Sunday Dodgers Videos: Vintage Commercials, Cuba and the Fight

Here are some videos to occupy your time on this wet and lazy Sunday.

Here is a 1978 commercial featuring Steve Garvey pitching Aqua Cologne.

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Hall of Famer Duke Snider pitches Ovaltine in this vintage commercial.

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This is pretty awesome. Here is a photo collage featuring the Dodgers in Havana, Cuba in 1942. It includes many pics I've never seen before. They were taken by Life Magazine photographer William Vandivert.

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Here is a short clip of the infamous brawl between the Dodgers and Giants involving Juan Marichal wielding a bat and nailing Johnny Roseboro in the head from 1965.

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Dodgers Notes from Spring Training- Day 25

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

San Francisco Giants (11-4-2) at LOS ANGELES DODGERS (8-4-2)

Saturday, March 17, 2012 – 7:05 p.m., Camelback Ranch - Glendale

RHP Aaron Harang vs. LHP Brian Burres

Spring Game 15/Home Game 7

Todays Starting Lineup:

Dodgers: Sellers 3B, DeJesus 2B, Kemp CF, Rivera LF, Sands RF, Loney 1B, Cruz SS, Treanor C, Harang P, Scully announcer
Giants:

Upcoming Spring Training Schedule:

(Photo Credit: Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

• CACTUS LEAGUE HEAVIES: Two of the Cactus League’s best will be on display tonight as a split-squad of Dodgers takes on a split-squad of Giants this evening at Camelback Ranch – Glendale. This will be the second of three meetings with the Giants this spring as the Dodgers will head to Scottsdale on Wednesday, March 28. During the regular season, the Giants and Dodgers clash 18 times, with the first series coming from May 7-9 at Dodger Stadium. The clubs meet six times in September, including the final three games at Chavez Ravine from Oct. 1-3.

• HURLERS: Right-hander Aaron Harang takes the mound for his third start of the spring season today after firing 3.0 innings and allowing one run in a victory over the Angels in Tempe last Monday. Harang is coming off one of the best seasons of his 10-year big league career after leading the Padres with 14 wins and posting a career-low 3.64 ERA in 28 starts last season. Since 2004, Harang ranks among the National League leaders in wins (85, 7th), strikeouts (1,223, 3rd), innings pitched (1,467.2, 4th) and complete games (13, T-7^th). He will be followed to the mound by:

  ● RHP Jamey Wright last pitched on Wednesday against the Reds, allowing an unearned run in 1.0 inning. The Texas native has given up three runs (two earned) in 4.0 Cactus League innings this spring.

  ● RHP Ramon Troncoso fired a scoreless inning last Tuesday vs. Colorado and has yielded just one run in three 2012 Spring Training appearances. Troncoso made the club’s Opening Day roster from 2008-10, but spent the majority of last year with Triple-A Albuquerque, going 2-4 with a 5.05 ERA in 35 relief appearances for the Isotopes.

  ● RHP Josh Lindblom last pitched on Wednesday in Goodyear and gave up just one hit in a scoreless frame. The right-hander out of Purdue went 1-0 with a 2.73 ERA (9 ER/29.2 IP) in 27 appearances for the Dodgers last year.

  ● LHP Matt Chico allowed one run on two hits last Tuesday vs. Colorado and has a 6.00 ERA (2 ER/3.0 IP) this spring. The 28-year-old pitched for USC and Palomar Community College.

(Photo Credit: Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

• EARLIER TODAY: The Dodgers scored four runs in the ninth to tie the game, but lost to the Rockies in Scottsdale, 7-6, on a walk-off home run by Tim Wheeler. The Dodgers have now alternated wins and losses since beating the Angels on Monday. All-Star outfielder Andre Ethier was 2-for-2 with a double and now has seven extra-base hits in his nine games. On the mound, Nathan Eovaldi tossed 3.0 scoreless innings in his second Cactus League start while minor leaguer RHP Logan Bawcom (0-1) took the loss.

• HOT TICKET!: The Dodgers’ home games at Camelback Ranch-Glendale tonight and tomorrow have sold out. Dodger Special Advisor to the Chairman Don Newcombe will throw a ceremonial first pitch prior to tonight’s game against the Giants, which will be followed by fireworks sponsored by Salt River Project. Weather permitting, the Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will face off at 1:05 p.m. tomorrow in front of another capacity crowd.

• POT OF GOLD: The Dodgers enter today’s contests with the best Spring Training record among National League clubs at 8-3-2 and have the second-best team ERA with a 3.08 mark. Los Angeles has also produced at the plate with a .287 team batting average, third-best among NL clubs, and a league-best .365 on-base percentage.

• AN IRISH GOODBYE: On this day in 2008, the Dodgers played their final Spring Training game in Vero Beach. “Dodgertown” was the Spring Training home of the Dodgers for 60 years.

  ● On March 17, 1946 in Daytona Beach, the Dodgers took the field against their minor league farm team, the Montreal Royals. With Jackie Robinson in the lineup for Montreal, the game marked the first appearance of an integrated team in organized baseball in this century. More than 40 years later, the field was renamed Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

(Photo Credit: Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

• GOING GREEN: The Dodgers will wear green jerseys and hats in both of their games today in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. Following the games, players will sign their jerseys to be auctioned off by the Dodgers Dream Foundation during the season.

• IT’S TIME FOR DODGER BASEBALL!: The Dodgers would like to welcome Hall of Famer broadcaster Vin Scully to Camelback Ranch – Glendale. Scully will call tonight’s game against the Giants on PRIME TICKET and tomorrow’s contest against the Angels on KCAL 9 as he kicks off his 63^rd season broadcasting the Dodgers.

• SURE TO KICK OFF A MANIA!: Fernando Valenzuela made his first appearance of the spring at Camelback Ranch yesterday and will join Hall of Famer Jaime Jarrin and Pepe Yniguez in the booth for Dodgers’ Spanish Radio broadcasts tonight and tomorrow. This weekend also marks the club’s fifth annual Mexican Media Weekend with representatives from ZETA, TV Azteca, Sintesis TV and Puro Beisbol making the trip to Glendale to cover the Dodgers.

• ANOTHER REASON TO CELEBRATE: The Dodgers would like to wish a very happy 41^st birthday to Special Assistant to the GM, Bill Mueller! The former AL batting champion enters his seventh season in the Dodger front office and sixth as a Special Assistant.

eBay: A Vintage Dodgers Patch

This post is probably more for my own reference than anything. Over the years I've run into numerous Dodgers collectibles that I had no idea about. For instance, check out the little patch below.

It is a vintage Dodgers patch shaped as a headstone measuring about 3" in length. For the longest time I figured it was a relatively modern piece (an early LA Dodgers memorabilia item), but I came across some information on eBay that shows otherwise. It provides some detail about its origins.

According to the auction it is from 1955 - far more vintage than I originally thought - and was given away in boxes of Post Cereal. Furthermore, a complete set of team patched could be purchased by sending in a couple of box tops. Along with a pic of the patch is an original sleeve used to house the patch in cereal boxes.

This particular item sold for an affordable $9.99. Now that I know a little more about it I'll have to put it on my wantlist.

(eBay Auction Link)

Collection: Mauty Wills Greats of the Game Autograph

This is my 2000 Fleer "Greats of the Game" autographed card of Maury Wills.

I've already shown several Wills autographed cards on this blog with companion mini-biographies, so I don't have much more to add about how great a player he was. Instead, I'll include several quotes from him I really liked:

• “I heard all the black people buzzing about this man in Brooklyn named Jackie Robinson. I asked who he was and they told me. Right then, I said, 'I want to play for the Dodgers someday.' That was my childhood dream.”
• “We played in the Coliseum then, that had over 94,000 people. Prior to that, the biggest crowd I played in front of was about 1,500. And if you can imagine the sound of 94,000 people chanting 'Go, go, go Maury go,' I knew I had a home.”
• "Bobby Bragan came along and taught me how to switch hit because I was strictly a right-handed hitter. I could do everything but I was afraid of the curve. Not being able to hit that curve ball was the thing that was keeping me from going to the major leagues. I never would have made it [without Bobby Bragan]."
• "When I was 8 years old playing on the playgrounds and Priddy came by the sandlot and gave us a clinic, I was so impressed with him and the way he took a personal interest," Wills recalls. "He singled me out and said I had a chance to be a good ballplayer one day. It impressed me so much and I just became obsessed with wanting to be a major league player. I wanted to be like he was; and nice, too. I acquired a desire to be a nice person based on how that man was to me and my buddies.
• "Anytime I get a chance to interact with kids, I have this feeling that maybe I can be their Jerry Priddy."
• "I'm already so grateful, I live a life of gratitude. I'm grateful for what measure of success I've been able to realize. I know that all those good things that happened to me in my life didn't come just because of myself; maybe a lot of it came in spite of myself."

Vin Scully once said this of Wills:

"When he (Maury Wills) runs, it's all downhill."

Dodgers Notes from Spring Training- Day 24

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

Texas Rangers (3-8-1) at LOS ANGELES DODGERS (7-3-2)

Friday, March 16, 2012 – 1:05 p.m., Camelback Ranch

LHP Ted Lilly vs. RHP Greg Reynolds

Spring Game 13/Home Game 6

Todays Starting Lineup:

Dodgers: Gordon SS, Ellis 2B, Kemp CF, Ethier RF, Rivera LF, Loney 1B, Uribe 3B, A.Ellis C, Lilly P
Rangers: CF Julio Borbon, RF David Murphy, DH Mike Napoli, 1B Brad Hawpe, LF Conor Jackson, 3B Brandon Snyder, C Luis Martinez, SS Alberto Gonzalez, 2B Yangervis Solarte

Upcoming Spring Training Schedule:

(Reflecting Matt Kemp, pic via Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

• LONESTAR REMATCH: The Dodgers play their second and final game of the Cactus League season against the Rangers this afternoon at Camelback Ranch-Glendale. Back on March 9, Los Angeles trounced Texas in Surprise by a final score of 9-0. The two clubs haven’t met in the regular season since 2009, when the Dodgers took two-of-three in Arlington. Los Angeles holds an 11-9 advantage in their all-time regular season meetings.

• LEFTY TRIO: The Dodgers’ starting rotation consists of three left-handed pitchers and today, 14-year veteran Ted Lilly takes the hill for his third start of the spring. Lilly was sharp in his last outing, allowing one hit and one walk over 3.0 scoreless innings last Sunday vs. the Cubs. In 2011, Lilly was 12-14 with a 3.97 ERA over 33 starts, including victories in five of his last six starts. Over the season’s last two months, his .169 opponents’ batting average was the best in baseball. Lilly will be followed to the mound by:

  ● LHP Wilfredo Ledezma tossed 2.0 scoreless innings in his last outing on Monday at the Angels. The 31-year-old left-hander has allowed one run over three appearances this spring. Last year, Ledezma was in the Blue Jays’ organization and made five appearances in the Major Leagues.

  ● LHP Scott Elbert has not pitched in a Cactus League game since March 10 and has not yielded a run in his two spring games this March. Elbert posted a 2.43 ERA last season, which ranked him 20^th among all NL relievers (min. 45 games).

  ● RHP Kenley Jansen has also tossed 2.0 scoreless innings this spring and will make his third appearance this afternoon. In 2011, Jansen averaged 16.10 strikeouts per nine innings, which is the highest in single-season history (min. 50.0 IP).

  ● RHP Javy Guerra saved 21 games in his rookie campaign (21-for-23), which tied him with Yhency Brazoban for the second most by a rookie in Dodger history, trailing just Takashi Saito (24, 2006). The Texas native last pitched on March 10 vs. the White Sox.

  

(Clayton Kershaw receiving the Sportsman of the Year Award last night, via twitter @Dodgers)

• OH WHAT A NIGHT: Yesterday, National League Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw flew back to Los Angeles with his wife, Ellen, to receive the 2011 Sportsman of the Year award at the seventh annual LA Sports Awards. In addition to Kershaw’s honor, the Dodgers also were involved in two of the Top-10 moments for 2011. Kershaw’s Cy Young Award-winning season was No. 2, while Matt Kemp’s MVP runner-up campaign was the No. 4 Los Angeles sports moment in 2011.

• HOMESICK: The Dodgers fell to 2-3 at Camelback Ranch – Glendale yesterday, dropping an 8-5 decision to the Kansas City Royals. Infielder Jerry Hairston Jr. went 2-for-2 with two runs scored in the losing effort while Ivan De Jesus was 3-for-3 with two RBI. On the mound, starter Chad Billingsley allowed just one run in 3.2 innings.

(Don Newcombe and Matt Kemp, pic via Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

• ALL EARS ON NEWK: Dodger Special Advisor to the Chairman Don Newcombe addressed the entire team this morning for nearly an hour. Newcombe will throw a ceremonial first pitch prior to the sold out Dodgers-Giants game tomorrow night.

• GOING NATIONAL: MLB Network’s 30-in-30 series visited Camelback Ranch the last two days and their special on the Dodgers will air tomorrow. Intentional Talk with Chris Rose and Kevin Millar was on-site today and relief pitcher Todd Coffey joined the guys on their set from the left-center field berm. Over the last two days, MLB Net caught up with Clayton Kershaw, Matt Kemp, Chris Capuano, Chad Billingsley, Andre Ethier, James Loney, Ted Lilly, Javy Guerra and Dodger skipper Don Mattingly.

• HOT TICKET!: The Dodgers’ home games at Camelback Ranch-Glendale tomorrow and Sunday, have sold out. The Dodgers will face the San Francisco Giants at 7 05 p.m. tomorrow (followed by fireworks sponsored by Salt River Project) and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday in front of capacity crowds.
  

• BATTING CHAMPION IN THE HOUSE: The Dodgers would like to legendary outfielder Tommy Davis, who arrives this afternoon at Camelback Ranch. Davis is celebrating the 50^th anniversary of his historic 1962 campaign, when he hit .346 with 27 homers and a Dodger single-season record 153 RBI. In addition to leading the Majors in RBI that season, Davis won a batting title and led the National League with 230 hits.

  

(Spring fever, pic via Jon SooHoo/ LA Dodgers 2012)

Blog Kiosk: 3/16/2012

Watching Clayton Kershaw's bullpen session, pic via twitter @Dodgers.

• LA Blue Crew put up a bunch of pics from his visit to Camelback Ranch for some Spring Training Baseball.
  
• Dave Fleming at Bill James Online wonders aloud if James Loney could break out to lead the NL in home runs this year. Could he be a modern version of the Big Klu? (Hat Tip: Baseball Musings)
  

  Kluszewski and Loney both reached the majors at twenty-two. Both were highly touted prospects, though they reached the majors through different channels. Kluszewski, a star tight-end for the University of Indiana, sort of lucked into the majors: a groundskeeper employed by the Reds witnessed Kluszewski hitting baseballs, and passed his name along to upper management. Like a few others of his era, Kluszewski was a football player who played baseball.

  Loney, in contrast, was a baseball player through-and-through. In high school, he hit .509, and as a pitcher averaged nearly two strikeouts per inning pitched. He was a first-round selection in the draft (19^th overall). At twenty-two, he hit .380 in AAA ball.
• The Baseball Professor predicts that Dee Gordon will steal 70 bases. On the other hand, some ESPN fantasy experts think he'll be back in the minors by mid-season (via Vin Scully is My Homeboy).
  
• Here is a great story at Big League Stew about Jerry Hairston's attempt to blow the ball foul yesterday.
  
• Via Beckett Blog they introduce us to OYO Sports Toys. These are Lego compliant Baseball figures of your favorite teams and stars. See the Matt Kemp below. Ethier, Kershaw, Loney and a general Dodger player are also available. On top of that , according to Beckett you can have one made of yourself. Read the Beckett story for more.
• I wish they made these while I was in college. My room would have looked awesome. Walls 360 partners with Topps to make some cool wall graphics of vintage Baseball (and other sports) packs and various other non-sports drawings (including Mars Attacks!). Check out information here and here.
• I am so envious. Collector's Crack nails down a Robin Yount autograph at Spring Training.
  
• This is the first I've heard of this. Here is a trailer for a documentary called "Blue Revolution" that focuses on fan efforts to oust Frank McCourt. More background can be found here. Apparently, there is a screening happening soon of the finished product. I'll provide details when I get them.
  

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