John Smoltz met the media prior to the Red Sox' game with the Nationals, Wednesday night, at Nationals Park, touching on his emotions and intentions heading into his first start of the season, Thursday against Washington. “It will be a success. I came back with this mindset," he said. "It ain’t about stories, it ain’t about to say I can do it again. This is about pitching and getting hitters out. The end result is going to be that. And in three, four, five starts from now, I think you’ll see why I feel the way I do.” For the entire interview see the 'Full Count Blog'.

Former Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, who retired earlier this spring to begin a broadcasting career, called quarterback Brett Favre “selfish” in an interview Wednesday, and said he’d take former Pats quarterback Matt Cassel over Favre if he had to choose between the two. Harrison, speaking on The Dan Patrick Show, said the perception of Favre around the league is that he’s “pretty selfish.”

“Each and every offseason bringing so much attention to himself. It’s just really a disappointment to hear that time and time again,” said Harrison, who announced his retirement from the NFL on June 3 after six seasons with the Patriots to take a job as an analyst for NBC Sports. “If you’ve been in the league 13, 14, 15 years or so you know if you want to play. The circus shouldn’t have to go on for three to four years. It’s just a disappointment. ... Then the media, they’re...