Jim Tracy is moving from one of baseball's biggest markets to one of its smallest , from a team that spends big to one that has had 13 consecutive losing seasons .
To Tracy , 49 , who signed a three-year contract Tuesday to become the Pittsburgh Pirates' manager after five mostly successful seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers , it's not the size of the city or the payroll that matters most but the talent . And he sees the same kind of young talent in Pittsburgh that he saw in Los Angeles in 2001 .
"Challenges are something that I like very , very much ," Tracy said . "I like hearing people say or maybe think that this is a situation you don't have a chance to succeed in , I'm very challenged by that ."
"I'm looking forward to spearheading this ballclub to back to some of the days when the Pittsburgh Pirates were somebody you really had to deal with ," said Tracy , who watched the Reds-Pirates rivalry while growing up near Cincinnati and playing college baseball at Marietta College , about 120 miles from Pittsburgh .
"I'm very anxious in making the players understand there is history here , history for them to be proud of and history for them to follow up on ."
Tracy was 427-383 and won the 2004 National League West title with the Dodgers despite a failed roster overhaul orchestrated by General Manager Paul DePodesta that led to a 71-91 record this season .
Tracy was to have made $ 700 , 000 next year with the Dodgers but is expected to make more than that in Pittsburgh . New Detroit Tiger Manager Jim Leyland filled out his coaching staff with five others who also wore Pittsburgh Pirates uniforms . Like Leyland , Lloyd McClendon and Gene Lamont were former Pirates managers . McClendon will run the bullpen and Lamont will be the third base coach . McClendon , also a former Pittsburgh player , spent the past five seasons as Pirates manager before being fired Sept . 6 . Lamont spent eight seasons as manager of the Chicago White Sox ( 1992-1995 ) and Pittsburgh ( 1997-2000 ) . Former Pirates players Rafael Belliard , Don Slaught and Andy Van Slyke also were hired . Belliard was added as infield coach , Slaught as hitting coach and Van Slyke as first base , outfield and base running coach . The Tigers said they will continue the search for a pitching coach .
Pitching coach Larry Rothschild signed a one-year contract to return to the Chicago Cubs after a weighing an offer to go to the Detroit Tigers and be reunited with Manager Jim Leyland . Rothschild was the pitching coach and Leyland the manager when the Florida Marlins won the 1997 World Series . Bench coach Dick Pole , hitting coach Gene Clines , first base coach Gary Matthews , third base coach Chris Speier and bullpen coach Juan Lopez also will return .
East Carolina assistant baseball coach Billy Godwin was promoted Tuesday to interim head coach , a day after the school suspended Coach Randy Mazey for unspecified reasons . Mazey's suspension is expected to be the first procedural step toward his eventual firing . Mazey went 120-66-1 in three seasons , reaching an NCAA regional all three years .
Charlie Rizzo replaced Roger Hinshaw as defensive coordinator at Rice on Tuesday , taking over a defense that has allowed 50 points and more than 500 yards per game during an 0-4 start . Rizzo , who joined the Rice staff in 1998 , will also continue to coach the linebackers . Hinshaw , defensive coordinator since 1998 , came to Rice with Coach Ken Hatfield in 1994 and has coached with Hatfield for 23 years . He will remain secondary coach . Rice ranks 115 th out of 117 NCAA Division I-A teams in total defense at 506 yards per game and is 116 th in scoring defense . Wake Forest cornerback Kevin Patterson had an appendectomy Tuesday and could miss up to three weeks . Patterson was admitted to a hospital Monday night after experiencing abdominal pain , Coach Jim Grobe said . Trainer Don Steelman said Patterson will miss 2 to 3 weeks , although he will be re-evaluated next week . Patterson had a similar episode this summer , when doctors believed he had appendicitis . He was released without further treatment after the pain subsided . Patterson has started all six games for Wake Forest .
The WNBA's Phoenix Mercury hired Paul Westhead as coach . Westhead , who has been an assistant for the Orlando Magic the past two seasons , was coach of the Los Angeles Lakers ( 1979-1982 ) , Chicago Bulls ( 1982-1983 ) and Denver Nuggets ( 1990-1992 ) . He also coached in the Japanese Pro League ( 2001-2003 ) . He coached in college at La Salle , Loyola Marymount and George Mason . From 1985-1990 , Westhead coached Loyola Marymount to a 105-48 record , including three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances . Westhead , who has never coached women's basketball , replaces Carrie Graf .
Paul Goldstein of the United States beat qualifier Mikhail Ledovskikh of Russia 6-2 , 6-4 to advance to the second round at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow . Goldstein , who was making his debut at the tournament , is the lone American in the singles draw after Venus Williams pulled out because of injury and Lisa Raymond , Alexandra Stevenson and Meilen Tu failed to qualify . In women's play , eighth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova , playing for the first time since losing in the first round in defense of her U . S . Open title in September , beat Swiss qualifier Emmanuelle Gagliardi 6-0 , 6-4 . Top-seeded Swede Thomas Johansson , who beat Andre Agassi in last year's final , edged 18-year-old Ervin Eleskovic , Sweden's top junior player , 7-6 ( 4 ) , 7-6 ( 4 ) to reach the second round of the Stockholm ( Sweden ) Open . Agassi pulled out last month with an injury .
PHOENIX — Eight days after signing a five-year , $ 73 million contract extension , Phoenix Suns all-star Amare Stoudemire underwent surgery Tuesday to repair damage to his left knee and will be sidelined for about four months .
The extent of Stoudemire's injury was determined during "diagnostic" surgery by team doctor Thomas Carter , who then proceeded with the microfracture repair , Suns President Bryan Colangelo said .
The 6-10 , 245-pound forward who turns 23 next month signed for the maximum allowed under the NBA's collective bargaining agreement with the players union . The extension kicks in after this season .
Colangelo said the team knew of Stoudemire's knee problem during contract negotiations but was not aware of the extent until Tuesday's surgery .
Stoudemire first talked about the soreness 6 to 8 weeks ago , Colangelo said . After it worsened during last week's training camp in Tucson , Ariz ., he sought the opinions of three doctors before giving Carter the goahead for arthroscopic surgery .
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