Twins' spin: Liriano in, Hernandez out

The Twins made a change in their rotation, promoting lefthander Francisco Liriano from Triple A Rochester and designating veteran Livan Hernandez for assignment. Liriano was 10-2 with a 3.28 ERA in the minors, while Hernandez, the Twins' Opening Day starter, was 10-8 with a 5.48 ERA. Also designated was outfielder Craig Monroe . . . Yankees manager Joe Girardi pretty much ended speculation that injured ace Chien-Ming Wang (foot) might return in early September. "Oct. 1 is possible," said Girardi, who added that he wouldn't hesitate to throw Wang back into the rotation just as soon as he's ready to go, pennant race or not. The Yankees also reinstated reliever Brian Bruney from the 60-day disabled list and optioned reliever Chris Britton to Triple A Scranton/Wilkes Barre . . . Padres shortstop Khalil Greene was placed on the 15-day DL with a broken left hand, two days after he punched a wall near San Diego dugout. He's out at least 6-8 weeks . . . The Rangers, who have the AL's worst ERA, fired pitching coach Mark Connor and bullpen coach Dom Chiti, and named Andy Hawkins and Jim Colborn as their respective replacements . . . Parkway National, the Massachusetts entry from West Roxbury, scored 10 runs in the first inning and routed Williston, Vt., 11-1, in the first game of the Little League East Region tournament in Bristol, Conn.

For Rafael Nadal, moving up to No. 1 is just a matter of time. The 22-year-old Spaniard made a change at the top inevitable by advancing to the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters in Mason, Ohio. He beat Nicolas Lapentti, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1, for his 32d straight win, setting up a seismic shift in the world rankings. Even if Nadal doesn't win the tournament, he has enough points to overtake Roger Federer when the rankings come out Aug. 18. Nadal has been ranked second behind Federer for 158 straight weeks. Also advancing were Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, and Ivo Karlovic . . . Jelena Jankovic lost out on another opportunity to claim the world No. 1 ranking as she was upset by 19-year-old Dominika Cibulkova, 7-5, 6-2, at the Rogers Cup quarterfinals in Montreal. Jankovic could have claimed the top spot from Ana Ivanovic had she reached the final. Instead, she missed her fourth chance to become No. 1 since June.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban must immediately pay Don Nelson $6.3 million, an arbitrator ruled in settling a long-running battle over the former Dallas coach's compensation package. Nelson, now Golden State's coach, claimed the money was owed to him from his time with the Mavericks from 1997-2005. The arbitrator, retired Judge Glen M. Ashworth, also rejected Cuban's claim that Nelson used "confidential information" to help the Warriors upset the top-seeded Mavericks in the first round of the 2007 playoffs . . . Mavericks forward Josh Howard was arrested in his hometown of Winston-Salem, N.C., for drag racing. Howard was charged with speeding 94 miles per hour in a 55-m.p.h. zone, careless and reckless driving, and speed competition . . . The Clippers and forward Nick Fazekas have agreed to the withdrawal of the team's qualifying offer from June 25.

Jimmie Johnson won his second pole in a row and third of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, knocking Mark Martin off the top spot in qualifying for tomorrow's Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond. Martin turned a lap of 167.560 m.p.h. that looked like it probably would hold up for his first pole since 2001. But Johnson posted a sizzling 168.215 . . . Georgia received 22 first-place votes in the USA Today preseason football poll, eight more than both Southern Cal and Ohio State, but the overall voting was much closer. The No. 1 Bulldogs finished with 438 points, followed by the Trojans at 430 and the Buckeyes at 392 . . . Trainers of horses that test positive for anabolic steroids at the Breeders' Cup in October will face a one-year suspension from the event, and three-time violators will be banned for life, according to new rules announced.