BASEBALL

AARON TO TAKE INCREASED ROLE WITH BRAVES

Hank Aaron will take on an increased role with the Atlanta Braves following the team’s sale yesterday from Time Warner Inc to Liberty Media Corp.

The deal, which Braves chairman Terry McGuirk said values the franchise at $450 million, was unanimously approved by baseball owners at a special meeting called Wednesday night to beat a midnight change in tax laws. The companies were set to transfer the team later in the evening.

“Hank Aaron is going be a critical part of all this. It was very important to me, and I know it’s very important to Terry and to Bill,” commissioner Bud Selig said at a news conference with McGuirk and Braves chairman emeritus Bill Bartholomay. “I’m sure there will be an increased role for Hank.

TENNIS

NADAL EXTENDS RECORD, FEDERER STRUGGLES

Rafael Nadal extended his record winning streak on clay to 78 matches yesterday by beating Oscar Hernandez 7–5, 6–1 to reach the third round of the Hamburg Masters and a matchup with the last player to beat him on clay.

Earlier, Roger Federer struggled to beat Juan Monaco 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 in the second round.

Federer, who needs to win the French Open to complete a career Grand Slam, has gone four straight tournaments without a title — his worst stretch since becoming the top-ranked player in February 2004.

“It was a tough first match. Obviously he’s a good clay-court player,” Federer said. “I am glad I came through.”

BASKETBALL

NELSON UNCERTAIN ON FUTURE WITH WARRIORS

Coach Don Nelson isn’t sure he’ll return to guide the Golden State Warriors through the next stage of their resurgence.

And without their beloved Nellie, even the Warriors aren’t certain they could duplicate the tantalizing promise they showed late in a memorable season.

Nelson plans to decide by July 1 whether he’ll be back for another year with the Warriors, whose surprising playoff run ended Tuesday night with a second-round loss to the Utah Jazz. The defeat capped the franchise’s first winning regular season and postseason berth since 1994.

“It’s not a good time for me to make that decision,” Nelson said Wednesday at the Warriors’ downtown training complex. “I think it was really important that I came here. I’m not so sure it’s important that I stay on.”

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

BACKUP WINTHROP GUARD DIES AFTER CAR ACCIDENT

Winthrop basketball player De-Andre Adams died Wednesday four days after sustaining head injuries in a car accident.

The 20-year-old guard had been in a coma since the accident Saturday. He was returning home to Austell, Ga., when his car left the road, flipped and hit a tree.

Winthrop athletic spokesman Jack Frost said in a statement that Adams had “taken a turn for the worse during the night.”

Adams had been in a drug-induced coma for four days at the Atlanta Medical Center before he died, the school said.

BOXING

HOLYFIELD SAYS HE PLANS TO RETIRE AS CHAMPION

Evander Holyfield wants to keep fighting so he can retire as a champion.

Holyfield is hoping to win an unprecedented fifth heavyweight title. At 44, he’ll take on Lou Savarese on June 30 in yet another comeback bout.

“Age ain’t nothing but a number,” Holyfield said Wednesday.

The first three fights in Holyfield’s return — all victories — also were in Texas. The latest in Corpus Christi was stopped in the third round because Vinny Maddalone was bleeding from his forehead.

“I’m only going to fight the people that allow me to be the heavyweight champion,” Holyfield said.

FOOTBALL

NFL GAME IN LONDON SELLS 40,000 TICKETS IN 90 MINUTES

The first regular season NFL game outside North America is shaping up as a hot ticket.

The first 40,000 tickets for the October 28 game between the Miami Dolphins and Giants at the new Wembley Stadium sold in 90 minutes yesterday.

“The speed in which such a large number of tickets were snapped up … demonstrates the great excitement and appetite for the game in this country,” said Alistair Kirkwood, managing director of NFL UK. “We know that the last few tickets available in this first batch will be gone very soon.”

The first batch of tickets went to fans in Britain and the rest of Europe selected randomly from registered ticket requests.

Sales in America to Giants and Dolphins fans are expected to begin within a week. Further tickets will be released to fans in Britain next month.

About 10,000 fans are expected to travel from America, a fraction of the anticipated sellout crowd of 90,000.

FAVRE NOW EXPECTED TO ATTEND PACKERS MINICAMP

Packers quarterback Brett Favre has changed his mind and now is expected to attend the team’s mandatory minicamp this weekend, a person familiar with the situation said yesterday.

The person, who requested anonymity because neither side planned to officially announce Favre’s intention to attend, said Favre is now expected to be present when the three-day minicamp opens in Green Bay on Friday.