Off the wire

LITTLE ROCK — HORSE RACING

Super Saver retired

Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver was retired because of concern over bone bruises in his legs and will become a stud horse. Tests last month revealed the bruises, WinStar Farm racing manager Elliott Walden said. He anticipated a full recovery but felt there was a “slight risk” the colt would not return to the form he showed in the spring. “He has nothing more to prove,” Walden said. Super Saverand jockey Calvin Borel romped in the slop at Churchill Downs on May 1, beating Ice Box by 21/2 lengths to give trainer Todd Pletcher his first Derby victory. A shot at the first Triple Crown in more than 30 years disappeared two weeks later at the Preakness, when he faded to eighth. The 3-year-old colt was a nonfactor in the Haskell and Travers before the bruises were found. WinStar limited Super Saver to barn rest for 60 days before making the decision to retire him. “We ultimately felt like it was best for him to retire now and we’re thrilled to have the rare opportunity to stand a horse of his caliber here where he was born and raised,” WinStar President Doug Cauthen said. Super Saver stamped himself a Derby contender last fall, setting a stakes record in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs. He backed it up last spring, finishing a close third in the Tampa Bay Derby and second in the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs. He drew the fourth post in the 20-horse Derby field and Borel guided him expertly around the soggy track after going off asthe second choice. Using the railhugging ride that has become his trademark, Borel won his third Derby in four years and ended Pletcher’s Derby drought.

BASEBALL

Guillen tied to probe

San Francisco Giants outfielder Jose Guillen, left off the team’s postseason roster, is linked to a federal investigation into shipments of performance-enhancing drugs, The New York Times reported on its website Thursday night. The story, citing several unidentified lawyers, said federal authorities told Major League Baseball they were looking into shipments of human growth hormone, allegedly sent to Guillen’s wife in the Bay Area. That was just before the postseason began, The Times said. Guillen was left off the Giants’ roster for all three rounds because of a nagging neck injury, according to Manager Bruce Bochy. A person in Major League Baseball confirmed the investigation to The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the probe was ongoing. The Giants said they had no comment and Jay Reisinger, Guillen’s attorney, declined comment in an e-mail. The 34-year-old Guillen has been tied to performance-enhancing drugs before. The San Francisco Chronicle reported in 2007 that he allegedly purchased more than $19,000 worth of HGH, steroids and other drugs from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center between May 2002 and June 2005. MLB suspended Guillen for 15 days following the report, then rescinded the penalty in May 2008 as part of a deal between players and owners to toughen the sport’s drug rules. Guillen has played for 10 teams since breaking into the big leagues with Pittsburgh in 1997. He is a .270 career hitter with 214 home runs and 887 RBI.

Sandy Alderson will be introduced as the new general manager of the New York Mets at a news conference today at Citi Field. Alderson and former Arizona Diamondbacks General Manager Josh Byrnes were brought back for a second round of interviews this week. GM Omar Minaya and Manager Jerry Manuel were fired after the team’s second consecutive losing season. The club has said its new GM will lead the search for the next manager.

Joe Girardi and the New York Yankees have agreed on the outline of a $9 million, three-year contract for the manager, according to a baseball official familiar with the negotiations. Although the agreement is not complete, the sides “are dotting the ‘i’s and crossing the t’s,’ ” the person said Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity because no announcement had been made. The person said the deal is “going to get done.” The New York Post first reported the news. Girardi would be able to earn about $500,000 more each year in bonuses based on the team’s performance. He is finishing a $7.8 million, three-year contract that he signed as Joe Torre’s successor following the 2007 season. He will get $3 million annually in his new agreement.

GOLF

Three-way tie for lead

Joe Affrunti, James Hahn and Brendan Steele shot 6-under-par 66s to share the first-round lead in the Nationwide Tour Championship in Charleston, S.C., the last chance for all three to earn 2011 PGA Tour cards through the developmental circuit money list. The top 60 earners qualified for the season-ending tournament at Daniel Island Club. The final top 25 will earn spots on the PGA Tour. Hunter Haas and South Carolina resident William McGirt opened with 67s on the Ralston Creek layout. Colt Knostand Scott Gardiner (Farmington) shot 68s, and money leader Jamie Lovemark topped a group at 69, which also features Tag Ridings (Arkansas Razorbacks). Scores, 7C

BASKETBALL

Binghamton buys out Broadus

Binghamton University has bought out the contract of former men’s Coach Kevin Broadus, who guided the team to its first NCAA Tournament and then watched the program quickly crumble. In exchange for his resignation and withdrawal of all claims and potential future lawsuits, Broadus will receive a $1.2 million settlement. According to interim President C. Peter Magrath, Binghamton University will pay $819,115 and the State University of New York will pay $380,884. Magrath said the settlement was about $400,000 larger than the amount due on Broadus’s contract to include legal fees. Broadus filed a racial discrimination lawsuit in March and one of his attorneys, Linda Kenney Baden, had asked for his reinstatement after the NCAA announced last week that an investigation found no major violations during Broadus’s tenure.

COLLEGES

Nevada, Fresno joining MWC

Nevada and Fresno State have agreed to play one more season in the Western Athletic Conference before transferring to the Mountain West Conference in 2012, and will pay significantly less to make the move than the WAC had demanded, the league said Thursday. The two schools wanted to make the change next year, but WAC officials filed a lawsuit that said they failed to provide proper notice to leave the league and would owe the WAC a $5 million departure fee.