By Tim Kenneally

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Michael Douglas had a public-relations headache when the Guardian newspaper reported that he blamed oral sex for his cancer - and his representative quickly contested the story.

But the "Behind the Candelabra" star has found a silver lining, he said Monday.

"I never expected to become a poster boy for head and neck cancer, but, if after what started out as trying to answer a couple of questions about the suspected sources of this disease results in opening up discussion and furthering public awareness, then I'll stand by that," Douglas said at an American Cancer Society's tribute to composer Marvin Hamlisch.

"Head and neck cancer can be caused by many things including HPV virus, smoking, alcohol, drug abuse, genes, environment and stress. I do not know what caused my particular cancer. If I did, I'd have a Nobel Prize."

The actor concluded, "I do know that I am here today because of all the incredible advances in cancer research and treatment. Early awareness is a key factor. If this episode contributes to public awareness, all the better."

The Guardian published an interview in which Douglas seemed to attribute his throat cancer to oral sex.

Asked if he regretted years of smoking and drinking in light of his diagnosis, Douglas replied, "No. Because without wanting to get too specific, this particular cancer is caused by HPV, which actually comes about from cunnilingus."

After the interview was published, Douglas' representative told TheWrap that Douglas was merely offering one of the causes for his type of cancer.

"He did not say cunnilingus was the cause of his cancer," Douglas' representative, Allen Burry said. "He didn't specifically name a cause."

The 68-year-old actor, who is married to actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2010. Douglas says that he is currently free of the disease.

LONDON (Reuters) - American short story writer Lydia Davis won the fifth Man Booker International Prize for fiction on Wednesday for a body of work that includes some of the briefest tales ever published.

Davis, a professor of creative writing at the University of Albany, is best known for work that Observer critic William Skidelsky once said "redefines the meaning of brevity".

She is also an accomplished translator whose English versions of Marcel Proust's "Du Cote de Chez Swann" (Swann's Way) and Gustave Flaubert's "Madame Bovary" helped earn her a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters in France.

Davis said it was Proust's monumental work and famously long sentences that helped inspire her succinct writing style.

"Actually, when I was translating Proust was when I thought 'how short could a short story be?'" she told Reuters after receiving the 60,000 pound ($90,800) award in London. "I thought 'how little could you say and still have it work?'"

Some of Davis's longer stories may run to two, three, as many as nine pages, while others can be as brief as a paragraph or even just a sentence.

"Idea for a Short Documentary Film" in the 2009 "Collected Stories of Lydia Davis" reads:

"Representatives of different food products manufacturers try to open their own packaging."

Davis - who has only written one novel - beat out a shortlist of 10 contenders for the prize that included two authors banned in their home countries, the youngest ever nominee and one shortlisted for the second time.

Booker International panel chairman Christopher Ricks said 65-year-old Davis's stories embraced so many literary structures that it was hard to narrow them down to a single label.

"Should we simply concur with the official title and dub them stories?" Ricks said in a statement announcing the prize.

"Or perhaps miniatures? Anecdotes? Essays? Jokes? Parables? Fables? Texts? Aphorisms, or even apophthegms? Prayers, or perhaps wisdom literature? Or might we settle for observations?"

Davis' one novel is entitled "The End of the Story" and she has written seven story collections including "Break It Down", "Almost No Memory", "Samuel Johnson Is Indignant" and "Varieties of Disturbance".

A new collection, "Can't and Won't", is due to be published in the United States in 2014.

Davis is considered hugely influential by a generation of writers including Jonathan Franzen, David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers, who once wrote that she "blows the roof off of so many of our assumptions about what constitutes short fiction."

The Man Booker International Prize is presented once every two years to a living author for a body of work published either originally in English or available in translation in the English language.

Previous winners include U.S. novelist Philip Roth in 2011, Canadian novelist Alice Munro in 2009, the late Nigerian poet and novelist Chinua Achebe in 2007 and Albanian writer Ismail Kadare in 2005.

(Reporting by Paul Casciato and Ana Nicolaci da Costa; editing by Mike Collett-White)

HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit filed by the state of Pennsylvania against the National Collegiate Athletic Association that claimed the sports authority overstepped its bounds with its penalties against Penn State over the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

The antitrust lawsuit filed in January by Governor Tom Corbett sought to have all the NCAA sanctions thrown out. The ruling lets stand an unprecedented $60 million fine imposed on the university and upholds the NCAA's move to void all Penn State's football team victories over more than 14 seasons.

The lawsuit claimed the sanctions would cause economic fallout throughout the state and was filed on behalf of third parties such as stadium workers, shopkeepers, hoteliers and others whose businesses could be hit due to the penalties.

U.S. District Court Judge Yvette Kane said the lawsuit's arguments "fail to advance the ball."

The lawsuit "raises serious questions about the indirect economic impact of NCAA sanctions on innocent parties," she wrote in her ruling. "These are important questions deserving of public debate, but they are not antitrust questions."

Sandusky, Penn State's former defensive coordinator, was convicted last June of 45 counts of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years, some in the football team's showers. He was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison.

In July, the NCAA, the governing body of U.S. collegiate sports, filed its sanctions against Penn State for the school's failure to stop Sandusky's sexual abuse of children.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the NCAA said it hoped the decision would "serve as a beginning of the end of the divide among those who, like Penn State, want to move forward to put the horror of the Sandusky crimes behind the university and those who want to prolong the fight, and with it, the pain."

Corbett, in a statement issued by his office, said he was disappointed and believes the sanctions "have harmed the citizens, students, athletes, alumni and taxpayers of Pennsylvania."

"Countless individuals and small businesses throughout the state will continue to suffer because of the NCAA's actions," he said.

The governor said he would review the state's options with its legal team.

Legal analysts at the time it was filed called the lawsuit a longshot, saying it would be difficult to convert any harm done to local businesses into an antitrust violation. The state would have to show that the penalties harmed consumers and constituted a breakdown in the competitive marketplace, they said.

Penn State was not involved in the lawsuit.

Last week, the family of the late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, along with a group of faculty and former college athletes, also sued the NCAA over its response to the sex abuse scandal.

Their lawsuit claims the NCAA was wrong to base its sanctions on what it called "flawed findings" in an independent investigation by former FBI Director Louis Freeh into how Penn State handled the Sandusky case.

The Freeh report found Paterno and other university officials covered up Sandusky's sexual abuse for years in an effort to protect the multimillion-dollar football program.

Paterno, one of college football's most revered coaches, was fired by Penn State's board days after Sandusky was arrested in November 2011. Paterno died of lung cancer in January 2012.

(Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst, Alden Bentley and Cynthia Osterman)

MIAMI, June 3 (Reuters) - The Miami Heat reached their third straight NBA Finals with an emphatic 99-76 game seven win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday to set up a mouthwatering clash with the San Antonio Spurs.

A loss for the defending champions in game six in Indiana had raised major questions over the form of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh but they delivered when it mattered along with an almost inevitable game high 32 points from league MVP LeBron James.

"You never want to take anything for granted," said Wade as Miami celebrated the Eastern Conference title after a 4-3 series win.

"Making it three years in a row to the finals is an amazing feat. Anything that happened in the other games didn't matter. It was just about tonight.

"We're going to the finals, it's the two best teams in the finals," he told TNT television.

Wade's form and his fitness - there have also been question marks over his knee - were always going to be crucial in this game and he ended a run of 12 games without breaking 20 points, putting up 21.

Miami looked to get Wade involved early, a strategy that worked perfectly while Bosh was the rebound presence Miami have lacked - grabbing eight off the boards.

Pacers forward Paul George has come of age during this series but he was barely a factor at the American Airlines Arena, making just seven points on 2-9 shooting.

Not for the first time, Miami made a slow start and trailed 12-6 but they clawed their way back to lead 21-19 at the end of the first quarter - although with Bosh shooting 1-8 the Heat were still far from at their peak.

They turned on the style in the second quarter though, racing to a 15 point advantage at the break (52-37) with 12 points from James in the quarter and 10 from Ray Allen.

Indiana badly needed to make an impact early in the third but there was real determination about Miami's play and their lead was never threatened.

When George fouled out at 7:43 in the fourth, the despondency was evident on the faces of the Pacers.

James was able to check out with over five minutes left and the Heat 25 points up, shaking the hand of the watching David Beckham as he left the court.

The best-of-seven finals will begin in Miami on Thursday. (Reporting By Simon Evans)

The 40-page suit to be filed Thursday will name as defendants the NCAA and its president, Mark Emmert, and Oregon State President Edward Ray, who was chair of the NCAA's executive committee, according to a statement released by attorney Wick Sollers and other family representatives late Wednesday night.

The planned litigation also seeks to shine a light on the withering report prepared by former FBI director Louis Freeh, whom the university tapped to lead an investigation into the scandal, and calls into question how and why the NCAA used the report as a basis for its sanctions in July, according to Sollers.

College sports' governing body acted with uncharacteristic speed in levying landmark penalties that included a four-year bowl ban and steep scholarship cuts less than two weeks after Freeh released his findings.

The NCAA, Emmert and Ray "acted in clear and direct violation of the organization's own rules based on a flawed report" by Freeh, the statement said. The report pointed blame in part on Paterno and three former school officials.

"This case is further proof that the NCAA has lost all sense of its mission. If there was ever a situation that demanded meticulous review and a careful adherence to NCAA rules and guidelines, this was it," Sollers said. "Instead, the NCAA placed a premium on speed over accuracy and precipitous action over due process."

Paterno's son, Jay Paterno, and Bill Kenney are two former Paterno assistants taking part in the action against the NCAA, the statement said. Also joining in the suit are five trustees, four faculty members and nine ex-Penn State players, including Seahawks fullback Michael Robinson, according to the statement.

Sollers said the suit was to be filed in state court in Centre County, home of Penn State's flagship campus. The family planned to post the complaint on www.paterno.com after it was filed.

Freeh accused Paterno and three former university officials of concealing allegations against Sandusky, a retired defensive coordinator. Sandusky was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison after being convicted last year of dozens of criminal counts of abuse, including allegations on and off campus.

Paterno died in January 2012. His family and the former school officials have vehemently denied they took part in a cover-up.

The suit is designed "to redress the NCAA's 100 percent adoption of the Freeh Report. ... The reality is that consent decree was imposed through coercion and threats behind the scenes, and there was no ability for anyone to get redress," Sollers told Bob Costas in an interview that aired on the NBC Sports Network's "Costas Tonight" early Thursday morning.

"There was no board approval, there was no transparency, and there was no consideration of this consent decree."

Dick Thornburgh, a former U.S. attorney general and Pennsylvania governor, also was interviewed by Costas. Thornburgh was an author of a critique released in February and commissioned by the Paterno family that called Freeh's work a "rush to injustice."

The family's lawsuit would be the latest filing in a tangled web of litigation related to the sanctions. Most prominently, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA, which also has faced criticism for a botched investigation of Miami and departures in the enforcement division.

The penalties against Penn State included a $60 million fine. The NCAA also vacated 111 wins from Paterno's record, meaning he would no longer hold the title of major college football's winningest coach.

The lawsuit lodges six counts against the NCAA, Emmert and Ray, including breach of contract, civil conspiracy, defamation and commercial disparagement, according to Sollers' statement.

Sollers, in an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press, said the suit would ask for the sanctions and agreement between school and the NCAA to be deemed unlawful and the penalties overturned.

The lawsuit also would ask for unspecified damages and court costs, Sollers said, though the family would donate any net proceeds to charity.

"The broader goal is to get the truth out," Sollers told the AP. "This narrative that's in public that was perpetuated by the NCAA's adoption of the deeply flawed Freeh report ... cannot stand."

The NCAA said Wednesday it had not received any such lawsuit and could not comment.

"Despite our request, the Paterno family has not shared any information about its planned legal action," chief legal officer Donald Remy said in a statement. "We remain committed to working with Penn State toward the continued successful completion of our voluntary agreement with the university and to working" with the NCAA's independent monitor, former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell.

Penn State spokesman Dave La Torre said the school was not a party to any litigation that might be filed by the Paterno family and remained committed to "full compliance" to the sanctions.

"We look forward to continuing to work with Sen. George Mitchell and recognize the important role that intercollegiate athletics provides for our student athletes and the wider university community," the statement from La Torre said.

Sollers said Freeh is not named as a defendant in the case, but is listed as a "co-conspirator" in the lawsuit, and that there were close communications between the NCAA and Freeh's team throughout the investigation.

The Associated Press left a message seeking comment Wednesday for a spokesman for Freeh.

Costas said Freeh and Emmert declined to appear on his show.

___

Online:

http://progress.psu.edu/the-freeh-report

(Reuters) - Mike Krzyzewski said on Thursday he is returning for another term as the U.S. men's national basketball team coach with the aim of leading the squad to a third successive Olympic title at the 2016 Games in Rio.

Krzyzewski, the Duke University coach who has amassed the most wins in U.S. college hoops, has a 61-2 record since taking over the U.S. national team in 2005, including Olympic golds in 2008 and 2012, and is riding a 50-game winning streak.

"It's the ultimate honor to coach our country's team," Krzyzewski, who had said several times that he would step aside after last year's triumph at the London Olympics, told a news conference at Duke in Durham, North Carolina.

"When the 2008 Olympics, the world championship in '10 and then London were all finished, I really felt it would be the end of my time coaching international basketball."

Krzyzewski said USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo had kept after him about staying on the job, recalling a hotel room meeting over room service pizza and chicken fingers, and that after consulting with his family and Duke, he decided to return.

"It is tough to give up something you've absolutely loved doing for seven years, the people you're doing it with, and most importantly, the country you're doing it for," said 66-year-old Krzyzewski, who previously coached at Army.

Colangelo, who worked with Krzyzewski to change the U.S. national team system by requiring more of a commitment from the players, joined the news conference via telephone.

"It's a perfect fit for him. I think his legacy is very much tied to USA Basketball, as it certainly is to Duke University. I could not have picked a better guy to be in that foxhole with than Coach K and it's been great," said Colangelo.

"It's been a heck of a ride, a great journey, and I'm so happy we're going to continue."

Last year, Krzyzewski steered a star-studded squad including LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony to their second successive gold medal game triumph over Spain in the London Olympics final.

Under Krzyzewski, the U.S. team has not lost since a defeat to Greece in the semi-finals of the 2006 world championship and his London gold allowed him to join American Hank Iba as the only coaches to win back-to-back Olympic crowns.

Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001, Krzyzewski has registered 957 career coaching victories on the college level, and won four national championships and made 11 Final Fours with Duke.

"I'm really excited to do it," Krzyzewski said about coaching the U.S. team.

"We'll try and do these four years the same way we did the last seven, to build it with the best players available. They're the ones who make an amazing commitment."

(Reporting by Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue)

The singer-songwriter, who is famed for changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol in a wrangle over musical rights, will release his own work as well as a slate of new music by other artists that he produces, Kobalt said.

The announcement came just hours after the 54-year-old Prince was given a Billboard Icon Award (lifetime achievement) and rocked the Billboard Music Awards ceremony with a version of his "Let's Go Crazy" dressed in electric green trousers and sporting an Afro hair style.

Kobalt, which is also a global independent music publishing company, launched an artist and label services division in 2012, allowing artists to maintain ownership of their work and control over when, how and where they will release their music.

Traditional labels often take ownership or part-ownership of the artist's material and often dictate how it is used, an increasingly important sticking point in an industry where digital music can be instantly available.

"This new venture gives Prince the flexibility and freedom he's always sought in a label partner," Kobalt President Richard Sanders said in a statement.

The Grammy award-winning singer will also provide artist development and recording services for newly signed artists that Kobalt will market and distribute.

Kobalt was set up in 2000 by Swedish businessman Willard Ahdritz and its publishing roster includes former Beatle Paul McCartney, Icelandic singer Bjork and Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder.

(Reporting by Paul Casciato; Editing by Michael Roddy)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The researcher whose report prompted a spike in health stocks last month appears to have relied on lobbyists rather than U.S. government insiders who had direct knowledge of a pending healthcare decision, according to emails reviewed by Reuters.

The messages could help bolster Height Securities LLC's claim that its analyst was essentially doing what reporters, lobbyists and others in Washington do every day: trying to figure out what the government is going to do next.

The small research shop is among the brokerages, law firms and other "political intelligence" operations that have drawn scrutiny over concerns that they may have facilitated insider trading by passing along tips that moved markets.

Height Securities has drawn inquiries from the Securities and Exchange Commission and Iowa Republican Senator Charles Grassley since it correctly predicted on April 1 that President Barack Obama's administration would keep certain medical payment rates in place, prompting a spike in healthcare stocks before the official announcement came out.

The analyst who prepared the report, Justin Simon, reached out to a healthcare lobbyist shortly before he issued his market-moving research bulletin, the emails show.

"I'm tracking down a rumor ... any chance you have heard that POTUS/WH have stepped in" to keep the Medicare rates in place, Simon asked, using shorthand for Obama and the White House.

Other documents indicate the lobbyist, whose name was redacted from the report, is Stacey Hughes, a founding partner of the Nickles Group who used to work for several Republican senators. She could not be reached for comment.

"That is the rumor," Hughes responded, adding that it was "a little more likely" that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services would not cut payment rates for healthcare providers after the acting head of the agency that oversees the two programs, Marilyn Tavenner, met with staffers of the Senate Finance Committee.

Hughes wrote that the White House could decide to keep the current payment rates for the popular health programs as a way to convince lawmakers in the Senate to make her post permanent.

"Just my opinion," Hughes wrote.

Simon released his report about an hour later, prompting a spike in health stocks that stood to benefit from the decision.

"Did you see what I did to the stock in the final 30 min of trading?" Simon wrote Hughes after his report came out. "We heard the same story from like 30 people so we went with it."

A Height spokesman said the emails reviewed by Reuters confirm that Simon based his report on multiple sources of information, rather than a single Obama administration insider who would have had direct knowledge of the decision.

"We appreciate the fact that the released documents validate our claim all along - Height did not receive or disseminate material non-public information," the spokesman said.

That appeared unlikely to satisfy Grassley, who wants "political intelligence" firms to be subject to the same disclosure laws as lobbyists.

Grassley's office said Height was not cooperating as much as they would like and appeared to be giving inconsistent information.

"Senator Grassley continues to try to unwind the events leading up to the stock spike on April 1 and previous trading anomalies in the prior two weeks," spokeswoman Jill Gerber said.

Michael Asaro, a lawyer who represents Simon, declined to comment.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Andy Sullivan; Editing by Marilyn W. Thompson and Xavier Briand)

PARIS (AP) -- Bye, New York! Ciao, Milan! And bonjour, Paris.

The world's largest traveling circus of fashion editors, models, buyers and journalists has descended on the French capital, clutching their metro maps and city guides, to cap fashion season for nine days of intensive ready-to-wear.

And this fall-winter 2013-14 is the biggest to date, with some 99 "on-calendar" shows that see the week almost tearing at the seams, starting earlier and finishing later than ever.

"There are 12 shows a day. Twenty-two different nationalities this season. With new top designers at work," says Didier Grumbach, president of the French Fashion Federation. "It's an impressive mix, an energy that sets Paris apart from what's going on elsewhere."

Tuesday day one saw collections dominated by three up-and-coming Belgian designers: Veronique Branquinho, Cedric Charlier and Anthony Vaccarello, who dressed actress Charlotte Gainsbourg at last Friday's Cesar film awards.

The similarities start and end with their nationalities; all three threw together strong but highly individual collections.

If Branquinho was elegance, Charlier was edgy architecture, and Vaccarello was retro sex-appeal.

In other shows of the day, Le Moine Tricote spiced up the bread-and-butter knitwear with woven fabric.

Wednesday's shows include Guy Laroche, Damir Doma and London's enfant terrible, Gareth Pugh.

ANTHONY VACCARELLO

The no-holds-barred sex appeal for Anthony Vaccarello is not for the faint-hearted.

The third Belgian designer to show on Paris fashion week's first day served up a black-and-white ode to the early '80s in a show that featured micro skirts, chainmail, a lot of skin and lashings of sensual leather.

Strong retro shoulders, asymmetrical, diagonally cut skirts, upturned lapels and cowl collars set the fashion time dial firmly back to the era of the New Romantics.

This was fused with the innate sexiness of his variations on the Little Black Dress.

The best look was a black kimono-style top, which billowed in great contrast to the tight, bright shiny black mini.

Subtle this was not, but then, subtle isn't glam-loving Vaccarello's thing.

VERONIQUE BRANQUINHO

It was the modern bohemian woman on parade.

Veronique Branquinho mixed and matched eclectic references, from wooden African bracelets to Obi-style dresses with belts.

The soundtrack included Marilyn Monroe's sultry "One Silver Dollar" from the Western "River of No Return," which played as cowboy boots and denim studs peppered the looks.

Stetson cowboy hats in Shetland went too far, but overall it was a strong collection for the up-and-coming designer reined in only by its feminine silhouette proportions and textural contrasts that unified the show.

The graceful, slouchy style, now a Branquinho signature, was seen on several of the dropped waist looks, often in beige and fawn.

LE MOINE TRICOTE

Fall-winter sees bright-eyed designer Alice Lemoine brimming with ideas.

First of all, in the unique presentation of her Le Moine Tricote collection via three different mediums in three different rooms: there were edgy photos, vintage-looking video projections, and the clothes themselves on mannequins.

Second of all, there were new ideas in the direction of the up-and-comer's knitwear line itself, which saw the repertoire this season spun out to include stricter woven fabrics. They provided a subtle but welcome contrast to the more feminine thick-knit tailored jackets in black, beige and gray.

The strongest piece in the show was a fantastic black mid-length coat dress that had pockets, a lapel and sleeves in billowing wool to imitate fur.

Despite sporty flashes, the collection overall remained thoroughly feminine, thanks to the natural roundness of the thick-knit silhouettes.

This season, ladylike is the name of the game.

CEDRIC CHARLIER

Architecture, "art brut" and Dutch Master Brueghel were all inspirations behind Cedric Charlier's diverse show.

The first pieces, among the collection's best, mixed up sharp geometric paneling alongside oversize coats with fluid, rounded shoulders.

Ensembles were made up of several layers, like square navy skirts on top of knee-length leggings with a rectangular bib form hanging down.

There were also some great structured sheaths in silky navy and black leather.

It's a far cry from the more fluid looks seen in Charlier's last collection.

The designer said medieval painter Brueghel inspired the bright colors of some of the prints and patterns, as did an early 20th century movement called "art brut" that celebrated art from shunned circles, like mental asylums.

It was an interesting idea that worked on the more simple silhouettes.

___

Thomas Adamson can be followed at http://Twitter.com/ThomasAdamsonAP

Which means there are rarer things! Let's name the tiers after rarities. Because these days, it seems like the closer you own all year without any hiccups or doubt is a real rare gem.

Tier 1: Elite (4) (AKA: The "Back-to-Back No-Nos" Tier.)

Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta BravesAroldis Chapman, Cincinnati RedsJoe Nathan, Texas RangersMariano Rivera, New York Yankees

Johnny Vander Meer is the only man to ever manage this feat. In 1938. Baseball averages about two per season, and in 1938 one man did it twice. Pretty awesome.

All the guys on this list are pretty awesome, even if Aroldis Chapman did eat 13 Cuban pastries in one setting and then blow a save last week. That was a pretty bizarre game anyway: Delmon Young walked (!), then Cliff Lee ran for him (!), then Cliff Lee was caught stealing (!), then Erik Kratz tied the game with a bomb off Chapman (!), and then Freddy Galvis (!) won the game with a home run (!) and Chapman blew the save (!). Sometimes things happen (!!!).

Tier 2: Rock Steady (6) (AKA: The "Grand Slam on First Major League Pitch" Tier.)

Sergio Romo, San Francisco GiantsRafael Soriano, Washington NationalsTom Wilhelmsen, Seattle MarinersJason Grilli, Pittsburgh PiratesJonathan Papelbon, Philadelphia PhilliesJim Johnson, Baltimore OriolesRafael Betancourt, Colorado Rockies

Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only man to ever do this. But it's not quite as meaningful as the back-to-back no-nos. It requires a lot of luck for a rookie making his debut to get a pitch with the bases loaded -- and then jack it out. Kouzmanoff had a little help from Edinson Volquez that day, too.

Yeah Tom Wilhelmsen blew a save Monday. And yeah it was his fault. But not because of a pitch he threw. He just blew the coverage. After dropping the ball while covering first base and letting the Indians back into the game, he recovered and let Charlie Furbush finish blowing the game for the Mariners. What a tough series they had in Cleveland. At least fantasy managers probably noticed that it's Carter Capps that's now the clear-cut 8th-inning guy and Wilhelmsen handcuff. Not that he really needs one, but that's nice to know.

Jason Grilli almost blew a save. I'm not so worried, he's still got excellent velocity and peripherals. Jim Johnson blew a few saves. I won't drop him in the rankings yet, but it's worth noticing that Darren O'Day is probably next in line -- O'Day was used in the eighth, and that's usually the best sign. But velocity goes to Pedro Strop, who throws about eight miles per hour faster than O'Day. Then again, Strop is walking about two batters every three innings, and that's probably why he's not pitching the eighth inning. Johnson just had a bad couple of days, although that can happen when you allow too many balls into play.

What do we do about ranking Rafael Betancourt? His peripherals suggested he could be hurt, but now it's "just" a sore groin. He's undergoing an MRI today, and the results will either mean he misses a couple days, and should stay in this tier probably, or he's out for two weeks, and should drop. Rex Brothers has the velocity and strikeout rate, and the usage pattern favors him, too. He's next in line.

Tier 3: OK options (6) (AKA: The "Perfect Game" Tier.)

Casey Janssen, Toronto Blue JaysEdward Mujica, St. Louis CardinalsGrant Balfour, Oakland AthleticsAddison Reed, Chicago White SoxChris Perez, Cleveland IndiansGlen Perkins, Minnesota Twins

23 perfect games. And Phillip Humber has one. Seriously.

Look at the low-velocity leaders of the tier! They both have excellent control overall, but I'm still a little nervous about moving them up further in the rankings. Neither has an above-average strikeout rate among closers, for one. And Casey Janssen doesn't crack 90 on the gun, while Edward Mujica is throwing the split finger a whopping 64% of the time. That pitch doesn't have a great strike percentage -- if batters decide to look fastball and not swing at the split-finger let's just say there's some danger there, as awesome as everything looks right now. Three hits in his last ten outings! No walks! Maybe I'm crazy to be worried at all.

Glen Perkins blew a save yesterday, but it doesn't seem like a big deal. It was a game-tying solo job to Evan Gattis. Just a lousy home run in a tight spot. He had two strikeouts and no walks otherwise. But he does move down a bit in the tier because his low-scoring team doesn't look like they're going to provide him a ton of save opportunities.

Chris Perez deserves a dirty look. He would have blown two games in the Seattle series if his teammates hadn't picked him up. It's worth noticing that his whiff rate is back down to worse than his career rate, his control is wonky once again, and now he's giving up more than two home runs per nine innings. His ERA and WHIP looking fine, but there's some nastiness under the hood. Career-low fastball velocity probably doesn't help. Vinnie Pestano's numbers aren't quite what they used to be when we started touting him over Perez (man it's been a long time), but he's probably next in line still.

Read about the more volatile closer situations on the next page.

Tier 4: Question marks (7) (AKA: The "Cycle and the No-Hitter" Tier.)

Greg Holland, Kansas City RoyalsJim Henderson, Milwaukee BrewersBobby Parnell, New York MetsErnesto Frieri, Los Angeles AngelsAndrew Bailey, Boston Red SoxHeath Bell, Arizona DiamondbacksHuston Street, San Diego Padres

Hey, they've both happened about 300 times. Not quite a yawn, but in the context of this list congratulations to Mike Trout, that was a great feat.

Jim Henderson's story is great too, but very different than the wunderkind's. The 30-year-old found control late in his career and had a great (old) rookie season last year. Now he's refined that control even further, and his fastball is still leaving his hand at close to 95 miles per hour. John Axford has been pitching better recently, but with Hendo pitching the way he is, there's no reason to make a change.

On strikeouts and talent, Ernesto Frieri could be a tier ahead. He's got a double-digit strikeout rate, his team should give him saves, and he's not old or broken or old and broken like the trio behind him in the tier. That said, he's walking more than two for every three innings he pitches, and Ryan Madson is going to report to rehab this week. You have to think his old-school manager is a little nervous with all the walks.

Andrew Bailey is back, but his manager won't use him on back-to-backs right away, so maybe we can Junichi Tazawa that first save he deserves. How useful it was to call that Tazawa would be closer! He got one opportunity and blew it. He's still next in line -- the Koji Uehra save came after Tazawa threw a lot of pitches in a back-to-back -- and he might still get enough opportunities to make him useful in deep leagues. Bailey jumps a tier for his re-introduction because he has more leash than your average 'new' closer.

I can't hold my suspicions against Heath Bell much longer. His strikeout and walk rates are once again Heath-Bell-ian, and though his swinging strike rate is not quite vintage, and his velocity is at a career-low, it's not like David Hernandez is beating down the door. I'm not sure how much farther up the list Bell will go -- see the flaws above -- but his resurgence is another notch in Kevin Tower's notchful belt of reliever reclamation projects.

Huston Street's peripherals still suggest he's broken somehow. I'd be nervous.

Tier 5: Rollercoaster rides (6) (AKA: The "Mutliple Golden Sombreros Tier.)

Fernando Rodney (first chair), Joel Peralta (second chair), Tampa Bay RaysKenley Jansen (first chair), Brandon League (second chair), Los Angeles DodgersJose Valverde (first chair), Joaquin Benoit (second chair), Bruce Rondon (third chair), Detroit TigersSteve Cishek (first chair), A.J. Ramos (second chair), Mike Dunn (third chair), Miami MarlinsKevin Gregg (first chair), Kyuji Fujikawa (second chair), Chicago CubsJose Veras (first chair), Hector Ambriz (second chair), Houston Astros

Once again, we're in the low 300s for players that have struck out more than four times in one nine-inning game twice in their careers. But since it's a bad thing, it makes sense for them to lead this tier. Amazingly, it's not Dave Kingman atop this list. Bo Jackson had 17 such games and wow. Just another way Bo Jackson can make you shake your head.

I was prepared to put Joel Peralta in the first chair this week, but he's gotten two holds since he got his save, and he struggled in one of them. He's still getting his whiffs, and his overall rates, ratios and velocities look normal, and he's the eighth-inning guy most nights, but this team hasn't ever trusted him in the ninth for an extended period of time. Jake McGee has more velocity, but had struggled until a recent stretch of better control, and is a lefty. This is a murky situation, but Peralta is worth a speculative (cheap) add if you're looking for saves and aren't dropping anyone of note. Saves and Steals readers saw this one coming a mile away.

There was some grumbling that Kenley Jansen should have debuted on a higher tier -- and I do love him, so I heard it loud and clear -- but his last week serves as a reminder why I tend to have new closers debut in the bottom tier. Those last two appearances resulted in losses, and one of them even featured two home runs. It looks like Brandon League is back in the role, but we'll see. Because I like Kenley Jansen's stuff more, I'll leave him in the lead spot as we read the tea leaves. But League should be owned in saves leagues.

I still don't trust Jose Valverde. His walk rate is bad, his swinging strike rate is bad, and all of his luck statistics are through-the-roof good. His velocity is down again off his career worst, and his manager has already told him to get lost in a big moment. Is Brian Wilson healthy yet?

The Marlinsand nobody noticed. But the tree in that empty forest, Steve Cishek, is still worth owning. Those of you in deeper dynasty leagues should look at A.J. Ramos. His velocity is only a tick worse than Mike Dunn's, he's being used in the eighth in close games, and he's not a lefty like Dunn. He's got four or five pitches, decent control, and gets whiffs. He's an interesting young reliever, and even those in deeper redrafts should be looking at him right now.

Still don't believe in Kevin Gregg. Despite his nice strikeout and walk rates right now, it's only 11 innings, and the peripherals don't support those numbers. His swinging strike rate, velocity, first-strike rate, and reach rate are all sub-par. I've found these peripherals to be the best correlated with strikeout and walk rates in my research, and none of them support what he's doing right now. It's nice that he's added a splitter, but Kyuji Fujikawa has one too, and his peripherals are better across the board.

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Injured

Ryan Madson (elbow), Los Angeles AngelsJason Motte (elbow), St. Louis CardinalsSergio Santos (elbow), Toronto Blue JaysJoel Hanrahan (forearm), Boston Red SoxJ.J. Putz (elbow), Arizona Diamondbacks

Ryan Madson is going to hit rehab this week. Everyone else save J.J. Putz is done for the year. I think J.J. Putz will be done for the year eventually. I am not a doctor. Rafael Betancourt might be here next week.

The Deposed

Carlos Marmol, Chicago CubsJohn Axford, Milwaukee BrewersMitchell Boggs, St. Louis Cardinals

Mitchell Boggs is back in the bigs but his problems remain. John Axford has been pitching well again, but the guy in front of him has been better.

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The Steals Department

Need steals in a shallow league? How about this dude named Mike Trout? Just kidding. He's a bum anyway. Assuming Brett Gardner is not available -- he does have forty-steal upside, he's proven that -- you might want to look into a platoon guy if you're in a daily league. Leonys Martin only faces righties, but he's percolating a little (.344 batting average over the past two weeks), and more importantly, he's starting to steal bases (five steals over the same time frame). He's a strange player because he's strong and fast, but he may not be really quick and skilled in a baseball fashion. He'll show average power, but once you correct for his platoon play, he might not hit more than ten home runs. He'll steal some bases, but once again, probably not more than 20. Then again, .280/10/20 is a really decent filler guy. Put him on your bench and slot him in when Andre Ethier is facing a lefty, or when your starters aren't playing. He'll help you tread water.

Here's the deep league part of The Steals Department, where we hold our nose and pick up a flawed player for stats we need. It looks like Pedro Florimon has taken the shortstop role in Minnesota for his own, and he has some wheels. He's stolen 10-20 bases every year -- once you combine the levels -- and he's nabbed six this year without a caught stealing. He's even bettered his contact rate, so he could actually hit as high as .260 in the batting average department. He probably won't hit more than five or six home runs on the year, but see the first sentence. He might actually steal 20 bags this year, and he's a warm body. He's even walking a little more than usual, so the runs total could be less than odious.