Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

Little League

Slugger overcomes ailing back in Georgia's win

Jake Fromm, the 13-year-old slugger for Warner Robins, Ga., decided the best way to deal with his painful back was to swing at the first pitch in each of his first two at-bats. He homered and hit a sac fly to drive in four runs in a 6-3 win that eliminated Rapid City, S.D., at the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa.

"Swing early, you don't have to worry about it," said Fromm, who homered to center in the first inning and hit a ball to the base of the wall in the third. "You put the ball in play, only one swing hurts you."

Also Saturday, Taiwan eliminated Aruba 20-3 and Saudi Arabia eliminated the Netherlands 4-2.

et cetera

Gymnastics: Jordyn Wieber, a 16-year-old from DeWitt, Mich., won her first title at the U.S. championships in St. Paul, Minn. in a rout, finishing 6.15 points ahead of McKayla Maroney. Wieber had the highest scores on floor exercise and uneven bars.

NHL: Forward Ethan Moreau, who has played parts of 15 seasons with Chicago, Edmonton and Columbus, agreed to a one-year, $600,000 deal with the Kings.

Soccer: A match in Belgium was temporarily stopped after visiting fans taunted Japanese goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima over the recent Fukushima nuclear disaster. The referee halted the match between Lierse SK and Beerschot for a few minutes after some Beerschot supporters began chanting: "Kawashima-Fukushima." … Tasha Kai and Amy Rodriguez scored for host Philadelphia, which advanced to the Women's Professional Soccer title game with a 2-0 victory over magicJack. Philadelphia faces Western New York on Saturday.

Times wires

Tennis

Tampa's fish trips against Murray

MASON, Ohio — Andy Murray overcame a pair of break points late in the second set, then another in the tiebreaker, to beat Tampa resident Mardy Fish 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) on Saturday and advance to the men's final at the Western & Southern Open.

Murray will play No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who advanced when Tomas Berdych withdrew from their semifinal because of a shoulder injury. Murray will be trying for just his second tournament win this season, to go with his title at the Queen's Club in June.

"I think it would be perfect preparation to play (Djokovic) before the U.S. Open, to see what I need to work on," said Murray, who survived a 2-hour, 18-minute match against Fish, who beat No. 2 Rafael Nadal and will be the top-ranked American heading into the U.S. Open.

"It will be much different for me this time, in a good way," Fish said. "I hope to keep playing the way I'm playing. I'm right there. I played good all week. Just trying to solidify my spot, show that I belong, convince myself that I belong as well."

During the fourth game, Fish came to the net and dived while trying to make a return, landing hard on his right knee. Afterward, Murray won to break serve and go up 3-1.

In the women's bracket, fourth-seeded Maria Sharapova rebounded from a listless first set then rolled to a 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over second-ranked Vera Zvonareva to clinch a spot in the final. Andrea Petkovic played Jelena Jankovic in the later semifinal.

By Marc Topkin, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, August 20, 2011

Rays vs. Mariners

When/where: 1:40 today; Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg

TV/radio: Sun Sports; 620-AM, 680-AM (Spanish)

Starting pitchers:

RAYS:

RH James Shields (11-10, 2.83)

MARINERS:

RH Michael Pineda (9-7, 3.77)

Tickets: $12-$255 at box office, Ticketmaster, raysbaseball.com, team store in Tampa; $3 surcharge within five hours of game.

Promotion: David Price/Astro figurine for first 10,000 kids 14 and younger.

Watch for …

Complete Game James: Shields is coming off a three-hitter in Boston that was his MLB-leading ninth complete game, but also a loss. He is 3-4, 3.56 in 10 starts vs. M's, roughed up (four HRs) June 2 in Seattle.

Tall order: Pineda — who is 6 feet 7, 260 pounds and 22 years old — has been impressive, ranking first among AL rookies in strikeouts (133) and opponents' average (.205) and second in ERA. He beat the Rays on July 30.

Key matchups

Rays vs. Pineda

Johnny Damon 0-for-2

Casey Kotchman 0-for-3

Ben Zobrist 1-for-3

M's vs. Shields

Franklin Gutierrez7-for-21, HR

Adam Kennedy 5-for-16

Ichiro Suzuki 11-for-33, HR

On deck

Monday: vs. Tigers, 7:10, Sun Sports. Rays — Jeff Niemann (8-4, 3.29); Tigers — Justin Verlander (18-5, 2.31)

Tuesday: vs. Tigers, 7:10, Sun Sports. Rays — David Price (11-10, 3.59); Tigers — Brad Penny (8-9, 4.97)

Wednesday: vs. Tigers, 7:10, Sun Sports. Rays — Wade Davis (8-7, 4.43); Tigers — Max Scherzer (13-7, 4.23)

Marc Topkin, Times staff writer

David Price note of the day

Already one of the most Twitter-friendly pro athletes, LHP David Price (@DAVIDPrice14) took it next level Saturday when he responded to a request from a fan, @trickynicky4 (Nicholas Gilbert, a U of Cincinnati baseball recruit) who posted his phone number and asked him to call. "We talked for a few minutes," Price said. "I'll probably call a few more people. It was pretty fun."

Astro Price note of the day

The Rays are apparently making promotional history today with a David Price superhero action figure giveaway that includes his dog, Astro, the first player/pet combo. "Astro's pumped," Price said. "He's very, I guess you would say, gracious of having his own action figure." Astro, a 2½-year-old French bulldog, will get the special treat of attending today's game.

Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU coach Les Miles said players have "been involved in behavior that's unacceptable to me" after starting quarterback Jordan Jefferson and several unidentified teammates were implicated in a fight at a bar early Friday.

A group of 22 players who make up the Tigers' Unity Council accompanied Miles for a terse 6½-minute session that included an apology from senior offensive lineman Josh Dworaczyk.

"I can tell you that the last couple of days have been miserable for us, that we've been involved in behavior that's unacceptable to me, certainly unacceptable to our team — guys that broke team rules and violated curfew," Miles said. "I can tell you and assure you that this will not happen again."

Miles said a "relatively large group" was involved in the fight, mentioning senior offensive lineman T-Bob Hebert and Jefferson by name. No charges have been filed, nor have arrests been made. The Baton Rouge Police Department's investigation was ongoing Saturday.

Police spokesman Sgt. Don Stone said four people were taken to hospitals after the fight, none football players. Stone said the people taken for medical attention indicated they intended to press charges.

Athletic director Joe Alleva released a statement saying, "We will not tolerate student-athletes whose irresponsible actions tarnish the good name of a great university."

Miles said he began disciplining the team Friday after a hastily called team meeting. He said the entire team was punished.

"We've started disciplining our team because this was a team violation," Miles said. "This was not just a guy. This was the team. We ran them, and we're running them."

Miles said he won't levy punishments, including suspensions, against specific players until the details of the fight are collected and revealed.

"I want to find out more what went on," Miles said.

The Tigers, No. 4 in the Associated Press preseason media poll released Saturday, start the season against No. 3 Oregon on Sept. 3 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

"As miserable as I am about this, as disappointed and as mad, I recognize I've got a good group of men who understand the mistakes that were made," Miles said. "And I suspect that they will make the appropriate changes. I will instruct them along those lines, I promise."

Controversial figure leaves Ducks program

EUGENE, Ore. — Lache Seastrunk, the running back connected to the investigation into Oregon's use of a high school scouting service in Texas, was granted his unconditional release. Coach Chip Kelly said only that Seastrunk, who redshirted as a freshman last season, missed his grandmother at home in Temple, Texas.

Oregon paid Willie Lyles and Complete Scouting Services in Houston $25,000 last year, soon after Seastrunk committed. When Oregon released the recruiting material it received for the payment, much of the information appeared to be outdated.

The NCAA is investigating.

Notre Dame: Backup tight end Jake Golic, the son of ESPN radio host Bob Golic, is out six weeks with a broken arm.

South Carolina: Quarterbacks coach G.A. Mangus paid a $470 fine to settle a nuisance conduct charge. Mangus, a quarterback at Florida from 1988-91, was arrested last month after police spotted him urinating in public in Greenville, S.C. The school previously suspended him (costing him about $14,000) and made him ineligible for bonuses this season.

UNLV: Coach Bobby Hauck agreed to a two-year extension through 2014. Last season, his first, he went 2-11.

Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

Twins 9, Yankees 4

MINNEAPOLIS — A.J. Burnett lost his composure and failed to finish the second inning, when Minnesota scored five en route to its 20th win in 81 games against New York over the past 10 seasons. Burnett turned and angrily shouted what appeared to be a few curses toward manager Joe Girardi after leaving the game.

By Marc Topkin, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, August 20, 2011

ST. PETERSBURG — For all that has gone wrong for Evan Longoria this season — and there has been plenty — some of his numbers are starting to look right.

In leading the Rays to an 8-0 Saturday night victory over the Mariners, Longoria had his 20th homer and pushed his RBI total to a team-high 72, including a major league-most 59 over the past 10 weeks of a season marred by injuries and other issues.

Longoria joined Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews as the only third basemen to have 20 or more homers in their first four seasons. (Atlanta's Chipper Jones had none in his brief 1993 debut, then 14 straight seasons of 20-plus.) He also joined Aubrey Huff and Carlos Peña as Rays with four 20-homer seasons, the first to do it in his first four.

"That was kind of a target number for me when I came off the DL (in early May) and had all of the struggles that I was going through," Longoria said. "To get to where I'm at right now, I'm pretty happy with the way it's gone. And I'm just happy that there's still over a month left, that I can really try and make a push for turning the season around completely for myself."

He had help Saturday before 20,148 at Tropicana Field as the Rays won for the 12th time in their past 16 games and improved to 68-56, a season-high 12 games over .500. More important, it was a rare day — just the sixth since May 12 — in which they gained ground on both the Yankees and Red Sox, moving to within eight games of first in the American League East (their closest in a month) and 7½ from the wild card.

"I'll take that trifecta," manager Joe Maddon said. "I love those days. We need more of those days, especially right now. You want to be, 'Who are those guys?' Let's go Butch Cassidy on them, keep sneaking up from behind and see what happens."

Right-hander Jeremy Hellickson rebounded from a rough last outing in New York with a solid performance, riding his fastball for seven strong innings, then battling through the eighth, allowing six hits overall.

"I just wanted to come out here and attack the zone better than I did the last game," Hellickson said.

Hellickson improved to 11-8 with a 3.04 ERA, furthering his cause in a rookie of the year race that also includes Seattle's Michael Pineda, who starts today at 9-7, and Angels slugger Mark Trumbo.

On the first official night of the Rays' new no-batting-practice routine, Johnny Damon had three hits, pushing his career total to 2,694, and so did Ben Zobrist, including his major-league-leading 41st double and his 62nd extra-base hit, tying his career high.

Longoria can be the biggest key to the offense, though, and even though his batting average is somewhat of a lost cause at .233, the rest of his numbers are impressive.

His season started going bad before he left spring training. He had a car stolen from an Arizona shop, and his Port Charlotte rental home was broken into. Then he strained his left oblique in the second regular-season game of the season and missed a month. And he was hampered for months by a painful nerve condition in his left foot.

"I attribute it to just my body feeling healthy," he said of his resurgence. "And being able to finally get back to the swing that I had at the end of 2010 and just gaining the confidence.

"The confidence is the main thing; once it goes in this game, it's tough to bounce back and believe in yourself again. But to have a couple good weeks and really start feeling it again is a good feeling."

He got the Rays started Saturday after Damon tripled with one out in the first, crushing a 3-and-0 fastball from Charlie Furbush. It was Longoria's ninth homer in his past 28 games and the eighth of his 20 that tied the score or put the Rays ahead.

"We're on a nice little run here, and that's because of him," Hellickson said. "He's driving in runs, and if he keeps doing that, we're going to win a lot of games."

Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

NORTH PLAINS, Ore. — Na Yeon Choi took a three-stroke lead in the Safeway Classic on Saturday, shooting 2-under 69 to reach 8-under 134 on Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club's Ghost Creek course.

The South Korean star, a four-time winner on the LPGA Tour, had three birdies and a bogey in the second round after reeling off seven consecutive birdies during her opening 65.

Stacy Lewis (68) was second after. She started the round with four consecutive birdies but dropped three strokes with bogeys at Nos. 5, 9 and 10.

Mika Miyazato (67) was third at 3 under.

Seminole's Brittany Lincicome shot 68 to move into a tie for fourth at 2 under, along with Ryann O'Toole (69) and Grace Park (73). Tampa resident Kristy McPherson (72) was tied for 37th at 3 over, and Tampa's Cindy LaCrosse (76) missed the cut at 8 over.

Defending champion Ai Miyazato (74) was 10 strokes back at 2 over. Michele Redman, playing in her last tour event before she takes over as the women's golf coach at the University of Minnesota, missed the cut with rounds of 79 and 76.

PGA: Even during a rough start, Webb Simpson never lost his cool. He was rewarded with one of the hottest stretches of his young career. It put the local favorite in position for his first tour win.

Simpson shot 6-under 64 to move to 15-under 195 and take a two-stroke lead after three rounds at the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C.

The 26-year-old Raleigh native and former Wake Forest player had four birdies and an eagle during his late charge at the final event before the playoffs start next week.

"You've got to really stay patient around this golf course, because bogeys are pretty quick to happen out here with the rough and the undulating greens," Simpson said. "I told myself to be patient and let the birdies come. It took them a while to get there, but (I) finally made a few coming in."

Tommy Gainey (69), who led or shared the lead after each of the first two rounds, was 13 under.

CHAMPIONS: Fred Couples shot 3-under 68 to take a one-stroke lead after the third round of the Senior Players Championship in Harrison, N.Y., the tour's final major of the season.

Couples was at 11-under 202 and is trying for his first tour title since October at the Adminstaff Small Business Classic in Texas. Since his fourth victory on the senior tour, Couples has struggled with his back, but the injury has healed after a nontraditional procedure in Germany six weeks ago.

"It was a good day," Couples said. "I drove the ball well. The best thing I did is, I felt I hit the ball solid. It was a good round, not great, but I'm still in the lead, and I'll have to have a better round (today)."

Peter Senior (68) and John Cook (66) were second at 10 under.

By Bryan Burns, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, August 20, 2011

ST. PETERSBURG — FC Tampa Bay hasn't squandered too many opportunities during its run of quality play.

Against Puerto Rico, though, Tampa Bay let a positive result slip out of its grasp on a rain-kissed pitch Saturday night at Al Lang Field.

Unbeaten in its previous four and winners of five of its previous seven coming in, Tampa Bay played with poise and purpose against the NASL's second-place team.

Mike Ambersley gave Tampa Bay a lead in the 30th minute with his team-leading 10th goal of the season.

But Puerto Rico equalized three minutes later, and the Islanders went ahead in the 75th minute on a remarkable individual effort from midfielder David Foley to escape with a 2-1 victory.

"That's the frustrating part, that we didn't get anything for all the hard work and effort the players put in," Tampa Bay coach Ricky Hill said. "For the majority of the game, I was very pleased with how they played the game."

Kickoff was delayed 35 minutes because of lightning, but the late start did little to dampen a highly charged, entertaining game for 2,965 fans attending.

Tampa Bay (8-7-7, 31 points) grabbed control of a back-and-forth game after a tenacious effort from Ambersley led to the first score. The forward took a pass on the edge of the 18-yard box and tried to slip a pass in the middle for Aaron King. The pass was deflected and played backward to a Puerto Rico defender.

But Ambersley kept the play alive by chasing down the pass and pressuring the ball. A slight bobble from the defender was all Ambersley needed, and he slid an outstretched shot past Puerto Rico goalkeeper Ray Burse for a 1-0 advantage.

"Their centerback kind of bobbled it and made a mess of it, and I just tried to bounce on it," Ambersley said. "I got lucky, and it came right to me."

Puerto Rico (12-5-5, 41 points) tied it almost immediately. In the 33rd minute, a cross from the right wing was deflected in the box, and Islanders forward Nick Addlery was waiting on the back post to one-time a volley into goal.

Puerto Rico pushed ahead in the 75th minute on a bit of skill from Foley coupled with a breakdown in the Tampa Bay defense. On a counter, Foley dribbled the length of the field with two defenders in front. Nearing the edge of the box, Foley faked a shot with his right foot, slid the ball on his left foot to maneuver past the befuddled defense and finished.

"Somebody's got to engage higher up the field," Hill said. "We can't let someone just run at us, and we can't backpedal for an eternity."

Tampa Bay had opportunities to tie the score and earn a point late but failed to convert. Substitute Tsuyoshi Yoshitake, deep in the box, crossed across the goalmouth for Kerry Baptiste, who made his first appearance in a Tampa Bay jersey this season. But the pass was too far in front of Baptiste's outstretched leg. In stoppage time, Keith Savage got a clean look at goal but blistered a shot inches high.

Bryan Burns can be reached at burns@sptimes.com.

Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

Padres 14, Marlins 1

SAN DIEGO — Orlando Hudson homered and drove in four runs, and Nick Hundley homered among his four hits for San Diego. Hudson hit a three-run shot in the first. One pitch later, Kyle Blanks homered into the second deck of the brick Western Metals Supply Co. building in leftfield.

Times wires
Saturday, August 20, 2011

Athletics 5, Blue Jays 1

OAKLAND, Calif. — Gio Gonzalez pitched eight stellar innings for his first win in more than a month for Oakland. Brandon Allen had two hits and scored the go-ahead run on a double play in the fourth inning, and Josh Willingham homered as part of a three-run eighth for the Athletics, who have won four of five at home after getting swept in a four-game series by the Rangers. Toronto played without leading MVP candidate Jose Bautista, a late scratch with neck tightness.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Angels 9, Orioles 8

12 innings

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Bobby Abreu hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to cap the Angels' three-run 12th after the Orioles had taken a two-run lead in the top half. Kevin Gregg walked Alberto Callaspo to force in the tying run before Troy Patton gave up Abreu's fly to center.

By Tom Jones, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Announcer of the day

Bob Griese, the former Dolphins QB who spent 24 years as a broadcaster for ABC/ESPN, isn't retiring after all. Griese said he was stepping away from the booth in February but was hired Friday to join former Dolphins receiver Jimmy Cefalo and Joe Rose on Dolphins radio broadcasts. Griese replaces the late Jim Mandich, who died in April.

Happy birthday

Carl Yastrzemski was born 72 years ago today (Aug. 22, 1939) in Southampton, N.Y. Yaz was an 18-time All-Star for the Red Sox, a member of the 3,000-hit club and elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989. He also is known for being the last player to win baseball's Triple Crown, when he led the American League in 1967 in average (.326), homers (44) and RBIs (121).

He wrote it

There isn't another player in the NFL for whom you would trade Aaron Rodgers.

Mike Lupica, New York Daily News sports columnist, writing about the Packers quarterback

Best list

Gary Myers, the well-respected NFL writer for the New York Daily News, came out with his list of the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL. The Bucs' Josh Freeman did not make it. Tom Brady came in at the top, followed by Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethisberger, Philip Rivers, Michael Vick, Eli Manning, Matt Ryan and Mark Sanchez. Myers admits that Sanchez might be ranked too high, but said his list relies heavily on how far a QB has taken his teams and Sanchez has gone to back-to-back AFC title games That's also why Eli Manning, who did win a Super Bowl MVP award, came in at No. 8.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

ATLANTA — Alex Gonzalez homered and two rookies led the Braves to Sunday's 1-0 win over the Diamondbacks that capped a three-game sweep.

Arizona's Kelly Johnson tripled to lead off the sixth. One out later, Chris Young hit a popup that rookie first baseman Freddie Freeman chased into foul territory, caught while running with his back to the plate, turned and threw out Johnson.

"He's such an athlete. I knew he was going to make that play," Braves catcher Brian McCann said. "I just caught it and dove for the plate."

In the ninth, Craig Kimbrel faced first and third with one out. But he hit 100 mph on the radar gun before striking out Paul Goldschmidt on a 99 mph fastball then struck out Sean Burroughs.

Kimbrel's 39 saves lead the majors and are one behind the rookie record set by Texas' Neftali Feliz in 2010.

"I felt confident the whole time," Kimbrel said.

Arizona has lost a season-high five in a row and scored three runs in the three losses to Atlanta.

"We tried to make as much happen as we could," manager Kirk Gibson said. "We each got five hits (Sunday). They got a home run. They got seven home runs in three games. We hit none. That's uncharacteristic of us."

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Tigers 8, Indians 7

DETROIT — Centerfielder Austin Jackson threw out Kosuke Fukudome at the plate to complete a game-ending double play and the Tigers' three-game sweep. Delmon Young and Victor Martinez homered during Detroit's seven-run third.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Yankees 3, Twins 0

MINNEAPOLIS — Curtis Granderson hit his third career inside-the-park homer for the Yankees. In the seventh, he sent a shot high off the out-of-town scoreboard in right-center that got away from centerfielder Ben Revere and rightfielder Jason Kubel. Granderson easily beat the throw home. Mark Teixeira followed with a conventional homer to make it 3-0.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

White Sox 10, Rangers 0

CHICAGO — Brent Lillibridge and Alex Rios hit two-run homers for the White Sox. Lillibridge's shot in the third made it 2-0 and gave him 11 this year, matching Adam Dunn in 197 fewer at-bats. Dunn, who signed a four-year, $56 million deal during the offseason, is hitting .169 and sitting against lefties in favor of Lillibridge. Rios' homer made it 9-0 in the eighth. The Rangers have lost three of four after winning the first six games of their 10-game road trip.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Red Sox 6, Royals 1

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jason Varitek's first triple since June 24, 2007, lifted the Red Sox. With two outs and Jed Lowrie on second, Varitek's gapper rolled to the right-centerfield wall and made it 1-0. Jon Lester has allowed two runs and six hits in 13 innings over his past two starts, both wins. He is 5-1 with a 1.30 ERA in seven career starts against the Royals. That includes a no-hitter May 19, 2008.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Brewers 6, Mets 2

NEW YORK — Prince Fielder drove in the winning run on a botched double-play grounder for the Brewers. Fielder had eight RBIs in the sweep, including the tying one in the ninth Saturday and two in the sixth Sunday. With runners on first and third and no outs, he hit a grounder to second. But Justin Turner's throw to shortstop Ruben Tejada was low, allowing Nyjer Morgan to score.

Times wires
Sunday, August 21, 2011

Reds 5, Pirates 4

PITTSBURGH — The Reds scored two in the ninth off All-Star closer Joel Hanrahan. He had allowed only seven earned runs over 53 appearances entering the series. Friday, he allowed two (three runs overall) in taking the loss. He earned a save Saturday before blowing just his third in 34 chances this year.

By Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, August 21, 2011

TAMPA — New acquisition John McCargo participated in Sunday's morning practice, hoping it was the long-awaited start of something new.

Signing McCargo, a free agent inked Saturday to augment the depth on the defensive line, became necessary because the Bucs have been beset by injuries at defensive tackle in the past couple of weeks. With reserve E.J. Wilson going on injured reserve with an Achilles' injury and with Brian Price (pelvis) and Roy Miller (knee) still sidelined, the Bucs had a glaring need.

That worked in McCargo's favor. The Bucs have promised him nothing, but the Bills' 2006 first-round pick seeks a chance to revive his career. He at least has an opportunity to do so with the Bucs.

"He's a guy that's been followed (by the front office) since 2006," coach Raheem Morris said. "(General manager) Mark Dominik did a lot of work on him. (Defensive line coach) Keith Millard had a little familiarity with him. He's a guy who did a nice job working out and filled a role that we can use right now with the injury to E.J.

"Another guy that adds to the competition. Another guy to add to the mix."

McCargo said: "I'm excited to be here. I'm excited to have another opportunity to play this game. I'm just excited to be on the team. I'm going to come out here and work hard and try to make the squad.

"I'm looking at it like a potential new start. My career hasn't gone the way that I wanted it to go so far, but I'm looking forward to a fresh start. A new team and a new place. I'm going to go out there, go hard and be the player that I know I can be."

Morris said he hoped Price and Miller could return against the Dolphins on Saturday in the third preseason game, but he stopped short of making a prediction.

STOCKER RETURNS: Rookie TE Luke Stocker, who had not participated in a full practice since the second day of training camp because of a hip injury, finally had his restrictions lifted Sunday. He participated in a fairly physical workout conducted in shells (shoulders pads and shorts).

The goal is to get up to speed and get game action Saturday.

"It was my first day back, getting some pads on and getting a little (contact)," Stocker said. "With a few plays, I knocked the rust off. It felt good to be back out there. My plan is definitely to play this week, and I'm on the right pace to do that."

LIGHTEN UP: Morris defended second-year DT Gerald McCoy for his widely debated comments after Thursday's loss to the Patriots in which he playfully made light of New England's unexpectedly quick tempo by suggesting he wanted to say, "Um, Mr. (Tom) Brady, can we line up?"

McCoy was assailed on some Internet sites and radio programs for making light of what was an ugly performance by the Bucs.

Morris said that was unfair.

"It was a poor example of how you give a guy a compliment," Morris said. "He was kind of making a joke about Mr. Brady and the pace he sets. He's kind of like (Saints QB) Drew Brees in that manner. He was really giving him a compliment, and he was smiling about it and letting everybody know how good Tom Brady was. He was kind of making a joke, and that's kind of his personality.

"I just think it was taken out of context. It wasn't like we were in a playoff game and he was sitting on the sideline moping. He was bringing his team back and getting ready for the next game."

Stephen F. Holder can be reached at sholder@sptimes.com.

Preseason: Saturday: vs. Dolphins, 7:30 * | Sept. 1: at Redskins, 7:30

All games on Ch. 10 * subject to NFL blackout rules

By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, August 21, 2011

TAMPA — Bucs coach Raheem Morris didn't lose his temper. There was no volcanic eruption when addressing his team over the weekend, but he did let off a little steam.

Morris had planned to give Bucs players two days off. But after Thursday's 31-14 preseason meltdown against the New England Patriots, he scheduled practices for Saturday and Sunday.

The first workout was washed out by a thunderstorm and replaced by a weightlifting session. Sunday, Morris extended a 70-minute practice by half an hour and had players in helmets and shoulder pads.

"You get them in (the meeting room), and you cuss them out," Morris said. "We were going to have two days off, but after a loss like that, you want to get them back on the field as soon as possible.

"I wasn't upset about the stuff they missed because of scheme and things of that nature. What you get on them about is that we got beat physically. You never want to lose the one-on-one battles. That kind of sets the tone for the whole thing."

The Bucs trailed New England 28-0 at halftime and were ineffective on both sides of the ball while their starters were in the game. Some breakdowns came as a result of the Patriots' blitzes that the Bucs had not specifically prepared for during the week.

In addition to losing physical battles, the Bucs had too many mental errors and committed 10 penalties for 85 yards in the first half.

"One hundred percent, it was definitely needed," center Jeff Faine said of the weekend work. "It's something where we could knock a little of the cobwebs out and get it out of our system and get ready for Miami (on Saturday).

"The third game is always the greater game in the preseason, one we're going to prep for, and hopefully this practice was able to shake away the Pats game a little bit."

Quarterback Josh Freeman was responsible for both sacks Thursday by missing protection calls, and he failed to get the ball to receivers on hot reads in blitz situations. Morris said he challenged Bucs receivers to beat bump, man-to-man coverage. The loss of 14 organized workouts during the NFL lockout might be partly responsible for the lack of sharpness, and Morris predicts teams will blitz early and often this season.

"Josh held the ball because we've seen that he can do those things and make plays," Morris said. "He came to the sideline saying, 'I know, I know.' Last year, he knew Mike Williams was going to win those battles. You don't want to take that out of him. But he knew he held on to it too long."

On Sunday, the Bucs had an extended blitz period with the starting offense against the starting defense. After a couple of long days of practice and meetings that followed the short night Thursday, Faine said the Bucs were refocused.

"It wasn't that we had 10 penalties because we didn't game plan," Faine said. "It wasn't that they brought anything exotic that we hadn't seen before, either. It was stuff we should've been able to pick up all day long, and it was stuff we should've been able to see, and we just didn't get it done.

"We're going to bounce back. It was a good practice (Sunday)."

Morris said the Bucs will prepare more for the third preseason game against the Dolphins and starters should play into the third quarter. While the outcome still won't count, how the team performs means something.

"This is the most important game of the preseason, I believe," Faine said. "Obviously, you don't want to hear that coming out of a player's mouth. It is. It's the one we're going to play the most amount of time. We (starters) won't get many reps in the fourth game, if any. So this is kind of the last opportunity to play under the lights and get ready for the regular season."