Main page | May 8, 2008 »

Parajeckas, Dantas, Kirby advance in Open golf

Anyone who follows golf in New England knows the names Parajeckas, Dantas and Kirby. All have been frequent contenders in regional events and they were again yesterday.

There was one difference this time. While the names are familiar, not all the faces are.

The Parajeckas who won medalist honors in U.S. Open qualifying at The Shelter Harbor Club in Charlestown, R.I., was Jason Parajeckas. He is a December graduate the University of Connecticut who recently turned pro. He is the son of Paul Parajeckas, the head pro at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Sutton, Mass., and a player who not only has won numerous New England events but also has competed on the Champions Tour.

Jason Parajeckas recorded a 2-under 69 that included a 31 on the back nine. He began his run by chipping in for birdie on the 10th hole.

Jeff Dantas, a Seekonk, Mass., resident who owns his own golf teaching center, took second with a 70 and Eddie Kirby, the head pro at Alpine Country Club and a former PGA Tour player, was third among the 43 players with 71.

All scores are available at rigalinks.org

Posted by Paul Kenyon  at 6:36 PM to Paul Kenyon on Golf | Permalink | Comments 0

Pedro Martinez still working toward return from DL

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Pedro Martinez is scheduled to throw a side session on Friday in Florida, another step in the pitcher's rehabilitation from a strained left hamstring.

Martinez threw a side session on Tuesday, and the Mets are waiting to see how he comes out of it before his next workout. It hasn't been determined yet whether he will be throwing to hitters or just a catcher.

"Until Pedro gets on the mound where he starts moving around, he's just doing his rehab, so there's nothing to report that's significant," manager Willie Randolph said.

"I get reports on him, but basically they just said he got his work in, did his core work, that kind of stuff. That's what I get on my Blackberry. The main thing for him is when he gets on the mound and into some games, then I can give you guys a heads-up on what he's doing. But right now he's just basically stretching his arm out and doing his exercises."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 3:27 PM | Permalink | Comments 0

LeBron vows to atone for awful Game One

BOSTON (AP) - LeBron James says the rest of the series between his Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics won't look anything like the first game.

James says he won't miss 16 of 18 shots or commit 10 turnovers. And he says don't expect Celtics Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to struggle, as they did in Boston's 76-72 win Tuesday.

James added that one thing that won't change is the physical defense both teams played, which essentially shut down him, Pierce and Allen.

James said he thought Cleveland played pretty well, but their shots weren't falling.

Cleveland coach Mike Brown said the Cavaliers must improve their ball movement and more aggressively drive to the basket.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 2:09 PM to Celtics | Permalink | Comments 0

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: The old guys can still pitch

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. Today's topics: the combined shutout by 41-year-old Tim Wakefield and 42-year-old Mike Timlin; the first throwing session of the year for 41-year-old Curt Schilling; Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz becoming a force in the middle again; and the MLB Players Association's investigation of the owners' failure for not finding a job for Barry Bonds.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 12:05 PM to Red Sox | Permalink | Comments 0

Fantasy baseball help

Right now on our Fantasy Sports Blog, you can find updated position-by-position hitter rankings, complete rankings for starting and relief pitchers, plus Michael Salfino's weekly Baseball by the Numbers column. This week, he looks at guys who like to run, and picks the guys who bring more to the table than just their speed.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments 0

P-Bruins pushed to the brink

Taking a page from the Boston Celtics' playoff playbook, the Providence Bruins have lost three straight road games to the Portland Pirates, and now will have to win two straight at the Dunkin' Donuts Center if they hope to continue their tremendous season.

All three of Providence's losses have been by one goal (after the P-Bruins had won the first two games by a combined 11-1 score), and two of them have come in overtime.

As Steve Solloway writes in today's Portland Press Herald, no one who follows the AHL thought a week ago that these teams would be at this point today.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:13 AM to P-Bruins | Permalink | Comments 0

After his team went the distance with Celtics, Hawks GM will resign

ATLANTA (AP) - Atlanta Hawks general manager Billy Knight is stepping down.

The announcement comes after the Hawks ended a nine-year playoff drought and forced the Boston Celtics to a Game 7 in a first round playoff series that ended Sunday.

He said Wednesday he is resigning from the organization effective July 1.

The 55-year-old Knight spent six years with the organization. His best season came this year, as the Hawks had a 37-45 regular season record and broke a nine-year playoff drought.

Knight says in a statement he's "leaving the organization in much better shape than it was in when I took over."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:02 AM to Celtics | Permalink | Comments 0

Delonte West: Crazy philosopher

The blog FanHouse today linked to this video of Delonte West from his Celtics days: "Delonte West, Uncut."

It goes on for about six minutes, some of which is pretty hilarious. Here's an excerpt: "Twenty years from now, you're going to see me, riding in a drop-top Hummer, butt-naked, with some ankle socks on, and a headband -- Boston Celtics headband -- standing up driving, from Boston to California."

Right.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 8:38 AM to Celtics | Permalink | Comments 0

Download today's sports cover

On today's sports cover, Kevin McNamara and Robert Lee, and photographer Glenn Osmundson, have coverage of the Celtics' Game One Eastern Conference semifinal victory over LeBron James and the Cavs, while Paul Kenyon is in Detroit with the story of the Red Sox' fifth straight win.

Click here to download the file in pdf format.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 8:01 AM | Permalink | Comments 0