Blog Kiosk: 1/20/2011

Have no fear folks, Baseball is around the corner.

• If you are planning to tie that knot soon, then you gotta check this out. Topps is giving away a $10,000.00 diamond engagement ring away to one lucky couple as a part of their diamond 60th anniversary promotion. Get all the details right here.
• At Baseball by the Letters, Norm Sherry shares a bit about hitting homers against Spahn.
• Have you ever wanted to go to the Football Hall of Fame? Well, here's a chance to go for free. Hershey is running a contest that includes a free trip. You can also win a whole bevy of other prizes. Go here to check it out.
• Gary at the always great Infinite Baseball Card Set has really outdone himself with an awesome card and biography on Major League Murderer Blackie Schwamb. Bringing back the past to fascinate us in the present.
  

Auto Collection: Beltre Showcase

Unfortunately, Beltre will be showcasing his defensive talents with another club. Fortunately, him going elsewhere means the Dodgers won't be on the hook for an outrageous sum. 6 years for $96Mil? Are you kidding me? Texas can have him! Anyway, here is a 2005 Fleer Showcase Legacy Autographed card of Adrian Beltre. It is numbered 116 out of 180.

Blog Kiosk: 1/17/2011

• Chris Jaffe puts together a list of the "15 worst endings ever to regular season games." As I'm sure you cam imagine, the Dodgers amply fill the list. 4 Dodgers games are recounted, and, surprisingly, only one led to a Dodger lost. Here is a sample of a win:

  Thanks to Baseball-Reference.com's Play Index, we know that only one game in the last 60 years ended on a walk-off catcher's interference play. I really don't know what Johnny Bench did with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th of a 4-4 game in 1971, but the ump ruled it catcher interference. Runners advance - game over.

• Check out Julian Morrow's great story about Happy Felton and the Knott Hole Gang.
  
• Marcus Thames- Almost a Dodger? Via, MLB Trade Rumor and Ken Gurnick.
• Check out this really cool map of online communities, via The Big Picture.
• Tom at Baseball by the Letters shares a letter he got from former Dodger Norm Sherry.
• GCRL reminded me that today is Don Zimmer's Birthday. Happy Birthday Don!
  

SportsCardLink Auction: Some Great Vintage Dodger Pics

I can't get enough of these old photos. Here are some great Brooklyn related pictures from an auction house called Sports Card Link Auctions. This is the first time I've run into this company so I can't vouch for their services, but based on some of these items featured here I can certainly sing their praises for having some nice items up for auction.

Below is a cabinet sized team photo of 1913 Brooklyn Superbas. This year is noted since it was the first year the club played at Ebbets Field. Also, the auction states that this is the exact photo that adorns the T200 Fatima Cigarettes Brooklyn team card. Click on the pic below to enlarge it.

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(Auction Link)

Here is a great team photo cabinet card of the 1907 Brooklyn Superbas. Well, let me rephrase that. It includes many members of the 1907 team, but also includes a handful of non-Dodgers; including a chap from Fordham College. It is likely from their pre-season games in Florida or from a barnstorming tour of the same year. Either way, it's a nice pic featuring some old-time Dodgers.

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(Auction Link)

Here are some photos that really caught my eye. They are auctioning a lot of 11 vintage photo negatives featuring the 1955 Brooklyn Dodger NL Champions victory parade through the old borough. This happened on September 16th, 1955- a couple of weeks before the start of the World Series. I guess after years of a seemingly futile wait for their own World Series parade they decided that a pennant winning parade would be just fine. Little did they know that that victory parade would be earned the next month.

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(Auction Link)

Dodger Pride Night In the Midst of a Kings Slide

I was hoping that last nights Kings game would bring out a resurgent hockey club. After all, it would be Dodger Pride Night and I figured there would be no better way to bring back some of those good feelings to the LA fans than to share the moment with the areas great Baseball team. Unfortunately, we got a whole crap full of nothing as our current slide continues unabated. If you've been following the team this season then you know what I'm talking about. They have been on a roller coaster that has certainly given this fan the shakes. I've been on the verge of loosing my lunch as we rumble through the seasons course hoping that we reach the finish line in time to made another run into the playoffs.

Fortunately, the Kings have had some ups this season too, so all is not lost. They just need to get their act together. And soon!
Anyway, this years Dodger Pride event featured Billy Ashley signing autographs. He didn't have any pics available, but he did sign a Line Drive Magazine for me below. He was also kind enough to take a pic with me as you can see above.
Here are a couple more pics from the evening from the Kings website; including Mattingley dropping the opening puck.

(Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NHLI via Getty Images)

(Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NHLI via Getty Images)

1982 Dodgers Police Set

I've finally gotten around to scanning the next Dodger Police set. Here are pics of the entire 1982 Dodger Police set that celebrates the 1981 World Series Championship team. The first four cards below are definitely the best ones. Click any of the photos to enlarge.

I really love these cards. They are inexpensive to get and provide a really good look at the team that hit the field that year. The backs have a short biography.

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