Sports briefs 7/27/05

Baseball

• Sammy Sosa hit his 586th home run Tuesday night to tie Frank Robinson for fifth place on the career list.

It was the 12th homer of the season for Sosa, his second in three games but only his third since June 18.

Willie Mays is fourth on the career home run list with 660.

Basketball

* Denver Nuggets coach George Karl is scheduled to undergo prostate cancer surgery in Salt Lake City on Thursday.

Nuggets spokeswoman Teri Washington said Tuesday that Karl, who was diagnosed with cancer near the end of last season, expects to be released from the hospital on Sunday.

"They caught the cancer early. We're anticipating a full recovery," Washington said. "He's upbeat and positive."

* Sidney "Sonny" Hertzberg, an original member of the New York Knickerbockers and the leading scorer for the Boston Celtics in the 1949-50 season, died at his home in Woodmere, N.Y. He was 82.

Hertzberg died Monday, a Knicks spokesman said. His daughter, Lois Nevitt, told the New York Daily News the cause was heart failure.

Football

* The St. Louis Rams and guard Tom Nutten have agred to a one-year contract, the team said Tuesday. Terms were not disclosed.

Nutten came out of retirement last season to play eight games for St. Louis, six as a starter at left guard, after the team was hit hard by injuries to the offensive line during the preseason.

He played for the Rams from 1998 through 2002 before signing with the New York Jets as a free agent in 2003, though he retired prior to the start of that season due to injuries.

Nutten has started 63 of the 69 games in which he has played.

* Al Michaels is staying with Monday Night Football when it moves from ABC to ESPN for the 2006 NFL season, parting with John Madden after four seasons in the booth together.

Michaels has been the play-by-play man on Monday Night Football since 1986, the last three with Madden as analyst. After this season, Madden is moving to NBC, which is taking over the Sunday night time slot in 2006 for what the NFL considers its main prime-time package.

Michaels will be joined in the booth by Joe Theismann, who had teamed with play-by-play man Mike Patrick and Paul Maguire on ABC's Sunday night games. Michelle Tafoya and Suzy Kolber will be the sideline reporters.

ESPN vice president Mark Shapiro said Maguire and Patrick are both expected to stay with ESPN.

Hockey

* The Tampa Bay Lightning signed coach John Tortorella and general manager Jay Feaster to long-term contract extensions Tuesday, keeping together the duo that helped guide the franchise to its first Stanley Cup in 2004.

Entering his fifth season as coach, Tortorella's extension keeps him with the Lightning through 2008-09. His previous deal was due to expire at the end of the 2005-06 season.

Tortorella was named the NHL's Coach of the Year in 2003-04 after leading Tampa Bay to its second straight division title and first NHL crown.

-- From wire reports