| Making his pitch
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Francisco Liriano felt conflicted. For months, he had waited to stand on a pitcher's mound. He had grown anxious and eager, frustrated and lonely, during his rehabilitation from Tommy John surgery. For months, all he wanted to do was pitch, but now, about to throw his first slider in his first bullpen session almost one year after November 2006 surgery, the only thing Liriano felt was scared. Would he reinjure his elbow? Would it hurt to throw his slider? Liriano released the pitch, and his surgically reconstructed elbow didn't hurt, didn't give out. The fear that it would, though, did not subside until two weeks ago, in his third start of spring training, 15 months after his surgery and five months after that first bullpen session. But questions remain.
Higgins happily swinging bat for Hawks
Kyle Higgins is just happy to be swinging a bat, and the Monmouth University baseball team is happy he's swinging it, too.
Two years removed from major wrist surgery, the Watchung Hills High School graduate is leading the Hawks' bid to return to the NCAA Regionals. Through 11 games the senior shortstop is batting a team-high .365, and he just earned Northeast Conference Player of the Week honors after going 12-for-24 with six runs and 5 RBI in a torrid five-game span. "This year I feel really confident in myself," Higgins said via phone Monday morning. "I'm trying to convey that as much as I can to my teammates." The confidence came back last spring, after Higgins endured surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left wrist. The cartilage gave way at the beginning of his sophomore season in 2006.
New surgery in Houston for critically injured Emilio
HOUSTON (AP) - Grammy-winning singer Emilio Navaira has undergone more brain surgery in Houston as doctors try to save his life. Navaira was driving his tour bus and was thrown through the windshield when the vehicle crashed early Sunday. Physicians took the 45-year-old Navaira, known to his Tejano fans simply as Emilio, back to the operating room last night for nearly two hours of surgery. A doctor reopened an incision from Navaira's initial surgery and removed some bone that had been taken out, then put back following the first operation to remove a blood clot. That gave the brain some room to expand. The wreck, which remains under investigation, left several members of Navaira's band with less serious injuries. Raul Navaira, who has a black eye from the wreck, today said: "I have faith" and he thanked everyone who's praying for his brother.
In brief
Patients who undergo vision-correcting laser eye surgery sign a release form with an extensive list of risks, but some researchers and former patients say a potential complication is not mentioned: depression that can lead to suicide. In response to patient complaints, the Food and Drug Administration plans to convene a large, national study to examine the relationship of LASIK complications and quality of life, including psychological problems such as depression. Malvina Eydelman, an ophthalmologist with the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, wrote in an e-mail that the scant clinical data available "failed to suggest significant problems following LASIK surgery." .
Toshack seeking talks with West Ham over crocked stars
WALES boss John Toshack is planning to pay a visit to West Ham to assess the fitness of injured trio Craig Bellamy, James Collins and Danny Gabbidon. Toshack (pictured) is preparing his troops for tonight's friendly in Luxembourg, but is keeping one eye on the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign, which begins early next season. That ideally would involve the Irons' three experienced Wales interntional stars and the 59-year-old is eager to hold crunch talks with the east London club on their availability ahead of the international friendlies with Iceland and Holland in May. "I'd like to know as soon as possible when these players are going to be ready and whether or not they're available for the friendlies in Holland and Iceland in May and Georgia in August," he said.
For the Phinney family, a dream and a challenge
Like any proud father, Davis Phinney marvels at the man his son has become. It is not because Taylor Phinney juggles his senior year's studies at Boulder High School while training as an elite cyclist. Or because he speaks fluent Italian. Or that he is, according to his coach, Neal Henderson, "physiologically phenomenal," a perfect combination of his parents. What makes Davis Phinney most proud is something more personal. "To get the benefit of me," he often tells his son, "you have to be somewhat responsible for me, too." And he has been. Nothing has made Taylor, 17, grow up faster than watching his father's body decay. Phinney, 48, was a brazen sprinter and the star of the 7-Eleven professional cycling team in the 1980s and early '90s. He was a risk-taker with beefy biceps, nicknamed Thor, the Norse god of thunder.
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