Sports Redux: 14

The Jim Rice Celebration Tour, fresh off a great weekend in Cooperstown, rolls into Fenway tonight for a very special night at the old ballpark. Rice, having finally met the three criteria for having his number retired at Fenway (10 years with the team, finishing his career with Boston and being inducted into the Hall of Fame) will tonight see his number 14 take up residency on the right field facade - right between Ted Williams (9) and Carlton Fisk (27).

Pretty nice company.

We're excited about not only the fact that Rice's number is finally getting the retired treatment, but also the fact that this will come on what is supposed to be a beautiful, albeit hot, night at the park. Johnny Pesky's number retirement ceremony last year was emotional and exciting, but the rain sure put a damper on things.

The crowd that files into the park or tunes into the game on radio or television will get the added bonus of following a team that appears to have found its bats again. Led by Adam LaRoche, a guy who speaks softly and carries a bit bat, the Sox racked up 14 hits as they efficiently worked their way to an 8-3 win on Monday night. Coupled with another sharp and straightforward start from Josh Beckett, who kept the opposition scoreless through six while the Sox were busy scoring, and the Sox actually looked like a team vying for a spot on top of the AL East.

Today, Young Clay takes the mound to show what kind of pitcher he's going to be: the sharp pitcher with potential to become an ace or a guy easily rattled and unlikely to live up to his hype. We'll see which way he goes.

As all that is happening, the clock will continue to tick down toward the trade deadline. According to Terry Francona, the rumors and speculation out there are way off. Tito almost seems to suggest that there should be a MTV crew hanging out to film a new installment of the old Diary series - we think we know, but we have no idea.

Off the field and on the ice, the Bruins roster changes continued to create a ripple effect in the game of hockey. After playing his entire NHL career with the Black and Gold, PJ Axelsson has elected to return to his former club team, Frolunda in the Swedish Elite League.