The Angels and first baseman/designated hitter Kendrys Morales avoided salary arbitration by striking a deal for the 2012 season Wednesday.
Morales, still recovering from a broken left ankle suffered when he jumped on home plate after his game-winning homer against the Seattle Mariners on May 29, 2010, hasn't played since having surgery and a follow-up operation last May to clean scar tissue and debris in the joint.
Details of the deal were not immediately available, but it's thought that Morales and the Angels settled on a figure somewhere near his 2011 salary of $3 million. Because he didn't play in 2011, the team could have slashed his salary by as much as 20%.
Dipoto said he would not set a target date for Morales' return, only whenever "Kendrys mends."
— Lance Pugmire
Baseball's owners are expected to offer Bud Selig a contract to stay on as commissioner another two years during meetings Thursday, a deal that would keep him in office until after he turns 80.
After signing each of his previous contract extensions, Selig said he planned to retire when it concluded. He changed his mind in 2006 again in 2009, signing a deal that took him through 2012.
Ryan Vogelsong and the San Francisco Giants agreed to a two-year contract worth approximately $8.3 million after he became one of the team's most reliable starters and an unlikely All-Star last season.
The 34-year-old right-hander, who had been eligible for arbitration, set a career high for wins while going 13-7 with a 2.71 earned-run average in 30 games, 28 starts. The deal includes a club option for 2014.
ETC.
Butler leaves USC football team
The USC football team's roster, which can include only 75 scholarship players next season, remained fluid with receiver Brice Butler leaving for San Diego State and defensive back Josh Shaw officially arriving as a transfer from Florida.
Coach Lane Kiffin did not address Butler's departure but announced that Shaw had enrolled in school for the spring semester. Shaw is expected to submit a hardship waiver to the NCAA with hopes of gaining immediate eligibility.
The departure of Butler, a fifth-year senior who has played as a reserve, was not unexpected. The Georgia native announced last spring that he was leaving USC and did not participate in spring practice. But he reconsidered after meeting with Kiffin and returned last season.
Butler, who caught 12 passes for 150 yards, will not have to sit out a year because he has graduated.
Butler is the third player to leave USC in the last week. Sophomore tailback Amir Carlisle is transferring to Notre Dame. Third-year sophomore receiver Kyle Prater is reportedly considering Wisconsin, Northwestern and Illinois.
Defensive lineman Armond Armstead also is a transfer candidate. The fifth-year senior redshirted last season because he was not cleared medically. He is expected to visit other schools, where he could play immediately as a graduate student if he were cleared medically. He also could enter the NFL draft or return to USC.
USC also announced that spring practice will begin March 6 and end April 14 with the annual spring game at the Coliseum. USC's pro-day workout for NFL personnel is March 7.
Practices and workouts, with the exception of the spring game, are closed to the public.
— Gary Klein
Three UCLA seniors have been invited to participate in postseason all-star games.
Tight end Cory Harkey was selected to play in the East-West Shrine game Jan. 21 at St. Petersburg, Fla., and safety Tony Dye and wide receiver Taylor Embree are on the roster for the NFLPA All-Star game the same day at the Home Depot Center.
The NCAA broadened the definition of agents to include parents, closing the loophole that allowed 2010 Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton to keep playing despite his father's pay-for-play scheme.
The Division I Amateurism Cabinet sponsored legislation that would include family members and other third parties who shop an athlete's services to schools for financial gain. The Division I Legislative Council passed the proposal Wednesday.
The NCAA determined that Cecil Newton — Cam's father — wanted money from Mississippi State when Cam Newton was being recruited out of junior college.
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Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III made official his decision to bypass his senior season at Baylor to enter the NFL draft after a record-breaking college career.
Griffin set or tied 54 school records while playing 41 games at Baylor over the last four seasons. The fourth-year junior had another season of eligibility remaining because he was granted a medical redshirt after he tore a ligament in his right knee in the third game of the 2009 season.
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Pittsburgh Penguins Coach Dan Bylsma said Sidney Crosby is ready to resume skating when he joins the team on its current trip.
