Angels catcher Bobby Wilson, who sprained his left ankle and sustained a concussion when he was bowled over at the plate by the Yankees’ Mark Teixeira 2½ weeks ago, took batting practice on the field this weekend for the first time since the collision and said he expects to join Class A Rancho Cucamonga on a rehabilitation assignment this week.

Wilson, who was making his first start of the year in the game in which was hurt, will work out with the team at Angel Stadium on Monday, then be evaluated by the medical staff.

Another injured catcher, Jeff Mathis, is still wearing a cast on his fractured wrist. He is likely to be out of action another couple of weeks.

-- Kevin Baxter

Photo: Angels starting catcher Jeff Mathis has been out of action since fracturing his wrist in a game on Monday, April 19. Credit: Justin Lane / EPA

Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White confirmed to The Times on Sunday that he had fired popular heavyweight Kimbo Slice, citing ineffectiveness, and welterweight Paul Daley, because of a post-fight sucker punch Daley delivered to Saturday-night winner Josh Koscheck.

Slice was overwhelmed by former NFL lineman Matt Mitrione, losing by second-round TKO in UFC 113 at Montreal's Bell Centre. Slice landed in the UFC as a competitor on the organization's reality television series, "The Ultimate Fighter," and defeated light-heavyweight Houston Alexander on a Las Vegas card in December.

White was far kinder to Slice than Daley in announcing the cuts at a post-fight news conference late Saturday night.

Daley was defeated by Koscheck in a fight that sent the winner to a title shot against gifted champion Georges St-Pierre later this year.

Koscheck reportedly whispered something offensive in Daley's ear toward the end of the fight, and Daley delivered the sucker punch after the bell.

White, who was embarrassed by the post-fight ruckus after a Strikeforce event last month, responded forcefully after the Daley display, announcing, "He's done."

The events nearly overshadowed the moment of the night, when Mauricio "Shogun" Rua knocked out Lyoto Machida in the first round to win the UFC light-heavyweight title. It was Machida's first loss in 17 fights and allowed Rua to avenge a bad decision that went against him versus Machida in October at Staples Center.

-- Lance Pugmire

Photo: Kimbo Slice takes down Matt Mitrione in their UFC 113 heavyweight bout on Saturday night in Montreal. Credit: Richard Wolowicz / Getty Images

RELATED: Photos from UFC 113

Dusty Davis, a driver from Las Vegas, won the NASCAR Super Late Model race at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale on Saturday night. It was his second Super Late Model win in a row.

Davis inherited the lead in the race when the leaders crashed on the last lap. Jason Patison, a driver from Corona, collided with Justin Johnson, Davis' teammate at Vision Aviation Racing. Patison's car slid up into the turn-one wall. He did not finish the race.

Johnson was penalized for crashing with Patison and sent to the back of the pack. The race ended with a green-white-checkered-flag finish.

Two weeks ago, the 17-year-old Davis won his first career Super Late Model race at Toyota Speedway and became the youngest driver to win a Super Late Model race at the track.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for recaps of all the races and video interviews from Toyota Speedway.

-- Tim Haddock

Alan Belcher d. Patrick Cote via choke in the second round

First round: Belcher opens with several body kicks. Cote keeps trying to punch but can't get past the kicks. Cote takes down Belcher and works for a Kimura but Belcher escapes. Belcher ends the round with some punches. Close round, I'd give it to Cote.

Second round: They trade punches before Belcher pins Cote against the fence. Cote takes Belcher down. Belcher gets back up, picks up Cote and drops him in a face-first piledriver. That gets the crowd fired up. Belcher then chokes Cote out.

Matt Matrione d. Kimbo Slice via TKO, second round

First round: Kimbo rocks Mitrione with a right. Kimblo slams him down and gets on top, but Mitrione almost locks in a triangle. Slice escapes and both men are back up. Kimbo takes him down again, but lets Mitrion back up after another triangle attempt.  Mitrione gives Kimbo a couple of body kicks and tries to slap on an anaconda choke when the round ends. Round to Mitrione.

Second round: Kimbo looks gassed already and the round just started. Mitrione sends Kimbo reeling with a punch. Kimbo looks ready to quit. Two body kicks by Mitrione. More punches and knees by Mitrione. Mitrione with several unanswered blows until the ref finally stops it. That should be more than enough to kill off any remaining mystique surrounding Kimbo Slice.

Jeremy Stephens d. Sam Stout by split decision

First round: Stephens takes Stout down with a punch. Looks like Stephens might end it early, but Stout rallies with some hard, low kicks. A hard left to the nose has Stout bleeding. Stephens lands a hook. Stout ends the round with a late flurry, but it's clearly Stephens' round.

Second round: Stephens knocks Stout down with a series of punches. Stout back up and lands some low kicks. A lot of blood coming out of Stout's nose. Another round for Stephens.

Third round: Stout kicks Stephens in the groin. and the fight is interrupted to give Stephens time to recover. Stephens and Stout trade punches. Great fight. Stout lands a series of body kicks, knocking Stephens down. Elbows from the top by Stout. Round to Stout, but Stephens should win the fight.

30-27, 29-28, 28-29 split decision for Stephens.

Josh Koscheck d. Paul Daley via unanimous decision

First round: Koscheck takes Daley down and throws some punches. Koscheck works for the choke but Daley escapes. Daley gets up and kicks Koscheck in the head when Koscheck is still down. End of the round. Slow fight. Round to Koscheck.

Second round: Koscheck takes Daley down again but doesn't really do much with him. Very slow round as Koscheck keeps trying to get past Daley's defense and can't. Round to Koscheck.

Third round: Daley opens with some punches, but Koscheck keeps circling around, as if he is trying to just run out the clock. Koscheck takes Daley down and throws some punches. Now some knees. And the fight is over. Daley sucker punches Koscheck after the fight. Now Dana White is screaming at Daley. Bye bye Daley.

Scores are 30-27, 30-27, 30-27 Koscheck.

Shogun Rua d. Lyoto Machida via TKO in first round to win the light-heavyweight title

First round: Both men trade kicks. More kicks and punches from Shogun. Machida takes him down but Shogun escapes and pops right back up. More knees by Shogun. Shogun rocks Machida with a punch, knocks him down and lands several unanswered blows before the ref stops it.

-- Houston Mitchell

Photo: Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua puts Lyoto Machida on the defensive in their light-heavyweight title bout at UFC 113 on Saturday night in Montreal: Credit: Richard Wolowicz / Getty Images

RELATED: Photos from UFC 113

Ted Christopher, a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour driver from Connecticut, is the top driver in the latest NASCAR Hunter Index, released earlier in the week.

Eric Holmes, a driver from Escalon, Calif., and the winner of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Phoenix International Raceway in April, was fifth in the Hunter Index.

Eric Schmidt, winner of three NASCAR Late Model races last month at All American Speedway in Roseville, Calif., was seventh.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock to see how I ranked the drivers in the Hunter Index and where the drivers from Toyota Speedway at Irwindale ended up.

-- Tim Haddock

The Sparks were lacking a couple of key elements during their preseason game against the San Antonio Silver Stars on Saturday.

They were without star Candace Parker, and in the second half, they were without much defense.

As a result, the San Antonio Silver Stars won, 86-77, in front of a crowd of 1,521 at Cal State Long Beach Pyramid.

The teams were pretty evenly matched offensively. They were tied 43-all at halftime, and the Sparks converted 41.2% of their field goal attempts, compared to the Silver Stars' 40.3%

The difference in the game was fouls.

The Sparks committed 27 of them, and sent the Silver Stars to the free throw line 38 times.

"We were fouling a lot, which took away a lot of transition opportunities," said Parker, who cheered her team on from the bench because she arrived in Los Angeles last night after spending a week in Boston with her husband, Shelden Williams.

The Silver Stars played without Becky Hammon, Sophia Young and the team's first-round draft pick Jayne Appel.

Belinda Snell led all scorers with 17 points for the Silver Stars. The Sparks' DeLisha Milton-Jones had a team-high 13 points on 6-of-14 shooting. Marie Ferdinand-Harris scored 11 points and Noelle Quinn added 10, eight of which she scored in the second quarter.

First-year Sparks coach Jennifer Gillom was not discouraged by the outcome. A lot of the veteran players just recently returned from playing in Europe and have not had a chance to adjust to her new system.

"I'm not concerned," Gillom said. "The effort is what I'm concerned about, and you got that tonight."

The Sparks' first regular-season game is on Saturday at the Phoenix Mercury, which eliminated the Sparks from the playoffs last season in the Western Conference finals.

--Melissa Rohlin

Phil Mickelson took advantage of an early start to be one of the big movers on Saturday during the third round of The Players Championship at Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Mickelson, who can claim the No. 1 ranking in the world this weekend with a victory and Tiger Woods finishing no better than sixth, shot a 66 to close within five shots of leader Lee Westwood, who shot a three-under 69 and three-round total of 202 to keep a one-shot lead over Robert Allenby heading into the final round.

Woods will have problems getting onto the leaderboard after a third-round 71 that featured a handful of bogeys to go with his birdies.

Mickelson fired a five-under 31 on the front nine and was two under on the back before flying the 18th green with his approach and settling for his only bogey of the day. Woods also struggled at the finish, failing to make a birdie putt at No. 16 before going bogey-bogey at Nos. 17 and 18.

Said Mickelson of his round: "I feel like things started to click a little bit today, and I think I've got one more low round in me. I just hope that it will be enough, that I'll be within striking distance."

Mickelson wasn't the only player going low today. Former Masters champion Zach Johnson had a 67 and joined Mickelson at nine-under 207. Fred Funk, the 53-year-old in his final year of exemption from his 2005 victory in The Players Championship, had a 66 in the first pairing of the day and was at 208.

Also challenging for the lead at 204 were U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover, the only player in the top 10 with a major after a 69, along with Torrey Pines winner Ben Crane (68) and Francesco Molinari of Italy, who had a 71.

Woods said he felt on the verge of breaking through."I had it going for a little bit," he said. "I thought if I could have birdied 16 and 17, I'd have been right back in the tournament."

-- Dan Loumena

Associated Press contributed to this report

Photo: Phil Mickelson reacts after just missing a chip for eagle at No. 16 on Saturday at TPC Sawgrass. Credit: Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press

The Angels placed infielder Maicer Izturis on the 15-day disabled list Saturday because inflammation in his right shoulder and replaced him on the roster by calling up infielder Kevin Frandsen from Salt Lake.

Izturis, a switch-hitter who hasn't played in the field since hurting his medically repaired shoulder Monday while diving for a ball, was hitting .256 in 39 at-bats. Izturis had an MRI exam performed on his shoulder Friday afternoon and Dr. Lewis Yocum, the Angels medical director, will review the results Monday. His move to the DL is retroactive to May 6.

Also expected to have an MRI exam is right-handed pitcher Matt Palmer, who was optioned to the minors on Friday. Palmer has had control issues this season and said Friday he was feeling pain on the front side of his right shoulder.

--Kevin Baxter in Seattle

Photo: Angels infielder Maicer Izturis makes a throw from third base to put out the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez in a game April 23 at Angel Stadium. Credit: Stephen Dunn / Getty Images

The Kings' season might be over, but their American Hockey League affiliate continues to showcase the franchise's stable of talented prospects in the Calder Cup playoffs.

Viatcheslav Voynov scored less than two minutes into overtime to lift the Manchester Monarchs to a series-clinching 2-1 victory over the Worcester Sharks in Game 6 of the Atlantic Division finals on Friday.

Torrance native Gabe Gauthier also scored for the Monarchs and Jonathan Bernier, who was impressive in brief stints with the Kings this past season, made 28 saves to improve to 8-2 in the postseason. The Monarchs will play the Hershey Bears in a rematch of the 2007 Eastern Conference final.

Voynov, who was drafted by the Kings in the second round in 2008, assisted on Gauthier's goal.

The Russian has played well this season and has a chance of cracking the Kings blue-line corps next season as the sixth defenseman -- especially if the Kings don't bring back unrestricted free agents Sean O'Donnell and Randy Jones.

The Monarchs open their Eastern finals series against Hershey on Wednesday.

-- Austin Knoblauch

On Friday, a Superior Court judge with a more superior grasp of math than you and I possess ordered Dodgers owner Frank McCourt to pay his estranged wife, Jamie, $637,159 a month in temporary spousal support, plus lawyers' fees, pending their bitter divorce.

That's like $7.5 million a year. Just about what you'd pay a real good frontline pitcher, isn't it?

I know.  The Dodgers insist, swear like Tommy Lasorda, that the money being discussed in the Divorce From Hell is totally separate from the money used to run the baseball team.

"The Dodgers are not Frank McCourt's personal piggy bank," his lawyer says. So that's what they tell us and that's what we're supposed to believe.

Ahh, but if you're really True Blue, don't you suspect with more than average conviction that the Dodgers' failure to spend one red penny on pitching during the off-season is somehow connected to funds being tied up in the McCourts' big breakup?

I admit, I have no idea know how much Jamie McCourt needs to pay mortgages on seven houses plus an eighth piece of property in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. I wouldn't know what to do with seven houses, especially when the one perfectly good house we already have luckily has a laundry room and swimming pool, not requiring me to go someplace else to swim or wash my gym shorts. But, hey, homes are expensive, especially when they're in Malibu and Holmby Hills.

However, I do know by cleverly looking it up on MLB.com that the Dodgers are currently 26th out of 30 major league teams in staff earned-run average, with an ERA over five runs a game. Only four teams are worse, one of them being the Angels, keeping bad pitching in Los Angeles-area family. 

I'm guessing the Dodgers didn't spend on upgrading their wobbly starting pitching because Frank McCourt correctly figured the fans would give him a freebie this season, more placidly accept an off year or even two because, after all, the team did win the N.L. West the last two seasons, reaching baseball's final four, buying Frank a year or two, you would think, to fail on the field.

Matt Carlino, a guard from Bloomington (Ind.) South High, signed his letter of intent with UCLA on Friday. Carlino, who is graduating from high school a year early, announced last week that he would attend UCLA.

Meanwhile, twins David and Travis Wear are still awaiting their official release from North Carolina. The 6-foot-10 freshman forwards announced they would not return to the Tar Heels. UCLA is believed to be interested and are among the schools the Wears will consider.

Carlino, a 6-2 guard, averaged 13.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists a game while leading Bloomington South to a 23-1 overall record as a junior in 2009-10.

“I'm really excited about Matt Carlino joining our basketball program and family," Howland said. "He is an outstanding shooter, a very good passer, a good athlete and an outstanding kid. I look for him to make an immediate impact and be a very good player for us. I think he is an outstanding addition to our team."

Here's an in-depth video on Carlino.

--Chris Foster

Ryan Carter of the Ducks scored the game-tying goal in the third period of the United States' opening game of the 2010 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship, but the Americans fell to host Germany, 2-1, in overtime Friday in front of a world record crowd of 77,803 in Gelsenkirchen.

"It was a great event to be a part of," said Scott Gordon, Team USA's head coach. "Obviously we're disappointed with the final result, but I was especially pleased with the way we played in the third period."

Germany took a 1-0 lead at 5:20 of the second period, while Carter's goal came at 8:28 of the third. 

Team USA will face Denmark in its second preliminary-round game on Monday at  7:15 a.m. PDT.

-- Debbie Goffa

Photo: A world-record crowd of 77,803 spectators watch the U.S. play Germany on Friday in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. The previous record was 74,554 during a Michigan-Michigan State game at East Lansing. Credit: Martin Meissner / Associated Press

Abele, who was a redshirt as a freshman last fall, sat out most spring practice with numbness in his neck, traced to a nerve problem. He had similar problems while at Irvine High.

The loss of Abele leaves the Bruins particular light at tackle. The Bruins have only four tackles on scholarship until freshmen arrive in the fall, Mike Harris, Micah Kia, Brett Downey and Sean Sheller.

Harris started all 13 games last season. Kia missed last season after suffering a severe knee injury. He sat out spring practice, but is expected to be ready by August. Downey was a walk-on until this spring. Sheller has spent two years recovering from a severe knee injury. Xavier Su’-Filo, who started all 13 games as a freshman last fall, left to go on a two-year Mormon mission.

UCLA has three offensive linemen in its 2010 recruiting class. Wade Yandall enrolled early, but worked out at guard all spring. Chris Ward is believed capable of playing immediately, but was a guard at Santa Ana Mater Dei. Kody Innes was a tackle at Scottsdale Saguaro High.

Abele will remain on scholarship. It will not count against UCLA’s team limit, as he is out due to medical reasons.

“Nik is devastated that he can no longer play football, but his long-term future is more important,” UCLA Coach Rick Neuheisel said in a statement. “Nik is a great young man and we want him to remain involved with our program, both on and off the field, and continue to go to school to earn his degree.”

--Chris Foster

chris.foster@latimes.com

twitter.com/cfosterlatimes

Former USC star and current Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing has been suspended four games without pay for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances.

Cushing will serve his suspension over the first four games of the upcoming season and will be eligible to return during the week of Oct. 4.

Texans General Manager Rick Smith told the Associated Press that the team is “disappointed” to learn of the suspension.

Cushing, the 15th overall pick in last year's draft, had 133 tackles in 2009 and won Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.

The suspension was first reported by ESPN.

-- Houston Mitchell

Photo: Brian Cushing takes a water break at practice during his USC days. Credit: Los Angeles Times

Carl Benson, a guard on USC's 1939 national championship team, died of cancer in San Diego last month, his family said. He was 92.

The '39 team defeated Tennessee, 14-0, in the Rose Bowl to finish 8-0-2 and take the No. 1 spot in the Dickinson System, one of numerous polls at the time.

While the NCAA listed USC with Texas A&M and Cornell as champions for the season, the players had to lobby their own school for many years before administrators agreed to honor them in a halftime ceremony at the Coliseum in 2004.

Recalling a squad that included quarterback Ambrose Schindler, Benson once said: "Just so many good players."

Days before his death on Apr. 16, Benson spoke to a booster club in San Diego, his daughter Paddi Benson Arthur said.

-- David Wharton

Photo: Ambrose Schindler, left, and Carl Benson lobbied for years for recognition of USC's 1939 national championship. Credit: Los Angeles Times (Photo taken in 2004).

It won't be in the main draw but Martina Hingis (above left) and Anna Kournikova (above right) will play in the ladies' invitational doubles tournament (that's the senior bracket) at Wimbledon in July.

Guaranteed that they'll pack some outside court during the second week when the event begins while some women's quarterfinal singles match not involving a Williams sister or Kim Clijsters or Justine Henin is going on.

Hingis, 29, has been retired since allegedly testing positive for cocaine after the 2007 Wimbledon tournament. She has denied using the drug. Kournikova, 28, retired from the WTA Tour in 2003 after a series of injuries. 

-- Diane Pucin

Photo credits: Walter Bieri / EPA and Tina Fineberg / Associated Press

The news release was sent out earlier in the week, to little notice:

"The Round Rock Express have acquired Billy Ray "Rojo" Johnson... Johnson, who was born in East Texas but was raised in Venezuela, recently had his prison sentence commuted. He served time for running a smuggling ring that imported rare and illegal species of reptiles into the United States from South America during the mid-to-late 1990s."

No one usually cares when a minor league team, in this instance the triple-A Round Rock Express, acquires an unknown player. But this person was unusual.

Rojo made his debut for the Houston Astros' affiliate on Thursday, carrying a six-pack of beer with him to the mound. His first pitch went behind the batter, and Johnson was immediately ejected from the game.

Now, before you get too concerned, here's the catch: Billy Ray "Rojo" Johnson was actually Will Ferrell in disguise. Ferrell did it to promote a charity golf event being held in Austin, Texas.

Why would Round Rock agree to it? Well, the Express drew their largest crowd of the season, with more than 10,000 in attendance, including more than 4,000 walk-up sales.

-- Houston Mitchell

Who are the 10 greatest L.A. Lakers of all time? This is your chance, readers of latimes.com/sports, to choose who you think are the best of the best. The 10 greatest. Is Kobe No. 1? Magic? Chick Hearn? Jerry Buss? Kareem?

Send me an e-mail listing your choices for the 10 greatest L.A. Lakers, in order from 1-10. You can pick anyone associated with the franchise, from coaches to announcers to players. When balloting closes, the votes will be tabulated, with 12 points for first place, 9 for second, 8 for third, all the way down to 1 point for 10th place.

And remember, these are for L.A. Lakers, so please, as great as he was, no votes for George Mikan,

The results will be revealed, one player at a time, beginning Thursday. Balloting closes Wednesday at 8 p.m. So e-mail me, houston.mitchell@latimes.com or leave your picks in our comment field below. And may the best Laker win.

-- Houston Mitchell

Continuing our series on the 10 greatest L.A. Kings of all time, as chosen by our readers.

No. 4: Rogie Vachon (75 first-place votes, 8,979 points)

Vachon, who began his career with Montreal, was traded to the Kings in 1971 and became their first real superstar. He was one of the best one-on-one goaltenders of his era and never gave up a goal on a penalty shot.

After retiring, Vachon served general manager of the Kings from 1984 to 1992 and has served as interim head coach of the team on three separate occasions. His number 30 was the first number retired by the Kings in a ceremony on Feb. 14, 1985.

On the Kings' career list, Vachon is first in wins (171), first in losses (148), first in shutouts (32) and fifth in goals-against average (2.86).

-- Houston Mitchell

Previously:

No. 10: Charlie Simmer

No. 9: Bernie Nicholls

No. 8: Rob Blake

No. 7: Bob Miller

No. 6: Butch Goring

No. 5: Dave Taylor

Photo: Rogie Vachon. Credit: Los Angeles Times.

Reporters from around the Tribune family tackle the question of the day, then you get a chance to chime in and tell them why they are wrong.

Dom Amore, Hartford Courant

A few years ago, when the steroids controversy was raging around Jason Giambi, and he was struggling to get a hit for the Yankees, he declared he was not a quitter and he would not be driven from the game he loved. Giambi showed his mettle. He admitted his mistakes, apologized, and worked his way back for a few respectable years to finish his Yankee contract.

Point proven, it's time for Giambi to move on. Unable to play first base with any dexterity, and unable to land a contract as a full-time DH in the AL, where teams are looking for more versatility, he is hanging on with the Rockies as a pinch-hitter, a latter-day Rusty Staub who, by the way, hates being cited for his pinch-hitting records but wants to be remembered as an outstanding fulltime player. Giambi, as of May 6, was 2-for-23, an .095 average, in  that role. Of course, he walked eight times, so even now his on-base percentage is a decent .375.

But is this the way for a one-time MVP to keep playing? Trot up to the plate to hit for the pitcher, draw a walk, then trot off for a pinch-runner?

Updated at 11:53 a.m.

Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times

You know how you always hear players say they aren't going to retire until someone pulls the uniform off them? Well perhaps it's time someone obliged Omar Vizquel.

An 11-time Gold Glove winner who was once among the most magical fielders of all time Vizquel, at 43, is just a shadow of his former self. And the White Sox are his third team in as many seasons, which should have given him a hint. And if that didn't, maybe the .115 batting average he took into the weekend will.

Someone might want to ask Trevor Hoffman to change back into street clothes too. The all-time saves leader Hoffman, 42, was an all-star last season. But he entered the weekend having blown as many save chances, four, as he's converted. And his 11.70 ERA is among the highest in the majors.

Hoffman is a cinch for the Hall of Fame while Vizquel's candidancy will certainly get a ton of support as well. They should both retire gracefully so we can remember how great they were and not how long they hung on past their primes.

Photo: Jason Giambi. Credit: Ed Andrieski / Associated Press.