FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Any report of a mass-produced, league-approved Brett Favre Minnesota Vikings jersey is premature, an NFL spokesman said Thursday. "We wait until there is a player contract that has been approved; then we begin mass producing them," league spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "But nothing has transpired from here." First, a signed Favre contract with the Vikings would have to be delivered to the league and players union. Then, the league and union would have to approve any mass-produced official NFL jersey by Reebok. It is believed that Reebok already has prepared screens of a Favre Vikings jersey, just as it would for the teams in the Super Bowl. That way, as soon as the league approves a contract, Reebok immediately can begin filling orders. If Favre does not sign, though, the screen for mass production would be destroyed.

St. Paul Pioneer Press

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As for trading Cliff Lee or Victor Martinez, the Indians would consider it, but the return would have to be staggering. More than anything, it would have to ensure that the Indians would at least be competitive next year. What team in its right mind would make a deal that not only ruins what remains of this season, but next season as well? Teams have expressed interest, but nothing has caught Mark Shapiro's fancy.

Cleveland Plain Dealer

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The Celtics are putting a full-court press on Rasheed Wallace. Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce joined president of basketball operations Danny Ainge and managing partner Wyc Grousbeck for a three-hour meeting with Wallace in Detroit yesterday, the Celtics offering a contract using their midlevel exception. But Wallace is apparently in no hurry to respond, preferring to weigh approaches from Charlotte, Cleveland, Orlando, and San Antonio, according to an NBA source.

Boston Globe

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The Senators might not let Dany Heatley take the money and run after he turned down a deal to the Edmonton Oilers. While owner Eugene Melnyk, who paid a $4-million US bonus to the unhappy star, hasn't indicated he'll take any legal action, the Senators have talked about their options with NHL headquarters in New York. The Senators say they'd been given permission by Heatley's agents, Stacey McAlpine and J.P. Barry, to make a deal with the Oilers. Edmonton wasn't on the list of eight to 10 preferred desintations submitted by the agents, but GM Bryan Murray said he wouldn't pursue a deal without permission from the Heatley camp, which he claims he received.

Toronto Sun

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Sto-Rox senior wide receiver Andrew Carswell made a verbal commitment to Pitt, giving the Panthers seven players from the Class of 2010 in the past 11 days. Carswell had offers from several schools, including Michigan, Michigan State, Boston College, Syracuse, Maryland, Duke, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, North Carolina State and Stanford.

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

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Sal Zizzo is undergoing a physical at Fortuna Dusseldorf and is expected to sign a one-year loan deal with the 2nd Bundesliga club within the day. The Rhine-based club also confirmed negotiations with the former UCLA Bruin, but warned that they were still awaiting his final decision about the mov

yanks-abroad.com

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Former UFC light heavyweight champ Quinton "Rampage" Jackson has never been shy about expressing love for his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee, and it appears that it might be their turn to reciprocate. According to Rampage, he will be facing his opposing The Ultimate Fighter Season 10 coach, Rashad Evans, right in his own backyard. Jackson recently announced on a YouTube clip featuring his friend, Computer, from MTV's Three Six Mafia Hollyhood, that he would be entertaining his neighbors this Holiday season. "We fightin' in Memphis baby, in December," Rampage stated. "We fightin' in December!"

fightline

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NASCAR drivers wondered aloud how Jeremy Mayfield won an injunction to return to the sport following his positive drug test result, but most stopped short of saying they feared for their safety Thursday during interviews from Daytona International Speedway.

SceneDaily.com

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Tiger Woods first tried the shot in competition during the third round at the Memorial, choking up on the grip of his driver about 2 inches, and he pulled it off to perfection. He used it again on the eighth hole Thursday in the first round of the AT&T National. It soon might become a regular part of his repertoire, much like the "stinger" he made popular with a 2-iron and later a 3-wood. Woods said he began working on the shot a few months ago, and the idea is to give him a range that is a little less than a full driver, and a little more than a full 3-wood. The eighth hole played 341 yards on Thursday, a slightly elevated green that makes it nearly impossible to drive, but Woods wanted to take the bunkers out of play.

Associated Press

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Germany's Tommy Haas grew up watching Wimbledon masterclasses from compatriots Boris Becker and Steffi Graf, now after 11 years of trying the 31-year-old is finally enjoying some of the limelight himself. "You want to try to maybe accomplish some of the stuff they have, but it's not an easy task," Haas said on Wednesday after reaching his first Wimbledon semi-final by beating Serbia's fourth seed Novak Djokovic. "Obviously Steffi had such great success here. I was watching Boris when I was young. Every year I was looking forward to watching it on TV, him playing Wimbledon." Haas, winner at Halle in June and unbeaten on grass this season, continues to enjoy something of a purple patch at the All England Club after a career riddled by injuries and setbacks. "The year I would have been maybe third seed here (at Wimbledon in 2002), when I was three in the world, my parents had a really bad motorcycle accident so I skipped that year," the 24th seed added. "Then when I had a pretty good decent draw where I felt I could get far in the draw, I stepped on a ball in a warm-up." Saving two match points on his way to a mammoth five-set victory over Croatia's Marin Cilic would suggest this time around fortune has not deserted him.

Reuters

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