WWE Superstar or 1987 Middle Infielder?

Pop quiz, again, hotshot…have you ever looked at a random list of names and tried to figure out what name is the birth name of a WWE Superstar and which one is that of a who was a 1987 middle infielder?

Well, you’re about to.

With WWE’s Royal Rumble just a week away, I present to you…WWE SUPERSTAR OR 1987 MIDDLE INFIELDER.

Good luck.

1. Was Cody Runnels a middle infielder for the Texas Rangers or part of a wrestling dynasty which includes his Hall of Fame father and half-brother?

2.  Was Darren Matthews a middle infielder for the Detroit Tigers or a one-time member of the wrestling faction called “The Un-Americans”?

3.  Was Doug Frobel a middle infielder for the Cleveland Indians or more commonly known as the “Intellectual Savior of the Masses”?

4.  Was Phil Brooks a middle infielder for the Chicago White Sox or more commonly known as “The Second City Saint”?

5.  Was Ernie Riles a middle infielder for the Milwaukee Brewers or the masked brother of The Undertaker?

6.  Was Tom Lawless a middle infielder for the St. Louis Cardinals or longtime WWE commentator who once feuded with comedian Andy Kaufman?

7.  Was Bryan Danielson a middle infielder for the Boston Red Sox or did he recently lose the World Heavyweight Championship belt in 18 seconds?

8.  Was Ryan Reeves a middle infielder for the Montreal Expos or a current title contender billed as being from “Sin City”?

9.  Was Ron Killings a middle infielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates or a rapping Superstar with an imaginary friend?

10.  Was Domingo Ramos a middle infielder for the Seattle Mariners or masked second generation luchador?

Think you’ve got it figured out?  Click HERE to find out how you did!

"The Snake" Can Play Baseball

The link between baseball and professional wrestling has been around for a long, long time.

Consider this.

Before he was "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Randy Poffo was actually an outfielder who spent parts of four seasons in the low minors.  He finished his career with a .254 batting average.

At least four members of the WWE Hall of Fame have ties to baseball.  Three of them (Pete Rose, Bob Uecker and one-time San Diego Padres mascot, the Famous Chicken) are legendary figures in the sport, while a fourth (Curt Hennig) was inducted by Wade Boggs.

Lastly, where would the blogosphere be without the constant updates on the courtship between New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez and former WWE Diva Torrie Wilson?

What follows...well, what follows is another one of those weird connections between the two sports, er, sports entertainment, that I enjoy.

While listening to a recent episode of the "Art of Wrestling" podcast, WWE legend Jake "The Snake" Roberts began telling host Colt Cabana the story of a charity softball game he was part of a quarter-century ago in Montreal.  Naturally, my ears perked up.

Without re-telling the entire story (you can listen to the podcast HERE), let's just say that exactly how you would imagine a softball game between wrestlers and hockey players would play out, did indeed happen.

Roberts, whose battles with drugs and alcohol have been well documented, showed up still showing the effects of the night before.  "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, who used to carry a two-by-four to the ring with him, was using his trademark plank at the plate instead of a baseball bat. 

Fittingly, no one knew the rules.

Except for Roberts, of course.  And why wouldn't he...this is his story to tell.

"The Snake", who claims to have been, at one time, quite the pitcher was playing, as he said, centerfield.  A ball was hit, he ran back "325 feet", fell down as he cut back to make the catch and, fortunately, still caught the long fly while spread out on his posterior.

Of course, this all ended with him being carried off the field like some sort of hero.

Thanks to the internet, we know that that isn't exactly how it played out.

I'll let you check out the visuals below, but, suffice it to say, Roberts might be misjudging the distance he ran.  The catch, however, is still rather impressive.

Is A-Rod Back with The Diva?

Now that the World Series matchup is set, it's time to get back to the real business at hand.

What's the latest with Alex Rodriguez and those chicks he was hitting on during the ALCS?

Well, apparently, nothing. 

According to the Thirty Mile Zone the New York Yankees slugger hit the sidewalks of Miami with his gal pal Torrie Wilson.  No word as to whether or not "A-Rod" is back with the former WWE diva, but if the matching "his and hers aviator sunglasses" are any indication they, well, nevermind.

Yes, I realize I threw "gal pal" out there for all of you to read.

And, yes, I also realize that, once again, I went against my promise to NOT talk about these two.

 

Jose Canseco Looking to Join WWE

I'm not sure what desperation smells like...but I'm fairly certain it reeks of Axe body spray and looks like this.

That's right, gang. Our good friend Jose Canseco is back on the Twitters and this time, he's asking WWE for a job.

Sure, the wrestling outfit is known for giving embattled pros second and, even, third chances at legitimacy (both Pete Rose and Mike Tyson are members of their Hall of Fame), but something tells me they'll stay far away from this one. You see, this isn't the first time the embattled big leaguer has tried to get in the ring.

This year.

Matter of fact, in the past twelve months, dude has tried everything in his power to get between the ropes.
Last October, it was announced that Canseco would square off, for some reason, against "notorious White House gatecrasher" Tareq Salahi. Salahi was subsequently replaced by former All-Star outfielder Lenny Dykstra. "Nails" then bailed...and the fight was shelved.

That, of course, led to the now infamous Twitter war between the one-time American League MVP and basketball legend Shaquille O'Neal. And, no, despite Shaq's pleas...UFC president Dana White wasn't aboout to bite.

"I have a buddy in Boston trying to make (the fight) happen," White told The Hall exclusively. "Listen, I'm friends with Shaq and he doesn't want that. Can you imagine if he got clipped by Jose Canseco? (Laughs)."

So where else to turn?

A ha! Ever heard of TNA, er, Impact Wrestling? No?!? You better believe Jose Canseco has. More than a few times.

This is a lot of effort for a guy who, in March 2011, (in)famously sent his twin brother Ozzie to a "celebrity" boxing match in his place.

And, yes, I went this entire post without making a steroid reference...pretty hard to do when talking about (A) Jose Canseco and (B) the world of professional wrestling.

Pete Rose Talks WWE

As if the idea of Pete Rose being inducted into their Hall of Fame (his induction video is below) wasn't surreal enough...baseball's hit king was recently asked by WWE about superstar Kane's recent anger management issues.

"I don’t think Kane needs to be less angry," Rose told WWE.com.  "I think Kane needs to funnel his anger correctly and focus it only on his WWE opponents and not tag team partners, announcers and especially celebrity guests."

So, yeah, if you're keeping track...Pete Rose, banished from baseball (and, subsequently, its Hall of Fame), was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame back in 2004 and, for whatever reason, was questioned about one of its superstar's (Kane, real name Glenn Jacobs) pretend "anger management" issues.

Kinda like asking Bob Hoskins how it was sharing the screen with Baby Herman in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" isn't it?

That said, interviewer Joey Styles did throw out a pretty cool question.

STYLES:  Do you think your infamous 1970 All-Star Game shoulder block that dropped Ray Fosse would be effective against Kane?

ROSE:  To make a shoulder block effective, I need to pick up speed. I wouldn’t be able to pick up enough speed to knock Kane down inside a WWE ring. I’d have to run at Kane full speed from the stage at the top of the ramp. Even then, I think Kane is too much of a monster to topple. I’ll stick with the bat.

I don't know about you...but I'd pay to watch that.

"The Animal" Throws Out/Eats First Pitch

As a wrestling fan, I'm pretty sure I prayed for this to happen a couple dozen years ago and now that it's happened...I couldn't be more excited.

And thank God America's White Boy discovered this amazing video so I can cross another item off my bucket list.

Apparently, over the weekend, wrestling legend George "The Animal" Steele threw out the first pitch at a Rochester Red Wings game.  No big deal, right?

Well, fans of the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins got exactly what I would've hoped for from the 75-year-old WWE Hall of Famer.

CM Punk Invades Wrigley Field

Say what you want about the Chicago Cubs (and God knows I've said my fair share), but inviting people up to the pressbox to sing out "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" is one of baseball's best traditions.

With or without a holographic Harry Caray.

Seriously though, how awesome is this picture of WWE Champ, Chicago native (and Steve Bartman hater) CM Punk doing the duties Tuesday night?

CM Punk Set to Sing at Wrigley Field

Since 1998, an interesting cast of characters have been invited to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh inning streth at Wrigley Field.

When the Chicago Cubs take on the Atlanta Braves May 8...professional wrestler CM Punk will join the long, distinguished list.

This isn't the current WWE champ's first time as part of the sideshow at "The Friendly Confines"...last July, the Chicago native was on the field and threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

More like "take me out to the BRAWLgame"...am I right?

Josh Reddick Shows Off Championship Belt

Aaron Rodgers has got nothing on Josh Reddick.  I mean, have you seen dude's championship belt?

It's awesome.

So, naturally, I had to reach out to and ask the Oakland A's outfielder who he was rooting for this weekend at WrestleMania 28...John Cena or The Rock.

"(I've) always rooted for Cena," Reddick told me. "He's always been about the business and takes pride in it. That's what it's about."

I couldn't agree more.

Oh, remember the fun I poked at Reddick's expense a couple of weeks ago when dude watched "Moneyball" to brush up on his new team?

I take it all back.

WWE Invades the Diamond...Again

As if the past few months hasn't yielded more than its share of wrestling and baseball crossover (Alex Rodriguez dating a former WWE Diva, a wrestler applying to be in the MLB Fan Cave and C.J. Wilson hanging out with CM Punk)...there's this.

Tuesday afternoon, prior to the Miami Marlins taking on the Washington Nationals, WWE Superstar Zack Ryder and WWE Diva Alicia Fox were on hand for WrestleMania Day at Roger Dean Stadium.

Initially, Ryder was expected to throw out the first pitch, but, according to their Twitters...the Long Island Iced Z let Fox do the dirty work.

Woo woo woo!

The Iron Sheik Enters the Canseco-Shaq Battle

Ladies and gentlemen...the Twitter battle (albeit mostly one-sided) between Jose Canseco and Shaquille O'Neal has just gotten crazy.

Enter The Iron Sheik.

As it turns out, the 68-year-old WWE Hall of Famer is hitting the Twitters on Tuesday...trying to mix it up with the two heavyweights.  And, really, why wouldn't he be?

The @josecanseco try to f*ck with the @shaq he not the Virgil he the real. Jose you need to f*ck with Sheikie I f*ck you old country way

He continued a few hours later with this gem.

I make the people day when they see me. The @JoseCanseco ruin people day when he talk. The dead goat shit come out of his mouth

First, off, I'm not surprised at Sheik's complete lack of discernible grammar skills, the one-time wrestling champ never was known for his grasp of the English language.  But...dude really is adept when it comes to hash tags and dropping mentions in his tweets.

Is there any way we can turn this fantasy bout between Canseco and Shaq into a Triple Threat Match?

Curtis Granderson Makes His WrestleMania Prediction

This time of year means two things.
One.  Spring Training is here and, naturally, that means the baseball season is just around the corner.

Two.  If you follow wrestling at all, you know that WrestleMania is barreling down on all of us and it is shaping up to be epic.

That being said, when Curtis Granderson emerges from the clubhous wearing a "Hulkamania" t-shirt...you've gotta ask him about the squared circle.  So that's exactly what Kevin Sullivan over at the YES Network did.

And while I'm not New York Yankees fan...I was glad to hear Grandy knows a thing or two about what's going on in the WWE.

Mets Reliever Channels Hulk Hogan

With WrestleMania a little more than a month away...New York Mets reliever Tim Byrdak decided that the time was right to channel his inner "Hulkster" and crash Digital Doman Park dressed as the world's most famous grappler.

"I just want to let these younger guys know that it's OK to have fun and that spring training doesn't need to be so serious," the ten-year veteran told Big League Stew.

And the best part...the fu manchu is real.

Now, if only someone could convince Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson lookalike Freddy Garcia to hit New York Yankees camp camp dressed as "The Brahma Bull" himself.

***H/T Kevin Kaduk over at Big League Stew.***

Pro Wrestler a Finalist for MLB Fan Cave

Earlier this week, the MLB Fan Cave 2012 contest whittled its list of close to 22,000 candidates to a batch of 50 finalists.

One of those selected to make up the six person MLB Fan Cave...California-based independent wrestler Joey Ryan.

Ryan (real name Joey Meehan) has been competing professionally since 2000 for a number of different outlets...Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, WWE and Ring of Honor. While with the WWE, dude squared off against The Big Show and Mark Henry, so keeping tabs on MLB heavyweights CC Sabathia and Prince Fielder should not be a problem.

So what's next for the former PWG World Champion and Los Angeles Angels fanatic?

At the end of this month, 30 of the current 50 finalists will be selected to attend spring training in Arizona. From that group, six will have the opportunity to live in the Fan Cave in New York City for the entire upcoming baseball season.

Below is Ryan's video which he shot during the recent Ring Ka King promotion in India.

 

 

Straight Edge Worlds Collide!

Newly signed Los Angeles Angels pitcher C.J. Wilson once told me that living drug-free was "the easiest part of (his) life".

WWE Superstar CM Punk lives every day by that same creed.

So, you've gotta wonder what the acronymed athletes talked about when they met up Monday night?  My guess...tattoos.  Or baseball.

The current WWE Champ is a rabid Chicago Cubs fan.  And as for the tattoos?  Both man have "straight edge" tattooed on their torso.

And in case you were wondering.  The dude in the middle is Toby Morse...font man for the hardcore punk band H2O.  Morse tweeted out the picture Tuesday morning.

A-Rod and The Diva Hit the Big Apple

I've gotta ask...is anyone else tired of seeing new pictures of Alex Rodriguez and Torrie Wilson in a different location every other day?

I know, I know, the other day I said I was done with it, but I can't quit them.  I am intrigued as to how A-Rod and The Diva not only pick where they will show up next...but how they get there.

Seriously, this couple does more globetrotting than Meadowlark Lemon and Curly Neal.

But something tells me that that legendary duo doesn't have that sychronized douchebag coffee walk down.

So, let's break this down.

• Cabo with George Clooney and Stacy Keibler
• Biking in Miami
• Exercising in Boise(!)
• Cabo again?
• Courtside in Los Angeles with Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber
• And, now, New York

Here's the question...where is the World Tour going to take the pair next?  Better question...when will the New York Yankees superstar decide it is time to stay put and improve on his paltry 2011 output?

***UPDATE:  For what it's worth (not much), the pictures of Rodriguez and Wilson grabbing coffee in SoHo was from the middle of December.***

 

We Get It, A-Rod...You're Getting It

Just in case you were (still) curious as to whether or not Alex Rodriguez and Torrie Wilson were an item...the dynamic duo popped up (again) in front of the cameras.

This time...it was Tuesday night's Los Angeles Lakers game.

The New York Yankees superstar and the former WWE Diva locked lips while laughing it up courtside with Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber.

I'm not going to say I'm done with this whole A-Rod thing, but, well...I'm done.  Sure, dude and the Diva is far better than when he was fed popcorn by Cameron Diaz, but, frankly, I feel dumber for caring.

If you'd like to see more pictures of the pair...head on over to toofab.com.

Another A-Rod and Torrie Sighting

Well, according to the internet...the Alex Rodriguez-Torrie Wilson World Tour is continuing and so far, you can cross Cabo San Lucas, Miami, Boise(!) and Cabo (again?) off the list.

Apparently, the New York Yankees star and the former WWE Diva liked their trip to Cabo last month so much...they went back to ring in the New Year.

You'll recall it was just last week that the pair was spotted in Wilson's childhood home of Boise, Idaho working out at a local gym.

Has the off season been this boring that we care who A-Rod is navigating the globe with?  Apparently.

When do pitchers and catchers report again?

A-Rod Dating Former WWE Diva

There was a lot of talk a while back about Alex Rodriguez having a "type" when it comes to the women he dates.

Given his track record, the New York Yankees slugger likes them buff and blonde and considering his new squeeze is a former WWE Diva...he's staying true to form.

According to numerous reports (including a number of wrestling sites and The New York Daily News), Rodriguez spent the holidays in Boise, Idaho with Torrie Wilson.

Boise TV news anchor Mike Murad told the Daily News he was at Axiom Fitness Monday when the top-paid player in Major League Baseball walked in with Wilson, a retired World Wrestling Entertainment star.

Murad said he asked if he could take a photo, but A-Rod declined, saying, “I’m trying to keep a low profile.”

And, wouldn't you know it...this wasn't the first time the two were spotted together.

Earlier this month, Rodriguez and Wilson, both 36, were photographed riding bikes in Miami.  And right before Christmas, the pair were spotted in Cabo San Lucas with George Clooney and his lady (another former WWE star and ex-roommate of Wilson), Stacey Kiebler.

Rodriguez has been linked to a number of women since his divorce in 2008.  Wilson, also divorced since 2008, was married to pro wrestler Billy Kidman...I guess you could say the former Playboy covergirl has a type as well.

But I'll leave the steroid jokes up to you.

***Above picture "borrowed" from X17online.com.***

CM Punk was NOT a Steve Bartman Fan

This weekend, Madison Square Garden plays hosts to WWE Survivor Series 2011.

Now, as some of you might know, in addition to being rabid about baseball...I'm also a wrestling nut.  So, I couldn't have been happier to hear Jimmy Traina mix in a little baseball talk when he talked to WWE superstar CM Punk.

If you don't like wrestling, you'll have to skip ahead to the 24:18 mark.

Either way...you'll enjoy the one-time champ's take on how he feels about Steve Bartman.

"I wanted to drink his blood back in the day," Punk told Traina.  "You watch that ESPN documentary and you’re just like 'wow, that’s just a dude who was at the wrong place at the wrong time'."

Punk also talks about being prepared for the 2015 “Back to the Future” prophecy coming true.

Good stuff.