BASEBALL

UNION: 11 FREE AGENTS WERE ASKED TO SPEAK WITH MITCHELL

No more than 11 players from this year’s free-agent class were asked to speak with George Mitchell as part of his investigation into performance-enhancing drugs in baseball, a union official told agents this week.

Michael Weiner, the union’s general counsel, made the statement Wednesday to agents attending a meeting in New York, two people with knowledge of the session said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the remarks were intended to remain private. The Boston Globe’s Web site yesterday afternoon reported agents were told at the meeting that 11 current free-agent players are named in Mitchell’s report, but Weiner said the union didn’t know whether any names would be included, those with knowledge of the meeting told the Associated Press.

GMs PLANNING HEAD PROTECTION FOR BASE COACHES

Baseball wants to prevent another tragic accident like the one that killed Mike Coolbaugh.

General managers decided yesterday that base coaches will wear some sort of head protection next season, a move that came four months after Coolbaugh was struck in the neck by a line drive during a minor league game.

Coolbaugh, a former major league player, was a coach for the Colorado Rockies’ Double-A team in Tulsa when he died July 22. He had been hit by a liner as he stood in the first-base coach’s box during a Texas League game at Arkansas.

Some major league coaches responded by wearing helmets the rest of the season.

“There was a sentiment that as a concept this was a good idea,” said Joe Garagiola Jr., senior vice president for baseball operations in the commissioner’s office.

HOCKEY

FORBES: MAPLE LEAFS MOST VALUABLE TEAM AT $413M

The Toronto Maple Leafs are the most valuable NHL team, even though the Original Six franchise hasn’t captured the Stanley Cup in 40 years, according to Forbes. The value of the Maple Leafs has gone up 23% a year since the initial investment by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in 1994, said Forbes, which released its annual valuations of all 30 NHL teams Thursday. The Maple Leafs team has a current value of $413 million, $48 million more than the Rangers in second place.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

LOUISVILLE SUES DUKE, CLAIMING BREACH OF CONTRACT

The University of Louisville has filed a lawsuit against Duke University claiming breach of contract after the Blue Devils opted out of the final three games of a four-game football series. The lawsuit, filed in Franklin Circuit Court, is asking for $450,000 in damages and any additional damages that the court sees fit. The two schools were to meet four times between 2002 and 2009. Louisville beat the Blue Devils 40–3 in September 2002, but Duke opted out of the final three games, to be played this season and in 2008 and 2009.