Did anyone else know Dustin Pedroia has been on a tear?

The Sox second baseman has been given high praise this remarkable past seven days. Fans and media experts are pegging him as AL MVP, the best second baseman in Red Sox history, a jockey…all kinds of labels. No question that the Sox little big man has been hotter than you starring in a Showtime After Dark series opposite Jessica Alba, Kelly Kapowski, and, I dunno, a runner up for Miss Alaska.

Here is Dustin’s last 7 games:

 I will take the first step out on that limb there and say that if you did that for a season, you would win the MVP, and they would probably elect you President of Earth. What would a full season look like if someone could manage to do that (I think Steve Nebraska played by Brendan Fraser in the movie "The Scout").

Only 46 homers isn’t unreal, but 417 hits should get the job done. So can Pedey hit .374 this season. If he stays on this tear for the final 23 games he will. Again, unlikely, but every time you think or say this guy can’t do something, he pulls it off. His final season numbers at the last week’s performance would end up looking like this:

WARNING!!! This will never ever ever happen, but thought I would throw this out there while we all stare at the trading deadline countdown clocks.

Here is what I would do if I was the GM of the Red Sox. Granted there is a better chance that I do in fact become GM of the Sox one day than this scenario happening, but please…humor me.

The Boston Red Sox send:

Manny Ramirez
Michael Bowden
Jed Lowrie
Clay Buccholz

to the Florida Marlins for:

Hanley Ramirez.

I know, I know. Why would the low budget Marlins trade perhaps the best player in the National League with a small contract? They wouldn’t. While Hanley grew up in the Sox minor league system before being traded for Josh Beckett and throw in Mike Lowell, everyone heard of how this kid would be the next great superstar and the answer at shortstop for years to come. I do not think there are too many members of the nation that wouldn’t make that trade again after the season Lowell and Beckett each had in 2007.

Here are Hanley’s first 3 seasons:

Usually it is difficult for me to sit through the ESPY’s without rolling my eyes numerous times at the lame jokes while watching ESPN desperately try to make this the biggest thing going every year, but I might have to watch on Sunday.

As you can see in the caption under the picture above, the NY Daily News once again shows its objectivity pinning the AL "blowing" the lead last night on Papelbon and not on the very bad throw by Dioner Navarro to allow the NL to take a 3-2 lead. Check out the video below as Gary Tanguay and Greg Dickerson talked with Cinco Ocho live from Yankee Stadium before last night’s game. Apparently Jonathan’s pregnant wife had things thrown at her during the parade in the afternoon.

Did Danny Ainge find gold again through the Draft?

Despite the Celtics struggles in the past 10 years before this season’s fairly successful season (Hooray sarcasm!), the team has never been able to pick in the top few slots in the draft. You could argue that he earned the NBA Executive of the Year Award not by trading for two All-Stars, but by his great track record since re-joining the franchise he once played with.

Every pick he has made has either helped directly win a championship, or indirectly build the roster.

The #5 pick in 2007 turned into Ray Allen and Glen Davis.

In 2006, having the #7 pick allowed to acquire the uber-valuable expiring contract of Theo Ratliff. Plus we drfted our poing guard for the next several years late in the 1st Round, and picked up Leon Powe 49 players into the draft.

2005, the talented but unproven Gerald Green fell in the Celtics lap at 18, and Ryan Gomes was still around at pick 50.

The 2004 Draft brought Al Jefferson (15), Delonte West (24) and Tony Allen (25) on board.

And in Ainge’s first draft with the Celtics, he mad a draft day trade to acquire Marcus Banks and Kendrick Perkins for Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones. While Banks never worked out here, Perk is a legit starting center that has improved every year and Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones have been in and out of the league.

Bill Walker / Getty Images" class="imgcaption floatr" style="float: right;" />Your World Champion Boston Celtics (man it is fun writing that) entered the 08 NBA Draft a lot differently than what they went through just one year ago. In 2007, Celtics fans were trying to overcome the bad-bounce-of-the-lottery-balls-again headache hangover…this year, a 17th Banner "it was all worth it" hangover. The C’s took a gamble selecting JR Giddens with the 30th pick of the Draft, and another chance on trading for Kansas St’s Bill Walker in Round 2. Both players have a ton of potential and should have been much higher picks without their respective baggage. It has been reported that Giddens hasn’t been the best teammate and his been involved in off the court problems. Supposedly, he has grown up a lot in the past year. Walker was a lottery pick coming out of high school, but knee injuries have scared many NBA teams off. The Walker pick can be somewhat compared to the Leon Powe pick for the C’s in 2006, and that seemed to work out pretty well.

If Giddens can grow up a bit more, which should be easier with the Celtics veteran team, he could step in fairly soon and be a contributor off the bench. He is 23 years-old, which means he his older than Glen Davis, Gabe Pruitt, and Rajon Rondo. You really can’t say enough for what 4 years of school does for rookies.

Check out Comcast SportsNet’s exclusive interview with NBA Executive of the Year Danny Ainge with Greg Dickerson on draft night at the TD Banknorth Garden.

After 10 seasons in the NBA, all with the most storied franchise in basketball, and many of those years being very difficult, Paul Pierce and the Boston Celtics are NBA Champions. The C’s ran away and hid from the lifeless Lakers at the Garden to capture Banner 17. KG totally reversed his self-proclaimed "garbage" performance in Game 5 to lead the Green to a blowout win.

Personally, this moment makes me think of two specific memories as I watch Paul Pierce dump Gatorade over Doc Rivers as the seconds ticked down. My first thought is 1987 over my grandparents house watching Magic sweep through the lane and hit a running hook to put the nail in the coffin for Larry Legend and the Celtics. I was heartbroken by that series. Obviously not knowing this at the time, but many years of heartache would soon follow after this moment.

Coincidentally, one of the few bright spots was my first day as an intern for Comcast SportsNet (then Fox Sports New England) in 1998. It was NBA Draft night at the Garden (then FleetCenter). I didn’t receive much direction of where to go that night from my supervisor, so I kind of wandered around not knowing what I was supposed to be doing. I had front row seat as the entire crowd watched as Paul Pierce from Kansas kept slipping and slipping, eventually down to # 10 and the Boston Celtics.

Matt Damon...only pumped for a minute. / Getty Images" src="http://newengland.comcastsportsnet.com/wp-content/image/wgs/jlevine/matt_damon.jpg" />Personally, I thought the series was over last night. I did not think A) The Lakers wanted to fly across the country to get their asses kicked at the Garden, B) they didn’t have the heart (see: Odom and/or Gasol), and C) Kobe was going to take 112 shots and the rest of the team was going to start not even bothering to play on offense from the middle of the 2nd quarter on. Obviously none of these things happened. Paul Pierce did his best to win his coveted ring in his hometown. KG, on the the other hand, did not play his best game in Green. Some critical missed free throws and constant foul trouble really were a killer. In his own words, "I played like garbage."

So now the teams head back this way for what should be a very loud TD Banknorth Garden. A major championship has not been won in the city of Boston since June 8, 1986, when the Celtics captured Banner #16 against the Houston Rockets. Boston looks to repeat the same trend in that series by winning Games 1, 2, 4, and 6. This reporter was out at DJ’s at the Garden last night ready to celebrate in the streets and possibly high five some people I had never met. The Boston Police department was primed and ready for a celebration with several reports from fellow patrons of a large number of police, riot gear, cops on horsies, archers, and the brut squad (Andre the Giant as Fesik) from "The Princess Bride". Sound crazy? I am just reporting what I saw.

As Doc Rivers just reported to the media on Celtics Pregame Live, Rajon Rondo is "ready to go" and the his foot injury will "not be a factor" for Game 4 tonight. As Donny Marshall just stated, you have to be a little skeptical about Doc’s confidence in Rajon being full speed. This could be gamesmanship on Doc’s part. It could be a message to Rondo hoping he hears this and does not even think about it. Only time will tell if Rajon’s injury wasn’t as serious as first thought. One thing for certain…Phil Jackson is probably somewhere saying he faked it.

When your hometown team is in a position to compete for a championship, the fan base naturally grows with enthusiasm. More wins and success equals more casual fans paying attention. Many have tried to define this group of come-and-go fans. Some call them “bandwagon jumpers” or “fair-weather fans”. The contemporary term is “pink hats”.

Before trying to map out a census for the population of “Celtics Nation” right now, let me explain where I am coming from (I don’t want this to be a bitter diehard’s rant on how everyone is stepping on your buddy Sully’s back trying to climb into the bandwagon.) I have worked at Comcast SportsNet (Your home for Boston Celtics Basketball!) for the past 10 years. The first day of my internship was the 1998 NBA Draft at the Garden, when thousands watched as Paul Pierce slipped down the draft board to the C’s at #10. So obviously in that time, the amount of wins “The Truth” has carried the team to since being drafted affects my day-to-day more than most.

But even before that, I have been the die-hard amongst my fellow 30-year old friends. I remember the great days of the Original Big 3. I remember Johnnie Most. I remember watching Sunday afternoon games on CBS with Dick Stockton, Tommy Heinsohn, and Pat O’Brien (a lifetime ago for ole Pat). Watching an old game from those days on YouTube makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand-up.

We are now 18 games into the 2008 NBA Playoffs and our Boston Celtics have taken us on an emotional roller coaster. Nearly flawless at the friendly confines on Causeway Street, mostly frustrating when playing outside of the 617 area code. As consistent as the team was for 8 preseason games and 82 regular season games, for whatever reason, that consistency has not translated to the postseason. I guess they have been consistently head-scratching, but we aren’t going to count that.

Going into the Eastern Conference Finals, we all knew that we were going to see something we had yet to see from the C’s. I for one had a strong feeling that they would lose for the first time at home this postseason, and that they would finally be able to come through on the road. Both have happened. So why do I have such a bitter taste in my mouth after Game 4? It can’t be from the many pounds of barbecue I inhaled this weekend. It can’t be from the peanut butter brownies my friend’s wife made on Sunday. What is it?

After losing Game 2 at the Garden, it was a given that Boston had to figure out a way to win one on the road. A split in Detroit was a must. So on Saturday night, Detroit failed to show up and the Celtics looked like the team that won 31 games on the road this season. The chest pumping had begun and all were trying to figure out how many days off Boston would have to prepare for Kobe and the Lakers.