Fast Break

Baseball

Randolph turns into pumpkin

New York Mets manager Willie Randolph was fired because the losses and the speculation about his job were hurting the team.

That’s what general manager Omar Minaya said Tuesday after Randolph’s awkward dismissal was announced in a matter-of-fact news release in the dead of night.

With the Mets worse than .500 and still wobbling from last year’s colossal collapse, rumors about Randolph’s status built to a crescendo over the weekend. Minaya said the tension went on “far too long.”

Bench coach Jerry Manuel was promoted to manage the Mets and will stay in that position for the rest of the year.

“I’m really stunned by it,” Randolph said as he left the team hotel shortly before noon. “I was surprised by it.”

Horse racing

Panel proposes steroids ban

Thoroughbred racing took a major step toward outlawing steroids when a safety panel created days after Eight Belles’ fatal run in the Kentucky Derby recommended that they should be banned by January.

The call for a sweeping ban on anabolic steroids for racing was one of three suggestions from the committee established by North America’s thoroughbred registry, the Jockey Club. Other recommendations dealt with banning certain horseshoes known to cause injuries and regulating the use of the riding crop by jockeys.

Prep baseball

Local players named all-state

Nine area players were chosen to the Washington State Baseball Coaches’ all-state teams.

Chosen to the 4A first team were senior pitchers Andrew Kittredge of Ferris and Rusty Shellhorn of Central Valley. Four other seniors were chosen to the second team: Ferris’ Beau Brett (first base) and University’s Tyler Olson (first base), Dan Jordan (pitcher) and Billy Moon (outfielder). Another Greater Spokane League player, outfielder Evan Witt of North Central, was chosen to the 3A second team.

Seniors Tyler Ford of Freeman and Jake Graham of Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls) were picked for the 1A/B team.