Greatest Game Thread Ever!

I was just over at an enemy blog site, Gaslamp Ball, and read through their game thread for tonight. You gotta check it out. They started off by writing in Haiku until they got their first hit.

Dodgers Pick Aaron Miller from Baylor University

(Pic Link: BU)

The Dodger lone pic in the first round at #36 is Aaron Miller from Baylor University. He is a tall 6' 3" left-hander. He could be a pitcher or a position player, but is most likely headed for the mound.

“It’s been pretty much 29 to 1 in terms of teams wanting me as a pitcher rather than a hitter,” Miller said. “There’s still one team out there holding strong that really likes me as a hitter. But the general feeling among most teams seems to want to try me out on the mound, and that’s fine. I’ve always loved both, but as a pitcher, I probably have the best chance and the quickest road to the majors.”

He also looks forward to being on a National League club.

“It will be a weird thing whichever one (hitting or pitching) I end up doing, not doing the other,” he said. “I’ve always done both growing up. My freshman year (at Baylor), I didn’t really pitch, but I always still considered myself a pitcher. So that’ll be weird. ... But I do think there are some teams in the National League who really seem interested in the fact that I’m capable of swinging the bat, since that would give them nine guys in the lineup who could swing it rather than eight.”

Go to the article on the Waco-Tribune Herald for the rest of this excellent article on this future Dodger. Here is the BU page for Miller here.

UPDATE: Dodger scouting guru Logan White had this to say.

“Aaron is a physical athlete who has had a limited amount of time on the mound,” said White. “With the help of our player development staff, we see a bright future for him as a left-handed pitcher in the Erik Bedard mold. He is a terrific competitor and a first-class person with great makeup.”

eBay: Never Seen This Before

eBay truly is a giant flea market of unusual and strange stuff. Over the weekend I came across this auction that had me a bit bewildered and thankful at the same time. After all, you don't often find a set of 27 newspaper cut-outs like this selling for this much. At the same time, though, what's the chance you'll ever see this set again. Heck, I'd be surprised if single copies popped up at all. You may find them in a scrapbook, but how often do those show up?

Below are 27 newspaper cut-outs from the LA Examiner featuring the Los Angeles Dodgers. They were printed on consecutive days from March 26, 1960 to April 22, 1960 and are neatly cut outside the dotted lines. All of the greats are represented- Koufax, Drysdale, Snider, Hodges and Podres. Really, too many to name. As of this writing it is already up to $34.00. UPDATE: This item sold for an amazing $155.00.

eBay Auction Link: 1960 LA Examiner Dodger Newspaper Set:

For the sake of posterity I've decided to post all of the pics from the auction so you can enjoy the biographies. Click on any of the picks to enlarge.

(Click any pic to enlarge)

(Click any pic to enlarge)

Titans to Omaha

(Image Link: Fullerton Titans.com)

My Alma Mater is going to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. Cal State Fullerton easily came out of their Super Regional Tournament with a full head of steam. They defeated Louisville 11-2 on Saturday and 12-0 on Friday.

Fullerton, which will be making its fourth trip to Omaha in the last six seasons and the first under second-year Head Coach Dave Serrano, improved to 47-14 overall on the year, having won its last nine games and 15 consecutive contests at home. The Titans, who have advanced seven times out of nine super regionals with a 15-6 record, will meet Arkansas in their opener at the College World Series after the Razorbacks swept host Florida State by the scores of 7-2 and 9-8.

They are currently ranked 2nd in the country behind UCI (who failed to make it out of the regional tournament). The tournament starts on June 13th.

Go Titans!

Card of the Week: In Your Face

Here we have a very common 1990 Upper Deck Baseball card of back-up infielder Jose Oquendo. This fellow spent most of his career with the Cardinals. He had a fairly unremarkable career, but did fill a niche. Oquendo was a very patient hitter and an able utility man. In fact, he could play any position on the diamond, including pitcher.

Oquendo even made it into TV.

In 2004, a comical one hour special aired on ESPN and was produced by MLB Productions about José Oquendo. It featured Randy and Jason Sklar of Cheap Seats going on a trip all the way to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown on a campaign to get José "The Utilityman" Oquendo inducted for his versatility to play any position on the baseball field. The special included the Sklars receiving Oquendo's blessing to lobby for his spot in Cooperstown, collecting signatures for the petition, and giving a lackluster presentation to the Hall of Fame's committee. After initially denying their claim, the committee agreed to place his plaque in a spot that fits the man- the utility closet.

Now, why is his card the "Card of the Week?" Well, it's not the front of the card that strikes my fancy, but the reverse which makes me laugh. This card features a wrongly placed hologram sticker on the back that covers Jose's face.

I guess Upper Deck was still working through some kinks as they improperly aligned the card sheet when putting on the holograms. I have 6 different cards like this, as well as, 3 no hologram cards, and they are all number in the 300's. I do not believe other double hologram/ no hologram cards exist on cards starting with a number other than 3.
Here is a Willie Wilson no hologram card.

Pics on Flickr

The nicest thing about sites like Flickr are the great fan photos. Check out the one I recently came across.

It looks like this rabid fan is in enemy territory.

(Flickr Pic Link: Geoff Livingston)

A childhood collection.

(Flickr Pic Link: gala us guy)

Look at that beautiful sky.

(Flickr Pic Link: OctopusHat)

These composite photos are just great.

(Flickr Pic Link: Jimenagamio)