Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/317955
Scoreboard MLB AMERICANLEAGUE WESTDIVISION W L Pct GB Oakland 30 18 .625 _ Los Angeles 26 20 .565 3 Seattle 23 23 .500 6 Texas 23 25 .479 7 Houston 17 31 .354 13 CENTRALDIVISION W L Pct GB Detroit 28 16 .636 _ Minnesota 23 21 .523 5 Kansas City 23 23 .500 6 Chicago 24 25 .490 6 ½ Cleveland 23 26 .469 7 ½ EASTDIVISION W L Pct GB Toronto 27 22 .551 _ Baltimore 24 22 .522 1 ½ New York 24 22 .522 1 ½ Boston 20 26 .435 5 ½ Tampa Bay 20 28 .417 6 ½ Thursday'sgames Texas 9, Detroit 2 Toronto 7, Boston 2 Tampa Bay 5, Oakland 2, 11 innings Cleveland 8, Baltimore 7, 13 innings Chicago White Sox 3, N.Y. Yankees 2 Seattle 3, Houston 1 Friday'sgames Baltimore 8, Cleveland 4 Toronto 3, Oakland 2 Detroit 7, Texas 2 Boston at Tampa Bay, (n) N.Y. Yankees at Chicago White Sox, (n) Kansas City at L.A. Angels, (n) Houston at Seattle, (n) Minnesota at San Francisco, (n) Saturday'sgames Cleveland (Kluber 4-3) at Baltimore (U.Jimenez 2-5), 9:35 a.m. Oakland (J.Chavez 4-1) at Toronto (Dickey 4-4), 10:07 a.m. N.Y. Yankees (Nuno 1-1) at Chicago White Sox (Joh.Danks 3-4), 11:10 a.m. Texas (N.Martinez 0-1) at Detroit (Por- cello 7-1), 1:08 p.m. Boston (Peavy 1-2) at Tampa Bay (Price 4-4), 1:10 p.m. Kansas City (Shields 6-3) at L.A. Angels (Shoemaker 2-1), 4:15 p.m. Minnesota (Nolasco 2-4) at San Fran- cisco (Vogelsong 2-2), 7:05 p.m. Houston (Keuchel 5-2) at Seattle (Mau- rer 1-2), 7:10 p.m. Sunday'sgames Oakland at Toronto, 10:07 a.m. Texas at Detroit, 10:08 a.m. Cleveland at Baltimore, 10:35 a.m. Boston at Tampa Bay, 10:40 a.m. N.Y. Yankees at Chicago White Sox, 11:10 a.m. Kansas City at L.A. Angels, 12:35 p.m. Minnesota at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m. Houston at Seattle, 1:10 p.m. BlueJays3,Athletics2 Oakland Toronto AB R H B AB R H B Crisp cf 4 0 1 0 Reyes ss 4 0 1 1 Lowrie ss 4 1 1 0 MeCarr lf 4 0 0 0 Dnldsn 3b 3 0 0 0 Gose cf 0 0 0 0 Moss 1b 4 1 2 1 Bautist rf 3 0 1 0 Cespds lf 4 0 0 0 Encrnc 1b 3 0 1 0 Reddck rf 3 0 1 0 Lawrie 3b 3 1 1 0 Callasp ph 1 0 1 1 DNavrr dh 3 0 0 0 Gentry pr-rf0 0 0 0 StTllsn 2b 3 1 1 2 DNorrs c 4 0 1 0 Kratz c 3 0 0 0 Punto 2b 3 0 1 0 Pillar cf-lf 3 1 1 0 Blanks dh 3 0 0 0 Totals 33 2 8 2 29 3 6 3 Oakland 000 100 010 — 2 Toronto 021 000 00x — 3 E: Kazmir (2). DP: Toronto 2. LOB: Oak- land 9, Toronto 3. 2B: Crisp (7), Pillar (2). HR: Moss (11), St.Tolleson (1). SB: Crisp (8), Reyes (7). IP H R ER BB SO Oakland Kazmir L,5-2 7 5 3 3 1 2 Ji.Johnson 1 1 0 0 0 0 Toronto Hendriks W,1-052/33 1 1 3 3 Loup 11/3 2 0 0 0 0 Delabar 1/3 0 1 1 1 0 Cecil 2/3 2 0 0 0 1 Janssen S,6-6 1 1 0 0 0 1 HBP: by Hendriks (Blanks). T: 2:37;A: 21,007 (49,282). NATIONALLEAGUE WESTDIVISION W L Pct GB San Francisco 29 18 .617 _ Colorado 26 22 .542 3 ½ Los Angeles 26 23 .531 4 San Diego 21 27 .438 8 ½ Arizona 18 31 .367 12 CENTRALDIVISION W L Pct GB Milwaukee 29 20 .592 _ St. Louis 26 22 .542 2 ½ Cincinnati 22 24 .478 5 ½ Pittsburgh 21 26 .447 7 Chicago 17 28 .378 10 EASTDIVISION W L Pct GB Atlanta 27 20 .574 _ Miami 25 24 .510 3 Washington 24 24 .500 3 ½ New York 21 25 .457 5 ½ Philadelphia 20 25 .444 6 Thursday'sgames Miami 4, Philadelphia 3 Colorado 2, San Francisco 2, tie, 6 in- nings, susp., rain Pittsburgh 3, Washington 1 N.Y. Mets 5, L.A. Dodgers 3 Atlanta 5, Milwaukee 4 St. Louis 4, Arizona 2 Chicago Cubs 5, San Diego 1 Friday'sgames L.A. Dodgers 2, Philadelphia 0 Pittsburgh 4, Washington 3 Milwaukee 9, Miami 5 Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 3 Arizona at New York, ppd., rain Atlanta 3, Colorado 2 Chicago Cubs at San Diego, (n) Minnesota at San Francisco, (n) Saturday'sgames L.A. Dodgers (Haren 5-2) at Philadelphia (Buchanan 0-0), 12:05 p.m. Arizona (Collmenter 2-2) at N.Y. Mets (Z.Wheeler 1-4), 1:10 p.m. Colorado (Nicasio 4-2) at Atlanta (Minor 2-2), 1:10 p.m. Milwaukee (W.Peralta 4-3) at Miami (Ja. Turner 0-2), 1:10 p.m. St. Louis (J.Garcia 0-0) at Cincinnati (Cingrani 2-3), 4:15 p.m. Washington (Strasburg 3-3) at Pitts- burgh (Cole 4-3), 4:15 p.m. Minnesota (Nolasco 2-4) at San Fran- cisco (Vogelsong 2-2), 7:05 p.m. Chicago Cubs (T.Wood 4-4) at San Diego (Roach 1-0), 7:10 p.m. Sunday'sgames Arizona at N.Y. Mets, 10:10 a.m., 1st game Milwaukee at Miami, 10:10 a.m. L.A. Dodgers at Philadelphia, 10:35 a.m. Washington at Pittsburgh, 10:35 a.m. Minnesota at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m. Chicago Cubs at San Diego, 1:10 p.m. Arizona at N.Y. Mets, 1:40 p.m., 2nd game Colorado at Atlanta, 2:10 p.m. St. Louis at Cincinnati, 5:05 p.m. Basketball NBAPLAYOFFS ConferenceFinals (Best-of-7; x-if necessary) Saturday,May24 Indiana at Miami, 5:30 p.m., series tied 1-1 Sunday,May25 San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m., San Antonio leads series 2-0 Monday,May26 Indiana at Miami, 5:30 p.m. Tuesday,May27 San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 6 p.m. Wednesday,May28 Miami at Indiana, 5:30 p.m. Thursday,May29 x-Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 6 p.m. Friday,May30 x-Indiana at Miami, 5:30 p.m. Saturday,May31 x-San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m. Sunday,June1 x-Miami at Indiana, 5:30 p.m. Monday,June2 x-Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 6 p.m. NBAFinals (Best-of-7; x-if necessary) Thursday,June5 Eastern champion at San Antonio or Oklahoma City, 6 p.m. WNBA WESTERNCONFERENCE W L Pct GB Minnesota 3 0 1.000 — Phoenix 2 0 1.000 ½ Sparks 1 1 .500 1½ San Antonio 1 1 .500 1½ Tulsa 0 2 .000 2½ Seattle 0 3 .000 3 EASTERNCONFERENCE W L Pct GB Chicago 3 0 1.000 — Atlanta 2 0 1.000 ½ New York 1 1 .500 1½ Washington 1 1 .500 1½ Connecticut 1 3 .250 2½ Indiana 0 3 .000 3 Friday'sgames Connecticut 71, Seattle 59 Washington 79, Indiana 63 Minnesota 94, Tulsa 93 San Antonio at Phoenix, (n) Saturday'sgames Seattle at Washington, 4 p.m. Atlanta at Chicago, 5 p.m. New York at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Sunday'sgames San Antonio at Sparks, 12:30 p.m. Indiana at Atlanta, 3 p.m. Hockey NHLPLAYOFFS ConferenceFinals (Best-of-7; x-if necessary) Saturday,May24 Chicago at Los Angeles, 5 p.m., series tied 1-1 Sunday,May25 Montreal at NY Rangers, 5 p.m. , N.Y. Rangers lead series 2-1 Monday,May26 Chicago at Los Angeles, 6 p.m. Tuesday,May27 NY Rangers at Montreal, 5 p.m. Wednesday,May28 Los Angeles at Chicago, 5 p.m. Thursday,May29 x-Montreal at NY Rangers, 5 p.m. Friday,May30 x-Chicago at Los Angeles, 6 p.m. Saturday,May31 x-NY Rangers at Montreal, 5 p.m. Sunday,June1 x-Los Angeles at Chicago, 5 p.m. Golf PGA-COLONIALPAR Friday At Colonial Country Club Fort Worth, Texas Purse: $6.4 million Yardage: 7,204;Par: 70 (a-amateur) Brice Garnett......................... 67-66—133 -7 Chris Stroud...........................70-64—134 -6 Robert Streb ..........................66-68—134 -6 Bo Van Pelt............................. 67-68—135 -5 Dustin Johnson...................... 65-70—135 -5 Aaron Baddeley..................... 68-67—135 -5 Chad Campbell......................69-66—135 -5 Jimmy Walker ........................ 67-68—135 -5 Tim Clark ................................ 67-68—135 -5 Brian Davis ............................. 68-67—135 -5 Jason Dufner.......................... 67-69—136 -4 Jordan Spieth......................... 67-69—136 -4 Harris English ........................ 66-70—136 -4 David Hearn ........................... 67-69—136 -4 Brian Harman ........................ 69-67—136 -4 Brandt Snedeker...................70-66—136 -4 Matt Jones...............................70-67—137 -3 Hunter Mahan.........................66-71—137 -3 Chris Kirk................................ 73-64—137 -3 Marc Leishman......................69-68—137 -3 Nicholas Thompson..............69-68—137 -3 Tim Wilkinson.........................66-71—137 -3 Heath Slocum ........................ 69-69—138 -2 Brendon de Jonge ................. 70-68—138 -2 Freddie Jacobson...................67-71—138 -2 Ryan Palmer........................... 69-69—138 -2 Brendon Todd ........................ 69-69—138 -2 David Toms............................. 72-66—138 -2 Sean O'Hair ............................ 69-69—138 -2 Billy Hurley III .........................71-67—138 -2 Charley Hoffman................... 70-68—138 -2 Jim Furyk ................................ 69-69—138 -2 Bill Haas.................................. 70-68—138 -2 Robert Allenby....................... 68-70—138 -2 Ben Martin ............................. 70-68—138 -2 Josh Teater..............................68-71—139 -1 John Senden............................71-68—139 -1 Michael Thompson............... 73-66—139 -1 Ken Duke..................................67-72—139 -1 William McGirt .......................72-67—139 -1 Hideki Matsuyama.................69-70—139 -1 Bud Cauley ............................. 70-69—139 -1 Graham DeLaet ......................69-70—139 -1 Adam Scott .............................71-68—139 -1 Martin Laird........................... 70-69—139 -1 Ricky Barnes...........................68-71—139 -1 Danny Lee.................................71-69—140 E Bryce Molder ...........................70-70—140 E Daniel Summerhays ...............69-71—140 E Louis Oosthuizen ................... 72-68—140 E Boo Weekley ............................71-69—140 E Brian Gay..................................71-69—140 E Andrew Loupe ........................ 75-65—140 E Jeff Curl ....................................71-69—140 E Cameron Tringale ...................70-70—140 E Trevor Immelman....................69-71—140 E George McNeill........................68-72—140 E J.J. Henry ..................................70-70—140 E Jonathan Byrd..........................70-70—140 E LPGA-AIRBUSCLASSICPAR Friday At Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Magno- lia Grove, The Crossings Mobile, Ala. Purse: $1.3 million Yardage: 6,584;Par: 72 SecondRound Catriona Matthew................64-67—131 -13 Charley Hull ......................... 65-67—132 -12 Anna Nordqvist ...................68-66—134 -10 Hee Young Park...................68-66—134 -10 Jessica Korda........................67-67—134 -10 Lexi Thompson......................70-65—135 -9 Jenny Shin .............................. 67-68—135 -9 Haru Nomura ......................... 71-65—136 -8 Christina Kim.........................70-66—136 -8 Jodi Ewart Shadoff ............... 69-67—136 -8 Felicity Johnson .................... 69-67—136 -8 Se Ri Pak................................. 67-69—136 -8 Eun-Hee Ji............................... 66-70—136 -8 Stacy Lewis............................ 66-70—136 -8 Suzann Pettersen ................. 66-70—136 -8 Michelle Wie ...........................71-66—137 -7 Katherine Kirk ........................70-67—137 -7 So Yeon Ryu ............................70-67—137 -7 Chella Choi............................. 69-68—137 -7 Jennifer Kirby ........................ 69-68—137 -7 Xi Yu Lin .................................. 69-68—137 -7 Pornanong Phatlum.............. 69-68—137 -7 Moira Dunn..............................67-70—137 -7 Julieta Granada......................67-70—137 -7 Dori Carter .............................70-68—138 -6 Belen Mozo.............................70-68—138 -6 Na Yeon Choi..........................69-69—138 -6 Brittany Lincicome...............69-69—138 -6 Brittany Lang......................... 68-70—138 -6 Jennifer Song......................... 68-70—138 -6 PGAOFAMERICA-SENIORPGA PAR Friday At Harbor Shores Golf Course Benton Harbor, Mich. Purse: TBA ($2 million in 2013) Yardage: 6,852;Par: 71 SecondRound Kiyoshi Murota......................73-65—138 -4 Tom Watson...........................70-68—138 -4 Colin Montgomerie...............69-69—138 -4 Bernhard Langer...................70-68—138 -4 Bart Bryant .............................71-67—138 -4 Steen Tinning.........................72-66—138 -4 Dan Forsman.......................... 66-73—139 -3 Russ Cochran......................... 70-69—139 -3 Mark Brooks ...........................68-71—139 -3 Stephen Ames ....................... 71-68—139 -3 Steve Pate ...............................72-67—139 -3 Greg Bruckner ........................69-71—140 -2 Joe Durant...............................65-75—140 -2 Gary Hallberg .........................70-70—140 -2 Duffy Waldorf.........................70-70—140 -2 Scott Simpson ........................71-69—140 -2 Jay Haas...................................69-71—140 -2 David Frost..............................72-69—141 -1 Jeff Maggert ...........................69-72—141 -1 Joey Sindelar...........................69-72—141 -1 Brad Faxon .............................. 67-74—141 -1 Steve Lowery ...........................69-73—142 E Anders Forsbrand...................69-73—142 E John Cook.................................70-72—142 E Frank Esposito.........................69-73—142 E Tom Pernice, Jr........................72-70—142 E Gary Wolstenholme................72-70—142 E Soccer MAJORLEAGUESOCCER WESTERNCONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA Seattle 8 3 1 25 23 19 Salt Lake 6 0 5 23 23 13 FC Dallas 5 6 2 17 22 22 Vancouver 4 2 4 16 16 12 Colorado 4 4 3 15 12 14 Los Angeles 3 3 3 12 10 8 San Jose 2 4 4 10 10 12 Chivas USA 2 5 4 10 13 20 Portland 1 3 7 10 16 19 EASTERNCONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA New England 6 3 2 20 19 13 Kansas City 5 4 3 18 18 12 D.C. 5 3 3 18 16 12 Houston 5 6 2 17 16 21 New York 3 4 5 14 18 19 Toronto FC 4 4 1 13 11 11 Columbus 3 4 4 13 13 14 Chicago 2 2 6 12 19 19 Philadelphia 2 6 5 11 15 20 Montreal 1 5 4 7 8 18 Note: Three points for victory, one point for tie. Friday'sgames Kansas City 2, Toronto FC 2, tie Saturday'sgames Seattle FC at Vancouver, 4 p.m. Portland at New York, 4 p.m. D.C. United at New England, 4:30 p.m. Chicago at Columbus, 4:30 p.m. Montreal at Colorado, 6 p.m. FC Dallas at Salt Lake, 6:30 p.m. Sunday'sgames Philadelphia at Los Angeles, 5 p.m. Houston at San Jose, 7:30 p.m. Odds GLANTZ-CULVERLINE For May 24 MajorLeagueBaseball NATIONALLEAGUE Favorite Line Underdog Los Angeles -135/+125 at Philadel at Atlanta -155/+145 Colorado Milwaukee -110/+100 at Miami at New York -115/+105 Arizona at Cincinnati -110/+100 St. Louis at Pittsburgh -105/-105 Washington at San Diego -110/+100 Chicago AMERICANLEAGUE at Baltimore -115/+105 Cleveland at Toronto -110/+100 Oakland at Chicago -110/+100 New York at Detroit -175/+165 Texas at Tampa Bay -145/+135 Boston Kansas City -125/+115at Los Angeles Houston -115/+105 at Seattle INTERLEAGUE at San Fran -160/+150 Minnesota NBA TONIGHT Favorite Line(O/U) Underdog at Miami 7 (183) Indiana TOMORROW at Okla. City 2 (208½) San Antonio NHL TONIGHT Favorite Line Underdog at Los Angeles -130/+110 Chicago Transactions BASEBALL AmericanLeague BaltimoreOrioles: Optioned RHP Pres- ton Guilmet to Norfolk (IL). Recalled LHP T.J. McFarland from Norfolk. BostonRedSox: Optioned SS Stephen Drew to Greenville (SAL). Recalled RHP Alex Wilson from Pawtucket (IL). ClevelandIndians: Sent 2B Jason Kipnis to Columbus (IL) for a rehab assign- ment. DetroitTigers: Optioned LHP Robbie Ray to Toledo (IL). Selected the contract of RHP Corey Knebel from Toledo. As- signed 3B Francisco Martinez outright to Erie (EL). HoustonAstros: Optioned RHP Josh Zeid to Oklahoma City (PCL). Recalleed LHP Rudy Owens from Oklahoma City. KansasCityRoyals: Recalled OF Jimmy Paredes from Omaha (PCL). LosAngelesAngels: Sent OF Josh Hamilton to Salt Lake (PCL) for a rehab assignment. Agreed to terms with 2B Maikol Gonzalez on a minor league contract. MinnesotaTwins: Placed OF Sam Fuld on the 15-day DL. TexasRangers: Placed 1B Prince Fielder on the 15-day Dl, retroactive to May 17. Reinstated INF Donnie Murphy from the 15-day DL. TorontoBlueJays: Designated RHP Esmil Rogers for assignment. Selected the contract of RHP Liam Hendriks from Buffalo (IL). NationalLeague CincinnatiReds: Optioned INF Neftali Soto to Louisville (IL). Recalled Inf/Of Donald Lutz from Louisville. Agreed to terms with LHP Matt Maloney on a minor league contract. MiamiMarlins: Optioned RHP Anthony DeSclafani to New Orleans (PCL). Se- lected the contract of RHP Chris Hatcher from New Orleans. Transferred 2B Rafael Furcal to the 60-day DL. NewYorkMets: Named Harold Kaufman executive director, communications. MilwaukeeBrewers: Sent LHP Tom Gor- zelanny to Nashville (PCL) and RHP Jim Henderson to Huntsville (SL) for rehab assignments. PittsburghPirates: Optioned C Tony Sanchez to Indianapolis (IL). Reinstated RHP Jason Grilli from the 15-day DL. St.LouisCardinals: Requested outright release waivers on OF Joey Butler (Memphis-Pcl), whose contract was pur- chased by Orix (Pacific League-Japan). WashingtonNationals: Optioned RHP Ryan Mattheus to Syracuse (IL). Sent 1B Adam LaRoche to Potomac (Carolina) for a rehab assignment. Agreed to terms with LHP Zach Kroenke on a minor league contract. FOOTBALL NationalFootballLeague BuffaloBills: Signed OL Cyril Richardson. CincinnatiBengals: Signed C Russell Bodine. DallasCowboys: Signed WR Devin Street to a four-year contract. HoustonTexans: Signed TE C.J. Fie- dorowicz. MiamiDolphins: Signed LB Jordan Tripp and WR Matt Hazel. SeattleSeahawks: Placed OT Garrett Scott on the waived-non-football illness list. WashingtonRedskins: Signed LB Trent Murphy and WR Rashad Ross. Released WR Kofi Hughes. HOCKEY NationalHockeyLeague NHL: Suspended N.Y. Rangers F Daniel Carcillo 10 games physical abuse of offi- cials and Montreal F Brandon Prust two games for interference with Rangers F Derek Stepan during Thursday's game. AUTORACING NASCAR Nationwide Series, History 300, Qualifying:7:30 a.m., ESPN2. NASCAR Nationwide Series, History 300: 11:45a.m., ABC. COLLEGE BASEBALL Southeastern Conference, semifinal, teams TBD: 10a.m., ESPNEWS. Southeastern Conference, semifinal, teams TBD: 1:30 p.m., ESPNEWS. West Coast Conference, championship, teams TBD: 7 p.m., ESPNU. MLB BASEBALL Oakland Athletics at Toronto Blue Jays: 10a.m., CSN. Minnesota Twins at San Fran- cisco Giants: 7p.m., CSNBA. NBA PLAYOFFS Eastern Conference Finals, Game 3, Indiana Pacers at Miami Heat: 5:30p.m., ESPN. GOLF PGA Tour, Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, Third Round: 10a.m., GOLF. Senior PGA Championship, Third Round: noon, NBC. PGA Tour, Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, Third Round: noon, CBS. LPGA Tour, Airbus Mobile Bay Classic, Third Round: noon, GOLF. HOCKEY IIHF World Championship, First Semifinal, teams TBA: 7:30a.m., NBCSP. IIHF World Championship, Second Semifinal, teams TBA: 10a.m., NBCSP. NHL PLAYOFFS Western Conference Final, Game 3, Chicago Blackhawks at Los Angeles Kings: 5p.m., NBC. COLLEGE LACROSSE NCAA Tournament, Semifi- nal, Denver vs. Duke: 10a.m., ESPN2. NCAA Tournament, Semifinal, Maryland vs. Notre Dame: 12:30p.m., ESPN2. SOCCER UEFA Champions League, Final, Club Atletico de Madrid vs. Real Madrid CF: 11a.m., FOX. COLLEGE SOFTBALL NCAA Tournament Baylor vs. Georgia, Super re- gional, game 2: 9a.m., ESPN. Baylor vs. Georgia, Super regional, game 3: noon, ESPN. Oklahoma vs. Tennessee, Super regional, game 2: 2 p.m., ESPN Oklahoma vs. Tennessee. Super regional, game 3(if necessary): 5p.m., ESPN2. Minnesota vs. Oregon. Super regional, game 1: 7p.m. ESPN2. ON THE AIR "Theyallwanttowinand race for championships," Harvick said, "and when you put (those) kind of peo- ple together with that deter- mination, everybody pushes everybody else." Five things to watch dur- ing Sunday's race: EYES ON KURT Fans won't be the only ones watching Kurt Busch's try at the gru- eling, 1,100-mile double of the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600. Busch's col- leagues in NASCAR will be following very closely. Clint Bowyer said he can't wait to getupSundayandwatchthe Indy 500 to see how Busch is doing. "Fans are paying attention to that and we're paying attention, everybody in this room and everybody in this garage area is paying attention to it," Bowyer said. "That's a big story for us." JOHNSON'S SEASON It's been a long, dry season for defending Sprint Cup cham- pion Jimmie Johnson, who's been winless this season through 11 races to match his longest drought, at the start of the 2003 season. But Johnson showed some signs he's ready to break back on top, collecting his first pole of the season for Sunday's race. Johnson has had success at Char- lotte Motor Speedway with a record-tying six previous wins including three in the Coca-Cola 600. "If I win, then I'm winning too much. If I'm not winning, then it's 'Why aren't you winning?' So I can't do it right either way. I learned a long time ago to not pay attention to the outside voices and influ- ences and just worry about my race team," he said. SUPER DALE JR. Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be run- ning with Superman on his No. 88 machine as part of a multi-year sponsorship deal between Hendrick Motors- ports and DC Comics. Earn- hardt was asked what su- per power he'd most like to have. "Super-human strength would be the best one to have, I think. Being able to pick stuff up and throw it across the yard would be fun. You can im- press your friends and show off for the ladies," he said. LONG, LONG RACE In NAS- CAR's longest event, it doesn't pay to take chances early on. Harvick said he keeps telling himself to stay patient because the extra 100 miles gives teams that much more time to get the car perfectly tuned for the last stretch. It's also about nutrition, said Jamie Mc- Murray: "It's always about trying to get enough food in your system so that you're not hungry or feel week to- ward the end." MILITARY SALUTES Few sports honor the military as well as NASCAR and ex- pect another big show at Charlotte. Goodyear again will adorn its race tires with "Salute Our Troops" and will match funds up to $50,000 raised through a charity auction. Tommy Baldwin Racing teams are also involved in a "Salute The Troops" letter-writing initiative where people can send notes, cards and let- ters of thanks and support to military personnel. Count on flyovers and military ve- hicles, too. NASCAR FROM PAGE 1 Last year the South won 14-1. The softball All-Star game is scheduled for 11 a.m. at Hooker Oak Field. The game is dubbed the George Hibdon Classic, af- ter the 55-year Lions Club member who was a Chico school principal. Mercy's Jessica Curl was named to the North All-Star team by coach Harold Ben- nett of Etna. Joining Curl on the team are Fall River's Brook Small, Etna's Kelsey East- lick, Hayfork's Brindi Young, Taylor Brown and Abigayle Hansen from Yreka, Anderson's Kacey Pokorny, Fallon Green- haw and Chelsey Holley, Mount Shasta's Sejay Sarti and Alex Peruzzi, Modoc's Morgan Bagwell and Trini- ty's Cheyanne Noland, Bra- dlee Plotzki and Krystal Blander. Bennett still has three more spots to fill before the game. The North won last year's game 6-2. Tickets are $6 and grant admission to both the base- ball and softball games. All-Stars FROM PAGE 1 By Ronald Blum TheAssociatedPress STANFORD Jurgen Klins- mann tried to dance around the questions: Why take unproven youngsters to the World Cup and leave Landon Donovan home? A day after announcing his momentous decision to drop the most accom- plished player in American men's soccer, the U.S. coach hinted at answers without ever saying specifically why Donovan was among the fi- nal seven cuts. "As a coach, you have to make a decision based on what you want to execute in Brazil, what you want to see, how do you want to build those components into the entire group. And then I felt — we coaches felt — the guys that we chose, they're a little step ahead of Landon in certain areas," Klins- mann said Friday. The 32-year-old Dono- van, the American record holder with 57 international goals and second with 156 appearances, was trying to make his fourth World Cup roster. He is scoreless in seven games with the Los Angeles Galaxy this season, and Klinsmann dropped him from the roster for the first half of 2013 after Don- ovan took a four-month sab- batical. Asked for specifics, Klinsmann said Donovan "maybe is not the one now anymore to go one against one all the time or going into the box or finishing off." But the coach praised "his out- standing passing game, his experience, which is a big factor always." "He changed his game overthelastfewyears,which is normal at that stage of his career," Klinsmann said. Donovan has five World Cup goals. WORLD CUP SOCCER Klinsmann discusses selections By Dave Skretta AP Sports Writer INDIANAPOLIS ScottDixon insists that Ganassi Racing wasn't trying to bamboozle anybody. After struggling last week and failing to put a car in the fast nine for qualify- ing, the team led by defend- ing Indy 500 winner Tony Kanaan staged a rally on Carb Day. Kanaan was left atop the leaderboard Friday with a lap of 227.838 mph, while Dixon was next-fast- est at 227.773 mph. "We definitely didn't do it on purpose," said Dixon, who will start in the middle of the fourth row Sunday. "We would like to roll out straightaway and be quick. I think we are normally." Kanaan will start on the inside of the sixth row as he attempts to become the first back-to-back winner since Helio Castroneves in 2003. Teammate Charlie Kimball will start in the ninth row. "We feel good about it," Kanaan said. "We worked pretty hard together to make up for our Saturday qualifying. We have great people back in the engineer- ing office at Target Chip Ganassi Racing, and it re- ally showed a little bit after qualifying and today." The turnaround by the Ganassi stable brought back memories of 2012, when the team struggled through- out the month of May. But by the time Carb Day rolled around, Dario Franchitti had posted the fastest lap of the day, and Dixon was close behind in second. That was how they would finish on Sunday. Franchitti went on to win his third Indy 500, and Takuma Sa- to's last-lap spin into the Turn 1 wall allowed Dixon to finish second. Townsend Bell, three- time winner Helio Castro- neves and rookie Mikhail Aleshin joined Kanaan and Dixon among the five fast- est laps Friday. Andretti Autosport teammates Ryan Hunter-Reay and Marco Andretti were next on the speed chart, while Juan Pablo Montoya was ninth- quickest. Kurt Busch stepped into Andretti's backup car and climbed to 15th on the chart. Busch wrecked his primary car in practice on Monday, forcing his team to convert a car that Andretti had planned to use at Detroit from a road-course setup to an oval setup. "Just had to get back on my horse," said Busch, who will attempt to run the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte on Sunday. "As the NASCAR guys always say, 'Got to thank my crew,' but honestly, this is a thank- the-crew moment from An- dretti Autosport." INDIANAPOLIS 500 Ganassi finds speed, rallies Defending winner Kanaan fastest, Dixon next on chart | SPORTS | REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM SATURDAY, MAY 24, 2014 2 B