Sparky Anderson fighting dementia

Former Detroit Tigers and Cincinnati Reds manager Sparky Anderson was placed in hospice care at his Thousand Oaks, Calif, home for complications resulting from dementia.

Anderson's family said in a statement Wednesday that it appreciates the support and kindness that friends and fans have shown throughout the Hall of Famer's career and retirement. No further details were released.

The 76-year-old Anderson was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 2000, culminating a major league career that included one nondescript season as a player and an historic run as a manager.

He won 2,194 games as a manager, which was the third-highest total in major league history when he retired.

Longtime, coach, manager Clyde King dies

Clyde King, whose baseball career as a player, coach, manager and front-office man spanned six decades, died of heart trouble in North Carolina. He was 86. King pitched with the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds during a seven-year big-league career, compiling a 32-25 record and an ERA of 4.14. After coaching for Cincinnati, St. Louis and Pittsburgh, King managed the 1969 San Francisco Giants to a 90-72 record and second place in the National League. King took over the Atlanta Braves in the midst of the 1974 season and managed the team for part of 1975. King was the last of three managers to lead the New York Yankees in 1982. He then served as general manager of the Yankees from 1984-86 and was a member of the coaching staff again in 1988. From 1998 to 2005, he was a special assistant to the general manager.

In other baseball news: The Rangers did not exercise a $9 million option for Vladimir Guerrero. ... Adrian Beltre declined a $10 million player option that would have kept him with the Red Sox next year. ... The Chicago Cubs say third baseman Aramis Ramirez has exercised his $14.6 million option and will return to the team next season. They also say Ryne Sandberg will not return as manager of Triple-A Iowa next season. ... The Marlins confirmed that Edwin Rodriguez will return as manager next season. ... New Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson hired former Blue Jays' GM and current ESPN analyst J.P. Ricciardi as a special assistant.

NCAA drops one Michigan charge The NCAA has dropped a charge directed at Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez, a person with knowledge of the ruling has told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no one is permitted to comment on the case until the sports governing body announces its decision on Thursday.

The NCAA accused Michigan of five major rules violations related to exceeding practice and workout time in the wake of a Detroit Free Press report last year. The report led to investigations by both the school and the NCAA.

Michigan challenged one allegation -- that Rodriguez failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance with NCAA rules. The school accepted responsibility for the other four allegations regarding practice and training time.

Michigan announced in May that its self-imposed sanctions included probation for two years and reducing training time by 130 hours over two years, doubling the amount of time the Wolverines exceeded NCAA rules.

... Central Florida and Houston both said Wednesday that there has been no contact with Big East Conference regarding the league's desire to increase its football members.

In statements, both schools said they were "a proud member of Conference USA."

Big East presidents unanimously agreed Tuesday to expand the number of football-playing schools from eight to 10, and the schools were thought to be likely candidates. Another potential target is TCU from the Mountain West Conference.

... Penn State freshman quarterback Rob Bolden, the starter in the season's first seven games, has recovered from concussion-like symptoms. Coach Joe Paterno has declared an open competition between Bolden and walk-on Matt McGloin, who led the Nittany Lions to a 41-31 win over Michigan last week, to determine who will start Saturday against Northwestern.

... Rutgers defensive tackle Eric LeGrand, who was paralyzed from the neck down making a tackle against Army on Oct. 16, has been transferred to Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, N.J., for the next phase of his treatment.

Surfing: Former three-time world surfing champion Andy Irons died just days after telling tournament organizers in Puerto Rico he had become ill during an event in Portugal. The cause of the 32-year-old's death was not known.