Off the wire

LITTLE ROCK — FOOTBALL Payton reinstated

Sean Payton is back as coach of the New Orleans Saints. Payton’s season-long suspension for his role in the Saints’ bounty program was lifted by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday, nearly two weeks earlier than expected. The suspension was scheduled to end after the Super Bowl on Feb. 3. Payton, along with assistant head coach Joe Vitt, General Manager Mickey Loomis, and four players including Jonathan Vilma, was suspended after an investigation found the club had a performance pool offering cash rewards for key plays, including big hits. The player suspensions eventually were overturned.

Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph has been added to the NFC Pro Bowl team as an injury replacement for Tony Gonzalez of the Atlanta Falcons.

The Mountain West will add a football championship game next season when it expands to the requisite dozen schools, which will be split into two divisions. The league is adding Utah State and San Jose State next season. The inaugural football championship is Dec. 7 at the home stadium of the school with the highest BCS ranking.

BASKETBALL Grizzlies, Cavs trade 4

The Memphis Grizzlies traded Marreese Speights, Wayne Ellington, Josh Selby and a future first-round draft pick Tuesday to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Jon Leuer. The trade is the first big move by the Grizzlies’ new ownership and clears about $6 million in salary in getting Memphis under the luxury tax threshold this season. Speights is earning $4.2 million this season, while Ellington’s salary is $2 million. The Grizzlies also geta $6.4 million trade exception good for a year to help sign a free agent or use in a trade.

BASEBALL Phillies sign Young

Delmon Young signed a oneyear deal with the PhiladelphiaPhillies for $750,000 Tuesday. The 27-year-old outfielder batted .267 with 27 doubles, 18 home runs and 74 RBI for Detroit last season. He hit .313 with 3 home runs and a team-high 9 RBI during 13 playoff games and was MVP against of the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees. The Tigers were swept by San Francisco in the World Series.

Reliever Jason Motte and the St. Louis Cardinals have agreed to a $12 million, two-year contract, avoiding salary arbitration. The 30-year-old right-hander had a career-high 42 saves in 49 chances last year, when he was 4-5 with a 2.75 ERA. He made $2 million. Motte is 17-13 with a 2.87 ERA and 54 saves since his major league debut in 2008. He will be eligible for free agency after the 2014 season.

The Cincinnati Reds will host the 2015 All-Star Game at Great American Ball Park, the city’s first since 1988, a person familiar withthe decision told The Associated Press. Commissioner Bud Selig will discuss the decision today in Cincinnati.

Mark DeRosa has agreed to a $775,000, one-year contract with Toronto, giving the Blue Jays more infield and outfield depth as they try for their first playoff berth since 1993. DeRosa gets a $750,000 salary this year under Tuesday’s deal, and the Blue Jays have a $750,000 option for 2014 with a $25,000 buyout. The 37-year-old hit .188 with 5 doubles and 6 RBI in 48 games last season for the Washington Nationals, playing all four infield positions and both corner outfield spots. He has a .270 average with 93 home runs and 458 RBI in 15 seasons.

Police say former Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Elijah Dukes has been arrested on a warrant related to previous drug charges. Tampa police say the 28-year-old Dukes was arrested Monday night. He’s also been charged with an additional count of driving with a suspended license. Records show Dukes had failed to appear in court for charges related to a February 2012 arrest. That’s when police say they pulled over Dukes during a routine traffic stop and caught him trying to eat marijuana out of bag. He was charged with tampering with physical evidence, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Dukes was in jail Tuesday with no bail set.

The Boston Red Sox are confident that Mike Napoli can be their regular first baseman despite a hip condition that led to him signing a one-year contract Tuesday instead of the original three-year agreement that had been reached. The contract is for $5 million with possible bonuses that could take its value to $13 million. His condition is known as avascular necrosis, which can cause bone tissue to die because of poor bloody supply. His agent, Brian Grieper, said Napoli has it in both hips. But Napoli, a catcher most of his career, said he’s had nosymptoms and didn’t know he had the condition until it showed up during a physical required by the Red Sox after reaching the earlier $39 million deal. Napoli, 31, spent the past two seasons with the Texas Rangers after playing his first five for the Los Angeles Angels. He batted .227 last year with 24 home runs and 56 RBI and was chosen for his first All-Star game.

ATHLETICS Schools leaving early

Middle Tennessee and Florida Atlantic are leaving the Sun Belt Conference early and joining Conference USA on July 1. Both schools already had announced plans to switch conferences last November no later than July 1, 2014. But officials at both universities had been negotiating recently with Conference USA and the Sun Belt to speed up the move in all sports by a year.The Sun Belt had raised the exit fee to $1 million last May, but both schools will pay $700,000. Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson said the league agreed to a reduced exit fee to help their athletic directors finish setting their 2013 football schedules.