Burrell Gets $50 Million

Left fielder Pat Burrell and the Philadelphia Phillies agreed Monday on a $50-million, six-year contract, the latest big move by the team.

The Phillies have signed first baseman Jim Thome and third baseman David Bell, and traded for pitcher Kevin Millwood in the off-season.

Burrell, 26, batted .282 with 37 home runs and 116 runs batted in last year -- the best offensive performance on the Phillies since Mike Schmidt had 37 homers and 119 RBIs in 1986.

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A representative of Japan’s Chunichi Dragons met with major league officials in an effort to end the team’s dispute with outfielder Kevin Millar.

Millar agreed in January to a $6.2-million, two-year contract with the Dragons, who paid $1.2 million to the Florida Marlins for Millar’s rights. Florida put the outfielder on waivers and the Boston Red Sox claimed him, but Millar rejected the claim.

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Asked if major league owners colluded this winter to drive down player salaries, Kevin McClatchy, owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1996, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “No, unequivocally no. That happened several years ago, before I came on board. I’m sure everyone learned their lesson.”

Arbitrators ruled owners violated their labor contract by colluding against free agents after the 1985, 1986 and 1987 seasons. Owners, who have never admitted to the conspiracy, settled the cases in 1990 for $280 million.

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A New York businessman, Max Broxmeyer, said he wants to buy the Montreal Expos, who are owned by the other 29 major league teams and are up for sale, and move them to Washington, D.C. ... Mike Glavine, the younger brother of pitcher Tom Glavine of the New York Mets, agreed to a minor league contract with the team. Mike Glavine, 30, batted .273 last year with Somerset of the Independent Atlantic League.

Golf

Officials in Augusta, Ga., deadlocked 5-5 and again failed to pass a law designed to protect the city from lawsuits by demonstrators picketing at the Masters in April in protest of Augusta National Golf Club’s all-male membership.

The proposed changes included requiring protest groups to give 20 days’ notice to the sheriff, who would have to respond within seven days. No such deadlines exist in the current law.

Jurisprudence

Attorneys for Northwestern University and the family of Rashidi Wheeler have scheduled a Wednesday meeting in Chicago to discuss the possibility of reaching an out-of-court settlement in the family’s wrongful death suit.

The meeting follows last week’s depositions with former Northwestern football trainer Tory Aggeler and assistant coach Jerry Brown, lengthy questioning that Wheeler family attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. described as “very revealing.”

Wheeler, a 22-year-old senior strong safety from La Verne Damien High, collapsed during a football conditioning drill at Northwestern and died Aug. 3, 2001. Wheeler’s family sued the university, claiming his cause of death (exercise-induced asthma) was a result of negligent sideline treatment and delayed emergency care. The university claims Wheeler’s death was caused “by the fact he ingested supplements” containing ephedrine before the drill, spokesman Alan Cubbage said.

Wheeler family attorney Jim Montgomery said Aggeler acknowledged he never saw Wheeler ingest the supplements before the drill and added that Brown expressed uncertainty about what supplements are banned by the NCAA.

Former Cincinnati Red owner Marge Schott sued current owner Carl Lindner over the seats she was given in the club’s new ballpark, which opens March 31.

Former NFL lineman Alonzo Spellman was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for threatening the passengers and crew on a Delta Air Lines flight last year.

Miscellany

Vin Scully and Stu Lantz were double winners at the Southern California Sports Broadcasters’ 12th awards luncheon at Lakeside Golf Club in Toluca Lake. Scully, who has won just about every year he has been eligible, was selected best play-by-play announcer in television and radio, and Lantz won for color commentary in television and radio.

Lee Hamilton won the Irv Kaze Memorial Radio Talk Show Host Award and KNX and Channel 4 won for best anchor staffs.

Special awards went to Jack Kramer (President’s Award), Ann Meyers Drysdale (Good Guy Award), longtime radio executive Stan Spero (Lifetime Achievement), Mike Scioscia (Chuck Benedict Memorial Founders Award), and former boxing promoter Don Fraser (High Five). Veteran sportscaster Mike Walden became the group’s eight member of its Hall of Fame.

Dodger vice president and Hall of Fame manager Tom Lasorda will be honored at “An Evening With Tommy Lasorda” on Friday at 8 p.m. at Caltech. The event is free and no tickets or reservations are required. Information: (323) 224-1301.

LeBron James, the Akron (Ohio) St. Vincent-St. Mary High standout ruled ineligible for the rest of the season for accepting two free retro sports jerseys, did not file an appeal with the Ohio High School Athletic Assn. as expected, a spokesperson for the organization said.

Nationally top-ranked St. Vincent-St. Mary (14-1) will play Westchester (20-2) on Saturday in the Prime Time Shootout at Trenton, N.J.

Kirsten Clark of the U.S. won the silver medal in the super-giant slalom in the World Alpine Championships at St. Moritz, Switzerland, finishing behind Michaela Dorfmeister of Austria. Jonna Mendes of the U.S. won the bronze.

Azeri, named horse of the year eight days ago, will not be sold next month as had been expected.

A dispersal sale of horses owned by the Allen E. Paulson Living Trust, which was scheduled for March 4 in Pomona, was canceled after a settlement was reached in a dispute between trustees Michael Paulson, son of the late Allen Paulson, and Dr. Nicholas Diaco.

Passings

Dennis Fosdick, a member of the U.S. Water Polo Hall of Fame who coached Occidental College to a national championship in 2000, has died at 63. Story in Section B.