Front Row.com Blog

 Sometimes wheeling and dealing can assemble the parts needed to reach the World Series. Sometimes it’s just desperation and other times it’s getting rid of a thorn in your side.

 For the Boston Red Sox, the trade of Manny Ramirez may serve double duty. Dumping a loudmouth, while gaining a hitter like Jason Bay, can only make Boston stronger. The Dodgers badly needed a boost in the lineup and being in the spotlight of L.A. may assuage Manny’s ailing ego.

Ken Griffey Jr.’s move to the White Sox, to me, isn’t that big a deal. But it will give White Sox fans a hero.

The Los Angeles Angels did themselves some good by bringing in Mark Teixeira and aking themselves contenders for a World Series.

Amidst the flurry, it may have been hard to notice the Yankees moves. Riding a winning wave, the Yankees have positioned themselves for another run at a title, which may or may not be good enough for the Steinbrenners if it doesn’t happen.  

Tags: sports by edrouant
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 Georgia Bulldogs fans were up in arms at the end of the 2007 college football season, claiming their team was the best in the country. At the time they may have been right. The Bulldogs were riding a winning streak and looked unstoppable. But their early season performance kept them out of the running for a BCS National Championship.

 As the 2008 college football season looms ahead, Georgia is once again looking like one of the stronger teams in the nation. They’ve got a quarterback in Matthew Stafford who could be an NFL prospect, another NFL prospect in tailback Knowshon Moreno, and a defense with it’s own plethora of stars. The Georgia Bulldogs are ranked in the top five in most polls. Now the bad news:

In order to entertain thoughts of a BCS National Championship the Georgia Bulldogs will have to fight their way through a schedule that includes the Alabama Crimson Tide, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Auburn Tigers, and Tennessee Volunteers, not to mention Arizona State. Ending the season with a month of road games won’t make things any easier. It’s a tough road. If the Bulldogs can swing the schedule they can talk the talk. But that’s a big if.

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 Things are heating up in the negotiation room as NFL teams get their draft picks on board and clean their rosters for training camp.

 Kansas City Chiefs – Signed Glenn Dorsey, their #1 pick, DL lineman from LSU

Oakland Raiders – Released LaMont Jordan after drafting Darren McFadden.

Arizona Cardinals – Signed #1 pick Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie

Atlanta Falcons – Signed Sam Baker, tackle from USC, their #1 pick

 Carolina Panthers – Signed Jonathan Stewart and Jeff Otah, both #1 choices.

 The trend nowadays is to get your picks signed and in camp. Too much investment is lost on both sides with long holdouts. A year lost in the NFL could be 20% of a players productive career. Gone are the days when both sides dug in heir heels and played possum. It’s all about the Benjamins.  

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 OK, you’re a NASCAR fan and you know that the next few weeks are going to make or break it for teams vying for the Sprint Cup. Only seven races remain. Will your favorite driver make it? Which NASCAR tickets should you be looking at?

Pennsylvania 500 – Pocono Raceway - Aug 3

Centurion Boats at The Glen – Watkins Glen – Aug 1o

Let’s assume that the top six are locks for The Chase for The Sprint Cup. The Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Pennsylvania 500, and Centurion Boats at The Glen are big for drivers like Tony Stewart and Kasey Kahne, currently in the running but in a narrow group of drivers seperated by only a handful of points. Three races from now it’s not inconceviable that the picture could change radically. We’ll re-evaluate in a few weeks but keep you posted on any big NASCAR News.  

Tags: Uncategorized, sports by edrouant
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 Please, Chad Johnson of the Cincinnati Bengals, say you didn’t report to NFL training camp today with nothing to say. If you were going to show up, at least let loose with a verbal barrage and let us know how you’re feeling.

 Seriously, Bengals management finaly showed some sense. After a long and drawn out war in the media the Bengals simply told Johnson that if he didn’t show up they would go on without him, no trade, no giving in, leaving Johnson with little choice but to swallow his pride or lose a paycheck. He made the right choice. So did the Cincinnatti Bengals. Sometimes we all have to just accept the circumstances and soldier on.

Tags: sports by edrouant
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 The Ohio State Buckeyes are under some pretty intense scrutiny. It’s hard to imagine how a program that has won so many football games can be the butt of so many barbs. But there it is. That’s what happens when you win the Big Ten, play in the BCS National Championship Game two years in a row, and come away with nothing.

 Heavy on the minds of the Buckeyes is the chance to claim the Big ten three consecutice college football seasons. No team has done that before. Yeah, that would be great. But nothing less than a national championship will shut people up. It’s the price of success.  

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 Just how important Olympic Summer Games tickets can be was illustrated today when thousands of fans erupted into a shoving mob, trying to get olympics tickets on sale in Beijing. Chinese police were overwhelmed, barricades destroyed, and mass mayhem descended on the city of the 2008 Summer Olympics and eager ticket buyers battled to get to the front of the line.

 Aren’t you glad you got yours from Frontrow.com?

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 The PGA Championship is set for Aug 7th at Oakland Hills. Of course, all the golfers are upset that Tiger woods is recovering from knee surgery and won’t be able to play. Right?  Right? It couldn’t be that that wind comng out of Michigan is a collective sigh of relief could it? Nah.

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 Early in the MLB season the New York Yankees looked like they were going to be on the outs in 2008. Slowly but surely they’ve clawed their way back into the race. The Yankees have now won 10 games in a row and are only three games behind the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and four games behind the Boston Red Sox. The race is now getting interesting and I’m sure the Yankees would love nothing better than to close out their time in The House that Ruth Built with a few World Series games. It’s beginning to look possible again.  

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 The Brett Favre controversy is making me weary. Now it seems that Favre MAY have made calls to the Minnesota Vikings using a Green Bay Packers cell phone. And the beat goes on.

In Other NFL News:

Jason Taylor, formerly of the Miami Dolphins. is headed for the Washington Redskins. Is this a good deal? For the Dolphins it means more picks. For the Redskins it means a defensive player maybe on the down side but probably still savvy enough to make a difference. You make the call.

The Indianapolis Colts are waiting for Peyton Manning to recover from knee surgery to remove an infected bursar sac. Manning is expected to be back in 4-6 weeks. Probably not a big deal, Manning doesn’t really need a training camp but still, it would be nice. 

Tags: sports by edrouant
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