Thursday, September 25, 2008

2008 Braves Rookie Hazing Photos

Special thanks to two extraordinary Braves Love readers, Lizziebeth and Leah, for their efforts in sending in these pictures for us all to enjoy forever. And now, on with the show!

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Lizziebeth's pictures:
Gregor Blanco!
(pink suits him nicely!)

Jair Jurrjens!
(stunning, in spite of the elf shoes)



Josh Anderson!
(his ankle totally blends in with the tights and the socks!)



Brent Lillibridge!
(I'm sure someone will call, dear.)



James Parr!
(He shaved his legs, didn't he?)



Charlie Morton!

(can't snark! still too cute!!)


Jo-Jo Reyes!
(sumo wrestler supreme!)



(Click to enlarge this one, girls -- Charlie's a doll!)





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Leah's pictures and comments:

All of the rookies were good sports and hammed it up for the fans. It was so funny. And even then, they had to get searched in front of everyone by airport security. They said that the guys took too long on the runway and that's why they were being searched there instead of at the airport. They weren't allowed to give autographs because once they were searched they weren't supposed to touch anyone afterward. TP and Eddie P. did. TP signed for fans and Eddie P. hugged a fan on the opposite side we were on. A lot of the guys were very nice and waved, as well as smiling, even Chipper, much to everyone's suprise. There were a few that didn't do either, though, and didn't even acknowledge the fans out there. It was the usual ones, but I won't name names, lol. KJ did ignore my friend who tried to get his attention, but I won't make any comments on him this time. I still like him. Casey looked over at everyone but didn't wave or anything. He looked kinda scared and kept going. Poor guy. Of course, Mac waved and grinned at everyone. He was so cute, as usual. Anyway, if you have a question on a picture, let me know and I'll describe it to you or do my best. ;)

- Charlie Morton: Charlie couldn't help but laugh and grin while people were calling for him. He waved at everyone, too, holding up his shield.

- James Parr: He looked to be embarrassed but he was into it as well.

- Brent Lillibridge: He was making a phone-to-his-ear gesture with his hand and told everyone to call him. He was into it.

- Josh Anderson: I think he was supposed to be Snow White (or it fit anyway). He proceeded to pull his short dress up showing his butt cheek and pointed to it. I didn't get it, but it was priceless. Of course, he had spandex pants on though. He is seriously as white as those pants. He has a really muscular butt. ;)

- Jair Jurrjens: He waved a bunch of times and smirked at everyone. Of course, Frenchy couldn't contain himself as seen in the picture. (That's Jorge Campillo holding his hand -- they were walking beside each other and JJ wanted to hold his hand.)

- Gregor Blanco: Omar and Escobar were ragging on him so bad and he was hitting on them. Omar kept snapping pictures on a digital camera, probably for blackmail purposes.

- Jo-Jo Reyes: I'm really not sure what Jo-Jo was supposed to be. I'm guessing a sumo-wrestler? He even had his head shaved on the sides, which was kinda weird. :\

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To balance all the boys in dresses, let's show a couple of very well-dressed Braves on the way to the buses. Here's Mike Gonzalez, looking slick with his matching Gucci purse and suitcase:



And...Frenchy?! I honestly didn't recognize him... (ETA: It's Eddie Perez, not Frenchy!)


I wouldn't usually tag a post like this as a GL post, because everyone does it and it's obviously in good fun, but seriously -- Yunie's purse and Gonzo's purse? Wow. :D

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

OMG I love you Lizziebeth and Leah and you too, Lauren, for sharing them! Priceless!

And Gonzo's is a backpack, not a murse!!

moatsak said...

Yes, thank you all for those! I love seeing the guys out of uniform...especially in suits. And those are the first non-uniform pics of Yunel that I've ever seen. Yay!
As for the rookies...I love em for playing along. Makes me wonder just who exactly was responsible for getting all the outfits assembled...What 'stylists'!

Lauren T. said...

They said during a broadcast that they think Mike Hampton is responsible, but they don't know for sure. :)

(He can certainly afford it!)

CABravesFan said...

Lizziebeth and Leah- you are my heros for getting these pictures!!

Umm- had a comment but saw Gonzo in that suit and totally forgot what I was going to say:)

Leah said...

You're welcome, everyone. ;)

And that picture of Frenchy, that really doesn't look like him. That looks like Eddie Perez to me for some reason. Maybe it's just me. :\

CABravesFan said...

leah-

it's not just you. I stared at it forever and it still doesn't look like him:)

MollyG said...

Thanks so much you guys! These pics are great. I was about to walk out the door this morning when my friend sent me a text saying they were up, needless to say I was late to my first class lol. And Jorge holding J.J.'s hand, adorable.

CoriJo said...

Thank y'all!
This was awesome to wake up to first thing this morning. haha
Molly, you're welcome. you know I couldn't let you miss this!

So how good do our guys look in some suits?! ;)

Lauren T. said...

Lizziebeth just let me know that's Eddie in the suit, not Frenchy. I knew he looked too...stocky...to be Mr. F!

Anonymous said...

Too short to be Frency too.
Where were these photos taken?
Somewhere in ATL that i can uh .... stalk? :)

Jennifer said...

Thanks so much, you guys! Those are great!

OK. I'm just gonna put this out there and I'm sure people will feel free to flame away, but Mike Gonzalez is so slick, he's practically slimy. Y.U.C.K. Waaaaay to metro for me.

I'm cracking up at Lilli and his "Call me!"

MollyG said...

I'm a huge Gonzo fan, but I agree Jennifer, way too metro. The hair, the glasses, the matching murse? and suitcase...just too much. However Yunie and Eddie look mighty nice in their suits!

jrm04g said...

To be fair, Yuni's bag is a laptop case. I've been wanting it for quite a long time and hopefully will get it one day. Gonzo's Gucci bag on the other hand = totally a purse! Honestly, the matching of his suit to his luggage is a little too fairy for me, seriously.

I'm loving Jo-Jo's mohawk!! :D

Best legs in the bunch goes to Josh.

Leah said...

Frenchy had a rolling suitcase in my picture of him laughing at JJ and Jorge, so that isn't him. My guess would be Eddie Perez, though, they do have the suit color-coordination going on.

Lo and anyone else wondering - These pictures were taken behind the stadium, beside where the players park, at the 'Police' part of the stadium around back.

If you walk out of the last side gates on Hank Aaron Dr./Capitol Ave. (I believe it's section 135 or around there seat-wise), go to the end of the walkway and go right, turning the corner. Keep going straight on the walkway until you go by the player's parking lot that's gated. Go up the hill, you'll go by a Media entrance, and when you see the 'Police' sign on the building, you're there, which is where the buses come to get the team to take them to the airport when they go on road trips. Or you can go to the parking lot where the players leave when they stay at home and some usually stop to give autographs to fans. To get a good spot, you should probably leave going over there before the game is over.

I'm sure you probably have no idea where I'm referencing, but in case you wanna check it out in the future when you're there at a game, you know where it is. Here's a map of a rough view of the area (Zoom in to view it closer). ;)

Allee said...

It's pretty much all been said, so I'm just gonna say thanks for sharing! They're great!!

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the info Leah! Never delete this post, Lauren and when I go to a game next season I will come back and get your directions! I vaguely know where you're talking about but not really 100%.

After I asked I looked at the pics again and saw a turner field sign on the barricades but thanks so much for the details and the photos!

Chipper isn't friendly? :(

Unknown said...

yeah, I kind of want to hear about the unfriendliness (although I think I actually DON'T). did KJ really snub you guys? :(

CABravesFan said...

I am totally willing to overlook the Gucci bag (dude, it's Gucci! at least the man has good taste) Jennifer, Molly, Jo- no flaming away...that just leaves more for me:)

Yunie looks really really good in that suit

Anonymous said...

lol I also like that lauren posted a link to where to buy Gonzo's luggage.

I would love to see all the guys in their suits, Yunel does look slick. Man, I am so doing this next season.

Leah, how long did y'all stand out there? How did you know when they would be leaving?

Lauren T. said...

I've told a few of you, off the record, about how Chipper is NOT friendly. This was at charity events, folks, not at a bar or something like that. Although, if you are blonde and thin and have big bosoms and talk to C in a bar, he'll probably chat you up for a second. ;)

KJ just comes off as quiet -- he doesn't seem to care for the fan craziness that comes along with being a major leaguer. He does seem to really, really love his wife (and we can't say that about all of them!).

Crista Michelle said...

If i had Lilli's number i'd call him :D.


jk. maybe...

Leah said...

We went out there about mid-8th inning and there wasn't hardly anyone out there, but it was a close game, too, as well as a free concert afterward. Usually my friends say to go around the 7th inning or so to get a good spot. (First time we went, we left after the game and there were a good bit of people there.) We didn't stand out there too long Sunday and we could even see a TV from where we stood to watch the rest of the game! ;)

Most of them did wave and smile at least and most guys will sign for you if you call them, with exception of a few. Most of them aren't rude and I don't think they try to be. Although, now I get the impression that they won't be able to sign on get-away days because of the airport rules and them having to be searched and what not before getting on the plane at the park. Not sure if they're going to do that from now on or not.

Most people that I talk to say Chipper is kind of stuck up and what not and he doesn't usually sign for people, as Lauren said.

I think Lauren is right about KJ. He is nice when he does sign, my same friend met him at FanFest and said he was so nice. I think he just really likes to keep to himself a lot. He will sign every now and then because I've seen in pictures and heard he has in the past. As Lauren said, I get that he really does love his wife because I hear he's always on the phone, probably with her, as soon as he leaves or gets on the bus to leave. (Although, my friends said that Lauren (KJ's wife) seems kinda rude (my guess is that she's like KJ in the fact that she's quiet and keeps to herself), but Catie and Ashley were really nice to them.)

Casey seems like KJ, plus he's new still and still looks like he's trying to fit in but wants to keep to himself. I feel that he will get better the more he's here.

Most of the others aren't really rude, they just don't wave or anything to acknowledge fans sometimes. Most do, though. If you ask them to sign, they usually will.

Unknown said...

thanks for the insight, lauren and leah! was just wondering just because i'm always afraid that i might be bothering people if i ever ask for autographs -- plus, if a player was really rude to me i'd be crushed! good to know it's probably just people keeping to themselves...except if your name is chipper! :)

Lizziebeth said...

You're welcome everyone!!
I stayed and watched the entire game before I wandered out there - and it was still about 20 minutes before anyone emerged. The broadcasters came first, then coaches and then the players. They each had to stop right outside the door and do the whole airport security thing (remove all items from pockets, remove jacket, get wanded, remove shoes - some even had their bags opened up and searched).
Silly me, I was originally at the barrier down at the bottom of the hill - with only a few other people at first - and thought I was too far away, so I walked to the top one. I should've known better...I recognized the woman Eddie came back out to talk to (at the bottom barrier); she had brought him some foil-wrapped plates of food in the bullpen before the game(!).
Either way, it was great fun and I loved getting those shots and hooting and hollering at the "girlies"! I missed the "unfriendliness"; maybe I just ignored it, who knows, you just can't take brief crowd encounters personally. Behavior in one-on-one or small crowd meetings at charity events is a whole different story, though!
Totally my fault on the mis-identifying Eddie/Frenchy picture; I have one of each and didn't send Lauren the one I meant to.
I’m so glad you all are enjoying the shots! It brings me a super amount of joy to share them with you.

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much for the insight and for taking the time to respond.

SO uh... Chipper goes to bars? Uh...which ones? :D

Lauren and I had a conversation on meebo one night about what a strange marital relationship he has. I guess it's par for the course but if not for family day I'd never even know his wife existed.

Last series of the year, girls. :(

Lauren T. said...

Well, I don't know if I'd say "strange". I'd definitely say it seems typical of most major-league marriages, though. Very few wives go on every road trip with their husbands (even though most don't work and they can totally afford it), and I have a feeling that what happens on the road isn't discussed at home.

Anonymous said...

I just noticed that Parr is wearing goldfish platforms.

http://www.phatpimpclothing.com/hi/phatpimp/getpimpshoesblack.html

AshleyB said...

Those pics are great! Thanks for sharing guys!

Curious, anyone have pics of Greg Norton in a suit?

Anonymous said...

Love the pics. Thanks!!

Did anyone get a pic of Kotchman or Prado in their suit?

Unknown said...

did anyone get pics of chipper in a suit.(#1 chipper fan)

Unknown said...

Gonzo looks like a gangster in that pic

Mama2NicoNJoey said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

i love mike gonzalez hes so hot