According to Selena Roberts and David Epstein of SI.com, current New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez allegedly tested positive for steroids while he was a member of the Texas Rangers in 2003.

In 2003, when he won the American League home run title and the AL Most Valuable Player award as a shortstop for the Texas Rangers, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for two anabolic steroids, four sources have independently told Sports Illustrated.

Rodriguez’s name appears on a list of 104 players who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball’s ’03 survey testing, SI’s sources say. As part of a joint agreement with the MLB Players Association, the testing was conducted to determine if it was necessary to impose mandatory random drug testing across the major leagues in 2004.

When approached by an SI reporter on Thursday at a gym in Miami, Rodriguez declined to discuss his 2003 test results. “You’ll have to talk to the union,” said Rodriguez, the Yankees’ third baseman since his trade to New York in February 2004. When asked if there was an explanation for his positive test, he said, “I’m not saying anything.”

With no penalty for steroids in 2003, ARod wasn’t punished. But now this brings into question many things for him such as being one of the greatest hitters of all time. Plus what happens when he gets close to the home run record. You may argue that his record would be tainted as well.

It’s going to be another long season of ridicule by the fans for ARod. I can’t wait until he gets to Boston this season. Oh boy will that be fun.

Sources tell SI Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroids in 2003 [SI.com]

During NESN’s SportsDesk last night, one of the newest members of the Boston Red Sox, John Smoltz, called in and talked with anchor Cole Wright.

The pair discussed his first time in Ft. Myers, the shoulder, Jason Varitek and why he chose Boston among many other things.

[dailymotion]http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8ac96_smoltz_sport[/dailymotion]video courtesy of NESN

I’m thinking he may have already talked to Josh Beckett as we heard him say “executing pitches.”

This was a great interview in my opinion. It was nice to get some insight into John Smoltz, especially for the Red Sox fans who don’t know alot about him.

The Boston Red Sox made the Jason Varitek deal official today when they announced that had signed him to a 1 year, $5 million deal with dual options for 2010.

As we found out last week, the options for Varitek are a club option of  $5 million for 2010 or a player option for $3 million with another $2 million in incentives for games played. He’d receive $400,000 each for starts 80, 90, 100, 110, and 120, for a maximum of $2 million if the player option is exercised.

1B/OF Jeff Bailey was outrighted to Pawtucket and he refused the assignment making him a free agent. He then re-signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox with an invitation to big league spring training.

The Red Sox will now head to camp with Varitek as the starting catcher. Josh Bard, Dusty Brown and George Kottaras will compete to be his backup. It’s also quite conceivable that the Red Sox could still try to acquire another catcher in the likes of Jarrod Saltalamacchia or Miguel Montero.

Spring training that is as today is the day we as Boston Red Sox fans look forward to.

It’s Truck Day which is now an annual rite of passage up here in New England. It’s a time where we head to Fenway Park and freeze our butts off just to catch a glimpse of Big Papi’s bats being packed or Dustin Pedroia’s travel bag.

While others may laugh or even ridicule us, for us New Englanders it’s a sign that warm weather is slowly coming upon us. School vacations are coming up which means Red Sox fans will be making the population of Ft. Myers have less old people (if you’ve ever been there you know what I mean). Trust me, I’m not knocking old people at all, I’m getting up there myself.

For us, Truck Day is another distraction to take some of us away from our mundane lives and problems (mine included). There’s lots of problems in the world right now that maybe we should care about but Truck Day allows us to prepare ourselves and get ready for some baseball. It’s one distraction I don’t mind.

We saw the New England Patriots finish up their season without making the playoffs and we’ve got the Boston Bruins playing some excellent hockey right now. And we can’t forget the World Champion Boston Celtics and their run right now to hopefully another championship.

But now we will have the greatest distraction of them all.

RED SOX BASEBALL!!!!!!!!! It’s back and I’m loving it!!!

Bob Cousy Award presented by The Hartford

ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-America Team

COMCAST SPORTSNET TO PROVIDE EXPANDED PRE GAME COVERAGE OF CELTICS VS. LAKERS

Boston Globe Columnist Bob Ryan and Celtics Owner Wyc Grousbeck Interview Highlight Special Pre-Game Coverage Beginning at 6:30 p.m.

BURLINGTON, MA – Comcast SportsNet, the home for Boston Celtics basketball, will provide expanded pre game coverage of the Celtics-Lakers game featuring Bob Ryan and Wyc Grousbeck beginning with a one-hour special edition of Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight at 6:30 p.m. and Celtics Pre-Game Live at 7:30 p.m.

During the one-hour special, Ryan, the legendary Boston Globe columnist and basketball writer, will make his return to Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight with hosts Gary Tanguay and Michael Felger. Ryan will talk Celtics-Lakers, past and present, during the show. CSN’s pre-game coverage will also feature Celtics managing partner Grousbeck and live reports from the TD Banknorth Garden by courtside reporter Greg Dickerson and Celtics Hall of Famer Tommy Heinsohn.

Following the Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight special, Tanguay and NBA analyst Donny Marshall will breakdown the game and Dickerson will go one-on-one with a Laker on Celtics Pre-Game Live at 7:30 p.m. Celtics Now host and WEEI personality Michael Holley will participate in the three-man weave with Tanguay and Marshall.

Tanguay and Marshall will return for Celtics Post Game Live immediately after the nationally televised Celtics-Lakers game concludes.

Comcast SportsNet reaches more than 4 million households in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. Comcast SportsNet’s programming includes the Boston Celtics, Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight, Celtics Now, New England Tailgate, and Net Impact. Comcast SportsNet’s partnership with the 17-time NBA Champion Boston Celtics is the longest team-regional sports network relationship in New England and the fourth longest in professional sports. Comcast SportsNet New England is owned and managed by Comcast Sports Group. Visit www.comcastsportsnet.com for more information.

Comcast Sports Group operates 10 sports networks that cover more than 2,400 live sporting events annually and deliver comprehensive sports news and analysis to 40 million cable and satellite homes. Comcast Sports Group’s networks are: Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast SportsNet California, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet New England, Comcast SportsNet Northwest, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, SNY, The Mtn. – Mountain West Sports Network, and CSS. These networks provide live game coverage 18 professional teams, as well as college, minor league and other sports. For more information, see ComcastSportsNet.com.

Not even a 4-star wide receiver recruit in Dwayne Difton could get the UConn Huskies football team into the upper echelon of the Big East as far as recruiting as Rivals.com has ranked the Huskies class of 21 as 6th best in the league.

No one in the Big East picked up any 5 star recruits but South Florida and West Virginia both picked up six 4-star recruits to lead the league. Here’s how the Big East shaped up in terms of recruiting in order of their national ranking.

• 27 – West Virginia – six 4-star recruits,15 3-star recruits
• 30 – South Florida – six 4-star recruits, 18 4-star recruits
• 38 – Rutgers – four 4-star recruits, 15 3-star recruits
• 47 – Pittsburgh- four 4-star recruits, 11 3-star recruits
• 60 – Cincinnati – two 4-star recruits, 8 3-star recruits
• 75 – UConn – one 4-star recruits, 3 3-star recruits
• 76 – Louisville – one 4-star recruits, 8 3-star recruits
• 116 – Syracuse – zero 4-star recruits, 4 3-star recruits

Scouts.com saw the Big East a little differently.

1. Rutgers
2. South Florida
3. West Virginia
4. Pittsburgh
5. Cincinnati
6. Louisville
7. UConn
8. Syracuse

In case you wondering, here’s the top 5 schools from Rivals.com:

1. Alabama
2. LSU
3. Ohio State
4. USC
5. Texas

Now I understand why the Boston Red Sox signed Brad Wilkerson.

Alex Speier of WEEI is reporting that Mark Kotsay underwent back surgery on January 29th (my birthday).

Red Sox first baseman/outfielder Mark Kotsay underwent surgery on January 29 for a displaced disc fragment in his back in response to back pain. (Kotsay’s signing became official on January 15, after he had undergone a physical.) Few details for his recovery timetable are available as of yet, but a Red Sox official did say that Kotsay is not expected to miss much of the regular season

Kotsay has had back troubles in the past. The good news is he shouldn’t miss much of the regular season. The bad news is that you don’t know how he’ll be afterward.

Update 3:30 PM: Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe is reporting that Kotsay will be out until at least May.

Here is the complete Gatorade “Quest For G” commercial that has Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics, Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees, NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson, sprinter Usain Bolt, beach volleyball greats Misty May-Treanor and Keri Walsh and Olympic gymnast Alicia Sacramone. Be on the lookout for cameos from Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

to Ethan from NESW Sports for the link