For those that missed the petty announcer banter during last night's NBA Finals Game 3 (presumably you missed it because you were attending the most BA Live Blog in the land) about celebrity ladies, well, you better catch up quick.
Basically, Jeff Van Gundy was asked who the hottest celebrity in the Forum was, and he yelled Alyssa Milano's name. Milano, while a diehard LA fan who blogs about the Dodgers, was not there. He was referring to Vanessa Minnillo and proceeded to butcher the pronunciation of Nick Lachey's last name.
In other words, utter Van Gundy celebrity-related chaos. That's where Jimmy Traina, of SI Hot Clicks fame, comes in. Traina caught up with Van Gundy on the phone today to see if he had figured out how to distinguish hot female celebrities and if he wanted to change any of his picks, including his NBA Finals selection. He did not.
We just got off the phone with Jeff Van Gundy. He says he did mean Vanessa Minnillo, not Alyssa Milano. He said Minnillo was sitting behind the broadcast team and "her beauty made me starstruck and I just choked." We also asked Van Gundy if Milano was there, would he go with Minnillo or Milano. "Minnillo. That girl, wow," was his answer. When asked if he pronounced Nick Lachey's name wrong on purpose, Van Gundy said, "no, I had no idea how to say his name." Lastly, we figured we'd get a prediction from Van Gundy. "I said Lakers in 6 before the series and I still think it'll be Lakers in 6."
Aggressive all the way around for JVG, but I totally respect his refusal to back down. Sure, his celebrity knowledge is pretty weak, but I didn't hear Mark Jackson correcting him or anything.
... Emmanuelle Chriqui, who plays Sloan on the TV show "Entourage," threw out the first pitch Sunday.
So, not only is Entourage getting a lot of hype right now (leading up to it's third season), but there seems to be a slew of baseball loving celeb babes tossing out first pitches these days.
But wait. There's not really more. What does Alyssa Milano think about all of this? Ah, yes. She's shooting a pilot right now. (Please, please please let it involve Tony Danza. Please.) But she hasn't stopped thinking about baseball.
My stress reliever is usually baseball. In fact, sometimes when I can't sleep because my mind is racing, I close my eyes and think about being at the stadium. I create game-winning situations. I think of the sound of the bat cracking. And you know what? It usually works. Ah baseball, I can never be mad at you.
Shame, really. I was hoping we could land ourselves a Grade A catfight out of this one. Not that there is anything remotely, um, good or modernly acceptable about a catfight.
Josh had promised us a few guests for the evening, but I don't think any of us really expected what we got. About 30 minutes before the game started, Josh came walking in, followed by Ned Colletti, who you'll know as the general manager of the Dodgers. Ned sat down and talked with us until right about the time of the first pitch, and I was ready to go with my notepad and pen until he said, "You mind if we make this off the record?" So, I dropped my pen and just listened. I guess I can't technically tell you anything he said, but I will say that there was nothing particularly earth-shattering about the conversation. No big news that I'm just dying to tell you. But it was nice of him to take time out to come talk to a bunch of bloggers, especially considering someone must have told him that many of us aren't too kind to him on our sites.
I agree: Given that Colletti is a baseball blogosphere whipping boy (oftentimes rightly so), it's pretty cool of him to take the time out on a Friday night to talk off-the-record with bloggers. Equally cool is the entire Dodgers' organization finding it apropos to wine and dine and schmooze with the underwear-clad media underbelly. Of course it's a quick trick for positive PR, but even recognizing that PR can be gained via bloggers is a step in the right direction. It also helps sports franchises close the media-savvy gap with every other industry on the freaking face of the Earth.
Ahem. Anyway, well done, Dodgers bloggers (Doggers?). A nation turns its lonely, monitor-scorched eyes to you.
The Score's "Cabbie on the Street" segments can sometimes produce video gold, and Cabbie struck the mother lode on this one: Asking NHL players at the All-Star Game to assess Commissioner Gary Bettman's hockey prowess. The questions escalate from assigning a score from 1-to-10 in praise of his puck skills, to asking what position he'd play, to pondering what sort of on-ice violence might come his way from the pros.
At its core, this is the kind of hockey culture elitism that Eric McErlain eluded to near the end of our 15-year review of Bettman's tenure on FanHouse: Would Bettman get this kind of flack if he had been born in Moose Jaw? On the other hand, if you're like me and believe that Gary Bettman as the public face for the NHL has been just as disastrous as many of his marketing initiatives for the last decade and a half, then there's something quite satisfying about Alyssa Milano claiming he'd make a better mascot than a player. Or maybe it's because she's Alyssa Milano...
The missy contemporary-targeted collection will consist of outerwear, sets, fashion tops, denim and dresses, as well as other key items. The apparel will be designed using high quality fabrics and body-contouring silhouettes.
The TOUCH – by Alyssa Milano NHL collection will be available on Shop.NHL.com, NHL arena team stores and at select retail throughout the United States and Canada.
"I am really excited about TOUCH's partnership with the National Hockey League," said Alyssa Milano. "I am looking forward to giving female hockey fans fashion apparel as unique and special as the sport they love."
Scoring a smokin' hot celeb to market clothing to women is a bonafide marketing coup for a league long in need of some marketing oomph. If only she'd hook up with Sidney Crosby, the ratings would really start to soar! Sorry, No Photos
Sometimes a topic finds its way into the Fanhouse and nobody knows what to say about it. This is one of the times when having The Dugout around really helps, because not having any idea what to say about something is what we do best. A quick character guide to help new readers catch up:
Andre Ethier - a deep, complex character whose primary story arc chronicles his constant watching of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Esteban Loaiza - is Mexican, has a funny screen name Brad Penny - should not be pulling this kind of tail
Today's Dugout features adult situations, so get your parents' permission before logging on.
Old, iconic stadiums -- though beloved by their fans --- face problems modern facilities don't. Chief among them? Most oftentimes, there's nowhere to park.
Case in point, here's Alyssa Milano interviewing the executive parking director at Fenway Park, Joseph Silva. (Watch as his co-workers giggle in the background!) The players' cars are scrunched into a insanely small area at Fenway; this dude really has to finagle them around to get it all to work.
By virtue of her work at Touch 'Em All, Alyssa Milano has wedged her way into baseball fans' hearts (and other various extremities). Not only is she, you know, Alyssa Milano, she actually seems to know a bit of baseball. This is a dream combination.
Chalk another victory up for Milano's 2007: she just got the virtual call-up to be a reporter for MLB.com's postseason operation:
The 34-year-old actress tells PEOPLE the deal on major league baseball's new broadband channel, TBS Hot Corner, which was announced Thursday, is "literally a dream job come true!"
"I'm such a fan and I know our starting rotation so well that within our division I pretty much know what pitches the pitchers are going to throw to what batters," says Milano, a self-confessed stats geek who is on the internet "about twelve times a day" to get the latest on her favorite sport. Milano also writes the Touch 'Em All blog on MLB.com.
Let me get this straight: Milano is a "stats-obsessed" baseball freak, AND she vists the internet "12 times" a day? (I prefer one long, extended internet visit a day, but I digress.) Then it's official: Milano doesn't really exist. She's a cipher from an alien nation sent to lure baseball fans into a cult that will someday overthrow Bud Selig and rule the game with an iron fist. You heard it here first.
FanHouse's Top Five scans the sports blogosphere for the best posts of the last 24 hours so you don't have to. Got something for this feature? Hit us up at fanhouse@googlegroups.com.
1) In the midst of an refreshingly apathetic mention of Bill Belichick's Cheatergate, With Leather found this apoclyptic video. Singer dude, relax. Belichick cheated, but it doesn't nullify everything anyone on the Patriots has ever done. It's bad, but it's not that bad. Colts fans won't agree, but since when do we listen to Colts fans?
2) Things suck for Greg Oden right now, and for Trail Blazers fans who are forced to come to terms with any short-term hopes they had being dashed. Fortunately, no one handled it better than Henry at True Hoop.
Actress Alyssa Milano has never been a stranger to the game of baseball. From her television debut as the daughter of a washed up baseball player on "Who's The Boss?", to her MLB-themed clothing line Touch, her Dodgers blog, and her penchant for dating pitchers, it's obvious that the woman loves her baseball.
For those that missed the petty announcer banter during last night's NBA Finals Game 3 (presumably you missed it because you were attending 
It is bizarre how Major League Baseball teams seem to keep out of the spotlight the news that super attractive women are throwing out the first pitch. 
For all the perceived blogger hatred out there -- which is really less "hate" 
We've always known Alyssa Milano as a bit of a "Baseball Betty", chasing after the likes of Barry Zito and other Diamond Dodgers. 
Sometimes a topic finds its way into the Fanhouse and nobody knows what to say about it. This is one of the times when having The Dugout around really helps, because not having any idea what to say about something is what we do best. A quick character guide to help new readers catch up:
By virtue of her work at 
