Warrants detail search of Fine’s NY home, office
ALBANY, N.Y. — Court records unsealed Monday show federal investigators were looking for pornography that could be used “to sexually arouse or groom young males” for sex when they searched the home, office and locker of former Syracuse University assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine.
Fine was fired Nov. 27 after three men accused him of molesting them when they were boys.
Search warrants show investigators also were looking for documents, pictures, computer records and travel records that would detail Fine’s contact with boys. The investigators took computers, cameras, compact discs, film and phones, among other things.
The 65-year-old Fine has denied wrongdoing, calling the allegations “patently false.” He has declined further comment.
Authorities are investigating whether Fine took minors across state lines for sex, which is a felony. He could be charged should investigators find child pornography in his possession.
Federal prosecutors and investigators have declined to comment publicly in the ongoing investigation. Fine’s attorneys were not immediately available Monday.
49ers’ Patrick Willis undergoes MRI on injured hamstring
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Four-time Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Willis underwent an MRI exam Monday on his injured right hamstring and his status for Sunday’s game at Arizona was unclear.
Coach Jim Harbaugh said he didn’t know the severity of Willis’ injury or whether it could sideline him for NFC West champion San Francisco (10-2), which clinched its first division title and playoff berth since 2002 with a 26-0 win over the St. Louis Rams on Sunday.
“Nothing to share,” Harbaugh said. “I’m not in Patrick’s body. It’s hard to say with any injury, including a hamstring. … I guess I was more relieved that it wasn’t a knee. That area that they were working on — I was concerned about that, for Patrick and for our team.”
Willis landed awkwardly after missing a tackle on fullback Brit Miller during an 18-yard completion from A.J. Feeley with 4:28 left in the first quarter. Willis was briefly down before being helped off the field by trainers. He watched the rest of the game in a sweat suit.
Willis, the heart of the team’s top-ranked run defense, has 93 tackles, two sacks, a career-best four forced fumbles and an interception. In May 2010, he received a $50 million, five-year contract extension that takes him through the 2016 season and includes $29 million in guaranteed money. He earns $10 million per season.
MLB average salary up 2.7 percent to $3.1 million
DALLAS — The average major league salary increased 2.7 percent this year to nearly $3.1 million, the largest rise since 2008.
The 913 players on Aug. 31 rosters and disabled lists averaged $3,095,183, the Major League Baseball Players Association said Monday in its annual report, up from $3,014,572 last year when the average topped $3 million for the first time.
The average figures to go up next year, with the minimum salary rising from $414,000 to $480,000 under the new labor contract.
The New York Yankees had the highest average salary for the 13th consecutive season, but at $6.54 million it declined for the second straight year, down from a peak of $7.66 million when they won the World Series in 2009.
Philadelphia was second at $6.44 million, followed by Boston ($5.21 million), the Los Angeles Angels ($4.58 million) and the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals ($4.47 million). AL champion Texas was 15th at $3.01 million.
Among other playoff teams, Detroit was ninth at $3.96 million, Milwaukee 11th at $3.41 million, Arizona 22nd at $2.12 million and Tampa Bay 28th at $1.54 million. Commissioner Bud Selig has pointed out several times that changes to baseball’s labor contract in recent years have increased competitive balance.
Kansas City was last at $1.34 million, just behind San Diego at $1.35 million. Pittsburgh, which was last in 2010, rose to 27th at $1.73 million.
Among regulars at positions, designated hitters took over as the highest average at $9.3 million, followed by first basemen at $8.9 million. With the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez spending time on the disabled list and failing to play 100 games at third base, that position’s average dropped from $6.5 million to $5.2 million.
Outfielders were at $5.6 million, second basemen $5.2 million, starting pitchers $4.9 million, shortstops $3.9 million, catchers $2.6 million and relief pitchers $1.9 million.
The commissioner’s office will not determine its final figures for a few weeks. Management’s numbers usually differ slightly because of different methods of calculation.
Vikings’ Ponderhas hip pointer; ‘should be fine’
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder has a hip pointer after taking a hard hit early in Sunday’s game against Denver.
Ponder was seen favoring his left leg when he scrambled or walked back to the huddle and clutching his right side in discomfort during the game, though coach Leslie Frazier didn’t specify.
The coach said Monday that Ponder’s injury was the one the Vikings are “most concerned about” this week, but he added later that trainers told him the rookie “should be fine” for this Sunday’s game against Detroit.
“He’s a guy that has relied on his mobility at times, and they can be a little tricky,” Frazier said.
Frazier said Joe Webb would play if Ponder couldn’t. The Vikings signed Sage Rosenfels last week as their third-stringer, but he’s not “at that point” yet with the offense where he can start.
Running back Adrian Peterson could return from a two-game absence due to a sprained left ankle. Frazier said the team believes “he’s very close.” The Vikings will have a better indication about Peterson’s progress once they return to practice Wednesday.
Linebacker Chad Greenway hyper-extended his right elbow late in the game, but Frazier said he will probably recover in time to play this week. Defensive end Brian Robison suffered and concussion and will have to be evaluated throughout the week. Tight end Visanthe Shiancoe showed up with a swollen hand, but X-rays showed no break.
Canucks’ Higgins to miss Tuesday game
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Vancouver Canucks forward Chris Higgins will miss Tuesday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche because of a staph infection in his foot.
“(Higgins) came in (Monday) morning. His foot was all swollen up,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “According to what he’s telling us, he had the same thing happen to him last year in Florida. Initially there, I think he missed six or seven games. They thought it was a skate bite, and then they thought it was a spider bite and then they finally figured out that it was a staph infection.”
Vigneault said Higgins was due to visit an infection specialist Monday. The Canucks have recalled Viktor Oreskovich from Chicago of the AHL to take Higgins’ spot in the lineup.
“Hopefully, with their experience in the past, they can get this under control real quick,” Vigneault said. “What I saw with his foot (Monday), I don’t think he’s going to play (Tuesday). But, hopefully, (his absence) won’t be long.”
The 28-year-old Higgins, a native of Smithtown, N.Y., had a goal and two assists in Sunday’s 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames to extend his points streak to four games.
With 17 points, he is on his way to surpassing the 23 he produced last season with Florida and the Canucks, who acquired him at the trade deadline to help with their run to the Stanley Cup finals.
Roy Jones to fight for vacant cruiserweight title
ATLANTA — Georgia’s Secretary of State Brian Kemp says 42-year-old Roy Jones Jr., a former world champion in several divisions, will fight Max Alexander for the vacant Universal Boxing Organization’s intercontinental cruiserweight title on Saturday at the Atlanta Civic Center.
The fight is sanctioned by the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, a division of the Secretary of State’s Office.
In 1993, Jones, who is 54-8 overall, won his first world title in the IBF’s middleweight class. In 1994 he won the IBF super middleweight crown and successfully defended his title five times.
In 1996 he won the WBC light heavyweight title. In 2003, he won the WBA heavyweight championship, defeating John Ruiz in Las Vegas.
Alexander is a 30-year-old cruiserweight from Camden, N.J., with a ring record of 14-5.