Sports briefs 10/29/03

Baseball

Whitey Herzog, who hasn't managed since leaving the St. Louis Cardinals in July 1990, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he had some interest in managing in Boston. The Red Sox on Monday fired Grady Little.

"Sure, I'd listen if they called me," said Herzog, 71, who lives in St. Louis. "All I've been doing is fishing and I'm tired of fishing."

Basketball

Kobe Bryant was fined Tuesday by the Lakers for critical comments he made of teammate Shaquille O'Neal, and was listed as doubtful for their season opener against Dallas. The Lakers held a 20-minute team meeting in their locker room before their shootaround Tuesday morning. Teammates said Bryant, O'Neal, Karl Malone and coach Phil Jackson were the only ones who spoke.

At practice Monday, Jackson ordered the team not to discuss the dust-up with reporters. He fined Bryant for defying that order by talking to ESPN later that day.

College

Former Baylor basketball player Carlton Dotson was returned to Texas from Maryland on Tuesday to face charges in the shooting death of a former teammate Patrick Dennehy.

Dotson, 21, left Maryland early Tuesday, said prosecutor Joseph Flanagan. He was then flown to Austin, and later driven to Waco, where Dotson will face another arraignment and bail review hearing.

Football

With wildfires blanketing the area with smoke, the San Diego Chargers (1-6) will fly to Champaign, Ill., today to prepare for this weekend's game in Chicago against the Bears.

"We don't want to deal with the health risks," coach Marty Schottenheimer said Tuesday.

Jacksonville linebacker T.J. Slaughter was cut Tuesday, a day after he was arrested for allegedly pointing a gun at two men passing him in a car. Slaughter, a fourth-year veteran, is free on bond while prosecutors decide whether to charge him. He could face a felony charge of aggravated assault.

Hockey

St. Louis Blues general manager Larry Pleau signed a two-year contract extension Tuesday night, a deal that will keep him with the team through the 2005-2006 season.

Pleau has been with the team since 1997, and the Blues are 265-155-63-17 since he was hired. Through eight games this season, the Blues are 5-2-0-1 for 11 points and first place in the Central Division.

Motorsports

Pontiac, the manufacturer that won two of the past three Winston Cup championships, announced Tuesday it won't return in 2004 -- leaving Chevrolet as the only General Motors brand on the NASCAR circuit.

Five full-time teams currently use Pontiacs, with Ricky Craven providing the only victory in 2003. In the manufacturer standings, Pontiac is a distant fourth, trailing leader Chevrolet by 127 points. Ford and Dodge also race in Winston Cup.

The CART season-finale, scheduled for Sunday at California Speedway, has been postponed indefinitely due to the state of emergency caused by a series of wildfires in and around San Bernardino County.

-- From wire reports