Golf

Woods to rest elbow — In little more than a month, Tiger Woods went from being tough to beat to having a tough time even playing. Woods said Wednesday that soreness in his left elbow would keep him from defending his title next week in the AT&T National at Congressional, and that he would not compete again until the British Open next month at Muirfield. This is the sixth straight year that injury has kept him from either playing a tournament or finishing one. The culprit this time is a strain in his left elbow. The problem first became apparent during the opening round of the U.S. Open last week at Merion, when he was flexing his left wrist or dangling his arm behind his back after shots out of the thick, punishing rough. His injury is a blow to the AT&T National, which benefits the Tiger Woods Foundation. This will be the third time since it began in 2007 that Woods has missed the tournament because of injury — knee surgery in 2008, his left Achilles tendon in 2011 and an elbow injury this year.

Football

Homicide victim connected to Patriot — A man found dead in an industrial park about a mile from New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez’s home had been killed, a prosecutor said Wednesday in Boston. The state medical examiner identified the man as 27-year-old Odin Lloyd and ruled he was a homicide victim, Bristol District Attorney Samuel Sutter’s office said. Lloyd’s family said he was a semi-pro football player with a connection to Hernandez, whose home was searched by police. Lloyd’s mother, Ursula Ward, had said earlier police had told her the body was that of her son, who played for the Boston Bandits. Ward would not say how Lloyd knew Hernandez and did not say if police told her how her son died. An uncle said Lloyd had a connection to Hernandez but wouldn’t elaborate.

Soccer

Timbers draw — Robbie Keane hit the right post and Landon Donovan had three opportunities inside the Portland box as the Los Angeles Galaxy settled for a 0-0 draw with the Timbers on Wednesday night in Carson, Calif. Portland (6-1-9) extended its unbeaten streak to 14 matches with its third shutout in the past four. Keane’s glancing header in the 55th minute, which bounced through the goalmouth and off the right post, was the best scoring chance in a game that featured superb ball movement through midfield by both teams but little effective penetration and scarce opportunities to break the deadlock. Donovan had all of his three chances in the first half, with all coming on through balls from Keane, but Timbers defender Pa-Modou Kah made stops in the box each time.

Baseball

Astros sign No. 1 pick — Mark Appel received high praise from MLB commissioner Bud Selig on Wednesday when the No. 1 overall pick signed with the Houston Astros. Speaking at an MLB diversity business summit at a convention near Minute Maid Park, Selig praised Houston’s rebuilding efforts. He then likened Appel, a right-handed pitcher, and Houston’s 2012 No. 1 pick, shortstop Carlos Correa, to two of the franchise’s greatest stars, Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell. Terms were not disclosed but Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said it was “the most significant investment” the Astros have ever made in an amateur player. The 21-year-old Appel was 10-4 with four complete games and a 2.12 ERA this season with Stanford.

Tennis

Nadal seeded No. 5 for Wimbledon — If Rafael Nadal is going to win Wimbledon for a third time, he’ll have to do it the hard way. Fresh from winning his eighth French Open, Nadal is seeded only No. 5 at Wimbledon — setting up the possibility of a quarterfinal match against title contenders Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray. The All England Club released the seedings Wednesday for this year’s grass-court Grand Slam, which starts Monday. The top five in the ATP rankings remain in their positions: Djokovic at No. 1, followed by Murray, Federer, David Ferrer and Nadal. Nadal slipped down the rankings after being sidelined for about seven months with a left knee injury. The Spaniard has won seven of the nine tournaments he has entered in his comeback — including the French Open last month — but he still fell to No. 5 after Roland Garros behind the man he beat in the final — Ferrer. Wimbledon’s seeding order is determined using the ATP rankings, and points are added for achievements in grass-court tournaments in the past 12 months. The women’s seedings follow the WTA rankings, with five-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams at No. 1 and Victoria Azarenka at No. 2. Serena’s sister, Venus Williams, withdrew Tuesday, citing a back injury.

Serena backs off rape comment — Serena Williams says she’s reaching out to the family of the victim in the Steubenville, Ohio, rape case after the tennis star was quoted in a Rolling Stone article saying “she shouldn’t have put herself in that position.” “I am currently reaching out to the girl’s family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article,” Williams said in a statement released through her agent Wednesday. “What was written — what I supposedly said — is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame.”

— From wire reports