IN BRIEF

BASEBALL

Judge: Clemens' defense team
broke rule by contacting jurors

A judge said Wednesday that ex-baseball star Roger Clemens' defense team violated court orders by contacting jurors after his mistrial.

U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton is sending a letter to the jurors assuring them the court did not provide their contact information but asking if they now will speak with prosecutors.

Prosecutors asked permission to contact them after discovering they spoke to a defense investigator. The prosecutors also asked the judge to require the defense to turn over its interview notes, but Clemens' attorneys argued against doing so. Walton ruled that prosecutors must file a motion by Sept. 30 citing legal authority for him to issue such an order.

The 12 jurors and four alternates only sat for two days in the perjury trial before prosecutors showed them inadmissible evidence, resulting in the mistrial. A new trial is set for April.

Clemens is accused of lying under oath when he testified before Congress in February 2008 that he never used performance-enhancing drugs during his storied pitching career.

Also: Former New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles for allegedly exposing himself to women he met on Craigslist.

Dykstra, 48, is accused of exposing himself to women who responded to ads for personal assistants and housekeepers between 2009 and 2011.

BASKETBALL

NBA owners, players ramp up
talks with consecutive sessions

NBA owners and players met for about 5½ hours in New York, plan to resume negotiations today and could even sit down again Friday.

While neither side would say if progress is being made, the frequency of the discussions seems a good sign. They met only twice in the first two months of the lockout that began July 1.

But they went for about six hours Aug. 31 and decided they would go multiple days this week. Both sides said they could even carry over the discussions into a third consecutive day if things go well during today's session.

"We agreed that we're going to sit here for as many days as we can to see whether we can make progress, but we agreed not to characterize anything at all," commissioner David Stern said.

MISCELLANEOUS

Pens' Crosby expects to play
this season but won't rush it

Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby said it's "likely" he'll return to play this season, but stressed he won't rush back to the ice.

Crosby hasn't played since suffering a pair of concussions in January. The former NHL Most Valuable Player said he feels as good as he's felt in a long time but refused to put a timeline on when he'll don his No. 87 jersey in a game.

The 24-year-old added he never really considered retirement but is concerned about the recurrence of concussion-like symptoms as his workouts have grown more intense.

Also: Drill survived a bumping skirmish in the final strides to win the $250,000 Del Mar Futurity, giving Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert his 10th win in the race on closing day at Del Mar, Calif.

Joel Rosario became the first jockey to win three consecutive riding titles at the seaside track in 57 years, with 49 winners to 42 for runner-up Joe Talamo. Hall of Famer Bill Shoemaker won six straight titles from 1949-54.

Mike Mitchell won the training title, edging out John Sadler 25-24, for his first crown since 1996.

Drill was knocked sideways in the final strides when Majestic City bore out sharply, forcing 4-5 favorite Creative Cause out into Drill, who won by a neck. Majestic City was second and Creative Cause third, but after viewing video of the stretch run, the stewards disqualified Majestic City and placed him third and moved Creative Cause to second.

Drill covered seven furlongs in 1 minute, 22.16 seconds.

Olympic gymnastics champion Paul Hamm was charged with assault and two other misdemeanors after police say he hit and kicked an Ohio taxi driver, damaged a cab window and refused to pay a $23 fare.

Court records show the 28-year-old Hamm was charged Saturday in suburban Columbus and is free on bond awaiting a Sept. 15 arraignment.

WBNS-TV in Columbus reported that Hamm can be heard on an Upper Arlington police video telling an officer he'd had about eight drinks. As he sits in the back of a cruiser handcuffed, Hamm says, "I don't understand. I'm gonna kill you guys."

President Barack Obama honored Jimmie Johnson and seven other NASCAR drivers for their performance on and off the track. Johnson has won an unprecedented five consecutive Chase for the Sprint Cup championship titles.

The president also thanked NASCAR for supporting military families.

Kevin Harvick Inc. will merge its current Nationwide Series program with Richard Childress Racing beginning next season, RCR announced.