Davydenko gets another warning for his poor play

Already at the center of tennis’ gambling probe, No. 4-ranked Nikolay Davydenko was criticized for his play at a second consecutive tournament Thursday, when his poor serving during a loss at the Paris Masters drew a rebuke from the chair umpire.

Davydenko, the defending champion, finished with 10 double-faults and 36 unforced errors in a 6-2, 6-2 third-round defeat against No. 22 Marcos Baghdatis. The Russian was booed during a match in which he lost serve five times.

A week ago, Davydenko was fined $2,000 by the ATP for “lack of best effort” during a 1-6, 7-5, 6-1 loss to No. 102 Marin Cilic at the St. Petersburg Open.

ATP spokesman Nicola Arzani said the tour didn’t think anything was wrong with what Davydenko did in Paris, so no action will be taken against him.

David Nalbandian beat Roger Federer for the second time in less than two weeks, earning a 6-4, 7-6 (3) victory.

Lindsay Davenport advanced to the Bell Challenge quarterfinals, routing Aleksandra Wozniak, 6-1, 6-0, at Quebec City. Vania King beat Renata Voracova, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.

BASEBALL

Bonds to boycott Hall if asterisk is used

Barry Bonds would boycott Cooperstown if the Hall of Fame displays his record-breaking home run ball with an asterisk.

That includes skipping his potential induction ceremony.

“I won’t go. I won’t be part of it,” Bonds said in an interview with MSNBC. “You can call me, but I won’t be there.”

The ball Bonds hit for home run No. 756 this season will be branded with an asterisk and sent to the Hall. Fashion designer Marc Ecko bought the ball in an online auction and set up a website for fans to vote on its fate. In late September, he announced fans voted to send the ball to Cooperstown with an asterisk.

Manager Mike Scioscia’s staff will return intact next season after the Angels reached agreements on two-year contract extensions for all six major league coaches, as well as bullpen catcher Steve Soliz.

Bench coach Ron Roenicke, hitting coach Mickey Hatcher and first base coach Alfredo Griffin, who were all part of Scioscia’s original staff in 2000, will return for their ninth seasons.

Orlando Mercado will return for his sixth season as bullpen coach, Dino Ebel will return for his third season as third base coach, Mike Butcher will return for his second season as pitching coach, and Soliz will return for his sixth season as bullpen catcher.

Reliever Joel Zumaya of the Detroit Tigers is expected to be sidelined until midseason after injuring his throwing shoulder while moving items during the California wildfires.

GOLF

Inaugural class of six for local Hall of Fame

The inaugural class of the Southern California Golf Assn. Hall of Fame, consisting of Johnny Dawson, Dr. Paul Hunter, Gene Littler, Edward B. Tufts, George Von Elm and Mickey Wright, was inducted Wednesday.

Littler, a 29-time PGA Tour winner, and Wright, a 82-time LPGA Tour winner, are also members of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Dawson, Hunter and Von Elm were amateur stars and Tufts was a co-founder of the Los Angeles Country Club.

J.P. Hayes shot a seven-under par 65 to build a one-shot lead in the Children’s Miracle Network Classic at Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Cameron Beckman, Scott Verplank and Ryuji Imada all shot 66.

MISCELLANY

Scholarship will honor filmmaker Greenspan

The United States Olympic Committee has created an endowed scholarship in the name of filmmaker Bud Greenspan at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.

Greenspan has chronicled the Olympics through his documentaries and has won eight Emmy Awards.

He was given the Olympic Order from the International Olympic Committee in 1985.

The Bud Greenspan Scholarship will give preference to individuals who have specific interest in Olympic sports-related filmmaking.

Los Angeles-based Mandalay Sports Entertainment is selling the Las Vegas 51s, the triple-A affiliate for the Dodgers, to a private investor with significant holdings in Nevada and Michigan. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

The sale is subject to regulatory approval by the Pacific Coast League and the Commissioners of Major League and Minor League Baseball.

Big-league sports in the U.S. will boost their sponsorship revenue by 15% to just over $2 billion during 2007, according to IEG Sponsorship Report, a Chicago market research firm.

Football, baseball, basketball and hockey are doing better than the overall corporate sponsorship category, which is expected to increase by 11.7% to $14.9 billion, according to IEG.

The sports-related increase reflects the continued popularity of athletics among corporate marketers who are eager to connect with the consumers who are difficult to reach with other forms of marketing and advertising.

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Mike Skinner matched two qualifying records and extended another with a pole-winning run for tonight’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ Silverado 350 at Fort Worth.

Skinner, four points behind championship leader Ron Hornaday Jr. with three races left, drove his Toyota around the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway with a fast lap speed of 184.137 mph to top the time trials.

Rick Tocchet, already on two years’ probation after he pleaded guilty to promoting gambling and conspiracy to promote gambling, won’t be able to resume his position as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Coyotes until Feb. 7, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said.

Rau’shee Warren and Demetrius Andrade made their way to the semifinals of the World Boxing Championships with victories in Chicago, but super heavyweight Michael Hunter was beaten by Islam Timurziev.