No, the two parts of that headline are not related.

It was a rough night in Boston sports, as all three teams lost and looked bad doing it. The Celtics appear to be at the end of the line, (wait, are they really not better without Rajon Rondo????) the Bruins are disappointing, and Alfredo Aceves and the Red Sox bats both failed to show up last night. Let’s move on…

The Globe yesterday officially hired Ben Volin of the Palm Beach Post as the replacement for Greg A Bedard, who is departing for Sports Illustrated at the end of this month.

So, I guess the cat’s out of the bag. It’s true — Next month I will be leaving the Post to cover the Patriots and NFL for the @bostonglobe

— Ben Volin (@BenVolinPBP) April 23, 2013

A Maryland native, Volin has been at the Post for seven years, and has covered the Dolphins for the paper for the last four years. He also covered the Florida Gators football team for two years, making him familiar with several current Patriots.

Note: We’ll be having a Q&A session with Ben sometime next week. If you’ve got a question you’d like us to ask him, please leave a comment below, or send Ryan an email at [email protected]

************

Pete Sheppard continues to be publicly critical of his former employer. Some have asked for audio of the rant against Entercom that he went on during his debut show on Monday. 1510  has posted the segment online.

Also, he was a guest on FOX25 television on Monday night. Only 2 and half minutes were shown on the air, but the station posted the entire interview online:

Boston News, Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston

 

SI also features a regional cover this week of Boston Red Sox outfielder Jonny Gomes pumping his fists in the air after beginning a game-winning rally with a double in Saturdays’ emotional victory at Fenway Park. The image falls under the headline: “Strong. Triumph After Tragedy.” SI managing editor Chris Stone on why this regional cover was chosen:

“From a sports context, Boston Strong was the story in New England this weekend, especially on Saturday, the day after the lockdown and the capture of the second of the Marathon bombing suspects. There it is: a Sox player flexing his guns after hitting a double to start a game-winning rally. At that moment, I don’t know if there’s any image that could have better captured the mood.”

Inside SI, senior writer S.L. Price writes that the apparent end to last week’s terror resulted in a weekend to celebrate in Boston, a time for civic pride and a time to proclaim that the Marathon will be bigger and stronger next year. However, as the period of relief settles down, Price says now is the time to ask what can be done to avoid a similar tragedy in the future.

“The celebrations will pass and new tougher, darker questions are going to have to be considered—S.L. Price, who’s been in Boston for more than a week, explains this convincingly and hauntingly in this week’s issue,” says Stone.

Price raises questions about terrorism security at future sporting events. He spoke to Rey Mey, a former FBI counter-terrorism expert now working as an international security consultant. Mey was concerned by the lack of security at the finish line of the Boston Marathon and tells Price that we can’t go forward with the same attitudes toward public safety at sporting events because these types of incidents aren’t going away. He says Marathon day is “really something special. But with the society we live in, it’s never going to be the same. (Page 58)

The future of such events is already changing shape. Price notes that the planning power will shift from event planners to security officials. Sunday’s London Marathon, for instance, was staffed by 40% more police than usual.

Price says: “Marathons that end on congested areas surrounded by storefronts and offices could well find their traditional courses altered…crowds lining the route will face increased scrutiny and hassle, and more popular races could erect temporary, ‘sanitized’ stands for family and friends. Undercover operatives, some armed with pole-cameras that stream back to monitors viewed in real-time, will move among the crowds. Entry fees will rise. Ticketing may become mandatory.” (PAGE 58)

The events of last week will never be forgotten.

As we slowly swing back into our lives, here are a few bits and pieces from the sports media world:

Boston Sports Media Watch comes to Chicago Sports Media Watch – I had a chance last week to speak with a similar type of site to this one based out in Chicago.

As mentioned by Ryan on Thursday, Pete Sheppard takes over the drive time slow at 1510 NBC Sports Radio Boston starting today. While signal remains an issue for 1510 AM, they do have an on-line stream available on their website. It’s another option for those of you who listen on-line while at work in the afternoons.

Meanwhile, at WEEI, it seems that at least some of the weekend shifts that Sheppard had been taking will be taken by Jen Royle, who is on the schedule this Saturday from 1-3 in the afternoon.

The rumors keep flying out of WEEI, but ironically, the bombings last week might’ve been a reprieve for someone like John Dennis. When there is legitimate reason for anger radio, like there was last week, there is no duo better than Dennis and Callahan.

An industry newsletter/blog title Inside Music Media had a post last week  in which an Entercom Boston employee referred to the company CEO as “Kim Jong” Field. The author says “One doesn’t know whether the reference applies to CEO David Field because he is the next in line of family “dictators” or that the son of the boss isn’t quite ready for prime time.”

It also had this to say about the “town meeting:”

One who attended said: “Field was not inspiring and uptight. The GM tried to blame others, pointing the finger at staffers..like  a coward. Only pre-submitted and sanitized questions were allowed, the whole charade has made things worse“.

The Entercom Boston cluster has had, according to an employee who attended the town meeting, “a long parade of incompetent management, layoffs, horrendous morale, salaries cut, very high turnover, and failed leadership and finger pointing form (sic) Mr. Field and MS. Kramer“(referring to the recently promoted Weezje Kramer).

To improve morale, GM Jeff Brown bought the staff pizza. Yup.

Maybe they’ll allow them to wear Hawaiian shirts with jeans on Friday, too.

Greg A Bedard signed off in his Sunday NFL Notes yesterday, noting it will be his last edition of the notes. He’ll be with the Globe through the draft this week before he departs to SI and Peter King, but will not have the notes on Sunday.

One name I’ve heard in regards to a possible replacement of Bedard at the Globe has been Ben Volin, who has covered the Dolphins with the Palm Beach Post for the last four seasons. I don’t think he was the first choice for the job, but might be their highest remaining candidate. I’ve attempted to contact Volin, but have not gotten a response from him.

Mike Emrick’s call during Bruins game really hit home – This was Chad Finn’s media column from Friday, where he looked at the call from the veteran announcer at the Bruins game against the Sabres last Wednesday night.

Don’t expect to see Kevin Garnett shaking hands til it’s over – Bill Doyle had Flip Saunders, the former coach of Kevin Garnett with the Timberwolves (and Celtics consultant last spring), and who is now serving as a studio analyst for ABC and ESPN during the NBA playoffs, talking about the competitive fire of KG.

ESPN, NFL Network unveil NFL draft plans – Richard Deitsch looks at how the two networks will battle it out over the draft this week.

The Globe added Baxter Holmes to its roster this season as the new Celtics beat writer. I’ve watched as he’s established himself as a strong company man (lots of retweets/promotion of Globe content) and then on Friday, he came up with a tremendous feature on perimeter defense in the NBA and what makes Avery Bradley so good at it.

If you missed it with everything else going on, be sure to check it out today.

David Ortiz made his feeling about Boston known during his emotional speech on Saturday prior to the first Red Sox game at Fenway since the bombings.

The FCC apparently has no issues at all with Ortiz’s use of an expletive on live TV during the speech. Good for them.

David Ortiz spoke from the heart at today’s Red Sox game. I stand with Big Papi and the people of Boston – Julius

— The FCC (@FCC) April 20, 2013

Two stories from the issue:

Chaos, fear filled the Boston air after the explosions – S.L. Price

Teary thoughts on a special day in Boston with my daughter – Steve Rushin

Chris Stone, SI Managing Editor, discusses the process of putting together this week’s SI.

With Monday being the weekly deadline for the magazine, how did the process go yesterday?

Stone: With the deadline rapidly approaching soon after the tragedy occurred, our team of editors and writers quickly worked together to provide our readers with coverage that is highly personal and emotional. And we had to change this week’s SI Cover at the last minute with a photo from the many that were coming in from the scene.

Why did you go with this cover?

Stone: After meeting with senior editors late Monday afternoon, we chose to run the cover photo because we felt it truly captured the horrific moment at the end of the race—there’s a fallen runner, police with their guns drawn and loose debris from the explosion. Inside SI, we wanted to help tell the story through photos and words (as written on the cover). We dedicated the entire Leading Off section to photos from Boston. They are extremely emotional and do a great job of chronicling the chaos that ensued.

With little time to spare, how did you decide on what content to run?

Stone: One of our best writers—S.L. Price—was in Boston on another assignment, staying in a hotel frequented my many runners just three miles from the finish line. After interviewing runners and witnesses, he wrote brilliantly in our Scorecard on the state of shock felt by those there in Boston and how the great city sadly joins a growing list of suffering cities that have been struck by tragedy. We felt strongly about putting this article up immediately on SI.com as well.

In addition, we ran a highly personal essay from Steve Rushin in the Point After section. Rushin recalls experiencing Boston and its beloved marathon in happier times with his eight-year-old daughter last summer. We felt this essay was a very suitable way to end our coverage.

How will SI continue to cover this story?

Stone: I am extremely proud of the great work done by our team to close an issue focusing on such a horrific tragedy at the 11^th hour of our weekly deadline. As details continue to emerge, SI.com and the SI iPad app will have on-the-scene coverage from Boston.

Historically, Bostonians have never taken to being pushed around very well.

This doesn’t bode well for whomever is responsible for the atrocities committed at the finish line of yesterday’s Boston Marathon.

I’m mortified at the idea that some lunatic(s) felt that Patriots’ Day – a day to remember the first battles of the American Revolution – was the day to make some sort of statement about government and rebellion, and to attack and kill and maim innocent people in the process.

Patriots’ Day was about the people of Boston taking a stand against a cruel and unjust regime. If whomever did this tries to make a connection to those events 238 years ago to justify what they did yesterday, then they are even more messed up than we can possibly imagine. It goes against everything the revolution was fought for.

This will not end well for the terrorists, whoever they are. Bostonians will continue to hold the marathon, to remember Patriots’ Day, and this event will only serve to bring more people together and make this annual day even more significant. Bostonians do not shrink back from adversity. Never have.

While yesterday showed the worst in people, it also showed the best. This photo is a shoo-in for a Pulitzer. Someone like Steve Silva, who was filming the finish line, and instead of running from the explosions, ran to them, capturing footage shown all over the world.  All the people at the scene who immediately ceased thinking of themselves and their own safety and instead, focused on who and how they could help around them. We can go on and on.

I’m just going to link three pieces by sportswriters today.

Heartbreak Hill – Leigh Montville.

The Marathon – Charles P. Pierce.

Letter from Boston – Paul Flannery.

After winning each of their first two series of the season on the road, Fenway Park opens this afternoon as the 4-2 Red Sox face the Baltimore Orioles.

The importance of Red Sox finding their way at Fenway – Rob Bradford looks at why it is so critical for the team to re-establish their home dominance.

Winds are changing at Fenway – Rich Levine writes that it has taken just one week for this club to establish itself among Red Sox fans.

Red Sox winning games, converts – Gordon Edes has the Sox setting the tone for this season early on.

Red Sox coming home happy – Sean McAdam says that the club’s 4-2 record has them coming into the opener with momentum at their back, confidence in their step.

This Red Sox team easy to root for – John Tomase guesses that you’re going to like what you see from this team in 2013.

Kevin Garnett returned to the Celtics lineup last night and his presence was immediately felt in a 107-96 win over Washington.

KG makes all the difference – Chris Forsberg notes how much of an impact KG has on his teammates.

Kevin Garnett makes everything better – Steve Bulpett says that KG restores order to the team.

Now is the time for Celtics to hit playoff stride – Gary Washburn looks at the importance of putting it all together for the Celtics in the next two weeks.

Claude Julien stresses time is short – Joe McDonald has the Bruins’ coach also emphasizing to his team the importance of getting their act together.

Time for B’s to step up in Bergeron’s absence – Joe Haggerty examines the Bruins options for filling in for #37.

Another Rob Gronkowski setback – If you missed it yesterday, Ron Borges and Karen Guregian report that the Patriots tight end is still battling infection in his arm, which could delay his ability to get back onto the field, putting the start of the season in jeopardy.

While this story generated a ton of talk (and panic) yesterday, but if you read the report (and follow-up reports from ESPN and the Globe) there is a lot of uncertainty here as to the actual situation. It is very similar to reports that came out when Tom Brady was rehabbing from his torn ACL and there were infections and talk of missed season time.