Hook's Center Sports Blog

The St. Louis Rams signed Kyle Boller on Saturday to be the backup to starting quarterback Marc Bulger.

The 27-year-old Boller spent all of last season, his sixth with the Baltimore Ravens, on injured reserve with a shoulder injury sustained in the preseason.

He was Baltimore’s first-round pick in the 2003 draft.

“We are happy to add Kyle to our roster,” new coach Steve Spagnuolo said in a statement. “We feel that he’ll be a valuable addition to our team.”

Boller is 10 years younger than Gus Frerotte, the player the Rams had been negotiating with to return as a backup. Frerotte was released with a year to go on a three-year contract before last season, then went 8-3 as the starter with Minnesota.

Boller started 42 games with the Ravens and holds the franchise record with 7,846 yards with 45 touchdown passes and 44 interceptions. But his inconsistent play led to the Ravens taking Joe Flacco in the first round last year.

Boller’s best season was 2004, when he started every game and passed for 2,559 yards with 13 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Quarterback Jeff Garcia is returning to the Bay Area after agreeing to a deal with the Oakland Raiders.

Raiders senior executive John Herrera told the Associated Press that the four-time Pro Bowler will join the club’s offseason workout program immediately alongside starter JaMarcus Russell.

Garcia spent the past two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, starting 24 games and leading them to the playoffs, but wasn’t re-signed by the club.

The 39-year-old quarterback enjoyed the best seasons of his NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers, passing for more than 16,000 yards from 1999-2003.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Jeff Suppan happily agrees when he’s called the most boring guy in a Brewers uniform.

He won’t look into the future and he rarely looks back. He’ll talk about the pitch that Philadelphia’s Jimmy Rollins hit for a leadoff home run in Game 4 of last year’s National League Division Series, but it’s more difficult to get him to talk about how it felt to lose the game that eliminated Milwaukee from its first postseason series in 26 years. He’ll walk you through his most recent Spring Training outing, but he’s hesitant to talk about the honor of starting Opening Day.

Suppan drew that honor over young arms Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra, who will be counted on to lead a starting rotation missing ’08 aces CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets. Over Braden Looper, who along with closer Trevor Hoffman represented the Brewers’ offseason action in free agency. And over Dave Bush, the longest-tenured member on Milwaukee’s staff.

“I am boring,” Suppan said, “and I appreciate you saying that because a lot of people don’t understand that. I use a lot of clichés, but you know what? They are clichés because they are truths.

“I say the things I say because I believe in them. Baseball is played in the moment, and my focus is on the ‘now.’ Last year was a difficult year for me, but now it’s a new year and it doesn’t do any good to dwell on the things that are negative.”

Suppan, the last Brewers starter to toe the rubber in 2008, will be the first in 2009. Because new Brewers manager Ken Macha preferred an experienced arm for Opening Day, Suppan will start for Milwaukee against Tim Lincecum and the Giants on Tuesday to begin the 40th season in Brewers history.

The 34-year-old Suppan has been here before. He started three consecutive season openers for the Royals from 2000-02. He’s 0-1 in those games, allowing 20 hits, including nine home runs, in 16 innings.

Suppan’s most recent Brewers start was not much better. After Bush pitched Milwaukee to a Game 3 win in the NLDS to stave off elimination, Suppan, who has a reputation as postseason stalwart, took the mound for Game 4 and surrendered a first-pitch homer to Rollins. It was one of three home runs he allowed in three innings, and it capped a tough finish to the season for Suppan, who went 5-0 with a 3.00 ERA in August and then 0-3 with an 8.44 ERA in September.

His troubles, Suppan concedes now, dated back to an elbow injury in May that briefly landed him on the disabled list over the All-Star break.

“I did have some good starts, but it was a deal where I hyper-extended my elbow in May, and it affected me in ways I didn’t know,” Suppan said. “By September, my pitches were flat and I didn’t have the arm speed that I needed to pitch.

“I did the best I could. I wasn’t hurting, but everything was flat, and when it did move, it was moving toward the middle. Looking back, my mechanics had changed.”

Game 4 will stick with him.

“That Game 4 will never change,” Suppan said. “When I’m sitting there, 60 years old with my grandkids, I’m still going to have Game 4 of the 2008 playoffs on my record. You can dissect it any way you want.”

He focused on achieving a “downhill plane” this spring and found success. Suppan allowed just the one run on seven hits over 12 innings in starts against the Giants and the A’s on March 17 and March 28. His start between those outings fell in Minor League camp.

Macha said he liked the way Suppan “used his pitches” this spring.

“Especially his curveball,” Macha said. “That was something we tried to get in there a little more, [beginning] a couple of starts ago. To me, the change of speeds is the key for him.”

The Brewers’ Mr. Boring will look to keep rolling in the regular season.

“I’ve had some accomplishments in my career that I’m proud of,” Suppan said. “But the main goal is always the same: Help your team win a game. That’s it.”

Hookscenter.com wire report.

If Derek Lowe had been this dominant last October, the Philadelphia Phillies might not be World Series champions.

Lowe pitched eight superb innings, three Braves hit home runs off Brett Myers, and Atlanta beat the defending champs 4-1 in the major league opener Sunday night.

Lowe (1-0) allowed two hits, no walks, struck out four and the sinkerballer got 13 groundouts. Mike Gonzalez pitched out of trouble in the ninth to secure the victory.

The Phillies had better luck against Lowe when he pitched for Los Angeles in the NL Championship Series. They beat him in Game 1 of the NLCS and he had a no-decision in the Dodgers’ loss in Game 4.

“Having just played them, it was easy to watch video to see what you did last time,” Lowe said. “They’re an extremely good hitting team. I was able to get ahead in the count. I just wanted to be consistent.”

Brian McCann hit a two-run homer, Jeff Francoeur had a solo shot and Jordan Schafer went deep in his first career at-bat for the Braves.

Once Lowe came out, the Phillies rallied. Pinch-hitter Eric Bruntlett started the ninth with a double and scored on Jayson Werth’s RBI single with one out. After Gonzalez walked Chase Utley — bringing up the potential tying run — the hard-throwing lefty struck out Ryan Howard looking and Raul Ibanez swinging to end it.

“He was awesome,” Braves manager Bobby Cox said of Lowe. “He really knows how to pitch.”

Atlanta gave Lowe a $60 million, four-year contract to anchor its revamped rotation, and the 35-year-old right-hander pitched like an ace in his debut with his new team. He gave the Braves the type of masterful effort they used to get from Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and Tim Hudson.

“It’s nice to get Derek Lowe a win,” McCann said. “He had great stuff. It’s a lot better to catch him than hit against him.”

Myers (0-1) filled in for Cole Hamels, whose first start was pushed back because of minor elbow problems. Hamels, the NLCS and World Series MVP, is expected to pitch Friday at Colorado.

The Phillies celebrated the franchise’s second World Series title during an hour-long ceremony before the game. Led by the Phanatic and veteran pitcher Jamie Moyer, players entered the field from Ashburn Alley behind the stands in left-center field. They walked past adoring fans in the aisles, down stairs and onto a red carpet that stretched from the warning track to the infield.

Then manager Charlie Manuel raised the 2008 championship flag on the concourse behind the brick batter’s eye. After a giant American flag was unfurled in the outfield, players were introduced to rousing ovations. Fans who used to boo Manuel lustily chanted “Charlie, Charlie” when the lovable skipper jogged out.

Even their uniforms had a special look only for this game. All the red lettering and numbers were trimmed in gold.

The festive crowd of 44,532 had barely settled into the seats by the time the Braves jumped ahead. Making his third consecutive opening day start, Myers retired the first two batters before Chipper Jones lined a single to left. McCann followed with a shot that reached the second deck in right field.

A smattering of boos were heard while McCann circled the bases. It wouldn’t be Philly without some jeers. Myers got an earful a bit later, too.

“That’s part of it. We can handle it,” Manuel said. “A lot of people were here. They wanted to see a good game. We got off to a slow start.”

Francoeur led off the second with a liner into the seats in left. One batter later, Schafer drove one out to center. The rookie center fielder became the fifth Atlanta player to connect in his debut and first since Francoeur did it in 2005.

“It was a great feeling,” Schafer said. “As soon as I hit it, I thought, ‘Oh Wow.’ ”

Myers settled in after that inning. He allowed four runs and eight hits, striking out six in six innings. Coming off a down-and-up season in which he was briefly demoted to the minors, the 28-year-old right-hander has plenty riding on his performance because he’s in the final season of a $25.75 million, three-year contract.

“I made three mistakes and they didn’t miss them,” Myers said. “Sometimes they pop those up. Not in this case. Give them credit.”

The Phillies are favorites to win their third consecutive NL East title mainly because they have nearly the same team that went 11-3 against Milwaukee, Los Angeles and Tampa Bay in the postseason.

But Philadelphia’s star-studded offense sputtered in the opener. Jimmy Rollins, Utley and Howard combined to go 1-for-11 with two strikeouts.

“Derek Lowe’s a tough guy to hit. He was on his game,” Howard said. “He’s a groundball pitcher. I don’t know if he has a magnet in there to keep it down or whatever. Give him credit.”

Hookscenter.com wire report. 

Roger Penske has apparently found his new team leader.

With the future of longtime Team Penske star Helio Castroneves in doubt as he stands trial on federal tax evasion charges, and replacement Will Power new to the team, Penske has placed some added responsibility on the slim shoulders of 27-year-old Ryan Briscoe.

Briscoe, starting his second year with Penske, responded Sunday with a victory in the season-opening Honda Grand Prix, outdueling Ryan Hunter-Reay and Justin Wilson for his third career IndyCar Series victory.

“It’s certainly been tough not having Helio, but no matter who my teammate is going into this year, my approach was the same,” Briscoe said. “I wanted to come in carrying off the experience I gained last year and try to kick the season off gaining points and trying to go for this championship.”

Asked about comments Penske made earlier this week about expecting Briscoe to step up, the Australian said, “You know, I do feel as though I’ve probably taken on slightly more of a leadership role with Team Penske with Will coming on board, just letting him feel comfortable and showing him the ropes.”

Briscoe passed Wilson for the lead on a restart 14 laps from the end of the crash-filled race in the streets of downtown St. Petersburg. He then stayed out front as Hunter-Reay, driving on the new softer alternate tires that provide more grip, also got past Wilson and tried to chase him down.

There was one last restart on the slick 1.8-mile, 14-turn circuit, but Briscoe was able to fend off a strong move by Hunter-Reay, who only got his ride with Vision Racing seven days earlier.

Leadership aside, Briscoe was relieved to finish the 100-lap event after crashing out here in his two previous starts — the first with Target Chip Ganassi Racing in 2005 and then last year with Penske.

“Finally,” Briscoe said as he emerged from his No. 6 Dallara-Honda. “This place has been bad to me. It feels so good to finally get to the end of this race.

“And it’s great to start off the year like this.”

Hunter-Reay lost his ride with Rahal Letterman Racing at the end of last season when the team lost its sponsorship and was signed for 2009 at the last minute by the team owned by Indy Racing League founder Tony George.

He made the most of his opportunity, giving George his best finish as a car owner.

“It’s unreal how the last few days have gone,” Hunter-Reay said. “I met with the team for the first time on Sunday and showed up here Friday and they were still trimming down my seat.”

Hunter-Reay, who won on the road course at Watkins Glen last year, said he didn’t want to take any big chances as he chased Briscoe on the treacherous track in the waning laps.

“I was thinking long term with points,” he said. “You couldn’t step a foot off line without jeopardizing your car, so I kept it in line for the team.”

Wilson, another late addition to the 22-car field, made his debut with Dale Coyne Racing a good one, dominating at times before fading at the end.

“I couldn’t quite get the restart there at the end,” the British driver said. “But it was a good day, a good way to get started with this team.”

Former series champion Dario Franchitti, returning to IndyCar after spending part of last year in NASCAR, ran a solid race and finished fourth.

Graham Rahal, who won his IndyCar debut here last year and then won his first series pole this week, was spun out by Tony Kanaan in the first turn of the race as all the leaders bunched up. Rahal and Kanaan both had to pit for repairs and wound up charging from the rear of the 22-car field.

Kanaan wound up fifth, Power sixth and Rahal seventh.

The 20-year-old Rahal, son of three-time series champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, was still upset after the race.

“I was conservative on the start and I’m guessing it was Kanaan that punted me,” Rahal said. “It’s obviously ridiculous and you would expect a guy like that with experience to know it’s the first corner of the first lap of the first race of the season. Why make a move like that?”

Kanaan, a former series champion, said, “I feel sorry for Graham, but he got chopped up. … On the start, Dario dive-bombed everybody [on the inside] and Graham tried to avoid him and he came to a stop. I couldn’t avoid him.”

A new factor in this race was the option of using the alternate tires provided by Firestone. The rules required each car run at least two green flag laps with the alternates but, otherwise, the teams were allowed to make their own decisions.

“Having the option tire really spiced things up,” Hunter-Reay said. “There was a lot of pressure to make the right decision at the right time on tires, but they worked to my benefit today.”

Fan favorite Danica Patrick and reigning series champion Scott Dixon both had forgettable days.

Patrick wound up 19th after a crash involving rookie Raphael Matos. Dixon, who was 22nd here a year ago, finished 16th after making contact with Hideki Mutoh and then slamming into the wall.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Only one team can win it all. Whoever does will say it was meant to be.

For the North Carolina players who skipped turning pro after last season, a championship was the only realistic goal. For the Michigan State players who are playing for more than just themselves in an economically battered state, this is starting to feel like destiny.

They meet Monday in the NCAA final to write the closing chapter.

“We’re not carrying them on our shoulders like we’re trying to save the world,” Spartans coach Tom Izzo said of the Michigan State fans. “We’re carrying them on our shoulders because we care, and it’s our state.”

The Spartans (31-6) know a win in the NCAA title game on a court 90 miles from their campus won’t fix Michigan’s economic freefall, won’t put anybody back to work. But there will be 72,000 people in Ford Field, and most will be rooting for them.

And winning, as they say, can be contagious.

Michigan ranks 51st out of 50 states (and District of Columbia) in the latest unemployment figures. Detroit is the hub of an auto industry on life support, a civic symbol of an economic system that has come off the tracks.

That’s the backdrop for a game in which Michigan State finds itself a 7 1/2-point underdog against a Carolina team that has “national champs” practically embroidered into its uniforms.

Remember, this is the team that was picked to win it all – and maybe go undefeated – after Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green all decided to return after a bad loss to Kansas at last year’s Final Four.

Undefeated was never on coach Roy Williams’ list of goals. Winning a championship, though? Always.

“If you thought it was easy, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” Williams said. “It’s college basketball. There hasn’t been an undefeated team since ’76, and there have been some really, really good teams. I think this year there were eight or 10 teams or 12, I haven’t studied it, that could be playing Monday night.”

But it will be North Carolina (33-4), the preseason No. 1 and top seed in the South Regional, against Michigan State, a less-hyped and more overlooked No. 2 seed out of the Midwest.

Though Izzo won’t sell his team short – “you don’t get this far on grit,” he said – he also knows the deal. This is a rematch of a game North Carolina won 98-63 on Dec. 3 in the same building. Anyone who turned the channel, or turned the page, on that one gets a pass. Izzo certainly has.

Michigan State was exhausted (fourth game in seven nights), injured (Goran Suton was out and Delvon Roe was hurting) and not playing near its current level back then, though the coach figures if the Spartans had been in better shape, they still would have lost by 20.

“If we play good and they play good, we’re losing. That’s the way I look at it,” Izzo said. “I mean, I don’t look at that in the negative. They are the best team in the country and have earned that ranking probably over the last year and a half.”

And, as both coaches acknowledge, the Spartans have a knack for taking opponents out of their ‘A’ game. See Michigan State’s 82-73 win over Connecticut on Saturday.

“I mean, they’re not exactly Charlie’s Donut Team,” Williams said.

Williams figures if North Carolina plays poorly in the rematch, it won’t be because of the crowd.

This is a team that loves playing in hostile environments and succeeds at it, too.

The Tar Heels have gone 67-14 away from home in the four years since Hansbrough and the seniors arrived in 2005, the season after Carolina’s last championship. Hansbrough has never lost to Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. He’s 5-2 in other road games in the state of North Carolina, 3-0 in Maui, 6-0 in Florida and, yes, 1-0 at Ford Field.

“I’ve tried to forget that whole week,” Izzo said. “In fact, if you ask me, 2008 never happened. I’m trying to move ahead to 2009.”

Led by Kalin Lucas, the Big Ten player of the year, Travis Walton, the Big Ten defensive player of the year, and steadily improving Raymar Morgan (18 points, nine rebounds in the win over Connecticut on Saturday), the Spartans are trying to close out 2009 with a flourish.

The game comes 30 years after Magic Johnson led MSU to its first championship in that historic meeting against Indiana State and Larry Bird. Like North Carolina, Michigan State is also going for its second title of the 2000s.

Mateen Cleaves led the 2000 title team. Though Izzo has been back to the Final Four three times since – for a total of five in 11 years – the Spartans haven’t won another championship.

Getting this group a title is the real mission that concerns the coach.

“I mean, the state, this city, is very important to me,” he said. “But the cause right now is for the Michigan State players to win a championship, and hopefully the repercussions from that will help a lot of people. It’s a feel-good for a lot of people.”

Williams, meanwhile, said he hasn’t had time to discuss the country’s economic situation since the Tar Heels beat Villanova 83-69 late Saturday night. It’s simply not part of the scouting report.

“I do realize they have a cause. Well, we also have a cause, too,” he said. “We want to win a national championship, period, the end. And if you would tell me that if Michigan State wins, it’s gonna satisfy the nation’s economy, then I’d say, ‘Hell, let’s stay poor for a little while longer.”‘

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Kyle Busch made it a Texas trio in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

Busch won his third consecutive Nationwide race in Texas with another dominating performance Saturday, leading a race-record 178 of 200 laps to win the O’Reilly 300 even though he insisted it wasn’t as easy as it looked.

“I was uncomfortable because of the handling of the car, just inconsistent at times,” Busch said. “My feet got hot. My body was fine, my back was OK, my head was fine.”

Still not enough problems to keep him from returning to Victory Lane.

Busch finished 1.447 seconds ahead of Tony Stewart, who made a late charge from seventh with four new tires after a caution on lap 188. Brad Keselowski, forced to start 42nd in a backup car, finished third.

The winning streak at Texas began with Busch sweeping both races last year when he led 300 of 400 laps. This time, he became the first polesitter to win any of the 17 Nationwide races at the 1½-mile, high-banked track.

Busch led the first 56 laps in his Joe Gibbs-owned Toyota, building a six-second lead over Jeff Burton before the first pit stop. Before a caution a dozen laps later, Busch had already regained a seven-second lead.

The only time Busch was passed on the track was when he got loose and Burton went by him on the 90th lap. By lap 106, Busch was back in front to stay.

Keselowski, who wrecked the primary No. 88 Chevrolet owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in qualifying, worked his way through the field and by lap 170 was second. And he was closing the gap when rookie John Wes Townley’s accident brought the final caution.

“The 88 was coming there at the end. He was catching me there,” Busch said. “If we did not get a caution like we did, it probably would have been a whale of a show.”

Busch didn’t go into the pit during the caution, shooting back on to the track after initially acting like he would. Keselowski stayed right behind him.

But Stewart did pit because he still had a new set of tires, and that was almost enough.

When the race restarted with seven laps left, Busch charged ahead while Keselowski and Joey Logano wound up side-by-side batting for second. But it was Stewart taking over second three laps later, though he didn’t have enough laps left to catch Busch without another caution.

“I got a good restart,” Keselowski said. “I was doing all I could to keep up with him.”

Logano fell back after making contact with series points leader Carl Edwards and finished 12th. Edwards was running fourth at the final caution, and maintained his points lead despite dropping to an 18th-place finish.

David Ragan ended fourth, followed by Paul Menard, Matt Kenseth, Mike Bliss and Jeff Burton. David Reutimann, on the pole for the Sprint Cup race Sunday, was ninth.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Jeff Gordon had gone so long without winning a race, that he picked up a new trick or two watching other drivers celebrate.

No, not a backflip a la Carl Edwards.

After the obligatory burnout on the frontstretch for his first victory ever at Texas, one that ended his career-high 47-race winless drought in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Gordon pulled up to the start-finish line and got the checkered flag to take on a long-awaited victory lap.

“It was the coolest. It was like winning for the very first time,” Gordon said. “Things have changed since I won a race … That’s the first time I’ve ever carried a checkered flag in NASCAR. I used to do that in quarter-midgets when I was 8.”

Then, after doing another burnout on the backstretch, Gordon finally got to drive into Victory Lane at Texas, where winners get cowboy hats and fire six-shooters into the air.

“This is a huge relief, but also very exciting,” Gordon said. “If we can win at Texas, I feel like we can win anywhere.”

Gordon, already the season points leader with four top-five finishes in the first six races, beat Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson to win for the first time on the 1½-mile high-banked Texas track — leaving only one active track he hasn’t won in his No. 24 Chevrolet.

Edwards, who was going for three in a row at Texas after last year getting to do his celebratory backflips twice by sweeping both races, finished 10th after passing Gordon to lead only nine laps late in the race.

It was the 17th Cup race at Texas, the track where the four-time Cup champion has the only two last-place finishes in his 552 career starts. One of the 43rd-place finishes came last spring before he was the runner-up to Edwards in the fall race after winning the pole.

“How ironic is this that when we go into this streak and we end it here in Texas, a place that’s just eluded us for so long,” Gordon said. “Incredible team effort. This whole year has been amazing. What a great car. I’ve never had a car like this at Texas. We finally had one and put it in position.”

The only track Gordon now hasn’t won at is Homestead. He will have to wait until the season finale in November for a chance to change that.

Not only was it his first victory in the Lone Star state, it was the first time Gordon had won anywhere since October 2007 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte.

During interviews in Victory Lane at Texas, Gordon had to sneak a peek at the logos on his car to remind himself of everybody he needed to thank. It had been a long time, especially by his standards.

Rick Hendrick wasn’t there, so Gordon tried to talked to him by cell phone from Victory Lane. Also missing were his wife and daughter.

“I’m just thrilled. I can’t wait to get home to Ingrid and Ella,” Gordon said. “I know [Ella] was saying ‘Go poppy go’ all day long. I hate that they couldn’t come.”

Gordon won by 0.542 seconds with an average speed of 146.372 mph for his 82nd career victory, one behind Cale Yarborough for fifth on the all-time list. Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip are tied for third on that list with 84 victories.

Edwards was leading when the final caution came out because David Stremme got loose and spun coming out of the third turn with 30 laps to go in the 334-lap race.

But Edwards’ crew had problems changing tires and he dropped 10 spots to 11th coming off pit row. Gordon had a flawless stop, moving from third to first.

“They don’t yell at me when I hit the wall so it is not my position to be mad at them,” Edwards said. “We just have to do whatever we can to fix it.”

Gordon stayed in front the rest of the way though he was pushed by Johnson in the No. 48 car that had clinched two Sprint Cup season championships since Gordon last won a race.

“I ran Jeff’s line, put pressure on him,” Johnson said. “He didn’t make any mistakes. I could only get so close.”

What if Johnson had been able to pass Gordon, the teammate who owns his car?

“As a friend, I would have felt bad. As a competitor, I would have been excited,” Johnson said. “If I’m not going to win it, I want one of my teammates and especially one of my friends. As a friend, I’m definitely happy for Jeff.”

Johnson moved up two spots to second in season points, 162 behind Gordon before the series takes next weekend off for Easter.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. took only right-side tires and went from 12th to first on a restart with 76 laps to go.

But Earnhardt quickly lost that lead between turns one and two when Kyle Busch, trying to regain a lost lap, got loose and bumped him. Earnhardt got pushed to the top of the track, allowing Gordon to charge ahead, and wound up sliding all the way to 20th.

Gordon was still holding the lead with 39 laps left when he got caught in traffic and Edwards slid under him into first. Tony Stewart got past Gordon a few laps later and that was the running order when Stremme spun out.

Greg Biffle finished third, followed by Stewart and Matt Kenseth. Edwards finished a spot ahead of polesitter David Reutimann.

Reutimann, driving a No. 00 Toyota for Michael Waltrip, didn’t even lead the first lap. Gordon did, passing him as they crossed the start-finish-line for the first time.

Gordon led six times for 105 laps in a race that featured 28 lead changes, nine more than any other Cup race this season and one short of the Texas record.

Gordon led the first seven laps, but gave up the lead because of some handling issues with his car. But he was never too far from the front, never out of the top 10.

Biffle, led three times for 93 laps and his Roush Fenway teammate Kenseth had three leads for 55 laps. With Edwards, Roush had three drivers in the top 10 following a three-race span where the team had only two top-10 finishes.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Matt Kenseth won the first two races of the season, but it’s been downhill ever since for the former champion, and Sunday’s race only added to his decline.

Kenseth started 10th but dropped to 21st before the Goody’s 500 was 10 laps old.

During pit stops after 42 laps, Kenseth’s team was cited by NASCAR officials on pit road for losing control of one of the tires that had just been removed from his Ford.

NASCAR said it informed Kenseth’s team that it was being penalized and sent to the tail end of the longest line on the restart, but Kenseth’s team said it never got the message.

The miscommunication proved costly.

When Kenseth got back on the track and failed to heed the call to drop to the back, NASCAR black flagged him, forcing him to drive down pit road at the pit road speed of 30 miles per hour while the field zoomed by under a green flag, putting him a lap down when he returned.

He never recovered, finishing 23rd.

“The unfortunate thing is I wasn’t clear the head official said we had to come in,” Kenseth’s crew chief, Drew Blickensderfer said. “I thought he was telling us, ‘It was close. Make sure it doesn’t happen again.’ That type of thing, and it wasn’t. It was, ‘You messed up the rule,’ so we’ve got to make sure we get our tires back. We can’t have mistakes like that.”

Kenseth has finished 43rd, 12th, 33rd and 23rd in the past four races, and he’s fallen from leading the points to 12th, just seven ahead of No. 13 Jeff Burton.

Hookscenter.com wire report.

Gary Sheffield’s next home run will be his 500th in the major leagues.

The question is: What uniform will he be wearing when he hits it?

The Detroit Tigers released the nine-time All-Star on Tuesday, leaving him without a team as he closes in on becoming the 25th player to reach the milestone.

Sheffield left camp as the rest of his former teammates were reporting for an afternoon game against the Washington Nationals.

“I wouldn’t say I’m shocked, but I am surprised,” Sheffield told the Oakland Press of Pontiac. “To do this when somebody is one home run away … I don’t know how to react to it.”

“Jim (Leyland) said, ‘We’re going to go with versatility.’ When he said that word I thought to myself, ‘I’m probably the most athletic guy on this team.’ But they’re entitled to their opinion,” Sheffield said.

Marcus Thames, who will take Sheffield’s place in the lineup as designated hitter, also was surprised by the move.

“Somebody told me he was released, and I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “(Miguel) Cabrera looked like he was in a state of shock.”

Leyland, the Tigers manager, said he had a hard time sleeping Monday night, knowing he was going to release a future Hall of Famer.

“I lit two Marlboros at the same time,” Leyland said. “I couldn’t sleep. But I feel better that it’s over with than I did at 3 in the morning.”

Leyland said it wasn’t a personality issue and still was struggling over the decision after Sheffield packed up his locker and left.

“It doesn’t mean it’s right, but I feel good. This thing has been eating at me. We need to be a more (versatile) team, and that’s why it happened.”

The slugger’s stay in Detroit was a disappointing one. The team was hopeful Sheffield would be a powerful presence at the plate in the final season of the $28 million, two-year contract extension it gave him after acquiring him from the Yankees for prospects.

But Sheffield failed to deliver in large part because he often was injured. Any team can sign him for the $400,000 minimum, with Detroit paying the rest of his $14 million salary.

The move came a day after the Tigers acquired outfielder Josh Anderson from Atlanta, forcing the team to make some tough decisions about its roster a week ahead of opening the season in Toronto.

The 40-year-old Sheffield had a .178 batting average in 18 spring training games this year. The designated hitter had eight hits — including five home runs — in 45 at-bats.

“It’s one of those things where you move on, you know?” Sheffield told the Detroit Free Press. “I was surprised. I thought I was getting ready for the season. I never thought that I wasn’t going to be playing with the Detroit Tigers this year. It’s probably a blessing.”

In other moves Tuesday, the Tigers placed starting pitcher Jeremy Bonderman on the 15-day disabled list and optioned the contract of outfielder Clete Thomas to Triple-A Toledo.

The team said Bonderman’s placement on the DL was retroactive to Monday as the right-hander continues to recover from shoulder surgery that sidelined him for most of last season.

Infielder Will Rhymes and outfielder Timo Perez were assigned to minor league camp.

The moves leave Detroit with 31 players remaining in camp.

Shoulder and assorted other injuries — and perhaps age — limited Sheffield to 114 games and a .225 average last year and 133 games and a .265 average two seasons ago with the Tigers.

Sheffield said he didn’t need surgery in the offseason for the first time in several years, making him feel better during spring training than he has been since 2001.

His uncle, Doc Gooden, and other family members had planned to attend Detroit’s season-opening series, hoping to watch him reach 500.

Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Frank Robinson and Reggie Jackson are the only players in baseball history with as many home runs as Sheffield, plus at least 2,500 hits, 1,500 RBI and 200 stolen bases.

In All-Star games, he has represented San Diego, Florida, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta and the Yankees since making his debut two decades ago in Milwaukee.

The career .292 hitter has 1,633 RBI, putting him 27th on the all-time list.

Sheffield said he doesn’t believe his career is over.

“No,” he told the Detroit News. “It ain’t close.”

Hookscenter.com wire report.