Showing that they can do more than just beat the Tampa Bays of the world, the Sox took two out of three from the Mariners at home after losing two out of three last weekend in Seattle. The Mariners were on fire, but no longer.

The Red Sox are now 23-7 against teams with losing records and 6-4 against winning teams. They now begin a three-game series against the evil, evil, 24-20 White Sox here in Chicago. This is another test for them. The Yankees, having won 10 of their last 12, are hot on their trails, only two games back. I don’t know how long Boston can hold them off. Giambi isn’t even getting booed anymore.

The Rockets won the NBA draft lottery, giving them the No. 1 pick for the first time since 1984 when they drafted a talented center from a distant country. Sound familiar?

Whether the Rockets will try to repeat their luck with Hakeem Olajuwon by drafting Chinese 7-foot-5-incher Yao Ming is an open question, of course. Either way, it’s a nice dilemma to have. Right, Karen?

The Cubs ended their losing streak by not only winning today, but by coming from behind to win. And not only that. Fred McGriff, of all people, hit a two-run home run to tie it. And the Cubs even overcame a blown save by Antonio Alfonseca. It was not exactly an impressive victory, but a nice one nonetheless.

It does mean, however, that Cubs fell 14 consecutive losses short of the Phillies’ all-time record for most losses in a row. D’oh! I have a feeling that they’ll get started on another losing streak right away, though.

By the way, Bobby Hill scored the Cubs’ last two runs. Why wasn’t DeShields playing? Come on, Baylor. Moves like that might actually keep you employed.

The Cubs now have the second worst record in the National League. Who has the worst record? The Brewers. Five of the Brewers’ 14 wins (35 percent) so far this year have come against the Cubs.

Paul Pierce was on the money when he explained why the Celtics lost game one of the Eastern
Conference Finals to the Nets.

“We didn’t even play a lick of defense all night,” he said.

It would also help if Pierce could keep himself out of foul trouble. The fourth foul that took him out of the game during a game-deciding stretch in the third quarter was a charging call. Pierce needs to be more careful, especially with a guy like Kidd, who knows how to take a charge.

This is what the Celtics were like last year, when they were a lottery team. Pierce and Walker scored 27 but the Celtics never, looked lost on defense, and got killed on the boards and in the paint. The Celtics are capable of performing better than this. Let’s see if they do.

According to the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, a masochist is a person who “takes pleasure in being abused or dominated,” and has “a taste for suffering.” Here’s a simpler definition: Cubs fan.

It’s nine losses in a row, now, but MacPhail says he “has no intention of making a change any time in the near future.” Of course not. Maybe he wants to have a new manager lined up to replace Baylor when he finally gets the ax.

At this point, I’m interested to see how many games in a row the Cubs can lose. The 1961 Phillies hold the record with 23 losses in a row. That’s a record I think even this team will have trouble beating. But they can try. At least today they made it interesting by putting the tyings runs on base in the ninth. What’s even worse than the Cubs’ winning record is the fact that very few games have even been interesting or exciting.

Even ace Jon Lieber couldn’t bring them victory today. Of course he couldn’t. He allowed more three runs. How’s the offense supposed to win with that kind of effort? Jeez, Liebs. Won’t you ever learn? Make sure to let Mark Prior in on the secret before he pitches on Wednesday. That should help him bear down for his major-league debut.

So says Cubs chief muckety-muck Andy MacPhail in his interview with MLB.com. Of course, he’s right that the big problem is the Cubs’ offense. And, luckily, he doesn’t resort to using the injuries as an excuse:

Everybody has injuries. You just have to overcome them. We haven’t done a very good job of that. And we haven’t hit. Injuries are a factor but they are by no means the main reason or the reason itself.

But a couple of his answers are certainly suspect. In response to Kerry Wood’s comments about the Cubs’ lack of energy, MacPhail said, “I was in Des Moines [watching the Triple-A team] and got all of that second- and third-hand. I’ve never doubted the competitive spirit in Kerry and I think that’s a good thing. No one wants to lie down.”

OK, I guess they don’t have Internet connections in Des Moines. It would have just been too much for him to keep up with the press coverage of his team. That’s a cop out. And so is his remark that nobody wants to lie down. Maybe nobody wants to, but plenty of Cubs are doing it. But he doesn’t have the guts to call out his players the way Baylor and Wood have done. That’s probably a smart move in the end, but still a cop out.

And what about Mark Prior? Will he be starting next week? “You can speculate that way. Things would have to fall in place for that to happen. It’s not out of the realm of possibilty.” Not out of the realm of possibility?!
How’s this for reality, not just possibility: one starter (Jason Bere) is 1-6 with a 6.31 ERA and another (Juan Cruz) is 0-7 with a decent 3.86 ERA but hasn’t made it past the fourth inning in his last two starts.

Come on, Andy. Wake up.