Pitchers Get Break: Larger Strike Zone

At last, the pitchers get a break. The strike zone, supposedly shrinking for years, became a few inches bigger when it was moved down to below the knee.

The change--officially a redefinition--was agreed to by the Official Playing Rules Committee of baseball and the players’ union. The move was made as part of the effort to speed up games.

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David Justice said that his divorce from actress Halle Berry has nothing to do with him being stopped by police in an area frequented by prostitutes and drug dealers.

Justice said the couple, who married three years ago, have been formally separated for several months. He conceded that the timing of the divorce announcement, made by Berry through a publicist Thursday, was sure to raise eyebrows.

The Atlanta outfielder was stopped by police in Riviera Beach, Fla., last weekend after officers said they saw him parked in a car along a road in a high-crime area. No charges were filed.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates’ ticket sales have taken off since Kevin McClatchy bought the team last week. Total sales have increased to 600,000, or 100,000 more than a year ago. . . . Dwight Gooden, trying to come back after being suspended in June 1994 for violating baseball’s substance-abuse aftercare program, pitched batting practice for the New York Yankees for the second time in three days. . . . Colorado’s Dante Bichette said he wants to have reconstructive knee surgery after the season.