Sports

Sports Shorts

MLB: Melky may win title

Bud Selig and Major League Baseball appear unlikely to interfere if Melky Cabrera wins the NL batting title while serving his 50-game suspension for a positive drug test. The Giants outfielder has a league-leading .346 average, six points ahead of the Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen.

Cabrera, who was suspended Aug. 15 for a positive test for testosterone, has 501 plate appearances, one fewer than the required amount if the Giants play 162 games. Under section 10.22(a) of the Official Baseball Rules, he would win the batting title if an extra hitless at-bat is added to his average and it remains higher than that of any other qualifying player.

Reds manager Dusty Baker was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat last night and was expected to stay overnight in a Chicago hospital.

MLB is nearing agreements with Fox and Turner Sports on eight-year contracts through 2021. Under the deals, Fox will retain rights to the World Series and to a league championship series every year.

Hoops: UNC coach surgery

North Carolina coach Roy Williams has had a 3 1/2-hour surgery to remove a tumor from his right kidney and might have another procedure to remove a tumor from his left kidney. The tumor’s severity is unknown. Williams, 62, is scheduled to begin his 10th season as head coach.

NFL: Pats sign Winslow

The Patriots signed tight end Kellen Winslow and re-signed wide receiver Deion Branch to add depth to a pass-catching group that lost Aaron Hernandez to a right ankle injury. Winslow was released by the Seahawks on Sept. 1 after spending the past three seasons with Tampa Bay. The Patriots released Branch on the final roster cutdown.

Chad (Ochocinco) Johnson’s divorce is final from reality TV star Evelyn Lozada, a month after his arrest on a domestic battery charge. The couple had wed on July 4.

Etc.: Hall call for Couples

Fred Couples was elected into the World Golf Hall of Fame. The induction will be May 6 at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla.

Rick Curl, one of the nation’s most prominent swimming coaches, was banned for life by USA Swimming over allegations of an intimate relationship with a teenage swimmer in the 1980s. Kelley Davies Currin claimed the relationship started when she was 13 and Curl was 33.

Alexander Ovechkin is returning to his former Russian team Dynamo Moscow during the NHL lockout.

Middleweight boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. tested positive for marijuana after his first professional loss last weekend in Las Vegas.

Dri Archer rushed for 127 yards and a touchdown as Kent State (2-1) was a 23-7 winner over Buffalo (1-2).