Hardball Heaven

That's what the sign says on the highway when you officially enter into the state of Maine, which is where I find myself at the current moment, watching to see if the Celtics can seal the deal in Detroit and win their first road game of this (seemingly eternal) postseason.

Just to set the scene quickly: There's 2:17 left in the game, and KG's on the line with a chance to put the Celtics up by 10, which he does. Believe it or not, Boston has held as much as a 24-point lead over Detroit at various points tonight, and have thoroughly played their asses off. When Kendrick Perkins is juking people in the post and hitting turnaround jumpers, things is going good. We're now down to 1:38 left, Pistons with the ball, down by 10. I'm liking our chances. KG makes a huge shot to make it a 12-point lead and this one's over. The Celts are going to take home their first road win, baby! I can't believe how flat Detroit looked tonight. A huge, huge win for the C's, especially in terms of confidence after going 0-6 on the road in the first two rounds. Final score in this one, and it's a certifiable stunner: Celtics 94, Pistons 80. KG's the player of the game with 22 points, 13 boards and six assists.

By the way, I'm liking the Mike Breen/Jeff Van Gundy/Mark Jackson trio on ESPN. The mark to me of a good journalist - be it a columnist or a broadcaster - is if he teaches you something new every now and then. Van Gundy and Jackson explain things well, and Breen's a very good pilot. Or maybe I'm just so used to hearing Joe Morgan that anybody sounds good.

(That, my friends is one hell of a transition to baseball and the Red Sox...)

The Sox, meanwhile, are about to lose their second straight game to the A's in Oakland, and this one was ugly. They got one hit against Justin Duscherer and Huston Street and lose 3-0. Three runs in two games to a team that's just not very good.

But who cares about the A's? There's another Sox-Yankees-David Ortiz saga brewing that is just as laughable as the Curse of the Shirt. Evidently, Big Papi has signed up with MLB and State Farm to do a promotion during the All-Star game at Yankee Stadium, where Ortiz will "call his shot" by pointing to the stands and trying to hit a home run there. The Yankees - specifically jackass extraordinaire Randy Levine - have expressed their discomfort in having the guy who singlehandedly caused the greatest choke job in sports history play such a prominent role in the ceremonies. Not very gracious if you ask me, SINCE WE'RE THE ONES WHO F'ING GAVE YOU BABE RUTH IN THE FIRST PLACE. Ass. The Yanks' "leadership" team is starting to bear a resemblance to Arlen Specter. A joke, a disgrace, and far too consumed with idiotic matters when your main interest (your team/your country) is circling the drain. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. If MLB caves, they should be ashamed.

Hey, did I mention the Celts won? On the road? Game 4 Monday night in Motown.