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Briefly

Baseball

Right-hander James Baldwin agreed Thursday to a minor league contract with the Royals and was invited to spring training as a non-roster player.

Colleges

Running back Ibrahim Halsey, whose debut at Illinois was delayed while he fought statutory rape and related charges, is finally on the University of Illinois campus. All the charges in the case from his home town of Elizabeth, N.J., were dropped against Halsey and three other men. The three had been charged with plying a 14-year-old girl with booze and assaulting her during a prom night party.

David Richard, who as a freshman led Michigan State in rushing last season, has signed transfer papers and could leave campus in May after the spring semester. The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Richard, from St. Louis, is homesick and might transfer to Missouri, his father, David Sr., said.

Gonzaga will play a home game against Missouri in Seattle's KeyArena next December, coach Mark Few said. It would be the first planned annual games for the Bulldogs in Western Washington, where the basketball team has many fans, Few said.

Football

NFL players are backing a change in the rules that would allow both teams to get the ball in overtime. Gene Upshaw, executive director of the NFL Players Association, said Thursday that the union will recommend the change to the league's competition committee. If this group approves a new rule, owners would vote on it at their meeting in Phoenix in March. To pass, 24 of the 32 teams would have to OK it.

Chiefs running back Priest Holmes will pass up the Pro Bowl in Hawaii on Feb. 2 because of the hip injury that caused him to miss the last two games of the season.

Kansas City wide receiver Dante Hall, who was named to the Pro Bowl this year as a kick returner, has signed a five-year contract with the Chiefs, the team announced Thursday. The terms of the deal were not released.

Golf

Health problems got Harrison Frazar down, but never out. That's more true than ever now that he's equipped with course-shortening equipment and a new putting philosophy. Frazar tied his best PGA Tour score with a 9-under-par 62 Thursday to open a two-stroke lead over John Huston and David Toms after the first round of the Phoenix Open.

Hockey

Holdout Bruins defenseman Kyle McLaren was traded to the Sharks in a three-team deal that sent forward Niklas Sundstrom to the Canadiens. The Bruins acquired veteran goalie Jeff Hackett from the Canadiens and young defenseman Jeff Jillson from the Sharks. Montreal got the Sharks' third-round selection in the 2004 draft, while Boston sent a fourth-round pick in the 2004 draft to San Jose.

Theo Fleury took the ice for a pre-game warmup skate despite another off-ice incident. He was expected to play for the Blackhawks in their game against the Blues. Fleury won't be suspended after police said he was intoxicated and involved in a fight at a strip club in Columbus, Ohio, earlier this week.

Motorsports

Lawyers for Jeff Gordon's wife have subpoenaed records from his competitors and NASCAR for use in their divorce case. Geoff Smith, general manager of Roush Racing, said the team planned to file an order Friday to block Brooke Gordon's request in Wayne County Circuit Court in Michigan, where the company is headquartered.

Verbatim

Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune, on Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden: "He is the kind of rah-rah guy who could make a strand of spaghetti aspire to be a five-course meal."

Jim Hodges of the Hampton Roads (Va.) Daily Press, putting a nickel in the Wayback Machine: "You have a weekend that begins with an anti-war protest in Washington, includes a Rolling Stones concert in Madison Square Garden and finishes with the Raiders in the Super Bowl. Did somebody subtract a few decades from our lives?"

On the air

Bowling

PBA ABC Masters, 1 p.m., ESPN2

Golf

Phoenix Open, 2 p.m., USA

Singapore Masters, 11:30 p.m., GOLF

NBA

Washington at Chicago, 7 p.m., ESPN2

New Jersey at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2

Tennis

Australian Open, women's championship, 8:30 p.m., ESPN

CHARTER CABLE SPORTS KEY --CNBC (ch. 53), ESPN (42), ESPN2 (43), Lifetime (49)Fox-Midwest (45), Fox-Central (352), Fox-Pacific (353), Fox-Sunshine (351), Fox-World (350), FX(50), Golf Channel (46), MSNBC (55), Outdoors (38), Outdoor Life Network (74), Oxygen (75), Speed Channel (44), TNT (48). Listings and times are provided by the networks and individual stations and are subject to change.

Area events

College gymnasticsSoutheast at Ball State, 7 p.m.

High school boys' basketballCentral at Mehlville, 7 p.m.

Notre Dame at Jackson, 7:30 p.m.

St. Pius at Perryville, 7:30 p.m.

Hillsboro at St. Vincent, 7:30 p.m.

Bell City at Bloomfield, 7:30 p.m.

Meadow Heights at South Iron, 7:30 p.m.

Zalma at Richland, 7:30 p.m.

Eagle Ridge Christian at Paducah (Ky.) Christian, 7:30 p.m.

New Salem Baptist at Warrenton Christian, 7:30 p.m.

Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament, Scott City: championship, 8 p.m. (JV championship, 6:30 p.m.)

High school girls' basketballEagle Ridge Christian at Paducah (Ky.) Christian, 6 p.m.

New Salem Baptist at Warrenton Christian, 6 p.m.

High school boys swimming

MICDS at Central, 7 p.m.