K-Rod released from jail
Suspended Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez was released without bail and ordered to stay away from his girlfriend’s father, whom he is accused of attacking outside a family lounge at Citi Field.
Rodriguez was arrested and charged with third-degree assault after New York’s 6-2 loss to Colorado on Wednesday night. The team put him on the restricted list without pay for two days, costing him more than $125,000.
The 28-year-old reliever is accused of grabbing 53-year-old Carlos Pena, hauling him into a nearby tunnel, hitting him in the face and banging his head against the wall. Pena went to a hospital with a scrape and swelling above his right eyebrow.
Rodriguez did not enter a plea. Held overnight at Citi Field, he wore jeans, a white dress shirt and sneakers in a Queens courthouse. He did not speak, but nodded as the judge spoke to him.
“Ownership and the organization are very disappointed in Francisco’s inappropriate behavior and we take this matter very seriously,” Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon said.
“No one should act like that,” center fielder Carlos Beltran said.
“He feels sorry about what happened, but it’s too late,” he said. “We all have family issues. But those family issues should be addressed at the house, not near the ballpark, nor at the place where you work.”
Braves’ Jones has torn ACL
Chipper Jones may have played his last game in the major leagues after tearing up his left knee while fielding a ground ball.
The Atlanta Braves said that the 38-year-old third baseman tore his anterior cruciate ligament and will need surgery. The estimated recovery time is six months, short enough to be ready for the next opening day – if Jones decides to return in 2011.
He had already said he would consider retirement after a season that’s now ended sooner than expected.
“I’m sure as the next couple of days go by, those are things we’ll discuss and he’ll discuss with his family,” his agent, BB Abbott, told the Associated Press. “It’s not something he’ll decide immediately. He’s going to need to hear everything about the injury and rehabilitative process. He’ll probably make his decision from there. I can assure you it’s not something that’s going to be a knee-jerk decision.”
Jones was hurt in Tuesday night’s game at Houston. He fielded a routine grounder by Hunter Pence, jumped in the air while making the throw to first, then collapsed to the ground for several minutes.
Cueto gets 7-game ban
Cincinnati Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto has been suspended for seven games for his actions during a brawl with the St. Louis Cardinals, and both managers were suspended for two games.
Major League Baseball said that Cueto, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and Reds manager Dusty Baker also were fined undisclosed amounts.
Four other players were fined but not suspended – Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter and catcher Yadier Molina, and Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips and relief pitcher Russ Springer.
A fight broke out in the first inning of Tuesday’s game in Cincinnati, after Phillips called the Cardinals complainers a day earlier.
MLB approves Rangers sale
Major League Baseball owners unanimously approved the sale of the Rangers to an investment group led by Nolan Ryan and Chuck Greenberg, marking the end of a months-long struggle to take control of the club.
Ryan will remain team president while Greenberg becomes the managing partner and CEO of a group that also includes pipeline billionaire Ray Davis and XTO Energy founder Bob Simpson.
“It’s hard to comprehend that that is behind us because it dominated our lives so much, in that there were so many twists and turns during the process,” said Ryan.
The group initially agreed to buy the team from Tom Hicks in January. But a messy bankruptcy case ensued and Ryan and Greenberg ultimately had to win a bidding war with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban to secure the franchise.