Xavier

The Orioles' roster-move revolving door continued before Sunday's 9-8 series-finale loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. As expected, the club purchased the contract of outfielder Xavier Avery from Triple-A Norfok. In two corresponding moves, the Orioles optioned right-handed reliever Stu Pomeranz back to Norfolk to make room on the 25-man roster and also designated Norfolk infielder Matt Antonelli for assignment to clear space on the organization's 40-man roster. The 22-year-old Avery made his major league debut Sunday, batting leadoff and starting in left field.

The Orioles aren't done making moves. It looks like they will be promoting outfielder Xavier Avery on Sunday. According to a tweet from his agency, Avery has been told he will be coming up Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette wouldn't confirm or deny the report because the move wouldn't be official until he is activated Sunday. The 22-year-old Avery, the club's second-round pick in 2008, was hitting .273 with a .373 on-base percentage and .469 slugging percentage in 33 games with the Tides.

The street brawl between the Xavier and Cincinnati men's basketball teams Sunday brings to light what big-time intercollegiate sports has become ("Ohio prosecutor will consider criminal charges after Cincinnati-Xavier basketball brawl," Dec. 12). You have thugs and hoodlums with a gangster mentally being recruited to play basketball and football. After listening to the rambling harangue by one of the Xavier players post-game, all I could think was, "do these goofballs actually attend and pass college courses?"

Katie Rutan, a 5-foot-8 shooting guard from Xavier, is transferring to Maryland, Terps coach Brenda Frese announced Thursday. Rutan played two seasons at Xavier, shooting nearly 40 percent from beyond the 3-point line. "Katie has a chance to bring something to our team that will fill a need — a pure shooter," Frese said. "She's the kind of player who loves to be in the gym getting shots up and always thinks she's going to make her next one. " She averaged nearly 8.0 points per game as a Musketeer and was an Atlantic-10 All-Rookie selection as a freshman.

It was a rainy day in West Virginia two years ago when Xavier Avery said "one of the greatest things" that Brian Graham has ever heard in three decades on a professional baseball field. "He looked at me all serious and said, 'BG, you want to know why I love baseball?' I said, 'Why X?' And he said, 'It's so damn hard to be good at it,'" said Graham, the Orioles' coordinator of minor league instruction. "He has things in perspective. He knows it's a tough game and he wants to be good.

Francis Xavier "Fran" Hudson, who used the GI Bill of Right to learn carpet installation and later co-founded and served as president of Carpet Land Inc., died Monday of heart failure at Carroll Hospital Center. He was 84. Mr. Hudson's death comes exactly a week after that of Mark Helman, 80, who was the founder of Bill's Carpet Fair, another well-known Baltimore area carpet store that opened in 1959. Mr. Hudson, the son of a Pennsylvania Railroad locomotive engineer and an Irish immigrant homemaker, was born in Baltimore and raised on Linwood Avenue near Patterson Park.

The Maryland men's basketball program has hired Orlando "Bino" Ranson as an assistant coach, the school announced today. Ranson, 35, replaces Chuck Driesell, who left College Park for the head coaching job at The Citadel in April. A St. Frances graduate who got his coaching start with the Panthers in the early 2000s, Ranson spent the past season at Xavier, helping the Musketeers to a 26-9 record and the NCAA tournament's Sweet Sixteen. "I grew up a diehard Maryland fan," Ranson said in a news release.

TELEVISION HIGHLIGHTS IndyCar Honda GP of St. Petersburg ESPN2 10 a.m. NASCAR Sprint Cup Goody's 500 45, 5 Noon MLB ex. Minnesota@St. Louis ESPN 1 Yankees@Orioles MASN 7 Tampa Bay@Boston MLB 7 Yankees@Orioles (T) MASN 11 B. bask. 2010 Powerade Jam Fest ESPN2 7:30 W. bask.

On December 19, 2009 Francis Xavier Ryan A memorial is being held at his home 1903 Hasselmere Road, Dundalk 21222 2 to 5 P.M. January 9.