On a night that Josh Beckett shut down the Yankees offense and Adrian Gonzalez hit yet another home run (his fifth in the last four games), the biggest story coming out of the Red Sox 6-0 victory in New York was Jorge Posada's decision to take the night off just an hour before the first pitch.
Posada has been struggling with his changing role in the Bronx as his career comes close to the end. He is no longer catching for the Yankees and has been dismal as their DH, hitting just .165. Joe Girardi had informed Posada that he would be moved to the ninth spot in the lineup and then Posada said he needed a "mental day."
The controversy gained momentum during the game, especially when Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said that there was no injury involved, a statement that Posada diagreed with after the game when he said a stiff back kept him out of the lineup. ESPN's Buster Olney reported that the Yankees have been in contact with the Commissioner's Office to determine what course of action they can take with Posada.
To the credit of a few of the Red Sox veterans who have also had trouble with their declining abilities over the last few years,, David Ortiz and Jason Varitek said the situation was being blown out of proportion and that Posada should be given the benefit of the doubt.
If his rivals are lining up behind Posada, I will do the same. He has been an integral part of five World Series championships in New York and it can't be easy to see his role diminshed while his game declines. His lack of production has earned him a demotion but the Yankees owe it to him to allow his career to end with respect and dignity...
The Bulls and Heat open the Eastern Conference Finals tonight and although the Heat looked unstoppable in crushing the Celtics, I think the Bulls will advance to the NBA Finals.
The Heat struggled to slow down Rajon Rondo in the Second Round, even when he was forced to play with just one arm so I do not see how they will be able to contain Derrick Rose, the league's MVP. Miami obviously has an edge on the wing with Dwayne Wade and LeBron James but Luol Deng is a good player in his own right and Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau is a defensive genius who has found ways to slow down Wade and James in the past. In the paint, the Bulls have the edge with Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Omer Asik, and Kurt Thomas. The Bulls big men can score, rebound, and defend and should be able to dominate Chris Bosh and Joel Anthony.
This should be an entertaining, physical series and I am going with Chicago in 7...
The Western Conference Finals will not open until later this week because the Thunder and Grizzlies have to play a Game 7 this afternoon in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder have the best player in this game but Kevin Durant will have to put up a monster effort to offset the destruction that Zach Randolph has been inflicting against Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka inside.
Despite being on the road, I'm going with Memphis today...
Enjoy Jon Lester tonight...
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