Fast Break
NASCAR
Rain gives Johnson pole at Charlotte
Jimmie Johnson could only look at his car Thursday, spending most of the afternoon eating junk food in his team’s hauler and watching it rain.
Before nightfall, the Sprint Cup points leader had been awarded more treats – the pole, the first pit stall, and likely five points for leading the first lap – for the Bank of America 500 on Saturday night in Concord, N.C.
The field was set based on owner points. Johnson and Carl Edwards, 72 points behind the leader, will start on the front row. Greg Biffle, 77 points behind Johnson, will start third, followed by Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick.
Baseball
Twins re-sign Redmond
The Minnesota Twins will keep backup catcher Mike Redmond for another season, paying him $950,000.
The 37-year-old Redmond hit .287 in 38 games this season, with 12 RBIs. The former Gonzaga University standout has a .292 career average.
A leader in the clubhouse, Redmond played fewer games this season. He played in 82 games in 2007, 47 in 2006 and 45 in his first year with the team in 2005.
Hockey
Freak accidents follow this guy
Clint Malarchuk, the former NHL goalie best known for having his jugular vein slashed by a skate in a 1989 game with Buffalo, is recovering after accidentally shooting himself in the chin with a rifle.
Wife Christy told sheriff’s deputies that the .22-caliber rifle discharged after her husband placed the butt on the ground between his legs. He had been shooting rabbits.
The 47-year-old former player, now a goalie coach with the Columbus Blue Jackets, was flown by helicopter to a Reno, Nev., hospital for treatment Tuesday.
Baseball
Baker dusts off manager shoes
Dusty Baker is going back to youth baseball.
This weekend, Baker will be the fill-in coach for 9-year-old son Darren’s 10-and-under traveling tournament team, Hard 90 Pastime out of Roseville, Calif.
The 59-year-old Baker spent his first season as skipper of the Cincinnati Reds this year working with a roster of youngsters, but this will be much different. He finally gets to coach his son – and in the Bay Area, no less. The tournament will be in nearby Sunnyvale.
Baker’s son became a household name six years ago when, working as a San Francisco Giants bat boy, he ran onto the field near home plate during the World Series and was scooped up by J.T. Snow to avoid being run over.