Sports shorts
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The San Francisco Giants want Barry Bonds back.
Baseball's winter meetings opened Monday with a whole lot of talk and little action. St. Louis pitcher Chris Carpenter got a new five-year contract worth about $65 million. On the free agent front, San Francisco finalized deals with Rich Aurilia and Pedro Feliz, and Seattle completed an agreement with Jose Guillen.
Monday's most significant development might have occurred when Giants general manager Brian Sabean said he is exchanging offers with Bonds' agent, Jeff Borris. Sabean was scheduled to meet with Borris on Monday night.
"I don't know where the story line came from that we didn't want him back," Sabean said "We've had a long-standing conversation and offer out there that we've adjusted a number of times. Because we were pursuing other players didn't mean we weren't interested in Barry. We're trying to put the best team on the field and sign other people also. I guess it was misconstrued the other way."
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National finals rodeo
LAS VEGAS — Speed Williams and Clay O'Brien Cooper took over the lead in both categories of team roping Monday night in the fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo.
Williams, from De Leon, Texas, and Cooper, from Morgan Mill, Texas, tied for first place with a time of 4.0 seconds. Cooper ($116,512) took over the heeler world standings lead from Allen Bach of Weatherford, Texas, ($113,034), and Williams ($116,512) increased his lead in the header standings over Matt Sherwood of Queen Creek ($109,354).
Nick Sartain and Shannon Frascht, both from Alva, Okla., tied for first.
In bareback riding, Will Lowe, the defending world champion and world standings leader from Canyon, Texas, tied for first on River Boat Annie with an 87-point ride — his third consecutive win. Lowe, who tied for first with Jess Davis of Payson, Utah, on Real Deal, increased his world lead to just over $79,000 over Andy Martinez of Pavillion, Wyo.
auto racing
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — International Speedway Corp. scrapped plans Monday to build a track on Staten Island, stalling NASCAR's dream to bring a race to the New York area.
Residents complained of traffic tie-ups and argued that the two major roads leading into the property would likely need major renovations to handle the increased loads.
