Los Angeles Dodger third baseman Casey Blake’s beard had became part of his persona. Like Samson’s hair, Casey’s productivity appeared to be tied to his facial hair. In 2009, he hit .280, fourteen points over his career average. Then this spring, Casey came in clean shaven. After a decent April in which Blake hit .276, he went into a slump and by mid-May his average fell to .233. So Casey decided to grow the beard back. It may have helped more than we might think. Wednesday, Blake had two hits, including a home run (7); two RBI’s and scored two runs in Wednesday’s 8-5 Dodger victory over the Cubs at Wrigley. Since the beard has been back, Blake has gone 13 for 30 and is now hitting .273.
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