Reds pitcher Mike Leake had his legal charges reduced from theft to unauthorized use of property on Friday. Leake was accepted into a diversion program. He pleaded guilty in Hamilton County Municipal Court to the reduced charge. The theft is a Misdemeanor 1, and the reduced charge is a Misdemeanor 4. Leake, 23, was arrested April 18 at the downtown Macy's and charged with theft, accused of stealing six T-shirts valued at $59.88. "I just need to apologize to the Reds, to the Castellinis, to Walt (Jocketty), to anyone in the office that I forgot, to the players and my family," Leake said. "I sincerely apologize to them for putting all this pressure on them and the drama that I've caused."

Braves right-hander Derek Lowe has been charged with drunken driving. Georgia State Patrol spokesman Gordy Wright says a trooper stopped the 37-year-old Lowe's vehicle about 10 p.m. Thursday on an Atlanta street. Wright says that during the course of the traffic stop, the trooper detected an odor of an alcoholic beverage and administered a field sobriety test and Lowe was arrested. Lowe is 2-3 this season with a 3.21 earned run average.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt expressed defiance and outrage during a news conference in New York on Wednesday after McCourt said commissioner Bud Selig vetoed McCourt's agreed-upon deal with Fox for a regional sports network. McCourt said the deal would infuse the club with enough cash to be competitive on the field for the forseeable future. McCourt went so far as to describe Selig as "un-American" for what he sees as an attempt by Selig to unlawfully seize McCourt's property.

Seeking approval for a proposed TV contract and resistant to having his team run by MLB, embattled Dodgers owner Frank McCourt expects to meet Wednesday with baseball officials in New York. Commissioner Bud Selig last week seized financial and operational control of the Dodgers and Monday announced former Rangers president Tom Schieffer would take over operational duties.

Former major league outfielder Carl Everett was in a Tampa jail Tuesday on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after putting a handgun to his wife's head. Everett, 39, was arrested Monday night at his home in the Tampa suburb of Lutz. He also was charged with tampering with a witness and was being held in the Hillsborough County Jail. Everett played in the majors for 14 seasons. He began with the Marlins and was traded to the Mets. He also played with the Astros, Red Sox, Rangers, White Sox, Expos and Mariners.

Elijah Dukes has been charged in Florida with driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license. The former member of the Rays and Nationals was arrested Sunday afternoon on an exit ramp of Interstate 75 near Tampa. Dukes was also arrested March 2 after a former girlfriend accused him of hitting her.

Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig announced today that he has appointed J. Thomas Schieffer, the former president of the Rangers, as the Monitor of the Dodgers franchise. Schieffer will represent the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball in the oversight of the day-to-day operations, business and finances of the Dodgers and all of the franchise’s related entities. Schieffer, an investor in the ownership group headed by George W. Bush and Rusty Rose that purchased the Rangers in 1989, was the club president from 1991-1999 and the franchise’s general partner from November 1994 until June 1998.

Former Dodgers manager Joe Torre said Commissioner Bud Selig conferred with him before announcing that Major League Baseball is taking control of the club, and expressed hope that after a difficult decision "we have a healthy franchise" as a result. Torre managed the Dodgers the last three years of his 29-year managerial career, guiding them to a pair of National League West titles. "I'm glad it is tended to, paid attention to, and I know it wasn't easy for the Commissioner to come down with the decision that he did," Torre said. "He's given it a lot of thought. I know that, because we've conferred a time or two. Hopefully when it's all said and done, we have a healthy franchise out there. "He certainly conferred with me on what he was thinking, and how he was thinking about the franchise in Los Angeles, and he felt it should be on more solid footing, basically."

A New York woman is suing the Yankees over the team's legendary logo for she claims the team stole the emblem from her family. She said the Yankees stole their famous, top-hat logo from her family more than 70 years ago and that her uncle designed the team's logo back in 1936 but was never paid for his work.

New Dodgers executive Steve Soboroff came to the defense of embattled owner Frank McCourt on Thursday, blasting commissioner Bud Selig's decision to have Major League Baseball assume control of the team, according to an ESPN.com report.