The Celtics played more than a lick of defense on Tuesday night to even up the series — they played outstanding defense. And you knew that would happen, or else Coach Jim O’Brien would have quit on the spot.
Now, the Celtics will be cranking out the Guns N’ Roses as they welcome the Nets to “The Jungle,” which is what they call the Fleet Center. No playoff opponent has shot 40 percent or higher at the Fleet Center yet.
The Red Sox wanted to prove they could beat winning teams. Well, after smashing the White Sox 9-0on Monday, they lost the next two. And now? A four-game series against the evil, evil Yankees and only a one-game lead in the AL East.
Oh, yeah. Manny Ramirez’ thumb may require surgery, after all. ESPN’s Peter Gammons writes that the American League is now a three-team race. And the Red Sox are one of those teams.
Mark Prior is the real deal. I didn’t get to see him pitch because I was in class, but the numbers tell the story. Here’s what the scouts had to say about Prior’s performance Wednesday night.
Most surprising of all, the Cubs gave Prior some run support. Was that just a favor to the rookie, or will it be a sign of things to come? So obviously Prior has earned a spot in the starting rotation, though with Baylor you never can tell. The Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein reports that Jason Bere has an edge over Juan Cruz for the last spot because Cruz has complained of soreness in his arm.
If Cruz is healthy, I think it would be a shame if he were sent to the bullpen instead of Bere. Bere, as Greenstein points out, has given up more runs this year than any other starter with the exception of Mike Hampton, the ace for a team whose home stadium is so homer happy they’re allowed to store the balls in a humidor hours before game time.
Indeed, the Tuesday doubleheader said all that needed to be said about who deserves a spot in the rotation. Bere started the first game and gave up six runs in five innings, losing the game and upping his ERA to 6.80. Cruz, meanwhile, gave up only two earned runs in six innings.
The thing that may keep Bere in the starting lineup is that he will resist the bullpen fiercely. This Cruz’ first full year and he doesn’t have much say. Bere is getting paid $3.4 million this season and has only pitched eight games in relief his entire career. He is much less likely to even be effective coming out of the bullpen. Cruz deserves his starting spot, but probably won’t get it.
Hopefully, Bere will be dealt to some team desperate for pitching before the trading deadline, and Cruz can take back his spot as a key component of a rotation made up of fellow youngsters Wood and Prior. Here’s Phil Rogers on the Cubs’ youth movement.
Let’s give this embargo a chance! That seems to be Dubya’s attitude on the Cuban embargo. Yes, Castro is a brutal dictator and Cuba will benefit greatly once he’s dead or thrown off or whatever. But in the meantime, ordinary Cubans are suffering terribly and Castro is using the embargo as his last rhetorical cudgel.
Free Cuba, yes. Wouldn’t free trade with Cuba at least be a start?
Brian Carnell has a good post on the “What did Dubya know” furor. He, of course, makes a point very similar to one I made (why else would I be linking to him?):
The weird thing is that most of the people all over this are talking out of both sides of their mouths. On the one hand, they are excoriating the President for his failure to Do More (TM). On the other hand, the sort of things that the President could have done to prevent this are precisely the sorts of things that these selfsame critics oppose on civil liberties grounds.
He makes many other good points, and in the end agrees with Glenn Reynolds that the best way to fight terrorists is to wipe them out before they strike.
kboreilly.com 