THE SHARK KNIGHT RISES

Remember last week when BatShark Begins came out? Well, the Shark Signal went up in nearby Silver Spring, MD and Roger "The Shark" Bernadina answered the call!

Chompie Returns! Chompie Forever! Chompie...and Robin?

When he sees a 446 ft. inflatable shark in the sky, the Shark Knight Rises! In an EPIC 11 inning game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Bernadina hit a two-run home run in the 8th inning that was instrumental in mounting one of their comebacks! Watch the video here!

We can't wait to see what The Shark will do once Shark Week starts officially on August 12. (It unofficially started last week.)

I know The Dark Knight Rises is a really great movie and people love it, but I think The Shark Knight Rises is a pretty good show and it's going to be playing through October at a ballpark near you.

More to come.

July Shark Fans of the Month

Well, the Nats lost 6-0 last night to the Brewers, so instead of covering that, we are going to announce our very first ever "Shark Fans of the Month Award." (It will make you happier than hearing about how Bernadina went 0-2).

So without further ado, the Shark Fans of July 2012 are...@byevictoriaaa's parents!

we do the chomp in our living room too

Earlier this month Victoria posted this image of the hardcore fans with this caption "Mom and Dad get too into the "shark" for Roger Bernadina... #Nats #Natitude"

There's no such thing as being TOO INTO THE SHARK! Case in point, here is the follow up picture posted by Victoria:

These fans clearly PERMANENTLY altered their body because of their love and devotion to Roger Bernadina. Well done! We are considering a Shark tattoo in the future, but it would look like this.

Victoria's parents, you are truly jawesome Shark fans and an finspiration to us all. Because of your sharkitude, I have a feeling the Nats will bounce back from their loss tonight and Shark will have a great game!

More to come.

Shark Bites Nyjer Morgan!

THIS IS EXACTLY WHY HE IS THE SHARK.

Number 3 Play on SportsCenter Top Ten!

Sorry Nyjer, but you should know best of all to not hit to CF when there is a hungry shark out there. Nyjer was there when we nicknamed Bernadina and even encouraged the nickname. Now he was bitten by the very Shark he helped create. Ironic? Tragic? No, just Jawesome.

Shark and Nyjer have a long history of competetion. Last spring they competed for the starting CF position before Nyjer was traded to the Brewers. You can see our coverage of the battle, their Shark riding contest,  and Shark giving Nyjer a lift to Milwaukee (in his jaws). But basically, this image sums of Shark's superiority that we all saw demonstrated last night.

Crawl Nyjer!

Nats won 8-2 last night and Shark Week continues...

More to come.

Shark vs. Brewers

 So these are old photoshops (first posted last May, which is why Prince Fielder is in them), but we've been getting a lot of new readers and these are two of my favorites since I (Tyler) am originally from Wisconsin. Be sure to check out the SHARK VS. page to see other teams being literally destroyed by actual Sharks.

Don't rush The Shark, Brew Crew!

You're gonna need a bigger beer

The Washington Nationals facebook page posted an image of Roger with this headline "Find out why Shark Week came early for the Nationals this year and check out tonight's lineup vs. the Brewers"

And here's what they had to say:
Roger Bernadina has hit safely in six straight games, including four multi-hit efforts along the way. During the streak, he is 12-for-23 (.522) with three RBI, two runs scored and two stolen bases. Dating to June 28, Bernadina is 20-for-43 (.465) with four RBI, five walks, six stolen bags and five runs scored, raising his OBP from .314 to .370 over that span.

I'll be bringing you game recaps throughout the series. We'll see if my home state is ready to have their Sharkitude ignited...

More to come.

BatShark Begins

We here at Sharkadina pride ourselves on our clever photoshops of actual sharks inserted into baseball situations. This may be the first time that one of our readers has sent us a photoshop that rivals our own. In case you missed it, Adam LaRoche homered using Bernadina's bat on Tuesday night. Adam "The Stag" LaRoche claimed to use the bat because it is two ounces lighter than his and Ian "Daddy Desmond" suggested that it would help him hit R.A. Dickey's knuckleball.

Super Shark fan @valliant306 created this image that accurately depicts the moment right after contact, showing us that in the game of shark, paper, knuckleball, Shark wins every time.

SHARK > knuckleball

While we have yet to receive an entry in our GO SHARK YOURSELF contest, between this photoshop, the best Shark drawing of all time, and our upcoming post honoring a couple of hardcore Shark fans, it is clear that there is some serious SHARKITUDE out there in NatsTown. Keep tweeting us your pics and we'll keep posting them!


Maybe it has something to do with Bernadina's stats...batting .500 over the past week, bringing his average to .295 on the season, so close to the .300 mark that Bill Ladson promised would make him drop the Speed Racer nickname and accept The Shark. Oh, wait that already happened.

Shark also has 3 runs, 4 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases in the past week. Shark Week will continue as long as Bernadina starts! (Actual Shark Week starts Aug. 12)

More to come.

Best Shark Drawing Of All Time

Here is the original concept art for Sharkadina designed by Terry using the very prestigious program MS Paint. Notice how Bernadina seems to be inside of the shark, his feet the powerful fin, the dorsal fin coming straight out of his back and his glove and ball...the eye? Yeah, doesn't make a lot of sense. This was created the day we nicknamed Bernadina The Shark, Aug. 26, 2010 and graced our first ever sign:

And then there is this drawing done by the talented @silvitarr:

drawn by @silvitarr

This drawing seems to use the first picture as a jumping off point but increases the jawesomeness level by 2000%. Things I love about this drawing:

• The shark actually looks like a shark and not some really bad cartoon that no child would ever watch.
• The shark has tattooed the number 2 on his dorsal fin
• One of Bernadina's arms extends through the pectoral fin
• The other arm comes THROUGH THE SHARK's JAWS to make the catch.

Possibly the most badass thing we've ever seen at Sharkadina. Good work @silvitarr

More to come.

How Shark Attacks Work

According to How Stuff Works:

Sharks strike terror into the heart­s of people around the world like no other creatures. Their fearsome appearance, large size, and hostile, alien environment combine­ to make them seem like something straight out of a nightmare. The sudden violence of a shark attack is truly a terrifying experience for the victim -- but are sharks really man-eating monsters with a taste for human flesh?

Or do they just slide into you cleat first to spark a 6 run 10th inning against the Mets?

courtesy of @metskevin11

Ruben Tejada was paralyzed with fear when he saw Shark's dorsal fin coming right at him and he ended up right in the path of his razor shark teeth (spikes). This was the scene last night that have many Mets fans on Twitter calling for retaliation. Will R.A. Dickey dare to throw a pitch at the Shark tonight? If he does will Shark just eat the knuckleball sandwich for dinner and wash it down with the pink kool-aid? Find out tomorrow on Sharkadina and watch out for sliding Sharks out there!

For the record- this was ruled a clean slide and knowing the Shark personally as we do, we know he would never harm another player on purpose. He is a kind and benevolent Shark!

More to come.

Go Shark Yourself Contest!

No really. GO SHARK YOURSELF. Discovery Channel's Shark Week site has an awesome game where you can upload a photo and add Shark features to the photo, including eyes, mouths, gills, etc. (like a sweet scar or blood splatters). I just did one for everyone's favorite Shark, Roger Bernadina:

You can go create your own Roger Bernadina Shark photo and send it to us via Twitter, Facebook, or email. We'll feature the best Sharkafied photos on our blog during Shark Week, starting Aug. 12. While we prefer photos of Bernadina, we would accept photos of other Nats players, Shark fans, or other people nicknamed "The Shark," like umpire Chris Guccione, who was nickamed by Mark Grace during the epic May 3 Nats vs. Diamondbacks games where we featured extensively on FSN.

Oh by the way, Roger Bernadina continues to dominate offensively, and everyone is talking about it.

From The Nats Blog's post "Shark Week Comes Early in DC:"

After batting a measly .241 with a .325 OBP in 124 plate appearance during the first three months of the season, he has since batted an insane .482 with 14 hits in 29 at-bats.  He has also doubled his number of stolen bases while only getting caught once.  This has moved his season totals to a very respectable .292 average, .372 OBP, 11 steals, and 17 runs batted in along with zero errors.

Hopefully the Shark continues his streak in NY, where he has devoured the Mets before and is the only place he has hit two home runs in one game, back on May 12, 2010. (no link because the blog didn't exist yet!)

More to come.

Shark Week Starts Early

According to F.P. Santangelo, Shark Week doesn't start on Aug. 12, but rather TODAY. F.P. was calling it Shark Week because Roger "The Shark" Bernadina had one of his best days ever. In a double header against the Atlanta Braves, The Shark put up Great White numbers: 5-7, 1 run, 1 stolen base, and the go-ahead RBI in the second game. Here's the video- complete with F.P. calling him "The Shark".

Twitter was blowing up with Shark tweets and many were hailing him and John Lannan as the heros of the victorious second game. I want to welcome all the new readers who discovered this blog and the nickname because of The Shark's jawesome game. Be sure to check out about us page to learn more and watch our interview on MLB.com to hear our story! Keep checking out the blog, follow @sharkadina for all the updates, and most importantly- keep cheering for The Shark and spreading the nickname!

We already posted this photo last year, but it seems especially appropriate after tonight's game:

You can run but you can't hide.

Countdown until Shark Week: 22 Days


More to come.

When The Shark Starts...Sharkadina Blogs

Hello Loyal Shark Fans! Long Time No Shark! I'd like to apologize on behalf of myself and Terry for our blatant disregard of this blog lately. It was irresponsible and I'm sure the hundreds of you who check this site daily have spiraled into a deep depression. Well, here is a picture from my recent travels to show you where I was and to cheer you up:

Tyler with some Bernadina's friends in Newport, KY

Anyway, we have missed A LOT of Shark news. In the distant future, members of the Sharkadina Cult will refer to this period as the "Dark Age" (in this scenario it is a dystopian future where this blog is only piece of media that survives. They worship a giant statue of a half Shark/half Bernadina and their language is riddled with Shark puns...sorry, future!)

What could pull this blog out of the Dark Ages though? Only a Shark-tastic, Great-White-Leaping-Out-of-the-Ocean-to-devour-his-prey, classic Bernadina CATCH:




THAT is why we nicknamed THE SHARK. But I don't need to tell you that, Loyal Shark Fans. But tell your friends and show them this catch. And this blog. And buy a Sharkadina Shirt.

The Shark started yesterday and today, his first starts since June 22. He has been getting some playing time as a pinch hitter, pinch runner and late inning defensive replacement over the past month and has put up some good numbers.

Shark Stats as Pinch Hitter on The Season

5 for 16, 4 runs, 1 RBI, 2 doubles, 5 walks, and a stolen base. Batting .313 with an on base percentage of .500

Shark Stats in the Last 30 Days

6 for 22, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 1 double 1 walk, and four stolen bases. Batting .273, on base percentage of .304

We will have much more of the Sharkadina Blog you know and love coming soon...including new "Shark vs.," a campaign to get a Sharkadina fan a DATE with The Shark himself, and a Shark Week celebration (starts Aug. 12).

More to come.