 17-2 this season.

Pierce is thriving as the go-to guy for the Celtics, and he got to the line 10 times, making nine of his free throws.

"Definitely, feed the pig, you know, until he stops, you know even if he misses one possession, if it's a good shot, I'm still going to him again," said Rondo of Pierce. "See if he still has it going, if not, we'll go somewhere else."

Rashard Lewis scored 30 points for the Magic, who had a four-game win streak halted. Hedo Turkoglu contributed 19 points and Dwight Howard scored 14, had 15 rebounds and four blocks in defeat as the Magic's six-game road win streak went by the boards.

The Magic played without their starting backcourt again as Jameer Nelson (hip flexor) and Mickael Pietrus (torn ligament in right thumb) continue to be sidelined.

"Nothing to be afraid of," said Orlando's Anthony Johnson. "We're going to be fine. Once our starting five is matching up with their starting five and our bench is matching up with their bench, I'll feel very good about it. Yeah they smacked us, and you've got to acknowledge that. I'm acknowledging that they smacked us tonight, they outplayed us. But with two healthy squads I feel very good."

The Celtics were ahead 48-46 at the half, but Pierce accounted for Boston's first seven points of the third. The Celtics used an 11-1 spurt to start the period, capped by Pierce's bucket with 8 1/2 minutes remaining.

"We were taking advantage of the matchups," said Pierce. "We saw something that was working and we continued to go with it. My teammates did a good job of setting me up. We ran set plays to get me the ball in a position where I could score and I took advantage of it."

Boston's advantage stood at 77-65 going to the fourth quarter, and the Celtics pulled away. Leon Powe's jam, off an assist from Tony Allen, moved the margin to 89-73 with 8 1/2 minutes remaining, and the Magic never threatened the rest of the game.

Kendrick Perkins had eight points and 13 rebounds for Boston, which surged early by opening the game on an 11-4 flurry. Ray Allen was the early catalyst with nine first-quarter points. His three-ball expanded the advantage to 22-10, and it was 28-18 going to the second.

A jumper from Glen Davis had Boston ahead 37-22, but Lewis' bucket culminated a 10-0 Magic push. A three-pointer from Lewis in the closing minute brought the visitors within 48-46 at intermission.

Game Notes

The Celtics are 29-2 over the past 31 games at the TD Banknorth Garden, including the postseason...Garnett had a streak of 18 consecutive double- doubles versus the Magic broken...Orlando is 6-2 on the road this season...Orlando has lost 12 of its last 14 at Boston...The home team has won seven straight meetings...A total of nine technical fouls were called and Boston's Sam Cassell was ejected in the second quarter...Boston shot 54.1 percent to 42 percent for Orlando.

©2008 Sports Network. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.