Collection: Jay Johnstone "The Moon Man" - Who Is that Guy?

Check out the card above.  It is a 2006 Fleer Greats of the Game "Nickname Greats" autographed card of Jay Johnstone.  Notice, though, that it is clearly not Jay Johnstone in that photo.  Johnstone had crazy curly hair.  Besides, the man in the photo above looks way too serious, and that's not a word I don't think anyone would ever use to describe this renowned prankster.

As described in wikipedia:

He pulled off a number of infamous pranks during his playing days, including placing a soggy brownie inside Steve Garvey's first base mitt, setting teammate's cleats on fire (known as "hot-footing"), cutting out the crotch area of Rick Sutcliffe's underwear, locking Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda in his office during spring training, once dressing up as a groundskeeper and sweeping the Dodger Stadium infield in between innings and then hitting homers the next, nailing teammate's cleats to the floor, and replacing the celebrity photos in manager Lasorda's office with pictures of himself, Jerry Reuss and Don Stanhouse. One time, during pre-game warm ups, he climbed atop the Dodger dugout and, in full game uniform, walked through the field boxes at Dodger Stadium to the concession stand and got a hot dog. He also once dressed up in Lasorda's uniform (with padding underneath) and ran out to the mound to talk to the pitcher while carrying Lasorda's book and a can of Slim Fast.

Anyway, does anyone have a guess as to who is in the photo above?

BTW, I first got wind that this was a wrong photo through Dodger Bobble in a post earlier this year.  Some of the commentators on that post think it may be Jim Lefebvre.  What do you think?

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Blog Kiosk: 12/4/2012

The Dodgers shared a great vintage pic on twitter of the Dodgers marching in (I believe) the 1955 World Series victory parade with Dodgers batboy, Charlie "The Brow" DiGiovanna," leading the pack. BTW, Charlie is well known to collectors as the brilliant ghost signer for many Dodger players.

• The Dodgers lost a member of the family recently.  Longtime Dodgers equipment manager “Super Dave”  David Wright recently passed away, via Dodgers photographer Jon SooHoo.  Jon shared a photo of him, here. RIP.  BTW, here is something I didn't realize, the Dodgers have had only 3 equipment managers since they've been in LA.
• There's a lot of posturing going on in the Hyun-Jin Ryu negotiations.  Yesterday, there was quite a bit of back-and-forth regarding the Dodgers lack of an offer as indicated by Boras and Colletti mentioning the slow pace of discussions.  Now, Boras states that Ryu could pitch in Japan, and that he wants a contract that pays him like a No. 3 MLB starter right out of the gate.  I do not know if it's a good sign that negotiations have become this public.
• Maury Brown at Baseball Prospectus speaks with Stan Kasten.

So, I said to Mark Walter, the head Guggenheim, if we’re going to do the Dodgers there’s someone I want you to meet that will fit perfect into join our group and that was Magic. I had known him for many, many years from my time in the NBA, so we met, hit it off and decided to have us all come together. And, in doing so, the three elements that our group brought to the table was Guggenheim and all the resources they could provide. There was me with my experience in building baseball franchises, and then there’s Magic, who singlehandedly embodies winning and a dedication to fans in Los Angeles like no other human being on earth. So, we thought if we put those three things together we’d be a very strong combination.

• Jon Heyman at CBS Sports elicits a response about the Dodger budget, "What budget?''
• Bill Shaikin of the LA Times noted on twitter that Yasiel Puig is likely to start 2013 in AA.

• Ballpark modeler Steve Wolf is working on a Ebbets Field replica model and expects it to be completed in time to be featured during REA's 2013 auction, via Sports Collectors News.

• Ashley Burns at With Leather features the greatest piece of street art I have ever seen.  Bar none!
• FYI, the pair of gloves worn by Muhammad Ali in his 1971 bout against Joe Frazier recently sold at SCP Auctions at the record price of $385,848.00.  This boxing match was called "The Fight of the Century."  As Sports Collectors Daily notes, this (along with the gloves Ali wore against Sonny Liston in 1964) sold at world record values.  See the Ali vs. Frazier gloves at right.

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Winter Meeting Videos: Day 1 with Kasten,Tommy and Donnie Baseball

It's only Day 1 of the Winter Meetings, and already there are a couple of great videos featuring the Dodgers brass.  Check out the below MLB.com video of Stan Kasten speaking with Hot Stove analysts Richard Justice and Jack Morris.

Video Link:

Here, Tommy Lasorda chats about past Winter Meetings and the "Dodger Way."

Video Link:

ESPN analyst Tim Kurkjian speaks with Don Mattingly about the importance of Spring Training, his plans for Hanley Ramirez, and free agent Zack Greinke.

Video Link:

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Hall of Fame Pre-Integration Era Committee Chooses 3 more Hall Members- Dodgers Bill Dahlen Passed Over

The Hall of Fame Pre-Integration Era Committee released their selection for 2013, and it includes an umpire, a Yankee and a Red Sox.  That figures.

Per a story at the Hall of Fame (click on any of the names for the Hall of Fame's biography of the person):

Umpire Hank O’Day, Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert and 19^th Century catcher/third baseman Deacon White have been elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Pre-Integration Era Committee, it was announced today.

Of special note, former Brooklyn infielder and 19th Century star "Bad Bill" Dahlen just missed entrance by two measly votes- TWO!  Below is the final tally.

Results of the Pre-Integration Era Ballot (12 votes needed for election): Jacob Ruppert (15 votes, 93.8%); Hank O’Day (15 votes, 93.8%); Deacon White (14 votes, 87.5%); Bill Dahlen (10 votes, 62.5%); Sam Breadon, Wes Ferrell, Marty Marion, Tony Mullane, Alfred Reach and Bucky Walters each received three votes or less.

I'm a bit disappointed that Dahlen did not gain entry into the Hall.  Nevertheless, I'm happy to hear that Deacon White made it in, as well as, Hank O'Day.  O'Day made the crucial call on Merkle's Boner.  Jacob Ruppert built the foundation that made the Yankees into the powerhouse franchise that they would become.  So, he deserved a special place in the Hall, as well as the disdain of every Baseball fan who hates the Yankees.

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Dodgers Blog Kiosk: 12/3/2012 - Ask Vin Scully

I'm not quite sure how long Vin Scully will be taking over the @Dodgers twitter account, so I suggest you head over there right now.  Above, Vin is asked about his favorite Nancy Bea Hefley tune.  Below, is Vin Scully's comment when told that he was trending nationally.

• Howard Cole writes at Yahoo why the Dodgers won't be signing Zach Grienke.

So, why not the Dodgers? Well, first of all, Greinke's not that good. He's good, but he's not that good. I'm sorry, he's just not. Say what you will about Los Angeles becoming the West Coast version of the New York Yankees with money to burn -- they aren't actually burning it; they're investing it. And if there's an organization in baseball that gets and appreciates pitching, it's your Los Angeles Dodgers. 

• Is AJ Ellis the funniest Dodger on twitter.  Why... Yes he is!  Check out his most recent tweet to Jerry Hairston Jr. below.

(twitter link)

• Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors has interview with Peter Gammons about the Winter Meetings.

Tim Dierkes: What were the Winter Meetings like in the 70s and 80s?
Peter Gammons: Much more low-key. There were nowhere near as many media outlets. Of course there are so many different forms of media today covering, especially in the tweeting world. There were some very funny times. Bill Veeck got the White Sox back in I think the December of '75. He got a table and put it down in the middle of the lobby in Hollywood, Florida, and put a sign up over the table that said "open for business," and started trying to make trades with everybody that went by.

• Here's a Winter Meeting rumor.  Dee Gordon is on the trading block, via Chris Cwik at CBS Sports.
• James Loney signs a 1-year contract to play for the Tampa Bay Rays, via Jerry Crasnick at EPSN.

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Collection: Takashi Saito SPx Rookie Signature

I loved this guy.  Takashi Saito came over from the Japanese Central League as a star reliever in the twilight of his career.  He was 36 years old, having spent the previous 13 season with the Yokohama BayStars, and would for the first time test free agency in the hopes of playing in America.  The Dodgers did their scouting and decided to take a flyer on the old pro.  Their decision to sign Saito would pay immediate dividends.

Takashi came into Spring Training in 2006 with a minor league contract in-hand.  Unexpectedly, he won a job in the bullpen and would soon take over closing duties by mid-May.  By the end of his first Major League season he completed 24 saves with a 2.07 ERA.  Not too bad from someone thought to be too old to make any impact.  The next season he again beat all of our expectations by closing out 39 games with an infinitesimal ERA of 1.40.  

Since this time he had bounced around from the Red Sox, Braves, and Brewers, and remained competitive until this past season with the Diamondbacks.  In 2012 he pitched his way up Arizona's minor league system while battling an injury until his late call-up, but ended up allowing 9 runs in just 12 innings of work.  Today, Saito is a free agent.  I am uncertain if at the age of 42 whether another team will sign him.

Featured here is a 2006 Upper Deck SPx Rookie Signatures card of Takashi Saito in my collection.

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