FanFare 7/1/02

Briefly

Baseball

Pete Gray, who became a big-league ballplayer despite losing his right arm in a childhood accident, died Sunday. He was 87.

Gray, born Peter Wyshner, perhaps was best known for his season with the former St. Louis Browns in 1945, when he appeared in 77 games. At the time, disabled athletes often were regarded as sideshow oddities.

"If they insulted me, I didn't pay attention," Gray told The Citizens' Voice of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., in 1995.

Hockey

Goalie Curtis Joseph will become an unrestricted free agent after failing to reach a deal with the Maple Leafs, who then traded his rights to Calgary for a 2004 eighth-round draft pick. Joseph isn't expected to sign with the Flames, meaning Calgary will receive compensatory draft picks when he signs with another team -- possibly even Toronto.

The Blackhawks have acquired left wing Sergei Berezin from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the 2004 NHL entry draft. Berezin, 30, split last season between the Phoenix Coyotes and the Canadiens. The six-year veteran appeared in 70 games last season and had 11 goals and 15 assists for 26 points and eight penalty minutes. The 5-foot, 200-pound Berezin originally was chosen by Toronto in the eighth round of the 1994 NHL draft.

People

Who needs prison when you've got the World Cup?

In South Korea, a 16 year old who stole a notebook computer and cash was not charged partly because of the nation's World Cup enthusiasm. Judge Lee Jeon Ryul said the teen-ager reached a settlement with the victim, adding: "I reject the arrest warrant because the whole country is filled with soccer fervor."

Meanwhile, from Japan, whose team was eliminated early in the tournament: Prosecutorsthere are demanding a 30-month prison term for a 21-year-old Japanese art school student for painting graffiti on trains.

Quoteworthy

Charles Bricker of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Pete Sampras: "The question Sampras needs to answer at the end of this year is, 'Why am I playing? What do I want to accomplish?' When he concludes he'll never win another Slam, he'll quit. That time has come. The problem is Pete just doesn't know it."

-- From wire reports