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Jones, Hopkins Agree to Fight

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From Times Staff and Wire Reports

Roy Jones Jr. and Bernard Hopkins have agreed to a March 11 fight, representatives of both fighters told ESPN.com on Friday.

The fight would be a rematch of a 1993 bout, which Jones won by unanimous decision.

“I think it’s very exciting. Bernard is very happy about it and so is Roy. It’s fantastic,” said Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Hopkins.

The 12-round light heavyweight fight is to be shown on HBO pay-per-view, though no site has been selected.

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Hopkins (46-4-1, 32 knockouts) turns 41 in January and made a middleweight-record 20 title defenses before losing by decision twice to Jermain Taylor this year. Jones (49-4, 38 KOs) turns 37 in January and is a former middleweight, super-middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight champion. For a decade he was considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, but he has lost three straight, two by knockout.

BASEBALL

Dodgers Interested in Red Sox’s Wells

The Dodgers have had discussions with the Boston Red Sox the last two days about obtaining starting pitcher David Wells, but two sources said a deal is not imminent because the asking price has been too high.

The Red Sox want relief pitcher Yhency Brazoban and a top prospect in return, but the Dodgers are reluctant to part with any of the minor league standouts expected to break into the big leagues by 2007.

Wells has appeal because he has one year left on a contract that calls for a base salary of only $2.5 million. Incentives based on innings pitched could hike the total to $7.5 million. Wells, 41, was 15-7 in 184 innings last season.

Boston has also discussed a three-way trade with San Diego and Tampa Bay that would involve Wells going to the Padres and Devil Ray shortstop Julio Lugo going to the Red Sox.

-- Steve Henson

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His hair trimmed and his beard shorn, Johnny Damon put on the pinstripes for the first time after finalizing his $52-million, four-year contract with the New York Yankees.

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After spending four seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Damon switched sides in baseball’s hottest rivalry.

He passed his physical Thursday, then went to a hair salon on Manhattan’s East Side to bring him into compliance with the code of Yankee owner George Steinbrenner.

The Boss seemed pleased.

“He looks like a Yankee, he sounds like a Yankee and he is a Yankee,” Steinbrenner said in a statement.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have been speaking with several clubs about trading slugger Troy Glaus in an attempt to strengthen their pitching and fill several holes in the infield, a person close to the team told the Associated Press.

The Diamondbacks have a glut of third basemen and holes at other positions, and there is interest in Glaus, the 2002 World Series MVP for the Angels, because he’s a high-profile player, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because no deal has been made.

Reggie Sanders and the Kansas City Royals finalized a $10-million, two-year contract, bringing the outfielder to the American League for the first time in a major league career that began in 1991.

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The Royals also agreed to a $1-million, one-year contract with pitcher Joe Mays, a deal that allows the right-hander to make an additional $1 million in performance bonuses based on starts.

Outfielder Juan Encarnacion and second baseman Junior Spivey agreed to contracts with the St. Louis Cardinals. Encarnacion, 29, gets a $15-million, three-year deal. Spivey, 30, gets a $1.2-million, one-year contract. Both agreements are contingent on the players’ physicals.

Catcher Einar Diaz returned to the Cleveland Indians, agreeing to a minor league contract with the club he spent seven seasons with before being traded in 2002.

Arizona State will honor former baseball coach Jim Brock by renaming its baseball facility Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark.

Brock battled cancer throughout the 1994 season and died just days after the College World Series that year. Among the future major leaguers Brock coached are Barry Bonds, Floyd Bannister, Bob Horner, Hubie Brooks and Mike Kelly.

OLYMPICS

Miscast Vote May Have Helped London’s Bid

A senior Olympic official says a misplaced vote might have helped London win the 2012 Olympics.

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Alex Gilady said a fellow International Olympic Committee member mistakenly voted for Paris rather than Madrid in July for the right to hold the Games. Another vote for Madrid might have stopped London from winning.

Gilady, an Israeli and member of the London 2012 Coordination Commission, acknowledged there was no way to know for sure what would have happened.

In an earlier interview with Israeli Army Radio, Gilady said the unidentified delegate wanted to change his vote after apparently forgetting which city he chose. The delegate apparently was Lambis Nikolaou, president of the Greek Olympic Committee.

His secretary, who did not want to be identified, told the Associated Press that Nikolaou was aware of the report but did not want to comment.

Paris received 33 votes to Madrid’s 31 in the third round, eliminating the Spanish capital. Moscow and New York were eliminated in the first two rounds. Had Madrid gotten the vote rather than Paris, the cities would have tied with 32 each, seven fewer than London, and entered a tiebreaker. London beat Paris, 54-50, in the final round.

MISCELLANY

Piston’s Cousin Killed in Police Shooting

A cousin of Detroit Piston forward Rasheed Wallace was killed and a police officer was wounded in a shootout authorities said occurred after an undercover drug buy.

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Tyree Wallace, 22, was pronounced dead at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia. Sgt. Mike Mitchell, 41, was in stable condition with a groin wound.

Piston spokesman Matt Dobek confirmed that Tyree Wallace was Rasheed Wallace’s first cousin. Rasheed Wallace did not participate in the team’s shootaround Friday morning, Dobek said. Wallace, however, was in the starting lineup for Friday night’s home game against the Golden State Warriors and scored the team’s first basket.

On Thursday night, Mitchell was in an unmarked police car when an undercover officer bought drugs from Tyree Wallace before identifying himself, Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson said.

Mitchell then saw Wallace pull a gun. The officer jumped out of his vehicle and ran toward Wallace, Johnson said.

Wallace “was fired on in response to him drawing a gun on police,” Capt. Benjamin Naish said at a news conference. It wasn’t immediately known who fired the fatal shots. Several other officers were at the scene.

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