Gwynn recovery ahead of schedule

TONY GWYNN WAS already talking after five doctors spent 14 hours removing a malignant tumor from inside the Hall of Famer's right cheek on Tuesday according to ESPN.com. Gwynn's wife, Alicia, said the doctors performed a complex nerve-graft procedure, removing Gwynn's facial nerve and replacing it with a nerve from Gwynn's shoulder.

Alicia Gwynn said her husband came out of surgery at 1 a.m. PT yesterday, and that doctors told her they had entirely removed the cancerous growth from his parotid gland.

At 8:30 a.m., Tony Gwynn was already talking, drinking water and laughing. That was not the case 18 months ago, when he underwent a previous cancer surgery in the same spot and could not smile for months.

"I'm already ahead of schedule," he said yesterday afternoon from Thornton Hospital at the University of California-San Diego, just 12 hours after surgery. "Last time, I couldn't lift my eye or close my mouth. This time, my eye can close, my mouth can close. I feel good. I'm talking better than I did last time."

Noteworthy

* Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton says he's undergoing counseling individually and with his wife in the aftermath of his admitted relapse with alcohol and is "doing things right a day at a time." In an exclusive interview with Pastor James Robinson on Glenn Beck's live streaming video network, Hamilton said he knows it's a serious issue. He said he's doing well and so is his family.

* Baseball Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton, who had the memorable call on Henry Aaron's 715th home run, will retire as the radio voice of the Houston Astros after the 2012 season.

* Joe Maddon agreed to a 3-year contract extension that could keep him in Tampa Bay's dugout through 2015.

*  The Minnesota Twins and second baseman Alexi Casilla have agreed on a 1-year contract for $1,382,500 to avoid an arbitration hearing.