Rating the running backs
by Ilan Mochari

The countdown has begun: ‘tis the season for fantasy football prep, now that the Organized Team Activities (OTAs) are here.

Without further delay, here’s our early take on the running backs:

1. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings. Forget the notion that he’s fragile: He’s played 30 of 32 games in his two-year career. He either scored or surpassed 75 total yards in 15 of the Vikings’ 16 games. His 110.0 rushing yards per game led the league. Also, there’s no way he’ll fumble nine times again. That alone should vault his value, as will the upgrade at quarterback from Tarvaris Jackson to Sage Rosenfels and the addition of speedy receiver Percy Harvin.
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Baseball: The First 30 Games
by Tony Lee

The rush of Opening Day is long gone and the pennant races have yet to heat up. Players, coaches, executives and fans refuse to get too worked up over anything for fear of burnout. With nearly five months of baseball left they choose to bide their time before making any definitive statements about their club.

Those struggling to get going reach the 30-game mark and say, “Ah, it’s still early. We’ll turn it around.”

Those playing well take the high road, uttering words such as, “Things are going great right now, but we have a long way to go before we can be comfortable.”
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Sick of sports scandals
by Kristen Merrill

I don’t know about you all but as a sports fan, I am sick to death of hearing about professional athletes being caught up in scandals. Stripper scandals, money scandals, performance-enhancing drug scandals, the list goes on and on. Seems you can’t turn on ESPN or Fox Sports these days without hearing about who’s divorcing whom and how much money they’re demanding or who took some banned substances and for how long.

Along the way, there have been countless names dropped in relation to performance enhancers, steroids or HGH. Including some big ones. First it was Barry Bonds, which surprised only people living in sparsely populated parts of Antarctica with poor TV reception. Then it was Alex Rodriguez, which surprised a sight more people because of A-Rod’s assumed ascension to the home run throne. So much for a clean home run king.
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Listen up, Fenway faithful
by Amy Rossi

Living within walking distance from the venerable old bandbox that is Fenway Park makes visiting other stadiums an intriguing experience. Like many Sox fans, I’ve grown accustomed to having neither legroom nor bobblehead promotions when it comes to attending a ballgame. As much as I adore Fenway and hope it stands 90 more years, trips to other parks remind me of what we’re missing here. There’s guilt in cheating on Fenway with a younger, prettier park. But dear reader, I went to Miller Park and, oh, was it good.

Now, obviously Milwaukee is not Boston. Wisconsin is football country. Years of below .500 ball mean you have to provide bobbleheads of racing sausages and rookies of the year to fill the seats. Cheaper concessions coincide with a lower cost of living. While it is important for a stadium to reflect the local culture – I’m not suggesting singing a polka song in lieu of “Sweet Caroline” – even Fenway could learn a thing our two from our friends in Milwaukee...
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