DETROIT TIGERS star Victor Martinez has injured his left knee and is likely to miss most of the 2012 season.
The Tigers said yesterday that the 33-year-old Martinez tore his left ACL last week during offseason conditioning.
The team said the slugging designated hitter will be re-examined next week and surgery is expected.
Martinez hit .330 with 103 RBI in 2011, helping Detroit win the AL Central in his first season with the Tigers. He signed a $50 million, 4-year contract before last season.
In other baseball news:
* Boston outfielder Carl Crawford had surgery on his left wrist and could miss Opening Day.
* Veteran Craig Counsell announced his retirement and took a front-office job with the Milwaukee Brewers, with whom he concluded his 15-year career.
* Former St. Louis manager Whitey Herzog said he is feeling better after a fall left him hospitalized for more than 3 weeks.
* In 1-year contracts that avoided arbitration: Atlanta agreed on deals with with outfielder Michael Bourn, pitcher Jair Jurrjens and reliever Eric O'Flaherty; the Los Angeles Dodgers with outfielder Andre Ethier and first baseman James Loney; Tampa Bay with centerfielder B.J. Upton and pitchers David Price and Burke Badenhop; Boston with outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury; San Francisco with outfielder Melky Cabrera; Houston with starter J.A. Happ; Pittsburgh with pitcher Jeff Karstens; Seattle with pitcher Jason Vargas. For a complete list of signings, see accompanying baseball deals on this page.
* San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum asked for $21.5 million in salary arbitration and was offered $17 million by the Giants.
Prized quarterback recruit Gunner Kiel, of Columbus, Ind., has decided to go to Notre Dame.
* Michigan dismissed wide receiver Darryl Stonum, who was sentenced to 10 days in jail earlier this month after violating probation in a drunken-driving case.
* Former Alabama cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick was arrested on a marijuana possession charge in Florida. Kirkpatrick is regarded as a potential top 10 NFL draft pick. The second-team All-American announced last week he was skipping his senior season with the national champions to enter the draft.
Tickets for the Soul's April 1 home opener will go on sale Monday, Jan. 30. Contact the team's sales department at 215-253-4900 (ext. 3) or visit www.philadelphiasoul.com for more ticket information. The Soul opens the season with a pair of road games before Cleveland visits the Wells Fargo Center on Sunday, April 1.
PGA golfer Steve Thomas is among 40 suspects arrested in central Florida as part of an underage sex-sting operation. Osceola County Sheriff's detectives said Thomas was charged with traveling to seduce an underage girl and using a computer to entice a legal guardian or parent to commit sex acts on an underage girl.
