* Josh Beckett hasn’t pitched like the guy who led the Sox to a World Series title last year, but expect him to be on his game versus the D’Backs and Dan Haren tonight. In the past, a familiar knock against Beckett was that he tended to lose focus versus lesser opponents, yet brought his A game against perceived challenges. Haren is certainly that. Besides, the game is on ESPN, so expect Beckett to look pissed and focused.

* I’m working on an investigative piece, trying to determine if the 2008 Red Sox pitching staff owns more necklaces than any staff in baseball history. There’s a lot of rope around these necks, and I comfort myself in thinking that these necklaces are made of hemp, and that Beckett, Okajima, Wakefield, and Timlin will be smoking their necklaces in celebration of a third World Series title in October.

* To the Cardinals’ players who had their pant legs pulled up and their red-and-blue striped stockings on proud display this past weekend: I saw “Sex and the City” with my wife, and Carrie Bradshaw wants her look back.

* Craig Hansen, my confidence in you grows every day.

* The Sox called up Jed Lowrie to take over at shortstop, right? He’s just lost en route, correct? Perhaps Lowrie needs Lou Merloni to bring him up to speed on the best backroads between Pawtucket and Boston.

* Ed Valentine, the Yankees writer at Bugs & Cranks, wrote a spirited denunciation of Curt Schilling’s Hall of Fame candidacy. My how the baseball universe has changed. When Jim Rice retired in 1989, I’m willing to bet that few Yankee fans/beat writers even cared to form an opinion of Rice’s Cooperstown chances. Now Schilling retires and the knives are drawn immediately. Yup, it’s official: The shoe’s now on the other foot, and the Yankees and their fans are now obsessed by all things Red Sox. Rightfully so: We own your soul.

* The Sox and the Yanks finally face each other again at the beginning of July, a two-and-a-half month break between series. Considering how many times the two teams face each other, this scheduling dry spell is inexcusable.

* The Sox/D’backs are on ESPN tonight and on Wednesday. This after the Sox played on TBS yesterday and on Fox’s game of the week on Saturday. Not only does this kind of exposure irritate fans of other teams, but it makes me long for Remy and Orsillo, since I only watch NESN when 1) the Sox are playing at home, and 2) the Sox aren’t playing on national TV. I don’t get NESN on my TV here in Fairfield County, and MLB Xtra Innings always carries the home team’s announcers. It’s strange, but a Sox fan living one town over — in Milford, CT, which is part of New Haven County, where NESN is available — must have a completely different viewing experience than me. I envy that. I’d much rather listen to Remy and Orsillo every game than some mix of Skip Karay, Buck Martinez, Joe Morgan, Johnny Miller (is he on benzedrine?), Rick Sutcliffe, Orel Hershiser, or the home announcers in Cincinnati and Philadelphia. When you watch your team’s games being announced by people unfamiliar with the squad, who are trying to explain to their own audience about the A’s and B’s of the Red Sox, it gets ridiculously tedious. I’m sure fans of other teams experience the same exasperation in watching MLB Xtra Innings. Right now the system allows you to pick which radio guys you want to hear, home or away. Hopefully they’ll allow you to pick the TV guys as well in the future, because no one should have to listen to Hawk Harrelson or Paul Splittorff, the winningest pitcher in (hurray!) Royals history.

* Rob Neyer of ESPN.com, you’re dead to me. Five Yankee blogs on your Blog Roll (out of 18 team blogs) and no Red Sox blogs? No Red Sox Monster or Boston Dirt Dogs or Sox & Dawgs or Surviving Grady? I’m a member of the MSM (I guess), and I can handle rejection (and your unwillingness to respond to e-mails and interview requests about your new book, which I enjoyed). But dammit, throw the Nation a bone. I mean, I can understand five Yankee blogs, since we need a full accounting of all their excuses these days. But two Padres blogs? Really? Is there that much happening in that hotbed of baseball known as San Diego? I don’t know if you realized this, but your 18 blogs have something interesting in common. Of the A’s, Cardinals, Mariners, Dodgers, Mets, Nationals, Padres, Padres, Rays, Royals, Tigers, Tigers, Twins, Yankees, Yankees, Yankees, Yankees and Yankees, none of them are in first place. Not a one. Apparently there are no good blogs written about first-place teams like the Red Sox, White Sox, Angels, Phillies, Cubs and Diamondbacks. Who knows, perhaps there is something to that. After all, the best angst- and humor-filled writing usually comes from the fans of losing teams, which is why The Sports Guy, Bill Simmons, was fun to read back in the day and should be replaced by a Cleveland fan now.

Rob, I hope you know I’m kidding (sort of). But really, throw a bone to the blogs of some first-place teams (and to Bugs & Cranks). Those omissions make your Blog Roll look fascistly ridiculous.

Cam Martin is a Sox fan who lives in Yankee country (Fairfield County, CT). He also writes for Bugs&Cranks, Rotohog and Barnes & Noble Review. E-mail: cdavidmartin@yahoo.com