Friday Fellow: Matt Harvey

It’s Friday AND it’s Matt Harvey Day here in New York (well, technically the Mets are in DC but I don’t think the Nats are Harvey-observant), so … I’m not taking much of a risk here.

Hit and Run: I Was There Edition

I moved and changed jobs almost simultaneously this spring. As a result, I’m off the academic schedule for the first time in over a decade and it’s throwing off my whole concept of summer. So Tuesday night I went to check on the Cardinals score and discovered, to my dismay, that they had just finished one of the two games they are playing in NYC that I could actually attend.  Luckily, they were playing the Mets, which isn’t exactly a tough ticket to get at the last minute these days. So Wednesday night, my boyfriend and I headed out to Citifield, where around the actual game action, my blog post wrote itself.

First off — paper all star ballots!  Nostalgia!  Also, once we had established that I somehow didn’t have a writing implement in my purse, we discovered that the plug end of a pair of headphones is actually the perfect tool for punching the holes out of the ballot.

The hardest part about filling these out was trying to remember who was on the disabled list, particularly in the AL. (That’s not a Yankees joke — entirely.)  Then we put them in the ballot box to be buried under everyone’s 35-per-person internet ballots. I’m still looking forward to the All-Star Game if only because I was out of town when it was at old Yankee the last time, and since both the marathon and Fleet Week were canceled this past year, we’ve been lacking in the crowds-of-people-in-uniforms-descending-on-the-city-to-be-ogled department.

Just before the 7th inning stretch, this happened.  The crowd seemed primarily delighted, with an undercurrent of bemusement.  I certainly think Kidd can handle the in-game/practice side of coaching, but I’m a little unsure how the front office/roster building side is going to go, especially with a front office that can be …mercurial.

The scoreboard proved a great source of entertainment throughout the game.  The consensus in our section was that Matt Holliday has the saddest media photo ever.

My boyfriend’s comment: “That’s totally an ‘I’m going to go 0-4 and we’ll lose by 5,’ face.”  So perhaps he’s not sad, he’s just psychic.

Also appearing on the CitiField board, periodic Stanley Cup Final updates!  I didn’t get a picture, but the updates piqued my interest enough that even though the 2 hour and 40 minute game time got us home well before 11, we then stayed up past 1 watching the 6th longest Stanley Cup game in history.

Happy Friday! Anyone else going to a game this weekend?

Advent Calendar of Hotness Day 4: David Wright

Congratulations, Mets fans (and BUFF!) David Wright is officially yours for the next eight years. Let’s mark the occasion with an appearance in the Ladies… Advent Calendar of Hotness. You deserve something to cheer about.

On momentos and memorabilia

The uproar two weeks ago about whether or not an adult has to give away a baseball that enters the stands to a child had me thinking about collecting memorabilia.

We have a (wo)man room –  man room sounds better, but honestly, most of the stuff in there is mine…

We don’t have anything that we spent a lot of money on – I think we paid for maybe one signature in the bunch – but we do like to display some of the various things we’ve picked up at games. Aside from stadium giveaways, we have a few banners with logos on them, since I’m a major uni-nerd and we’ve framed programs and ticket stubs from some of the cooler games we’ve attended.

So this got me wondering about whether sports fans inherently become collectors of “stuff” or memorabilia merely by being fans who attend many games. Seems like every sports fan I know has at least one thing that they’re proud to own and show off.

So what are the coolest pieces that we Ladies… own?

Follow the jump to find out

Guess Who’s Back?

One of the great things about spring training isn’t just that baseball is back, but that it marks the return of many players who lost all or most of last season to injury. Like our shadow player below.  Can you guess who this is?

(AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Buffalita’s Bachelorette Party Part 3!

Forget the pinstripes, its time to bring in the other boys from New York to wish Buffalita a happy day.

Jose Reyes has gotten an early start on the strip routine.

Prelude to David Wright and Jose Reyes wrestling? We can only hope.

There’s something wholesomely appealing about Chris Capuano. Don’t you kind of want to see him go bad?

Ok, I was looking for some things for Buffalita to take with on her honeymoon, but apparently the Mets aren’t popular enough for that, so its back to the pinstripes for bedroom and beach gear.

But it’s not just baseball or football cuties that want to wish Buffalita a happy bachelorette. The Sabres want in on the act.

Derek Roy is left brooding at the loss of Buffalita from the market.

Shaone Morrisonn and his dog Hazel wish Buffalita and future-Mr-Buffalita luck in their future life together.

Finally, though he’s not the bachelorette type beefcake, we would be remiss if we didn’t have American Hero Ryan Miller here to send Buffalita off right.

Hit and Run: I’m too hot to come up with a theme

Hope Solo shall have none of your silly goal scoring nonsense. (Photo: Getty Images)

We hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend! I’m still unpacking and cleaning up gear from the Great Island Campout of 2011, in which I did not end up on Princess Kate Watch and did not get to celebrate Brad Richards signing with the Maple Leafs.

And tonight? It’s warm! Summer warm! Finally! Also building heat is Team USA, who defeated Columbia 3-0 yesterday in Women’s World Cup action in Germany. The win clinches them a spot in the quarter finals. They face Sweden tomorrow at 2:45 ET.

Back to hockey for a minute…

Your Annual “Ladies… On A Break” Post

A few of us could tolerate being here right now for our spring break, even with the overcast Florida skies. (Photo: AP)

We’re taking their annual blogging break to recharge our batteries. But don’t worry, we’ll be back in a week with all the fun that March has to offer: MLB Spring Training, NHL and NBA playoff position jockeying, and of course, March Madness (including our annual Bracket Challenge where I will defend my title as Unexpected Champ. I’m the Canadian. How does that even happen?)

Enjoy the next seven days!

Hit and Run: Full of Poop

Yes, the Ladies… have been a bit busy this week. I’m home early for the long weekend so that I can be present while my septic tank gets cleaned out. I can barely watch without stifling a gag, but such is the life of a homeowner in the quasi-sticks. Better than paying property taxes in town, I keep reminding myself.

Yeah, I'm still not speaking to him.

Let’s kick off H&R in fitting style with this latest crap about Brett Favre. It seems that during a pep talk for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles, he stated that if they could make it back to the College World Series, he’d return for one more season in the NFL.

Charlie Manuel is a grumpy, grumpy old man

Now I’m a Mets fan (shocker!).  Therefore, it is programmed in to me to not like the Phillies or anyone managing, coaching, running, or associated with the organization. But come on, Charlie – you make it too easy to dislike you! The interwebs are abuzz with accusations of the Phillies stealing signs on Monday night’s game against the Colorado Rockies. They caught bullpen coach Mick Billmeyer with binoculars, on camera. Not a smart move. And yes, I’m sure it’s annoying to be under the heat lamp and have these accusations firing at you from all directions. But do you know what the lowest thing Charlie Manuel could have possibly done? Turn the blame and attention to someone else. And who might he have singled out?

The Reveal! Name That Booty – Mets Edition

This past Monday, I treated you all to a little taste of the Mets/Cubs game through Buffalita’s camera lens and challenged you to name those booties.  I’m quite impressed with how people did (though SOME people refused to put their guesses on the correct platform and left them on Facebook…), but I am glad that I was able to stump nearly everyone on Booty #1! The reveal is after the jump…

Baseball Rookies on Parade!

Here we are, a little over a month into the new baseball season.  While we try to not panic/be overly confident about our favorite teams’ and players’ seasons thus far,  it’s hard not to get a little excited about the breakout rookies.  Yes, it’s true that some (most)  rookie hot streaks don’t last, and a .360 batting average in the first six weeks of a major league career isn’t necessarily a harbinger of a long and prosperous career.  Still, ten Aprils ago, that’s what they were saying about Albert Pujols.

Let’s meet a few of the newbies, shall we?

Jaime Garcia

OK, not technically a rookie (he appeared mostly in short relief  in 10 games in 2008 before needing Tommy John surgery), but he’s a Cardinal so I’m bending the rules.  He’s also the first lefty to start for the Cards since Mark Mulder and he is awesome. After what the Phillies did to Santana, I was scared to death that Garcia’s hot streak was about to get clobbered by Utley and co. … and then he held them to three hits over six innings.

Name That Booty – Mets Edition!

So this post will somewhat serve a double purpose – it’s a bit of  ‘I Was There’ bragging rights, as I was lucky enough to find myself in the best seats I’ve had yet at Citi Field on April 21st (which before this weekend was their last loss prior to the 8 game streak), but you can always trust your author to really focus in on what really matters: baseball booties.  I found myself photographing every member of the Amazins, and as one would think with seats just behind the 3rd base line dugout, you’re going to get a lot of booty photos just given the fact that we have a good number of right handed batters. Games Mistress gave me the wonderful idea of what to do with said booty photos, so this week, I shall be playing a little game with you all – name that booty!  I’ll post the answers this Friday.

(Disclaimer: My camera is getting a little old and tired, so some booties are spectacular and in focus, while others came out a tad grainy. Apologies!)

Twitter Theater: Mets-Cardinals, April 17, 2010

Cards' beat writer Derrick Goold snapped this picture of his scorecard after the game. (Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

I’m sort of new to Twitter (I don’t actually have an account, I just follow people through Feedly), and the handful of people I follow right now are a)Cardinals fans or b)Ladies.  Which made a glance at my selected Twitter feeds during Saturday’s Mets-Cardinals marathon most entertaining. And now, without further interruption, Ladies…Twitter Theater presents: The Twenty Inning Game

Hit and Run: A weekend of bananas!

Ok, well perhaps not LITERALLY. But c’mon, anyone that watched really any sport (including boxing) knows that this weekend was off-the-charts-bananas! Franchise record with a no-hitter, 20 inning scoreless standoff, NHL and NBA playoffs, drunk drivers…
Here’s a Hit & Run recap of the weekend’s events after the jump.

Ladies… Linkups: Now with more caffeine

I crawled into bed just as the Caps and Habs were heading into OT, and yet I still woke up this morning with shopping bags under my eyes. How attractive. Coffee, please?

Here are some quickees to get you through the day:

The Canadian teams were victorious in overtime last night in the NHL playoffs, with Montreal quieting Ovi and the Caps with a 3-2 win while the Canucks edged the Los Angeles Kings by the same score. Five games on tap tonight, y’all, including the first game in the Chicago/Nashville series. Plan your booze purchases accordingly.

It’s early in the baseball season, and certainly no reason at all to allow despair and dread to take over your very being. That said, I still enjoyed this post from The Tao of Stieb.

Speaking of baseball, Jackie Robinson Day was celebrated at major league ballparks yesterday. Head over to Flip Flop Fly Ball for Craig’s latest work of art in commemoration of the number 42.

And in an act of blatant regional homerism (East Coast, holla!), a Ladies… high five to the fine ladies at Fashionable People, Questionable Things on celebrating their first birthday! L-A is a big fan of college basketball so maybe we can recruit her and Ally for next year’s Bracket Brawl so I don’t accidentally run away with the whole thing. Do visit their blog when you get a chance for this reason alone: Shoe Porn.

Good morning, Mr. Wright!

We interrupt your Winter Olympic coverage for this important announcement!

  

Chris Carpenter can report here anytime. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

In between squeals of delight over Johnny Weir and the Norway curling team’s pants, we happened to notice that SPRING TRAINING IS UNDERWAY!  

There’s always something with New York sports

Yep. Giants sucked. Jets sucked. Yankees didn’t do it tonight (Monday). Mets…let’s not go there. Sometimes it’s tough being a New York sports fan. After watching an exciting Game 4 of the World Series (which I’m still holding to my Saturday prediction that the Yankees will take the Phils in 6 and it’s now looking quite possible), I had to reflect back on what a different season my 2 New York baseball teams had. After the jump, the truth – in photos…

The Curse of Buffalita’s Teams

It’s no secret: I love Buffalo sports. But that also means that I’m no stranger with disappointment. After what looked like an amazing start last year in winning five of their first six games, the Bills managed to end in disappointment with a 7-9 record overall. It’s way too early to tell now obviously, but after yesterday’s disappointment (with my fantasy league QB against them not to mention, which creates a whole other moral dilemma by itself) it’s hard not to look back to the last three years of 7-9. And after the Sabres building me up just to let me down last year and the Mets breaking my heart year after year lately, you can’t really blame me in my losing of hope. What’s a poor fan to do?

It Could Only Happen To The Mets

So yeah. That happened. The Mets are down 6-0 before they even came up to bat, and they managed to make a decent comeback effort throughout the game. It’s now the 9th inning and it’s 9-6. Pagan is safe at third on a crazy error. Castillo comes up and he’s safe due to another error by the idiot 2nd baseman Bruntlett, and Pagan scores. Now 9-7, Phillies still up. Then comes Daniel Murphy, who safely gets to first. We now have the tying runs on base with NO OUTS. Then my personal favorite Franheart comes up (sarcasm detection by my regular readers). And what does he do, my dear fellow fans?  He line drives straight into the hands of Bruntlett (who more than made up for that previous error). Out 1. Bruntlett steps onto the 2nd base bag. Out 2, Castillo had too much of a lead. Murphy’s coming right at him, does a little loop de loop, and probably soils himself as he is tagged for out 3. That’s right. 3 outs, all made by one person. Game over, just like that.

Hit and Run: With a Perfect Buehrle

So it was a busy week as baseball got back into the groove of things after the All Star break. There was a whole lot going on. Brand new division leaders, a naked Tony Bernazard, and to top it all off, a PERFECT GAME! More on all of this week’s happenings after the jump.

All you need to do to understand how good Jeff Francoeur is at baseball…

…is to look at this photo.

Yup. Write your own caption, darlings.

Dear Mr. Minaya, We Need To Talk.

So this happened. And it was while I was on my way out the door for a nice weekend out of the city 2 weekends ago. And now my poor boyfriend will not stop being angry about it. Omar, seriously – why??

Author’s note – I had started writing this post last week and decided against it amidst the excitement of the All Star Game, the Home Run Derby, and the Ladies… first live blogging events. But after this weekend with the Mets bombing against Francoeur’s old team and Church’s new team (Atlanta Braves), I had to say something.

Hump Day Hotties: The Call-Ups

So I know we all get excited when baseball season is underway.  We love watching our hotties play and our teams do well.  For me, when my beloved Orioles start to suck again, it can be hard to devote my time to following the team.  That is why I have come to love the mid-season call-up.  Trust me, I know who the hotties are on the team, but I’m curious about those boys in the minors.  I know names and who is supposed to be good, but I don’t necessarily know their faces.  So I always look forward to a new face in the clubhouse.

After the jump, I’ve hand selected some drool-worthy hotties. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

What the balls happened to baseball last week?!?

I know, I know. Lame joke AND I’m not writing about the obvious, which is the Lakers’ glorious win and the Penguins amazing victory after 17 Cupless seasons. Stay tuned to the Ladies… later this week for more on that. But being the big baseball headed girl that I am, I have to ask…what the hell happened?

The Last Time Your Team Won it All: Baseball Teams

I got the idea for this post when I was talking to my friend about the last time the Yankees won the World Series. It’s almost going to be nine years, but nine years isn’t that long. If I ever complained about a nine-year World Series drought to a Cubs fan, I would more than likely get a smack in the face…and it would be completely warranted.

However, when I think back to where I was the 2000, it seems like ages ago. The last time the Yankees won it all I was a freshman in High School. It feels like I graduated from H.S. ages ago; forget about actually being a freshman. The bottom line is we all follow our team with one goal: to see them win it all at the end. Don’t get me wrong, you can still enjoy the season, but you are never fully satisfied unless your team is the last one standing. Unless you root for the Phillies, Red Sox or Cardinals, the last time your team won it all can seem like a lifetime ago.

So let’s take a little trip down memory lane and see what life was like the last time your team were World Champions. Sorry to all Washington, Milwaukee, Houston, San Diego, Colorado, Tampa Bay, Texas, and Seattle fans. You need to have won at least one to qualify.

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.

This Week in Roster Moves: NL East Hottie Debuts

MLB debut, Ladies debut -- big week for Fernando.

Almost a full two months into the 2009 season, injuries to key players are forcing GMs across the league to scour their AAA clubs for players capable of filling the sudden gaps in their rosters.  It’s a chance for these young players to show what they can do on the major league level, gain some valuable experience, and, most importantly, catch the eye of the “talent” scouts here at Ladies …

Today I’d like to introduce you to two such players, who made their debuts for their rival NL East clubs last Saturday and Tuesday, respectively.

Mr. Monday: Omir Santos

AP Photo

While this will not become a weekly installment from this Buffalo gal, I decided that every once in a while, a noteworthy play from a favorite hottie or a particularly exciting game from the weekend of sports deserves special mention. Naturally for the first installment, I had to choose one of my favorite cuties from one of my teams, and luckily the excitement is brought to you by this past weekend’s Interleague games of the Mets vs. my other NY team’s rival: The Bo Sox.

The All-Star Break Called… Part Deux

So I’ll admit it, I am a total snob when it comes thinking that the AL is superior to the NL.  I don’t know if its the designated hitter deal, the difference in stadium size (I like my homers in the AL), or the tighter strike zone… whatever it is, I’ve always considered the NL to be the red headed step child of Major League Baseball.  But I set those feelings aside to bring you the All-Star Team of the National League,  Ladies… style.