Sports briefs 7/10/04

Baseball

The Chicago White Sox plan to put designated hitter Frank Thomas on the 15-day disabled list today because of inflammation in his left ankle. The White Sox learned Friday they will lose Thomas, one day after fellow slugger Magglio Ordonez came off the disabled list. The White Sox will recall outfielder Joe Borchard from Triple-A Charlotte. Thomas missed the past two games and was unable to start at first base during the interleague series against the Chicago Cubs last week. Thomas was 4-for-34 in his last 12 games. He's hitting .271 with 18 homers and 49 RBIs this season.

Basketball

The Minnesota Timberwolves hired New York Knicks advance scout Jim Stack as their general manager Friday. Stack replaces Rob Babcock, who left last month to become Toronto's general manager.

College

Texas baseball coach Augie Garrido said he came back to the site of the College World Series to set things right. Garrido held a news conference Friday at Rosenblatt Stadium's Hall of Fame room to talk about Texas' failure to attend the runner-up awards ceremony after the Longhorns lost 3-2 to Cal State Fullerton last month in the series' championship. Questions were raised after the incident about Garrido's and Texas' sportsmanship. Garrido, who has coached four teams to CWS titles, said he wanted the people of Omaha, Neb., to know the incident did not reflect the character of his players or the University of Texas.

Hockey

Todd Bertuzzi's assault case was adjourned for two weeks after a minute-long hearing Friday. Prosecutor Garth Loeppky said he hopes to get an arraignment date when the case resumes July 22. Bertuzzi, who plays for the Vancouver Canucks, was charged with assaulting Colorado's Steve Moore during a game. Bertuzzi was not required to attend the hearing, and his lawyer, Len Doust, said he didn't know if Bertuzzi will be in court in two weeks.

Free-agent center Mike Ricci signed a two-year contract with the Phoenix Coyotes on Friday. The 32-year-old Ricci was the captain of the San Jose Sharks last season, with seven goals and 19 assists in 71 games.

Motorsports

Paul Tracy stayed far away from nemesis Alex Tagliani on Friday, and took the provisional pole position for the Toronto Molson Indy -- barely. The hometown favorite, who won the race from the pole last year and also won here in 1993, turned a fast lap of 59.407 seconds (106.351 mph) on his sixth of 14 laps around the 1.775-mile, 11-turn temporary street course on the edge of downtown Toronto. The fast lap assured Tracy a front row start, no matter what happens in today's final round of time trials.

Tennis

French Open champion Gaston Gaudio beat Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-3 Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Swedish Open. Gaudio needed just over an hour to eliminate Nadal after a five-hour rain delay forced organizers to move the match from center court to Court 1. Gaudio, the No. 2 seed who has won two of three matches in straight sets, will face either Juan Ignacio Chela or Robin Soderling in the semifinals.

Wimbledon champion Roger Federer rallied past Ivo Karlovic 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-6 (4) Friday to reach the quarterfinals of the Swiss Open. Federer also struggled to beat the 6-foot-10 Croatian in the fourth round at Wimbledon, before winning 6-3, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5). Federer has won 23 of 25 matches, collecting titles at Hamburg and Halle in Germany and Wimbledon in the run.

Track

Marion Jones finished second in her quarterfinal heat of the women's 100 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials Friday night, good enough to advance to Saturday's semifinal but far from her dominating form of past years. Jones began her bid for a spot on the U.S. squad for the Athens Games by finishing behind LaTasha Colander in the opening-round heat. Jones, who dominated the event in the late 1990s and is the reigning Olympic champion, finished in 11.38 seconds. Jones remains under investigation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

Triple jumper Tim Rusan received a public warning after he tested positive for THC at a track meet in Brazil, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said Friday. Rusan, of St. Louis, was disqualified from his second-place finish at the IAAF Grande Premio Rio de Atletismoon on May 16 in Rio de Janeiro.

-- From wire reports