Newsmakers

Ordered A judge ordered former National League MVP Kevin Mitchell to stand trial on charges of punching a man several times in the head in July at a golf club in Southern California. The ex-San Francisco Giant and New York Mets slugger faces four years in prison if convicted of battery and assault. A judge scheduled his trial for Nov. 3 in San Diego County.

Dropped Prosecutors dropped all marijuana possession charges against Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem, simply saying the case could not be proven. Haslem’s attorney said Haslem’s fingerprints were not on a container of marijuana found in his vehicle after he was pulled over and arrested Aug. 15 in Miami-Dade County, meaning it couldn’t be proven Haslem was in possession of the contraband. A passenger claimed ownership.

Withdrawn Former NFL player Shannon Sharpe is headed back to his job as a CBS football analyst after a woman withdrew her petition for a temporary restraining order against him. Sharpe was scheduled to appear in an Atlanta court Monday to address the woman’s allegations that he forced her to have sex with him, threatened her life and conducted surveillance of her. Fulton County court documents show the petition filed last week was dismissed this week at the woman’s request.

Extended The Chicago Blackhawks gave coach Joel Quenneville a three-year contract extension. The contract runs through the 2013-14 season. Financial terms were not disclosed. Last season, Quenneville led the team to its first Stanley Cup championship since 1961 and became just the 14th coach to win 500 games.

Clinched U.S. Open champion Rafael Nadal clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking for the second time in three years. The 24-year-old Spaniard, who also won the French Open and Wimbledon in 2010, also finished at the top of the ATP rankings in 2008. Nadal, Roger Federer and Ivan Lendl are the only players to have held, lost and regained the year-end No. 1 spot in the 37-year history of the rankings.

Honored The San Francisco 49ers will retire new Hall of Famer Jerry Rice’s No. 80 jersey during their home opener Monday night against the New Orleans Saints. Rice will be honored during halftime.