Bonds got hit by the pitch

Okay, he did not tie the record, but this story seems more intesting than that.

ESPN.com

HOUSTON (AP) -- Nobody wants to surrender Barry Bonds' next home run, and Astros right-hander Russ Springer wasn't about to wind up on the wrong end of history Tuesday night.

He wound up and plunked the San Francisco slugger instead.

Bonds went 2-for-4 and drove in a run for the second straight game in the Giants's 14-3 victory over Houston. Just when it looked like he had rediscovered his stroke, Springer couldn't find the plate.

And Bonds is still looking for home run No. 714.

The wild confrontation began when the seven-time NL MVP led off the fifth inning. Springer's first pitch sailed behind Bonds' back, drawing a warning from plate umpire Joe West.

The next four pitches all came inside, including one that hit Bonds' bat handle on the third delivery for strike one. On the fifth pitch, Springer hit Bonds in the right shoulder as he turned to protect himself.

That's when Springer and manager Phil Garner got ejected -- and the Houston crowd of 35,286 gave the pitcher a standing ovation.

"He missed with a slider and that's when the warning came," Garner said. "He just started missing his pitches. If you're going to try to hit somebody, you're not going to hit them with a slider."

Springer, who had allowed one homer to Bonds previously, could be fined or suspended.

"I played with Russ in St. Louis," Giants reliever Steve Kline said. "I had no idea he had anything for Barry. With the score the way it was, maybe they were mad he was still in the game. I don't know. It's baseball. Maybe one got away from him."

Bonds was unhurt and trotted down the first-base line and later scored on Jose Vizcaino's RBI single to give the Giants a 12-3 lead.

He also remained stalled at 713 homers -- one shy of tying Babe Ruth for second place on the career list -- for his eighth straight game. He gave way to defensive replacement Jason Ellison in the top of the sixth.

Springer also hit Bonds in September 2004, only four days after Bonds hit his 700th homer off Jake Peavy.

The pitcher was already gone when the Astros' clubhouse opened to the media and Garner said Springer was en route to Louisiana to be with his wife, who had surgery scheduled for Wednesday morning.

"I haven't had time to prepare a speech," Giants manager Felipe Alou said of Springer's pitch. "It's a lot of people watching, especially the at-bats of Barry's. All the people watching with an honest heart, they can say what they want to say. I'm not commenting."

The 41-year-old Bonds had already singled twice and driven in a run in San Francisco's five-run first. He flied out to the warning track in right in the second and to center to end the sixth.

Bonds has not homered in 26 at-bats since hitting 713 with a 450-foot shot in Philadelphia on May 7, going 4-for-26 during that stretch.

"It's just a matter of when he'll go back," Astros ace Andy Pettitte said. "If I was pitching against him, I wouldn't be that worried or upset if it happened to be me. I would try to pitch to him the way the game dictates."

Or just plain exhausted.

After playing for the eighth straight day, Bonds is scheduled to get his first day off Wednesday since sitting out a makeup game against the Astros on May 8 in San Francisco -- his longest stretch in the starting lineup without a break since playing 10 consecutive days from June 18-27, 2004. He could pinch hit Wednesday night, however.

The slugger played only 14 games in 2005 -- all in September -- following three operations on his troublesome right knee.

Pedro Feliz had a solo home run to start the seventh and added an RBI single for the Giants. Omar Vizquel drove in four runs, with a bases-clearing triple and sacrifice fly.

The Giants staked starter Jamey Wright (4-3) to a 5-0 lead in the first with five straight one-out hits against Wandy Rodriguez (5-2) as San Francisco batted around. San Francisco also jumped to a big lead early in its 10-1 victory Monday.

Wright pitched seven strong innings for his second straight win after a three-start losing streak.

Morgan Ensberg hit his 13th home run of the season with a two-run shot in the first for the Astros, sending a 3-2 pitch into the seats above the out-of-town scoreboard in left.

Bonds hit an RBI single just inside the line past first in the first inning, his second straight game driving in a run after getting an RBI double Monday to end an 0-for-15 funk.

After taking a called strike one in the second, Bonds flied out to right field, where Jason Lane made the catch a few feet in front of the fence. Bonds lined a 2-0 pitch to right for a single to start the fourth.

He had some fun before the game, joking around and laughing in the dugout before taking six rounds of batting practice, where he hit five homers on 24 swings, two into the upper deck.

Then Bonds kept moving spots in the dugout to see whether the horde of cameras following his every move would move as he picked a new place to sit. His relaxed mood seemed to carry over onto the field.

Back in the Bay Area in Oakland, where the Giants play a three-game interleague series starting Friday, the Athletics are already discussing their strategy for the slugger. Giants manager Felipe Alou has said he hopes Bonds can play designated hitter all three days.

"That would be interesting to watch," A's manager Ken Macha said before his team played the Seattle Mariners. "If we have a 10-2 lead and he hits a home run, that's OK with me.

"He's a good enough player it doesn't matter how much he's struggling. Good players are good players and good players rise to the occasion."

Red Bulls fine Guevara for leaving field

FOX Sports

SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) - The New York Red Bulls fined midfielder Amado Guevara $4,000 on Tuesday for leaving the field after being replaced in the 55th minute of their 1-1 tie against the Chicago Fire.

Guevara, Major League Soccer's Most Valuable Player Award winner in 2004, also was suspended for Saturday's home game against Chivas USA.

"I'm very disappointed in Amado," Red Bulls coach Mo Johnston said. "The name of the front of the jersey is more important than the name on the back."

The Red Bulls were leading 1-0 Saturday when Johnston replaced Guevara with rookie defender Marvell Wynne, drawing an exasperated look from the Honduran. Guevara walked off the field, showered and returned to watch the rest of the game in the stands with his wife.

Guevara said through an interpreter he saw no reason to remain on the bench since he could not return to the field. Johnston said he replaced Guevara for lack of hustle and creativity.

This was the latest squabble between Guevara and management. He received permission to train with a former club in Honduras over the New Year's holiday, but he played in games against orders. He arrived late for preseason training and criticized then general manager Alexi Lalas.

The Red Bulls have played five ties this season and are the only winless team in MLS.

Reggie Bush might wear No. 25

He needs to get used in wearing a different number. In the NFL, you have to follow the follow the fucking rules or you will fuck up the team.

ESPN.com

The NFL has not denied Reggie Bush's request to wear No. 5 this upcoming season, but early indications are that the New Orleans Saints draft pick will not get his way.

One thing is for sure, it won't be "in the cards" for Bush.

The team informed the NFL Players Association on Tuesday that their top draft pick will wear the No. 25 for this weekend's Rookie Premiere photo shoot, according to Pam Adolph, vice president of apparel operations for Players Inc., the union's marketing arm. For years, Players Inc. has been putting on the event so that the card companies can release cards with players in their jerseys before the season starts.

The team allowed Bush to wear the No. 5 at its recent minicamp and it was Bush's marketing agent Mike Ornstein's desire to have his client wear the number at the photo shoot. "Until it has been decided, we are going to go with number 5," said Ornstein, who insisted that there would still be No. 5 jerseys on site for pictures.

Ornstein originally said that Bush would donate 25 percent of all the royalties he received from jersey sales toward Hurricane Katrina charities if the league granted him the right to wear No. 5. But Ornstein told ESPN.com on Tuesday morning that Bush has now agreed to make the donation no matter what number he wears.

Almost all the players have their numbers set by the time of the shoot, though it's not unprecedented that a player has worn a different number jersey at the shoot than he did once the season started. In 2004, Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. wore No. 11, but at the end of the preseason, Winslow convinced fullback Aaron Shea to allow him to wear No. 80.


Saints running back Fred McAfee currently wears the No. 25, so it's not exactly clear whether that number will definitely be worn by Bush. Calls placed to Saints officials were not immediately returned.

Bush wore No. 5 in high school and at the University of Southern California, but under current NFL rules, running backs are only allowed to wear numbers 20 through 49. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told ESPN.com on Monday that the owners will not be voting specifically on a Bush exemption. In order for Bush to be granted No. 5, the numbering rules themselves would have to be changed.

"Truthfully, with Reggie Bush, it's not going to matter what number he wears," Josh Goodstadt, an executive with Players Inc., which oversees the production of more than 32 million packs of NFL player trading cards each year. "He's already so hot in the trading card world and the input we've gathered from our licensees is that the number he wears, in the long run, won't help or hurt the sales of his cards."

With the jersey number still undecided, preorders of Bush's jerseys have slowed down a bit, according to Reebok vice president Eddie White.

"Right after the draft, Bush jerseys were red hot," White said. "Now it's more like lukewarm because there are retailers who are cutting back on their orders due to the uncertainty."

White, who noted that orders for Bush jerseys and Vince Young jerseys have each surpassed 20,000, said he predicts that will all change once a number is arrived at.

On Monday, Bush -- in conjunction with his sponsor adidas -- contributed $50,000 to the Holy Rosary School, a learning disabilities school in Louisiana that was in danger of closing.

Bush surprisingly wore Nikes at minicamp despite a multi-million dollar deal with adidas. Ornstein said Bush's adidas shoes had not yet arrived.