LORY ANKIEL IS MAKING THINGS HAPPEN!

This is a story that I wanted to share with all of you.  It has to do with our friend Lory Ankiel, wife of baseball player Rick Ankiel.  No, it's not a Yankee thing, it's a baseball thing. More importantly though... it's a family thing.

We last spoke to Lory here on Bleeding Yankee Blue on Thanksgiving.  The piece was titled BYB, OUR BASEBALL LIFE & THANKSGIVING. It was our first meeting with Lory and I have to tell you, we all fell in love.  Not only is she a great person with a terrific family, but she's done something no one thought of.  It's a network that provides information to baseball families when their husbands get traded or sign with other teams. It is called Our Baseball Life.

If you don't remember, we'll remind you, because the idea is terrific!  Look, once a player is traded to a different ball club, there's literally no time to think.  Players usually have to get to their teams A.S.A.P.  That leaves the wives and kids behind to figure it all out. It's happened to Lory with Rick and it's happened for many baseball wives.

Now there are people out there that will say, "These players are millionaires. I have no sympathy."  I see what you're trying to say, but take that out of the equation.    Let me ask you this... Did you ever need to be in a strange city with no time to think about lodging or food or personal interaction? Not for a weekend, for the future?  It's not easy, especially with no planning.

I'm a New Yorker. I usually have my guard up when I need to travel to a different city.  Here's an example of that. I was once in a Piggly Wiggly in South Carolina in the early 2000s.  It was my first time there. On line, the cashier said to me... "How ya'll doing today?"  I looked at her stone faced and said... "Why?"  Now, I'm a guy with a fun personality, but I wasn't in my surroundings and my guard was up. It was just ignorance, nothing more.  It's funny to think about now, but I still remember that cashier's face. She was horrified.

That's a small scale. Now think about you and 2 kids, maybe 3 and your husband just got shipped to Atlanta.  It requires the wife to figure out where to move the family with no idea what to expect. It brings stress and chaos.  You want to protect your family and get them in a safe environment, a good school, nice, safe neighborhood.  Well, that's where Lory Ankiel and Our Baseball Life comes in. She has the network for it and it's taken off.

As she said in our interview back on Thanksgiving:

"...Our Baseball Life is an online resource website for professional baseball families. When players are traded or sign with a new team, they can log on to the site and find all the info they need for their new city. Ive been working on it solo since 2010. I am now expanding to other sports with wives of other professional athletes as the directors of their respective sports."

We here at BYB think it's a great idea, and now Lory and Our Baseball Life has even put together an APP to make it even easier for baseball families to get the extra help they need.  The APP is called THE ATHLETE'S GUIDE and you can buy it for your phone at the Apple App Store.  Next week, a version will be available on Android. Just click on it and it takes you right to the download!

I mean, think about the good Lory's doing here.  Before this directory, wives had to cold call the area their husband was traded to and try to figure it out on their own.  Now, baseball families have Our Baseball Life, The Athlete's Guide and all the information they need is right there.

Plus, it can also be a wonderful APP for business people to advertise in, if they want to get in front of athletes.  Think about that for a second.

(In Photo: 3 screens in the Athlete's Guide to help you through your search. Pick a sport, pick a city, find recommendations or even ask questions about that location. And don't forget the forum. Another helpful tool.)

Look, we here at Bleeding Yankee Blue tell you all about the Yankees and baseball all year long. We also have a strong family unit, individually, as well as what we have built here, together. From me and my writers to our audience.  Ultimately family is the most important thing.  That's why I appreciate and applaud Lory on her hard work here.  We really like her at Bleeding Yankee Blue and we appreciate what she's doing.

To my audience; Check out Our Baseball Life and check out the Apple APP Store for The Athlete's Guide.  You will find it very interesting, I promise.

And thanks for bringing us this story, Lory!  Be sure to tell all the baseball wives about Bleeding Yankee Blue too! We support you, girl!



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