Sports Briefs June 21, 2011
Baseball
New Florida Marlins interim manager Jack McKeon sat listening as team president David Samson offered a spirited defense of the decision to give the job to an octogenarian.
Samson said the 80-year-old McKeon works harder than many people half his age and seems even sharper mentally than in 2003, when the led the Marlins to an improbable World Series championship.
In response to the comments, a grinning McKeon intentionally messed up Samson's name.
"Thanks, George," McKeon said.
The new, old skipper drew some laughs at his re-introductory news conference Monday.
McKeon replaces Edwin Rodriguez, who unexpectedly resigned on Sunday before the Marlins plaed the Tampa Bay Rays.
He becomes the second-oldest manager in major league history. Connie Mack managed the Philadelphia Athletics in a suit, tie and straw hat until 1950, when he was 87.
Football
Denver Broncos defensive player Jason Hunter was struck in the left upper chest by a kitchen knife hurled at him by his girlfriend during an argument over cell phones, according to a police report.
Hunter told police the woman waved the knife and told him to stay back before throwing it "on accident" during the morning of April 27, according to the six-page report obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
She then took her boyfriend to receive medical treatment and later was arrested "after being pointed out by hospital security," the report said.
The officers who wrote the report said the girlfriend was angry about having found a bag of cell phones, which Hunter claimed "were not his and belonged to his boy."
Detroit police have said only that Hunter had been stabbed and taken to a local hospital for treatment. Hunter's agent, Robert Walker, said afterward that the player required several stitches.
• Qwest Field is becoming CenturyLink, and that applies to the Seattle stadium where the Seahawks and Sounders play.
The company said the new logo for CenturyLink Field will be unveiled at a news conference Thursday at the stadium.
CenturyLink is the third-largest telecommunications company in the United States. It purchased Qwest in April.
Basketball
The effort seems there in the NBA labor talks. Time might not be.
Owners and players are scheduled to meet again today in Chicago, a session that Commissioner David Stern indicated would be critical in gauging whether a new collective bargaining agreement can be reached before the current deal expires on June 30.
This will be at least the sixth meeting this month. After Friday's four-hour session, both parties left believing the commitment to getting a deal done was there, yet unsure if there would be enough time to avoid a lockout.
Although the league agreed last week to leave contract guarantees as is, major disagreements remain.
Auto racing
The owner of energy drink Red Bull plans to leave NASCAR at the end of this season.
Multiple people familiar with the decision say a team official traveled to Michigan Speedway and told industry leaders Sunday of the impending move. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because an official announcement has not been made to team employees.
Red Bull is both the owner and sponsor of the two-car NASCAR team. The team has struggled since its 2007 entry into NASCAR and consistently has been plagued by rumors and speculation that the Austrian ownership group will leave the auto racing series.
- The Associated Press