Animal Kingdom is Preakness favorite
BALTIMORE, May 18 (UPI) -- Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom was listed as the 2-1 favorite Wednesday in early line betting for the Preakness Stakes.
The 3-year-old colt, who won the May 7 Kentucky Derby by 2 3/4 lengths as a 20-1 shot, was assigned post 11 for Saturday's 136th running of the Preakness, the second jewel in horse racing's Triple Crown, the Daily Racing Form reported.
Jockey John Velazquez will again be aboard Animal Kingdom for owner Team Valor International and trainer Graham Motion as they try to keep their hopes alive for the Triple Crown, the publication said.
Post time for the 1 3/16-mile race will be 6:18 p.m. The weather forecast calls for mostly sunny skies with a high temperature of 83.
The third leg of the crown is the June 11 Belmont Stakes in New York.
The complete field for the Preakness in post position order: Astrology, 15-1, Mike Smith; Norman Asbjornson, 30-1, Julian Pimentel; King Congie, 20-1, Robby Albarado; Flashpoint, 20-1, Cornelio Velasquez; Shackleford, 12-1, Jesus Castanon; Sway Away, 15-1, Garrett Gomez; Midnight Interlude, 15-1, Martin Garcia; Dance City, 12-1, Ramon Dominguez; Mucho Macho Man, 6-1, Rajiv Maragh; Dialed In, 9-2, Julien Leparoux; Animal Kingdom, 2-1, John Velazquez; Isn't He Perfect, 30-1, Edgar Prado; Concealed Identity, 30-1, Sheldon Russell and Mr. Commons, 20-1, Victor Espinoza.
It has been six years since a full, 14-horse contingent has contested the $1 million Preakness.
Five of the 14 were tested in this year's Derby, with nine new 3-year-olds completing the field.
NCAA answers Justice Department inquiry
WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- NCAA President Mark Emmert told the Department of Justice Wednesday his organization does not have the power to create a college football playoff.
Emmert was responding to a letter sent to him this month by Assistant Attorney General Christine A. Varney, in which she asked why major college football does not decide its champion by a playoff system.
The national football champion is determined through a combination of polls that select the top two teams in the country, and those teams play for the NCAA title. Emmert said the Justice Department's question concerning a potential playoff should be directed to the Bowl Championship Series, which administers the championship game.
Since the Justice Department's inquiry to the NCAA, it has been pointed out by several outside observers that the NCAA merely administers the wishes of college presidents and has no authority to create or alter policy.
Emmert made those points in his letter to Varney.
"At no time in the history of (major college football) has a formal proposal come from the membership to establish a post-season football championship," Emmert said.
T'Wolves GM: Lottery comments were joke
MINNEAPOLIS, May 18 (UPI) -- Minnesota Timberwolves General Manager David Kahn said Wednesday comments he made implying the NBA draft lottery is fixed were meant as a joke.
The Timberwolves, who finished with the NBA's worst record at 17-65, nevertheless will pick second in next month's NBA draft after losing a lottery to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Minnesota had a 25 percent chance of drawing the top pick.
The Cavs were represented on the stage at the event by 14-year-old Nick Gilbert, the son of Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who has a rare nerve disorder.
"I also feel strongly that once the 14-year-old kid hit the dais with us, we were dead," Kahn told reporters after the event. "There was no way. This league has a habit, and I'm just going to say a habit, of producing some pretty incredible story lines."
After an outpouring of complaints from basketball fans, Kahn told the Minneapolis Star Tribune he was "astonished" at the reaction. His comments were meant as a joke and reporters who were there took them that way, he said.
"It was completely meant in a light-hearted fashion," Kahn said. "And it was received as such."
The Timberwolves have an unlucky history in the draft lottery. They have entered the lottery four times with the first- or second-best odds (1992, 1993, 2010, 2011) and have failed to nab the top pick each time.
Shutout ends Pittsburgh losing streak
CINCINNATI, May 18 (UPI) -- Charlie Morton threw the second shutout of his four-year career Wednesday in carrying the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-0 victory over Cincinnati.
The Pirates snapped a six-game losing streak and handed the Reds their first loss in six outings.
Morton (5-1) had been scheduled to start Tuesday but Pittsburgh's game in Washington was rained out. He gave up five hits and walked two with five strikeouts while going the distance for the second time this season.
His other shutout came two years ago.
All of Pittsburgh's runs came on homers -- a three-run shot by Pedro Alvarez in the fourth and a two-run blast from Andrew McCutchen in the seventh.
Both home runs came off Bronson Arroyo (3-4), who allowed seven hits over seven innings.
