Blog Kiosk: 3/6/2012

Here is the cover shot of Dodgers Magazine current issue, via twitter @Dodgers.

• This past Sunday was the 100th Anniversary of the groundbreaking of Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. Check out Chris Jaffe's story about it.

  One hundred years ago today was a big day in the history of the Dodgers. On that day, they took their first step toward getting their first real stadium. On March 4, 1912, they had a groundbreaking ceremony in Brooklyn for Ebbets Field.

• Per Eric Stephens at True Blue LA we find out that Mattingly is extremely high on the future of Nathan Eovaldi. Per his twitter, here and here.
• Dee Gordon took a bad hop on the lips and got stitches, pic via twitter @skinnyswag9.
• Check out a bunch of YouTube Videos of Dodgers signing autographs at Camelback Ranch. Juan Uribe; Matt Kemp; and Davey Lopes.
  
• Jackie Robinson movie will begin filming in Chattanooga in May and will be casting for extras, via Nooga.com. (Hat Tip: Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts twitter)
• Here's Matt Kemp signing autographs last night at the Oakley Store in Scottsdale, via twitter @aaainslie. Roberto at Vin Scully is My Homeboy has a fans story of the evening.

Card Creations: Tommy, A couple of Hall of Fame Announcers and the Cy Young

Man-O-Live! I'm lovin' photoshop.

Check out some recent card creations I put together recently. BTW, Left Field Pavilion sent along some really nice templates over the weekend to assist me on my new addiction. So, I'll be very busy with those for quite a while. Thank You!

Here is a young Tommy Lasorda sporting a Montreal Royals uniform on a 1961 Topps card design. I realize that the card design doesn't correspond with the date of the photo, but who cares? I think the 1961 Topps card perfectly frames this vintage photo.

I have to say that is my favorite. Using the 1972 Topps Dodgers team card I took out the out-of-focus team photo for a couple of Los Angeles based Hall of Fame announcers. Here is Vin Scully with LA Kings play-by-play announcer Bob Miller. The photo is by Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers and was taken over the winter at the Southern California Sports Broadcasters Awards ceremony.

I figured that since the 1972 Topps set highlights some major Baseball awards it would only be proper to make a Clayton Kershaw Cy Young award card. I took out the drab award photo that was originally there and exchanged it with a pic of the Kershaw's Cy Young replica award that will be given out to fans as a stadium give-away on April 11th.

Dodgers Notes from Spring Training- Day 13

Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.

Todays Spring Training Opening Day Game:

LOS ANGELES DODGERS (0-0) vs. CHICAGO WHITE SOX (0-0)

Monday, March 5, 2012 – 1:05 p.m., Camelback Ranch – Glendale

RHP Chad Billingsley vs. RHP Philip Humber

Spring Game 1/Road Game 1

(Rick Monday chatting with Don Mattingly, via twitter @PONealFSWest)

• IT’S TIME FOR DODGER BASEBALL: The Dodgers open up their 34-game exhibition schedule as the designated visiting team against the White Sox this afternoon at Camelback Ranch – Glendale. The two clubs will meet for the fourth time in five seasons during Interleague Play in 2012 with the White Sox visiting Dodger Stadium from June 15-17. Los Angeles will play 31 Cactus League contests before finishing up the spring slate with three games against the Angels; in Anaheim on April 2 and two at Dodger Stadium on April 3 and 4.

• BILLS ON THE HILL: Chad Billingsley will make his first start of the Cactus League season as he prepares for his seventh big league season after going 11-11 with a 4.21 ERA in 32 starts last year. The 27-year-old is one of only three National League pitchers to have won 10 or more games in each of the past five seasons, joining teammate Ted Lilly and Cole Hamels, and also ranks sixth on the Senior Circuit with 703 strikeouts since the start of the 2008 season. Billingsley will be followed to the mound today by RHP Nathan Eovaldi, RHP Fernando Nieve, LHP Wilfredo Ledezma, RHP Angel Guzman, RHP Ryan Tucker and LHP Scott Rice.

(Clayton Kershaw pitches in an intrasquad game for his first live action of the spring, pic via twitter Jon SooHoo @Dodgers)

• IT ALL STARTS AT THE TOP: With the exception of Adam Kennedy at third base, today’s Dodger starting lineup looks very similar to what Don Mattingly is expected to pencil in on Opening Day one month from today in San Diego. Shortstop Dee Gordon will start things off for the Dodger nine this afternoon and ranked fourth in the Majors last season (min. 200 AB) with a .315 batting average as a leadoff hitter (63-for-200). Last season, the 23-year-old became the first-ever Dodger shortstop to be selected to the Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team and was also recognized as the Gillette presents National League Rookie of the Month in September, batting .372 with a league-leading 42 hits in 26 games. Overall, Gordon had the second-highest batting average among Major League rookies (min. 200 AB) with a .304 mark and tied for second among rookies with 24 steals in 56 games with the Dodgers last season.

• BIG MAC: The Dodgers would like to wish right-handed reliever Mike MacDougal a happy 35^th birthday today! MacDougal re-signed with the club as a free agent this past offseason after ranking second on the team with 57.0 innings pitched as a reliever and a career-high 69 appearances in 2011. The 11-year Major League veteran ranked seventh among National League relievers (min. 50.0 IP) with a 2.05 ERA while going 3-1 with one save last season in his first season with Los Angeles.

• MAJORING IN THE MINORS: Dodger minor league pitchers and catchers have their first workout today with all other minor leaguers reporting on Friday. The first full-squad workout takes place on March 11. The farmhands will hope to repeat their success from last season, when six of the Dodgers’ seven minor league affiliates ended the season with winning records and the teams’ cumulative .543 winning percentage (414-349) was the second highest among Major League clubs behind only Texas’ .565 mark (431-332). In addition, four of the seven clubs reached the postseason with the Rookie-level AZL Dodgers winning the Arizona Summer League championship.

• TROLLEY DODGERS: New for 2012, fans can ride a free trolley from the Westgate City Center to all Dodgers and White Sox games at Camelback Ranch – Glendale. The trolley stop is located on Westgate Boulevard right across from Yard House and drops off outside the ballpark. The trolley runs every 40 minutes starting at 11:00 a.m. with continuous service throughout and after the game.

• Upcoming Spring Training Game Schedule

  

Hake's Auctions: Campy in Mexico

Hake's Auctions, well known for selling vintage toys, has also built a strong reputation for quality sports memorabilia. For at least the past couple of years they were the exclusive auctioneer of the collection of Richard Merkin, a noted Negro League collector. In fact, their current auction has several more items from Merkin's collection that I will highlight in a future post. At this time, though, I want to highlight a couple of Dodgers related items that caught my eye.

Below is an original drawing by noted New York Post cartoonist John Pierotti. From 1958 it features a Brooklyn Dodger with sword in hand riding a torn New York Yankees jersey while heading towards Los Angeles. The Dodger has exchanged his Brooklyn cap for an LA cap as their move to the west coast has become a reality.

(Auction Link)

This is a real treat. Here is a Negro League collectible from the collection of Richard Merkin that Dodger fans will enjoy. This is a real photo post card from 1943. It features a Baseball team from Monterey, Mexico that happens to include soon-to-be Major Leaguer and Brooklyn Dodger Roy Campanella. He is seated on the very far left. A close up of Campy is also below.

(Auction Link)

Dodgers Notes from Spring Training- Day 12

AJ Ellis interviews Clayton Kershaw for a future DodgerVision feature, via twitter @dodgers.

Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.

(Javy Guerra building memories for a child, via twitter @Dodgers)

• GETTING TO KNOW YOU: The last day of workouts prior to games kicked off this morning with Dodger skipper Don Mattingly implementing a new wrinkle during the daily team meeting. Mattingly started the getting-to-know-you process yesterday by introducing bench coach Trey Hillman to the team. Today, the responsibility fell on some younger players’ shoulders as Josh Wall introduced Jerry Hairston, Jr. to the club and Rubby De La Rosa familiarized the Dodgers with right-handed reliever Todd Coffey. Mattingly plans to continue the presentations over the next couple of weeks.

• GAME TIME! (sort of): This morning at 11:00 a.m., several Dodgers took part in an intrasquad game on the minor league side, specifically pitchers Clayton Kershaw, Chris Capuano, Stephen Fife and Will Savage and catchers Matt Treanor and Gorman Erickson. The hurlers each threw 2.0 innings while the catchers recorded three at-bats in the contest, which consisted of eight half-innings. Kershaw stuck out five of the seven batters he faced and allowed just one hit over 25 pitches. Capuano did not allow a hit or walk while striking out two over 2.0 innings. Fife and Savage each allowed an earned run in their 2.0 innings of work. Kershaw will make his first “official” start of the Cactus League season on March 9 against the Rangers in Surprise.

(Kershaw watching from the dugout, via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers)

• RUBBY SUNDAY: The Dodgers would like to wish a very happy 23^rd birthday to right-handed pitcher Rubby De La Rosa, who is progressing well after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last August. De La Rosa went 4-5 with a 3.71 ERA in 13 appearances (10 starts) in the big leagues last season before the injury. The native of the Dominican Republic shares his big day with Brooklyn Dodger Hall of Fame pitcher Dazzy Vance.
  

• CACTUS LEAGUE LID-LIFTER: The Dodgers open up their Cactus League season as the designated visiting team tomorrow against their Camelback Ranch neighbors, the White Sox. RHP Chad Billingsley will get the start for Los Angeles with RHP Nathan Eovaldi, RHP Fernando Nieve, LHP Wilfredo Ledezma, RHP Angel Guzman, RHP Ryan Tucker and LHP Scott Rice in relief and right-hander Philip Humber taking the hill for Chicago. The Dodgers open their home slate on Tuesday with LHP Ted Lilly on the mound against the Giants’ Barry Zito.

• GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: On this day 100 years ago, groundbreaking ceremonies were held for Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field. This season is the 50^th anniversary of Dodger Stadium presented by State Farm and the club will begin the special season at Chavez Ravine on April 10 vs. Pittsburgh.

(Los Angeles Dodgers veterans Billy Delury, Jaime Jarrin, Ramon Martinez, Alejandro Pena, Tommy Lasorda and Charlie Hough Sunday, March 4, 2012 in Glendale, Arizona,via Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers)

• THE GANG’S ALL HERE: Many of the Dodger broadcasters have descended on Camelback Ranch – Glendale over the last few days as Hall of Famer Jaime Jarrín showed up on Thursday, while Charley Steiner and Pepe Yñiguez arrived Friday. This afternoon, former Dodger outfielder and current KABC broadcaster Rick Monday landed in Phoenix, ready to call the game alongside Steiner tomorrow afternoon on the Dodgers’ new radio broadcast partner, AM 570 Fox Sports Los Angeles. Jarrín and Yñiguez will call the contest for KTNQ 1020, entering their second year as the Dodgers’ Spanish radio partner. The club would also like to welcome Efren Meza, the new Dodger producer for the Spanish radio crew.
  

• MAJORING IN THE MINORS: Dodger minor league pitchers and catchers have their first workout on March 5 and all other minor leaguers report on March 9 with the first full-squad workout taking place on March 11. The farmhands will hope to repeat their success from last season, when six of the Dodgers’ seven minor league affiliates ended the season with winning records and the teams’ cumulative .543 winning percentage (414-349) was the second highest among Major League clubs behind only Texas’ .565 mark (431-332). In addition, four of the seven clubs reached the postseason with the Rookie-level AZL Dodgers winning the Arizona Summer League championship.

Sunday Dodger Videos: A Bob Hope Special with Drysdale, Davis and Koufax

Here is this weekends Sunday Dodger Videos.

Watch this vintage Vitalis commercial featuring Don Drysdale.

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Here is a Bob Hope Special from 1978 "Salute to the 75th Anniversary of the World Series" that takes a look back at a 1963 clip featuring Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax and Tommy Davis. A couple of years ago I ran into a press photo that I thought was from a Las Vegas musical review show, but as you can see it's not. It is actually from a Bob Hope special from 1963. See that original post here.

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Here is outfielder Mike Marshall with announcer Ross Parter in a commercial from 1984.

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"Get Up and Go!"
Here is a 1987 MLB commercial featuring Dodger Baseball. Fernando Valenzuela makes a brief appearance and so does Nancy Bea.

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