Sports Redux: Bedtime for Beckett

Passionate baseball fans like to know the ins and outs of their teams, the little things that may come to play roles in final scores and performances. But we'd hoped that we'd heard the last discussions about a Red Sox player's sleep schedule last year, when we learned that Dasiuke Matsuzaka was having a tough time transitioning from Japanese beds to their American counterparts.

Instead, 2008 has brought with it the Josh Beckett SleepWatch, and we're busy checking in each day to see whether our ailing ace was able to get his REM on the night before. On Tuesday, the word was good: Beckett got a better night's sleep on Monday than he did the night before, and his mood was decidedly better. That said, it's looking increasingly unlikely that he'll overcome the muscle issues in his back in time to hop on a plane to Japan for the season opening games. Given that Dice-K is awaiting the arrival of his first child and might also miss the trip, it's beginning to feel as though Japan will serve as the backdrop to dress rehearsals for the 2008 season.

The good news? The Sox snapped their Spring Training winless streak with a 4-3 victory over the Mets on Tuesday, and we were able to enjoy a throwback to days gone by, courtesy of Mike Greenwell. Greenwell, who threw out the first pitch during yesterday's win, proved that he married a heck of a lady when he said that his wife would have killed him if he'd succumbed to the temptation of steroids. Mrs. Greenwell, we salute you!

The Yankees made news on Tuesday when it was announced that Billy Crystal will suit up for one exhibition game - there has been discussion in Boston circles about who we'd crack up seeing on the Sox side. We want to open this up to you. Thoughts? Leave a comment.

On the hockey beat, we're not going to say that officiating wins or loses games. That said, we imagine that it could have been a very different game unfolding up in Ottawa on Tuesday, had ref Dan O'Halloran not blown his whistle to take away a Glen Murray goal in the second period of play. It would have cut the Senators' lead to 2-1. It might have been the momentum change that the Bs needed, perhaps showed the team that they can make a game of it without Zdeno Chara. Instead, the Senators rolled on to a pretty easy 4-1 win.

Finally, to those heading out to the TDBN Garden for tonight's Celts/Supersonics matchup: arrive early! The first 5,000 fans are going to receive limited-edition KG bobbleheads. We want pictures of these, people. Make us proud.

Image from Amazon