Just after this season began, actress and Dodgers season-ticket holder Alyssa Milano introduced her new MLBlog called Touch 'em All by addressing the bizarre series of snowouts in Cleveland. "This is what I love about baseball," she wrote in that April welcome note. "It's just like life. The ride. The journey."

And, of course, the comments.

"Do you really write this blog yourself?" one fan asked.

"Is this a publicity thing or do you actually love baseball?" asked another.

"I have no way of proving any of this to you except to keep going," Milano responded in her second blog post after reading those comments. "You'll just have to take my word for it. I will hopefully convert the doubters. It will be my mission."

Mission accomplished. In the course of "the journey" that is the 2007 Major League Baseball season, any such doubts are long since removed. It was announced Thursday that Milano is joining new Hall of Famers Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn as a member of the crew at the brand-new "TBS Hot Corner" on MLB.com as an online personality starting Monday. It is the latest demonstration of Milano's unquestioned love for baseball -- already evident in the successful sales of her TOUCH by Alyssa Milano line of women's ballpark apparel and the nearly 400,000 unique visits this season to what Entertainment Weekly called one of the best "celebrity blogs" on the Internet.

"I am appreciative to MLB.com, TBS and the baseball fans everywhere that have embraced me and made this dream job a reality," Milano said after taping a segment about her beloved Dodger Stadium. "I am looking forward to being the voice of the 'fan' and bringing you behind-the-scenes segments for 'TBS Hot Corner' on MLB.com like only a fan can."

TBS is embarking on its first year of a long-term contract with Major League Baseball, and next month will be the exclusive home of all Division Series, as well as the National League Championship Series (FOX will broadcast the American League Championship Series and World Series). The "TBS Hot Corner" on MLB.com was launched this week as a unique way of complementing that coverage to follow, and that broadband channel features a lineup of regularly updated shows that capture the excitement of the buildup and take fans right through the postseason excitement.

Milano's extensive acting career has included television roles on "Charmed," "Melrose Place" and "Who's the Boss?" and she was recently added as a recurring character on "My Name is Earl." Her latest film, "Pathology," will be released by MGM in late November. With 'TBS Hot Corner' on MLB.com, she will be featured regularly on the channel providing reports and special features from ballparks across the country.

There is no question that Milano has continued to put a personal touch on this historic season -- remember those meet-and-great sweepstakes ads that appeared all over MLB.com in the first half? -- and now she joins a new kind of fall programming lineup. Beginning Monday, Milano will contribute regular reports and features from MLB parks as teams battle it out for postseason contention. From interviews with players, coaches and fans, to features on calorie counting at the park and the best in baseball attire, Milano will serve as the hands-on roving reporter giving fans the inside-the-stadium scoop from a mix of AL and NL ballparks.

"Alyssa Milano has been a popular figure in the world of entertainment for a number of years, and we're excited to pair her star power with her passion for baseball to give fans an insider's look at the MLB postseason," said Jeff Ogan, Turner Sports senior director of production. "In her role on 'TBS Hot Corner,' she'll take fans behind-the-scenes from the clubhouse to the concession stands, offering entertaining reports on all things baseball like only she can."

In addition to the on-demand daily news reports and live Web casts found on 'TBS Hot Corner,' beginning Oct. 3 the channel will also feature multiple streams of exclusive coverage from MLB matchups carried on TBS, including a unique "Dugout Cam" that will give fans a birds-eye view inside both team dugouts during each game. Additional on-field cameras will be announced at that time.

In addition to a baseball video from Bon Jovi, here are some of the new shows that fans are now finding their way to at the 'TBS Hot Corner' on MLB.com:

Conversations with Cal: OK, so Ripken was 3-for-18 in his only World Series back in 1983. No. 1, he was just a second-year guy. No. 2, the Orioles won that series. And No. 3, he went on to a pretty decent career. The guy who brought practically his entire state of Maryland to Cooperstown this July will be spinning yarns about his most cherished memories of postseasons past. What did he think of going to the 1966 World Series with his father to see the Orioles sweep the Dodgers? Let's see if this is the most popular show; when Ripken's involved, he tends to trump just about everything.

Tony's Hit Parade: Chase Utley, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols and Magglio Ordonez. Which one does Gwynn consider the most complete hitter in the Majors? The lifelong Padre should know, having won eight National League batting titles and developing during his career from mainly a singles hitter to a player with power to all fields. Nothing beats listening to Gwynn talk hitting, and it should be a blast when he comes up with a bunch of categories in these segments and breaks down today's players to tell you how they shape up. And you know he won't even be half as nervous as he was getting ready for that memorable Cooperstown speech.

Off Base Daily: Go inside the lives off the field of such Major Leaguers as Hoffman, Twins center fielder Torii Hunter, Cubs infielder/outfielder Mark DeRosa, brothers Marcus and Brian Giles of the Padres, and Twins catcher Joe Mauer. "We wanted to find out more about their lives, in terms of popular culture, music, what they do in their spare time, books they just finished reading, movies they like, whether they cook for themselves, what kind of car they wish they owned," said TBS producer Rodney Vaughn. "It was a way for us to just show a personal side of them. The biggest thing we found is that the cooking skills of Major League Baseball players is probably little to none. You've got Justin Verlander, who's always leaving the cardboard box on the frozen pizza when he's fixing it in the oven, and Torii Hunter saying the best thing he can cook is boiling a hot dog. He said he's got it down to a six-minute science. Those are the kinds of things you'll see on this show."

Chip Checks In: The prospect of Chip Caray calling a Cubs game in the Division Series or League Championship Series (TBS has the NLCS this fall and FOX the ALCS and World Series) is intriguing. After all, he spent many years as a voice of the Cubs, just as his grandfather Harry had done for years. Caray, the Braves' play-by-play man for TBS this season, will use his space in the TBS Hot Corner on MLB.com to just go where his instincts take him. "It's basically the mind of Chip Caray on whatever's going on around baseball," Vaughn said. "He's been around baseball all his life, and we just wanted him to look at what's going on around baseball and just talk about what he wants to talk about."

Hot Corner Daily: This is a quick show, usually two minutes tops, that will get everyone up to date on the pennant races and take you up to the start of the postseason. Heather Catlin will be the host, covering all the basics with the latest highlights. It's another great way to supplement your coverage from MLB.com's Octoberquest area.

Diamond Descriptions: The TBS camera crews have been around some of our favorite haunts like Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium to show fans what it's really like inside. "It's mainly to give viewers who have never been to one or more of these parks a glimpse," Vaughn said. "You'll see Chip talking about what it was like to broadcast a game at Wrigley. Ron Santo talks about the first time he ever played there and what the experience was like."

Look for Milano's touch in that show, and well beyond that in her ever-present role these days as maybe baseball's most high-profile fan. "I have a recurring dream that I am a pitcher but I have the yips," Milano blogged back in April, and that only happens when you think about baseball a lot. She does. And, yes, she did convert any doubters.