Sports briefs 7/23/05

Baseball

• White Sox slugger Frank Thomas was placed on the 15-day disabled list Friday with inflammation is his left foot and Chicago recalled first baseman Ross Gload from Triple-A Charlotte to fill his roster spot.

The move involving Thomas was made retroactive to July 21. He had offseason surgery on his left ankle and started the season on the disabled list before returning May 30.

Thomas has batted .219 with 12 homers and 26 RBIs in 34 games.

* Texas Rangers pitcher Kenny Rogers had his hearing before commissioner Bud Selig on Friday, appealing his 20-game suspension for shoving two TV cameramen last month.

Rogers, wearing sunglasses, black slacks and a gray sport coat, wouldn't comment on what was discussed during the session when he emerged at 5:20 p.m.

Asked how it went, he responded: "We'll see. We'll be waiting for a decision."

Basketball

* NBA free agents will be able to sign their new contracts on Thursday, six days later than originally planned.

The league announced the new signing date Friday, on what was supposed to be the day the logjam was broken on several pending deals. The six-day delay will allow attorneys for the league and players' union to finish drafting a written version of the new six-year collective bargaining agreement. Signings will begin at 5 p.m. CDT on July 28.

Football

* The St. Louis Rams have signed tight end Jerome Collins, the team's fifth-round draft pick, to a three-year contract, the team said Friday. Terms were not disclosed.

Collins is the fifth of the Rams' 11 draft picks to sign.

None of the players selected in the first three rounds, including first-round pick Alex Barron, an offensive tackle from Florida State, have signed.

Collins, the 144th overall selection, spent most of his career as a linebacker and defensive end at Notre Dame before switching to tight end his senior year. He caught six passes for 67 yards.

Tennis

* Robby Ginepri got the advantage of disputed line call and fought off two match points to rally for a 4-6, 7-6 (2), 7-5 victory Friday over top-seeded Andy Roddick in the RCA Championships.

Ginepri will play 10th-seeded Karol Beck of Germany in one of Saturday's semifinals. Beck advanced by beating George Bastl of Switzerland 6-4, 7-5.

Also advancing Friday was fourth-seeded Taylor Dent, who swept Paul Goldstein 6-3, 6-2.

Track and field

* Yelena Isinbayeva is fast becoming the Sergei Bubka of women's pole vaulting.

With Bubka watching from the stands, the 23-year-old Russian cleared the magical 5-meter mark Friday at the Crystal Palace Grand Prix for her latest world record.

The Olympic champion easily cleared 16 feet, 4 3/4 inches on her first attempt, barely nudging the bar. She set the previous mark of 16-3 1/4 just 10 minutes earlier.

* Olympic champion Justin Gatlin won the 100 meters at the Crystal Palace meet in 9.89 seconds Friday, while world-record holder Asafa Powell pulled up with an injury early in the race.

It marked the first race between the world's top sprinters since Powell lowered the record to 9.77 seconds last month in Athens, Greece.

While Gatlin ran a smooth race to clock the fastest 100-meter time ever in Britain, Powell stopped about 20 meters out of the blocks, clutched his upper right leg and dropped to the track in pain.

American sprinter Leonard Scott finished second in a career best 9.94, and world champion Kim Collins was third in a season-best 10.00.

Powell apparently aggravated the groin injury that had kept him from competing since setting the record on June 14. The extent of his injury wasn't immediately clear, but it could leave him in doubt for the Aug. 6-14 world championships in Helsinki, Finland.