The Top Boston Sports Stories of 2009 – No. 1-5

So we’re here…sitting on the doorstep of another year sure to bring plenty to talk about, both on the field and off. With four teams now fully competitive and New England athletes competing in individual sports like MMA and all of the Olympic events, it’s great to be a New England sports fan, even with the sub-zero temperatures this time of year.

The past 12 months have brought us another slew of games, decisions, play-calling, personalities and rivals to argue about at bars, barbershops and board rooms. Things like 4th and 2, whether to re-sign Jason Bay, the Evil Empire buying a title, the NHL Winter Classic and more were on our minds, lips and keyboards and thanks to the glut of sports media here, we have no shortage of outlets of which to get opinions from (including this one!).

We’ve looked at the Honorable Mentions and No’s. 6-10 on our list of the top Boston sports stories of 2009. Now as we prepare to welcome 2010, let’s say good bye to 2009 and the top five stories in Boston sports of the last 12 months.

5 – Harrison and Bruschi retirements, Seymour trade signal end of a defensive era for Patriots

Hey, look at it this way: the New England Patriots’ losses have been the networks’ gain as Rodney Harrison (NBC) and Tedy Bruschi (ESPN) both effortlessly slid into the role of “football analyst” to begin the season, flashing those million dollar smiles on faces that look like they’ve barely seen a combined 28 seasons of NFL action.

Once upon a time, the two were damn good football players too.

After patrolling and policing the Patriots defense together for six years (Harrison joined the team in 2003) and celebrating two championships together, Harrison and Bruschi both hung up their shoulder pads this summer and the Patriots have suffered for it. While their stats near the end of their careers may have not got headlines on the Monday recaps, there is no doubt that Bill Belichick’s defense has been in search of consistent leadership during this 2009 campaign. Combined with the surprising preseason trade of defensive mainstay Richard Seymour, this is a defense in serious transition.

There are positives. Even in a season where he’ll likely miss three games, Pro Bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork has been a presence on the line and is making a case for a Albert Haynesworth-style payday when it comes time to ink a new deal this offseason. Young buck Jerod Mayo is evolving into the linebacker we are dying to have become a mega-star in New England.

But the secondary never has been fully addressed since Asante Samuel left town and once highly-touted free agent signing Adalius Thomas has evolved into more of a team issue than a team player. This group has their moments – like this past Sunday against Jacksonville – but in games against Indianapolis and New Orleans, they got handled badly. To lose all three of those guys at once was a huge deal as their presence alone was essentially an extension of Belichick on a player level.

Leaders take time to develop and personnel like Wilfork, Mayo and even Brandon Meriweather have shown they have the stuff to evolve into Double-B’s go-to guys. It just might be a while until they become the three-headed monster that Harrison, Bruschi and Seymour were for so many seasons, a monster that inspired the rest of the group to jump on for the ride. They get to start their own playoff journey and try in just a few weeks.

4 – Kevin Garnett hurts knee, misses 2009 NBA Playoffs

One of the toughest things in sports is to repeat as champions, but with the nucleus still intact and another year of maturity for one of the best young point guards in the league, the Boston Celtics had as good a chance as any to go back-to-back and win their 18th title. Even with the loss of the versatile James Posey, the C’s began the year at 27-2 – the best start in NBA history.

Then in February, things changed when spiritual leader Kevin Garnett injured his right knee in a game against the Utah Jazz. After missing 14 games, there was still reason to be optimistic as it looked like Garnett would be back for the playoffs. However, fans woke up from their dream abruptly when Garnett was shut down for the season after coming back for just four games. He would eventually have major knee surgery, but returned on time and has been as good as ever in ’09-’10.

Even without him, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo and the rest of the Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals and arguably were a KG away from defeating the Orlando Magic in Game 7 and getting a rematch with the Cleveland LeBrons. Offseason rumors were that Garnett would have played if the Celtics had advanced, but this was never proven and finds its place in Celtics lore.

The injury was a hard reminder that seasons are long and that health is always the great equalizer for any team rolling along to the promise land. Just months removed from another Boston icon’s knee blowing up, New England fans felt the pain again with Garnett.

3 – The 2009 MLB Playoffs (aka Hell for Red Sox fans)

If prior to the 2009 playoffs, you had mapped out the worst possible scenario for Red Sox Nation, it’s hard to imagine it could have been any more brutal than what we experienced this fall. Not only did a perennial postseason punching bag finally defeat the Sox in the ALDS, but their blood rival that hadn’t won a title since 2000 (despite spending about $2 billion) actually took home the shiny brass ring and revived one of the more obnoxious fanbases in sports in doing so.

Let’s start with the direct pain. The Los Angeles Angels not only beat the Red Sox in a playoff series for the first time in five chances, but swept them in doing so – culminating in a sad Sunday game that was in Boston’s back pocket until a meltdown by closer Jonathan Papelbon snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. It was ugly, just plain ugly. The bats never did going and there was a general malaise over the team in general.

This team earned their playoff berth, but certainly didn’t battle like one. Something just felt off, didn’t it?

If that wasn’t bad enough, the Yankees won the World Series, earning rings for offseason acquisitions Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett. After spending and spending and spending and spending, they finally did it. Congratulations! That’s what spending that much cash and playing in a Little League-sized ballpark will do for you. (Bitter much? Yes, I am.)

If there’s any positive out of this mess, it’s that it feels like Boston vs. New York might actually mean something again in 2010. Since 2004 and then 2007, the Yankees haven’t really felt like a factor as we’ve been too euphoric in our own championship victories to even notice them making the postseason. But with the sweeping spending last year and the equally aggressive offseason moves this winter, New York isn’t going away and hopefully, Boston isn’t either.

No more joking around with Jeter or A-Rod, Big Papi. It’s time to get serious again…like Varitek/A-Rod serious.

2 – David Ortiz and the great steroids scandal of 2009

We all pointed, laughed and said, “I told you so” when reports broke in February that Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids back in 2003. We then had to slouch, grimace and eat a bit of crow when two familiar names – David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez – were linked to the infamous steroids test of that year and leaked from “the list” this summer.

Not our guys! That’s impossible…improbable…and likely accurate.

Amidst one of the most worst offensive seasons he had suffered in years, Ortiz was faced with one of the worst nightmares a professional athlete can face: a drug scandal. Ortiz denied the reports and in a memorable press conference during a series with the rival Yankees, said he took a variety of supplements and vitamins but never steroids. The story eventually died down to a degree, but the coincidence with his offensive outage was remarkable.

Believe him or not, we now had our own national steroid scourge to deal with. I remember going to San Francisco in 2003 and being amazed as just how much the Barry Bonds bubble was in effect. People simply didn’t care about anything the rest of the world thought about their offensive hero. While there were a smattering of boos at the Fens and on sports radio, the opinion really was quite non-chalant. We finally got our own bubble to live in.

2010 will be an interesting one for Ortiz as it’s his final contracted year in Boston. The man that meant so much for so long could be taking his final swings in a Boston uniform. What kind of bat will we see? Will Ortiz answer Theo Epstein’s offseason call or will he regress? Where is he going to bat in this order? As #34 goes, so goes the Red Sox offense especially if Mike Cameron and Casey Kotchman end up getting the majority of starts in this offense.

We need ya, big guy.

(By the way, notice how Manny just kinda slid on by in this whole mess? Mannywood!)

1 – No championships for first year since 2006

Gawd, we’re spoiled.

Since the Celtics earned their 17th World Championship in June 2008, we’ve experienced a dry spell here in Boston. The past 12 months marked the first calendar year since 2006 and the fifth year this decade that a Boston team hasn’t celebrated a championship.

Say what? The city of Cleveland would love to have just one of the six combined championships the Celtics, Red Sox and Patriots have won this decade and we’re complaining about a calendar year? Yep, that’s right.

Admit it – holiday shopping did feel a bit different with no championship apparel to buy for friends and family. (Well, that and that damn 27th World Series that Yankees team just earned. Too much Yankees merch available around here these days.)

But the Celtics are healthy again and still the beasts of the Eastern Conference despite a horrible West Coat trip. The Patriots’ Brady-to-Welker road show is playoff-bound once again and if Theo’s plan holds up, the Red Sox will see the postseason yet again. So yeah, you gotta feel a bit of hope that championship joy will return to our corner of Mudville (Snowville?) by this time next year….or else it will be two years in a row. Ouch!

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

The Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009 – No. 6-10

A Red Sox icon finally inducted into the Hall Of Fame, Fenway Park installs a sheet of ice for a bazillion people and a young Celtics star makes sure he’s sticking around for a while…we have the bottom half of the Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009 right here!

If you missed the honorable mentions, here you go. We’ll reveal the Top 5 on Wednesday. Enjoy!

10 – Rajon Rondo signs extension with Boston Celtics

It was a bizarre negotiation that came down to the wire, but in the end, the Celtics didn’t let budding young star Rajon Rondo get away, signing the point guard to a 5-year, $55 million extension in November.

What’s so bizarre about that? How about Rondo being called out by team personnel several times over the summer (GM Danny Ainge revealed he was fined for being late to a playoff game, while coach Doc Rivers made some well-publicized comments)?

Was it just a case of tough love? Maybe, but in this era of the modern athlete, it was a huge risk to potentially not just alienate their point guard from signing a deal but perhaps for the impending season. These days, that seems more like the norm than the exception.

But in a weird way, maybe it worked. The 23-year-old will be sticking around Boston for an important fraction of his career and can continue his evolution in a winning environment. The next few years will be intriguing when it comes times for NBA player movement but at one of the most important positions in the league, the C’s have their man…even if he still needs to work on his free throws.

9 – Boston secures the Winter Classic

Maybe it was the Bruins return to relevance last season OR the success at playing outdoor hockey at Wrigley Field OR the Red Sox ownership knowing the right people OR perhaps it was a combination of all that and then some that earned Boston the right to host the next NHL Winter Classic. Whatever it was, we’re glad it happened as Fenway Park will see some freaking freezing cold hockey action this Friday as they host the league’s annual major single-game event between the B’s and the Flyers.

Since the announcement, there has been a buzz about the game and everyone has been using up their favors in order to get tickets. People are getting together for New Year’s Day parties to watch and for one day, hockey will matter to the mainstream fan here in New England. We’ve known for a while that Boston is a major sports hotbed and getting one-off events like this that bring major exposure and additional revenue to the Hub prove it, even if tickets were near-impossible to come by. I have a feeling, however, that everyone is going to know someone that went, kinda like Ali/Liston in Lewiston, Maine.

Got any extra tickets kicking around?

8 – 4th and 2

Who knew that one call in one game would garner so much discussion? (Well, actually…we knew it would, didn’t we?)

The decision by Patriots head coach Bill Belichick to go for it on 4th and 2 in a 34-28 game against the rival Indianapolis Colts earlier this season had not only Boston buzzing, but the national sports media as well. As you well know, the decision didn’t work out, the Colts scored in like two seconds and went on to win 35-34.

Always happy to rip into Belichick, there were plenty of the usual pundits that took their shots but surprisingly, some also defended him as well, noting his history of brass-balls play-calling that usually worked. Alas, this time it didn’t and the pain stuck around for a while.

But while ‘4th and 2’ was the main driver of the story, it was the questioning of Belichick here by some of the fanbase in New England that was most shocking. The guy that could previously get away with nearly anything because of his track record suddenly had doubters. Perhaps the season itself to that point had helped this sentiment evolve but suddenly, Belichick’s decision making wasn’t bulletproof – the first real chink in an otherwise stellar armor. Like it or not, things changed on that Sunday night.

Even former players like Tedy Bruschi and Rodney Harrison didn’t like the call and said that it sent a message to the defense that it couldn’t be trusted with the game on the line. In a million years, I would have never guessed either guy to speak out against Double-B like that. Belichick was his normal self and the team smartly didn’t question the decision publicly. However, I still wonder if behind closed doors, the defense really did feel slighted.

How the Patriots finish off this season will tell a lot. We know they’re in the playoffs, but how would a one-and-done go over here? Will the questioning increase or go away? What about the next ‘4th and 2’ situation? For better or worse, no one is immune from fan and media scrutiny in Boston and now, Bill Belichick truly understands that. Welcome to the party, pal.

7 – WEEI vs. Sports Hub vs. NESN vs. CSNE: The Sports Media War Heats Up

And here you thought intense competition in sports was only on the field of play.

The fact that major sports media entities in Boston have intensified their efforts isn’t new, but the efforts at which they will go to continue their one-upmanship still is. Fortifying web content was huge as radio giant WEEI redesigned and bolstered their site, while Comcast Sports Net not only relaunched their site but made like the Red Sox and acquired various print beat writers like Sean McAdam, Tom E. Curran and Kevin Paul Dupont to come on board.

It’s like every outlet is attempting to fill out their pitching rotation, signing people that they hope will put butts in front of the TV/computer seats.

ESPN continued their trend of leveraging regional content by launching ESPNBoston.com and signing Mike Reiss away from the Boston Globe to lead their Patriots coverage. Their radio presence also continued to grow with an agreement with WEEI to provide some radio content, clearing the way for some of their insiders to appear on the ‘EEI airwaves. There has been some talk about them fully moving over the 850 AM spot, while WEEI moves to FM full-time but nothing has been announced.

Initially, Peter Gammons was to be part of this package but he decided to leave ESPN to focus on a reduced workload with MLB Network and NESN – a huge coup for the network known for Red Sox coverage. Gammons will contribute both on-air for 50 of the team’s pre-game telecasts and also be an online contributor as well.  The effect on NESN is equitable to what Albert Pujols would bring to the Boston lineup – just awesome.

But the most interesting twist of 2009 has to be the launch of 98.5 FM – The Sports Hub. Meant to be a direct competitor to WEEI, the CBS-owned sports station brought on their own hired guns in Mike Felger, Tony Massarotti, Gary Tanguay, Scott Zolak and the popular morning team of Toucher and Rich from the former WBCN. So far, so good as the Felger/Mazz afternoon drive-time show has been great listening and a nice change of pace from the yelling and screaming of Glenn Ordway’s The Big Show.

With media continually changing, it’s all about polarizing personalities, leveraging online content and overall creating a brand experience. Just using the traditional approaches simply isn’t good enough. Whether it’s airing a game, a newscast or even a special report, everything matters in a sports media saturated market like Boston. Who knows? If 2009 was any indication, 2010 may feel like it focuses more on who brings us the news rather than who they’re reporting on.

6 – Jim Rice inducted into the Hall Of Fame

A generation of Red Sox fans were finally able to breathe as Jim Rice was inducted into the Hall of Fame after a 15-year wait.

If you’re into Sox history, I don’t need to explain to you what a moment this was. The yearly push to include Rice practically became telethon-esque around here with a slew of team personnel, former players and media peeps pleading their cases as to why he belonged, while Rice – a NESN analyst for the past few years- calmly tried to explain his case while staying north of begging the BBWAA to let him in. That was never his style and like Eddie Murray years before him, probably was part of the reason things took so long.

Along the way, many newer fans got brought into the story and pushed for Rice’s inclusion even if they didn’t fully understand why.

The argument for Rice was that while his numbers were not collectively eye-popping, he was a dominant player during a stretch which years later, would be seen as the pre-steroids era. He led the AL in home runs three times and RBI twice, was an eight-time All-Star and won the AL MVP in 1978, finishing in the MVP race five other times. In 16 seasons, he finished with a .298 average, 382 homers, 1451 RBI, over 1200 runs scored and over 2400 hits.

The arguments against? Great player, but not Hall-worthy. Of course, this brought up the valid debate of the criteria to get into the Hall of Fame and one’s perspective of greatness. Comparisons to other players in and not in were brought up and Rice’s numbers were sliced, diced and reheated too many times to recount here. With this being his last chance, there was an impending feeling of closure for everyone involved.

A no-doubt HOF’er? No, but Rice’s inclusion is an interesting and deserved one, given the timeframe, the campaign to get him in and the ultimate result. It worked and Rice’s number is now retired at Fenway Park in addition to a nice bust in Cooperstown. A legion of fans that followed Rice for almost two decades is now vindicated, as is he.

1-5 this Wednesday..

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

The Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009 – Honorable Mentions

As we (well, yours truly) at Small White Ball/Boston Sports Observer.com do our annual look at the top 10 Boston sports stories of 2009, there were some that didn’t make the final cut but did take up some time in our collective conscious over the past 12 months.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, we care about sports here in Boston to a point that is almost scary.

A mix of Red Sox player moves and non-moves, Patriots wide receivers appearing on the national media radar for the right and wrong reasons and more, this list represents the Honorable Mentions for the SWB/BSO Top 10 Boston Sports Stories of 2009.

We launch into the main event with No. 6-10 on Monday, 12/28 and 1-5 on Wednesday, 12/30.

In no particular order:

The on-again, off-again love affair with Jason Bay

You’d think a left fielder coming off career highs in homers and RBI that is good defensively would be a sought-after commodity by the Red Sox – especially considering he played in Boston for the last season-and-a-half.

But whether it’s the amount of years Bay is reportedly asking for or the total contract value, Theo and company aren’t biting and inked outfielder Mike Cameron to a stopgap two-year deal. But now reports in recent days have Boston reportedly interested again. Does that mean Jacoby Ellsbury could be on his way out in a package trade for Adrian Gonzalez or did Boston jump too early at Cameron? What does it all mean?  The answers can’t get here soon enough.

Boston Bruins get No. 1 seed, then rip apart team

The Boston Bruins had a great ’08-’09 season, capped by a No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference – the first time that had happened since 2002. They met (of course) the rival Montreal Canadiens in the first round and somehow didn’t disappoint, sweeping the Habs and advancing in the postseason for the first time in 10 years. But that’s where the good times ended as they lost in a seven-game series to the not-so Original Six Carolina Hurricanes in the semifinals. Ugh.

In typical Jeremy Jacobs fashion, they decided to not keep the club together and dealt young star Phil Kessel to Toronto (!!!) for two 1st-round picks and a 2nd-round pick and also sent defensemen Chuck Kobasew and Aaron Ward packing. So far this year, Tuuka Rask and Tim Thomas has been great in net and the team has a winning record, but they are missing goal scoring…big surprise, right?

They’ve had some injuries, but Kessel’s absence and getting no one in return for him has hurt a lot. It’s great to dream of trading those No. 1’s for a superstar at the trading deadline, but I’ll believe it when I see it. These ARE the Bruins, remember?

MMA legalized in Boston

Finally, the UFC will debut at the TD Garden as Gov. Deval Patrick signed a bill to legalize the sport in November, opening the door for the largest MMA organization in the world to come to Boston. UFC Prez and former Boston resident Dana White (right) has promised a mega-show in late-August as getting Boston was a huge accomplishment for the group.

As the guy that partly makes his living writing for FIGHT! Magazine, my level of excitement at this is beyond words.

The emergence of Wes Welker

One of the refreshing and inspiring side notes of this strange Patriots season has been everyone else realizing what we’ve known here in New England for a while now: Wes Welker is friggin’ awesome. Through 12 games, Welker is four catches away from a new career high (113) and already has a career-best with 1198 receiving yards. Since he’s been in New England, Welker has three straight seasons of 100+ catches and 1100+ yards.

In a copycat league, I’m shocked more teams haven’t gone with the “throw to the little white guy in the slot” offense.

Theo’s “bridge period” comment

Always be careful of what you say in Red Sox Nation. In what he probably thought was a passing comment during the December GM meetings, head honcho Theo Epstein said the team was in “a bridge period” and that while they wanted to stay competitive for the next two seasons, they also had to balance not dealing off their top prospects in doing so.

Just Google the term ‘Theo Epstein bridge period’ or ‘Theo Epstein bridge year’ to see how well that went over – especially considering it came in the same week the New York Yankees traded for Curtis Granderson. This is Boston…there’s no such thing as a bridge year.

Red Sox start year 8-0 in season series against Yankees, then lose 9 of the next 10.

Let’s just move on.

Patriots channel 2007, decimate Tennessee 59-0 in October snowstorm

If a snowstorm in October wasn’t enough to make this a memorable game, the fact the Patriots destroyed the winless Tennessee Titans in record-setting fashion made it so. Among the various records, Tom Brady tossed for an NFL record five touchdowns in one quarter, the team had the biggest halftime lead in NFL history (45 points) and tied for the sixth-largest margin of victory in NFL history. Simply put, it was annihilation.

Red Sox trade for Victor Martinez

Long-discussed, the Red Sox pulled off a big deadline trade in acquiring C/1B Victor Martinez from the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Justin Masterson and some mid-level prospects. While the popular and flexible Masterson was tough to let go, Boston needed some offense with incumbent backstop Jason Varitek struggling to do anything that didn’t involve throwing down signs.

This also kicked off a merry-go-round of Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, Varitek, Martinez and eventually Casey Kotchman playing 1st, 3rd and catcher for the remaining months of the season. Martinez’ versatility and cheap option for ’10 made this a great trade. His competitiveness and bat also don’t hurt either.

Sox go with pitching and defense for ’10, ink pitcher John Lackey and outfielder Mike Cameron

After reportedly being rejected by outfielder Matt Holliday on a contract, the Red Sox changed gears and bolstered an already robust starting rotation by signing top free agent John Lackey to a five year, $82.5 million contract. Arguably the top pitcher on the market, the signing gives Boston three aces in its rotation to go with Daisuke Matsusaka, Clay Buchholz and Tim Wakefield. Personally, I’m finding it difficult to accept Lackey after so many years of snide comments toward the Red Sox while he was in the Los Angeles clubhouse, but I’m sure I’ll come around eventually.

The Cameron signing came as a surprise due to his age and what we believed were still negotiations with free agent Bay. However, with that deal looking dead (unless you believe reports saying otherwise), Cameron is looking to be the team’s opening day left fielder and will provide a flashy glove, 25 homers and a lot of strikeouts this season and next.

Pitching and defense may not be sexy, but it seems to be the plan for 2010 thus far. We’ll see how well the confines of Yankees Stadium respond to that challenge.

The villainous Randy Moss returns…or does he?

It’s hard to truly gauge exactly what is driving this winter’s debate about Randy Moss. Is he dogging it or playing hard and we just can’t tell? Is he the victim of playing against great cornerbacks or just making guys look better than they are? Are the Boston media just looking for a pound of flesh or reflecting what their national cohorts are pushing? Whatever camp you’re in, it’s undeniable that the perception of Moss has changed in the past month – partly because of performance and partly due to everyone’s opinion.

This story is going to come to an end sometime in early ’10 after the playoffs have concluded. I think we’ll have our answer then as to what the rest of Moss’ tenure is going to represent.

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

Boston Sports Media Notes: The Content War Has Just Begun

In the span of just a few years, the sports media that covers our little sports nation of Boston has evolved from a sniping, angry mob made up of just a few major newspapers, TV stations and some minor radio influence into a multimedia world of collaborative wonder that has become a cash cow of its own.

And that world is going to get some more residents before it’s all said and done…and soon.

The Landscape

With the explosion of the internet and the de-evolution and financial ruin of print journalism both running point, the Boston sports media market began to take advantage of fan furor following the New England Patriots first Super Bowl win, parlayed that with not one but two Red Sox World Series victories and continued to turn it on after the Celtics’ latest return to glory.

During this period, the media members entrusted to present us with the inside track became stars themselves. Sure, we knew people like Dan Shaughnessy, Bob Ryan, pre-ESPN Peter Gammons, Ron Borges, Bob Lobel and others because they provided polarizing opinions and became standout characters when the newspapers still mattered.

However, it’s completely changed now, hasn’t it? WEEI boasts Glenn Ordway and his group of merry-yelling-men, John Dennis, Gerry Callahan, Mike Adams, Dale Arnold and sportswriter transplant Michael Holley. Comcast Sports Net has Mike Felger, Gary Tanguay and Greg Dickerson leading the charge, while NESN nearly completely focuses on its game-coverage talent like Tom Caron, Kathryn Tappen and to a much-lesser extent, the Cole Wrights and Heidi Watneys of the world.

But when competition increased, so did the desire to partner. WEEI and Comcast Sports Net created dual roles for talent and Caron can also be heard on their airwaves.

The Globe’s Tony Massarotti, Amalie Benjamin and Nick Cafardo can be seen doing analysis on NESN for Red Sox games, while Gordon Edes – now with Yahoo – has been doing some additional in-studio analysis. The Herald’s Steve Buckley and Sean McAdam also can be found all over the TV and radio dial.

And I haven’t even got to the local TV station talent like Butch Stearns and Steve Burton or the ex-jocks like Scott Zolak, Lou Merloni, Steve DeOssie or Fred Smerlas or the proliferation of blogs like this one or even the web content each of these media entities push so heavily these days.

It’s exhausting to think about, but it’s our reality – one that has now spilled over full force into web-driven content and the looming mothership of ESPN ready to touch down for first contact.

But Wait, There’s More!

While news of a print writer leaving for a website isn’t surprising news these days, it was seen as somewhat of a shock when Globe Patriots beat writer Mike Reiss announced he was joining the staff of ESPNBoston.com – yet another new entry into the already-crowded Boston sports content field. The ESPN microsite is going to follow suit from their successful ESPNChicago.com site, featuring all the news, stories and highlights that Boston fans want to hear.

Grabbing Reiss as the first major defector was a smart move, as will be utilizing former local talents like Bill Simmons (seen here), Michael Smith and Gammons for what we hope will eventually be original content (even though Simmons recently Twittered that he will be providing repurposed content for now). The site launches on September 14th – aka Patriots kickoff weekend.

This comes weeks after the launch of a new FM sports station – 98.5 The Sports Hub – as a direct competitor to WEEI. While the sports radio giant has had challengers before, this one comes backed by CBS Sports and started strong out of the gate by pairing Felger with Massarotti and Tanguay with Zolak, anchored by being the flagship of both the Patriots and the Boston Bruins.

So with four major teams and only so many hours in the day, you have two choices for radio, several for television and way too many for written content. And don’t forget about us bloggers and podcasters who keep knocking on the door of relevancy trying to get an invite into the dance. We do a great job at filling in the holes between the big rocks, but still there are way too many of us out here – Boston and beyond.

And amidst all of this? We forgot about you – the fan who all of this is intended for, the rare few that look for opinion rather than try to find an outlet to state your own.

Ultimately, all of the stations and networks and websites are trying to attract your business and hopefully, keep you engaged enough to come back and tell your friends. Is it too much for you? Honestly, it feels like it at times, even for a guy like myself who loves this stuff.

At some point, you simply cannot commit the time to take all of it in or else you’ll fall over in a crumbled, twitching heap due to content overload. (Make sure you leave a comment before you keel over, okay?)

I feel like in a lot of ways, we are at the breaking point and it needs to become more about quality of content rather than quantity. Do we really need ESPNBoston? No, but from their perspective, it makes sense and if they can connect with fans using their massive tentacles and resources, they’ll do just fine.

If not, there will be a rush to the e-door to take their place.

What’s now and what’s next?

Sadly, there is one aspect of this grand landscape that is getting left out: local media. Suddenly, your local sportscaster, columnist or radio station doesn’t compare to the big guns in the 617, do they? With WEEI’s expansion into more New England markets via mirroring and with cable/internet in practically every household that matters, what’s the incentive to go anywhere but with the big media stars who can get the big name that we want to hear from?

Honestly, I don’t have a good answer but there’s still something about the whole situation that saddens me. I grew up in a desolate area in Western Maine, so the local media was everything I had. I couldn’t get WEEI or anything near resembling a Boston sports station and fell asleep every night to WFAN out of New York thanks to the weird way radio waves work. These days, this 31-year-old guy is now a dinosaur.

As the silent war between these media powerhouses gets more intense and more ‘soldiers’ are drafted into the fray, always remember that ultimately it’s your choice as to who gets your eyes and ears. Make sure that no matter when you tune in or click, it matters.

Josh Nason is the main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog on the MVN Network. Reach him via Twitter or josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

Green 18? – Looking At The Potential 2009-10 Boston Celtics

With the signing of Rasheed Wallace expected to be made iron-clad official on Wednesday, it’s hard for us not to look ahead at what the 12-man roster could look like for the 2009-10 season. If you’re a Boston Celtics fan, you gotta like what could be playing at the Gahhhhhhhhhden this winter.

• Kevin Garnett
• Paul Pierce
• Ray Allen
• Rajon Rondo
• Kendrick Perkins
• Rasheed Wallace
• Grant Hill*
• Eddie House
• Brian Scalabrine
• Tony Allen
• Gabe Pruitt
• Bill Walker
• JR Giddens – NBDL
• Lester Hudson – NBDL

*Rumored

At first glance, that top 8 is veteran-laden and tantalizing in so many ways; a great mix of defensive intensity and scoring in the right places. The major issue of course is health and age, especially considering Garnett is coming off an knee injury and the majority of the players are in the second half of their careers. If the Hill signing doesn’t happen, the goal with that roster spot seems pretty obvious: a ball-moving scorer off the bench.

I personally would love to see Nuggets F/C and unrestricted free agent Chris “Birdman” Andersen on this club, but my assumption is that he may be looking for more money than the Celtics can offer. My understanding of the NBA salary cap is admittedly not great, so I could be completely wrong here.

An element of concern is still the bench that while vastly improved by Wallace (and possibly Hill), it still has question marks. Allen can be a baffling player to watch, showing flashes of greatness while other times displaying head-scratching decision making. Scals is, well, Scals and this is Pruitt’s last chance at showing he can be a legit NBA point guard.

And this all assumes that Rondo is still with the Celtics at the beginning of the season. C’s GM Danny Ainge didn’t handle that situation well at all, but we’ll cover that later this week. Sitting here in the first week of July with the season tip-off about four months away, there is reason to believe that an 18th championship is a realistic goal for the 2009-10 season.

Then again, championships aren’t won in the middle of summer.

Josh Nason is the publisher and main writer for Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog – part of the MVN Network. You can reach Josh at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

CSN Rumor: Kevin Garnett would have played if the Celtics advanced

This story was updated at 12:30 pm Wednesday.

Yeah, Comcast Sports Net New England’s Gary Tanguay isn’t exactly known for being one of the most original or ground-breaking media members in Beantown, but he did drop an interesting note Tuesday night regarding injured Kevin Garnett and his availability if the Boston Celtics had advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals vs. Cleveland.

During the late edition of their Sports Tonight broadcast, Tanguay told co-host Michael Felger that he heard from sources that Garnett would have played against the Cavaliers if the Celtics had defeated the Magic in Sunday’s Game 7.

Obviously, Tanguay’s got some inside connections (CSN is the official broadcast partner of the team and he is the studio host for the broadcasts) and by leading off with this, he puts himself out there in case it’s not true.

But it does raise some questions if it is true:

– Just how bad is this knee anyway? KG is due to have surgery next week, but there sure is a Tom Brady-esque feeling of silence around the situation, eh?

– Assuming the above is true, if he could have played in Game 1, why didn’t he play in Game 7 against Orlando?

– Was GM Danny Ainge simply smoke-screening all this time? I guess the answer to this is obvious, but if Garnett had returned, it would have interesting to hear what he would have to say after he so vehemently denied Garnett would play in the postseason.

– What’s the benefit of breaking this info now? I don’t see much of a benefit to be gained for everyone and actually, I see more negatives that could come out of it.

– How much could we have expected out of him? 5 minutes? 10 minutes? Celtics fans would probably say a 60% Garnett is better than no Garnett, but would he have been able to make any sizable impact?

There isn’t anything buzzing much yet on the interwebs about this, but I suspect we will hear more in the week ahead. It does twist the knife a bit to realize we could have been that close to an emotional Garnett comeback, but in the end, the Celtics got throttled in Game 7 and the Magic moved on.

Damn it.

Update: Tanguay uploaded the video of this announcement on the CSN site. I’m still surprised this isn’t more of a story yet.

Josh Nason – josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com] – is the publisher/main writer for New England sports and media blog Small White Ball.

Despite Game 7 struggles, Celtics and Bruins fans have great seasons to remember

It wasn’t supposed to end like this, not in Game 7, not in our house.

But for Boston sports fans, the knife got plunged into our hearts not once, but twice this week as both the Bruins and Celtics were ousted from the 2nd round of their respective playoffs in front of the hometown faithful. But while it’s easy to point fingers or make excuses as to why these clubs are now out of the postseason, let’s take a look here at what we are dealing with.

The Celtics are coming off a championship season in which they played 26 postseason games and then did a ton of media appearances celebrating that hard-fought 17th World title. Fast forward to this year where an injury-depleted Team Green fought through a grueling seven-game set with the Chicago Bulls and then another seven with the Orlando Magic.

Quick math: that’s 204 games in roughly two years time, not taking into account the preseason games, practices and the overall wear and tear of being an NBA player. It’s nice to think an offseason solves all woes but eventually keeping up the breakneck pace was going to become too much.

And c’mon now: even if they survived Sunday, they would have needed a Lebron James injury miracle to make it to the NBA Finals over Cleveland. You know it, I know it, we all know it.

Need one more stat to get yourself to sleep tonight? The last time an NBA Champion repeated? The 2000-01 and 2001-02 Los Angeles Lakers. The last team to make it to the Finals in consecutive years? The 2003-04 and 2004-05 Detroit Pistons. It’s tough to get there and even tougher to repeat.

With no Kevin Garnett, no Leon Powe and a gassed Paul Pierce, we should be happy with what we got: a gutsy, hustling club that came one big game short of the Eastern Conference Finals. Remember the excitement of those Bulls games and the night Eddie House ripped up the Garden but whatever you do, don’t look back at this season and think ‘failure’.

After all, they did just win a title about 12 months ago, went 62-20 and were the No.2 seed in the Eastern Conference this year.

For the Bruins, this season was really a gift. No one expected them to be this good and certainly no one expected them to be a No. 1 seed going into the NHL Playoffs. For a team that was so reviled and undervalued for years upon years, the ’08-’09 campaign was a real reacquainting with the Boston fans who responded by filling the TD Banknorth Garden night after night.

Better yet, this was an extremely likable Bruins team that had something for everyone. Goaltender Tim Thomas had a career year and broke out of the platoon role he shared with Manny Fernandez early on. Milan Lucic became a cult hero overnight and someone that Cam Neely-starved diehards latched onto.

Younger talents like Phil Kessel, Blake Wheeler and David Krejci became known entities in a city that already had plenty of talents to identify with. Veterans like the Marks (Stuart, Savard, Recchi) and Zdeno Chara played pivotal roles throughout the year. This group made people actually care about them which is pretty amazing considering the lack of interest in them prior to this run.

There is a lot to build on for the Bruins, but for those of us still trying to understand what we’re dealing with, next season is now even more important. There is no more flying under the radar and coming off such a successful year, there are the dreaded expectations that come with that. Fans will expect big things next year and rightfully so – we put our faith and eyes on this team for months. Now we want to know if our investment is going to pay off.

The fact that the man who sucker-punched Aaron Ward and shouldn’t have played in Game 7 scored the game-winning goal in overtime hurts. However, the fact the Bruins got down 3-1 in the series and fought back to a Game 7 is a reassuring feeling and while they got close, it just wasn’t good enough…this year.

In all reality, we’ve been pretty spoiled in this city and damn, it’s felt good the entire time. Three of the four major sports here have crowned champions since 2001, two of them multiple times. Our teams win consistently and cause us to expect more out of them as a result. There is lots of money in being on the winning side of the ledger and the Beantown Four get it.

Yep, it’s been a bad few days but cheer up. The Red Sox are still here and about to open up a big series this week against division-leading Toronto and the Patriots are still the Patriots. While the sting of losing hurts, I’d rather feel the pain than never experience the pleasure…and there’s been a lot of pleasure in Boston to go around this decade.

Now about that David Ortiz guy…

Josh Nason is the publisher and main writer for New England-based sports and media blog Small White Ball. He can be reached at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

The Run For Green 18: Joakim, Gordon and the incredibly annoying Chicago Bulls

Maybe it’s just because its the first round of the NBA Playoffs and that the Chicago Bulls are giving up more of a fight than I expected, but I am more than annoyed with the bunch from the Windy City, now down 3-2 in their series with the Boston Celtics.

Much like the Atlanta Hawks of a year ago that were in this same spot, the Bulls are brash, arrogant and irritating, but for all the wrong reasons. While it’s fun to watch a young team come together after years of being horrendous, this is not one of those cases thanks to four guys in particular.

Joakim Noah: Quite possibly the most visually enraging player in the NBA today, I’ve run out of tolerance for the fluffy-haired center/forward. Before this series, I was content with Noah being a dorky-looking player that was always attempting to translate his college success to the pros.

But during Game 2 in Boston, he kept putting his finger to his
mouth in the ‘shhh’ motion every time he or
his teammates made a big shot. Really? This is where we’re at in today’s NBA…especially when a game isn’t over yet? It’s not college anymore, Joakim. This is a man’s league with guys that will put you out if you try that in their house.

If I was to compare Noah to a Hawk of ’08, it would be Zaza Pachulia, who decided to keep pushing the buttons of Kevin Garnett for the majority of the series the C’s won in seven games. But after this classic hit in that Game 7, Zaza learned that is never, ever a good idea. Boy, do I wish #5 was in this series to show Noah where he could put that finger.

Ben Gordon: I really, really want to like Ben Gordon but there’s part of me that just can’t because of his act in Game 4. Gordon – a stud in this series who is
battling Rajon Rondo for biggest breakout star of the playoffs so far –
hit a game-tying 3-pointer to send the game into a 2nd OT.

Yes, it was a
great shot but Gordon turned around and decided to grab his crotch
several times in a show of…uhh…manliness? Bravado? A reminder for men to check for testicular cancer? Not surprisingly, ESPN/ABC decided to cut that part
out when showing the replays.

For a guy that had come so far in such a short period of time, it took this one action for him to just evaporate into the abyss of classless jerk rather than a money player in my eyes. I don’t need choir boys, but c’mon man. What’s the point? In all, this was very Mike Bibby-esque of Gordon, who decided to go the media to complain about Celtics fans being ‘bandwagon jumpers’ during last season’s Celtics/Hawks series. How did that work out for you, Mike?

Brad Miller: The newest entry into this playoff feud got his comeuppance Tuesday night in a classic case of cosmic karma. In the fourth quarter of a close Game 5, Miller got tangled up with Ray Allen, helping Allen get a 6th foul, disabling the Celtics even further. But it was Miller’s laughing afterward that raised the ire of C’s color man Tommy Heinsohn, a somewhat unsportsmanlike reaction in what has turned out to be an awesome series.

Miller then amazingly had his chance to tie the game at the end of OT when he got a clear path to the basket with seconds left and was fouled by Rondo. I said to my roommate that karma is a b*tch and Miller then proceeded to miss the first shot, grimacing and acting like he had been smacked in the dome with a steeeeeeeeeeeeel chair. The Celtics won and Miller went from villain to sad sack in minutes.

Aaron Gray: Who is Gray? He is a very tall white bench fixture for the Bulls, a rookie who joined Noah in the afore-mentioned ‘shh’ bit but has yet to field a second of play in this series. Guys like this annoy me, talking smack from the outer ring when the fight doesn’t directly involve them. Clap, cheer and pump up your teammates but it’s a bit ridiculous when a bench guy thinks he has the license to taunt. Play some minutes and then do something, Aaron.

So why does this team suddenly irritate me so much? I think mostly it’s because they seem to think they are entitled to the same treatment and respect as the defending World Champs. This is a team that has been subpar for a long time, yet are acting like they are the favorites – incredibly ballsy considering they are a No. 7 seed that self-imploded a season ago and are only in this series because of a missed free throw by Paul Pierce in Game 1 and the absence of Garnett.

Bravado and confidence is one thing. Unwarranted attitude, gestures and entitlement are another. On Thursday, the Celtics go back into enemy territory for Game in what should be a wild and emotional affair between two clubs who find themselves evenly matched and the focus of NBA fans right now.

Let’s hope the final taunt on the Celtics’ behalf is the final score.

Josh Nason is the publisher and main writer for New England sports and media blog Small White Ball.com. You can reach him at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].

End The Drought: Why Boston Deserves To Host The NBA All-Star Game

1964 was quite a year, wasn’t it? The Beatles began the British Invasion of music, Cassius Clay won the World Heavyweight title from Sonny Liston and the average American’s income was $6000.

1964 was also the last year Boston hosted an NBA All-Star Game.

When I first began researching this, I thought there had to be a mistake, Certainly there was no shortage of All-Stars from the Celtics through the years (19 players totaling 86 elections since ’64). There have been no shortage of championships (10 since the ’64 season, which doesn’t include the one they won in that year).

And while there were some lean years in the Shawmut Center turned FleetCenter turned TD Banknorth Garden, everyone loves an All-Star game and the stands would have been filled.

Need more evidence?

The list of cities that have hosted an All-Star game since Boston did is long: Los Angeles, NYC, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Richfield, OH (yes, Richfield hosted an All-Star Game). There are even cities on the list that don’t have NBA teams anymore (St. Louis, Cincinnati, San Diego) or never had one (Las Vegas).

However, the biggest slap in the face has to be the number of the cities that have hosted it multiple times. Some of the notables: LA hosting three times, Phoenix three times, NYC twice, Chicago twice and Philly four times if you include the lockout year game that never happened.

This is getting to be a bit ridiculous. What’s the justification here – the desire to have the game only in warm-climate cities? If so, that is ridiculous and unfair to a majority of the league. Basketball is played in the winter time across the U.S. and Canada. If the high-level execs and sponsors can’t cut it for three days, that’s tough. Do what the rest of us do – deal with it.

With revived interest in the Celtics, an ownership group hell-bent on quality and a championship team that will be competitive for years to come, it is time for the city of Boston to once again welcome the league’s best in a three-day orgy of dunks, mascots and zero defense.

It’s been 45 years. End the drought and bring the All-Star Game back to Boston in 2011…or else we’ll sick Kevin Garnett and Tommy Heinsohn on you.

Josh Nason is the founder of Small White Ball, a New England-based
sports and media blog. He can be reached at josh [at] smallwhiteball
[dot-com].

Boston Sports Wrap: NBA honors Bill Russell, Sox open Spring Training, Merloni leaves WEEI

NBA Commissioner David Stern announced Saturday that beginning this season, the NBA Finals MVP award will be named after Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell. Russell – who won the MVP five times – was emotional at the press conference and fittingly thanked his teammates. Russell was part of 11 Celtics titles in his 13 professional seasons.

– In case you were wondering, there are no Boston Celtics involved in any of the NBA All-Star game festivities other than Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen playing in the actual game this Sunday night.

– The Boston Red Sox opened up spring training Saturday which garnered quite a few hours of coverage on NESN. Expectedly, there isn’t a whole lot of news coming out this other than Jason Varitek saying he wants to retire as a member of the Red Sox. Given the interest level from other teams this past offseason, I think that is a foregone conclusion at this point.

– Speaking of NESN, I was surprised to hear that former Sox middle infielder-turned-analyst Lou Merloni will no longer be with the Boston flagship this season. Instead, Merloni will join the fast-growing Comcast Sports New England as an analyst. But there is no salacious story here – he wanted to continue his work with WEEI on the Big Show and this deal allows him to do both.

I thought this was a great quote from the Boston.com writeup today:

When asked if there is any downside to the atmosphere at “The Big
Show,” where it is sometimes tough to get a word in edgewise, Merloni
laughed.

“Unfortunately, after working there for a while, I took
that over to my real world,” he said. “I was butting into conversations
with everybody. I have to separate my work from real life and at the
dinner table conversations. It’s a lot of fun.”

– Also in the article was news that Boston.com will revive the cancelled NESN Globe 10.0 show. Beginning on February 23rd, the show will be a web feature with two questions answered every Monday-Friday by host Bob Ryan and other Globe writers.

– WEEI reported a record-number of visitors to their website in January, touting a 95% increase from the year before. They’ve done a great job with making it a destination point for good content, but I do wonder sometimes if there is too much content on there. Seriously, they have like 3,323 bloggers.

Josh Nason is the founder of Small White Ball, a New England-based sports and media blog. He can be reached at josh [at] smallwhiteball [dot-com].