BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE MAJOR LEAGUES : Reds Apologize for Fizzled Fun

The Cincinnati Reds issued an apology to about 20,000 fans who endured more than six hours of rain and a 4-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates only to see Friday night’s main attraction, an annual fireworks show on the Ohio River, canceled.

The team promoted the show throughout the game, which ended at 1:37 a.m. EDT. It waited several more minutes before announcing that there would be no fireworks after all.

“We believe that the decision to cancel the fireworks was correct because it would have been unfair to the people who live near the stadium to shoot fireworks at such a late hour,” the club’s statement said.

“We were advised by National League President Bill White that fireworks should not be shot after 1 a.m.

“However, the announcement should have been made earlier. We apologize to the fans who waited so patiently.”

They endured a lot, which made the cancellation hard to take.

After Darnell Coles popped out to end the game, most fans headed for the Riverfront Stadium plaza for a good view when Jon Braude announced that the fireworks would start in 20 minutes.

“Enjoy the show,” Braude said.

A few minutes later, the show was canceled. The club said Saturday the fireworks will be rescheduled.

The Atlanta Falcons, trying to lure Deion Sanders to the start of training camp, have extended the deadline of their $800,000 bonus offer to Aug. 1.

The Falcons, who lost safety Brian Jordan when he signed a multimillion dollar, baseball-only contract with the St. Louis Cardinals earlier this summer, apparently fear that Sanders will stay with the Atlanta Braves as long as they remain contenders in the National League West.

Two weeks ago, the Falcons offered Sanders $1 million to report for the start of pre-training camp on Monday, or $800,000 to be there for the first day of regular workouts on July 25.

Sanders, in Chicago for a weekend series between the Braves and Cubs, told Falcon officials he would “be uncomfortable if he didn’t honor his baseball contract,” according to Taylor Smith, the Falcons’ president.

“Our extending this (to Aug. 1) is a way to accommodate his wishes,” Smith said.

After hitting a game-winning two-run homer Saturday night, Sanders is batting .313 and has a major league-leading 11 triples. His baseball contract, which pays him $600,000, runs through July 31.

The All-Pro cornerback and kick returner is in the final year of his Falcon contract, which provides a base salary of $750,000 for this season.

The San Diego Padres activated All-Star catcher Benito Santiago and put catcher Dann Bilardello on the 15-day disabled list.

Santiago was put on the disabled list May 30 after suffering a broke little finger on his right hand while sliding into a base. He has been on rehabilitation assignment with the Padres’ triple-A team at Las Vegas since Tuesday.

Bilardello has a possible herniated disk.