Getz's wife travels world on 'The Amazing Race'

MINNEAPOLIS -- Finally, the secret is out. The mission has been disclosed. The race is over. Only the result is not known, at least publicly.

The wives of two Major League players, Royals second baseman Chris Getz and Rays outfielder David DeJesus, are contestants on the new season of "The Amazing Race" on CBS.

Nicky Getz and Kim DeJesus mysteriously disappeared for more than a month this summer, trekking 35,000 miles around the world, to make the reality show. They were competing with 10 other two-person teams for a $1 million prize, and it was all very hush-hush.

"We had the best time ever; it was such a great adventure," Nicky Getz said. "It was so great to have Kim with me."

CBS announced the participants Wednesday, and there is another team with a sports connection: Chester Pitts II and Ephraim Salaam, who were NFL teammates with the Houston Texans. Yep, the women had some tough competition.

Chris Getz's initial reaction to the Nicky-Kim globetrotting?

"I was shocked," he said.

"We traveled like all over the world; it was amazing," Nicky Getz said. "Unfortunately, we didn't have our cell phones or email or anything, so I didn't get to talk to Chris for a while, but other than that, it was the best experience ever."

The no-communications edict was true enough, her husband said.

"That month was pretty interesting," Getz said. "While they were gone, DeJesus went on the DL for a separated shoulder for six weeks, and I was demoted to the Minor Leagues. So it shows how much we need our wives around."

The wives got that news when they got back just before the All-Star break.

"Nicky said, 'Oh, the wheels definitely fall off when the women go away,'" Getz said.

The show will debut Sunday, Sept. 29, and Nicky said she could not reveal many details. Suffice to say, the network press release mentioned paragliding in Chile, a "bone-chilling plunge" in Norway and Formula One racing in Abu Dhabi.

"She definitely did some things that she would have never done on a regular vacation, let's put it that way," Getz said.

He was asked if his wife was normally a daring person.

"Not really," he said. "That's another reason I was encouraging her to do it. I knew it was going to be a challenge. Opportunities like this don't come around very often, so I figured, 'Go for it.' You're young, it's just you and I, and we don't have family. This will just be a really cool experience you'll never forget, and we'll be talking about it for the rest of our lives."

Kim and Nicky have been friends since they met, when both of their husbands were playing for the Royals. During Spring Training this year, "The Amazing Race" approached them about being a baseball wives team, and they accepted.

"It was harder for Kim because she has a son, so it was a little bit hard for her to decide, but at that time they were in Chicago [with the Cubs], so her parents babysat," Nicky said.

The race, she said, had 11 different legs.

"Each clue we had, we just went to the different country that they instructed us to. So it was a great adventure," she said.

"I'm looking forward to everyone watching it so they can see how far we got. We know how we did, but I think that's supposed to be a secret."

The baseball-playing husbands were somewhat amused by their wives' participation.

"We were laughing about it, wondering if they were still in the race," Getz said. "And we still are. They can only say so much, so it'll be fun to see it unfold in the fall."

The best part of the race?

"She came back in one piece," he said.