NEW CITY, N.Y. — NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor pleaded guilty Thursday to sexual misconduct and patronizing a 16-year-old prostitute, misdemeanor charges that carry no jail time but require him to register as a sex offender.
The 51-year-old Taylor, who led the New York Giants to Super Bowl titles in 1987 and 1991, will serve six years’ probation.
“She told me she was 19,” Taylor said in court as he admitted having intercourse with the prostitute, who turned out to be a Bronx runaway. Taylor said he now knows the girl was 16 and legally incapable of consent. He said he paid her $300.
Frank Robinson hospitalized
PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. — Hall of Famer Frank Robinson was hospitalized because of a rapid heartbeat and dizziness, and later returned to a hotel to meet with baseball executives.
Robinson, 75, said doctors at Scottsdale Memorial Hospital told him he was “a little dry, not dehydrated, but a little dry.” Otherwise, he said, they could find no reason that his heart rate jumped to 190. The typical rate for a healthy man is 60 to 80. Robinson said he planned to go back to his Los Angeles home and see his doctors there.
“I know my doctor will be calling me tonight telling me to get in there tomorrow,” he said. “And I know my family will be after me to go.”
• The New York Yankees reached a three-year agreement with reliever Rafael Soriano, who led the AL with 45 saves last season for the Tampa Bay Rays. The $35 million deal is contingent on the right-hander passing a physical.
Middle-schoolers fair game
SAN ANTONIO — The NCAA squashed a proposal that would have stopped college coaches from offering scholarships to students as young as middle-schoolers.
“The concern is how is that enforceable? You don’t want to adopt legislation you can’t enforce,” said Shane Lyons, chairman of the legislative council.
The legislative council at the NCAA’s annual convention also voted down tougher academic restrictions for incoming basketball players. Another proposal intended to tighten the use of college athletes in promotional activities was sent back to NCAA members for more comment.
Footnotes.
Howard Engleman, a consensus All-American in 1941 who led Kansas to its first appearance in basketball’s Final Four, died Wednesday in Salina, Kan. He was 91.
• University of Memphis junior forward Wesley Witherspoon has been suspended indefinitely by coach Josh Pastner for undisclosed reasons.
• Texas A&M women’s basketball coach Gary Blair received a three-year contract extension through the 2014-15 season.
• Zenyatta, Blame and European star Goldikova are finalists for the Eclipse Award’s horse of the year that will be handed out Monday.
• The opening round of the Sony Open, the first full-field event of the PGA Tour season, was washed out because of heavy overnight rain that left too much water on Waialae Country Club in Honolulu.
The Associated Press
