Random Thoughts

The eyes of Red Sox Nation will be fixated on Josh Beckett tonight in his first start since suffering an avulsion on the middle finger of his pitching hand on Mother's Day. The Sox say Beckett is 100% healthy and that no other problems should surface... Hey, give Trot another standing ovation tonight. Tomorrow night too... Listening to WEEI yesterday on my drive to work, I heard a caller who made some real Celtics sense. He proposed a three-way trade that would have the Celtics send the No. 5 pick and Theo Ratliff's contract to Minnesota, Kevin Garnett would go from Minnesota to the Lakers and the Lakers would send Lamar Odom to Boston and the Kwame Brown and the No. 19 pick to Minnesota. This way, the Lakers could team Kobe Bryant with KG, the C's would get Odom -- an All-Star forward -- to team with Paul Pierce and Al Jefferson and Minnesota could rebuild through the draft (picks 5, 7 and 19) and through free agency (with the expiring deals of Ratliff and Brown)... Anaheim over Ottawa in 6. Like anyone outside those cities actually cares... It's still shocking that an amazing athlete could drown at age 24, in the prime of his life. Marquise Hill becomes yet another tragic reminder of how we should really take advantage of each moment we have on Earth... J.D. Drew will be as hot in June and July as he was cold in May... While not looking past the Indians, it is possible that the Red Sox could put an end to the Yankees this weekend...