Sosa suspension reduced one game
BALTIMORE, June 11 (UPI) -- Major League Baseball Wednesday reduced by one the eight-game suspension given Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs for using a corked bat in a game.
"I am convinced of the sincerity of Sosa's explanation and his contrition," said Bob DuPuy, MLB President and Chief Operating Officer. "In my opinion, his candor and the promptness of his apology on the night of June 3 were exemplary. However, at the end of the day, each player must be accountable for his own equipment complying with the rules, whether the violation is deliberate or inadvertent."
Sosa had been suspended for using an illegal bat in a game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on June 3. He has claimed it was a one-time mistake.
The bat shattered when he hit an RBI grounder. The run was taken off the board and he was ejected when the cork was found.
He will miss the next two games in Baltimore, a weekend series in Toronto, and two games against Cincinnati.
Rijo might hang it up
CINCINNATI, June 11 (UPI) -- Veteran righthander Jose Rijo of Cincinnati is pondering retirement.
He said after Tuesday's game against Tampa Bay that his throwing arm was worn down and that further surgery would not be an option.
He made a surprise visit to Tuesday's game at Topicana Field to discuss his immediate future with Cincinnati general manager Jim Bowden.
Rijo, 38, underwent his sixth elbow surgery in March. He had been participating in extended spring training, and recently took a 10-day break from throwing. The right-hander reported that he tried throwing earlier Tuesday at the Reds' training complex in Sarasota, Fla.
He didn't like the results.
"It doesn't feel too good," Rijo told MLB.com, the official Web site of Major League Baseball. "It feels worse now than it did before."
Rijo has a 116-91 career record, and was named MVP in the 1990 World Series.
Nets try to pull even with Spurs
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., June 11 (UPI) -- The NBA Finals, which have taken a verbal and viewer beating, continue at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, N.J., Wednesday night.
San Antonio has a two game to one lead over the New Jersey Nets, who face what is almost a must-win situation after losing Game Three, 84-79, Sunday night.
They have not won a home game in the Finals in three tries. Last season, they lost twice in a four-game sweep by the Los Angeles Lakers. If they lose Wednesday, they face the task of winning three in a row, the last two on the road.
Since the Finals went to a 2-3-2 format in 1985, eight teams that have won Game Three to snap a 1-1 tie have gone on to win the title, and the Spurs have been nearly invincible away from home.
They won all three games at Dallas in the Western Conference finals.
Game Five is Friday in New Jersey.
Neuheisel denies firing
SEATTLE, June 11 (UPI) -- University of Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel denied Wednesday that he has been fired.
The ouster was reported by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, which said Neuheisel was fired Tuesday by Athletic Director Barbara Hedges for breaking NCAA rules prohibiting gambling. According to numerous reports, he has admitted to entering high-stakes gambling pools during the last two NCAA men's basketball tournaments.
The paper said Neuheisel invested $6,400 and won $12,123 during his two years participating in the pools.
Neuheisel told Sporting News Radio on Wednesday that he had not been fired.
"To my knowledge, I am still the coach at Washington," Neuheisel said. "Athletic Director Barbara Hedges has stated publicly that it is still an ongoing investigation, which is what I have been asking for all along. When news like this hits, it becomes kind of like a wild fire, and it sometimes gets out of control."
Neuheisel went 33-15 in four years at Washington. Prior to that, he had been at Colorado.
