Rocker Is Designated for Assignment

Reliever John Rocker was designated for assignment by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Tuesday.

Rocker had been pitching for double-A Orlando. The left-hander made two appearances earlier this season for the Devil Rays, giving up one run, two hits and three walks in one inning.

Tampa Bay has 10 days to trade, release or assign him to the minors. Devil Ray General Manager Chuck LaMar hopes to sign Rocker to a minor league deal if he clears waivers.

“He’ll clear in my opinion,” LaMar said. “We’ve had discussions about re-signing him to a minor league contract. We’ll see how that turns out.”

Rocker had 38 saves for Atlanta in 1999, his first full major league season, and the Braves played in the World Series. After that season, he made disparaging remarks about gays, minorities and others in a Sports Illustrated article. His career went into a tailspin after he was traded to Cleveland in June 2001.

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Bob Watson, Major League Baseball’s disciplinarian, is looking into Arizona pitcher Curt Schilling’s destruction of a camera used to evaluate umpires.

Schilling smashed part of the Questec Umpire Evaluation System on Saturday night during a loss to San Diego and said umpires have told him they are changing their strike zones to match the evaluations of the machine.

Larry Gibson, a lawyer for the World Umpires Assn., said umpires had complained about the operators of the system at Phoenix this year. Gibson said a former triple-A umpire ran the system during Arizona home games last year, but that different people were operating Questec this year.

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Center fielder Bernie Williams had surgery for torn cartilage in his left knee and isn’t expected to return to the New York Yankees for four to six weeks.

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Yankee owner George Steinbrenner will get his wish -- for at least one game.

Jose Contreras will make his first major league start Friday at Detroit after Steinbrenner told a newspaper he wanted the Cuban defector to take Jeff Weaver’s spot in the rotation.

Contreras, however, is only replacing David Wells, who is sidelined because of a bruised right calf.

The decision means Roger Clemens will make his next bid for his 300th victory Sunday against the Tigers.

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Pitcher Todd Van Poppel was designated for assignment by the Texas Rangers.... Philadelphia activated pitcher Terry Adams from the restricted list, four days after he left the team for undisclosed reasons.

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A man who pleaded not guilty in the father-son beating of Kansas City Royal coach Tom Gamboa in September at Chicago changed his plea to guilty and will be sentenced June 18.

William Ligue Jr. was charged with two counts of aggravated battery after leading his teenage son onto the field at a White Sox game and beating Gamboa, who was coaching at first base.