Nothing like John Lackey getting shelled in a game that he has to give the Red Sox innings

Let me be upfront with the fact that I was never excited about having John Lackey on the Boston Red Sox. I thought he was an overrated product of the AL West that wouldn't do anything in the AL East.

It's not like most fans didn't have these same feelings but who could have expected him to be this much of a disaster?

Yesterday he had one task: give the Red Sox innings since they had lost to the Los Angeles Angels in 13 innings on Wednesday night in a game that ended at 2:45 a.m. Making matters worse, they had an afternoon game for the series finale.

Lackey (4 innings, 10 hits, 8 earned runs, 3 walks, 1 strikeout) got completely shelled as the Angels (18-14) won their second straight at Fenway Park, 11-0, and left on a good note.

For the Red Sox (14-17), it capped off a bitter mini-stretch as they lost a brutal contest that took forever and then got blown out.

Los Angeles put up 18 hits in this laugher. Former Red Sox pseudo closer Joel Pineiro (1-0) went 5.2 innings, giving up three hits, four walks and two strikeouts in the easy win.

Erick Aybar led the Angels with four hits, two runs, two stolen bases and an RBI. Peter Bourjos had four runs and three hits while Howie Kendrick put up three hits, two RBIs, a stolen base and a run. If that wasn't enough, Bobby Abreu had three RBIs and two hits with Alberto Callaspo adding two hits and two RBIs.

David Ortiz (3 hits, walk) was the only positive for Boston's neutered lineup that put up three runs in the last 22 innings against the Angels.

Bobby Jenks and Dan Wheeler were sent to the DL with fake injuries. Rich Hill and Scott Atchison took the Pawtucket shuttle and both made appearances in yesterday's debacle. Atchison was knocked around for seven hits and three earned runs in 3.2 innings but Hill threw 1.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts.

Lackey's day was over quickly as he gave up three runs in the third, three in the fourth and two in the fifth before Terry Francona mercifully gave him the hook.

Kendrick had an RBI groundout in the third, followed by Callaspo's two-run single. Kendrick, Abreu and Torii Hunter all had RBI singles in the fourth. Then Mark Trumbo hit a two-run bomb off Lackey. Aybar's infield single made it 9-0 against Atchison and Abreu closed out this nightmare with a two-run double in the seventh.

The good news is that the Minnesota Twins limp (six players including Joe Mauer on the DL) into Boston with a four-game series starting tonight. Tim Wakefield gets the spot start since Dice-K pitched in the 13 inning game (he'll start on Sunday) and Scott Baker takes the ball for the Twins.

Nobody will be paying attention since the Bruins are one win away from the Eastern Conference finals (a place they haven't been in 19 years) and the Boston Celtics are fighting for their playoff lives tomorrow night but the Red Sox need to wake up this weekend against a team that's playing even worse than them.

This ain't last year bro, get over it

Some pink hat Bruins fans or just miserable human beings-namely the Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy- love to joke now that the Boston Bruins are up 3-0 on the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second year in a row, that Philly finally has the Bs where they want them.

I'm not going to dignify that with much of a response since it's a different year and a completely overhauled team for Boston. Yes, they had one of the biggest choke jobs in sports history last postseason which completely scarred all of us forever but that was by a fraudulent team (that still should have gotten the job done).

The Bruins' best players in this postseason: Tim Thomas, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, Dennis Seidenberg, Chris Kelly and Nathan Horton were all for one reason or another (poor play, injuries, not on the team) were not playing for Boston last spring.

Zdeno Chara had two goals and an assist last night as the Bruins beat up the Flyers 5-1 at TD Garden to take a 3-0 series lead. Game 4 is tomorrow night back at TD Garden.

This was one over as fast as you can say Big Z (first of the playoffs) as the captain scored 30 seconds into regulation (from Marchand and Patrice Bergeron) and Krejci (fifth of the playoffs) made it 2-0 at 1:01 (with assists to Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton).

Philadelphia took a timeout after Krejci's goal but the damage had been done to goaltender Brian Boucher's (16 saves) already fragile psyche. For the third straight game in the series, he didn't make it through the entire contest as Sergei Bobrovsky (8 saves) entered in the second period.

Thomas (37 saves) continued to be a brick wall in goal and bar none, the best goaltender in the NHL playoffs. He never let the Flyers jump back into it and has completely neutralized their loaded offense.

The Bruins didn't let up when they got the early lead as Daniel Paille (first of the playoffs) and Horton scored in the second period to make it 4-0. Paille's goal at 13:39 was the direct result of a great transition with linemates Gregory Campbell (who had an assist) and Shawn Thornton (who drove to the net). Johnny Boychuck also assisted.

Horton's tally at 15:14 was Boucher's requisite soft as Kim Kardashian's butt goal that he allows each and every game. Krejci and Chara assisted on Horton's fifth of the playoffs that went right through Boucher's five-hole.

Philadelphia defenseman Andrej Maszaros got his team on the board at 16:26 of the second period. Darroll Powe and Daniel Carcillo assisted on Maszaros' strike that was inevitable since they were getting good pressure on Thomas.

Horton and Sean O'Donnell fought early in the second period. It was the first fight of the playoffs (as far as I know) but it was nice to see Horton step up and not give in to the endless cheap shots by the Flyers.

It was in garbage time but confidence-wise moving forward, Boston's last goal was perhaps its most important of the blowout as Chara broke the Bruins' 0-for-30 slump on the power-play in the playoffs. Yes it was on a 5-on-3 but who cares? Now they don't have to hear about that anymore. With assists to Krejci and Seidenberg, Chara fired a laser over Bobrovsky's shoulder.

One of the biggest misconceptions coming into this series was that the big bad Flyers would push around the Bruins. On second thought, not so much. Marchand, Paille, Boychuk, Lucic and Co. were all flying around last night and landing huge hits on Flyers. It was beautiful to see.

I'm not looking too far ahead but I'm very confident that if the Bruins don't win tomorrow night, they'll win in Game 5. The Flyers are just a mess right now while the Bruins have seven of their last eight playoff games including four in overtime. The best thing to do is get this over in Game 4, sweep the Flyers and get ready to face the Tampa Bay Lightning (who swept the Washington Capitals last night) in the Eastern Conference finals, someplace the Bs haven't been since 1992.

Angels beat Red Sox in 13 innings, ending at 2:45 a.m. EST

It's only fitting that the Los Angeles Angels finally beat the Boston Red Sox in a game that most either didn't see or gave up on watching and went to bed (even on the West Coast).

The Angels (17-14) won 5-3 in 13 innings last night at Fenway Park against the Red Sox (14-16), in a game that didn't end until 2:45 a.m. EST thanks to a lengthy rain delay (two hours and thirty five minutes).

For someone that never goes to bed at a reasonable hour, it was hilarious to watch the game that would never end. I'd like to give props to the die-hard fans that stayed but you had to be insane to stay for the entire game, a meaningless May game against the Angels.

It was bad luck for both starting pitchers since they were both dealing, particularly Los Angeles' Ervin Santana (4 innings, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts). He had a no-hitter going when the game was put on hold in the top of the fifth. That no-hitter continued until Jed Lowrie got a hit in the bottom of the seventh.

Josh Beckett (4.1 innings, 1 hit, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts) was nearly as dominant but he was also lifted since you never bring back a starting pitcher after a rain delay.

It became a contest decided by random bullpens and wouldn't you know that somehow Daisuke Matsuzaka (2-3) would find a way to screw it up as he took the loss in his first MLB relief appearance (1 inning, 3 hits, 2 earned runs, 1 walk).

Vernon Wells broke the scoreless tie with a two-run bomb off Dan Wheeler in the top of the seventh.

Adrian Gonzalez reached on an infield single in the bottom of the eighth and Jason Varitek scored on the play as Angels reliever Fernando Rodney decided for some reason to flip the ball to his catcher Hank Conger. Too bad it wasn't even close.

Erick Aybar's sacrifice fly scored Wells in the top of the ninth and gave Los Angeles a 3-1 lead.

Boston showed some resiliency as they scored twice in their last at bats against LA's new closer Jordan Walden. Lowrie scored on a throwing error by Conger and then Jacoby Ellsbury delivered with an RBI single that plated Carl Crawford.

Bobby Abreu was the hero for the Angels as he hit a two-run single in the top of the 13th against Matsuzaka, scoring Howie Kendrick and Peter Bourjos.

The fourth and final game of this series has already begun with John Lackey opposing former Red Sox Joel Pineiro. With a 15-2 record the last two seasons against the Angels and 6-1 this year, Boston will try to close out this series on a high note even though they have to be dead tired.

Bruins Dominate Flyers, Will Go For The Sweep On Friday

Zdeno Chara scored 2 goals, Nathan Horton recorded a Gordie Howe Hat Trick, and the Bruins skated to a 5-1 victory last night at the TD Garden.

The Bruins are now in the driver's seat, up 3-0 in the Eastern Conference semifinals and on the verge of advancing to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1992.

The B's wasted absolutely no time whatsoever, getting on the board just 30 seconds in, when Zdeno Chara blasted a slapper that beat Brian Boucher top shelf. Brad Marchand set up the goal with a nice feed from behind the net that reached Chara in the high slot. The shot was too much for Boucher, who could not make the glove save.

Just 33 seconds later, "Dangerous" David Krejci put the Bruins up 2-0, reminding B's fans just why they were missing in the last four games of their 2010 collapse. 63 seconds in and the Bruins were cruising.

It would have been easy for them to get on their heels and let the skilled Flyers offense dictate the pace of the game, but the Bruins brought a strong, physical effort that saw little big men Brad Marchand and Daniel Paille deliver thunderous hits to Philly skaters.

With a two-goal lead, Boston maintained pressure and limited the Flyers scoring chances. After giving up 29 shots in the third period and overtime in game 2, it was imperative to protect the net and snuff out any scoring chance.

After half a period's worth of back and forth action, the B's chased Boucher from the net on the strength of two more goals. Paille scored at 13:39 of the 2nd period, followed by a weak goal by Nathan Horton that squirted through Boucher's legs. The goal forced Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette to pull the sloppy Boucher in favor of Sergei Bobrovski. Again.

Zdeno Chara added another goal in the third period, on a 5-on-3 powerplay goal to put the B's up 5-1 and all but guaranteed a Boston victory. The goal was their first PP goal of the series, snapping an ugly 0 for 30 streak that dated back to the Montreal series.

Now it is up to the Bruins to finish what they started. The Flyers look like a beaten team and the Bruins look like a better team than the 2010 version. One more win would set up an Eastern Conference Finals matchup with the red-hot Tampa Bay Lightning, who advanced after sweeping the Washington Capitals last night. One more win and the Bruins will have come full circle from last year, doing to the Flyers what they should have done last spring.

Game 4 is tomorrow night at the Garden.

Let's finish them!

Does Jeremy Lundblad bother anyone else?

Seriously. Anyone who reads ESPN Boston regularly agree with me? Whenever I see his name attached to a new Boston sports-related article, two thoughts go through my head during the seconds between when I click on the link and when it loads: "here we go again," and "I hope I'm wrong." Nope. They are ALWAYS negative, as if specifically written to dash the spirits of Boston fans everywhere. Which I thought was the opposite intent of ESPN Boston, and the other city-specific ESPN pages. Today, Lundblad dumps on Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis for his low average against right-handed pitchers. The same Youkilis who's annually in the mix of MVP candidates? It's May. A few days ago, Lundblad also bashed Sox first baseman Adrian Gonzalez for not peppering every single home at-bat off the Green Monster. Another one of his greatest hits includes an article about how Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz really might not be that good, he was just the luckiest pitcher of 2010. 30 consecutive times he was pitching. I suppose his no-hitter in his second career Major League start was just luck too. Not surprisingly, Lundblad has also gotten on the "Tom Brady really hasn't been that good in the playoffs since he won his third Superbowl" bandwagon too. Is his purpose with ESPN Boston to be their official wet blanket? I get that those city-centric ESPN segments can be too pro-that city, but that's why I don't read ESPN New York.

Is this how the Big 3 will go out?

In my heart of hearts, I knew that the Boston Celtics were on their last legs entering these playoffs but I had hope that they could beat the Miami Heat and then we'll see what happens from there.

Well two games in Miami have gone by and I'm about ready to write the obituaries for Boston's Big 3. The Celtics look old and washed up while the Heat look hungry and way too athletic.

The Heat are up 2-0 in the Eastern Conference semifinals after a 102-91 win at AmericanAirlines Arena last night.

Please don't cry to me about the referees, because Boston didn't deserve to win either game. Miami now has won three straight games over the Celtics (including their last regular season meeting) with Game 3 taking place Saturday night at TD Garden.

LeBron James was the star in Game 2 for the Heat with a game-high 35 points and seven rebounds while Dwyane Wade had 28 points and eight rebounds. Even Chris Bosh had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

Combined, the Big 3 teamed up for one less point that LeBron. Simply put, that's never going to work if Boston wants to climb out of this hole (which they've never faced in the Big 3 era).

Kevin Garnett had 16 points, Paul Pierce scored 13 points and Ray Allen was held to seven points on 2 of 7 shooting. Rajon Rondo led the Celts with 20 points and 12 assists but they'll never win when he's the leading scorer.

At various points, Pierce (Achilles), Allen (chest) and Rondo (back) all left the game with injuries. This is getting tough to watch.

Boston's bench outscored Miami's 27-12 led by Jeff Green (11 points) and Delonte West (10 points) but it didn't matter since the Heat starters were so much better than the Celtics.

The game was actually tied at 80 in the fourth quarter before Miami went on a 14-0 run to close out the contest and possibly the series.

Miami led 27-26 after the first quarter and 47-42 at halftime. Both teams scored 25 points in the third quarter before the Heat made it happen in the fourth quarter (30-24).

The Heat shot 45.3% to 43.0% for the Celtics. Miami made one more 3-pointer (7-6) and ten more free throws (27-17). The Heat also had six more rebounds (44-38) but Boston had three more assists (18-15). Most telling to the gap in athleticism and defensive intensity, Miami had seven more blocks (9-2).

For all intents and purposes, Game 3 could be the swan song for the Big 3. If they lose, it's clearly over and who knows what next season will bring for the team and head coach Doc Rivers. You have to believe that they will turn out a much better performance in front of the home crowd, with their playoff lives on the line. Then again, this hasn't been the prideful group I knew so far in the first two nightmare games in Miami.

Three aces down, Red Sox are on a roll

It took a full month for the Boston Red Sox to get on track in 2011 but thankfully baseball seasons are way too long anyways.

For the third straight night they faced an ace last night in Dan Haren. Like Felix Hernandez and Jered Weaver before him, he was decent but he couldn't completely quiet Boston's offense in a 7-3 Red Sox (14-15) win at Fenway Park.

Jon Lester (4-1) showed that his early season struggles seem to be a thing of the past. The ace in Boston's rotation went seven innings, allowing six hits, one earned run with a walk and 11 strikeouts.

Haren (4-2) suffered his second loss to the Red Sox in less than two weeks. He went seven innings, allowing nine hits, four earned runs with eight strikeouts.

Boston's lineup produced double digit hits (12) for the second straight game. Adrian Gonzalez (2 RBIs), David Ortiz, Jed Lowrie, Marco Scutaro (2 RBIs) and Carl Crawford all had two hits in the win.

Mark Trumbo gave the Angels (16-14) their only lead of the game, with a solo homer in the top of the first.

Gonzalez knocked in Jacoby Ellsbury with an RBI single in the sixth and Lowrie put Boston ahead 2-1 with an RBI single later in the frame that scored Gonzalez.

Haren started to falter in the seventh as Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit an RBI double that drove in Crawford.

There's a reason the Red Sox are 15-1 (6-0 this season) in their last 16 games against the Angels since they find every conceivable way to beat them.

Gonzalez's solo homer in the eighth knocked Haren out of the game. Ortiz and Scutaro (two-run) broke it open with homers in the inning as Boston went ahead 7-1.

Jonathan Papelbon came on in a non-save situation and did what every closer has to do in such an event: shit the bed. Erick Aybar had an RBI double and Trumbo had a sacrifice fly.

On the plus side, Daniel Bard had a scoreless eighth on nine pitches.

It's raining now and supposed to rain tonight so we'll see if Josh Beckett vs. Ervin Santana takes place as scheduled.