AFP - Andy Roddick will be out to prove that missing the Beijing Olympics was a wise choice as he bids for his third title of the season in a Sunday final against Juan del Potro at the Los Angeles Classic.

AFP - They say the second season is always harder than the first, but if that's true, Sunderland fans are in for a pretty miserable time of it.

AP - Dioner Navarro hit a sacrifice fly to score Ben Zobrist in the 11th inning and the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays beat the Seattle Mariners 8-7 Saturday night, matching the franchise's most wins for a season with 70.

AFP - Chinese national team member Sun Yue has agreed to terms on a contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, the National Basketball Association club announced on Saturday.

AP - If first impressions are any indication, the San Diego Chargers should be pleased with rookie Jacob Hester.

AP - All it took was one record-tying round and several claps of thunder for Oakland Hills to finally look vulnerable Saturday in the PGA Championship.

AP - Brett Favre got a standing ovation from an overflow crowd that went to great lengths to get a good look at the New York Jets' newest quarterback Saturday. He was cheered again when he completed his first pass of practice.

AP - Michael Phelps powered to the wall and whipped around to get his time, so eager to see another amazing set of numbers that he bumped his head on the end of the pool.

AP - Justin Leonard is among 11 players who have made the cut in all four majors this year, but he holds one dubious distinction among such a select group.

AFP - Olympic absentee Andy Roddick's decision to give the Beijing Games a wide berth seems not to have been in vain after the American top seed reached the semi-finals of the ATP Los Angeles Classic on Friday.

AFP - Andrius Velicka helped Rangers recover from their Champions League humiliation as his second half strike clinched a 1-0 win against Falkirk on Saturday.