http://www.ajc.com The latest headlines from AJC en-us Copyright 2008, Cox Newspapers Inc., AJC Sat, 10 May 2008 16:47:40 EDT Newspapers COXnet RSS Generator v1.0 http://img.coxnewsweb.com/C/08/17/52/image_1352178.jpg http://www.ajc.com 5 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/falcons/stories/2008/05/10/ryan_0511.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/falcons/stories/2008/05/10/ryan_0511.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Sat, 10 May 2008 16:37:53 EDT Flowery Branch — No. 3 overall pick Matt Ryan made his debut, working as a backup with Shockley, to quarterbacks Chris Redman and Joey Harrington. Ryan wore a brace on his left knee, which he said he wears for precautionary reasons. Ryan said coaches at Boston College made quarterbacks wear braces on their plant legs, and he wears the support out of habit. "It's going to be a process for him," Smith said. "It's going to be a process for all these guys, all these guys we drafted. That first day is something that they'll always remember." Added Ryan: "When you dream about professional football, you don't dream about practicing. You dream about playing well in a game. So I never really dreamt about my first professional practice. It went very well." http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/falcons/stories/2008/05/10/falnotes_0511.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/falcons/stories/2008/05/10/falnotes_0511.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Sat, 10 May 2008 16:34:58 EDT Flowery Branch — Several veteran players recovering from injuries took part in the Falcons' first mandatory mini-camp on Saturday. Tailback Michael Turner (shoulder) and linebacker Michael Boley (ankle) participated in most drills after being medically withheld from a voluntary mini-camp in April. Quarterback D.J. Shockley and wide receiver Brian Finneran, both trying to make comebacks from season-ending knee injuries, went through the majority of the dual practice sessions. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/thrashers/stories/2008/05/10/waddell_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/thrashers/stories/2008/05/10/waddell_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Sat, 10 May 2008 11:49:56 EDT The Thrashers are looking to add to their front office but any speculation that Don Waddell is being asked to step down from his general manager position are completely false, said Atlanta Spirit co-owner Michael Gearon Jr. Gearon said that the organization has considered promoting Don Waddell to a position higher up in the Atlanta Spirit, but that any job change would not strip Waddell of power. "I would look at it as a promotion, not a demotion," Gearon said when reached on his cell Saturday morning. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/elam_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/elam_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 23:28:33 EDT Riviera Beach, Fla. — The older brother of New York Jets safety Abram Elam was fatally shot, the third sibling in the family to die by gunfire since 1987. Riviera Beach police officers were called to the scene of a shooting at about 12:35 p.m. Friday, and found Donald Charles Elam shot in the lower back, according to a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office news release. Donald Elam, 33, was taken to a hospital and later pronounced dead. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/braves_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/braves_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 23:26:45 EDT Pittsburgh — They insist it hasn't become a mental block, but it's natural to start wondering about these Braves and their mounting road woes. And then there's the utter lack of support for Tom Glavine. ... And don't forget the one-run-game thing. ... http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/bravesnotes_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/bravesnotes_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 21:41:13 EDT Pittsburgh — Chuck James already has gone back and forth between Class AAA Richmond and the majors three times this season and put an awful lot of miles on one unfortunate pair of slacks. Seems the notoriously carefree left-hander got separated from his suitcase the last time he was sent down to the minors. He decided to make do with the pants he had until reunited with his luggage. "I don't plan good enough for going up and going down this much," James said Friday, after catching a morning flight from Louisville to Pittsburgh, where he will start Saturday against Pittsburgh in the second game of a four-game series. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/bravesinjuries_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/bravesinjuries_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 21:41:12 EDT Pittsburgh — Rafael Soriano is expected to throw a bullpen session this weekend, the first big test of the closer's right elbow since an MRI and bone scan Wednesday revealed no structural damage. Soriano played catch Friday at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Manager Bobby Cox didn't know if John Smoltz would be cleared to begin light throwing this weekend, or if the Braves will have him wait a while longer. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/patrick_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/patrick_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 20:29:53 EDT Indianapolis — Danica Patrick's car struck Dale Coyne Racing chief mechanic Chuck Buckman during a practice session Friday for the Indianapolis 500. Patrick was pulling her No. 7 Dallara/Honda into her pit box when she hit Buckman, who was tossed into the air and appeared to strike his head on the left rear tire of Patrick's car and then the pavement. Buckman was taken to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, suffering from a concussion, scalp lacerations and facial cuts, said a Speedway spokesman. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/uga/stories/2008/05/09/gators_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/uga/stories/2008/05/09/gators_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 20:07:13 EDT Gainesville — A Florida football player was kicked off the team Friday after turning himself in on charges he used the gas credit card of a woman who was killed along with another player in a motorcycle accident. Jamar Hornsby, a 21-year-old junior safety, learned Thursday that a judge had issued a warrant for his arrest on charges he used the dead woman's gas card for six months, so he surrendered on charges of credit card theft and fraudulent use of a credit card, lawyer Huntley Johnson said. Hornsby was released from jail several hours later on his own recognizance. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/maggert_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/maggert_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 17:06:49 EDT Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. — Jeff Maggert withdrew from The Players Championship, telling tournament officials that his brother died in a small plane crash in Colorado en route to his son's college graduation. The Gilpin County (Colo.) Sheriff's office said one man died and a 23-year-old passenger was injured Thursday afternoon when the single-engine plane crashed into a snowy mountain in Black Hawk, about 40 miles west of Denver. The Aspen Daily News reported the 1965 Cessna 1982 was co-owned by Barry Maggert and Carroll Winkler, who said that Maggert was flying the plane to Boulder for his son's graduation from the University of Colorado. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/mercker_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/09/mercker_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 16:58:53 EDT Reliever Kent Mercker was put on the 15-day disabled list Friday by the Cincinnati Reds because of lower back pain. The move was made retroactive to Tuesday, before the start of its series at the New York Mets. The Reds recalled left-hander Bill Bray from Triple-A Louisville. Bray didn't allow a run in four appearances for the Reds from April 28-May 4. He was 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA and one save in nine relief outings at Louisville. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/edmonds_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/stories/2008/05/09/edmonds_0510.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Fri, 9 May 2008 16:55:23 EDT Center fielder Jim Edmonds has been released by the San Diego Padres after his batting average dipped to .178 and he struggled to track down fly balls he once easily caught. The 37-year-old Edmonds, acquired in a December trade with the St. Louis Cardinals, strained his right calf in early March and started the season on the disabled list. Activated on April 5, he went 16-for-90 with just one home and six RBIs. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/braves_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/braves_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Thu, 8 May 2008 18:57:30 EDT It might have been the last place the Braves thought to look for their first one-run win of the season — the rubble of a game where the Turner Field mojo had given way to what looked like a plague on their house. Both Jo-Jo Reyes and Buddy Carlyle had to leave the game with injuries, and they were the reinforcements. But five Braves relievers allowed only one run in the last 4 1/3 innings and set up the Braves for their first ninth-inning heroics of the season. Matt Diaz hit a walk-off single to left field with the bases loaded to bring the Braves a 5-4 victory over the Padres. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/smoltz_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/smoltz_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Thu, 8 May 2008 18:39:18 EDT John Smoltz said the pain in his shoulder has mostly subsided in 10 days of rest, and after a couple of days more he'll be ready to pick up a ball again by Sunday in Pittsburgh. He'll start by playing catch and eventually work up to a minor league rehabilitation assignment. Smoltz is gearing up to return as a reliever, he said, some time before the end of the month. "Something starting with a '2'," Smoltz said. "One of those days." The first day with a "2 in it" is May 20 and that's the first of a three-game series against the Mets at Turner Field. That might be pushing it for Smoltz, but he's definitely improved in the last four or five days. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/bravesnot_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/05/08/bravesnot_0509.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=21 Thu, 8 May 2008 18:39:17 EDT In the midst of facing five left-handed pitchers in a six-day span, the Braves went ahead and activated super utility player Omar Infante from the disabled list Thursday a few days earlier than they first planned. Infante started at second base and went 1-for-3 with a single in his debut as a Brave. He also started a nice double play to save Jo-Jo Reyes a run in the first inning. He got a month-late start on the season because of a broken hand suffered in winter ball in his native Venezuela.