Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Turning up the sports heat on these hazy, hot and humid days:

-No offense, but there are simply too many easy outs in the Red Sox lineup right now (pun intended).

Yes pitching and defense win, but not unless they are accompanied by clutch hitting. You don't necessarily need a reincarnation of Murderer's Row to win it all, provided there are a couple of guys capable of driving in runs when you absolutely, positively have to have them.

Unfortunately for the Sox, Dustin Pedroia, Victor Martinez, Kevin Youkilis, Jason Bay and Mike Lowell (when healthy) are struggling in the clutch right now, largely because they can be pitched around in crucial situations. No need to give them anything good to hit when the likes of J.D Drew, David Ortiz, Jason Varitek and the "shortstop du jour" are due up just around the corner.

Am I writing Boston out of the post-season picture? Not entirely, just worried that even if they manage to get there, Josh Beckett won't be able to carry them this time around. Unless of course, he turns into Superman in the batter's box, too.

-I will never again take Tom Brady for granted.

Sure, it was only one exhibition game. And I'm still not sure what, if any effect the knee and the marriage will have on his psyche. What I do know is that when Brady perfectly placed a 30-yard sideline pass between two defenders and right into Randy Moss' hands (while Moss was in full stride, no less) the other night against the Eagles, I was reminded what makes #12 the best in the game.

Brady has completed that difficult pass countless times since 2001 and I'm afraid we won't fully grasp what we had until he's gone.

-While we're on the gridiron, let's lay off Michael Vick.

He did the crime. He did the time. Now he deserves a second chance to get his life in order. If he was Mike Vick the taxi driver, he'd be left alone to make a living. Instead, Michael Vick the Quarterback is the subject of protest groups thinking a jail sentence and a commitment to becoming a spokesperson against animal abuse aren't enough.

Here's hoping Vick is serious about turning his life around. And here's hoping some of these animal rights activists become more active when other criminals are set free in society with nothing more than a slap on the wrist.

-Finally, is Tiger Woods' aura of invincibility gone for good?

I couldn't help thinking that Sunday as Y.E. Yang ventured into the Tiger's den and emerged not only unscathed, but with the big game prize so many of golf's top names have failed to capture when grasping a Tiger by the tail.

It's not so much that Woods struggled in the final round of the PGA (which he did), but the way Yang didn't wilt under the pressure of playing head to head against the unbeatable one. On most similar occasions in the past, Tiger had the heart of a killer, putting away his foes with precision shot after precision shot. Even when that didn't happen, the mere presence of Woods was enough to cave the competition. This time, it was Tiger who blinked and the unknown Yang raising his game to a new level.

For the first time since 2004, Tiger Woods did not capture any of the Major championships. More importantly, the way it went down shows that passing Jack Nicklaus for most Majors won might not be the foregone conclusion it's been thought to be.

That's the view from here...how do you see things?