Thank heavens for the New York Post. Without them, how would he know that Derek Jeter sends his single-serving ladyfriends away with gift baskets?
He used to give out t-shirts. True story.
But hey, trends spread like wildfire in baseball. By now, stars all around the game are in the post-booty gift basket game. Step into my office; I’ll show you the baskets I’ve been able to unearth so far.
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As I may have mentioned once or twice before, I don’t have cable, and though my boyfriend has been happy (or at least pretends he’s happy) to let me watch the Cardinals games on his TV, for many of the other games I’ve been listening to the radio feeds through MLB.com. It’s been quite some time since I’ve listened to baseball on the radio on a regular basis, and even longer since I listened to any baseball on the radio that involved non-Cardinals announcers. It’s quite instructive. Some things I’ve learned:
Tim Thomas gets my vote for Playoff Beard of the Year. (Photo: Getty Images)
Hope you had an enjoyable holiday weekend! Let’s get this part out of the way first: CALLED IT!
Talk about a region that is simply torn when it comes to hockey loyalty. On the one hand, this part of Canada is crawling with longtime Bruins fans, thrilled to see the team in the Final for the first time in over two decades (it’s another geographic thing. See Red Sox, Boston.) On the other hand, a Canadian team is thisclose once again to hoisting the Cup, and that means the bandwagon is making room. Vancouver fans have waited nearly as long to get back to the Final: 1994, to be exact.
I’m also torn. It’s the Great Battle of My Hockey Boyfriends: Kesler vs. Thomas! And I realize I am crushing on two American-born players. Whatevs. This is going to be a fun series. It all begins Wednesday (here‘s the sched. Being on Atlantic time, I am grateful for all the 8pm Eastern starts. No need for me to mainline coffee the following morning unless we get subjected to OT.)
To celebrate, I pulled together a playlist featuring great bands from both great cities. So put some beers on ice, dig out your fave retro sweater and crank up the laptop speaker after the jump.
We haven’t done a Friday Fellow in quite some time, so I thought I’d post someone really awesome today: John Daly.
Yes, really. I know baseball season just started, and college basketball is wrapping up, but it just seems right to feature him today.
What’s not to like? He lives his life in the fast lane, and is not afraid to compete in outfits most people wouldn’t dare wear out in public. I find that sort of sartorial bravery incredibly attractive. So let’s explore the many hot angles of John Daly …
I don’t even know if this should be an Advent Calendar of Hotness post or what. I’m a Phillies fan and I still don’t know what just happened. All I know is that Cliff Lee turned down a whole shit-ton of money, and I know that the rotation is absolutely disgusting and I DON’T UNDERSTAND THIS.
I went to my first baseball game in 1993 when the Phillies played the Rockies. Back then, the Phillies literally gave away tickets to games in packages of hot dogs. Seriously, I remember 14 year old Maggie negotiating with her dad that if we bought TWO packages of hot dogs, my siblings could come to the game, and if we bought THREE, Mom could come too.
Halladay.
Hamels.
Oswalt.
…And Lee?
I can’t even.
Look, I know the world hates the Phillies and everything because they’re the new Red Sox or Yankees or Patriots or whatever, but this is…mindblowing.
Sidney Crosby: Stanley Cup winner, Olympic gold medallist and cute and all, but call me when Gord Downie writes a song about him. (Getty Images)
Sports and music go together like nachos and beer, rum and coke, Maggiesox/CuteSports/Lady Bee and red wine (sensing a theme here?) With NHL playoff hockey fever running rampant around these parts, I started thinking about all the music I dig that references hockey. These songs have been running through my head at one point or another these last few weeks, so I thought I’d share them with you. No Stompin’ Tom this time around, but I assure you this list is 100% CANCON.
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
Cristiano is begging you to help the Ladies out!
Ok Ladies… readers, this post is for you.
We ladies are looking to revamp the site. We’ve been brainstorming on some new features we want to introduce to you, the reader. My fellow Ladies and I want to hear from our readers because we realize that you are the reason we keep this blog going. So what do you want?
What features do you like and want more of? What features could you do without? What features should we do that we aren’t right now? Are we missing something that you think we should be covering? Is there an old feature we did in the past that you would like to see make an appearance again? You get the picture.
Tell us what you think in the comments. Don’t be afraid. We need some constructive criticism and, most importantly, your input on what we can do to make this place better.
And no worries…we’re still going to bring you hot athletes on a daily basis! ;-)
The Super Bowl’s not for another week, the Olympics aren’t for another two, and I don’t care about the Pro Bowl. I think this calls for a post topic that’s completely silly and unrelated to anything, don’t you? Luckily I’ve been saving one up, ever since I saw this post on one of my favorite dance blogs. For those of you who don’t feel like following the link, all you really need to know is that the title is “I WANT CC SABATHIA TO BE ON DANCING WITH THE STARS.”
Um, you may need to stretch more than that to pull off a tango, CC.
There is usually at least one athlete contestant on DWTS every season, but none of them has been a professional baseball player. Ignoring the pragmatic concerns about whether the timing of the DWTS filming would conflict with baseball season (because: silly post), would CC be a good fit for the show?
Pros: Very first contestant from baseball, Yankees would probably encourage it if only to keep him in shape during off season.
Cons: Size (height, too, this is not a fat joke!) might make it difficult to find a compatible partner, might have a hard time getting votes if DWTS fans turn out to be anti-Yankee.
Follows in the Footsteps of: Warren Sapp, Evander Holyfield
But I didn’t stop there! If scheduling conflicts were not an issue, here are some other contestants I’d like to see on the dance floor.
There is a statistically-inclined rant after the jump that I think you all need to hear.
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.
Here at Ladies … we’ve been a bit consumed with the end of baseball season and the start of football and hockey season, but the NBA season also starts in just under three weeks. We may not be the biggest pro basketball fans around these parts, but we certainly have an appreciation for the finer points of the game — especially since it’s the only one of the major sports in which so much of the players, uh, “finer points” (arms) are visible during the game.
Because we’ve got a lot of ground to cover in the next three weeks, I decided to write each team’s preview in haiku because 1) they are short and 2) I wanted to do this for baseball season but forgot. Oh, also there are pictures of my favorite hotties on each team, if you are not into poetry.
First up, the Atlantic and Central Divisions in the Eastern Conference, in order of last year’s final regular season standings.
While this photo is quite cheezy, I'm not gonna lie - it was my wallpaper for a hot minute!
Three things led me to this week’s post topic.
1) My favorite athlete, Mike Green, launched his own website.
2) I had a chance encounter with the New York Yankees.
3) The NFL’s ruling on Twitter & Facebook.
Since we are living in the Internet Age, it’s only natural to go to the ‘net for everything we need. Athletes are no different. We are all guilty of googling our favorite athletes at one time or another, and I’m sure we weren’t just looking for stats. We were looking for personal information. Think about how much of your personal info is available to anyone online. Now double, triple or quadruple that, and that’s about how much info you could possibly find on any given athlete or celebrity. And sometimes, those same people are putting that info out there for us to find.
Follow me after the jump where we talk about Twitter, Facebook, and blogs. Oh, and I’m sure you all want to hear about my run-in with the boys in pinstripes. ;-)
In case you haven’t noticed, the Dodgers just traded a PTBNL and cash for Jim Thome.
That’s right, the one and only
JI
JIM THOME.
They say he’ll be a bat off the bench, but I say they should just put him at first base and let him play. But that’s not even the point. The point is, THE HERO OF THE DUGOUT IS COMING TO MY TOWN. HE WILL SMASH TATERS THAT WILL GO LIKE THIS:
OFF THE BAT, OFF AN AIRPLANE, AIRPLANE EXPLODES, PASSENGER CLINGS TO BALL AS IT FALLS, PASSENGER FALLS TO DOOM, OUT OF THE STADIUM.
Or maybe even like this:
OFF THE BAT, THE BALL DISINTEGRATES, THE ATOMIC RESIDUE TRAVELS FAR FROM THIS MORTAL PLANE, REFORMS IN HEAVEN, OFF THE FACE OF OUR LORD, OUT OF THE STADIUM.
Suddenly, I care about the Dodgers again.
Some of us Ladies have been looking forward to football season, so I thought what better way to get everyone hyped than to feature a hottie from every NFL team. Each week for the next four weeks, we’ll be featuring lesser-known hotties from an AFC and NFC division.
So far we have featured hotties from the AFC & NFC North, East and West. This week is our final installment. So take the plunge, and follow me after the jump to get a peek at some hotties from the AFC and NFC South.
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?
Smart move: Drafting Grady Sizemore. Bad Move: Losing your job over it!
So if you’re like me, not only do you love sports, you love fantasy sports, as well. Personally, I feel like managing a fantasy teams helps me be a better fan. But that’s a topic for another day. Today, I’m going to let you in on my drafting strategy. I know we’re just past the All-Star break, but it’s never a bad time to discuss the make-up of your team and how it came to be. Now is the time in the season where you take a step back and evaluate your talent.
It’s make or break time, people! If you’re looking for the answers to your fantasy team woes, this post may not be the best answer, but I can sure help you with some strategy for the future after the jump.
I am going to take so much flak for this, and you know what? If I cared, then I wouldn’t be writing this post. Good morning. I think I’m going to go take it out on the street while the rain still falls.
Listed with RAR and FIP are all AL pitchers who 1) didn’t make the All-Star team, 2) have BABIPs over .250, and 3) have a greater RAR than Tim Wakefield.
After the jump… Continue reading
In honor of the current fortnight of tennis being played, I thought I would do a review of my trip to Wimbledon last summer. I was lucky enough to be able to finally take my dream European vacation last July. One thing I knew when I started to plan my trip was that when I got to London, I was going to Wimbledon.
Originally my vacation started out as a week-long trip to London for the Championships at Wimbledon, but with the GBP being double that of the USD at the time, I opted to do a European tour instead. Our last stop was London. Unfortunately, the tour did not coincide with the tournament. But that was fine with me. I could still visit the hallowed grounds of the All England Club.
By now interleague play is in full swing. A lot of people seem to have beef with it. I personally don’t mind interleague play. It gives fans a chance to see players/teams they don’t normally have a chance to. Also, it’s pretty entertaining to see some of those AL pitchers with a “deer-in-headlights” look on their face while at-bat.
Interleague is a chance to see how the AL and NL match up against one another; starting pitching, bullpen, hitting, defense, etc. Sure all that’s important, but we here at Ladies… want to focus on a more important issue: Which league has the hotter players?
Now to be fair I choose a player from each division. Let’s see how the leagues’ hotness match up in starting pitching, bullpen, infielders, and outfielders. Enjoy!
If there were an NHL Award for "Best Looking," Steckel would be my pick!
UPDATED: I’m watching the Awards Show, so I’ll be updating the winners as they’re announced. See how you did in your predicitions!
Award season is upon us. Well, at least the NHL Award season. The Stanley Cup has been awarded, so the NHL Award Show is our mini hockey fix until September rolls around. This year there is some excitement surrounding the nominees. Some new faces have popped up in unexpected places, and some old faces have fallen out of contention. I’ve always viewed the NHL Awards as some type of high school awards assembly only with nicer threads. Some awards sound like a superlative right out of your high school yearbook, while others are pretty standard.
I thought I would give you a little blurb on each nominee and my pick. I’ve even let you all get in on the action! I’ll tell ya who I got if you tell me who ya got after the jump.
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?)
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.
Good morning. Stephen Strasburg’s mechanics suck and he’s going to get hurt.
Definitely hyperabducts, and definitely has a timing problem. Hey, at least he wears his socks the right way. Seriously, though, observe the difference between that photo, and a photo of someone with good mechanics:
Straight line from elbow to elbow, leading foot positioned to land much more square to the place, and the ball held above the shoulder right before footstrike. Yeah, that’s what I call flawless.
So hey, Strasburg? You have a lot to learn, buddy. I mean a lot. Good luck.
Crane here, filling in for CuteSports. I apologize for the lateness of the hour, but hey, where I am, it’s technically still morning. This is what the Red Sox get for keeping the Blue Jays in third place over the weekend: You get to make fun of them!
Observe David Ortiz, who probably is reminding himself that the world is just illusion, trying to change him:
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.
Good morning. I know in darkness I will find you giving up inside like me.
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.
LA Times columnist Bill Plaschke said it best when he pointed out that neither Clemens, nor Bonds, nor A-Rod had ever been suspended by MLB.
Because even after the Mitchell Report and the hoopla, MLB still has the most lax drugging rules in sports. In other words, to get caught, you have to be pretty stupid.
Or, as Brewers TV color analyst Bill Schroeder said, you have to think you’re above baseball.
Of course, when Schroeder said it, he didn’t seem to understand that Manny does believe he’s better than baseball. What about his antics would have led you to think otherwise?
I’m postponing my epic post about Trevor Bauer because right now, I just need to vent. (You’ve been warned.)
So. The Dodgers. Yeah, you guys, over there, in the hats that match the one I’m wearing right now. One of your bench players really sucks. His name is Juan Castro, and he has a career OPS+ of 56. That’s right, his offense is 44% worse than the average Major League player. So what is he doing in the Majors? Well, posting a 7.6 UZR/150 at shortstop, but that isn’t really my point.
But let’s put that in terms that are easier for most people to understand. From 2002-2008, he’s provided a little less than a third of a win — one third of one win, over the course of 7 years — to teams on which he’s been. Let that sink in for a moment.
So. That happened.
I’ll be up front about this. I’ve been a vocal Favre hater for more than a decade now. I rolled my eyes when Madden waxed rhapsodic about Favre’s status as a gunslinger. I groaned inwardly every time someone told me that he was a ‘man’s man.’ I hated the entire city of Green Bay for unleashing him on the world.
I hated him because he (and the Green Bay Packers) stomped all my beloved New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI, leaving college freshman Maggie slumped on her bed wearing an expression that looked…kind of like the expression in that picture, actually. I’m bitter, I have a long memory and I learned how to hold an old-fashioned Irish grudge at my Grandma’s knee.
I tell you this only so I can explain to you, Green Bay fans, that I understand how you’re feeling right now, or how you’re going to feel if he goes through with this and suits up for the Vikings. That white hot, fiery hatred? That urge to punch that picture at the top of this post repeatedly because you can’t get the real thing in your hot little hands? The indignant, righteous and strangely helpless fury? I’m with you. I’ve been there. Hell, I’m upset on your behalf.
See, I’ve long suspected that Favre was going to end up with a plaque in the ‘Dick Move’ Hall of Fame. (The man took a dive for Michael Strahan, for God’s sake. He did the ‘I’m going to maaaaaaaybe retire, maybe not, let’s talk about me some more’ dance so many times I think Peter King performs the steps in his sleep. The writing was on the wall, people.)
The question, though, is just who he’ll be joining in the semi-hallowed, but mostly tarnished ‘Dick Move’ Hall of Fame. Come for the self-indulgence, stay for the money-grubbing.
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Ladies... 