The REAL. BIG. Blog

Congratulations to the New York Yankees on winning their 27th World Series title. The exhausting MLB season has finally come to a close, along with the best time of the year for sports…

October and November are some of the most exciting months for sports fans. It is the only time of the year that all 4 major sports are on at the same time.

The MLB Playoffs are nearing the end, where every pitch, every catch and every move matters. This year in the playoff you had two of the more storied franchises in all of sports with the Yankees and Dodgers. Let’s not forget the Red Sox and Cardinals who have both won a World Series title in the past 3 years. And then there are the two most consistent teams in baseball: the Twins and Angels. Year after year, those two teams always seem to be near, or at the top of their respected divisions. After starting 19-28 and firing their head coach, the Rockies came back and made another impressive run to the postseason.

The NFL is in full swing with intriguing story lines, bone-crushing hits and highlight reel plays. There are always surprises with the NFL. Who would have thought that at age 40, Brett Favre would be playing as well as he is… who would have thought that in week 9 we would still have two undefeated teams (Indianapolis and New Orleans both 7-0)… Who would have thought that the Wildcat would make defensive coordinators cringe… From the Ram’s, Lion’s and Buccaneers to the Saints, Colts and Vikings, Sunday’s are days where you can always find excitement with any team.

The NBA season tips off. A clean slate for every team. The Clippers look to spring forward with Blake Griffin, Stephen Curry looks to show off his sweet shot at the professional level, and the rest of the NBA Rookies look to make their mark on the league. This is a league full of superstars. From LeBron and Kobe to Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade, each player brings a different dynamic to the court that can only be classified as incredible.

And finally, the puck drops in the NHL. After a come from behind win against the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Penguins are looking for the first repeat since the Red Wings went back to back in ‘97 and ‘98. With all the free agent moves and offseason trades, the tides may be turning for some teams in the NHL.

Of course, I cannot forget College football. Every sports fan has a favorite NCAA team. With tailgaiting, face painting, BCS discussions, conference title hopes, stadiums with 100,000+ people, and bowl games… College football definitely demonstrates the true passion of fans and athletes.

Ah yes, it really is a great time of year!

Today we released a brand new Jonas Brothers Fathead, starring all three members of the band:  Joe Jonas, Kevin Jonas, and Nick Jonas.  I’m not going to lie to you—it looks great.  We’ve got one hanging up on the office wall right now, and I truly understand why girls everywhere love these guys.  They’re a lot cooler than I am. 

I could never pull off these outfits.  First off, my wife has made it very clear that I’m not allowed to wear pants that tight in public.  Beyond that, I think Joe is wearing eight different colors in this shot, including purple pants and white shoes, Nick is sporting a ‘50s greaser jacket, and Kevin has complemented his suit with what looks like a pair of cowboy boots.  These looks would never work on me, but they look cool as heck on the Jonas Brothers.

Hard to believe they never made a Fathead of me.  (Actually, Fathead didn’t exist back then—we had to settle for boring sports posters and flimsy wall decals.  I’m pretty sure, however, that I wouldn’t have been high on the list, even if Fathead had been around.)

So, I’ve accepted that I’ll probably never be as cool as the Jonas Brothers.  That’s okay, because I do get to be part of a very cool company that produces amazing wall graphics of stars like the Jonas Brothers, like Derek Jeter, and like LeBron James.  And, really, what’s cooler than a Fathead?

It just keeps getting better…

If you love our NFL Tradeables  just wait till you see the new MLB Tradeables! They are now for sale at Fathead.com. We have single packs and 10 packs available. Each pack contains (5) Fathead Tradeables, (1) team logo and (4) MLB Players. There are 180 total MLB Tradeables you can collect and every team is represented.

Also, you can save 20% off the single pack price when you buy the 10 pack (10 packs for the price of 8).

Today’s great names in baseball are all represented and many of them are also available as Real.Big. Fatheads including: Derek Jeter, David Ortiz, Alfonso Soriano, AJ Pierzynski, Albert Pujols, Carlos Beltran, Chase Utley, Chipper Jones, Curtis Granderson, David Wright, Evan Longoria, Joe Mauer, Josh Hamilton, Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard and Vladimir Guerrero.

Check it out!

Fathead MLB Tradeables 2009

By Matthew Martz

Who said Christmas doesn’t come early? It does if you ask New York Yankees fans. It looks like the Yankees are doing a lot more to move out of the past and into future besides just moving into their pricey new ballpark in 2009. They will have the 4 highest paid players in baseball with A-Rod, Teixeira, CC Sabathia and Derek Jeter, as they try to win the World Series for the first time since 2000. Third baseman Alex Rodriguez has baseball’s highest deal at $275 million over 10 years, and shortstop Derek Jeter is second at $189 million over 10 years. They have also signed Mark Teixeira for $180 million over eight years, and are spending $161 million for CC Sabathia over a seven-year contract term. The Yankees’ off-season spending spree has now climbed to a staggering $423.5 million.

By Apryl DeLancey

Baseball is finally getting back into the “swing” of things after the All-Star Break. Yeah, that was one loooooong game! The historic match was the last to be played in the old Yankee Stadium and lasted a whopping four hours and fifty minutes. The American League eventually pulled it out with a 4-3 victory.

Fathead favorites in the All-Star Game included Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Chipper Jones, David Ortiz, Grady Sizemore, Ichiro Suzuki, and Manny Ramirez. The temperature at the start of the game was a summertime 82 degrees and, for a while there, it looked like the Fathead crew was ready to heat things up even more. Sizemore managed a single and then stole second base (he was also in that exciting Home Run Derby).

The first four innings of the game were scoreless and the National League drew first blood with one run in the 5th and another in the 6th. The AL put up two runs in the 7th and each side scored one in the 9th. The game remained deadlocked until the 14th inning, when the AL was able to close out the contest. Overall, it was a contest that brought out the best in pitching and kept fans interested…if they liked long baseball games!

There was much chatter during the week about the relevance of the All-Star game. On one hand, the winner of the game gets home field advantage in the World Series for their division. Some don’t think this is very meaningful, especially since players run the risk of an injury in a game that does not directly affect their team outcome. Is the game worth it? Many enjoy the break but others find it to be a waste of time. What do you think? Is the All-Star Game really necessary?

By Drew Bufalini

Today, on Fathead.com, registered and unregistered voters alike can cast their ballot early (not often) for Barack Obama or John McCain. Not only can people vote with a mouse click, they can vote with their credit cards by purchasing life-size wall graphics of both candidates!

Just like their real-life counterparts, the Candidate Fathead wall graphics are colorful and glossy on the front with their back sides covered at all times. The advantage of a Candidate Fathead is that you can take it down, move it or stick it somewhere else whenever you please. We’ll be stuck with the winning Presidential candidate for at least four years - no matter how much we wish he’d fade away. Fatheads, incidentally, never fade, tear or flip flop.

Seeing both American icons on the wall in our office, I realized that these two men battling for the helm of our nation are both heroes. You see, to become a Fathead and have your face on thousands of walls across the country, you must be considered “Fathead-worthy.” No amount of Boy Scout merit badges can earn you this honor. You can’t buy your way into Fathead-dom – lobbying firms have tried and been summarily rejected. You must actually be a hero. Of course, there are different kinds of heroes: sports heroes like Brett Favre and Derek Jeter; super heroes like the Dark Knight and Super Man; secret heroes like Homer Simpson (who, I think, is the secret hero of every man). On this Mt. Olympus of American pride, the Presidential candidates have certainly earned their place. Alas, the vote on Fathead.com is only between the Presidential candidates. (You can’t write-in Homer. Sorry.)

The folks at Fathead and their voters will soon know which candidate will take up residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue this January. Which means I can turn off CNN and return my attention to what really matters: the beginning of NFL training camp.