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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Newsmakers

From Staff And Wire Reports

Signed Outfielder Nelson Cruz and the Baltimore Orioles finalized an $8 million, one-year contract Monday, a deal that puts him on track to become the team’s regular designated hitter. Cruz, who served a 50-game suspension last season for violating baseball’s drug agreement, hit .266 last season with 27 home runs and 76 RBIs in 109 games.

Sidelined Washington Wizards forward Nene will be sidelined for about six weeks with a sprained MCL in his left knee, costing the team its most reliable barometer for success while it makes a push for its first playoff berth since 2008. Nene underwent an MRI on Monday after he was injured Sunday night. The oft-injured Nene was acquired in a trade in March 2012, and the Wizards are 60-61 with him and 8-34 without him.

• Duke sophomore guard Alexis Jones tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee on Sunday and will be out for the remainder of the season.

Extended The Texas Rangers added a year to manager Ron Washington’s contract through the 2015 season. Washington is the team’s winningest manager with 611 wins over seven seasons, and led Texas to its only two World Series appearances in 2010 and 2011. The Rangers have averaged more than 91 wins over the last five seasons.

Waived The New York Knicks waived Metta World Peace and Beno Udrih after buying out their contracts. By getting waived this week, both veterans will be able to sign with another team and be eligible for the playoffs.

Reinstated USA Track & Field reinstated Gabe Grunewald as the winner of the women’s 3,000 meters at the USA Indoor Track & Field Championships after the withdrawal of an appeal of the race’s outcome. Jordan Hasay withdrew her successful appeal of a foul that occurred on the final lap of Saturday’s race. Grunewald was disqualified hours after her victory Saturday for jostling Hasay. Grunewald had said the contact with Hasay, who finished fourth, was inadvertent. Hasay said she decided to withdraw her protest “as I do not want to make a national team under these circumstances.”

Sentenced Former Texas All-American and NFL kicker and punter Russell Erxleben was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison for running an illegal investment scam that netted $2 million. It will be Erxleben’s second stint in federal prison. He was sentenced in 1999 to seven years for a scam that robbed investors of $36 million. Erxleben, 57, was a first-round draft pick by the New Orleans Saints in 1979.