Martínez: I'm keeping up with Clemens

May 26, 2007

Baseball
Pedro Martínez took a brief break in his rehabilitation regimen to join the Mets yesterday in Miami for the start of their weekend series at Florida. Recovering from rotator cuff surgery, he remains on schedule to return in August. The 35-year-old righthander said he's tossing balls 230 feet and said his comeback compared favorably with the return of another New York pitcher, Roger Clemens, who expects to soon rejoin the Yankees. "I saw Roger pitch the other day," Martínez said. "Without a doubt I can do that, and probably even better. I feel like I'm in better condition. Roger doesn't seem to be like he's supposed to be -- the Roger I'm used to seeing, that's not him. I can respect that, because it's so early." . . . Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay threw 65 pitches in a simulated game, continuing his comeback from an appendectomy that sent him to the disabled list two weeks ago.

Atlanta Braves reliever Mike Gonzalez will be out for the rest of the season and likely until next summer after learning he must have elbow ligament-replacement surgery . . . Florida Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez served a one-game suspension for going onto the field during a bench-clearing confrontation with the Phillies Thursday, one inning after he had been ejected for arguing a call . . . The Phillies activated first baseman Ryan Howard (quadriceps) and placed closer Brett Myers on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right shoulder . . . Braves Single A infielder Brandon Monk was suspended for 50 games following a positive test for a performance-enhancing drug.

Tennis

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova was upset by Aravane Rezai, 6-2, 6-4, in the semifinals of the Istanbul Cup in Turkey. Rezai, 20, will meet Elena Dementieva in today's final . . . Top-seeded Amelie Mauresmo defeated Marion Bartoli, 6-3, 6-7 (7-1), 6-3, to reach the final of the Strasbourg International in France, her third final of the season. Anabel Medina Garrigues also advanced when second-seeded Jelena Jankovic withdrew because of a stomach illness . . . Gael Monfils upset fourth-seeded Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4, 7-5, to advance to the final of the Hypo Group International in Poertschach, Austria. He will play Juan Monaco, who ousted Luis Horna, 6-4, 6-4.

Miscellany

The Lizards outscored the Boston Cannons, 7-2, down the stretch to earn a 16-12 win in host Long Island's Major League Lacrosse season opener. Matt Poskay led the Cannons (1-2) with three goals and an assist . . . In WNBA action, Diana Taurasi scored 37 points, including 10 during a key three-minute stretch of the third quarter, to lead host Phoenix to a 111-85 win over Houston. Elsewhere, Candice Dupree matched her career high with 25 points and Chicago beat host Minnesota, 82-77, and Becky Hammon scored 21 points to lead host San Antonio to an 82-71 win over Seattle . . . Kelly Jo Dowd, a cancer-stricken mother whose dream of seeing her teen daughter Dakoda play in an LPGA event was realized last spring, died. She was 42. Obituary, E29 . . . Duke became the second school in NCAA history to win three straight women's golf titles, holding off Purdue by 15 strokes in Daytona Beach, Fla., for its fifth team title in nine years . . . Florida A&M basketball coach Mike Gillespie Sr. was jailed in Tallahassee on a misdemeanor stalking charge . . . Marzio Bruseghin won the 13th stage individual time trial of the Giro d'Italia, and Danilo Di Luca finished third to retain the overall lead . . . Defending Giro d'Italia champion Ivan Basso should be banned from cycling for 21 months because of his involvement in the Spanish doping scandal, Italian Olympic Committee prosecutors recommended . . . The US Anti-Doping Agency announced the two-year suspension of Joe Papp, one of the agency's key witnesses in its doping case against Tour de France winner Floyd Landis. Papp, a midlevel pro who has never raced in the Tour de France, testified to his long pattern of drug use and said it was common for cyclists to use synthetic testosterone to aid recovery.