McNamee asks for Clemens suit to be dismissed

Lawyers for Brian McNamee asked a federal court to dismiss Roger Clemens' defamation lawsuit or move the case to New York.

Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, sued McNamee in January after his former trainer accused him in the Mitchell Report of using steroids and human growth hormone. The case, originally filed in Texas state court, was moved to the U.S. District Court in Houston.

McNamee's lawyers say in a motion filed in U.S. District Court that New York has the most interest in this lawsuit.

Hank Steinbrenner: Yankees' bats need to wake up

Joe Girardi hadn't heard Hank Steinbrenner's searing comments about the New York Yankees. The manager didn't have to guess what they were about.

The team's co-chairman said Wednesday that the Yankees' lack of offensive production was "getting ridiculous" during a key stretch in the season, with upcoming series against the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, the two clubs New York is chasing in the AL East.

After beating the New York Mets 9-0 in the second game of a doubleheader last Friday, the Yankees had scored just seven runs and batted .172 in losing three of four.

"We've got to start hitting," Steinbrenner said from Tampa, Fla. "They've got to start waking up. They've shown in flashes what they can still do."

They did so again Wednesday night.

The Yankees pounded out 16 hits in an 18-7 rout of the Texas Rangers, the most runs scored since last July. Every starter got a hit, and seven of them drove in runs _ highlighted by a grand slam from Jason Giambi and a three-run homer from Alex Rodriguez.

The scoring outburst came on the heels of a pair of one-run losses to the Rangers that had Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman also bemoaning the offense.

"We need to start hitting," Girardi said demurely. "I will say that."

Girardi already had shuffled his lineup when he learned of Steinbrenner's comments.

Melky Cabrera, hitless in a career-high 19 at-bats, was replaced in center field by youngster Brett Gardner, who had his first career hit and RBI during a season-best nine-run seventh inning. Johnny Damon was in left field in place of injured slugger Hideki Matsui, and he came through with three hits and two RBIs.

Steinbrenner said he'd been surprised by the club's inconsistent offense, but noted that it's been an area of concern for Cashman.

"Even when I was worried about the pitching earlier _ starting pitching is the most important thing of all _ but Brian would keep telling me, 'Yes, but I worried about the hitting,'" Steinbrenner said. "That was Brian's biggest concern even as we were reconstructing the pitching. We all know they're better than that."

Cashman stood behind the batting cages about an hour before the first pitch Wednesday as his high-priced club took extra practice. He said he hadn't spoken with Steinbrenner, either, but agreed that the team needs to start scoring runs.

"The strength of this team more than anything is supposed to be the offense, and it's been the weakness right now for us," Cashman said. "We're not getting young in this season, so we needed to start yesterday."

The GM said the next 10 days will play a big part in the moves he makes before the trade deadline at the end of the month. The Yankees are 7 1/2 games behind division-leading Tampa Bay and 3 1/2 back of the Red Sox. After hosting both clubs, they'll travel to Toronto for three games before the All-Star break.

"Not just this one series, but maybe the next couple series is going to be pivotal," Steinbrenner said. "We can definitely still make a run at it."

Cashman was unwilling to pin the struggles on injuries that have forced the Yankees to continually shuffle their lineup. Cashman said Matsui might not be back ready before the break as he works back from a sore knee, and the infield depth took a hit Tuesday night when Shelley Duncan separated a shoulder during a game at Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre.

"From ownership's perspective, they've put some big iron out on the table," Cashman said. "We know what the DNA of the team is supposed to be and we're not living up to that."

Neither Cashman nor Girardi was sure what Steinbrenner was talking about when he decried outside distractions surrounding his team. But Alex Rodriguez has been making headlines on Web sites and in the tabloids over the past few days for allegedly spending time at Madonna's Manhattan apartment.

Rodriguez wasn't available for comment Wednesday. He has refused to address the reports.

"I don't know. Maybe a little less outside distractions and a little more concentrating and they'll start hitting better," Steinbrenner said. "I thought they would go on a consistent tear, and it hasn't happened yet."

Venus Williams makes Wimbledon final for 7th time

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- Defending champion Venus Williams beat Elena Dementieva 6-1, 7-6 (3) to advance to the Wimbledon final Thursday, setting up a potential championship matchup with sister Serena.

Venus Williams, a four-time Wimbledon winner, overpowered the fifth-seeded Russian in the first set and then prevailed in an error-filled tiebreaker to improve her record to 7-0 in semifinals at the All England Club.

Her opponent in Saturday's final could be two-time champion Serena, who was next up on Centre Court to face 133rd-ranked Chinese wild-card entrant Zheng Jie. Their match was suspended by rain with Serena leading 5-2.

It would be the first all-Williams final since 2003 when Serena beat Venus in the championship match for the second year in a row.

"I am dying for S. Williams to get through," said Venus, who hasn't dropped a set in five matches and will be going for her seventh Grand Slam title. "This is my seventh final here and I'm looking forward to playing Serena in our third final, and I'm going to be rooting her on.

"At this point, our main focus is obviously both of us getting to the final," she said. "Then from there it's every Williams for themself."

Dementieva, playing in her first Wimbledon semifinal, looked nervous and was completely overmatched in the first set by Williams' sheer power and pace, but settled down and made it competitive in the second.

After Dementieva knocked a forehand into the net to end the 1 hour, 42 minute match, Venus skipped and hopped up and down with joy like a kid at a birthday party.

"I guess it started to set in a little bit about being in the final," she said. "When I'm excited I always jump. That I guess will never change. I'd like to celebrate even more if I'm good enough to take that title."

Asked about the likelihood of an all-Williams final, Dementieva said she couldn't imagine playing against a sibling.

"It's really hard," she said. "For sure it's going to be a family decision. They know their game very well. So maybe there is not so much fight in the end."

Venus took offense to a question about a predetermined outcome if Serena makes the final. Serena has an 8-7 career edge against Venus, including 5-1 in Grand Slam finals.

"I'm extremely professional in everything that I do on and off the court," Venus said. "I contribute my best in my sport and I also have a ton of respect for myself and my family. So any mention of that is extremely disrespectful for who I am, what I stand for, and my family."

Venus' attacking game produced 28 winners and 19 unforced errors. The more defensive Dementieva had 12 winners and 22 errors.

Venus, the biggest server in women's tennis, averaged 118 mph on first serves and had a fastest serve of 125 mph. Dementieva, known as one of the weakest servers in the game, averaged only 102 mph on first serves.

Dementieva was highly animated throughout the match, shrieking at the top of her voice and spinning around in frustration after errors.

Venus broke immediately to open the match, saved four break points in the next game and moved to a 4-0 lead before Dementieva finally got on the board after 29 minutes of play. The Russian saved four break points in a game that went to deuce six times, but Venus quickly closed out the set, flying high for a putaway forehand volley smash.

Venus continued a run of four straight games and seemed ready to pull away. But Dementieva raised her level, broke for 2-1 on a forehand net cord and stayed even until 6-6.

Dementieva faded badly in the tiebreaker, however. After a service winner from Venus on the first point, all the next nine points ended in errors. Leading 3-2, Dementieva reeled off three straight forehand errors, a backhand mistake and then another forehand error on match point.

The men's semifinals are set for Friday as five-time champion Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal head to a probable third straight Wimbledon championship showdown.

Federer will face a resurgent Marat Safin, a former No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion who used to detest playing at Wimbledon and is down at No. 75 in the ATP rankings. He's the first Russian man to reach the Wimbledon final four in the 40-year history of the Open era.

Nadal will play either 94th-ranked Rainer Schuettler or No. 145 Arnaud Clement, who were resuming their quarterfinal Thursday at one set apiece. Schuettler won the first 6-3 and Clement took the second 7-5 when play was suspended due to fading light Wednesday on Court 1.

Federer has reached the semifinals for the 17th consecutive time at a Grand Slam event, and is two wins away from becoming the second man in history to lift the Wimbledon trophy six years in a row. He hasn't dropped a set, taking his winning streak at Wimbledon to 39 matches and 64 overall on grass.

"I'll have a chance to win this tournament for the next five or 10 years, you know," the 26-year-old Swiss star said Wednesday. "I think my game's made for grass. My dream is to not only win this year, but many more years to come."

Venus, Serena a step away from Wimbledon finals

The women's semifinals at Wimbeldon are set for today, with Venus and Serena Williams favored to set up their first all-sibling final since 2003 Wimbledon.

Defending champion and four-time winner Venus is due up first against Elena Dementieva, while Serena was paired against Zheng Jie, the first Chinese player to make a Grand Slam semifinal. If both Americans win, they'll play in the Wimbledon final for the first time since 2003, when Serena beat Venus in the championship match for the second straight year.

"She won last year," eight-time Grand Slam champion Serena said of Venus. "But I'm not going to sit here and say she's the favorite when I'm still in the tournament. That's not me."

Serena is 8-7 against her sister overall, but a dominant 5-1 in Grand Slam finals.

"We're extremely motivated by each other, win or loss, on or off the court," said Venus, a four-time Wimbledon champion.

On Wednesday, the sisters beat Sania Mirza and Bethanie Mattek 6-4, 6-3 in the women's doubles quarterfinals, whispering tactics to each other on occasion but otherwise keeping calm despite trailing 3-0 in the second set.

"I think the doubles gets us really amped for the singles, and the next day we're all tuned and ready to go," said Venus, who has won six Grand Slam doubles titles with her sister.

Dementieva, Venus' next opponent, struggled for long periods before beating Nadia Petrova in three sets in the quarterfinals. But she's not worried about her next match.

"She's the defending champion. It's all pressure on her," Dementieva said of Venus, who is 6-0 in Wimbledon semifinal matches and 56-7 overall at the grass-court tournament. "I really have nothing to lose."

Zheng, ranked 133rd, is this year's surprise in the women's draw, reaching the last four with a run that includes a third-round win over top-seeded Ana Ivanovic, the French Open champion.

By beating Nicole Vaidisova, Zheng became the first Chinese player to reach the semifinals at a Grand Slam tournament, and is also the first wild-card entrant to reach the women's semis at Wimbledon and second at any major tournament.

"I never think I can (reach) the semifinal," said Zheng, who is playing at Wimbledon for only the third time and is 0-1 against Serena in her career after a first-round loss at the All England Club in 2004.

"I hope I can do better when I'm playing her," Zheng later said through a translator. "And, of course, I also wish to win. But for now I just want to simply keep my hope as simple as possible."

Serena won't be taking the 24-year-old Chinese player lightly.

"I've been watching her play," Serena said. "I think she's doing a fabulous job and I don't think it's luck."

Serena and Venus have won six of the last eight Wimbledon titles. Neither has dropped a set at Wimbledon so far, and their power games have set them apart from the rest of the women's field.

"I've been working really hard lately. I'm just waiting on the results to come," Serena said. "I deserve this, because I don't think anyone's been working harder than me, except for maybe Venus. I mean, that girl works even harder than I do."

If they both advance and set up yet another all-in-the-family final on Saturday, they'll get right back to supporting each other once the final point is played.

"We leave everything on the court," Serena said. "We're sisters the moment we shake hands."

Meanwhile, Roger Federer reached the semifinals for the 17th consecutive time at a Grand Slam event, and is two wins away from becoming the second man in history to lift the Wimbledon trophy six years in a row.

"I'll have a chance to win this tournament for the next five or 10 years, you know," the 26-year-old Swiss star said Wednesday. "I think my game's made for grass. My dream is to not only win this year, but many more years to come."

All the pre-tournament talk that Federer was more vulnerable this year evaporated as he cruised into the final four without dropping a set, taking his winning streak at Wimbledon to 39 matches and 64 overall on grass.

Federer played a nearly flawless match Wednesday to beat Mario Ancic, the last man to beat him on grass _ in the first round of Wimbledon in 2002. He served 15 aces, won 61 of 71 points on serve and never faced a break point in a 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 victory.

"I really feel like I'm playing as good as the last few years," Federer said. "I've been playing very consistent, been moving great. This is obviously a perfect situation looking at the semis."

That's where Federer will face a resurgent Marat Safin, a former No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion who used to detest playing at Wimbledon and is down at No. 75 in the ATP rankings.

Federer leads Safin 8-2 in career meetings, including a straight-set victory in the third round at the All England Club last year. At the 2005 Australian Open, Safin came from two sets down to beat Federer in the semifinals and went on to win his second major title, after his 2000 U.S. Open crown.

"I never looked at Marat like No. 80 or 90 in the world," Federer said. "I mean, that's ridiculous. He knows that himself. He's finally showing again what he can do. It's just quite surprising he does it here at Wimbledon."

Rodriguez split from wife

Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez and his wife have split less than three months after the birth of the couple's second daughter, according to a report in the New York Daily News.

The story on the newspaper's Web site comes amid reports linking Rodriguez to Madonna. Rodriguez refused to address the topic on three occasions Tuesday, once saying "no" when asked if he had any comment.

Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner also criticized the team's lack of hitting before an 18-7 win over the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night, suggesting "a little less outside distractions and a little more concentrating" might help the team at the plate.

The Daily News reported Wednesday night, citing an anonymous source, that Rodriguez and wife, Cynthia, have separated after having "problems" for about three months.

Cynthia Rodriguez's mother, Evangeline Scurtis, also denied a gossip Web site report that her daughter had gone on a romantic getaway with rocker Lenny Kravitz to Paris.

"She is not! I know that," Scurtis told The Daily News.

Scurtis repeatedly declined comment when asked about her daughter's relationship with Rodriguez.

The couple was married in November 2002 and has two children, Natasha Alexander and Ella Alexander, who was born April 21.

Rodriguez went 2-for-3 Wednesday night with his 17th homer of the season and also scored four times. It also was Rodriguez's 535th homer, moving him past Jimmie Foxx for 14th on the career list.