Mike Napoli Drives Red Sox to First Victory

The Red Sox notched their first win of the season thanks to Mike Napoli's bat and John Lackey's arm. Napoli hit a 2 run homer in the 5th that broke a 2-2 tie, then in the 7th he knocked in 2 with a single. John Lackey had a solid season debut going 6 innings and allowing 2 runs on 3 hits. He retired the last 7 batters he faced. Lackey's only big mistake was allowing a Nelson Cruz homerun. I hope Cruz does not become a Sox killer and he's just having a hot start to his season.

David Ortiz also homered. Edward Mujica, Junichi Tazawa, and Koji Uehara each pitched 1 inning, allowed 1 hit, and struck out 1 in remarkable symmetry. Just look at how neat they made the box score look:

Mike Napoli's offense powered the Red Sox to this win. But maybe Jonny "Phonebooth" Gomes will find a way to take some credit for the win. Although Gomes was 0 for 4, he probably thinks that his hitting behind Napoli was why the Orioles gave Napoli pitches to hit.

I'm just kidding, I'm sure Gomes would never try to take credit for something that others did.

Despite whatever contributions Gomes might have made, I'm going to declare Mike Napoli the Man of the Game.

Rubber game tonight. Felix Doubront faces Wei-Yin Chen. The Red Sox magic number is 161.

Photo Credit:
Nick Wass/Associated Press

California, Why So Much Violence Over Baseball?

It seems like every year there's a seriously violent incident outside a California ballpark, and I'm curious to know why. I've only been to California twice, never to a ball game, and everyone some really laid back and chill. I'd say too laid back. Yet almost annually we hear stories about fans attacking fans after games. And these aren't just fights, these are brutal incidents.

In 2011 a Giants fan, named Bryan Stow, was attacked by two Dodgers fans outside Dodgers Stadium. He was beaten so badly he was put in a medically induced coma. He's still in a wheelchair.

In 2013 a Dodgers fan, named Jonathan Denver, was stabbed to death by Michael Montgomery after a Giants game. "According to witnesses, Montgomery had a bottle in his hand for self-defense while Denver was punching him. After Denver's brother grabbed an aluminum chair and hit Montgomery on the head with it, Montgomery dropped the bottle, took out a knife, and stabbed Denver."

And then early Sunday morning, a fight between female Dodgers and Angels fans escalated, and a US Marine who reportedly tried to help break up the fight got stabbed in the face with a broken bottle. The story is that a couple of girls were fighting outside a bar, 3 guys (the Marines) tried to break up the fight, the girls' boyfriends showed up and one of them stabbed a guy in the face with the broken bottle.

So why the violence, California?

And why are your incidents on a completely different level of violence? How come the fights at most ballparks involve fists, and yours involve blunt objects and knives and broken bottles?

And it's not just baseball. In 2011 after a 49ers-Raiders preseason game in San Francisco, two people got shot in the parking lot.

So what the hell, California?

Bruins Back to Winning With 3-0 Shutout Over Blackhawks

The Boston Bruins paid tribute to the City's two fallen Firefighters before and after the game. The B's wore BFD hats during pregame warm-ups, had a moment of silence, and the Boston Fire Department color guard presented the colors for the National Anthem. After the Bruins won 3-0, the BFD was named the First Star of the game.

The game itself was a return to strong, physical yet disciplined, 5-on-5 hockey. There were only 3 total power plays (2 for Chicago, 1 for the Bruins), compared with 12 in Monday's game against the Canadiens.

The Blackhawks might be the opposing team I have the most respect for. I like their style of play and they play that style well. This was a good team for the Bruins to meet after snapping their streak against Montreal. Talented enough for the B's to be focused and energized, and no distracting gimmicks or sideshows. Just good hockey.

And the Bruins played harder and played better. They scored by getting people in front of the net and getting inside position in front of the net. Basic fundamentals of the game. The 3 goals the B's scored weren't highlight reel goals, they were the type of goals you need to score in games against quality opponents.

Patrice Bergeron scored two of them. He has 9 in the month of March, to go along with 6 assists. It's almost a shame to see March end with how well he's been playing, among a number of other Bruins forwards.

That's 15 straight games with at least a point. That's also 50 wins on the season, tied with the Blues for most in the NHL. The Bruins have won 48 of their victories in regulation or OT (St. Louis has 42 ROWs).

The 50 wins is the most since the 2008-09 season (53 wins). It's only the 9th time in team history the Bruins have won 50+ games. The franchise record is 57 wins from the 1970-71 season. The Bruins have 9 games remaining to match that total, but it's a meaningless mark. That team lost in the opening round of the playoffs to Montreal. Regular season achievements are for the Canucks.

What does have meaning is that the Bruins are a win away (or a Lightning loss away) from clinching the division, which also clinches home-ice advantage for the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Bruins also have a 9 point edge over the Penguins for home ice throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The B's take on the Capitals in Washington Saturday afternoon at 12:30.

It's a good thing the Bruins aren't in a tight playoff race because they end their season with 7 of their last 9 on the road.

Photo Credit:
Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Boston Loses Two Heroes

Wednesday afternoon, Lieutenant Ed Walsh and Firefighter Michael Kennedy of the Boston Fire Department died while fighting a 9 alarm blaze on Beacon Street in Boston's Back Bay. Ed Walsh was the father of three children, all under 10 years old. Michael Kennedy served with the US Marine Corps and was a combat veteran. Both worked out of the nearby firehouse on Boylston Street, Walsh with Engine 33 and Kennedy with Ladder 15.

It's likely that yesterday's high winds, sometimes gusting over 45 MPH in Boston, rapidly intensified the fire, and quickened its spread through the 4-story Brownstone near the Charles River. You can see the effects of the wind on the flames in this stunning piece of video.

This is a sports blog, and we obsess and even gush over quarterbacks and goaltenders and pitchers and point guards. However, these are the true heroes of our city, and in cities around the country and the world. The people that run toward the flames and the explosions and the gunshots and the car crashes. The people that put their life on the line for the lives of others. For strangers.

Think about it. If your house or your apartment or your office caught fire, a group of people who may never have met you will RUSH to get there, and risk life and limb to get you out. They'll bust their ass to save your home and to protect the other homes around yours.

That's pretty amazing. That's heroic.

Which makes the loss of two such heroes all the sadder.

To our fallen heroes, rest in peace. And thank you.

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Stoned

Neil Degrasse Tyson hosts Cosmos on Fox. He also admires Sir Isaac Newton a great deal. And someone slowed down a video of him talking about Newton enough to make him sound like he was stoned out of his mind. And it's hilarious.

PK Subban and Canadiens End Bruins Winning Streak and I Start a Being Pissed Off Streak

For the Boston Bruins, playing the Montreal Canadiens is like playing with a double-edged sword. The Bruins are considerably stronger and more physical than the Habs. That's an advantage sometimes, a disadvantage at others. "It's one of those teams you want to hit," Brad Marchand remarked after the game. And this thirst for hitting can sometimes cause some Bruins to lose their cool and commit stupid penalties.

Such stupidity is exacerbated by inconsistent officials, like the ones who called the game Monday night. How does Thomas Vanek play with a broken stick and not get penalized?

I won't blame the refs for this loss, though. They eventually called plenty of penalties on Montreal. The Bruins only capitalized on one power play. And they failed to convert many other 5-on-5 opportunities. Give credit to Peter Budaj for a great game. The Bruins also didn't seem to receive passes very well. The closer the B's got to Montreal's net, the more jittery they seemed.

The Bruins also played into Montreal's game. When Milan Lucic gets hip-checked at the start of the game, Zdeno Chara can't go over and take a penalty just to send a message. ESPECIALLY Chara, your most important penalty killer.

The Bruins are a better 5-on-5 team than Montreal. Therefore the B's should do what they can to keep it 5-on-5.

I hate PK Subban. He is more of a late 1990s WWF heel than a 2014 NHL defenseman. His manager is Mr. Fuji, or Jim Cornette. The Undertaker challenged him to a casket match and he chickened out.

Subban would be a great hockey player if he'd just play hockey. The problem is, he can't help being himself. It's natural for him to act the way he acts with the Canadiens. His comfort zone is how he's played in Montreal for years. I hate when Boston media pundits say "You'd love to have him on your team." I would, ONLY under the condition that he just played hockey. It's one thing to be pesky, it's another thing to be a flopper who only picks on guys smaller than he is. If he continued to be the turd that he's been in Montreal, I wouldn't want him polluting the game with his WWE antics while wearing my team's colors.

In case you can't tell, I get emotional about games against the Canadiens.

That's what rivalry is all about. I love it.

This game has generated some interesting goaltending questions for both teams. If the Bruins and Habs meet in the playoffs, does Carey Price start in net for Montreal?

And for the Bruins, Tuukka Rask's record against the Canadiens remains something to worry about. He seemed to play more aggressively in this game than he normally does, venturing out of the crease more often, and moving further out than usual.

Lost in all this is that the B's still earned a point, and are now 4 away from clinching the Atlantic. They host the Chicago Blackhawks Thursday night, and if the B's win and the Tampa Bay Lightning lose to the Islanders, then the Bruins will claim the division title.

Photo Credit:
Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Red Sox Give Crybaby David Ortiz $16 Million to Shut Up

I love David Ortiz as a player. However at times, many many times, he acts like a spoiled whiny cry baby. And once again that baby got his bottle. The Red Sox agreed to a one-year extension of his contract, which will pay the designated hitter $16 million in 2015 when he's 39 years old. The contract will extend to 2016 if he reaches a certain number of plate appearances (425 for an $11 million deal, 600 for $16 million).

There was no on-the-field, baseball reason for the Red Sox to sign him to this extension. This was to silence a crying baby. Which makes me happy. I just want Ortiz to shut up. Stop worrying about your contract, about the official scorer giving you RBIs, about every sportswriter who criticizes you. Just shut up and play baseball. This contract shuts him up. The baby is silent.

We don't yet know if Ortiz's bat will be worth $16 million in 2015. But his silence in 2014 is.

Photo Credit:
Jeff Miron/USA Today

Bruins Win 12 in a Row Thanks to Number 12, Jarome Iginla

In the middle of the biggest basketball weekend of the year, your Boston Bruins were the 5th story on SportsCenter Sunday morning. That's because they won their 12th straight Saturday night, coming from behind in the 3rd period to beat the Phoenix Coyotes 4-2.

The streak is the longest in franchise history since the 1970-71 season when the B's won 13 in a row. The franchise record is 14 straight from the 1929-30 season. Also over the weekend, the Bruins clinched a playoff berth. That's 7 consecutive years of playoff hockey in Boston.

I came up with a theory to explain this winning streak. Maybe when the Bruins didn't do much at the NHL trade deadline, the team felt that management had confidence in them. Maybe this motivated the players. Maybe it lit a spark, sparked a fire, fired them up. Name your cliche.

That'd be a nice story, but I think this streak is a result of mathematics, not psychology.

K + I + L = 17

That's Krejci (3 goals) plus Iginla (11 goals) plus Lucic (3 goals) equals 17 goals. That's how many the top line have scored in the past 12 games. Iginla scored twice in the win over Phoenix.

I'm going to start calling this line The Killers, because their initials are KIL. Think it will catch on?

The story of the streak has been offense: the first line has scored 17 goals, Patrice Bergeron has scored 5, Carl Soderberg 4, Gregory Campbell 3, Zdeno Chara and Dougie Hamilton each have 6 assists in the streak. The offense is coming from all 4 lines and from all the defensemen, including the newly acquired Andrej Meszaros, who has a goal and 3 assists in his 7 games with the Bruins.

And while the team's been scoring, they haven't allowed their opponents to come from behind. Mainly due to this next equation:

31/34 = 91.2%

The Bruins have killed 31 of 34 penalties during this stretch. Earlier this month the Bruins killed 5 penalties against Phoenix and won 2-1. The B's killed 4 against Florida on March 9th and won 5-2. They haven't allowed their opponents to get back into games with power play goals.

Hopefully the B's have finally figured out how to kill penalties without Dennis Seidenberg.

The Bruins hope to extend their streak with a win over Montreal tonight at the Garden.

The Bruins currently stand with 103 points, tied with the St. Louis Blues for the best record in the NHL. They're also 6 points ahead of Pittsburgh in the East and 17 ahead of Tampa Bay in the Atlantic. That's a 17 point lead with 11 games left. The Bruins are 6 points away from clinching the division and could claim that title as early as Thursday.

Photo Credit:
Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press