A's Series Starts Tomorrow - Scheduled Autograph Sessions, Pregame Info and Other Stuff!

The next homestand starts tomorrow against the Oakland A's, and several former Dodgers are scheduled for an autograph session with fans.  Below are the scheduled autograph opportunities and other odds and ends for this upcoming homestand.

------------------

Tuesday, July 28th at 7:10 PM

SNLA / AM 570 (Eng.), KTNQ 1020 AM (Span.)

Tuesday's game starts at 7:10 PM.  Auto gates open at 4:40 PM, and stadium gates open at 5:10 PM.

It is also Clippers Night at Dodger Stadium.  Folks who ordered a special ticket package in the All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion or Infield Reserve will get an exclusive Clippers t-shirt.  See that on the left.  If not already sold out go here for information.


As part of Clippers night, 10-time NBA All-Star, four-time All-NBA team selection and 2008 NBA Finals MVP Paul Pierce, recently signed by the Clippers, will throw the ceremonial first pitch. Members of the Clippers’ Spirit Dance team will be in the right-field plaza beginning at 5:10 p.m. where DJ Adam will also provide entertainment.  There will be an exclusive Clipper Nation drink that can be purchased at the right-field plaza bar and features half-red and half-blue frozen Margarita in a Dodger Cup.

Dodger alumnus Al Ferrara will sign autographs in the left-field plaza from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

• The Military Hero of the Game is U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant Eric Reyes of Riverside.

------------------

Wednesday, July 29th at 7:10 PM

SNLA / AM 570 (Eng.), KTNQ 1020 AM (Span.)

Wednesday's game starts at 7:10 PM.  Auto gates open at 4:40 PM, and stadium gates open at 5:10 PM.  The first 40,000 fans in attendance will receive a Yasiel Puig bobblehead.  See it on the left.


Puig’s mother, Maritza, will throw the ceremonial first pitch. Jack of Jack in the Box will also be on hand to throw a first pitch.  Beach Volleyball Olympians April Ross, a 2012 Olympic Silver Medalist, and Sean Rosenthal, a two-time Olympian, will throw a first pitch ahead of the 56th Annual Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) Manhattan Beach Open. Both Ross and Rosenthal represent their teams as defending champions of the prestigious tournament which will be held again August 13-16 on the south side of the Manhattan Beach Pier.

Dodger alumnus Tim Leary will sign autographs in the left-field plaza from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

• The Military Hero of the Game is U.S. Air Force Sergeant Joseph A. Quintos.

* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *

* Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook *

* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

2015 Allen & Ginter Baseball - Autograph, Relic and Some Dodger Insert Cards

Following up on the Dodger base cards I shared in a post on Friday, below are the autograph, relic and "Starting Points" insert Dodger cards that are available.  Of note, Dee Gordon, Matt Kemp and Adrian Beltre have Dodger cards in the "Starting Points" set.

Autographs

#AGA-CKE Clayton Kershaw 

(redemption)

#AGA-JPE Joc Pederson                    #AGA-YGA Yimi Garcia

Blog Kiosk: 7/27/2015 - Dodger Links - Uribe, Greinke and Kenley Jansen

I ain't even mad.

Juan Uribe is just a winner - a clubhouse leader who has a knack for knocking in the winning run while making you smile at your misfortune.  And last night he did just that against the Dodgers.  Via Ken Gurnick at MLB.com:

"It was straight over the plate," Jansen said of the 95-mph cutter that didn't cut. "I tried to elevate it, but it didn't move. He was a good teammate, he's a good friend and he was the best man today."

I miss you Uribear! 

Photo above is via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015.  Below are some links to check out:

• Congrats to the new family.  Welcome to the Blue, Bode Nicholas Greinke! Via a @Dodgers tweet:

Congratulations to Emily & Zack Greinke on their baby boy, Bode Nicholas Greinke, born last night and coming in at 19", 6 pounds, 5 ounces!

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 24, 2015

• Speaking of Greinke, via Ron Cervenka at Think Blue LA, "Greinke glad streak is over."

“If anything, I feel negative about it,” Greinke told reporters after his streak ended on Sunday afternoon at 45 2/3 innings. “Now I don’t have to answer questions all the time.” 

• Via Carson Cistulli at FanGraphs, "The Fringe Five: Baseball’s Most Compelling Fringe Prospects" includes two Dodger players: Jharel Cotton and Tim Locastro.
• Via Murphy Powell at Beyond the Boxscore, "Kenley Jansen is doing everything better than before."
• The 2015 National Sports Collectors Convention is coming next weekend, so Panini shared some more cards that will be inserted into their wrapper redemption program for the show; including the Joc Pederson autograph card on the right.  Go here to check out more preview pics.
• Roberto at Vin Scully is My Homeboy shares a bunch of pics of the Clayton Kershaw / Josh Beckett "no-hitter" bobblehead the RC Quakes gave out a couple of months back.
• Stealing Home at All Trade Bait, All the Time shares his experience at the recently held Baseball Reliquary Shrine of the Eternals Induction Ceremony; including a whole bunch of great photos.
• David shares his experience at the Masanori "Mashi" Murakami book signing in Whittier a couple of weeks ago, here.  As you may know, Mashi was the very first MLB'er from Japan.

* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *

* Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook *

* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

2015 Allen & Ginter Baseball - The Dodger Base Cards

The ever popular Allen & Ginter Baseball card set is now on store shelves, and I've got pics of all of the Dodger base cards below.  Go here for a complete checklist of the set.

I've also included a checklist and examples of several of the other mini parallel cards that can be found; including the cloth (silk), metal and glossy mini cards.  These three sets have their own unique checklist.  I've also included the "Mini Exclusive" cards that can only be found in RIP cards.  Unfortunately, at the time of this posting I have yet to see the Yasiel Puig card.

#3 Adrian Gonzalez                          #88 Carl Crawford

#91 Howie Kendrick

Blog Kiosk: 7/24/2015 - Dodger Links - Kershaw, Greinke and Joc Pederson

The unhittable Clayton Kershaw.  He was magnificent... No, he's been magnificent for quite some time now. 

Last night he threw a complete game three-hit shutout to extend his scoreless innings streak to 29 innings, and I think it's fair to say that all the troubles he faced at the start of the season are now over.  Heck, he might be pitching better than he ever has in the past.  Consider this, via Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider:

Kershaw is the first MLB pitcher with three straight games of at least 10 strikeouts and no runs or walks allowed.

In over 100 years of history no pitcher has ever done what Kershaw is currently doing.  That's amazing.

The above photo of Kershaw and Joc Pederson in midst of a "high-five" is via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015.  Go here to take a look at more photos from yesterday's game from Jon.  Below are some links to check out:

• I gotta get on this right away.  Roberto at Vin Scully is My Homeboy tells us about a limited edition Dodger pin giveaway at 76 gas stations, here.
• Hey!  Congrats to the expecting family.  I guess Greinke's scoreless streak will have to wait a bit.  He is likely to miss his scheduled start today, but could pitch over the weekend.  Via a tweet from Alanna Rizzo:

RHP Zack Greinke is not with team. He is with his wife, @Wilsysmommy, as they are expecting their 1st baby. It is unlikely he pitches tmrw.

— Alanna Rizzo (@alannarizzo) July 23, 2015

• Via Joe Posnanski's blog, "A Zack Greinke Story." (Hat Tip: Dustin Nosler on twitter)  I guarantee you'll laugh.
• Here's an early peek at the Justin Turner bobblehead the Dodgers are giving away to fans on September 1st.  Check it out on the right.
• Via Dustin Nosler at Dodger Digest, "Julio Urias almost back, but his development was stunted."
• Via James Montgomery at Rolling Stone, "Joc Pederson Just Wants to Buy You Breakfast."  Here's a recent interview with our star rookie:

JM:  You mentioned breakfast; I'm wondering, when you're out with your teammates, who picks up the check?
JP:  I went with [Scott] Van Slyke the other day, and we got to play credit card roulette, and that was cool. Adrian Gonzalez, I go with him a lot, and I always ask him to let me pay but he never lets it happen. It's kind of awkward at times. He's done so much for me that I really want to pay – it would be nice to buy one breakfast or something.

• Kudos to the Indians.  Via Ian Denomme at Big League Stew, "Report: Indians won’t trade Mike Aviles, whose daughter is battling leukemia."
• Here's a great interview Drake Witham at SportsNet LA.com with Robin Knight.  She was previously cast as one of the ballplayers in "A League of Their Own" and currently works at Dodger Stadium on the Pitch F/X system and as a stats stringer.  Check it out here.

Madonna and I were pals during the shoot ... great ensemble. Mo, that’s what I called her, was one of the hardest working people. She did not want anyone doing her baseball stuff for her, Geena was the same way. Plus they worked their butts off on any down time, a small group of us would go out and practice practice practice.  I teased her that she played baseball like a dancer and she picked on me when we had to do the jitterbug. She said, “yeah, well you dance like a baseball player.” We both learned.

* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *

* Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook *

* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

Check Out the Kershaw Challenge Auction at MLB

Clayton Kershaw, past winner of both the Roberto Clemente and Branch Rickey Awards for his humanitarian work, currently has an auction up at MLB Auctions that benefits his Kershaw's Challenge charity.  There's a bunch of great stuff to check out.  Go here for a complete listing. 

Our online auction is LIVE now! Check it out & place bids on awesome, authentic memorabilia. http://t.co/tZlshvH2ap pic.twitter.com/YDsJpebewm

— Clayton Kershaw (@ClaytonKersh22) July 22, 2015

Below are a handful of items that stuck out to me.

(pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015)

Below is Sandy Koufax's complete Old-Timers Game uniform he wore on May 16th, 2015 at Dodger Stadium. 

(Auction Link)

And below is Clayton Kershaw's game worn jersey worn in the Civil Rights Game honoring Jackie Robinson at Dodger Stadium April 15th, 2015.  Notice the patch on the right shoulder.  It has also been signed by both Kershaw and Sandy Koufax.

(Auction Link)

The next three items are all canvas prints by noted sports artist Stephen Holland.  They have all been signed by the player (with exception of the Jackie Robinson... obviously).

Clayton Kershaw (link)

(Auction Link)

Fernando Valenzuela (link)

(Auction Link)

Jackie Robinson (link)

(Auction Link)

* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *

* Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook *

* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *