AP - Joe Torre is no longer bombarded by questions about his boss, no longer caught up in the New York tumult. One constant remains for him, though: October baseball.

AP - Chase Utley bristled at the repeated questions, Jimmy Rollins shooed away anyone who tried to ask.

AFP - Venus Williams was cool as ice in needing just over an hour to see off German Anna-Lena Groenefeld and reach the second round at the WTA event in Stuttgart Tuesday.

AP - Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar will have arthroscopic surgery on his dislocated left shoulder Thursday and miss four to six months of the upcoming season.

AFP - Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted that his side's comfortable victory over Aalborg could carry a high price after two key players picked up injuries in the Champions League stroll.

AP - Mike D'Antoni stood near the sideline Tuesday with arms folded, smiling as he watched players speed by during full-court drills. At that moment, he might've been the only one in the gym enjoying himself.

AP - Brian Cashman figures he has more work to do with the New York Yankees. After a sustained run of success, he wasn't about to leave on the heels of a failed season. Cashman is staying on as general manager of the Yankees, agreeing Tuesday to a three-year contract that runs through 2011.

AP - Phillies outfielder Pat Burrell left Tuesday's workout because of discomfort in his lower back, a day before Philadelphia opens the NL playoffs. The Phillies and Milwaukee play Game 1 on Wednesday afternoon. Burrell will be checked before the game.

AP - The Oakland Raiders fired Lane Kiffin on Tuesday just four games into his second season, ending a public feud with owner Al Davis that had been simmering since the start of the year.