News briefs: Four minor leaguers banned 50 games each for 'roids
CBSSports.com wire reports
NEW YORK -- Four Dominican Summer League players, including a pair of New York Yankees prospects, have been suspended for the first 50 games of the season following positive tests for steroids under baseball's minor league drug program.
Yankees pitcher Israel Tolentino and catcher Josue Rodriguez were penalized along with New York Mets pitcher Melvin Colon and Cleveland Indians outfielder Steven Lebron.
Tolentino and Lebron each tested positive for boldenone metabolite, the commissioner's office said Wednesday. Rodriguez tested positive for metabolites of stanozolol, and Colon for nandrolone.
Eleven players have been suspended this year under the minor league program, including six from DSL rosters. Full story
Mattingly admits successor conversation
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- On his first day as Dodgers interim manager, hitting coach Don Mattingly said that the team has made overtures about him eventually becoming Joe Torre's permanent replacement.
With Torre en route to Taiwan to manage a Dodgers split squad for three exhibition games, Mattingly is in charge of the team in Arizona and will work at least five games as manager.
Mattingly interviewed with the Cleveland Indians for their manager opening this offseason. He then turned down an interview request from the Washington Nationals.
In a meeting this winter with Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti, owner Frank McCourt and team president Dennis Mannion, Mattingly said the word manager was brought up but "nothing definitive" was said or done.
Indians rookie Brown has surgery
GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Cleveland Indians rookie Jordan Brown has had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.
Brown tore the medial meniscus in the knee during outfield drills Friday before the Indians' first exhibition game. Surgery to repair it was done by Dr. Rick Parker at the Cleveland Clinic.
Brown, a 26-year-old first baseman/outfielder, will need four to eight weeks of rehabilitation.
A fourth-round draft choice in 2005 from the University of Arizona, the left-handed hitter won the Triple-A International League batting title with a .336 average in 2009.
Nats' Flores may start on DL
JUPITER, Fla. -- Nationals catcher Jesus Flores is likely to begin the season on the disabled list because his surgically repaired shoulder has been slow to heal.
Washington is sending Flores to Birmingham, Ala., to have Dr. James Andrews take another look at his right shoulder. Manager Jim Riggleman said he expects Flores to spend at least 10 days away from the club while undergoing tests.
Flores hit .301 in 93 at-bats last season, then had surgery to repair a torn labrum in September. The Nationals signed Ivan Rodriguez during the offseason partially as insurance in case Flores didn't recover as quickly as expected.
Riggleman says the Nationals won't be able to get him in enough games to ensure he's ready for the start of the season.
Torrealba fears for family in Venezuela
PEORIA, Ariz. -- Although Yorvit Torrealba's son is safe, the San Diego Padres catcher still fears for the rest of his family.
Nine months after his son was kidnapped by five men in Caracas, Venezuela, and later returned unharmed, Torrealba said his son and wife are now living in Miami and adjusting to their new lives.
The rest of Torrealba's family remains in Venezuela, and he's concerned for their safety.
"It's hard because I have a big family," Torrealba said. "I'd love to buy a big enough house. I wish I could bring all of them here and move them in.
Ex-player Clark hired by union
NEW YORK -- Former first baseman Tony Clark has been hired as director of player relations of the baseball union.
The union also formalized Steve Fehr's role as special counsel. His brother, Donald, retired as union head in December. He has been an outside lawyer for the union for 23 years.
Clark's 15-season career ended last July when he was released by Arizona. He became a union leader shortly after going to his first executive board meeting in 1999.
Clark, 37, will oversee player communications and education and participate in collective bargaining. A 2001 All-Star, he hit .262 with 251 homers. He also played for Detroit, the New York Mets and Yankees, Boston and San Diego.
Japanese great to open museum
TOKYO -- Japanese baseball great Sadaharu Oh will soon have his own museum.
The Sadaharu Oh Baseball Museum will open July 3 in the outfield concourse at Fukuoka Yahoo Dome, where Oh spent 15 years as manager of the Softbank Hawks.
The museum will feature interactive exhibits like batting machines and will show footage of Oh's 756th home run in 1977 that surpassed Hank Aaron's then major league record of 755.
When Oh surpassed Aaron's career home run record in 1977, it was one of the biggest news stories in Japan that year. The 69-year-old Oh retired as a manager in 2008 after being diagnosed with stomach cancer.
