Anaheim Suspends Phillips

Tony Phillips, facing a felony charge of cocaine possession, was suspended indefinitely by the Anaheim Angels on Monday.

Phillips has not played since being arrested at an Anaheim, Calif., motel on Aug. 10. The Angels suspended the star leadoff man after he turned down the team’s request to go on the disabled list and take part in a rehabilitation program.

According to a baseball management source, the suspension was ordered by Michael Eisner, chief executive officer of the Angels’ parent company, The Walt Disney Co.

Dodgers deal for Young

Second baseman Eric Young, who began his major league career with Los Angeles, was traded by the Colorado Rockies back to the Dodgers for pitcher Pedro Astacio.

Young, 30, will join the Dodgers in New York for tonight’s game against the Mets. Astacio, 28, will join Colorado in Cincinnati on Wednesday.

Young, eligible for free agency after the season, is hitting .282 with 45 RBIs and 32 stolen bases. His best season came last year when he hit .324 and led the N.L. with 53 stolen bases, and he had been the subject of several trade rumors this year.

The Dodgers, two games behind N.L. West-leading San Francisco, have been using rookie Wilton Guerrero at second base.

Cordero opts for trial

Boston Red Sox outfielder Wilfredo Cordero, charged with assaulting his wife, rejected a deal in Cambridge, Mass., that would have guaranteed no time in jail.

Instead, Cordero, 25, will face trial Oct. 20 on the accusations he hit his wife Ana with a telephone, threatened her life and later violated an emergency restraining order.

The maximum penalty for conviction on the charges is eight years.

The player has been free on bail since pleading innocent to charges of assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and threatening to commit a crime.

Kent’s suspension cut

Jeff Kent of the San Francisco Giants had his three-game suspension for initiating a bench-clearing brawl reduced by one game by the National League.

Kent and Chicago Cubs catcher Tyler Houston had been suspended for their roles in a brawl during last Wednesday’s game at San Francisco.

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