"I See You" - Explained by Vin Scully

As I'm sure you've noticed, when Hanley Ramirez joined the Dodger he brought along with him a goofy hand gesture that has been quickly adopted by the Dodgers.  He forms something I can only call "hand-binoculars" after every successful at-bat and looks towards the Dodgers bench.  For an explanation of this whole spectacle listen to Vin Scully explain it all.

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Pic credit: twitter @Dodgers.

Dodgers Blog Kiosk: 7/29/2012

Here's what the August edition of Dodgers Magazine look like.  Click on any pic to embiggen.

• Via Ken Gurnick at MLB.com, Manny Mota Providing Support for Hanley With Dodgers.

A big reason for Hanley Ramirez's smooth transition to his new club is the presence of Dodgers coach Manny Mota, whom, Ramirez said, he's known since he was "a little boy."
...
"I told him that what happened in the past is the past, this is a new beginning, and all he has to do is play baseball," Mota said. "He's a complete player. And he doesn't have to carry this team. There is Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp and now three guys together.

"He told me he's proud to be a Dodger, he knows the organization's history with Latin players and he's going to play hard. But I reminded him not to put pressure on himself. Maybe there was too much pressure on him in Miami. He doesn't have to carry this team. He has come to a good city with good fans and a rare organization. Now, just play hard and have fun."

• Listen to Dodgers President Stan Kasten on the State of the Dodgers, via the Dodgers Report at ESPN Radio.
• The eighth edition of the Dodgers Playbill features Dodger Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully and Dodger greats Sandy Koufax and Fernando Valenzuela. The playbill is distributed free to fans when they enter Dodger Stadium parking gates.  See it at right.
• Minor League Ball reviews the Dodgers top 20 2012 pre-season prospects.
• Mark Langill of Dodgers History recounts Lasorda's greatest story about the 2000 Olympics.

“This is bigger than the World Series,” Lasorda said. “I’ve managed four World Series, and when the Dodgers have won, the Dodger fans were happy, but the Cincinnati fans weren’t, the San Francisco fans weren’t. But with this baseball team, the United States of America is happy.”

• Also from Ken Gurnick, along with Ted Lilly, Rubby De La Rosa will be making a rehab start in Rancho Cucamonga this afternoon.  BTW, Jay Johnston is signing free autographs prior to the game today.
• I see you, pic via twitter @DuranSports.

• Here are some incredible photos from the Open Ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, via Boston.com.
• Via Jill Painter at the Daily News we find out that the Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings are close to selling out for the upcoming season.

"The season-ticket base would be so high where we wouldn't have an ability to sell any more. We have to take care of partial-plan holders, and we want to keep (tickets) for group ticket sales and individual buyers when we go on sale."

I've Got Olympic Fervor- Check Out My 1983 Topps Greatest Olympians Set

With the 2012 Summer Olympics underway, I figured I'd take a look an Olympic card set within my collection.  Check out the 1983 Topps Greatest Olympians set put out for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.  Here are scans of both the front and reverse of every card in the set; except the checklist.  There are a total of 100 cards and it consist of mostly American medalist.

Just about every star you've heard of is in it, as well as many who are probably totally foreign to you.  In the above photos are noted athletes Dorothy Hamill and NBA Hall of Famer Bill Bradley. 

As you can see, the reverse of the cards have a short biography of each person.  BTW, I don't think this set is particularly rare.  If memory serves me right, rack packs of the cards were available at local stores for well over a year after the '84 Olympics, so there is likely plenty of stock laying around somewhere.

Check out the rest of the set below.  Click on any pic to embiggen.

The inventor of that magic grill, George Foreman, is below.  So is legendary surfer and five-time medalist in swimming, Duke Kahanamoku.

Check out two members of the 1980 Winter Olympic Team USA hockey team- goalie Jim Craig and the "erupting volcano" Mike Eruzione.

Jim Thorpe is probably one of America's greatest male athletes, while Babe Didrikson is considered one of America's greatest female athletes.  See their card below.

I had to make note of the Jesse Owens and Bruce Jenner cards below.  Also, did you know there was a champion American javelin thrower by the name of Cy Young?

This is probably the best page in the whole set.  You can't go wrong with Ali, Jerry West, Wilma Rudolph, and Joe Frazier.

Sunday Dodgers Videos: Some Singing Dodgers, Our Oldest Dodger, a Rising Dodger and Team President Stan Kasten

Here are todays Sunday Dodgers videos.

During the Dodger open workout at Dodger Stadium Team President Stan Kasten spoke to the fans in attendance.  It is long, but very worthwhile to watch.  Stan has the passion, and I'm hoping it translates into wins.

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Here is a must see.  Below is a 1964 recording of the Joey Bishop Show as several Dodgers come on stage to sing a tune.  Don Drysdale leads the ensemble.  Can you name the other players on stage?

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96-year-old Mike Sandlock, the oldest living Brooklyn Dodger, discusses his thoughts on the Brooklyn fans in the 1940's.

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Meet 2012 Dodgers draftee Darnell Sweeney who recently was promoted to the Great Lakes Loons.

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Hanley!!!!!

Holy Moly!  Wow!  Hanley Ramirez sure has a flare for the dramatic.  Not only does the trade that got him here define the new direction for the team, but it also shows that a little bit of "Dodger Blue" does a player good.  After a subpar start to the season with Miami, Hanley goes ahead and shows that he has not lost a step.  Hanleywood here we come!

Below is a video of the home run, but I suspect youtube will be taken down soon.  So, watch it before its gone.

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(photo credits above: Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

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In the I'm not surprised department, after the game several Giants fans got in to it with some of the Dodgers.  According to a post-game report by Steve Lyons, some Gints fans got in to a verbal confrontation with Dee Gordon (hat tip: Reddit).  Considering that Dee lost his mother at a very young age I can only imagine what they said to him.

Steve Lyons wrote this on his twitter account, @SteveLyons12.

If you want a reason to hate the Giants this is the reason why.

Goodwin & Co: A 1887 Card of Beloved Dodger- Darby O'Brien

Goodwin & Co. recently concluded their most recent auction, so I thought I would feature a really old card they sold of a Brooklyn favorite.

Check out the card below of old Brooklyn Bridegrooms/Grays William "Darby" O'Brien.  Born in Peoria, Illinois in 1863, Darby came of age just as Baseball was exploding in popularity.  He was a right handed batter with a good bat, great speed, and a head for the game.  Unfortunately, he would only have 6 years to show his stuff.

Darby first joined the Brooklyn team after opening his rookie year with the New York Metropolitans in 1887 at the age of 23.  Later in the year as the Metrolpolitans were closing shop, he was packaged along with 7 other teammates to Brooklyn for a then princely sum of approximately $25,000.00, and signed on for the next season for a reported annual salary of $1,900.00.  The outfielder was described by The New York Times as an "honest, competent, hard-working and game ballplayer."  For a working class neighborhood these traits quickly endeared him to the fans. 

He would bat .280 in his first season, while knocking in 65 runs and stealing 55 bases.  The next year he would bat .300, and hit a career high 5 home runs (this was quite a lot back then).  Over his first 5 season with Brooklyn he would have a batting average of .278 with 648 hits, 321 RBI's and 272 steals (he currently ranks 137th on the Majors all-time steals list with 321).

Then, lung problems he developed in his career caused him to enter the 1893 season in less than healthy shape.  The team captain could no longer play, so he was sent to Colorado to allow his lungs to recover.  Soon, the team and the community got behind him by putting together a benefit game in his honor in hopes of helping him pay for his treatment and his future.  A news report from that time period indicates that 9,000 people showed up and $5,000.00 was raised.  Every dollar earned from ticket and scorecard sales went directly to him.  Heck, it was reported that numerous tickets were sold that were never used.

Unfortunately, his change of scenery did not help Darby.  Later that year in 1893 he would die of typhoid fever.

Below is a 1887 N172 Old Judge card of O'Brien that recently sold for $346.29.

(Auction Link)