For The Record

Sidelined
Until at least next June, Mets ace Pedro Martinez, who was scheduled to undergo surgery on his right rotator cuff this week. On Sept. 27, Martinez, 34, was shelled for seven runs in 2 2/3 innings against the Braves (above). The next day the Mets announced that he would miss the playoffs because of a torn tendon in his left calf. Three days later the team revealed that an MRI taken after he complained of a sore shoulder detected a tear in his rotator cuff. Mets G.M. Omar Minaya, who signed Martinez as a free agent before the 2005 season, said Martinez told him he first felt something wrong with his shoulder in the start against Atlanta.

Denied
By Roger Clemens, that he has used performance-enhancing drugs, after it was reported that he was fingered by former major league pitcher Jason Grimsley earlier this year. Last Saturday the Los Angeles Times reported that in an affidavit, BALCO investigator Jeff Novitzky said that Grimsley named Clemens, his Astros teammate Andy Pettitte and three Orioles ( Jay Gibbons, Brian Roberts and Miguel Tejada) as performance-enhancing drug users. All five players said they were innocent. "I've been tested plenty of times," Clemens, 44, said on Sunday. "I have passed every test.... I just find it amazing that you can throw anybody out there."

Fired
By the Nationals, manager Frank Robinson, possibly ending the Hall of Famer's 51-year career in baseball. Robinson, 71, took over as the Expos' skipper in 2002--he led them to a second-place finish in the NL East--and followed the franchise when it moved to Washington, D.C., in '05. This season the Nats finished 71-91 and ended up last in the division. "It's been a good ride for me," said Robinson. "I have no bitter feelings."

Underwent
By disgraced Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, surgery to repair his arthritic right hip. Landis, 30, who may become the first Tour champion to be stripped of his title--he tested positive for elevated testosterone levels during the race--has begun six weeks of physical therapy. (He is appealing his test results; a hearing before the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency is likely to occur early next year.) Landis hopes to recover in time to train for the 2007 Tour.

Agreed
To buy a 70% stake in the Memphis Grizzlies, a group led by former Duke basketball player Brian Davis (above), a starting forward on the teams that won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1991 and '92. After graduating, Davis made millions in real estate ventures, including some with former teammate Christian Laettner. Davis and Laettner are contributing $40 million to the $360 million purchase price; Davis raised the rest from investors. The deal is far from done: The Memphis investors who own the other 30% of the Grizzlies have 60 days to match the group's offer.

Announced
By Mike Tyson, that he will fight a series of four-round exhibitions dubbed Mike Tyson's World Tour. Iron Mike, 40, who hasn't fought since his loss to Kevin McBride in June 2005, will return on Oct. 20 against former sparring partner Corey Sanders in Youngstown, Ohio. (No other dates have been scheduled, but Tyson said he wants the tour to visit Europe, Asia and the Middle East.) After the McBride bout Tyson said he wouldn't fight again, but his financial woes--he's reportedly $30 million in debt--forced him to reconsider. "If I don't get out of these financial quagmires," he said, "there's a possibility I may have to be a punching bag for somebody."

Found
In a roadside ditch in Missouri's Camden County, a bronze bust of former Royals third baseman George Brett that had been stolen from the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. The bust (left), valued at between $10,000 and $15,000, was discovered last Friday, three days after it went missing, by a resident of Camdentown, about 80 miles from the Hall's Springfield location. It was in a duct-taped box labeled please return to the police, stolen property. As of Monday there were no suspects.

Reported
By genetic researchers in London, that the lengths of a woman's fingers may predict her athletic prowess. In a study of 607 female twins aged 25 to 79, the scientists found that the longer a woman's ring finger was in comparison to her index finger, the more likely it was that she had achieved athletic success, especially in sports requiring a lot of running. (The subjects of the study ranged from recreational joggers to elite athletes.) "I was quite amazed that there are bits of our body that indicate our performance," said Kings College professor Tim Spector.

Reported
Erroneously as having died, Paul Vance, a thoroughbred owner and writer of the 1960s hit song Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. After several media outlets had reported his death, Vance was inundated with calls, and two of his horses were scratched from races at Vernon Downs in New York. It turned out that the man who died was Paul Van Valkenburgh, who falsely claimed to have written the song under a pen name. Vance, who learned of reports of his death while watching The O'Reilly Factor, called it "the most bizarre experience of my life."