Off the wire

TENNIS Nadal seeded No. 5

If Rafael Nadal is going to win Wimbledon for a third time, he’ll have to do it the hard way. Fresh from winning his eighth French Open, Nadal is seeded No. 5 at Wimbledon - setting up the possibility of a quarterfinal match against title contenders Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray. The All England Club released the seedings Wednesday for this year’s grass-court Grand Slam tournament, which starts Monday. The top five in the ATP rankings remain in their positions: Djokovic at No. 1, followed by Murray, Federer, David Ferrer and Nadal. Nadal slipped down the rankings after being sidelined for about seven months with a left knee injury following his surprise loss to Lukas Rosol in the second round at Wimbledon last year. The Spaniard has won seven of the nine tournaments he has entered in his comeback - including the French Open last month - but he still fell to No. 5 after Roland Garros behind the man he beat in the final - Ferrer. Wimbledon’s seeding order is determined using the ATP rankings and points are added for achievements in grass-court tournaments in the past 12 months. The All England Club could have moved Nadal up to No. 4 ahead of Ferrer but decided to stick to the rankings. The women’s seedings follow the WTA rankings, with five-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams at No. 1 and Victoria Azarenka at No. 2.

Top-seeded Milos Raonic was upset 6-2, 7-6 (7) by Ivan Dodig in the second round at the Eastbourne, England grass-court tournament on Wednesday. The Canadian struggled from the start, dropping his serve in the opening game and again to fall behind 5-2. He failed to convert a break point as Dodig served for the set. The second set went with serve and Raonic failed to convert a set point in the tiebreaker before Dodig clinched the match. Earlier, Marion Bartoli of France withdrew from the tournament with a viral infection, giving No. 2-seeded Li Na of China a walkover into the quarterfinals.

Second-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka beat Paolo Lorenzi 6-3, 7-6 (8) on Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Topshelf Open on the grass courts at Rosmalen, Netherlands. The Italian never managed to seriously threaten Wawrinka’s serve until the 12th game of the second set, when he broke the Swiss to force a tiebreak. He then fought off three match points before finally succumbing 10-8 to the No. 10-ranked Wawrinka, who next plays Jeremy Chardy. Second-seeded Dominika Cibulkova reached the women’s quarterfinals by coming from a set down to beat Anabel Medina Garrigues 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.

HORSE RACING

Itsmyluckyday sidelined

Kentucky Derby disappointment Itsmyluckyday is expected to be sidelined up to four months with an injury in his pelvic area. Itsmyluckyday, who was pulled up in the Pegasus Handicap at Monmouth Park on Saturday, was diagnosed with a slight fracture of the Ilium, the largest bone in the pelvis, trainer Eddie Plesa said Wednesday, adding that prospects for the colt returning to racing are very good. The winner of the Grade III Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park earlier this year, Itsmyluckyday finished second to Kentucky Derby winner Orb in the Grade I Florida Derby, but was a disappointing 15th in the Kentucky Derby. The colt rebounded with a second to Oxbow in the Preakness Stakes. Itsmyluckyday has five victories in 13 starts with earnings of $830,100.

Doubles Partner rallied for a 1¼-length victory over Admiral Perry in the $79,380 allowance feature on the turf at Belmont Park on Wednesday. The even-money favorite, Doubles Partner took advantage of an easier spot to earn his sixth win in 21 starts. The 6-year-old, trained by Todd Pletcher, had run in 11 consecutive stakes races. Junior Alvarado was aboard for the mile in 1:36.54. Doubles Partner paid $4.30, $2.60 and $2.10. Admiral Perry returned $3.60 and $2.40, and Joes Blazing Aaron paid $2.10 to show.

BASEBALL Cardinals sign No. 1 draft pick

The St. Louis Cardinals have come to terms with Marco Gonzales, their top pick from the major league baseball draft earlier this month. Gonzales, taken 19th overall, pitched and played infield at Gonzaga but was drafted as a pitcher. The left-hander is coming off a junior season in which he went 7-3 with a 2.80 ERA. He started 16 of the 17 games he pitched, striking out 96 and walking 25 in 106 innings. He also led the Bulldogs with a .311 batting average with 2 home runs and 26 RBI.

The Minnesota Twins have signed right-hander Kohl Stewart, the fourth overall pick in this month’s draft. The team announced the deal Wednesday, along with the signings of 22 others. The Twins have 21 of their first 25 selections under contract. Stewart, 18, was the first high school pitcher drafted. The slot value of the signing bonus for the fourth pick determined by Major League Baseball’s formula is $4,544,400. Stewart posted an 0.18 ERA in 40 innings with 16 walks and 59 strikeouts this season over eight starts for St. Pius X High School in Houston. The 6-3, 208-pound Stewart was a two-sport star, recruited by Texas A&M to pitch and play quarterback for the football team.

GOLF Woods drops out of AT&T National

In little more than a month, Tiger Woods went from being tough to beat to having a tough time even playing.

Woods said Wednesday that soreness in his left elbow would keep him from defending his title next week in the AT&T National at Congressional, and that he would not compete again until the British Open next month at Muirfield.

This is the sixth consecutive year that injury has kept him from either playing a tournament or finishing one.

The culprit this time is a strain in his left elbow. The problem first became apparent during the opening round of the U.S. Open last week at Merion, when he was flexing his left wrist or dangling his arm behind his back after shots out of the thick, punishing rough.

“I was examined after I returned home from the U.S. Open, and the doctors determined I have a left elbow strain,” Woods said on his website. “I have been advised to take a few weeks off, rest and undergo treatment. I’ll be ready to go for the British Open, and I’m looking forward to playing at Muirfield.”

His injury is a blow to the AT&T National, which benefits the Tiger Woods Foundation. This will be the third time since it began in 2007 that Woods has missed the tournament because of injury - knee surgery in 2008, his left Achilles tendon in 2011 and an elbow injury this year.

“Any time you have Tiger in the field, it certainly adds to it a lot,” tournament director Greg McLaughlin said. “But we have a very nice field this year and we look forward to a great AT&T National.”

Masters champion Adam Scott and U.S. Open champion Justin Rose are among those scheduled to play.

McLaughlin said Woods is to be at Congressional at least on Wednesday to take part in the opening ceremonies.

The British Open is July 18-21 at Muirfield, where Woods’ bid for the calendar Grand Slam ended in 2002 when he was caught in nasty weather. Woods shot 81 in the third round - 10 players failed to break 80 - for his highest score as a pro.