Sox Make It 11 Straight

So somewhere in between the Bruins sweeping the Canadiens, the Celtics embroiled in a tight series with the Bulls and the Patriots wheeling and dealing on draft weekend, the Boston Red Sox have managed to quietly win 11 straight games.

Last night, Jason Bay was the offense as he hit a three run home run off Kerry Wood that gave the Red Sox a 3-1 victory in Cleveland over the Indians. Amalie Benjamin has Bay the difference in a pitching duel between Tim Wakefield and Cliff Lee. John Tomase has the Sox moving into first place in the AL East with the win. Kevin McNamara notes the contrast in pitching styles last night.

Michael Silverman has Tim Wakefield on one of his patented rolls. Kirk Minihane looks at how Wakefield has made himself into a Boston sports legend. McNamara notes that Mike Lowell’s recovery has been a hit thus far. Nick Cafardo has Bay carving out his own niche here in Boston. Dan Lamothe asks Who is this masked man?

Silverman has Jacoby Ellsbury making a huge impact on the Red Sox since he’s starting getting on base more frequently. Bill Reynolds makes the observation that speed doesn’t show up in the box score. Adam Smartschan examines what is real and what is fake about the Red Sox hot start.

Benjamin’s notebook has Julio Lugo being activated yesterday. Tomase’s notebook has Mike Lowell taking some teasing from his teammates over his triple last night. McNamara’s Journal has J.D. Drew sitting out again for precautionary measures. Bradford’s Five Things has the Sox making a slight change to the road uniform last night.

Celtics

Bob Ryan will lead us in the transition from Red Sox to Celtics, as he compares the styles of Rajon Rondo and Jacoby Ellsbury.

Gerry Callahan wants to know why the Celtics are even bothering to play since they have zero chance of winning the championship.

Steve Bulpett has the Celtics unhappy that they are in a tie series. Marc J. Spears examines how the postseason has brought out the best in Rondo. Mark Murphy has Kendrick Perkins saying that the officials are picking on the Celtics. Bill Doyle says that Perkins’ reputation hurts him with the referees. Scott Souza says that nothing is going to come easy for this team this spring. Robert Lee says that the Celtics knew their bench was thin, but not this thin. Jeff Howe previews the crucial game five tonight. Mike Fine has the Celtics trying to relax on their off day.

Frank Dell’Apa has the Celtics throwing a little switch into their defense. Murphy’s notebook has Rondo focused on defense. Lee’s Journal has Doc Rivers trying to look at the positive.

Bruins

The Bruins still don’t know who they will face in the next round. They could find out as early as tonight, if the Rangers can manage to beat the Capitals.

Mike Loftus has the Bruins looking forward to putting an end to their waiting game. Nick Cammarota‘s chart in the Metro looks at the potential second round foes.

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell and Steve Conroy have Tim Thomas being named a Vezina Trophy finalist.

Loftus has some Practice notes from yesterday. Marrapese-Burrell’s notebook has Matt Hunwick on the recovery trail. Conroy’s notebook has more on Hunwick’s progress.

Patriots

Christopher Price looks at what sort of impact we should expect from this rookie class. Mike Reiss has a number of leftover thoughts from the draft. Ron Borges praises Bill Belichick for practicing cost effectiveness and smart business during the draft. That’s not a typo.

Karen Guregian explores the claims made by Ellis Hobbs that players will no longer take a hometown discount to stay with the Patriots.Gureigan says that seventh round pick Julian Edelman could develop into a “Wildcat” threat on offense. Shalise Manza Young reviews the picks as they prepare for rookie camp at the end of this week.