Chan Ho Park to be activated Sunday
ARLINGTON, Texas, May 8 (UPI) -- Texas Rangers righthander Chan Ho Park, who has not pitched since Opening Day, will be activated from the disabled list Sunday and start against the Detroit Tigers, the team announced Wednesday.
Park was placed on the 15-day disabled list for the first time in his career on April 4 with a pulled right hamstring, just three days after making his American League debut against the Oakland Athletics.
The Korean righthander originally injured his hamstring in a spring training start on March 27 and aggravated it in his Opening Day start. Park pitched five innings and allowed six runs and nine hits in an 8-3 loss.
Desperate to improve a pitching staff that had a league-worst 5.71 ERA in 2001, the Rangers handed Park a five-year, $65 million contract in hopes he would become a much-needed ace.
The 28-year-old spent his first full season with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1996 and had a lifetime record of 80-54 with nine complete games before signing with Texas. He was 15-11 with a 3.50 ERA for the Dodgers last season, leading the team in wins, starts (35), innings pitched (234), strikeouts (218) and opponents' batting average (.216).
Park allowed home runs 72 and 73 to San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds last October.
Smashnova upsets Clijsters at German Open
BERLIN, May 8 (UPI) -- Kim Clijsters, the second-seeded Belgian, was eliminated from the German Open Wednesday in the second round by Israel's Anna Smashnova, who called the 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 victory the "biggest win" of her career.
Smashnova trailed 4-1 in the second set before reeling off the next five games. She went on to win the grueling match in 2 hours, 46 minutes.
Clijsters entered as the pre-tournament favorite after defeating world No. 1 Venus Williams in the final of last week's event in Hamburg.
Most of the other seeds in action Wednesday advanced, led by No. 1 Jennifer Capriati, who swept past fellow American Meilen Tu, 6-4, 6-3. Capriati, who can regain the top ranking this week, will face 14th seed Iroda Tulyaganova of Uzbekistan in the third round. Tulyaganova, who took Capriati to three sets in the fourth round at Miami earlier this season, disposed of Denmark's Eva Dyrberg, 7-5, 6-3.
Fourth seed Serena Williams crushed Austria's Barbara Schett, 6-3, 6-2, and No. 5 Justine Henin of Belgium rallied for a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory over German wild card Martina Muller. Sixth seed Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia struggled early before eliminating two-time Grand Slam winner Mary Pierce of France, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Steeleers sign linebacker Porter
PITTSBURGH, May 8 (UPI) -- The Pittsburgh Steelers, more than two months after re-signing Jason Gildon, Wednesday agreed to terms with fellow outside linebacker Joey Porter on a six-year contract worth a reported $22.5 million.
Porter, 25, recently signed a one-year tender as a restricted free agent before agreeing on the new deal.
The outside linebacker tandem of Gildon, who signed a five-year contract worth $23 million on Feb. 25, and Porter combined for 45 sacks over the last two seasons for Pittsburgh.
The 6-3, 249-pound Porter had 72 tackles and nine sacks, tying him with inside linebacker Kendrell Bell for second on the team, last season. He also had three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. A third-round pick in 1999, Porter became the starter at right outside linebacker in 2000 and recorded a career-high 10 ½ sacks.
Inkster hopes to defend title
FRANKLIN, Tenn., May 8 (UPI) -- Juli Inkster, who earned her 27th career victory last week at the Chick-fil-A Championship, again hopes to have something special to celebrate on Mother's Day.
The Hall of Famer is out to defend her title at the Electrolux USA Championship, which begins Thursday at the Legends Club of Tennessee Ironhorse Course. For the second straight year, the three-year-old tournament ends on Mother's Day.
Last year, Inkster carded a final-round 65 to post a one-stroke victory over Catriona Matthew. Annika Sorenstam, the 2001 Player of the Year, finished two shots off the pace.
Sorenstam heads the list of players looking to dethrone Inkster, along with top money-winners Cristie Kerr, Laura Diaz, Se Ri Pak and Liselotte Neumann. Inkster will be joined by 18 other moms in the field, including Pat Hurst, the tournament's inaugural winner in 2000.
The 41-year-old Inkster gave herself an early Mother Day's present last week with a two-stroke victory over Kelly Robbins in a tournament reduced to 36 holes due to rain. She posted a pair of 6-under 66s to earn her first victory since winning here last year.
Celtics hope to bounce back
DETROIT, May 8 (UPI) -- The Boston Celtics, who have not won a playoff series without homecourt advantage since the 1974 NBA Finals, visit Detroit Wednesday night to play the Pistons in Game Two of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Neither team has earned a road win in the 2002 playoffs. The Celtics and Pistons each won a decisive Game Five in the first round after dropping two straight road contests.
The Pistons improved their postseason home record to 4-0 with a 96-84 win over the Celtics in the series opener on Sunday. Cliff Robinson drilled six three-pointers and finished with 30 points and Jerry Stackhouse had 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to lead Detroit. Meanwhile, Boston's 1-2 scoring punch of Pierce and Walker combined to shoot just 14-for-39 from the field.
The series shifts to Boston for Game Three on Friday.
The East's top seed, the New Jersey Nets, held their homecourt advantage, winning the first two games against the Charlotte Hornets in the other Eastern Conference semifinal series, which resumes Thursday in Charlotte.
MVP candidate Tim Duncan helped San Antonio wrest homecourt advantage away from the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, leading the Spurs to an 88-85 victory in Game Two.
Game Three of that series is Friday in San Antonio.
Colorado faces must-win game in NHL playoffs
SAN JOSE, Calif., May 8 (UPI) -- The San Jose Sharks hope to take a commanding three games to one lead Wednesday night when they host the Colorado Avalanche in Game Four of their high-scoring NHL Western Conference semifinal series.
Captain Owen Nolan had two goals and an assist as San Jose rebounded from an 8-2 loss in Game Two to post a 6-4 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champions on Monday.
Patrick Marleau extended his NHL-leading points streak to eight games by tallying the game-winning goal on the power play in the third period. Marleau, who finished the regular season on a tear, has six goals and four assists during the playoffs.
Scott Thornton, Adam Graves and Teemu Selanne scored the other goals for the Sharks while Vincent Damphousse and Mike Ricci collected two assists apiece and Evgeni Nabokov stopped 29 shots. The two teams have combined for at least nine goals in each game in the series. The Sharks are 6-4 all time in Game Fours, going 5-1 under Coach Darryl Sutter. Colorado is in a two games to one hole for the first time since the 1999 conference finals against Dallas.
Game Five is at Colorado on Saturday.
Also, the Ottawa Senators host the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game Four of the so-called "Battle of Ontario."
Ottawa took a two games to one lead in the best-of-seven series Monday with a 3-2 victory. The Senators have won a franchise-record six games this postseason. Their only two losses in the playoffs have come in overtime.
Toronto most likely will be without right wing Mikael Renberg again. He has a severe hamstring-groin injury. He returned to the lineup Monday but played 10-plus minutes in pain.
The series returns to Toronto for Game Five on Friday.
No. 6 Reeves, No. 8 Foretz ousted
WARSAW, Poland, May 8 (UPI) -- Sixth-seeded American Samantha Reeves and eighth-seeded Stephanie Foretz of France were upset Wednesday in the second round of the J&S Cup tennis tournament.
Russian Elena Bovina, who had suffered consecutive first-round losses after reaching the semifinals at Estoril, posted a 6-4, 7-6 (7-1) victory over Reeves. Bovina, who reached the third round of the French Open last year, improved to 22-8 on clay courts since 1996.
Slovakia's Ludmila Cervanova defeated Foretz, 6-2, 6-3 to also move into the quarterfinals. Cervanova had lost her last three matches and is in the quarterfinals for just the second time this year.
Russian qualifier Svetlana Kusnetsova, who defeated the third-seeded countrywoman Anna Kournikova on Tuesday, followed up with a 6-2, 6-3 triumph over Seda Noorlander of the Netherlands. Kusnetsova is in the quarterfinals for the first time this year and will face Bovina.
Silvija Talaja of Croatia, who ousted second seed Tatiana Poutchek of Belarus in the first round, cruised to a 6-3, 6-3 win over Bulgaria's Lubomira Becheva. Talaja will face Cervanova in the quarterfinals.
Indy driver suffers serious injury
INDIANAPOLIS, May 8 (UPI) -- Indy Racing League driver P.J. Jones suffered a fracture of the C-6 vertebra in a one-car accident Tuesday during a practice session for the Indianapolis 500.
Jones was held overnight at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis and was listed in good condition, according to Indy Racing League Director of Medical Services Dr. Henry Bock. Recovery time is up to six weeks for Jones.
The son of 1963 Indianapolis 500 winner Parnelli Jones, P.J. Jones lost control of his Team Menard Dallara/Chevrolet in the first turn of Tuesday's practice session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The car backed into the SAFER wall, slamming hard into the barrier, ricocheted across the short chute and crashed again into an infield guardrail.
Jones was able to climb out of the car with help from fire and safety crews. He was awake and alert when transported by ground to Methodist Hospital for precautionary X-rays.
Virginia Tech player has amputation
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., May 8 (UPI) -- Rayna Dubose, a Virginia Tech student hospitalized with meningitis, is listed in good condition at the University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville after undergoing an operation on Monday.
According to a report in the Washington Post, DuBose was stricken with meningococcal meningitis on April 2. The report said sources close to the Virginia Tech athletic department said the procedure was necessitated because Dubose's limbs had gangrene, a byproduct of meningitis.
DuBose, a 2001 second-team All-Met selection in the D.C., area from Oakland Mills High in Columbia, Md., is expected to make a full recovery. She was listed in critical condition for nearly three weeks before being upgraded to fair and then good conditions.
The Dubose family described the operation as a "bilateral amputation of the upper and lower extremities." The family declined to elaborate further on the scope of the operation.
Dubose appeared in 13 games in the 2001-02 season. She averaged 4.8 points and 2.4 rebounds as a backup center.
The Post also reported that she became ill after returning to campus from a weekend trip to visit her parents, Andrea and Willie DuBose, for Easter. She first went to Virginia Tech's student health center April 1 complaining of flu-like symptoms and was checked into Montgomery Regional Hospital in Blacksburg, Va., the following day and later transferred to Charlottesville.
Canty sidelined with broken hand
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., May 8 (UPI) -- Detroit Shock guard Dominique Canty is expected to be sidelined six weeks with a fractured left hand, forcing her to probably miss the first two weeks of the WNBA season.
Canty suffered the injury last Friday in a practice drill and the fracture was surgically repaired Tuesday at The Hand Surgery Center by Dr. John Wagner.
Canty started 18 of Detroit's 32 games last season and averaged 6.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists per contest in 19.5 minutes. She was second on the team with 45 offensive rebounds and 31 steals. The 1999 WNBA Rookie of the Year runnerup, Canty has averaged 8.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists in three WNBA seasons.
The Shock play their season opener at Orlando on May 30.
