BASEBALL

YANKEES TO HOLD MEETINGS ON TORRE NEXT WEEK

The Yankees put off their meetings on Joe Torre’s future until next week.

The meetings are likely to start Monday night or Tuesday, and they probably will be held at the team’s spring training complex in Tampa, Fla. Torre will not be asked to attend the start of the session, when owner George Steinbrenner, his sons and top aides will discuss whether to bring the manager back for a 13th season — which would be the longest run for a baseball manager in New York since Joe McCarthy was in the Yankees’ dugout from 1931–46.

KIELTY GETS START OVER DREW IN RIGHT FIELD IN ALCS OPENER

Bobby Kielty will start in right field instead of J.D. Drew for the Boston Red Sox in Friday night’s AL championship series opener because of his success against Indians starter C.C. Sabathia.

“He was brought in here to give us some right-handed punch,” Boston manager Terry Francona said yesterday.

Kielty, a switch-hitter, is 9-for-29 with two homers and four strikeouts in his career against the Cleveland lefty. Drew has faced Sabathia three times with three strikeouts.

BASKETBALL

LAKERS OWNER SAYS HE’D CONSIDER TRADING BRYANT

Jerry Buss has already shown that he’ll part with superstars. Yet upon hearing that the Los Angeles Lakers’ owner would consider trading Kobe Bryant, even Shaquille O’Neal was shocked.

“I guess it’s business before loyalty. But, wow. He said that?” O’Neal said Thursday in Miami after learning Buss told reporters he would trade Bryant under the right circumstances.

Buss indeed did, telling three Los Angeles-area beat writers covering training camp in Honolulu on Wednesday that he “would certainly listen” to trade offers for the two-time NBA scoring champion.

HOCKEY

VOKOUN SHUTS OUT DEVILS

Tomas Vokoun stopped 28 shots and the Florida Panthers snapped a season-opening three-game losing streak with a 3-0 win over the Devils last night.

Rostislav Olesz, Olli Jokinen and Nathan Horton scored for the Panthers, whose0-3startmatched the worst in franchise history. Martin Brodeur made 28 saves for the Devils, whose 1-3 start is their worst since the 2001-02 season.