BASEBALL

REPORT: BONDS WON’T RETURN UNTIL 2006

Barry Bonds doesn’t expect to play this season because of his injured right knee, putting the San Francisco slugger’s quest for the career home run record on hold until at least 2006.

“I don’t think you’re going to see me out there this year,” Bonds told MLB.com yesterday. “That’s the reality of the situation. I’m improving. I’m happy with the progress. I’m working out hard on the exercise bike and the elliptical machine, but I’m just not there yet. The last thing I want is to get back on the field and be out again a week later.”

Bonds said a recent MRI showed some fluid building up in the knee that has been operated on three times since January 31. He said his doctors advised him to wait until next year to return to the Giants.

ARIZONA GM STEPS DOWN TO TAKE JOB WITH SELIG

Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Joe Garagiola Jr. resigned yesterday to become senior vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner’s office.

Garagiola joined the Diamondbacks in 1995 and helped build the expansion team from scratch before it began play in 1998. He led Arizona to a World Series championship in 2001. Garagiola will start his new job on August 15, overseeing operations for the major and minor leagues, as well as international baseball.

MARINERS CUT STRUGGLING SELE

The Seattle Mariners released struggling pitcher Aaron Sele yesterday and recalled right-hander Jorge Campillo from Triple-A Tacoma.

Sele, 35, was 6-12 with a 5.66 ERA in 21 starts this season. He lost a career-worst seven straight starts after going 6-5 through June 25. The right-hander pitched for Seattle from 2000-01, going 32-15 in 68 games.

The 26-year-old Campillo is a former Mexican League standout who has spent most of this season at Tacoma, going 4-1 with a 2.71 ERA in 12 starts.

TWINS LOSE HUNTER, RELEASE BOONE

Minnesota center fielder Torii Hunter has a broken left ankle that will keep him out at least a month and possibly the rest of the season, a major blow to Minnesota’s playoff hopes.

Hunter had an MRI and CT scan yesterday, which revealed a small fracture in his ankle. He was injured in Boston on Friday night, when the four-time Gold Glove winner tried to make an acrobatic catch by scaling the fence at Fenway Park.

The Twins initially feared Hunter had torn a tendon in the ankle, which probably would have required surgery and kept him out for the rest of the season.

Also yesterday, the Twins released struggling second baseman Bret Boone, ending a failed experiment to jump-start the team’s stagnant offense. The Twins acquired Boone in a trade with Seattle on July 11, hoping the Gold Glove winner would be able to regain the form that made him an MVP candidate in 2001. But Boone struggled mightily in his 14 games with the Twins, hitting just .170 (9-for-53) with three RBI.

FOOTBALL

OWENS SHOWS UP AT EAGLES CAMP

Terrell Owens reported to training camp yesterday, ending months of speculation about whether the disgruntled All-Pro receiver would hold out because of a contract dispute with the Philadelphia Eagles. Owens refused to speak to reporters.

Owens skipped mini-camps and, along with agent Drew Rosenhaus, was very vocal about wanting a new contract one season into the seven-year, $48.97 million deal he signed after coming to Philadelphia in March 2004. The Eagles say they won’t renegotiate the contract.

WILLIAMS ENDS HOLDOUT, ARRIVES AT LIONS CAMP

More than 18 months after his last collegiate game, Mike Williams, the first round pick of the Detroit Lions, signed a contract yesterday and ended a brief holdout.

“It’s a relief to be here,” said Williams, who sat out the 2004 season after unsuccessfully challenging NFL draft rules. “I’m ready to go.”

The Southern California wideout – the no. 10 overall pick – flew into Detroit yesterday morning, signed his contract and took a physical, then worked out briefly with rookie quarterback Dan Orlovsky in the afternoon.

MERRIMAN AGREES TO DEAL WITH CHARGERS

Outside linebacker Shawne Merriman, the 12th pick in the NFL draft, agreed to a five-year deal with the San Diego Chargers yesterday after he missed the first week of training camp.

Merriman caused a stir when he stayed away from all offseason workouts on the advice of his agent because of concerns he’d get hurt before he got a contract. His contract is potentially worth $15.7 million, of which $9 million is guaranteed.

HOCKEY

PANTHERS SIGN FREE AGENTS NIEUWENDYK, ROBERTS

The Florida Panthers made the first move in hockey’s free agent signing period yesterday, signing the four-time All-Star center Joe Nieuwendyk and longtime left wing Gary Roberts away from the Toronto Maple Leafs less than 90 minutes after the window for new moves opened.

Nieuwendyk – who’s won the Stanley Cup with three franchises – and Roberts will both receive $4.5 million over the next two years from Florida, which hasn’t won a playoff game since 1997.

CARLYLE TAKES OVER AS MIGHTY DUCKS COACH

Former Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Randy Carlyle was hired yesterday as the new coach of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, completing the makeover of a team that has also changed owners and general manager this year.

Carlyle, 49, replaces Mike Babcock, who left the Ducks to become the Detroit Red Wings’ coach. Carlyle spent last season as coach of the Manitoba Moose of the AHL after serving as an assistant with the Washington Capitals. He was also on the staff of the former Winnipeg Jets.

TENNIS

AGASSI PULLS OUT OF LEGG MASON

Andre Agassi pulled out of the Legg Mason Tennis Classic yesterday, wanting some extra rest after winning a hard-court title in Los Angeles. Agassi, who has been hampered by a back injury, has won the Washington tournament five times and played in it each of the past 15 years. The Legg Mason Tennis Classic runs through Sunday and is one of several tune-ups for the U.S. Open.

SOCCER

METROSTARS FACE ROCHESTER IN U.S. OPEN CUP

The MetroStars enter fourth-round play of the U.S. Open Cup professional and amateur soccer tournament tonight, traveling to Rochester to take on the Raging Rhinos, a division one United Soccer League franchise. The two teams met earlier this season in a friendly that ended in a 1-1 draw. The winner advances to the quarterfinals August 24 to play the winner of the fourth round game between Chicago and New England.

– Associated Press