2013 Topps Baseball Cards - More Dodgers Autographed & Relic Cards

I've finally finished grabbing all of the Dodgers autographed and relic pics that I'm going to find.  (see my previous post of Dodger Cards in the 2013 Topps set here, here and here)  Unfortunately, there are a handful that just have not yet shown up anywhere, as well as, numerous autographed cards that come with only a redemption.  Heck, it's becoming an unfortunate fact that many Dodger players have become serial late signers for 'on-card' Topps cards.  The notoriously slow include both Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier.  Now, it appears that Sandy Koufax has joined that mix as all of his autographed cards come with redemption's. 

First, let's take a look at the 50 card silk insert cards in the 2013 Topps set.  There are 50 total cards in this set, and 5 Dodgers are represented.  Unfortunately, I have not been able to grab a pic of the Chad Billingsley card, but the other cards are below.

SC-40 Chad Billingsley

(not shown)

 SC-45 Josh Beckett

SC-68 Adrian Gonzalez

SC-83 Andre Ethier

SC-100 Clayton Kershaw

The mini set uses the loved 1972 Topps design.  I'll have pics of the Dodger players in the base set later this week.  For now, take a look at the lone Dodger relic insert card of Adrian Gonzalez, below.  There is also an autographed Andre Ethier card, but only a redemption card is made available.

TMR-AG Adrian Gonzalez

The Greats insert set looks very much like a high-end card set.  They are super thick with a design reminiscent of a Topps Museum set.  The 30 card insert set is only available in hobby boxes.  Sandy Koufax is the only Dodger in the set, and he has numerous relic/autographed cards available.  Unfortauntely, they all come with a redemption card; with exception of his relic insert.  See it below.

TGR-SK Sandy Koufax

A very scarce insert is the 'In the Name Relics' cards.  They feature the letters from the nameplate from actual-worn Workout Jersey's from the 2012 All-Star Game.  Both Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp are available.  Below is a Clayton Kershaw card, but a Kemp card has yet to surface.

ITN-CK Clayton Kershaw

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Sunday Dodgers Videos:

Here are this Sundays Dodgers videos.

Check out some vintage newsreel of Sandy Koufax striking out 15 Yankees in Game 1 of the 1963 World Series.  This set a World Series record.

Video Link:

Chris Capuano chats about the upcoming season.

Video Link:

Hear a great old story from a couple of old-timers from Brooklyn about seeing the Dodgers.

Video Link:

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eBay: A 1983 Dodgers Handkerchief - Don't Blow It!

Here is a great, quirky little item I ran into on eBay.  Featured here is a circa 1983 LA Dodgers handkerchief.  It has the very punny phrase, 'We Will Not Blow it this Year!' emblazoned on it.  See the auction item right here.

(eBay link)

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Dodgers Blog Kiosk: 2/1/2013

What a cutie!  Check out a pic of baby Matt Kemp as tweeted out by his mother.

• Brian Charles at the Pasadena Star News reports on the Google Doodle of Jackie Robinson.  Apparently, neither the Dodgers or Jackie's family knew it was coming.

"By celebrating Jackie today, we're hoping to spread his message of respecting each other as a human beings," Mike Dutton, the artist who created the image, said by email Thursday. "Nobody else has changed the game quite as significantly — and with the same kind of poise and dignity in the face of adversity, no less — as Jackie Robinson." 

• Fernando Valenzuela will be inducted into the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame in Hermosillo, Mexico this coming weekend, via Steve Dilbeck at the LA Times.
• Jorge Jarrin on Dodger Talk speaks with Chad Billingsley and LA Times reporter Dylan Hernandez.
• Emma at Dodger Blue World has just begun a short biography writeup on women ballplayers in the Negro Leagues.
• Carson Cistulli at FanGraphs has the 2013 ZiPS Projections for the Dodgers.
• BTW, SCP Auctions will have Reggie Jackson's game worn uniform from the 1977 World Series where he belted 6 homers against us for sale in their upcoming April auction.  I want to burn that thing so bad!
• National Hockey Card returns to the USA, via Tom Bartsch at Sports Collectors Digest.  It will be on February 16th.  There are at least 6 card shops participating in the LA/OC area.  Go here to see a comprehensive list of stores.
• Can't wait for the Super Bowl to watch commercials?  Well, watch a bunch right here at Fast Company.
• Holy Moly!  Spiegel Online has the story and a 360 degree video available to view of 4 volcano's erupting concurrently in Kamchatka- a peninsula in eastern Russia.  What a sight!
• Science is so incredible.  All of the things that we discover pales in comparison to what we still don't know.  So, when something comes along that boggles the mind I have to share it.  Gizmodo has a story about Japanese researchers capturing footage of a thought being formed in a brain.  Wow!

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A Collection of 2006 Upper Deck SP Autographs

Upper Deck sure did make some attractive Baseball cards, as evidenced by the 2006 SP cards featured here.  Chad Billingsley, Andre Ethier and Russell Martin were rising stars at the time.  They were coming up Dodger Blue, and represented a new class of Dodger players signed and fostered through the farm system, save of course Andre Ethier who was attained through a trade with Oakland. 

With these new players in our stable, they would surely lead the team to a championship.  We were stockpiling an impressive group of young studs that made many older Dodger fans thinking back to the Dodgers of the 70's.  Unfortunately, this young group couldn't get us over the hump.  Our post season failures were many, and it seemed to me that the young guys just didn't get it.  I recall reading stories about veterans like Kent and Garciaparra lamenting the lack of seriousness of many of the Dodgers youthful players.  The message was that they didn't realize just how tough it really is to get in the playoffs, so when you do make it you've got to go all out.-- risk life and limb, as it were.

Today, with a few trades here and a couple of free agent signings there, maybe the experience of those failures will lead to a different attitude the next time the post season comes calling.  We've had a drought of late, and watching the team from up north win the World Series a couple of times should make us hungrier than we've ever been. 

One can only hope.

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2013 Topps Baseball Cards - Chasing History & the Dream Auto's and Relic Dodger Cards

Following up on the Dodger short prints and some manufactured Dodger relic Baseball cards I've shown, today I focus on both autographed and relic cards from the Chasing History & Chasing the Dream subset.  I'll feature the base cards to this subset early next week.  For now, let's focus on the "hits".

Directly below are the 4 Dodger players represented in the Chasing History Relic card subset.

CHR-AE Andre Ethier

CHR-CK Clayton Kershaw

CHR-HR Hanley Ramirez

CHR-MK Matt Kemp

Below are the Chasing History Autographed cards, and it includes a couple of old favorites: Duke Snider and Johnny Podres.  There is also a Sandy Koufax autographed card, but they have not been inserted into packs.  Instead, a redemption card is made available.  Boo!

CHA-DGO Dee Gordon

CHA-DS Duke Snider

CHA-HR Hanley Ramirez

CHA-JPO Johnny Podres

Below are the Chasing History Autographed Relic Cards.  As has been customary of late, the Matt Kemp dual autograph/relic card comes with a redemption.  He never seems to have the time to sign for Topps.  Heck, I'm not sure if he's even signed any of the 2012 cards yet.  Has anyone received a Kemp autographed card from last season?

CHAR-HR Hanley Ramirez

The lone Dodger representative in the 'Chasing the Dream' subset is Dee Gordon.  Below is both the relic and autographed 'Chasing the Dream' cards.

CDR-DG Dee Gordon

Chasing the Dream Autographed Cards

CDA-DG Dee Gordon

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