Knee Injury

When the Ravens begin their only mandatory minicamp today, there will be a noticeable absence on the field, although it is hardly a surprise anymore. As he's been for most of his injury-marred career, linebacker Dan Cody will be sidelined with a knee injury. During a non-contact pass-rush drill May 20, Cody hyperextended his right knee and tore a piece of cartilage about the size of a thumbnail. It was his third knee injury since being drafted in the second round 26 months ago and likely will cause him to miss the final two offseason minicamps.

.. Wisconsin soccer goalkeeper Alex Horwath (McDonogh) stands 6 feet 4, weighs close to 200 pounds and has a towering presence in the goal that is intimidating, to say the least. "I'm loud and I'm big, plus I'm athletic," said Horwath, a first-team Sun All-Metro choice in 2004. "And coaches like my presence." Horwath said he uses every bit of his height to gain an advantage and had these words of warning to Big Ten Conference foes or any other opponents: "I wouldn't recommend trying to push me around."

Ravens right defensive end Michael McCrary, who recently played in his first Pro Bowl, had surgery yesterday to repair a right knee injury he suffered in that same game on Feb. 7.McCrary will begin to rehabilitate the knee within the next two weeks and is expected to miss much or all of the preseason. The Ravens plan to limit his activity in training camp, in the interest of having him ready for the regular-season opener on Sept. 12."We're probably going to plan on him missing the majority of the preseason and make sure he heals properly.

Quarterly reviewQuarterbacks -- C- --Former starter Scott Mitchell was a disappointment and was benched after six quarters. Present starter Stoney Case is rusty and has had problems with blitzes and consistency. What happened to Tony Banks? Case threw for only 6 yards in the first half Sunday against the Falcons and wasn't pulled, which shows that Banks may never get to play.Running backs -- B -- Errict Rhett is a new man and leads the AFC in rushing now that new coach Brian Billick has given him a starting role.

Quote: "It was like being forgiven." -- A's closer Doug Jones, whose three-base throwing error allowed the Twins to tie, after Matt Stairs' homer bailed him out.It's a fact: The Whites Sox are the only visiting team with a winning record (25-23) at Yankee Stadium this decade.Who's hot: The Indians' David Justice is hitting .455 (15-for-33) with five homers and 18 RBIs in his past eight games.Who's not: The Tigers have lost eight of 11.On deck: Twins catcher Terry Steinbach will likely go on the disabled list today with a knee injury.

QuarterbackBoth starting quarterbacks Scott Mitchell and Stoney Case were failures. Coach Brian Billick underestimated the need to have better skilled players around the immobile Mitchell, and Case is no better than a backup. Billick made a mistake by not playing Banks after Mitchell was demoted, and unless Banks becomes totally inept, he should be the starter for the rest of the season. -- DRunning backsDespite teams crowding the line of scrimmage, running back Errict Rhett continues to be effective because of his punishing running style.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Chris Hoiles looks in the mirror and sees an everyday catcher, but he can't argue with the results of the catching partnership that has developed with veteran reserve Lenny Webster."

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- There he was, standing all alone in the back of the end zone, and Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor didn't know what to do.Should he spike the ball? Or maybe toss it into the stands?Or does he pull a Robert Brooks and leap into the stands?But before he could make a decision, tight end Pete Mitchell thundered into him, jarring the ball loose in celebration of Taylor's 52-yard touchdown run on his first carry after subbing for starter James Stewart."I didn't know what to do," said Taylor, who rushed for a team-record 128 yards in the Jaguars' 24-10 victory at Alltel Stadium.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Orioles manager Ray Miller remembers Brady Anderson getting hit by a pitch last season in Cleveland."A bullet in the kneecap," Miller recalled, and Anderson later returned to the dugout, overcome by pain."

The new Rob Burnett is looking like the old Rob Burnett. Just ask Ravens defensive tackle James Jones.Jones, who lined up next to Burnett years ago in Cleveland, watched Burnett blossom into a Pro Bowl defensive end there in 1994. He also watched him go down with a devastating right knee injury as a Raven in October 1996. Based on what he has seen so far in 1998, Jones thinks his old friend's recovery is complete.Burnett certainly has played lately with spring in his step. Through two preseason games -- playing time that amounts to one full game -- he has recorded six tackles and a team-high 2.5 sacks.

Frankie and Tyler Goodwin, two of Mount St. Joseph's Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and Maryland Independent Schools wrestling champions, will transfer to Arundel High this fall. Their Gaels teammate, Alex Rice, who was a runner-up in the MIAA and private schools state tournaments as a freshman in 2007 before sitting out most of last season with a knee injury, is also leaving. He is expected to attend Chesapeake High, another Anne Arundel County public school. "We've lost a couple studs," said Mount St. Joseph coach Kirk Salvo, who said he is also stepping down.

Top-ranked Nadal loses to Murray after knee injury tennis World No. 1 Rafael Nadal could not overcome a knee injury in the final of the ABN Amro tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands, losing to Andy Murray, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0. Murray, seeded second, became the first British winner of the ATP event. Nadal, the Australian Open champion, was bothered by a right knee injury and had to call a medical timeout in the second set before deciding to continue the match. "On one leg he could still go on," Murray said.

Shaquille O'Neal kissed Caron Butler on the head, got a technical for hanging on the rim and thumped Andray Blatche into a knee-buckling injury. He also scored 29 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked three shots. Of course, a 36-year-old center playing back-to-back games at the end of a long road trip isn't much of a problem when the opponent is the new worst team in basketball. O'Neal and the Phoenix Suns wrapped up a six-game East Coast swing last night with a 103-87 win over the Washington Wizards, who suffered the indignity of falling behind the Oklahoma City Thunder to take sole possession of the NBA cellar.

MIAMI - It's always fun sparring with Ravens Pro Bowl cornerback Chris McAlister, regardless of his mood. In a surprise move that caught McAlister off guard yesterday, he was replaced in the starting lineup by Frank Walker against the Miami Dolphins. McAlister played only a few plays in each half. When asked why he didn't start, McAlister said: "Go ask the coach. I don't have an answer for you. He'll tell you." So, we went and asked coach John Harbaugh. He basically said McAlister was being held back because of a recurring knee injury.

INDIANAPOLIS - In the final two minutes of a game already lost, the Ravens suffered one final indignity at Lucas Oil Stadium. They lost right guard Marshal Yanda on a play that didn't count. Yanda went down hard on a 4-yard pass play that was erased by a penalty against the Indianapolis Colts. The post-game prognosis was a sprained right knee. But magnetic resonance imaging was scheduled for today and indications are the injury could be serious. Yanda wore a supportive sleeve over his entire right leg and was on crutches in the locker room after the game.

Ravens run offense vs. Bengals run defense: : Willis McGahee is considered probable after missing the preseason with a knee injury. He was a nonfactor against the Bengals last season, averaging 3.8 yards a carry (137 yards on 36 attempts). It'll be interesting to see McGahee's comfort level in the Ravens' new offensive system. Even if McGahee plays, the Ravens will probably give many touches to running back Ray Rice, who was impressive in the preseason. The Bengals have only two new starters (defensive end Antwan Odom and outside linebacker Keith Rivers)

Sigh, just Manny being Manny, right? Mr. Flip supposes that is how Manny Ramirez's latest actions will be viewed in many quarters. First, he missed the first two games of the Boston Red Sox's series with the New York Yankees with a knee injury that some apparently don't believe was much of a knee injury. Then, he told ESPNdeportes.com he wouldn't mind being traded. "If the Red Sox are a better team without Manny Ramirez, they should trade me; I will not object," he said. " ... I don't want to be a problem and a distraction to the Red Sox in such a critical moment of the season.

Archbishop Curley 160-pound wrestler Joe Foster, just returning to full strength after knee surgery, typified his team's performance at the 29th annual Arundel Holiday Tournament last night. Foster scored two early round pins and then was able to grind out two decisions to claim his weight class. Brett Pryzwara also claimed the 103-pound title, and the No. 3 Friars had four runner-ups and two third-place finishers to roll to a 238.5-170.5 win over runners-up Loyola and DeMatha. Stephen Decatur took fourth with 158.5 points, with Broadneck claiming fifth with 103 in the 16-team field.

Was the difference between Peyton Manning's performance against the Ravens last night and what Tom Brady did last Monday night at M&T Bank Stadium as simple as Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle being on the sideline rather than in the secondary? On the surface, the absence of the two former Pro Bowl cornerbacks, as well as a lack of presence from their replacements, Corey Ivy and David Pittman, appears to be at the heart of an embarrassing 44-20 blowout defeat for the Ravens to the Indianapolis Colts.

COLLEGE PARK -- Maryland lost probably its top offensive lineman for the rest of the season yesterday when three-year starter Andrew Crummey suffered a broken left fibula, coach Ralph Friedgen said. "I feel bad for Andrew because he was having a great year," Friedgen said. "I think he's an All-ACC player. It's just unfortunate for him because he's a senior and he means a lot to our football team. He's just a wonderful kid. To have your college career end this way is a sad thing." With 12:39 left in the first half, the Terps' right guard was carted off the field and hopped on his right leg into the trainers' room.