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Josh Beckett has been lights out. No doubt about it. Before struggling against Philadelphia last week, Beckett had brought his ERA down from a 7.22 to a 3.77. He also had not lost a game since April which is impressive to say the least. In a span of three straight starts against the Twins, Tigers, and Yankees Beckett gave up 3 or less hits each game. He also flirted with a no-hitter a more than once. Not only has Beckett been stepping up lately, but with the exception of Daisuke Matsuzka, Red Sox pitching has been red hot. Tim Wakefiled, Jon Lester, and Brad Penny all seem to be in a groove and it couldn�t come at a better time. Let�s just hope this stellar pitching continues past the All-Star break and into the playoffs. Congratulations to Josh Beckett, New England Sports 24/7, Player Of The Month.
SportsCenter continues to provide some of the better insight on the Rasheed Wallace situation. Chris Broussard appeared on the 6 p.m. edition and said he thinks Wallace will end up with Boston.
While the Celtics have offered Wallace a two-year deal and the full mid-level exception, Broussard noted that Wallace would prefer more than that. However, all of the teams actively pursuing his services cannot offer more than that designated amount, so it appears Wallace will have to accept that if he wishes to play for a legitimate contender.
Broussard also cited Wallace’s relationship with Kevin Garnett as a potential deal breaker. He originally reported on Tuesday that the San Antonio Spurs were the front runner to land Wallace, but they simply have not pursued him as aggressively as some other teams (Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are NOT on a plane right now heading to ‘Sheed’s pad).
Supposedly, the Spurs are interested in offering the MLE to Marcin Gortat and Gary Tanguay posted on his Twitter page that the Spurs are interested in acquiring Glen Davis.
Revenge is a funny word. In most occasions, its speaking of a rivalry or hate that you have had for years. For instance, 2004 was revenge for the years the Yankees had beaten them.
Last night, against the Orioles, included the feeling of revenge.
Josh Beckett was having one gorgeous June month, going 4-1 and deep into games. In the four wins he had, he pitched 29.2 innings and gave up a single run. Now it is July though, and it seemed different already. Continue reading ‘Sox Win In Extras: Now Thats A Comeback’
While the Celtics’ interest in Rasheed Wallace is in fact legitimate, the Boston Herald reports no personal trips from management or players have been made yet to the Wallace residence, as previously reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
“We hope to meet with him soon,” Ainge, the Celtics general manager, said last night, debunking an Internet report that team management already had met with Wallace on Tuesday night.
“Right now, everything is happening over the phone - that’s all,” a team source said.
Meanwhile, Gary Tanguay of CSN is reporting that Wallace and the Celtics will meet today.
If you thought the Celtics’ pursuit of Rasheed Wallace would consummate in Danny Ainge and Leo Papile showing up at his crib at midnight last night, at the exact instant the pair could legally do so, you were sorely, sorely mistaken my friend.
No, they covet this guy. Badly. Consider him priority number one. Heck, consider him priorities two and three while you’re at it.
Wallace now stands as the star recruit, yearned for by all of the major players in the NBA Championship game. This suddenly resembles collegiate recruiting on a frightening level. Only in this scenario, management is pulling out all the stops. Not only will the coach be paying Wallace a visit, he’ll be escorted there personally by his three best players.
Oh yes, according to the horse with the source, Yahoo! Sports’s own, Adrian Wojnarowski, Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett (Wallace’s close buddy), Paul Pierce and Ray Allen will all be arriving at the Wallace residence shortly, if they haven’t made it there already.
Here’s how badly the Boston Celtics believe Rasheed Wallace can be the difference in winning an 18th NBA championship next season: Coach Doc Rivers and the Big Three were planning a recruiting trip to woo him, possibly as early as Wednesday afternoon, league sources said.
The Celtics are targeting Wallace with the midlevel exception and sources say the team – which could be willing to pay a steep luxury tax – is also pursuing Phoenix’s Grant Hill(notes). Sources say that Celtics management met with Wallace late last night, and that they would be followed with a visit from the coach, as well Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Garnett and Wallace have a close relationship.
Boston officials are convinced that these next 24 to 48 hours are critical in overtaking the Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference, and eventually, the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers.
Imagine your favorite school stating their case to a prized recruit, only they brought along the greatest player in the history of the school, who also just happened to flourish in the big leagues afterward, but only after attending that specific school. It’d be like Roy Williams dragging Michael Jordan along on recruiting trips, Bill Self footing Pierce’s travel expenses or Grant Hill escorting Mike Krzyzewski. Actually, after the most recent Olympic Games, Krzyzewski could undoubtedly ask a simple favor of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony or Dwight Howard. If those five showed up at your pad, you’d be playing at Duke next fall.
Powe walked away from his conversation believing that his time as a Celtic was finished.
“I wasn’t feeling a vibe like that,” he said of whether he got the sense the Celtics might be interested in re-signing him later in the summer. “I knew they wouldn’t (offer a qualifying offer), so I just have to move on.
“That’s what they told me,” Powe said of whether his connection with the Celtics was finished. They told me, ‘Good luck with another team.’ Doc (Rivers) told me that he wanted me there, and he would do whatever he could to make sure I came back, but Danny came to me yesterday saying that they only have a two-year window, and I would be taking up a roster spot for someone else.”
Reached today, Ainge said he would still be interested in signing Powe, though only after he recovers from knee surgery.
“We love Leon, and would consider having Leon back at any time, once he gets healthy,” Ainge said.
This is pretty disheartening news any which way you wish to spin it. While it might make sense right now in regards to roster spots, like Ainge mentioned, do not give up hope that Leon could return late in the regular season, much the way P.J. Brown and Sam Cassell joined the ranks two seasons ago.
Sources say Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge and assistant director of basketball operations Leo Papile showed up on Rasheed Wallace’s(notes) doorstep just after midnight Wednesday to make their recruiting push.
“I know he is definitely considering playing for them,” one league source said.
Based on what I heard last night on ESPN, it sounded like such a visit would have nearly been Ainge’s only option, as Chris Broussard was reporting that Wallace was likely to sign with the San Antonio Spurs. We’ll have to wait and see.
A loss like this hurts so bad, my words can’t describe it. All the ideas of what happened just plain hurts, and what a lead we had.
John Smoltz started, trying to get his first win as a Bostonian after a tough debut.
Meanwhile, Rich Hill got the start for the Orioles. After a great win yesterday, the odds seemed to be in the Sox favor.
Boston started the game quickly, in the first inning Youkilis started it all with a two run homer as Julio Lugo also scored. Then, in the second inning they opened up the lead to 4-0 as Dustin Pedroia had a two-run homer.
It seemed after only two innings, it was all over.
In the 4th inning it just got plain ugly, Jacoby Ellsbury got two hits including a homer while Ortiz and Youkilis also got nice hits to bring in runs. At the end of that, the Sox had a ridiculous 9-1 lead.
The fact was, John Smoltz’s win was in the book. He had a 9-1 lead in the 4th inning, and he himself was pitching very well.
The Celtics took the first step in their attempt to retain the services of Glen Davis by tendering the forward a qualifying offer last night.
According to a league source, Davis, as a restricted free agent, will carry a mid-level exception (approximately $5.8 million) price tag into the marketplace.
Detroit and Memphis - two teams with cap space - both are expected to court Davis over the next month.
The team has waived goodbye - at least for now - to popular power forward Leon Powe. Ainge said the team chose not to extend him a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Ainge said Powe’s reconstructive left knee surgery this spring was a determining factor in the decision. He said he believes Powe is planning to continue his rehab in California this summer and that the team could revisit bringing him back later in the offseason.
Neither scenario comes as much of a surprise, but it will be interesting to see if the Celtics (who will be able to match any offer Davis receives from another team without using their mid-level exception) pay nearly six million for Davis’s services.
And who wouldn’t like to see Leon Powe return next season? It will of course, have to wait until midway through the year, but Powe’s ability to play in the post has always been one asset of his game that separates him from a guy like Davis. Maybe next season Powe ends up one of the final guys we add just before the playoffs, like the way we’ve added P.J. Brown/Sam Cassell/Mikki Moore/Stephon Marbury the past two seasons.
Who says Christmas comes only once a year? Despite it being the tail end of June and officially summer, with moratorium set to begin tomorrow, I can’t help but feel like we’re in the midst of those ever important weeks before Christmas, when you’re dragging your completely suspecting parents through the toy stores, ferociously jabbing at all of the action figures, video games and LEGOS you just can no longer live without.
We’ve all made a Christmas list before, and if you have not, I apologize for you missing out on your childhood. Well, this list might not be Star Wars or Super Mario, but it deals in something absolutely superior: free agents. While I might have tossed some names at you before, here is my official list of the free agents I would love to see the Celtics make a run at. Let’s step into Free Agents “R” Us:
It’s that time of year where the Celtics are making some noise in New England Sports. Here is the latest on the C’s:
Eddie House
Eddie House is returning to the Celtics. Great news! He exercised his player option and will come back for at least another year. Eddie Money would have probably got a lot of interest around the league. I am not saying he would have been offered big money, but his attitude and explosiveness off the bench is a must have for any NBA team. Welcome back Eddie! Now that’s done, what’s the deal with Stephon Marbury and Glen Davis?
Stephon Marbury
Starbury has made it clear… he wants to come back. When it’s all said and done, Marbury wants to win a championship and he knows that Boston is his best chance. I say for the right price, bring him back. Easier said than done though right? If Marbs spent the offseason with the Celtics and was in training camp than he would have a great chance to finally get comfortable with the team and system. What does that translate to? I believe we would see something close to the Marbury of old and that would be an amazing option off the bench behind Rajon Rondo. Get it done Danny.
Glen Davis
Danny Ainge announced yesterday that the Celtics will give Davis a qualifying offer soon. Basically other teams can try to sign Big Baby, but Boston will have a chance to match their offers. Personally, I am on the fence about this situation. I would love to have him back, but if the price is too steep I wouldn’t be opposed to letting him walk. That brings us to our next little snippet of news.
Rasheed Wallace
Gary Tanguay made us believe last night that there was a legit rumor of Wallace coming to Boston. We then found out it was just speculation by Tanguay. If Big Baby left we would be even thinner in the frontcourt. Even if he stays, I am sure the Celtics will entertain the idea of Sheed in Green. In fact it is being reported that Wallace is supposed to visit Boston tomorrow and he is bringing his family. That’s a very good sign. Let’s just hope his visit is a positive one.
The road trip that some would say could be the key to holding the AL East until the All Star Break had been a success so far, the team had gone 2-1 verse both teams so far, and 4-2 overall.
Now they came into Baltimore, the Fenway of the South due to the same winds inside and the amount of Red Sox fans that migrate south to the games.
Jon Lester, the already experienced young pitcher, faced a rookie 26 year-old pitcher named Jason Berken. He has struggled so far, going 1-4 and only pitching more than five innings twice in his six starts. Continue reading ‘Lester Controls Game As Red Sox Win, 4-0′
With moratorium set to take off on Wednesday, I figured we could have a little bit of fun for one last night before the really juicy stuff gets going this offseason. If you thought you dealt with rumors before, just wait for this Wednesday through next Wednesday.
So, with that in mind, Comcast SportsNet has conveniently compiled a list of New England athletes from all of the professional teams, deemed the “Top 20 Under 25″. Basically, the list takes a look at the promising young talent of the four major sports teams in New England.
I’m proud to say the Celtics had some nice representation on the list in the forms of Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins, Glen Davis and Bill Walker.
So how would you rank these four players? The obvious answer might be…
1) Rajon Rondo
2) Kendrick Perkins
3) Glen Davis
4) Bill Walker
…but I encourage those of who who are sincere fans of the bottom three to make your personal cases for each and every one of them.
For example, I could say: Well, Glen Davis clearly benefited from Kevin Garnett suffering his right knee injury. If Garnett hadn’t gone down, there’s now way we’d be regarding Davis so highly right now. Now, if Pierce had gone down, it seems very reasonable that Walker would have stepped in for him and then we would have had an ample opportunity to see what the kid’s got.
I don’t care how many flashes of pure basketball brilliance Walker showed us in his selective stints on the court last season, there was no possible way he’d receive minutes over a healthy Pierce. Forget about it.
And you could also say something like: Well, as great as Rondo is, Kendrick Perkins had to go up against the NBA’s premiere center in the second round of the postseason, and look what he did to Dwight Howard. Not just anyone could do that. And look what happened when Rondo met Derrick Rose! I can clearly remember Rose exploding for 36 points and 11 assists in his very first playoff game with Rondo guarding him.
Feel free to state your cases in the comments section. Keep it clean, but don’t back down, either.
According to CelticsBlog, Gary Tanguay of CSN just reported the following:
It looks like he’ll be a member of the Celtics…I’ll leave it at that.
Contract negotiations cannot begin until Wednesday, but I’m sure text messages from Kevin Garnett and co. aren’t considered illegal.
More on this as information becomes available.
Update: Sorry if that got anyone’s hopes up, but apparently that “rumor” turned out to be nothing more than Tanguay’s personal prediction or “gut feeling”, but he reported it like it was a legitimate rumor. Tanguay’s twitter feed says: “That is my prediction”, but apparently that’s not how he left it on the show.
This was actually a nice preview of what we’ll probably be in for over the course of the next week.
Stay Tuned.
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By: Greg Payne
