Iverson faces criminal charges
PHILADELPHIA, July 12 (UPI) -- Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham announced Thursday that basketball star Allen Iverson would be charged with 14 felony and misdemeanor offenses as a result of an incident last week in which witnesses said he threatened two men with a gun.
The decision to file charges was announced at a news conference, after which the wait began to see if Iverson would surrender to police as his attorneys have said he would.
Abraham said the 27-year-old Philadelphia 76ers guard, who helped carry his team to the NBA Championship Series in 2001, would be charged with false imprisonment, criminal trespass, conspiracy and firearms violations. Other charges will be filed as well and a conviction on all of them would carry a total maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
The district attorney also said Iverson's 39-year-old uncle, Gregory Iverson, would be charged with nine offenses.
"I hope the sports fans of America don't think this is invidious," Abraham said. "But this is just another case to me."
The charges stem from a reported domestic dispute involving Iverson and his wife, Tawanna. Iverson reportedly threw his wife out of the house after two days of arguing and that later he went to an apartment where he believed his wife was staying.
Although his wife was not at the apartment, Iverson allegedly threatened two men inside the residence.
Baseball CEO: All players will be paid
NEW YORK, July 12 (UPI) -- Bob DuPuy, chief operating officer of Major League Baseball, said Thursday no teams would miss their payroll this week -- bringing at least a temporary end to a crisis that Commissioner Bud Selig had indicated was on the sport's doorstep.
During an interview Wednesday with a small group of reporters, Selig had said one major league team was in danger of not being able to pay its players and that another might have to fold before the end of the season.
"Our total debt is $3.5-$3.6 billion," he said. "It's stunning. Right now, there's nowhere else to go. Some clubs have enormous debt. Some of it is stadium debt, but it's still debt you have to pay off. There are teams in debt by hundreds of millions of dollars.
"People want to question the losses. Nobody who has ever seen the numbers questions them. People ask why we don't share our numbers. We've shared everything. There's nothing left to share. No one ever questions the veracity of these numbers except those that want to question them for some other reason.
"I'll be frank, I don't know if they (an unnamed team) will make it (salary payments) or not."
DuPuy, however, indicated all players on all teams would receive their next paychecks as scheduled.
"There are teams that are continuing to work very hard to meet all of their expenses that come due," DuPuy said. "Whatever immediate issues there were with one or two clubs have been resolved in the short term."
Baseball's ongoing labor negotiations have not produced any major advancement and the threat of a strike by players looms for later in the season. The players had been expected to set a strike date during the All-Star break, but none was not forthcoming.
Indians fire Charlie Manuel
CLEVELAND, July 12 (UPI) -- The Cleveland Indians fired Manager Charlie Manuel Thursday, three hours before their game against the New York Yankees.
Manuel was in the final year of his contract and demanded a commitment beyond this season, but was rebuffed, then relieved of his duties by general manager Mark Shapiro.
"I felt forced to make this decision," Shapiro said. "He felt now was the time to make a long-term commitment with him or for him to part ways. I just wasn't ready to make that decision at this time."
The Indians promoted third base coach Joel Skinner to interim manager.
Skinner took over a team that was 39-47 at the All-Star break, 9 1/2 games behind first-place Minnesota in the American League Central. The Indians are in a rebuilding mode after trading ace Bartolo Colon to the Montreal Expos for prospects on June 27.
Manuel, 58, is the seventh manager to be fired since the start of the season, following Phil Garner, Davey Lopes, Tony Muser, Buddy Bell, Buck Martinez and Don Baylor.
Yankees remain perfect against AL Central
CLEVELAND, July 12 (UPI) -- Erratic Andy Pettitte allowed just one unearned run and six hits over seven innings with one walk and four strikeouts Thursday night to boost the New York Yankees past the Cleveland Indians, 7-4.
The Indians rallied for three runs in the bottom of ninth, forcing Mariano Rivera to get the final out for his 22nd save.
New York improved to 13-0 against the AL Central this year and spoiled the managerial debut of Joel Skinner. Earlier Thursday, Charlie Manuel became the seventh major league manager to be fired in 2002.
The Yankees' perfection against the AL Central this year includes a 4-0 record against the Indians, a 6-0 mark against the Minnesota Twins and a 3-0 ledger against the Chicago White Sox.
Overall, New York, which reached the All-Star break with the best record in the American League, has won seven of its last eight games.
Other American League results: Oakland 4, Baltimore 1; Chicago 9, Detroit 2; Boston 10, Toronto 3; Seattle 4, Tampa Bay 0; Anaheim 1, kansas City 0; Minnesota 4, Texas 3.
Game finished in Miller Park
MILWAUKEE, July 12 (UPI) -- Brian Giles connected for a solo homer in the top of the 10th inning Thursday night to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 3-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.
Two days after the All-Star Game ended in a 7-7 tie in 11 innings, the Pirates and Brewers battled to a 2-2 tie after nine innings. The fans at Miller Park chanted "Let them play," a humorous reference to Commissioner Bud Selig calling for an end to Tuesday's game.
With one out, Giles belted a 1-0 offering from Milwaukee reliever Mike DeJean (0-4) over the left-field fence for his 23rd homer. Giles went two for four with a pair of runs scored.
Closer Mike Williams got the ball in the bottom of the inning after a spectacular outing in the All-Star Game. Williams relieved Curt Schilling on Tuesday night in the third inning and struck out Alfonso Soriano and Derek Jeter in a perfect third inning.
Other National League results: Atlanta 8, Montreal 5; New York 9, Philadelphia 1; Houston 4, Cincinnati 3.
Expos part of 11-player, three-team trade
MONTREAL, July 12 (UPI) -- For a team rumored to be in its final season, the Montreal Expos are not going away quietly.
Montreal General Manager Omar Minaya swung his second major trade in two weeks Thursday as the Expos acquired slugger Cliff Floyd, infielder Wilton Guerrero and minor leaguer pitcher Claudio Vargas from the Florida Marlins.
The Expos, who believe they can contend for a playoff spot in the second half of the season, sent four players to Florida -- starter Carl Pavano, reliever Graeme Lloyd, infielder Mike
Mordecai and minor league righthander Justin Wayne.
The Marlins were involved in two trades Thursday. Prior to dealing with the Expos, they sent righthander Ryan Dempster to the Cincinnati Reds for outfielder Juan Encarnacion, Guerrero
and minor leaguer pitcher Ryan Snare.
On June 27, the Expos acquired hard-throwing righthander Bartolo Colon from the Cleveland Indians for veteran first baseman Lee Stevens and prospects.
The Expos, who are currently owned and operated by Major League Baseball, were one of the biggest surprises in the first half, reaching the All-Star break with a 46-41 record.
Irvin leads Senior major
DEARBORN, Mich., July 12 (UPI) -- Hale Irwin recorded six birdies in the first seven holes Thursday en route to an 8-under 64 that put him two strokes in front after one round of the Senior Players Championship.
Irwin established a tournament record with a 29 on the front nine of the Tournament Players Club of Michigan course. His 64 was also the lowest first-round score ever shot in this tournament, the final major of the year on the Senior Tour.
He has finished no worse than fourth in five of the last six years at the event and captured the title in 1999.
Alone in second place with a 66 was Stewart Ginn while Mark McCumber and Tom Jenkins shared third place at 67.
McCumber was the first alternate to get into the field and was given a spot when Jack Nicklaus withdrew because of muscle spasms in his back.
Overall standings unchanged in Tour de France
ROUEN, France, July 12 (UPI) -- Jaan Kirsipuu of Estonia won the fifth stage of the Tour de France Thursday while Igor Gonzalez Galdeano of Spain retained the yellow jersey as overall leader.
Kirsipuu, a member of the AG2R Prevoyance team, finished the 123.03-mile leg from Soissons to Rouen in 4:13:33, edging Michael Sandstod of Denmark and Ludo Dierckxens of Belgium in a sprint to the finish line.
The peleton finished 33 seconds off the pace.
Among those in the group were Galdeano and three-time defending champion Lance Armstrong. Galdeano, who grabbed the overall lead in Wednesday's team time trial, retained his four-second advantage over countryman Joseba Beloki. Armstrong remained third, seven seconds behind, after one of the flattest stages of the 20-stage event. Friday's sixth stage is more than 123 miles from Forges-les-Eaux to Alencon.
Wizards sign Juan Dixon
WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- The Washington Wizards Thursday signed guard Juan Dixon, the second of their two first-round picks in last month's NBA draft, to a multi-year contract.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but under the rookie salary scale, Dixon will receive no less than $3.12 million over the next three seasons and up to 20 percent more.
The Wizards hold a club option for a fourth year.
Dixon, the 17th overall pick, averaged 20.4 points, 2.8 points and 2.6 assists as a senior last season, helping lead Maryland to its first national championship. Dixon earned first team all-American honors and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four.
He left Maryland as the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,269 points and graduated No. 2 on the Terrapins' assist list with 333.
Ted Williams' will should be filed Friday
INVERNESS, Fla., July 12 (UPI) -- The will of Boston Red Sox star Ted Williams, the last baseball player to hit .400, is expected to be filed in probate court Friday said.
The lawyer for Williams' eldest daughter, Bobby Jo Ferrell, said he has been told it says Williams wanted to be cremated and the remains spread over the Florida Keys instead of frozen for later revival. Williams died last Friday at the age of 83.
"We believe that Mr. Williams' intentions were very consistent over years and years," attorney John Heer said Thursday.
Ferrell said she believes Williams' son, John Henry Williams, sent the elder Williams body to Alcor Life Extension Foundation, where it was frozen at minus 320 degrees Farenheit.
Ferrell said John Henry Williams hopes to sell Williams' DNA or profit some other way, but the director of Alcor said many of those schemes aren't possible or even necessary.
"Alcor in no way, does in no way engage in sematic cell nuclear transfer or therapeutic cloning or in reproductive cloning," Jerry Lemler told CNN. "Secondly, the other allegation that somehow we are involved in a scheme to cell one of our members' DNA for profit is absolutely ludicrous.
"If you want to get someone's DNA, all you have to do is go to a barber shop or a beauty shop and take a few strands of hair and you would have all the DNA you could possibly need."
Houston 10-game winning streak ends
PHOENIX, July 12 (UPI) -- Gordana Grubin made a three-pointer to snap a tie with 40 seconds left Thursday night as the Phoenix Mercury scored the game's final six points for a 58-52 victory over the Houston Comets, who saw their 10-game winning streak come to an end.
Phoenix led by as many as 13 points and took a 52-42 lead on a basket by Grubin with 5:26 remaining. The Comets reeled off the next 10 points as Sheryl Swoopes scored six and Janeth Arcain the other four, including a tying three-pointer with 61 second to go.
The Mercury looked to go to Jennifer Gillom, but Grubin let fly with her second three-pointer of the night. Houston's Tina Thompson missed an ill-advised three-pointer with 26 seconds to go and the long rebound resulted in an uncontested layup by the Mercury's Adrian Williams.
Williams added one of two foul shots for the final margin.
Gillom scored 14 points and Grubin added 12 for Phoenix, which snapped a six-game losing streak. The Mercury defeated Houston for just the second time in the last eight meetings.
Other WNBA results: Seattle 79, Los Angeles 60; Sacramento 71, Cleveland 69.
