Craft Like A Champion Week 4: A Numerical Trivia Challenge

Not sure what all this is about?  Click here, or follow the link in the sidebar!

Something strange happened when I started pulling together this week’s Craft Like A Champion post.  I was looking for athletes who could be a visual representation of the number of hats we’ve so far completed.  Now, there are some very famous retired athletes associated with this number, but I wanted pictures of current athletes with their current teams.  I did find some good candidates, but I also found not one, not two, but four fairly high profile athletes who used to wear this number but, because they’ve switched teams this off-season, now have new numbers.

I was going to just tell you who they were, but then I thought, why not do a reverse of our old Theme Thursdays game: I’ll tell you the theme, and you tell me the athletes.

For your first hint, here’s the number I was looking for as modeled by a few football players:

Last Call for Brackets!!!

Just a reminder you have until Noon Est Thursday to join the Ladies…Bracket Brawl.  Don’t worry if you’ve never picked a bracket before or haven’t watched a college basketball game this season — sometimes the best brackets are filled out by people who don’t spend too much time analyzing their picks.

But, if you need some help, here are some helpful strategies for picking your bracket (interspersed, for your enjoyment, with some cute college players):

John Wall

Show us your stuff!

It’s time for the holiday hangover where you’re still in letdown mode after Christmas, sad about heading back to work and not yet jazzed up for New Year’s Eve. The other Ladies… and I had a whole email conversation about sports-themed ornaments so in order to stave off the winter blues, and because it’s moderately interesting what sort of stuff other teams make, here’s a smattering of the sports themed ornaments on my tree. Link up to some of yours in the comments.

Yes, Again: The (Last-Minute) Case For Tim Lincecum

There is a statistically-inclined rant after the jump that I think you all need to hear.

Theme Thursday Has A Cold, So Cut It Some Slack, Okay?

This week's theme is not: colds, tissues, or edgy hipster bangs

Theme Thursday makes a triumphant return because, well, because I have a cold and I wrote this one down when I thought of it a while back just in case my head was ever to be stuffed so full of mucus that it impaired my ability to write about sports.  As we haven’t played in a while, I’ll remind you of the rules: first person in the comments to guess what these three athletes have in common gets to suggest a theme for a future post.  Ready? Set?

Inappropriate Fatheads

So I came up with this feature as a new twist to “Caption This!”  See, a coworker and I were looking at Fatheads for no apparent reason.  When you click on one, it will give suggestions for others.  Well this lovely LeBron James Fathead popped up as a suggestion.  We both thought it was sorta inappropriate.  It kind of looks like he’s thrusting his crotch in your face.  So then we thought of some other sports pictures that would make inappropriate/funny Fatheads.  And the idea was born.

Follow me after the jump to see some funny and highly inappropriate Fatheads. 

Write your own caption, you want one so damn much.

Winning the NL East three years running? Smoking hot.

Theme Thursday: Holy Crap, It’s College Football Edition

This week's theme is a toy only and should not be used as a livesaving device.

Partly because I’ve been consumed with fantasy football drafts and partly because the university at which I work a)has no football team and b)hasn’t started classes yet, the start of the college football season this week caught me a little off guard.  This round of Theme Thursday pays tribute to the scholar-athletes of the gridiron no matter how seriously they might take the first part of that title*.  No one won last round, so I’ll be taking the credit (or blame) for this trio.

*Note to NCAA: I am not implying anything about the players pictured in this post. It’s called a joke.

Theme Thursday: It’s Still Baseball Season

This week's theme is NOT: bunnies, pancakes, or unusual habadashery

Congratulations to Stacey, last week’s winner!  (You can still submit a theme if you want, Stacey!) So we Ladies have gone a little football crazy over the last week or so, but there’s still a lot of baseball action going on right now — which is the inspiration for this week’s Theme Thursday.  I’m running late putting this together, so let’s get right to the good stuff, shall we?

To plunk or not to plunk – baseball’s “unwritten rules”

First it was the locker rooom charging anger of Prince Fielder, now it’s Ozzie Guillen threatening retaliation.

Plunking batters has become all the rage lately and it’s led to a lot of comments dismissing the process as “just baseball.” But is it?

I’ve had this conversation a few times this season, since the Brewers are second in the NL, fourth in MLB in hit batsmen, with 47. (The Dodgers are second to last, having been hit 23 times, so maybe that’s why they’re so angry about each one.)

What do we think about these “unwritten rules?” Do you agree with them? Are they part of the game?

Theme Thursday: Put On Your Thinking Caps!

This week’s theme is courtesy of Pam!  She said she tried to avoid hockey since we’ve had back-to-back hockey themes.  That must have been hard for you, Pam!

Hopefully she doesn’t stump you all too much!  So put on those thinking caps, and let us know what the following three fellas have in common.

In Which I Point Out That Someone Has Done Something Awesome

If you haven’t already, go read this article from Beyond the Box Score.

IT MAKES STEPS TOWARDS QUANTIFYING CATCHER DEFENSE.

TOO COOL.

Still unquantifiable: Erick Aybar's socks.

Yes, that’s a random photo. But it’s a neat image. So there.

Try to survive the night.

(Aaaaahhhhh someone is quantifying catcher defense!!!)

Oh, and, uh, guys? I promise I’ll say something interesting over the weekend. Just a thought to get you excited for my upcoming angry ramblings and rants: Who do you think is having the best season? Andy LaRoche, Jason Bay, or Manny Ramirez?

Theme Thursday: More Hockey

Don’t blame me! Blame last week’s winner, J!  She has selected our next trio of hockey players and wants you all to find the link.  I promise you it has nothing to do with animals playing hockey!

Guess the theme after the jump.

Theme Thursday: Is it Hockey Season Yet?

Since Games Mistress is busy gallivanting around Europe (lucky bum!), I have taken over her Theme Thursday duties.  Since we didn’t have a winner the last go-round, I took it upon myself to do a little research and come up with my own.  Since I’m missing hockey like whoa, I thought I would bring some NHL love back to the site.

Take a guess as to what these three NHLers have in common after the jump!

Theme Thursday: Tennis Edition

This week's theme is NOT: hedgehogs, first aid, or Beatrix Potter characters.

Theme Thursday makes a triumphant return with our first “themed” Theme Thursday, in honor of the Wimbeldon tournament currently underway.  Which means this week’s answer is a little more complicated then just “they’re all tennis players,” okay?  I won’t promise it’s as complicated as the last round, which Dakota ultimately won, but it wouldn’t be fun if it was too easy.

Let’s begin, shall we?

Fashion Police: AJ Burnett

So y’all know how much I love AJ Burnett. And you also probably noticed this yesterday. But even though his pitching was pretty damn good, I have a question for you: Did you see the shirt he was wearing in the postgame press conference?

Well, in case you didn’t — or in case you need a reminder — he wore this:

It’s just… I don’t even know. First of all, I can’t figure out whether it’s pink or orange. Second of all, it’s not even buttoned properly (not that I necessarily have a problem with that, but y’know). Third of all, it has rhinestones on it. And fourth of all, he’s wearing gaudy chain necklaces.

The whole thing just sort of screams “I lost a bet with Nick Swisher”, doesn’t it?

All-Star Posts, All-Star Posts, Come And Get Yer All-Star Posts

Good morning. How can you just walk on by without one tear in your eye?

(Incidentally, that song reminds me of this, which I swear only makes me cry because I’m listening to that damn song. Insert “unhealthy obsession” comment here.)

(Yes, I know that you’re getting this post after the afternoon post. It’s still morning in California.)

The current All-MLB RAR leader.

The rest of the All-Star awesomesauce is after the jump, but first: SPOILER ALERT! NO RED SOX OR YANKEES! WHEEEEEEEEEEEEE!.

Hump Day Hottie/Don’t Judge Me: AJ Burnett

Good morning.

*hides from all Mets fans, some Jays fans, plenty of Yankees fans*

(Incidentally, you don’t need a white horse to steer you back onto course.)

For each one of you that sees the “Read the rest of this entry” link here and doesn’t click on it, a child is taught that Saves are useful statistics and that Derek Jeter is worthy of this year’s All-Star Game start. (So that’s a maybe. But do you really want to risk it?)

Theme Thursday: Hopefully More Difficult This Time

Today's theme is NOT: monkeys, stuffed animals, or things I might buy as a baby gift.

Congratulations to MJ28, who not only won last week’s Theme Thursday, but set a new world record in doing so.   You all are getting entirely too good at this game.  I’m hoping this week will be more of a challenge.  Only the exact answer will be given bragging rights; getting only the easy part doesn’t count.  If someone gets this one in less than an hour I’m going to have to start consulting Elias or something.  Good luck!

Theme Thursday: The Themening

This week's theme is NOT: ducks, bath toys, creepy green bills

Our last round of Theme Thursday was won by familiarcraving, who didn’t submit a theme (you still can, fc! Theme Thursday prizes do not expire!).  So I’ve put together this week’s trio all by myself.  I’m pretty happy with this theme, because I came up with it even before I realized these three good-looking gentlemen qualified!

As usual, first person to guess correctly in the comments has the option of emailing us a future Theme Thursday idea. Ready? Go!

Hit and Run: In Which Barry Zito’s BABIP Regresses, Right Before Our Eyes!

A.k.a. the “Complete MLB Rundown (To The Exclusion Of Everything Else)” edition. Why? Because I can. Yesterday’s scores presented BBC-style for extra hilarity and confusion.

• Red Sox 3 – 5 Blue Jays. Sevven sollid innings from Tallet (see what I did there?) provide a lead for Scott Downs to preserve, bringing them back into 2nd place in the mighty AL East. Go Jays!
• Marlins 7 – 3 Mets. Tim Redding sucks. Josh Johnson doesn’t. Go Fish!
• Braves 2 – 3 Diamondbacks. There are a lot of 3s today. Eric Byrnes finally does something good; namely, driving in the winning run in the 11th. No, wearing awesome socks doesn’t automatically mean that you’ve done something good.
• Dodgers 0 – 7 Cubs. Eric Stults fails as Dodgers get shut out for the first time all year. You know, I like the guy, but hey dude, put up or shut up. As in, put up zeros on the scoreboard, or shut the hell up when the reporters interview you and ask why you sucked. Go ahead, say, “I sucked”. David Ortiz did, you can too! Ugh. STULTS. My boy Brent Leach faces 1 batter, records 2 groundouts, because he’s cool like that. Go Dodgers.
• Twins 2 – 5 Rays. David Price blah blah blah 11 strikeouts blah blah blah 1st Major League win blah blah blah Free Rick Porcello!
• Reds 5 – 9 Brewers. Some dudes hit some home runs.
• Tigers 6 – 3 Orioles. Is Luke Scott on steroids? Naw, he’s just in an un-slump.
• Astros 4 – 7 Pirates. Hey guys, the Pirates just won another game. Meanwhile, the Astros lost another one and are hopelessly out of contention. Kind of like the Nationals.
• Yankees 10 – 5 Indians. Your first double-digit scoring game of the night was notable only for the fact that CC Sabathia gave up runs. I really hate that guy. Oh, and Nick Swisher (perhaps better known simply as AJ Burnett’s new boyfriend) hit a home run. I’m sure they celebrated in an entirely appropriate fashion that didn’t involve ice cream or maple syrup or leather and chains. No, I didn’t just imply that.
• Nationals 6 – 9 Phillies. Cole Hamels gets shelled but gets the win anyway. Disgusting. Lidge doesn’t implode, but his ERA is still above 8. Good luck with that, buddy.
• White Sox 5 – 3 Royals. Gil Meche gets no love from the bullpen. Which sucks.
• Athletics 1 – 14 Rangers. The average Leverage Index for this game was so low that it actually may have caused a Fangraphs implosion. Seriously, check it out:

• Padres 7 – 8 Rockies. This game is actually so boring that there’s no proof it happened, so I can’t tell you what happened, although I’m sure if you really want to know you can look it up somewhere.
• Mariners 4 – 3 Angels. If you’re a Mariners fan, then Jose Lopez is your saviour. On the other hand, if you’re a Mariners fan, then you probably have bigger problems, including the fact that your #5 starter is actually a vampire. That’s my clever way of saying that I sort of have a crush on Jason Vargas.
• Cardinals 6 – 2 Giants. Zito was doing fine until he gave up 3 consecutive doubles in the 7th. Actually, on a team that didn’t epitomize suckitude, he would’ve had an easy shot at winning this game, except that 1) Albert Pujols is on steroids and 2) The Giants suck, ergo, their bullpen sucks, ergo, their starters don’t win unless they pitch complete game shutouts. Except for that one time, but I’m pretty sure that was an accident. Oh, and Albert Pujols did do something good; namely, he struck out looking on a curveball from Zito that came thisclose to making me scream in delight. (I did actually sort of whimper, but the sexual power of a pitch like that is a discussion for another time. Just watch any Roy Halladay start, or a good AJ Burnett start. You’ll understand.)

Good morning. I know in darkness I will find you giving up inside like me.

Crane’s All-Star Picks: American League

Good morning. Please bear with me as I present you with my ESPN-implosion-inducing All-Star team.

1B (a.k.a Base the First, because I’m feeling medieval tonight): Justin Morneau (MIN). I dislike Mark Teixeira. I dislike Kevin Youkilis. I don’t care about Miguel Cabrera. Justin Morneau is both 1) Canadian, and 2) Totally hot.

Hit the jump for more.

Theme Thursday Returns

It’s time for the weekly installment of Theme Thursday. This week’s group was suggested by Sarah after she was the first to correctly guess last week’s theme.

Once again, the first person to correctly guess the theme in the comments gets to suggest a future Theme Thursday post.

So what do these fine gentlemen have in common?

Hump Day Hotties: Barry Zito and Tim Lincecum

Good morning. Please bear with me as I attempt to explain why I’m the worst Dodgers fan ever.

Prettiness abounds. Hit the jump for more awesomeness.

Theme Thursday Strikes Back

As promised last week, Theme Thursday has returned with a new batch of mysteriously connected hotties.  This week’s trio was suggested by gretchenarchangel after she was the first to successfully guess the inaugural Theme Thursday puzzle.

Once again, the first person to correctly guess the theme in the comments gets to suggest a future Theme Thursday post.

This week’s guys certainly seem like an eclectic bunch at first glance — and you may want to take a couple of extra glances, you know, just to make sure you’ve gathered all the necessary information.

Theme Thursday Round 2

It’s time for another edition of Theme Thursday!  This week’s mysteriously connected hotties are maybe a little less famous than last week, but they all still have something in common.

Last week’s winner was gretchenarchangel, and I’m going to take her suggestion that the winner gets to suggest a theme for a future round.  So, gretchen, email us with your idea.  Those of you who came up with alternate solutions can brag that you were more creative than me, if that makes you happy.

Anyway, on to this week’s challenge!

Theme Thursday: What do these guys have in common?

It’s Thursday and everyone’s getting antsy waiting for the weekend, so let’s play a little game.  A game involving pictures of hotties — that will make the day go faster, right?  Anyway, below you will find pictures of three different, well-known (both in the wider sports world and on this site) male athletes.  Can you guess what they have in common?  First person to get it right gets … bragging rights.  (Sometimes that’s all you need.  Just ask my brothers, who I totally beat in our NCAA tourney pool this year.)