Sports in 2 Minutes

From The Associated Press

Diamondbacks trade for Nationals reliever

PHOENIX—The Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday acquired right-hander Jon Rauch from the Washington Nationals on in a trade for second baseman Emilio Bonifacio.

Rauch, who took over as the Nationals closer when Chad Cordero injured his shoulder in April, was 4-2 with a 2.98 ERA. The 29-year-old Rauch was 17 of 22 in save opportunities.

Injuries to Juan Cruz and Doug Slaten have forced Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin to use starter Micah Owings in a relief role on Monday.

Rauch, who made $1.2 million this year, is set to make $2 million next season and there is a club option for 2010 at $2.9 million.

Bonifacio entered the season as Arizona’s No. 6 prospect, according to Baseball America. The speedy 23-year-old second baseman from the Dominican Republic was recalled by the Diamondbacks on July 4, and was 2-for-12 in eight games. He hit .302 in 85 games for the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders, with 18 doubles, five triples, a home run, 29 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.

Powell beats Bolt in 100-meter race

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Asafa Powell capitalized on Usain Bolt’s weak start and edged the world-record holder by one-hundredth of a second, leading from start to finish in the 100 meters at the DN Galan meet on Tuesday.

Powell, the former world-record holder, won their highly anticipated rematch in 9.88 seconds. Bolt, who was slow out of the blocks, nearly caught his fellow Jamaican at the finish line. Third went to Norwegian Jaysuma Saidy Ndure in 10.06.

The win was a measure of revenge for Powell, after losing to his close friend Bolt at Jamaica’s Olympic Trials last month.

“I was really happy with the race,” Powell said. “My goal was to win. My start was quick and fast. And the speed stayed with me through the finish.

“I’m really looking forward to the Olympics.”

Bolt set the world record of 9.72 in New York on May 31, breaking Powell’s mark of 9.74.

Dungy: Tough to keep Manning on sidelines

INDIANAPOLIS—Tony Dungy is certain Peyton Manning’s left knee will be ready for the Colts’ season-opener.

The Colts coach said Tuesday he was optimistic the biggest question heading into training camp — Manning’s valuable knee — could be resolved quicker than most people expect. Manning had surgery last week to remove an infected bursa sac, a procedure doctors said would require four to six weeks to heal.

“I have talked to Peyton, and we’re just following the doctors instructions right now,” Dungy said. “I’m hoping for four weeks, but if he’s truly out six weeks, I think it will be hard to keep him out. However it goes, he’ll be ready when he comes back.”

Over the past decade Manning has earned a reputation as one of the league’s best and most durable quarterbacks. He has started all 160 regular-season games in his 10-year career, the second-longest streak of any quarterback in NFL history behind Brett Favre’s record of 253.

USA Track president: Do not pardon Jones

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The new leader at USA Track and Field sent a letter to President Bush asking him to deny Marion Jones’ request to commute her six-month prison sentence for lying to federal agents about her use of performance-enhancing drugs and a check-fraud scam.

“As the new CEO of USA Track & Field, I have a moral and practical duty to make the case against her request,” Doug Logan wrote in an open letter to the president, delivered Tuesday.

Jones was sentenced in January to six months in prison and 400 hours of community service in each of the two years after her release.

After repeatedly denying that she used performance-enhancing drugs, Jones admitted last October she had lied to federal investigators in November 2003. Jones also admitted lying about her knowledge of the involvement of Tim Montgomery, the father of her older son and a former 100-meter world-record holder, in a scheme to cash millions of dollars worth of stolen or forged checks.

She was sentenced to six months on the steroids case and two months on the check-fraud case, but is serving those sentences concurrently.

“With her cheating and lying, Marion Jones did everything she could to violate the principles of track and field and Olympic competition,” Logan wrote. “When she came under scrutiny for doping, she taunted any who doubted her purity, talent and work ethic. Just as she had succeeded in duping us with her performances, she duped many people into giving her the benefit of the doubt.”

Jones is on the list of the hundreds of convicted felons who have applied for presidential pardons or sentence commutations.

A-Rod signs deal with talent agency

NEW YORK—Alex Rodriguez signed another big-league contract, joining the William Morris Agency in an attempt to extend his brand beyond the baseball diamond.

The New York Yankees slugger signed with the powerhouse talent agency in Beverly Hills, Calif., and becomes part of a client list that includes some of the biggest names in sports, entertainment and business.

“Partnering with William Morris will enable me to broaden the scope of my career in creative and innovative ways,” Rodriguez said in a statement. “I’m excited to see what we will be able to accomplish together, both domestically and abroad.”

At Yankee Stadium, hours before New York played the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night, Rodriguez did not want to discuss his arrangement with William Morris.

“Just baseball questions,” he said while dressing at his locker before batting practice. “I just want to win baseball games.”

Schleck holds lead in Tour de France

JAUSIERS, France—Frank Schleck of Luxembourg kept the yellow jersey in the Tour de France on Tuesday, with riders pushing themselves through the Alps as the race left Italy and returned to France.

French rider Cyril Dessel won the 16th stage for his first stage victory in this race. He led a breakaway group of four to a downhill finish, completing the 98-mile trip from Cuneo, Italy, in 4 hours, 31 minutes, 27 seconds.

Schleck refrained from attacking during the mountain climbs, choosing to stay with his closest rivals. He finished 1 minute, 28 seconds behind Desseland but gained ground on two rivals — Russia’s Denis Menchov and Christian Vande Velde, an American contending in a major three-week race for the first time.

Bernhard Kohl of Austria remains second overall, seven seconds behind, and pre-race favorite Cadel Evans of Australia is third, eight seconds back. Carlos Sastre, a CSC teammate of Schleck, is fourth, 49 seconds behind.