Collision At Home

The Hero: Alex Avila

What You Need To Know:  Born and raised in Florida, he was drafted by the Tigers in the 34th round (seriously, the MLB draft goes on for like three weeks) out of high school.  Alex said thanks, but no thanks and attended the University of Alabama.  He didn't even start playing catcher until he attended the university (trust me, that's really crazy-sauce) and his first catcher's mitt was a gift from Ivan "Pudge" Rodriquez (who Wendy was slightly obsessed with when he was playing for Detroit).  Detroit drafted Alex again in 2008, this time in the 5th round, and he, along with his amazing facial hair, became ours.  Seriously, Google Image search Alex sometime.  One day he'll play a game clean shaven and then the VERY NEXT DAY he's got a FULL beard.  He's like a Chia Pet.

Anyway, he became our full-time catcher in 2011 and had a great year complete with a Silver Slugger award....and then we got 2012.  Injuries.  Lots of nagging injuries.  2013 got off to a very rocky start for him, but he did better in the second half of the season.  We're all hoping for a repeat of 2011 in 2014.

His Baggage:  So you're probably wondering how a college baseball player gets his first catcher's mitt from a future Hall-Of-Famer?  Yeah, nepotism.  Alex is second-generation Cuban-American and baseball is the family business.  Father, Al Avila, is currently assistant general manager for the Tigers and during his scouting days discovered Miguel Cabrera.  Grandfather, Ralph Avila, was in the Dodgers organization for many years and was at the forefront of the Latin invasion of American baseball, setting up scouting operations in the Dominican Republic.  Oh, and granddad?  Born in Cuba and took part in the failed Bay Of Pigs invasion.  Heck, I might need to write up one of these posts for granddad.....

Oh, and did I mention that Tommy Lasorda happens to be Alex's godfather?  Um, yeah.  Seriously, what is Thanksgiving like at the Avila house - ya gotta wonder.

Proposed Category Romance Plot:  He knows how lucky he is, how fortunate he is - to not only grow up living and breathing baseball, but to be surrounded by men who are passionate about the game.  But just because you have a family legacy, doesn't always make things easier.  He's had to work twice as hard, be twice as tough, to prove that he's there for his talent and not as some favor to his father, grandfather or godfather.  He had one really great season, when everything seemed to be coming together, but now he's struggling to get back to that place.  Part of him wants to silence the gossip, to prove he's not a one-year-wonder, while another part of him is wondering if he should listen to his aching body and think about a different career path.  He already feels old before his time and now there's a hot new prospect gunning for his job.

The Heroine:  Do you know how hard it is to be a woman in a man's world?  Yeah, it's not easy - but that's what she's had to contend with working for the scouting department.  She's had to pull twice as many hours, travel twice as much, and head to some pretty crappy areas looking for emerging talent.  Then there are the morons who thinks she's nothing more than a slutty baseball groupie trying to bag a Sugar Daddy.  However she thinks she's finally found The One.  The player that will make everyone shut the eff up - a hot new catching prospect toiling away in the Mexican League.  The kid is a diamond in the rough, but a tiny bit of polish, and he could move up the ladder really quick to
the big club, and she would become a legend in scouting folklore.  No more having to kill herself, no more listening to pointed barbs from colleagues.  She could her punch her own ticket.  Standing in her way?  The hero.  She understands that he's protective of his spot on the roster, but shooting down her evaluation and treating the kid like something he scraped off his shoe?  Well, that's just uncalled for.  She'd love to teach him a lesson in manners....well, just as soon as she's no longer distracted by his cute backside.  Damn him.

What Category Romance Line?:  Cosmo Red Hot Reads.  I can practically hear the verbal sparring, the rapid-fire Tracy-Hepburn dialogue in my head as I type this - and what does that usually lead to?  Yeah, hitting the sheets.  Oh Alex, you naughty, naughty boy!

The Shortstop's Secret Baby

The Hero: Jose Iglesias

What You Need To Know:  Ladies and gentleman, our shortstop.  Our infant shortstop.  Jose began his American baseball career as part of the Boston Red Sox organization and then a couple of things happened: 1) Boston got their hands on another shortstop, Xander Bogaerts, who by all accounts has phenom written all over him and 2) Jhonny Peralta, Detroit's shortstop, got caught up in the Biogenesis scandal.  Jhonny was going to get a 50 game suspension, just nobody knew when because MLB took their sweet time about it.  So our General Manager worked out a three team deal to get Jose in Detroit, and he made his debut on August 2, 2013.  My Man took his first look at Jose and said, "Do you think his Mom packs a lunch for him before he leaves for the ballpark?"  Seriously, looking at cutie-patootie Jose makes me feel like a dirty old lady.  Uh, which I guess I am.  He's starting out the season on the disabled list (he'll be out out 4-6 months ::sob::) and his bat isn't all that great - but man, he's fun to watch on defense - a human highlight reel.  Plus, did I mention he's cute as hell?

His Baggage:  Jose is Cuban and was part of their junior national team.  While they were in Canada, Jose and another player defected.  That's when he signed with Boston.  He asked the Red Sox to place him with an American roommate, he's worked hard on his English, and by all accounts carries himself much "older" than he actually is (gah, he was born in 1990 - I AM a dirty old lady!).  Hey, Cuban baseball ain't no slouch - Jose has pretty much been a "professional" from the time he was a teenager.

Proposed Category Romance Plot:  He wants a better life for himself and his family and that means leaving Cuba, the only home he's ever known.  Being good at baseball gives him the opportunity, and he takes his chance when his team visits Canada.  His only regret?  The girl he left behind.  Now she's here, in the United States, with the young son he didn't know he had.  If that weren't enough to make any guy's head swim?  This woman he still loves had to make a deal with the devil to get herself and Jose Jr. out of Cuba - and now the devil wants what he feels is his rightful due.

The Heroine:  She was so young when she fell in love with Jose and she knew he had to leave Cuba.  He begged her to come with him, but with no resources, no way out, how realistic was that?  Besides, she couldn't leave her grandmother, the woman who raised her, slowly wasting away from the cancer that nobody can seem to fix.  So she says goodbye, she lets Jose go, only to find out a month after he's defected that she's carrying his baby.  When grandma dies, she knows.  Jose Jr. deserves a father, Jose deserves to know he is a father, and none of them deserve Cuba.  So she makes the only choice she feels she can - and once in America, once back in Jose's arms, it's time to pay the piper.

What Category Romance Line?:  Harlequin Intrigue, all the way.  Secret babies have shown up in that line, and I think an action-oriented plot featuring a woman-in-peril and a Very Bad Man will do well.  Hell, now I want to read this....

His Brother's Keeper

Our Hero: Max Scherzer

What You Need To Know: Born and raised in Missouri, he was drafted in the 43rd round (seriously the MLB draft is like 400 rounds) out of high school by the St. Louis Cardinals.  Max said thanks but no thanks and attended the University of Missouri where he was Big 12 Pitcher of the Year in 2005.  In 2006 he was drafted in the first round, 11th overall pick, by the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Max has talent oozing out of his pores, it's been a matter of consistency for him - and in December 2009 he was part of a three team trade that sent him to Detroit and my former boyfriend, Curtis Granderson, to the New York Yankees. 

It started out bumpy for Max in Detroit, and we actually optioned him to our Triple-A team in May 2010 to get him "fixed."  Well, fix him we did (wait a minute, that sounds not-so-good....).  He came back to the big club later that month and hasn't left since.  In 2013 he was the first pitcher to start the season 13-0 since Roger Clemens (boo! hiss!) did it in 1986.  He eventually won the Cy Young award.  Oh, and yes - his eyes are two different colors.

His Baggage: His brother.  Using this family tragedy as fodder for a fictional romance novel does give me serious pause, but in the end I'm including it because I think it's a story every family should hear.  Growing up in Missouri, Max had a younger brother, Alex.  They adored each other, Max being the "sporty kid" and Alex being the "smart kid."  Big things were on the horizon for Alex, who could go into finance or apply to law school.  Sadly though, it never came to pass.  Alex suffered from depression.  His parents got him into treatment - but as can sadly happen with people who suffer from it, depression is a harsh mistress not easily swayed.  In the summer of 2012, Alex lost his battle and committed suicide. 

Max immediately left the team and went home to Missouri.  Two days later, with his parents' blessing, Max made his start against the Pittsburgh Pirates.  The Tigers eventually went to the postseason in 2012, losing to the San Francisco Giants in the World Series.

ESPN ran a wonderful article about the Scherzer family - it's well worth a read.  Just be warned that it will tear your guts out.

Also, USA Today ran this nice article about Max and Mark McGwire leading up to Max being named starter for the AL team in last year's All-Star Game.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot: He's got all the talent in the world, but baseball hasn't always been easy for him.  The one person he could talk to about his game, the one person who was always just a text message away, was his younger brother - and now his brother is gone.  Our hero questions everything, did he miss the signs?  Was there something he could of done?  Haunted by his brother's death, struggling with the question of why, he turns into a machine on the field.  He pushes forward, doesn't look back, determined to do his job and block out the past, if only for a little while.  However there is one person in his life he's leaving behind, one person who desperately wants to be there for him but he keeps pushing away - his fiancée.

The Heroine: Everybody always tells them they make a lovely couple, the pretty girl-next-door and the professional baseball player.  They're the American dream couple.  And then one morning it all comes crashing down when her future brother-in-law is found dead.  Completely out of her depth, with no idea what to do, she spends her days checking in with her future in-laws, to assure them that the hero is doing alright.  He has good days, he has bad days.  But the more he shuts out his grief, the more he pushes past the emotional pain, the more he seems to be pushing her away - and she has no idea what to do - for him, for his family, and for herself.

What Category Romance Line?:  I know, you're all thinking a SuperRomance right?  Certainly that would work - but I'm going with the dark horse here and saying Harlequin Romance.  I know, it would seem odd if you don't read the line that much, but while HR can be bubbly and light?  There are a number of authors who have worked tragic, gut-wrenching stories into the HR world.  Also, I have yet to read a HR that didn't heavily play up the "emotional" elements in the story - honestly, sometimes the "no descriptive sex thing" can work to a story's advantage.

If you or someone you know suffers from depression, please - seek help.  Grab on to it with both hands and don't let go.  There are people who care about you.

Baseball And Harlequin: So Nice I'm Doing It Twice!

Ah, spring.  That magical time of year when you start fantasizing about pedicures, flip-flops and in my case?  Baseball.  Spring brings the promise of a new season, endless possibilities, and the hope that even if it is totally unrealistic?  Your team will win the World Series.

Last year, in an inexplicable burst of creative energy (I probably should have bottled it) - I came up with this great (OK, in my mind) idea to celebrate the return of baseball, America's pastime, by putting unsuspecting players for the Detroit Tigers in Harlequin category romances.  Because what does Wendy possibly love more than the Tigers and Harlequins?  Not a whole lot.  Plus, I didn't get sued last year - so decided why not press my luck?

For those of you who missed last year's extravaganza, here is a recap:

Miguel Cabrera in The Venezuelan's Sexy Bodyguard (Harlequin Presents)
Justin Verlander in Bring the Heat (Harlequin Blaze)
Prince Fielder in Daddy Doesn't Love Me (Harlequin SuperRomance)
Phil Coke in Good Time Phil (Harlequin Kiss)
Austin Jackson in Action Jackson (Harlequin Desire)
Victor Martinez in The Single Dad's Home Run (Harlequin Special Edition)

Six players, and Prince Fielder is the only one not on the current roster (having been traded to the Texas Rangers in the off-season).  At this rate I might run out of players - just not this year.  So sit back, relax and get ready to enjoy a return to my insanity all this week.  Same rules as last year - I'll take a kernel of truth about the players, mix in an exorbitant amount of fiction, and viola!  Four new players, four new stories, all new lines.  And yes, y'all are getting a secret baby this year.....

The Single Dad's Homerun

Don't you, forget about me.

Our Hero: Victor Martinez

What You Need To Know:  Was not drafted and signed as an amateur free agent with the Cleveland Indians.  Became their starting catcher in 2004, but while his bat was on fire, he wasn't exactly stunning with his defense.  Was traded to the Boston Red Sox in 2009, primarily playing first base and serving as a back-up to Jason Varitek.  As a free agent, he signed a four-year deal with the Tigers, serving as much needed protection in the batting order for Miguel Cabrera (who opposing pitchers were intentionally walking.....a lot).  He's a .300 clutch hitter, and just what the doctor ordered.  Sadly, he sat out all of 2012 thanks to an ACL injury but is back for 2013.

His Baggage:  Besides the injury?  He's got the cutest kid on the planet in Victor Jr.  This kid spends a lot of time at the ballpark with his Dad, even sporting his own miniature uniform.  When Victor was up for the "last chance" voting in the All-Star game in 2011, the Tigers had Jr. do a promotional video with Paws (the mascot) to get the fans out voting.  Ultimately he lost to Paul Konerko (who was, frustratingly, having a great year and was more than deserving), but we all got to bask in the cuteness that is Victor Jr.  Probably the hardest part of last year?  Not seeing that kid at the ballpark.  Seriously.

The Proposed Category  Romance Plot:  Tragically thrust into the role of single parent, he's trying to keep some semblance of balance and normalcy in his young son's life.  They seem to do fine when they're at the ballpark, but once they're home in the suburbs, things get more complicated.  When it's just the two of them, alone, his son becomes withdrawn.  Oh, and there's the small matter that our hero is a terrible cook.  At this rate if they don't starve to death they're going to overdose on take-out Chinese.  Lucky for him, he finds a savior in his pretty new next door neighbor.

Our Heroine:  A single mother to a teenage daughter, most of their days are filled with arguments about not completed homework, wearing too much make-up and boys.  She doesn't really have time for other peoples' problems, but something in the little boy's sad eyes tug at her heart.  What starts with a few shared cookies over the picket fence turn into cooking lessons with his handsome father.

What Category Romance Line?:  OK, I'm pretty sure Victor is married in real life.  Oh, and with his salary he could probably afford a nanny, a personal chef, and a very large home that would have a very tall, non-picket fence.  But this is my fiction therefore, he's a single dad.  A single dad who would buy a modest, nice home in the suburbs to give his kid some normalcy.  If that doesn't scream Harlequin Special Edition nothing does.

Action Jackson!

Bald and beautiful baby!

Our Hero:  Austin Jackson

What You Need To Know:  Drafted by the New York Yankees in 2005, he took a record signing bonus for an 8th round pick and dumped the idea of attending Georgia Tech.  He pretty much spent the bulk of his years with New York hanging out in their minor league system, and he was considered a valuable prospect.  In 2009 he was part of the three-team trade that sent my boyfriend, Curtis Granderson, to the Yankees.  Austin was one of the players the Yankees gave us in return.  He's proven to be a competent lead-off man and he's dynamite defensively, patrolling a center field in Detroit that in it's spare time doubles for Yellowstone National Park.

His Baggage: Jackson plays center field.  Curtis Granderson also plays center field.  Curtis Granderson was crazy popular in Detroit.  The son of teachers, raised in Chicago, he's an intelligent, hard-working, black man playing baseball in Detroit.  He was MLB PR's wet dream.  And now he's a Yankee.  The Granderson trade was really unpopular with a lot of fans in Detroit, at the time.  My own father CALLED ME AT WORK, just to make sure I was doing OK.  My Big Sis called The Bat Cave and suggested to My Man that he start hiding the kitchen knives.  Yeah, it was kind of like that.  Turns out, it was win-win for everybody.  We got a legit lead-off hitter, and Jackson is, I think, better defensively than Granderson (who wasn't a slouch for us).  New York got a guy who can jack homeruns over that Little League wall they call right field.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot: Against his mother's wishes, he gave up the chance at a college education to play big league baseball.  But four years toiling in the minor leagues, and constant comparisons to Mickey Mantle are starting to wear him down.  When he's traded, he's asked to replace one of his new team's most popular players.  His confidence is starting to flag as is, and now he finds himself falling for a woman that many of his new teammates consider bad news.

Our Heroine:  Boy, date a couple of professional baseball players and watch how fast a girl gets labelled as a groupie.  Well she's had enough!  She's no groupie.  She's got smarts!  She's got self-respect!  And to prove that to herself and everyone else, she's declaring a moratorium on men.  And when she is ready to get back in the saddle?  Absolutely, positively, no baseball players.  None.  She's going to keep working as a limo driver, hit the books to get her accounting degree, and stay away from distractions.  That is until she looks down at her phone and realizes that her next pick up is none other than the hometown team's new center fielder.  Dear Lord why does he have to be so sexy?  And nice?!?!  Why oh why does he have to be so bloody nice?!?!  It's official.  God hates her.

Baseball be damned!

What Category Romance Line:  This one was tough.  Jackson is from Texas, so at first I thought Harlequin American.  Unfortunately all those Texans tend to be cowboys or ranchers - and as much as I love Jackson?  I can't see him in a cowboy hat.  So yeah, we're going with Harlequin Desire.  Once he settles in with his new team, gets his bat going, his confidence is going to go way up - which means he'll be all Won't Take No For An Answer Alpha on the heroine.  Poor girl, doesn't have a prayer.

Good Time Phil

You might lose 'em here Wendy

Our Hero:  Phil Coke

What You Need To Know:  Drafted by the New York Yankees in 2002 in the 26th round.  Spent time, on and off, with the big club and earned a World Series ring in 2009 when they beat the Philadelphia Phillies.  He was traded to the Tigers in 2011 in the deal that sent my boyfriend, Curtis Granderson, to New York.  He's primarily a relief pitcher, but someone in the Tigers organization had the boneheaded idea to try him out as a starter in 2011.  A move Wendy hated, and ultimately didn't work.  Phil went back to the bullpen and is one of our more reliable relievers.  He even closed a few games last year after our closer lost his damn mind and forgot how to pitch.

His Baggage:  Phil's an interesting guy.  He has a reputation for being a goof-ball in the clubhouse and in the bullpen.  He's also, typically, a fun interview.  He's got a good sense of humor and gets his kicks ribbing his teammates.  That said, don't let that fool you into thinking he's Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky when it comes to his job.  He's an intense guy.  When he's called in from the bullpen to pitch?  Yeah, he runs to the pitcher's mound in a full out sprint.  And when the rest of the team was celebrating their victory in the ALCS?  That's Phil stomping around the pitcher's mound doing his best (or is that worst?) Hulk impression.  Hey, he pitched the final half inning, so he can stomp around all he damn well pleases.

Also, neither here nor there, he is currently the player on the active roster I would most like to have a beer with.  Every team should have at least one of those guys - and Phil Coke is mine.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot:  He may work hard, but he also believes in playing hard - which is why he's never been one to settle down.  He likes spending time with women, he just doesn't see himself settling down with one woman for the rest of his days.  When he's not busy with work, he's too busy having fun.  Light, fun, and a good-time - that's what he's after when he's not giving it his all out on the diamond.  So why does it grate on his nerves so badly when some pretty, albeit uptight, nursing student seems to look down her nose at him?

Yes.  Yes, he will.

Our Heroine:  She has no time for fun and games.  A single mom, raising a baseball-loving young son on her own, she's tired of rubbing pennies together and hauling her dead-beat Baby Daddy into court.  She's working a menial job and clawing her way through nursing school.  It's while she's pulling clinicals in a pediatric ward that she runs into our hero, who is there visiting the sick kids as part of his charity work.  While his appearance at the hospital is admirable, he still smacks her as all flash and no substance.  Our girl has no time to play around with men, especially ones who don't seem inclined to stick around for the long haul.  But when he promises her he'll get her box seats for her and her son for the All-Star game?  She realizes that she'd do anything for her kid, even if that does mean spending time with a man she's not all that sure she should be surrendering her heart to.

What Category Romance Line?:  I'm going with the newcomer, Harlequin Kiss.  It's fun, it's flirty, I can see Phil doing OK there.

Daddy Doesn't Love Me

You hate my contract and you still pick me?

Our Hero: Prince Fielder

What You Need To Know:  Drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2002, Fielder joined the big club in 2005 and was anchored at first base until 2011. Upon becoming a free agent, he left Milwaukee for Detroit where he ended up signing a 9-year (which makes me slightly insane) contract worth $214 million (Prince, will you adopt me?).  He's a power hitter who is surprisingly light on his feet for a guy who looks morbidly obese.  He's also a bit of an iron man, having not missed a game since September 13, 2010.  Remember, there are 162 games in the regular season.  There are also many people (myself included) that believe a big reason Miguel Cabrera nabbed the first Triple Crown in 45 years is because Prince Fielder was hitting behind him in the lineup.

His Baggage:  One as old as time - Daddy Issues. Prince's Daddy is Cecil Fielder, who was with the Tigers from 1990-1996.  Prince was a fixture around the Tigers clubhouse as a kid, even taking batting practice.  Urban legend has him smashing homeruns at old Tiger Stadium as a 12-year-old.  Things started going downhill after Cecil left the game.  Gambling problems and his divorce from Prince's mama made for hard feelings.  Also the minor detail that when Cecil helped Prince negotiate his first major league contract that Cecil made damn sure that Cecil got paid.  Father and son reportedly stopped speaking, although depending on what story you read these days they're mending fences.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot:  He's achieved the dream he's had since he was a little boy, to be one of the best baseball players on the planet.  Although it's led to a lot of sacrifices and hard feelings, he is rewarded when he signs a lucrative free agent contract in the off-season. However it's with the team that made his father, a former big league ballplayer, famous.  Estranged, he now finds himself back in the city where the old man still casts a long shadow, where everyone comes up to him and wants to regal him with memories of Daddy's greatness.  It's a road that holds nothing but painful memories, and now because it was the best deal, the most money, and with a team laden with talent - he's back in the one place he never wanted to come back to in the first place.

Home and a chick's name.  That works.

Our Heroine:  Like our hero she grew up around baseball, the daughter of a well-respected bench/utility player.  When her mother died of cancer, her father fought her grandparents over custody, even when they argued that major league baseball locker rooms were no place for little girls to grow up.  Her father was determined to keep them together, to not split up their family, and she spent her life traveling with Daddy, watching games from the owner's box, and when she was old enough to get a summer job?  She started working with the grounds crew.  Now she's the head groundskeeper, and her childhood playmate, the hero, is back in the city that holds many unhappy memories for him.  Even if he is the $200 million man, he sure doesn't look like he wants to be there, but she sure is happy to see him back home.

What Category Romance Line?:  Reunited childhood sweethearts?  Daddy Issues?  A heroine who wants to help the hero work through his baggage?  We have ourselves a Harlequin Superromance.

Bring The Heat

This better be good.

Our Hero:  Justin Verlander

What You Need To Know:  Second overall pick by the Tigers in 2004, Verlander is a power pitcher with a live arm and the freakish athletic ability to have his pitches gain speed in the later innings of a game.  He played his first full season with the Tigers in 2005 and hasn't looked back since.  In 2011 he not only won the Cy Young Award (the highest honor for pitchers) but he also took home the MVP (Most Valuable Player) - a rare feat since many voters believe that pitchers shouldn't win that award.  Getting his ass handed to him on a platter by the San Francisco Giants in the World Series aside - you can make the argument that Verlander is the best pitcher in all of baseball.  And if you don't believe that?  You still have to put him in your top five.

His Baggage:  A high draft pick, the Tigers were able to sign him with the promise of a nice signing bonus.  He drives a Porsche (at least he used to), he plays (well) in Pro-Am golf tournaments, and he's been linked to model Kate Upton, although she recently said in some TV interview that she's "single."

Yeah, I'm sorry to do this to you JV - but to make this work, you're going to have to go down.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot:  Once one of the greatest pitchers in baseball, he's grown accustomed to a life filled with adoring fans, numerous awards, and fawning interviewers.  But it all goes to hell when the one thing he could always rely on suddenly vanishes.  He's lost his fastball.  The 95+ mph heater that could make grown men, professional hitters, drop to their knees and beg for mercy.  Once one of the greatest pitchers in baseball, he's now getting his ass handed to him every fifth day.  Now there are rumors that the team is looking to unload him.

So this guy is a boxer.  Minor detail.

The Heroine:  A fan through and through, she spends her free time working with local youth baseball organizations and arranging trips for the kids to go to big league games.  It's on one of these outings she meets the hero.  Oh, she knows all about his troubles, and she thinks she can help him get out of his own head and find his way back to the pitcher he used to be.  He's more than a little skeptical, but when the sports psychologist assigned by the team fails to fix him, he figures what the hell?  The writing is on the wall and he's got nothing left to lose.  But how is he going to get his head back in the game when his amateur shrink is proving to be a very sexy distraction?

What Category Romance Line?:  Harlequin Blaze.  Of course Verlander is kind of a hairy guy - he's going to have to wax for the cover shoot.

The Venezuelan's Sexy Bodyguard

Why is she starting with me first?!?!

Our Hero: Miguel Cabrera

What You Need To Know: Miguel "Miggy" Cabrera  has been a highly touted player from the moment he broke through with the Florida Marlins organization in 2003.  During one of their annual fire sales (the 2007 one), the Marlins off-loaded Miggy to Detroit for a number of prospects who are now either 1) playing elsewhere or 2) have faded away.  He's been a great player for Detroit, culminating in the 2012 season when he won the MVP (Most Valuable Player) and the Triple Crown, leading the American League in homeruns, batting average and runs-batted-in (RBIs) - a feat that hadn't been accomplished in 45 years.  Oh, and he did all this after switching back to playing third base (a position he hadn't played since leaving Florida) and leading the team to a World Series.

His Baggage: A case where Miggy has some real-life issues that could work in a romance novel.  He's an intensely private person, and by some media accounts dislikes being embarrassed or saying the wrong thing (which is why he will sometimes use an interpreter for interviews and such even though he does speak English fairly well).  He's reportedly a good teammate, a hard worker, and gets on well with his coaches - it's just he's very distrustful of people he doesn't know AKA "outsiders."  Which is why what fans know about Miggy, outside of the ballpark, is mostly wrapped up with his alcohol issues.  After a night out on the town in 2009, he arrived home, got into an argument with his wife, and the police were called.  Then in 2011, right before his scheduled arrival at the Tigers Spring Training facility, cops encountered him and his disabled car on the side of the road.  Miggy apparently kicked up a bit of a fuss, and was arrested on a DUI.  Since this last incident he has been on the straight and narrow - sitting out the various raucous post-season champagne soaked celebrations the Tigers took part in last post season.  Adding to the belief that he's working on his alcohol issues?  Since laying off the sauce he's been in fabulous shape.  Last year he looked great and this spring he looks even better.

The Proposed Category Romance Plot: A star player that the team has invested considerable time and money in, the front office is worried that he'll fall off the wagon.  Yes, he's in recovery - but that's no guarantee that he'll stay on the right path.  To ensure he continues to toe-the-line, they hire a security team to babysit him - a development he deeply resents.  However things start looking  up when he meets the head of the security detail.  Yep, a woman.  A seeeeexxxxxxxxyyyyyy woman.

Don't mind my stealing....

The Heroine: Working for a well-respected security company that caters to high-profile clientele, she's used to being underestimated.  Not only is she a woman in a man's world, she's a bit of a glamour girl.  A beautiful woman who likes designer clothes?  Yeah she's either a gold-digger or a brain-dead ninny.  She lets the fools think what they want, as long as her boss and clients believe in her abilities the rest can go to Hell.  However, when she meets her latest assignment, she knows she's got her work cut out for her.  She believes he's determined to work on his sobriety, now all she has to do is convince him that their relationship needs to stay strictly business.  But ooooh, it's not going to be easy.

What Category Romance Line?:  This is what old-timey baseball types would call a Can Of Corn.  Cabrera is Venezuelan, doesn't trust easily and as evidenced by this parody spoof he made last year for MLB, a fan of telenovelas.  Yeah, Harlequin Presents all day long.

Baseball And Harlequin, Like Chocolate And Peanut Butter

Anyone who stumbles across this blog for the first time probably picks up fairly quickly that Wendy loves two things: baseball and romance novels.  Or, more specifically, Wendy loves the Detroit Tigers and category romance.

Every year, right about this time, I start thinking about what I'm going to blog about to commemorate Opening Day for the Major League Baseball season.  It really is a magical, hopeful time of year.  It's the beginning of a very long season (162 games!), and it's that one time of year where anybody, any fan, can legitimately think that their team could go all the way.

Yes, even Cubs fans.

Opening Day is April 1, and I just don't have it in me to channel my inner Kevin Costner and wax poetic about baseball.  No, instead I'm going to take the two things that I love, toss them in a blender, and probably make a big ol' mess.

Yes, folks - I'm going to do it.  I'm going to take the Detroit Tigers and drag them kicking and screaming into.....

Harlequin category romance novels.

Starting tomorrow and running through Sunday, I will take a player on the current Tigers roster, give you a little factual information about them, then toss in a motherlode of fiction to concoct them their very own Harlequin story (the fiction is key as I'm pretty sure most of the guys I've chosen as potential heroes are married with children in Real Life).

Yes, it really is going to be as twisted as it sounds.  This is either going to be the greatest series of posts I've ever come up with in my ten years of blogging, or it's going to get me sued.  Stay tuned!

Is It Baseball Season Yet?

OK, so it's Super Bowl weekend.

Since I have no pony in this particular race all I can say is a somewhat sarcastically WooHoo, hope the commercials don't suck and oh yeah - could you stop hogging all the Buffalo wings?

But who cares about football when pitchers and catchers report to spring training in a little over a week, and Opening Day is a mere two months away?  While we all take a moment to ponder that impending bit of happiness, check out this awesome T-shirt!  This is the kind of stuff my blogging friends e-mail to me.  Thanks Ames!

Yeah, I totally bought one.  Expect it to be rocked at RWA in Atlanta.....

World Series Here We Come!

World Series bound baby! 

What I've Been Up To

So I hope everyone enjoyed my guest author feature last week with Jami Davenport.  Now it's time to get back to business as usual here at the Bat Cave and that means.....

Yep, it's back to being all about me.

Hey, at least I embrace my narcissism. 

So what have I been up to?  Gee, what haven't I?

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First things first, I had a post go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers last week all about my favorite librarian heroines in romance novels.  Why not head on over and take a gander, assuming you haven't already?

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Despite the fact that I have review obligations coming out of my ears, I took a wee breather last week to read new books by two of my favorite mystery/suspense writers.  Just to make me a little bit of extra crazy?  Both of these new books released on the very same day!

I know as a romance reader that in some circles, all of my reading material of choice would be deemed as "fluff" - but romance is the last genre I tend to go to when I want "brain candy."  No, when I want fluff?  I mean, real fluff?  It's cozy mysteries all the way.  Death of a Neighborhood Witch by Laura Levine is the latest in her series featuring freelance writer Jaine Austen (no relation).  This story involves the untimely death of an unpleasant elderly woman who had a brief flirtation with 15 minutes when she stared on a D-grade Munsters knock-off sitcom.  When she ends up dead, Jaine ends up the prime suspect, seeing as how it was her cat, Prozac, who killed the old lady's decrepit pet bird.

I was disappointed in the last book in the series, and this one was a nice recovery read.  The mystery was solid, and Levine keeps the sitcom-like antics flying.  My only real complaint?  When exactly did Jaine's neighbor - fabulous gay Neiman Marcus shoe salesmen, Lance, morph into such an asshole?  I used to love his character and the last two books?  Yeah, asshole.  Still a solid B for me.

After that it was Last To Die by Tess Gerritsen, the latest in her Rizzoli/Isles series.  I gave up on the TNT TV series based on the books after one year, largely because Hollywood morphed Dr. Isles into a pod person - but I'm still going way strong with the books.  The suspense here involves three young teenagers whose parents were killed in suspicious looking "accidents."  Two years later?  The foster families where all three kids were placed are also killed.  Meaning all three of these children have cheated death, twice.  It's up to Boston homicide detective, Jane Rizzoli, and Boston medical examiner, Maura Isles, to find the connection - assuming there is one.

What I tend to really like about Gerritsen's suspense are her characters.  She writes really interesting characters, in large part, I think, due to her past as a romance writer.  You can fudge a lot with plot and tension in the suspense genre to overcompensate for ho-hum characters.  In romance?  Yeah, good luck with that.  The Rizzoli family "stuff" is fantastic here, and Gerritsen pushes Isles into an introspective corner after her ill-fated love affair with a priest (yes, a priest!) flames out.  I also thought she did a lovely job with the kids in this book, all misfits that don't quite fit in - even at the boarding school where they end up that seems to cater to tragic misfits.  The suspense?  Was OK.  Not terrible, but also not Gerritsen's best.  It didn't light my world on fire, but it's a good entry to the series, so there's not a lot to complain about.  A very solid B for me.

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My idiot Detroit Tigers were in town over the weekend to play the Anaheim Angels, so Saturday night Lil' Sis and I hit the ballpark (sans Lemon Drop).  We got seats in the club section - which means we had a waitress who took our concession stand orders and brought us our food.  Good thing too, since the game required a lot of junk food and beer thanks to Angels rookie phenom, Mike Trout, Justin Verlander getting lit up like a pinball machine, my idiot third basemen Miguel Cabrera arguing balls and strikes with the umpire and naturally, getting tossed - and oh yeah, we lost 6-1.  Let us relive the day through a series of pictures Lil' Sis snapped....

Justin Verlander warming up.  I swear they paint those pants on him.

Timing is everything.  Miguel Cabrera and our rookie, Avisail Garcia - scratching himself.  Niiiiice.

I believe the Tigers were down 5-0 at this point, when this advertisement came on in the stadium.  Don't mind if we do!

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I've still got a mountain of reading to get done, the September TBR Challenge is right around the corner, there will be more RWA tote bag giveaways and oh yeah - I owe the Lemon Drop fan club a post.

Stay tuned!

Erotic World-Building And Opening Day

I know, I just had a post go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers earlier in the week, and now I have another one?  What can I say, after going months with zero blog inspiration, I hit upon two ideas right around the same time, and naturally wrote both posts in one sitting.  So....two posts going living in one week.

Today's topic du jour is world-building in erotica and erotic romance.  My personal recommendation for a subtitle would have been We Like More Than The Sex Stupid, but blessedly the title H&H came (Ha!) up with is much more clever. 

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Today is Opening Day for Major League Baseball.

I usually like to devote an entire blog post to Opening Day, but I just don't quite have it in me this year.  Work has been really busy this week, and my grey matter turned to mush about three days ago.  Plus what more could I possibly say about baseball that the movie Moneyball didn't say for me last year?  In the immortal words of Brad Pitt/Billy Beane:

"It's easy to be romantic about baseball."

And that pretty much sums it all up.  It's why I still love the game, even when it's not always easy to (blah, blah, blah steroids; blah, blah, blah, Pick-A-Steinbrenner; blah, blah, blah Bud Selig).  I mean, seriously?  I like to read romance novels.  That right there should be a small clue that secretly buried behind the several layers of sarcasm there beats a heart of a swoony, mopey, hopeless romantic.

So yeah, baseball.

Or as I'm already thinking of this season: Year One Of The Prince Fielder Honeymoon.  Tiger fans, mark my words, I figure we've got three solid years before we're cursing that contract up, down and sideways.....

Until then, let's enjoy the ride and play ball!

MVP

Go on with your bad self JV!

Sorry All You Non-Baseball Fans....

I'm not done talking baseball yet for this season.



Justin Verlander and Don Kelly - basking in the bromance.

 Apparently the Tigers feel it's their duty, their right, their lot in life even, to keep shaving years off my life.  Thanks boys. 

Next stop....Texas!

Impeccable Timing As Always

Preach it Papa Grande, preach it!

Yes, the hiatus is over.  The reason for said hiatus is because My Man's baby sister got married last weekend, and we spent the entire week in New York.  Whenever I mention that we're visiting the in-laws in "New York," I generally clarify it with "not New York City."  People who don't "know" New York seem to think it's all "the City."  Um, no.  I was in the country.  Farm country.  And when I wasn't looking at a corn field, I was hiding out in the woods.  To give you some idea of the rustic nature of this trip - My Man's parents don't have cable TV.  Not because they don't want it - because literally cable TV isn't available for them.  They haven't run cable up to their "neighborhood." 

Yes, these places apparently do still exist on Earth. 

Needless to say, that also meant no Internet.  Hey, no problem.  Sure I got the shakes by Monday, but I also got quite a bit of reading done (reviews forthcoming).  My Sony Reader is jammed, I've over-extended myself (again) - surely I can live without the Internet and cable TV for a few measly days.  Right?  Right?

Now since this is generally a romance novel related blog - I'm sure you're all wondering about the wedding.  Yes, it was lovely.  Yes, My Man's sister looked beautiful and she married a really nice guy.  Yes, when she shared a dance with her big brother (My Man), I was a total sap and cried.  There, I said it. 

Blah, blah, blah.

But lest we think Wendy has totally run off the rails, let us remember that I blog because It's All About Me.  And what happened while I was away - with no Internet binky and no cable TV?  Yeah....

My Detroit Tigers went on a 12-game winning streak!

None of the games were televised (I was in Yankee country, although a small rogue band of Blue Jays fans  lurks in the area), no highlights on the Internet or even ESPN.  None.  All I had were box scores in the local paper!  ARGHHHHH!  Seriously, it was like being thrust back to....the 1970s.  ::shudder::  Before cable TV.  Before ESPN.  Before the Internet.  ARGHHHHHH!

Now this might not seem like a big deal to...oh, normal people.  But the last time my Tigers won 12 games in a row?  Yeah, 1934.  And what has my team done during the second half over the last several years?  Yeah, swoon.  They've sucked so bad in the second half that in 2006 they coughed up the AL Central Division title and went to the playoffs as the wild card.  And I can't even think about 2009 when we had to play a flippin' tie-breaker game only to lose to the Twins in extra innings.

On the bright side, they're playing in Oakland this weekend, which means - late games.  Which means, once our plane landed and we ran the gauntlet of Friday evening rush hour traffic, I got to watch them clinch the AL Central Division (Playoffs baby!  Playoffs!).  I also got to watch my curmudgeonly old goat of a manager cry on TV.  Which is about when I stopped watching the celebration.  Seriously, grown men crying.  Harder for me to take than watching My Man dance with his baby sister at her wedding.....

Derby Schmerby

WooHoo! No Hitter!!!!!!!

And he didn't cough up El Perfecto Game-o until the bottom of the 8th inning.  This is the second no-hitter in Justin Verlander's MLB career.  Final score 9-0.

Why I Wasn't At RT

Happy Birthday Lemon Drop!  Here she is at Disneyland devouring a Mickey Mouse waffle with strawberries.  Yum, yum!








My library's Literary Event!  From left to right: Judy Duarte, Debra Mullins and Laura Wright.  I want to thank all of these ladies from taking time out of their lives (and in some cases - RT!) to do our little program.  Although since we sold out  (uh, 500 people) I'm not sure we were all that "little."  What I like about my library's literary event?  It's multi-genre.  So, not just romance.  I think these types of programs can be great for romance authors.  It's a chance to reach a "new" audience.  Of course it helps to have these programs hosted by romance-friendly folk.  Ahem - which is where me moderating this panel would come into play.

And look where I was on Sunday!  At the ballpark!  The Anaheim Angels vs. the Toronto Blue Jays.  Angels ended up winning 3-1.

The other reason I wasn't at RT?  My parents being in town on their annual vacation.  I'd post a picture of them, but my mother would likely disown me and write me out of the will if I did.  But take my word for it - they were here.