Baseball Beauties

MLB’s Diamond and Cubic Zirconia of Winter by Claire Reclosado

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Every month during the MLB season, Claire will scour all 30 teams for players to be named the diamond (all around best), cubic zirconia (player expected to be the best, but turns out to be otherwise), and sparkly icing (most physically appealing) of the month.

Diamond of Winter - Roy Halladay

Philadelphia Phillies On December 16, 2009, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired starting pitcher Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays—a definite win-win for both the pitcher and the team. The Phils acquired the best pitcher in the American League and Halladay joined a team almost certain to make their fourth consecutive playoff appearance. In 2009, 32-year-old Halladay put up impressive numbers: 2.79 ERA, .630 WP%, and a 17-10 record. His presence is a welcome addition to a shaky 2009 Phillies pitching staff. While the team added the right-hander, they let go of Cliff Lee, their most dominant pitcher in the second half and playoffs, seeing Halladay as more valuable. Halladay will make his Phillies debut against CC Sabathia and the New York Yankees in the team’s first Spring Training on Thursday.  

Cubic Zirconia of Winter - Jermaine Dye

Week after week, the biggest free agents were signing with various teams and yet one has not found a home. Jermaine Dye, the last Type-A free agent is not signed to a team and Spring Training has already begun. The outfielder told the Chicago Sun-Times that he is “shocked” that he’s still not signed and that he wasn’t pleased with any of the offers that came his way. The 2005 World Series MVP is not ready to play back up to anyone (and no longer get the check of a player in his prime), which is the main reason he is still a free agent. While Dye did hit 27 home runs with 81 RBI during the 2009 regular season, his dismal second half numbers (.179 BA, .293 OBP, .297 SLG in 60 games) will not get him the offers he’s waiting for. Reality must be coming into focus for Dye as he’s sitting at home waiting for the right offer and the rest of MLB is preparing for the first spring training games of the year.  

Sparkly Icing on the Cake of Winter - Rich Harden

Texas Rangers On December 10, 2009, pitcher Rich Harden signed a one-year, $6.5 million contract with the Texas Rangers. In his seven MLB seasons, the right-hander earned a .633 WP% with a 3.39 ERA and 50-29 record. He spent the 2008 and 2009 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, but it was during his years with the Oakland A’s (2003-2007) he first began appearing on the eyecandy radar. Harden is one of those pitchers whose attractiveness moves up a few notches when he’s on the mound—intensity seeping out of his eyes, muscles showing definition as he motions toward the plate, strong legs displayed in his long stride—his looks are definitely a good bonus. A high leg kick is always another plus. A downside to Harden? He tends to get bitten by the injury bug. For the Rangers sake and for those who enjoy seeing a good-looking starting pitcher, hope the Canadian ballplayer stays healthy. The 28-year-old will start the Rangers first spring training game against the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

If you love baseball consider playing FANTASY by Cee

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WHY? Especially for those with a budding interest in the sport, fantasy is a great way to learn about players you wouldn’t ordinarily follow. It’s also a great introduction to baseball statistics, which become less abstract when you’re managing a team.

How it works

In fantasy baseball you build a team and you score points based on your players’ real-life performances throughout the season. You compete against others in your league for bragging rights, and in some cases, cash prizes.

Step-by-Step Guide to Fantasy Baseball

Join a League

Pick a fantasy website and join a league. Ask your friends, family, or coworkers if they have space in their league or create your own. If you don’t want to play against friends, there are public leagues you can join.



Know the Rules

There are many different scoring systems, league rules, trade rules, and other nuisances. Make sure you’ve read and understand the rules for the league you’ve joined.



Draft your Team

Find out the time/date of your draft. These drafts are live and an opportunity to meet your opponents via chat. If you’re not able to make the draft, your team will be auto-selected for you, though this is not recommended. For first time players, I’d recommend a serpentine draft (one in which you take turns picking players) over an auction league.



Research

Take the time to research players that could potentially have a great season, based on how your league determines points. Make a list of several players for each position that you’d be interested in acquiring. The drafts are incredibly fast-paced, so the more planning you’ve done, the smoother your draft experience.

Set your lineup

Make sure that you always have players at each position, and the correct number of pitchers. If your players are injured or in a slump, put them on your bench and substitute another player from your lineup. Actively setting your lineup does take dedication, but it is necessary to assess your lineup often to maximize your points.

Trades

Know the guidelines for trades in your league. You can pick up free-agents or propose trades with other teams in your league. If your team is not performing well, be diligent and persistent (and realistic) in your trade requests.



Follow the Season

This is where fantasy becomes tediously fun. Keep up with the stats of your players. Not only will you gain a better understanding of baseball stats, you’ll learn about players across the league. If you’ve got a growing interest in the sport, this is a great opportunity to learn about other players and teams you would not normally follow.



Reflect

When the season is over, pat yourself on the back for sticking with it. Fantasy baseball is undeniably the most grueling of the fantasy sports because of the length of the season. Reflect on your successes and struggles of the season that way you can make adjustments for the following year.

Getting to Know You (Or Whee A Quiz) by Cathy

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Quick! Grab a pencil and a piece of paper so you can answer this simple quiz. Although if I’m being perfectly honest, I never grab a pencil for quizzes. I read the questions, think up an answer and then read the bottom “If You Answered…” part of the quiz. Then I change my answers. Because who wants to be “Needs Improvement Nellie” when she can be “Kinky Kitten Katrina”?

Um, this is not one of those quizzes. Ready?

1. Prettier when it has a sparkly frame?
2. A fine and dandy container for beer?
3. Worth millions if he can throw a 90 mph fastball?
1. Wearing a tiara?
2. Remembering how you lost your engagement ring (after one too many pitchers of beer)?
3. Reliving the most amazing World Series ever?
1. Grab nail polish for your pantyhose.
2. Hide your wallet so you don’t have to pony up for the next case of beer.
3. Want to trade the shortstop who missed that easy line drive.

Aren’t quizzes fun? Now it’s time to check below and see how you scored. And if you’re thinking that scored means something a little bit more, er, intimate, I already told you. This is not one of those quizzes.

If You Answered:

(A’s) You might have accidentally stumbled here. This is Baseball Beauties. Not Bathing Beauties. (But now that you’re here, why not stick around and get to know us? Baseball is busting with the thrills you know and love. Like last minute wins, heartbreaking losses, even talent competitions! (And you can wear your crown under your baseball cap.)

(B’s) You might have what we affectionately call a “beer gut.” Which is not that unusual for a Baseball Beauty; in fact, it’s one of those baseball-bonding things among us gals. I bet if you take a look around here, you’ll find a neat exercise to work off that bulge. But if you’re like me, you won’t bother. That’s what those extra-large baseball jerseys are for. (See? We’ve bonded already.)

(C’s) You’re ready for some baseball! I know you’re absolutely beside yourself, now that you’ve found this fan-alicious community here at Baseball Beauties. I’m kinda beside myself, too, thinking about the baseball fun and games we’re going to share. I just know we’re going to be bosom buddies!

Um, baseball-wise. THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE QUIZZES! (Sheesh.)

Spring Training (What is it?)

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Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training. All other players show up 5 days later due to the fact that their positions are less demanding and don’t require extra work.

In the past, players used Spring Training to get in shape to the regular season. Today, everyone arrives in top physical condition.

There are no NL or AL in the pre-seasons (however the home team still determines the Designated Hitter rule)

The teams are equally divided 15/15 between the Grapefruit League in Florida and the Cactus League in Arizona

Have you been to either Florida or Arizona for Spring Training?

Have you ever wondered about the Mascots?

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In baseball, teams represent themselves in several different ways. Aside from the most important factors that draw attention, those being the team’s skill and dexterity, it is also their uniforms, their colors, and the mascots who attract fans to the team. The first mascot was introduced in 1964 by the New York Mets. Mr. Met was created to provoke excitement and fun during baseball games for fans of all ages. However, the idea of mascots didn’t really become popular until 1977 with debut of the San Diego Chicken.

The San Diego Chicken made appearances at Padres games. He was originally the KGB Chicken, and he was at the games to promote a San Diego FM station, KGB. The way that he would dance around and perform strange antics, he became a novelty at the baseball games. The Padres themselves were not the greatest team and Chicken became the biggest highlight of the games. The funny thing is that the Chicken had nothing to do with the baseball team; he just showed up and did his thing, and the audience loved him! The Chicken is not the actual mascot for the Padres. The Padres have a mascot called the Swinging Friar, who has been around since 1958. However, the Chicken clearly brought more attention to the game than the Swinging Friar ever did. It was the Chicken who kept the fans coming. The Padres realized this and continued to allow him to perform. After seeing the success of the San Diego Chicken, other baseball teams soon started catching on to the idea of having a team mascot.

The Philadelphia Phillies management created a green creature they called the Phillies Phanatic in 1978. The Phanatic engages himself with the fans as well as the team. He attempts to knock the opposing team off their game. Or he’ll go and sit next to one of the fans in the audience; he might even sit on the lap of one of the fans. The Phanatic is so important to the team, that he even travels with the team to Japan, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico.

Some baseball teams have had a few different mascots come and go. The Toronto Blue Jays used to have BJ Birdie as their mascot from 1979 to 1999, but after making a few offensive gestures that he umpire found to be offensive, BJ was fired and replaced with Ace and Diamond. The Crazy Crab was the San Francisco Giant’s mascot during the 1984 season. Being as how he was the “anti-mascot,” creating satire out of the mascot craze that was going on, fans were encouraged to “boo” the mascot. Things started getting out of hand when people started throwing objects at the Crazy Crab that could have resulted in a serious injury. The Crab was played by an actor named Wayne Doba. He sued the San Diego Padres after two of the players attacked him, causing injuries. The Giants decided it was best to remove the Crazy Crab after only one year of having him aboard. They did not get another mascot until 1997.

The idea of a mascot never really caught on with the New York Yankees. In 1980, they introduced Dandy, who was a play off of Yankee Doodle Dandy. Dandy was extremely unpopular; so much so that he was beaten up by fans who didn’t want a mascot. Perhaps people thought that the team was good enough that they didn’t need some obnoxious, oddball character to help them out with support from the fans. The Yankees haven’t had a mascot since, but that’s not to say that they may not try again in the future.

David Raymond, who was the original Phillie Phanatic, created the Mascot Hall of Fame in 2005. The Phanatic’s induction into the Hall of Fame was followed by San Diego’s Famous Chicken in 2005, the New York Met’s Mr. Met in 2007, and the Cleveland Indian’s Slider in 2008.

I like mascots; I think that they make the games more fun for the kids! What do you think?

We are Always Supporting a Good Cause

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Baseball Beauties are making a donation to the http://chicmeetsgeek.com/ event that will take place in San Francisco on February 4th. The event will recognize BUILD, a nonprofit social venture, based in Palo Alto, which empowers underprivileged and under-resourced high school students with an education in entrepreneurship.

We are offering a very special Diamond Level experience at an Oakland A’s game during the upcoming 2010 Baseball season:

Best seats in the house, 60 feet behind home plate &emdash; these seats are in the 3rd row near the middle where you will be seen on TV!
All-you-can-eat food and drink (includes two alcoholic beverages)
Private parking lot and entrance into the stadium
Use the same walkway as the visiting players

The winner will join ME! Anna, the founder of Baseball Beauties, at one of these games in May (date is the choice of the winner):

May 4th vs. LA Angels
May 6th vs. Texas Rangers
May 25th vs. Seattle Mariners

In addition to enjoying the game, the winner will get plenty of solo time with me to pick my brain about building a start-up and how Social Media can be used to an advantage without a marketing budget - of course you can also talk baseball if you wish!

If you haven’t had the opportunity to sit in the Diamond Level and watch Major League Baseball from this vantage point yet, you will have an unforgettable experience!

If you live in the Bay Area and want to attend, please contact us to see how you can get 15% off.

- Anna A.

Cheese! (and Im not talking about the kind you eat)

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Its been raining so hard in California! Makes me wish that spring was here, and once spring comes around so does the Baseball Season! YAY!

We are working hard on the website and are very optimistic that it will be done by the end of February as planned =)

Im working on the "Education" part of the site and I came across some info that I wanted to share with you.

Heres an interesting Baseball FACT:

Fastball – also knows as heater, hummer, dead red, cheese, smoke, gas, swifty, express and number one. Did you know that there are 5 variations of a Fastball? I sure didn’t! Here they are:

Four-seam fastball (aka four-seamer, cross-seam fastball)

its held with the fingers across the widest part of the seams and travels straight because of the consistent rotation and air resistance
A two-seam fastball (two-seamer, trailing fastball) is held with the index and middle figures on top of the seams at their narrowest point and moves toward the side of the plate from which the pitches throws.
A cut fastball also called a cutter has the opposite lateral movement of a two-seamer, moving toward he opposite side of the plate from which the pitcher throws.
A sinker is help like the two-seamer, but with a thumb directly underneath the ball. This pitch is thrown a bit slower than a standard fastball and drops as it reaches the plate
A rising fastball is thrown really hard and is impossible to hit most of the time.

Yes, this is A LOT to take in all at once but after reading it a few times I understood the differences between the 5 sort of! I’m still learning too =) It’s cool to actually be able to talk about this stuff at the game and Im looking forward to watching for the different Fastballs at the games!

I’m going to leave you with one of my favorite Baseball Quotes:
"You win a few, you lose a few. Some get rained out. But you got to dress for all of them."
- Satchel Paige

2010 Baseball Beauties

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First of all I want to wish everyone a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope that your year is off to a fabulous start =)

After taking a few days off I came back with some great ideas and concepts for Baseball Beauties. Im so thrilled, but can’t share everything with you just yet… Soon! I promise.

Here is what we have been working on so far:

Content - we’re gathering the BEST baseball stuff out there, including food, facts, stats and much more, rewritten for women in a simple and friendly lingo.

Social Network – this is the part that I’m REALLY excited about J We’re going to implement some Web 3.0 features into the new site and hopefully you’ll be intrigued with the new clean design!

Beauties - because we’re SO BUSY with the content and social network part of BaseballBeauties we are going to skip January and February photo shoots and start fresh with March right along with the beginning of the 2010 season. You’ll see more and more beauties and will be able to interact with them on the site! So if you or someone else that you know wants to be in the spot light, contact us :)

Newbies – we want to encourage more women to get involved. So if you are curious about the game but don’t know much about it, come and join the fun and learn about America’s Pasttime from other members or the BaseballBeauteis’ 101 section. We’ll have a special set of features just for you! Gentlemen, if you’ve always dreamed of your girlfriend being baseball savvy, you’re in luck.

This is just a small portion of what we’re working on.

I will post up weekly updates on our progress and reveal new features right up to the site launch!

“Never let the fear of striking out get in your way”
- Babe Ruth

- Anna A.

We are READY to PLAY BALL!!!

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Welcome to the Baseball Beauties Blog!

This is the first official Blog Entry on our BRAND NEW SYSTEM.

As the Baseball Beauties site adds NEW FEATURES you can expect to see mention of them here first. We hope that you take every opportunity to interact with us here.

Keep your eyes peeled because in the VERY NEAR FUTURE we will be offering you an Official Baseball Beauties profile to help you keep track of your Entries and other neat BB EXCLUSIVE features. This profile will be expanded for use with our BB Social Network and other Shared Network offerings.

I CANT WAIT TO SEE WHAT YOU THINK!!!

- Anna A.