We sure hope Josh Beckett found time during yesterday's off-day to watch High Noon. If you haven't seen it, the plot is that Sheriff Gary Cooper has one day left until retirement, and a pack of mean outlaws are coming to town to wreak havoc. He tries to round up a posse to meet them, but everyone in town has a dentist appointment, or their hair is drying, or they don't roll on Shabbos, or something. So Cooper has to walk up Main Street alone and face his destiny.

We don't know what the excuses are for the Red Sox. Well, we might know Manny's. But it's going to be Beckett tonight, walking up Main Street alone, ready to face down the bad guys all by himself.

Terry Francona is sending Beckett into battle with the same posse (yes, we know our metaphor falls apart under scrutiny) that he had in Game One. J.D. Drew is out of the lineup, not because he's the poster boy for ineptitude, but because Bobby Kielty got a few hits off Indians starter C.C. Sabathia eight years ago. Coco Crisp and Dustin Pedroia, suffering through ineptitude spells of their own, remain in the ballgame. Pedroia says he's confident as ever, but Bill Simmons makes a frightening observation in his Game 4 Diary:

I love the guy, but should Sox fans be a little concerned that he grew up on the West Coast and openly admits he has trouble hitting in cold weather ... you know, considering the baseball playoffs occur in October and all? I say yes. By the way, there's only one October.

While Beckett and "friends" try to prevent the end of one era, a brand new era hit Boston last night. CelticsBlog has the highlight video of Ghidorah's 101-61 romp over the Knicks at the Garden last night. That pass from Garnett to Rondo at the beginning of the clip makes us a little emotional. Paul Pierce led with 22 points; Garnett had 13 (and 8 rebounds), Ray Allen had 14, and rookie Gabe Pruitt had 13 points and 4 assists off the bench. The regular season can't start soon enough.

Marty Burns at SI is trying to keep the Celtics' name alive in the latest chapter of the "Kobe Bryant Is A Big Baby And Wants To Be Traded" saga. Shut up, please. We don't need anyone on Causeway Street getting any stupid ideas right now.

The Bruins take the ice at the Garden tonight for the home opener against Tampa Bay. The B's are fully aware that they're the Cousin Oliver of the Boston sports scene right now, and are determined to play hard and make people remember they exist. They're 3-2, if that entices you to buy tickets. They might show the Red Sox game on the Jumbotron. Then again, they might not.