Off the wire

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

FOOTBALL

Hernandez trial date set

A judge on Tuesday scheduled a tentative May 28 trial date for former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez in the 2012 drive-by shootings of two men, and his lawyers asked a judge to issue a gag order because of intense media coverage of the murder case. Hernandez has pleaded not guilty to killing Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado after a random nightclub encounter in Boston. During a hearing in Suffolk Superior Court in Boston, Hernandez’s lawyers asked Judge Jeffrey Locke to issue a gag order prohibiting anyone involved in the case from commenting outside court. Attorney James Sultan said the defense is concerned that Hernandez can’t get a fair trial because of extensive media coverage of his indictment in the double slayings and another murder case against Hernandez in the 2013 death of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. Lloyd’s body was found in an industrial park near Hernandez’s North Attleborough home. Prosecutors opposed the request. Assistant District Attorney Patrick Haggan called a gag order “unreasonable” and “unwarranted,” and said it not the usual practice in Suffolk County. Locke said he would take the request under advisement. Locke also made it clear that the May trial date is only tentative. He acknowledged that the date could change because Hernandez’s trial in Lloyd’s killing is scheduled for October.

HOCKEY

Quick on ice after surgery

Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick will be off the ice for up to three months after undergoing wrist surgery. The Stanley Cup champion Kings confirmed their star goalie had surgery Tuesday, but wouldn’t specify which wrist was hurt. The 2012 Conn Smythe Trophy winner is likely to be off the ice for 10 to 12 weeks, which means he would be ready to resume skating around the time Los Angeles opens training camp in September. Quick was injured during the Kings’ second-round series victory over the Anaheim Ducks, but kept playing while Los Angeles won its second NHL title in three years. Although the injury didn’t prevent him from lifting the Stanley Cup again, team doctors suggested surgery after the season ended. Quick just finished a busy season that included a trip to the Sochi Olympics as the U.S. team’s starting goalie. Quick won the Jennings Trophy for the Kings with the NHL’s lowest team goals against average despite missing seven weeks early in the season with a severely strained groin. Quick also became the winningest goalie in Kings franchise history, passing Rogie Vachon with his 172nd career victory in late March. Quick didn’t come close to matching his 2012 numbers during the Kings’ third consecutive draining playoff run, but he still went 16-10 with a 2.58 GAA and a .911 save percentage, highlighted by a shutout of the New York Rangers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals. The 28-year-old Quick just completed the first season of a 10-year, $58 million contract with the Kings, who rewarded him after his dominant 2012 run.

BASEBALL

Pena returns to Rangers

The Texas Rangers have purchased the contract Carlos Pena from Class AAA Round Rock, and the first baseman was set to play his first game for his original team since 2001. First baseman Brad Snyder was designated for assignment Tuesday. Pena was listed batting sixth and playing first base for a series opener at home against Detroit. Pena made his major league debut for the Rangers in 2001, and he was traded to Oakland the following winter. The 36-year-old Pena has played for eight teams in his career. Released by the Los Angeles Angels during spring training, Pena signed a minor league deal with Texas last week. The team also announced that first baseman Mitch Moreland has returned home to Mississippi after ligament reconstructive surgery and bone realignment in his left ankle Monday.

Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado will have a hearing today on his appeal of a five-game suspension handed down by Major League Baseball. Machado received the suspension on June 10 for intentionally throwing his bat onto the field in a June 8 game against the Oakland Athletics. Machado immediately appealed the ruling, and the 21-year-old will finally get to tell his side of the story. The hearing will be held in Baltimore. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette is scheduled to attend, but manager Buck Showalter will not be there. Machado says he hopes to have the suspension shortened to four games at the most. He also received an undisclosed fine.

New York Yankees outfielder Carlos Beltran has shut down his throwing program after feeling tightness in his right forearm following a session. Beltran says he felt the problem on Sunday. Beltran has been limited to designated hitter duty since coming off the disabled list June 5 after missing 21 games with a bone spur in his elbow. He played catch for the first time June 11 and has been working since then on rebuilding his arm strength with two sessions every three days. “The throwing program was going well until that day,” Beltran said Tuesday. “I was letting it go, I felt good about it. The next day I got to the ballpark and my forearm was real tight, like there was a knot in there.” Beltran is batting .220 with seven home runs and 23 RBI, and feels no pain when swinging the bat. He expects to have surgery after the season to remove a loose chip.

The Kansas City Royals have activated left-hander Bruce Chen from the 60-day disabled list and sent him to the bullpen in a long relief role. To clear roster space before Tuesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Royals optioned reliever Tim Collins to Class AAA Omaha and designated fellow left-hander Donnie Joseph for assignment. Chen began the season in the Kansas City rotation before landing on the DL with a bulging disk in his back. He made four minor league rehab starts, three at Omaha, and struck out 11 over 5 1-3 innings last weekend against Albuquerque. The veteran left-hander, who has worked out of the bullpen in the past, has not appeared in a big league game since April 24. He is 1-2 with a 7.45 ERA on the season.

The Philadelphia Phillies have signed three-time All-Star Grady Sizemore to a minor league contract. Sizemore batted .216 with 10 doubles, two triples, two home runs and 15 RBI for Boston this season. He was released by the Red Sox on June 18. The Phillies assigned him to Class AAA Lehigh Valley. The Phillies also placed catcher Will Nieves on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained right quadriceps. The team reinstated outfielder Tony Gwynn Jr. from the restricted list. Gwynn’s father, Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, died last week. Sizemore was an All-Star with Cleveland from 2006-08 and won two Gold Gloves in 2007-08. He’s a career .266 hitter with 141 home runs, 473 RBI and 139 stolen bases. Sizemore made it to the majors this year after injuries interrupted his career.

BASKETBALL

James opts out of final 2 years of contract

MIAMI — LeBron James delivered his message loud and clear without actually saying a word.

He willing to leave Miami if that’s what it will take to win more championships, and what happens next will likely be up to not just the Heat, but Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as well.

James informed the Heat on Tuesday that he has decided to opt out of the final two years of his contract, a move that means he becomes a free agent July 1. He will be able to sign with any team, including Miami, and Heat President Pat Riley said he “fully expected” James to take advantage of his early termination option.

“We look forward to sitting down with LeBron and his representatives and talking about our future together,” Riley said.

The Heat have been preparing for this for some time. James, Wade and Bosh all received six-year contracts when they teamed up in Miami in July 2010, the last time free agency was accompanied by the sort of frenzy that will envelop the league over the next few weeks. But each of those deals came with options to leave either this summer or in 2015, in part to allow both the players and the team to have financial flexibility.

James — who averaged 27.1 points this past season — was owed $42.7 million for the next two seasons, although that seems irrelevant in the sense that he’ll be getting plenty of money from the Heat or someone else for years to come. If he stays with Miami, he could sign a deal that would give the team room to maneuver within the structures of the salary cap and luxury-tax threshold.

So could Wade and Bosh, if they choose to opt out as well. If both do, Miami would potentially have plenty of cash to spend on roster upgrades. Neither has announced his plans.