Wife of Yankees slugger Jorge Posada set to make her reality TV debut on E

Fresh from A radio interview in Spanish with 97.9 FM Tuesday morning, Laura Posada breezes along 56th St., into the lobby of the midtown Chambers Hotel, causing plenty of whiplash among the sidewalk traffic. Sporting heels, a short summer dress and a new Anna Wintour-style coif, the wife of the veteran Yankees catcher and the mother of two is making the publicity rounds for her reality TV debut, set to air tonight on the E! network.

"In the beginning, I was a little apprehensive. I wasn't sure if it's something I should do or not," says Posada. "But then (the E! producers) explained what they were trying to do, which is really show what it is, for real, to be a baseball wife."

Baseball fans and curiosity seekers who tune into "True Hollywood Story: Baseball Wives" tonight at 10 p.m. and expect to find scandals galore in the lives of the Posadas or the Hamelses (pitcher Cole Hamels of the Phillies and wife, Heidi) or other baseball families, might be surprised.

"People think that just because you're married to a baseball player, that you're dumb, that you're a gold digger, that you're an ex-stripper," says Laura. "That's not the way it is. I still haven't met that one girl. Most of the girls that I know, that are baseball wives, are super sweet girls. They're successful in their own right. I really hope that after people see this show, they realize that there's a lot more than just what people think baseball wives are."

This past week, the NFL community and its fans were rocked by the death of former Titans and Ravens quarterback Steve McNair. McNair's girlfriend, Sahel Kazemi, was found dead alongside McNair in Tennessee - both shot with a handgun purchased by Kazemi - and police are investigating whether the incident was a murder-suicide. It revealed a secret, second life of the popular McNair, a married father of four. Last year, the Daily News exposed a long-term affair of former Yankee pitcher Roger Clemens with the country singer Mindy McCready, and Jorge Posada's current teammate Alex Rodriguez has had no shortage of headlines that reflect his personal life.

Laura Posada sees the bold headlines that sometimes play out in New York tabloids, and she is well aware of the many days that her husband is on the road, where female fans and groupies congregate outside a baseball stadium.

"I'm sure that there are girls like that. I mean, it happens with everything. It happens in sports, with celebrities, with actors, actresses, singers. But it can happen to anybody. It can happen to a normal housewife whose husband is a realtor or a contractor or whatever," she says. "You can't worry about that. I have to live my life and focus on my kids and my family and trust that my husband is going to make the right decisions."