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1B Sports Thursday October 10, 2013 A's go with Gray for Game 5 49ers' Smith charged with felony weapons possession SANTA CLARA (AP) — San Francisco 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was charged Wednesday with three felony counts of illegal possession of an assault weapon, stemming from a party at his home in June 2012. The Santa Clara County district attorney's office said in announcing the charges that Smith is expected to surrender on his own later this month. The 24-year-old Smith is on an indefinite leave of absence from the NFC champion Niners while undergoing treatment for substance abuse at an inpatient facility following a DUI arrest Sept. 20. ''We've been aware of the incident, the serious nature of it. We're all accountable for our actions, good and bad,'' 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said Wednesday. ''There's a process, due process, that will take place. I don't feel any need to comment further on it.'' When asked whether Smith — who set a franchise record with 19 1/2 sacks last season — would play again this year, Harbaugh said only, ''I don't have any need to further comment on it.'' On Monday, the coach said he had traded a few text messages with Smith, saying, ''Heard that things are going very well, very positive reports back.'' If convicted, Smith could face up to four years and four months in jail, the district attorney's office said. ''The preamble to the assault weapons law states that each assault weapon 'has such a high rate of fire and capacity for firepower that its function as a legitimate sports or recreational firearm is substantially outweighed by the danger that it can be used to kill and injure human beings,''' District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. ''California's prohibition of these powerful weapons is not about hunting or target practice. It is about interrupting the long history of death, carnage and grief assault weapons have inflicted on California communities.'' Smith also is likely to face a suspension from the NFL, perhaps pushed back to next season or after his legal issues are resolved. The 49ers issued a statement Wednesday. ''The 49ers organization is aware of the recent developments with Aldon arising from an incident at his home in 2012,'' the team said. ''We recognize the serious nature of this situation, as does Aldon, and will continue to monitor it closely. As this is an ongoing legal matter, we will have no further comment.'' Last month, Smith and former teammate Delanie Walker were named in a lawsuit filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court by a Northern California man who said he was shot at a party at Smith's house on June 29, 2012. The players charged a $10 admission and $5 per drink, the lawsuit said. Smith and now-Titans tight end Walker, 29, were allegedly intoxicated on Smith's balcony when they fired gunshots in the air while trying to end the party, the lawsuit said. Before the 2012 home opener last September, Smith was the passenger in a car during an accident in Santa Clara County in which the driver swerved to avoid hitting a deer. Smith sustained a cut beneath his right eyebrow. He apologized and insisted he had grown up. Smith, selected seventh overall in the 2011 draft out of Missouri, had previously been arrested on suspicion of DUI in January 2012 in Miami shortly after the 49ers lost in the NFC championship game. He is on the reserve non-football injury list while in rehab, and there is no NFL minimum for number of games he must miss while on the list. Smith played in a 27-7 home loss to the Colts on Sept. 22 and had five tackles just two days after he was arrested and jailed on suspicion of DUI and marijuana possession. Smith apologized for his behavior after the game. OAKLAND (AP) — It's Justin Verlander and Sonny Gray, the encore. These decisive Game 5s sure are becoming familiar for Verlander. Not so much for the Oakland rookie. Just like last October in Oakland, the Tigers have been pushed to a winnertake-all fifth game in their AL division series against the Athletics. And Detroit will have Verlander on the mound again Thursday night after he pitched a fourhit shutout in the 2012 clincher at the Oakland Coliseum. ''Well, you don't pretend. It's not just another game,'' Verlander said after the Tigers evened the series with an 8-6 win Tuesday at Comerica Park. ''The season is on the line. It was on the line for us tonight, too. This whole season, the way we battled and played as a team, comes down to one game, may the best team win. You can't treat it just like another game. It's a little bit different. There is more to it.'' The A's will counter with Gray against Verlander a second time after these two put on a pitching show Saturday night at the Coliseum. ''He's a little bit of a bulldog, he's scared of nothing,'' manager Bob Melvin said, noting Gray's experience on the big stage just last week. ''Everything that went on in that game factored into it. ... When he came up, we were into the season and a pennant race already and we threw him right into the fire and right away he pitched very well with a lot of confidence and always has that mound presence.'' Melvin said he doesn't know how he might use, if at all, 18-game winner and Game 1 loser Bartolo Colon, who is ''willing to do anything.'' He hasn't been ruled out as a reliever. ''Obviously we had two great options,'' Melvin said. Verlander dominated in a thrilling pitcher's duel with Ap photo Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Sonny Gray (54) is greeted by manager Bob Melvin after the top of the eighth inning of Game 2 Saturday. Gray, who matched the ace as each threw zeros but had nothing to show for it in a 10 A's win. ''I'm not really sure we liked what we saw, it was pretty good,'' Tigers manager Jim Leyland said of Gray. ''At least we've seen him now.'' Verlander is riding a 22inning postseason scoreless streak against the A's, and has 33 strikeouts over the past three playoff matchups with Oakland, 11 in each outing. Not that the A's are counting. ''He's been beaten before, it can happen again,'' third baseman Josh Donaldson said. Verlander acknowledged it would have been great to pitch the playoff opener, while also noting 21-game winner Max Scherzer more than earned the nod. Now, Verlander gets the ball for his most meaningful start this year — to extend the season Thursday night. ''We all have a lot of confidence, we're playing at home, we know what we're up against in Verlander,'' A's shortstop Jed Lowrie said. ''We're all prepared for one, winner-take-all scenario.'' With Scherzer pitching in relief Tuesday, Verlander became the automatic Game 5 choice for manager Jim Leyland. ''That's kind of why we See GRAY, page 2B Cards sink Pirates, advance to NLCS ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright went all the way and the St. Louis Cardinals got two-run homers from David Freese and Matt Adams to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 on Wednesday night, advancing to the NL championship series. Wainwright scattered eight hits in his second dominant win of the division series, coming through for the Cardinals in a winner-take-all Game 5. St. Louis gets to stay at home to open the NLCS against the well-rested Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night. The last three seasons, the Cardinals are 8-1 when facing elimination. They also won Game 5 of the NL division series at Washington last year and at Philadelphia in 2011. Freese homered in the second inning off rookie Gerrit Cole and Adams connected in the eighth against reliever Mark Melancon to make it 5-1. Pete Kozma added an RBI infield single, and Wainwright finished it off by striking out Pedro Alvarez with two on. Alvarez became the first player with an RBI in his first six postseason games on a fluke hit that caromed off first base in the seventh. But the Pirates were held to one run in each of the final two games in their first playoff appearance in 21 years. They haven't won a postseason series since the 1979 World Series. The 23-year-old Cole beat the Cardinals with an impressive effort in Game 2. They got to him early this See CARDS, page 2B Kaepernick shrugs off passing struggles AP file photo San Francisco 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was charged Wednesday with three felony counts of illegal possession of an assault weapon. Tehama Tracker Today's schedule GOLF Red Bluff at Eastern Athletic League Meet at Shasta at Gold Hills, Noon TENNIS Enterprise at Red Bluff, 3:30 p.m.; Central Valley at Corning, 3:30 p.m. VOLLEYBALL Foothill at Red Bluff, 7 p.m.; Lassen at Corning, 7 p.m.' Mercy at Los Molinos, 7 p.m. Sports on TV AUTO RACING 12:30 p.m. FS1 — NASCAR, Sprint Cup, practice for Bank of America 500, at Concord, N.C. 4 p.m. ESPN2 — NASCAR, Sprint Cup, pole qualifying for Bank of America 500, at Concord, N.C. 10 p.m. NBCSN — Formula One, prac- tice for Japanese Grand Prix, at Suzuka, Japan COLLEGE FOOTBALL 4:30 p.m. ESPN — Rutgers at Louisville 7:30 p.m. FS1 — Arizona at Southern Cal GOLF 2 p.m. TGC — PGA Tour, Frys.com Open, first round, at San Martin, Calif. 9:30 p.m. TGC — LPGA Malaysia, second round, at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYOFFS 5 p.m. TBS — ALDS, Game 5, Detroit at Oakland NFL FOOTBALL 5 p.m. NFL — N.Y. Giants at Chicago WNBA BASKETBALL 5:30 p.m. ESPN2 — Playoffs, finals, game 3, Minnesota at Atlanta SANTA CLARA (AP) — Colin Kaepernick strolled through the 49ers' locker room with about a dozen or so reporters, then made his way into a small nook where several offensive linemen sat in front of their stalls. After some lighthearted protests and ribbing from his teammates left the 25-year-old quarterback chuckling quietly, Kaepernick turned stone-faced serious when questioned about San Francisco's passing game. A season-opening win against Green Bay in which he threw for more than 400 yards and three touchdowns was supposed to have raised the bar for Kaepernick. Instead it's turned out to be the high-water mark, and the 36th overall pick in 2011 has had a difficult time getting back to that point. On the flip side, the 49ers have won three of four since defeating the Packers and they've done it behind a resurgent running game that has made passing the ball almost an afterthought in recent weeks. ''The only stat I really care about is whether we won or not,'' Kaepernick said Wednesday. ''I'm happy with wins, consecutive wins. That's the biggest thing for us. As long as we're winning, that's all that matters.'' That hasn't stopped the critics, who point to Kaepernick's increasing low passing totals over the past month. He has passed for more than 150 yards just once in the past four games. Against Houston last week, Kaepernick threw seven consecutive incompletions during one stretch and finished with a 40.0 percent completion rate that is the lowest of any of the 12 games he's started since replacing Alex Smith as San Francisco's starter a year ago. The 49ers entered the week 31st in total passing while Kaepernick had the fifth-lowest completion percentage among all starting quarterbacks. A successful running game led by Frank Gore is partially to blame. Kaepernick threw just 15 times last week against Houston while San Francisco piled up nearly 200 yards on the ground. Opponents have also geared up more to stop San Francisco's passing game while at the same time trying to keep Kaepernick from escaping the pocket. ''Defenses are going to change every time we see them,'' Kaepernick said. ''They're going to have new wrinkles so it's just something you have to be ready for.'' Since his big game against Green Bay, Kaepernick has thrown more interceptions (four) than touchdowns (three). He's completed more than 13 passes just once in the past four games, and more than half of his passing yardage against Houston came on a 64-yard completion to tight end Vernon Davis. Not even that was enough for Kaepernick, who scoffed at a suggestion that the play to Davis might provide a spark for the offense. ''It was another pass play,'' Kaepernick said. ''As far as momentum for the passing game, you really just have to play it play to play depending on what the defense is doing.'' It hasn't helped that Kaepernick's been throwing to a receiving group still without its top two players. Michael Crabtree has been out since undergoing surgery in June after tearing his right Achilles tendon in the offseason. Mario Manningham hasn't played since injuring his knee in a loss to Seattle in December and See 49ERS, page 2B