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No indictment yet for Barry Bonds

SAN FRANSCISCO, Calif., July 20 (UPI) -- A federal grand jury in San Francisco finished its business Thursday without indicting slugger Barry Bonds for his testimony in the BALCO steroids scandal.

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Federal prosecutors said the investigation will continue into, whether the San Francisco Giants' slugger committed perjury, and there is a question about whether he was guilty of tax evasion on profits from numerous book signings.

"We are not seeking an indictment today in connection with the ongoing steroid-related investigation, and have postponed that decision for another day in light of some recent developments," said Kevin Ryan, U.S. Attorney for Northern California, in a statement. "Some unanswered questions remain in this case (and) we intend to pursue the answers to those questions."

Bonds is a seven-time National League MVP, and is second on baseball's all-time home run list with 721. He is 34 homers short of the all-time mark, 755, set by Hank Aaron.

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Landis storms back into Tour contention

MORZINE, France, July 20 (UPI) -- American Floyd Landis stormed back into contention at the Tour de France Thursday, one day after he appeared to have no chance of winning.

Landis fell from first place to 11th Wednesday. Riding in the Alps on Thursday, he won his first Tour stage and pulled to within 30 seconds of the leader, Spain's Oscar Pereiro.

Spain's Carlos Sastre was in second place at the end of the day Thursday, 12 seconds behind Pereiro.

Landis' ride -- in which he rode unaided for close to 140 kilometers -- was being compared to great Tour performances of the past, The New York Times reported. It also means the winner of this year's Tour de France will likely be settled in Saturday's 35.4-mile time trial, the newspaper said.

Saturday's stage and Sunday's finale are relatively flat stages that are expected to feature sprints to the finish among the top contenders.


Braves get Wickman from Cleveland

ATLANTA, July 20 (UPI) -- The Atlanta Braves Thursday acquired closer Bob Wickman in a trade with Cleveland in exchange for minor league catcher Maximiliano Ramirez.

Wickman was the all-time saves leader for the Indians franchise with 139.

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This season, he was 1-4 with a 4.18 ERA, with 15 saves in 29 games. He struggled in June, posting an ERA of 9.00, and converting just three of six save opportunities.

Wickman is the closer that Atlanta was seeking as it inches closer to wild-card status in the National League.

The Braves likely will have their streak of 14 straight NL East titles broken by the New York Mets, who have had a stranglehold on the division from the outset of the season.

"We needed a closer, whether we're 10 back or 4 1/2 back," said General Manager John Schuerholz on the Braves' Web site. "We just felt like this was the right thing to do based on our circumstances now."


Nuggets re-sign Nenê

DENVER, July 20 (UPI) -- The Denver Nuggets Thursday re-signed forward/center Nenê to a multiyear contract.

No terms were disclosed.

The Denver Post has reported that the 6-foot-11 inch, 260-pounder would get $60 million over six years.

"We are extremely pleased to have Nenê back in the fold," said Nuggets director of player personnel Mark Warkentien. "He has a rare blend of size and quickness and is a key piece of our future."

In 213 games in his four-year career, Nenê, a native of Brazil, has averaged 10.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.

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After suffering a torn right knee ligament at San Antonio on Nov. 1, 2005, he played in just one game last season, and underwent knee surgery 20 days after the injury.

He was the seventh overall pick of the 2002 NBA Draft by New York. Both he and center Marcus Camby were traded to Denver on June 26, 2002.

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