I must admit that I was a bit surprised to see the Bengals place a frachise tag on offenisve lineman Stacey Andrews this off-season.  The team would have preferred a long-term deal, but when talks stalled the team kept him off of the open market by using their tag on him.

The Bengals offensive line was a trouble spot last year after the team lost guard Eric Steinbach and center Rich Braham and had to deal with injuries to other key players, including tackles Levi Jones and Willie Anderson. That is where Andrews shined though. He displayed not only enough to convince the Bengals, but CBSSports.com's Pete Prisco as well. In fact, in an article earlier this week Prisco tabbed Andrews as his No. 1 Breakout Candidate for the upcoming NFL season.

"The Bengals did the wise thing and designated Andrews their franchise player after the 2007 season. He went into that season as a backup, but injuries gave him 13 starts," Prisco wrote in his column. "He now goes into this season listed as the starting right tackle, ahead of 13-year veteran Willie Anderson. By season's end, he just might be the best right tackle in the AFC." 

"The right tackle spot doesn't get the glamour of the left tackle position, but Andrews might help change that. He is a drive-blocking, power player who should help spring Rudi Johnson for big numbers this season."

There were plenty of surprises as Major League Baseball announced their All-Star teams on Sunday, including Ken Griffey Jr., who was 2nd among NL outfielders in the final NL vote, not making the team after catapulted by both the Cubs' Kosuke Fukudome and the Brewers' Ryan Braun.

In total, there are seven Cubs made the team. No other NL team has more than two players on the squad. Over in the AL, the defending World Series champion Red Sox will go into Yankee Stadium with seven players on the squad, including four starters.

Alex Rodriguez, the third baseman for the Yankees, was again the top overall vote-getter with 3,934,518. Last year, for the game in San Francisco, A-Rod also out-polled all 16 elected starters with 3,890,515 votes.

Chase Utley, the six-year second baseman with the Phillies and a .299 hitter this season with 24 homers and 67 RBIs, paced the NL with 3,889,602 votes.

NATIONAL LEAGUE Starters 1B - Lance Berkman (HOU) 2B - Chase Utley (PHI) 3B - Chipper Jones (ATL) SS - Hanley Ramirez (FLA) RF - Ryan Braun (MIL) CF - Kosuke Fukudome (CHC) LF - Alfonso Soriano (CHC) C - Geovany Soto (CHC) Reserves C Russell Martin (LAD) C Brian McCann (ATL) 1B Albert Pujols (STL) 1B Adrian Gonzalez (SD) 2B Dan Uggla (FLA) 3B Aramis Ramirez (CHC) SS Miguel Tejada (HOU) SS Cristian Guzman (WAS) OF Matt Holliday (COL) OF Nate McLouth (PIT) OF Ryan Ludwick (STL) Pitchers SP Carolos Zambrano (CHC) SP Dan Haren (ARI) SP Ryan Dempster (CHC) SP Brandon Webb (ARI) SP Edinson Volquez (CIN) SP Tim Lincecum (SF) SP Ben Sheets (MIL) RP Billy Wagner (NYM) RP Kerry Wood (CHC) RP Brad Lidge (PHI) RP Brian Wilson (SF)

AMERICAN LEAGUE Starters 1B - Kevin Youkilis (BOS) 2B - Dustin Pedroia (BOS) 3B - Alex Rodriguez (NYY) SS - Derek Jeter (NYY) RF - Ichiro Suzuki (SEA) CF - Josh Hamilton (TEX) LF - Manny Ramirez (BOS) C - Joe Mauer (MIN) DH - *David Ortiz (BOS) Reserves C Jason Varitek (BOS) C Dioner Navarro (TB) 1B Justin Morneau (MIN) 1B Carlos Guillen (DET) 2B Ian Kinsler (TEX) SS Michael Young (TEX) 3B Joe Crede (CHW) OF Carlos Quentin (CHW) OF Grady Sizemore (CLE) OF Milton Bradley (TEX) OF J.D. Drew (BOS) Pitchers SP Roy Halladay (TOR) SP Cliff Lee (CLE) SP Scott Kazmir (TB) SP Joe Saunders (LAA) SP Ervin Santana (LAA) SP Justin Duchscherer (OAK) RP Mariano Rivera (NYY) RP Jonathan Papelbon (BOS) RP Joe Nathan (MIN) RP Frankie Rodriguez (LAA) RP Joakim Soria (KC) RP George Sherrill (BAL)

Fans get to vote for the last player on both squads on MLB.com. Here are the Final Vote candidates for both squads:

In the NL: third baseman David Wright of the Mets and outfielders Pat Burrell of the Phillies, Corey Hart of the Brewers, Carlos Lee of the Astros and Aaron Rowand of the Giants.

In the AL: first baseman Jason Giambi of the Yankees, third baseman Evan Longoria of the Rays, second baseman Brian Roberts of the Orioles and outfielders Jose Guillen of the Royals and Jermaine Dye of the White Sox.

Here's a rundown of the Sprint Cup drivers who will most likely be switching teams for the 2009 season:

Mark Martin confirmed Friday that he will give up his duties driving the No. 8 car for Dale Earnhardt Inc. to drive the No. 5 car full-time next season for Hendrick Motorsports. A four-time Series runner-up, Martin will take one last shot at winning the Cup title before splitting the 2010 season with a driver to be named. Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 88 in the Nationwide Series, is an option. Martin, 49, almost won last year's Daytona 500 with Ginn Racing, before Kevin Harvick beat him to the line, so he has shown he can still be a very competitive and a winning race car driver. This may be his best shot at winning a Cup title.

Casey Mears will be leaving the No. 5 car at the end of this season due to inconsistency on the track and a lack of results from the team. Mears finished 15th in the points standings last year with Hendrick's No. 25 team, who are now part of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 88 team, and won the Coca-Cola 600 with them. Once he finds a team Mears will be in his fifth program in as many years, starting his career with Chip Ganassi Racing in the No. 41 and 42 cars before joining Hendrick last season. Mears has been linked to the fourth driver team of Richard Childress Racing that will start next season and a possible opening at Joe Gibbs Racing where Tony Stewart may leave at the end of this season. Mears is the best driver with the worst luck in the Cup Series, but he'll land on his feet somewhere and get the support he needs.

Dario Franchitti's No. 40 team has been shut down by Ganassi Racing because of lack of funding. The team cited "lack of sponsorship funding", for cutting the No. 40 team which resulted in 71 layoffs. Ganassi officials have said that they are "committed to Franchitti's continued stock-car development." Franchitti has missed five races this season due to a broken ankle at the Nationwide Talladega race. Franchitti is set to speak with Chip Ganassi next week concerning his future, which could include the former IndyCar champ to race in the Nationwide Series for the rest of the season.

Tony Stewart has reached an agreement with Office Depot to be the sponsor of his car if he can finalize a deal with Haas CNC Racing to become a part-owner/driver with the team. The two-time Cup champion has been in serious talks with both Haas since early this season, furthering speculation that he will want to be released from the last year of his contract with Gibbs Racing. An announcement could be made as soon as the July 27 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, near Stewart's hometown of Columbus, Ind. Stewart would need an official release from his deal with Gibbs, before he can move to another team. JD Gibbs has said that the organization might be willing to start a fourth team to make room for 18-year-old phenom Joey Logano.

STUDS OF THE WEEK
Brewers' shortstop J.J. Hardy is heating up after a slow start to the season and he may have hit his boiling point this week as he batted .577 and had 1.1923 slugging percentage. Hardy hit 4 HRs and drove in 8 runs over the past week. Blue Jays' ace Roy Halladay reminded owners this week why he is consistently a top 5 fantasy hurler. The former Cy Young winner went 2-0 with a 1.12 ERA, 0.69 WHIP while striking out 13 and walking just one batter in 16 masterful innings.

DUDS OF THE WEEK
Cubs' rookie outfielder Kosuke Fukudome is mired in a slump of late. He did hit a homer this week, but batted just .167 while striking out 10 times. Look for him to continue to be a bit streaky as he adjustes to the league. Darrell Rasner may have pitched his way out of the Yankees' rotation over the past two weeks. The right hander is 0-3 with 9.00 ERA and 2.27 WHIP during that span.

KEY INJURIES
Dan Uggla (ankle) - day-to-day after spraining ankle
Johnny Damon (shoulder) - could be headed to DL
Roy Oswalt (hip) - will miss his next start
Troy Tulowitzki (hand) - placed back on 15-day DL
Rafael Furcal (back) - surgery buts him out 8+ weeks
Magglio Ordonez (oblique) - hopes to return after break
Troy Percival (hamstring) - hammy continues to haunt
Paul Konerko (oblique) - on rehab; should return this week
Todd Helton (back) - will miss at least 2-3 weeks
John Maine (forearm) - probable for next start

TWICE AS NICE
Here are some two-start pitchers to consider this week:

AL
Must-starts:
Daisuke Matsuzaka – MIN (Scott Baker), BAL (Daniel Cabrera)
Joe Saunders – @TEX (Scott Feldman), @OAK (Justin Duchscherer)
Scott Kazmir - @NYY (Sidney Ponson), @CLE (Cliff Lee)

Sleeper Picks:
Jose Contreras - @KC (Kyle Davies), @TEX (Scott Feldman)
Dana Eveland – SEA (Jarrod Washburn), LAA (Ervin Santana)

NL
Must-Starts:
Cole Hamels – STL (Joel Pineiro), ARI (Micah Owings)
Chad Billingsley – ATL (Jair Jurrjens), FLA (Andrew Miller)
Manny Parra – COL (Mark Redman), CIN (Aaron Harang)

Sleeper Picks:
Jason Marquis – CIN (Aaron Harang), SF (Kevin Correia)
Ricky Nolasco - @SD (Josh Banks), @LAD (Hiroki Kuroda)

WAIVER WATCH (from leagues played at CBSSports.com)
Five most added:
RP Grant Balfour (+34% roster change)
SS J.J. Hardy (+26%)
SP Hiroki Kuroda (+26%)
SP Ricky Nolasco(+25%)
3B Chris Davis (+21%)

Five most dropped (non-injured):
SP Clayton Kershaw (-23%)
SP Brett Myers (-20%)
RP Joe Borowski (-19%)
SP Darrell Rasner (-15%)
SS Mike Aviles (-14%

GAMES PLAYED
Let's take a look at how many games each team will be playing this week:

AL
7: KC, LAA, MIN, OAK, SEA, TB, TEX
6: BAL, BOS, CHW, CLE, DET, NYY, TOR

NL
7: COL, FLA, LAD, MIL, NYM, PHI, PIT
6: ARI, ATL, CHC, CIN, HOU, SD, SF, STL, WAS

He didn't factor in the decision on Saturday, but Josh Fogg's return from the so-called disabled list was a great success. He allowed one run on six hits in six innings in his first start back from a rehabilitation assignment to ease lumbar back spasms.

The team signed Fogg this off-season and paid him $1 million to be their fifth starter. However, after a slow start Fogg was pulled from the rotation and placed as a long reliever where he got little to no work. The team gave him a second chance against the Braves back in late May, but Fogg got shelled in the outing and mysteriously was put on the DL with "back spasms".

Fogg told reporters last week that he has felt for fine for about a month, approximately the same amount time he spent on the shelf.

The right-hander entered the start against the Nationals with a whopping 9.85 ERA. Fogg was officially reinstated from the 15-day disabled list Saturday to fill the roster spot vacated by Norris Hopper, who is having season-ending "Tommy John" surgery on his right elbow Tuesday. In five rehab starts he went 2-1 with a 2.50 ERA for Single-A Sarasota and Triple-A Louisville.

"It was a very good performance out of Josh. It looked like that time going down and the extra training helped him. He was sharp with his breaking stuff, and they're a pretty good hitting club over there," Reds manager Dusty Baker told the Cincinnati Enquirer.

The Reds have tried Fogg, Matt Belisle, Homer Bailey, and Daryl Thompson in the No. 5 spot in the rotation. While there has been brief glimpses of hope, the position has been a disaster. Ironically, as the team heads to the All-Star Break they are right back where they started with Fogg once again taking the ball every fifth day.