CSN looks to bench for 6th.

Byline: Bill Doyle

COLUMN: Tuning In 

Since the 1987-88 Celtics season, Comcast SportsNet has invited fans to vote for the Celtics' 6th Star Award and even though honoring a reserve is implied, starters have often received the most votes.

Each of the last three 6th Stars, Rajon Rondo, Al Jefferson and Delonte West, started and 14 of the award's 21 winners started for at least the majority of the team's games. So for the first time this year, CSN has made sure that only non-starters will be eligible. CSN is allowing fans to vote only for reserves Glen Davis, Eddie House, Leon Powe, Brian Scalabrine, Tony Allen and Gabe Pruitt on its Web site, www.newengland.comcastsportsnet.com. Follow the promotions link to vote.

The 6th Star Award's name has always suggested that it wasn't meant for one of the starting five, but it was open to any Celtic who exceeded expectations and defined Celtics pride.

"We do think there was some confusion about what the award was," CSN spokesperson Skip Perham said, "and who it should recognize so we focused on the non-starters, the guy who wouldn't get the recognition from another award."

Voting began last week and will run until April 4. All voters will be entered for the chance to win playoff tickets and a $300 gift certificate from Sullivan Tire, the 6th Star sponsor.

This year's 6th Star ballot was formed before the Celtics signed backup big man Mikki Moore on Tuesday and the expected signing of reserve guard Stephon Marbury today. Perham said CSN won't decide whether to add them to the ballot until after Marbury signs.

In a press release announcing the start of voting, Bill Bridgen, CSN executive vice president and general manager, said, "We are once again excited to give fans a chance to recognize the player who has best contributed as a super sub. One of those contributors could well be this year's P.J. Brown and help lift the Celtics to another NBA title."

If honoring someone like Brown is the goal, then it would make sense to add Marbury and Moore to the ballot. Brown came out of retirement last season and didn't play his first game with the Celtics until March 7.

A CSN panel will evaluate the top vote getters and have the final say on who wins the 6th Star. Perham said the panel hasn't been picked yet, but he expected Celtics broadcasters Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn and Donny Marshall to be on it. The award will be presented to the winning Celtic during the team's regular-season finale on April 15.

Switching all voting from the mail to the Internet last year boosted the vote total to roughly 5,000 from about 1,000 the year before.

Winning the 6th Star Award comes with a bit of a jinx. Of the 13 winners immediately before Rondo, only Paul Pierce remained with the Celtics a year and a half after receiving the award. The 2007 winner Al Jefferson, 2002 winner Erick Strickland, 2001 winner Bryant Stith and 1997 winner David Wesley did not even return to the team the following season.

"If there's a jinx, Rondo is disproving that," Perham said.

Miller: `Woods best ever'

Not nearly as many people watch golf when Tiger Woods doesn't play. So the golf world and NBC were excited that Woods returned from an eight-month absence following knee surgery to defend his title this week in the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship in Tucson, Ariz. Unfortunately, he was eliminated yesterday.

Woods needs to win four more majors to match Jack Nicklaus' record of 18, but NBC analyst Johnny Miller thinks he's already the best golfer that ever lived.

"Tiger, right now, I'd give him the edge over Jack just barely," Miller said, "but major championships you've got to give it to Nicklaus. But Jack never won a U.S. Open by 15 shots or a Masters by 12."

Nevertheless, Miller compared the interest falloff during Woods' absence to "a dip in the stock market" and insisted golf could survive without him.

"It's a tough time period even with Tiger with the way the economy is," he said, "but golf is bigger than any one player, I can tell you that."

Golf would survive without Woods, but it wouldn't thrive. Look how long it took the NBA to recover after Michael Jordan retired. Phil Mickelson, Anthony Kim, Vijay Singh and Camilo Villegas are a lot more fun to watch when they challenge Woods than each other.

Remy recovering

Guest analysts will rotate on Red Sox exhibition broadcasts until Jerry Remy recovers from an infection he acquired on vacation. NESN spokesman Gary Roy said Remy hopes to return soon.

Bill Doyle can be reached at

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