Monday, June 22, 2009

Lelands: Dodger Pics

Here are some great Dodger pics from Leland's recently closed auction.

Below is Jackie Robinson stealing home . A group of 3 photos sold for $487.17.

Jackie with the pig skin. A group of 2 pics sold for $100.00.

Here is an aerial view of the very first Dodger game at the coliseum versus the Giants on April 21, 1958. It sold for $100.00.

Dodger outfielder Pete Reiser is being loaded into an ambulance after he crashed into the Ebbets field wall on June 15, 1947. It went unsold. From Wikipedia:

His splendid career would have lasted longer if not for his all-out, devil-may-care style of play, which caused him to receive several serious injuries. He regularly crashed into outfield walls, then not padded, in pursuit of fly balls.

He fractured his skull running into the outfield wall on one occasion (but still made the throw back to the infield), was temporarily paralyzed on another and was taken off the field on a stretcher many times. On one occasion Pete was given his Last Rites in the ballpark. As a rookie in 1941, he won the National League batting title while the Dodgers took home the pennant. The following year, he was hitting .380 until he ran into the concrete outfield wall while running at full speed. That incident robbed him of any more effective play that year, and caused Brooklyn's painful drop in the NL standings.

Card of the Week: The Borough

A few days ago I wrote about Topps 2007 Bowman Heritage set and my quest to complete it. So to follow up on that post I bring you this weeks "Card of the Week" from that set. Above are Paul LoDuca and Carlos Delgado. What is great about these 2 cards is that vintage Ebbets Field is in the background. The set consist of 24 different cards with unique and offbeat backdrops. Here is a complete list of them.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

The All Ernie Team

I happen to come across a blog post by Billy Suter of West Virginia Cards. In a post in March he went about the task of putting together a all-Billy team. Which got me thinking that I should do the same. So, without further ado, here is the all-Ernie team.

Starters:
C- Ernie Lombardi (HOF) - You can't go wrong with the "Schnozz" behind the plate
1st- Justin Ernest Morneau - Yhea, this is cheating, but there are only so many Ernie's out there - We're a rare breed
2nd- Luis Ernesto (Montiel) Aparicio -(HOF) Luis Apricio - Even though he was a SS I figure he can easily make the transition to 2nd base
3rd- Ernest Judson Wilson - (HOF) Negro League star Jud Wilson - Career average of .351
SS- Ernie Banks (HOF)
OF- Charles Ernest Keller - Hit 33 HR's in 1941, 31 HR's in 1943, and 30 HR's in 1946 for the Yankees - 5 Time All-Star
OF- Carlton Ernest Fisk- (HOF) Known as a catcher, but also played some outfield
OF- Ernest Ralph Orsatti - .306 lifetime BA

Bench:
C- Ernie Whitt - 1 All-Star appearance and Blue Jay great
IF- Leo Ernest Durocher - (HOF) "The Lip" - Not a bad player in his day, but would probably make a better manager for the team
IF- Ernest Lee Spivey Jr. otherwise known as Junior Spivey
IF- Luis Ernesto (Garcia) Salazar - Every team needs a utility man and Luis could play anywhere
OF- Ernie Chief Koy - Played for Brooklyn from 1938 to 1940 - Lifetime .279 BA
OF- Ernest Gordon Phelps - "Babe Phelps" - Only played the outfield once, but with his lifetime .310 BA and 3 All Star appearances I can't keep him off the team

Pitchers:
SP- Ernest Edward Bonham - Won 21 games for the 1942 Yankees
SP- Ernest Gilbert Broglio - A league leading 21 wins in 1960 for the St. Louis Browns - 3rd in Cy Young Voting that year
SP- Ernie White - 17 wins for the Cardinals in 1941 and 6th in MVP voting that same year
SP- George Ernest Uhle - Won 26 games in 1923 and 27 games in 1926 for the Indians
SP- Fredrick Ernest Goldsmith - Won 98 games for the Cubs from 1880 to 1883
RP- Bruce Ernest Howard - 3.18 lifetime ERA
RP- Ernie Johnson - 148 ERA+ for the 1953 Milwaukee Braves
RP- Daniel Ernest Schatzeder - 3.74 lifetime ERA
RP- Raymond Ernest Herbert - Was an All Star and won 20 games for the White Sox in 1962
CL- Ernie Camacho - 23 Saves for the 1984 Indians

Blog Kiosk: 6/21/2009

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Friday, June 19, 2009

Welcome Back James

Per 6-4-2, we find out that James McDonald is headed back to the Dodgers.
He pitched seven innings each of his last two outings, allowing one earned run June 8 when he struck out 10 and no earned runs on June 14 when he struck out 13. Overall, in six starts, he is 1-0 with a 3.26 ERA, 40 strikeouts and 14 walks in 30 1/3 innings.
Schlichting is going back to Albuquerque. Go here for more info.

Oddball Non-Sport Gold: The Twilight Zone

So it's late in the evening and I've stopped switching channels on the TV. The Twilight Zone is on and I figure there can't be anything more entertaining to watch at this hour of the night. Suddenly, I daze off and dream of aliens and creatures only Rod Serling could thing of. I'm forced to face my own demons and made to wonder about the possibilities. As I awake I marvel at how relevant these 1960's television reruns are to today.

Anyway, why do I bring up this show from yesteryear? Well, Collect.com recently concluded their inaugural auction and they had the fortune of selling a remarkable set that features The Twilight Zone.

Rittenhouse Archives, producers of non-sport card sets, from 1999 to 2005 produced various sets of The Twilight Zone. In those wax boxes they inserted limited edition autographed cards that featured just about every living cast member of the show. There are 98 total cards and, considering the numbered set was spread over a 6 year period, is very difficult to complete. In fact, Collect.com notes that a complete set has never been offered in any auction. Check out some of the cards below. It sold for an incredible $11,700.00. That's over $100 per card.
Come on now. How can you beat an autographed card set that includes both Ron Howard and William Shatner?
Burt Reynolds, Anne Francis and Russell Johnson. Man-O-Live, I remember all of these episodes. George Takei, Jonathon Winters, Don Rickles and Jack Klugman- Oh Wow!
You have got to be kidding me- another Shatner.
Auction Link: 1999-2005 Twilight Zone Auto Set: