2020 Topps Project 2020 -- Sandy Koufax by Tyson Beck -- #99

Tyson Beck is an Australian graphic design artist who has taken the art and sports world by storm. He originally came on the scene as a young teen creating designs in various basketball forums. By 18 he was working for the Lakers designing wallpapers. Soon his career exploded. Companies and brands like Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, NBA, MLB, NHL, NFL, MLS and UFC came calling. More importantly, Kobe Bryant reached out to provide encouragement and inspiration. Via Ciaran Varley at BBC Sports:

"Kobe was the biggest influence on my career from start to finish," he says. "He was the first design I ever did when I opened up a computer."
...
"It was just a photo line, so everyone was pushing through," he says. "He started chatting to me and the security guard came over to pull me away. He stopped them. It was only a couple of minutes, but he kept asking me so many questions. 

"He was like: 'Dude, I'm running an agency now, I've seen your work, it's amazing - how are you working with every brand in the world?'"

Blog Kiosk: 6/3/2020 - Dodgers Links & News - Normal is Not Good Enough

When I woke up this morning I saw this headline:

L.A. police use UCLA's Jackie Robinson Stadium as 'field jail'

I don't even know what to think anymore. From the above story, via Dennis Romero at NBC:

"We’re troubled by accounts of Jackie Robinson stadium being used as a 'field jail,'" the university said on Twitter. "This was done without UCLA’s knowledge or permission. As lessee of the stadium, we informed local agencies that UCLA will NOT grant permission should there be a request like this in the future." 

The Los Angeles Police Department acknowledged using the field in West L.A. for suspects arrested during the city's George Floyd protests. "We are no longer using it," Officer Mike Lopez said.

I want to believe this was an oversight, but fear it was a purposeful metaphor. Photo above via Stadium Journey. Below are more links to check out:

• This Day in Dodgers History: In 1888 the first publication of Ernest L. Thayer's poem Casey at the Bat appears in the San Francisco Examiner. In 1958 Los Angeles residents approved a referendum, by a slim margin of 24,293 votes, that would honor a contract negotiated between the City of Los Angeles and the Dodger to allow the city to sell 300 acres of Chavez Ravine to the Dodgers. In 1989 the Dodgers and Astros play a 22-inning game at the Astrodome that is the longest game in National League history -- it last seven hours and 14 minutes. The game featured Fernando Valenzuela playing first base and center fielder John Shelby going 0-for-10 at the plate. Unfortunately, the Dodgers lost 5-4 (boxscore).
• Happy Birthday, John Dobbs, Jim Gentile, Barry Lyons & Nelson Liriano!

2020 MLB Topps Now - MLB Network's Top 100 - All the Dodgers

I was starting to wonder if they were ever going to print up these cards. As you'll recall, back in February Topps sold a special set exclusively online through their Topps Now program called MLB Network's Top 100. It's a set that features only the top-100 ballplayers, per the MLB Network. After nearly four months of waiting I've just found out that these cards have recently been showing up in collectors mailboxes -- finally! Go here for a complete checklist.

These cards were sold in individual packs of 10-cards, and a total of 4902 packs were created. This would translate into an approximate print run of 490 copies of each card.

There are eight Dodgers available in the 100-card set. Check them all out below.

#3 Cody Bellinger

Blog Kiosk: 6/2/2020 - Dodgers Links & News - Some Odds and Ends

Below are Some links to check out:

• This Day in Dodgers History: In 1894 Brooklyn hurler Ed Stein pitched a seven inning no-hitter against the Chicago Colts (Cubs), 1-0. I am unsure as to why the game was called early. In 1995 Japanese All-Star Hideo Nomo wins his first Major League game after five no-decisions. He would go eight innings, walked three and strike out six batters to defeat the Mets, 2-1, at Dodger Stadium. In 2017 Clayton Kershaw records his 2,000th career strikeout -- blanking Brewers infielder Jonathan Villar. BTW, Villar had a very bad day. He struck out three times against Kershaw. Also, the Dodgers combined for a total of 26 strikeouts during the 12-inning game, while the Brewers blanked 16 batters. Overall, both teams set a record for total strikeouts in a game at 42 (boxscore).
• Happy Birthday, Sloppy Thurston, René Valdés, Bob Lillis, Gene Michael, Lemmie Miller, Chance Sanford & Chin-hui Tsao!

2020 Topps Project 2020 -- Jackie Robinson by Joshua Vides -- #98

Joshue Vides, known worldwide for his monochromatic hand-drawn line illustrations, is the fifth artist to tackle Jackie Robinson's 1952 Topps card. See it above.

Originally from Rialto, Vides began his career as a street culture influencer, artist and entrepreneur designer with the famed The Hundreds, while having his own brand called CLSC. But today's success came, like with a lot of folks in the scene, with sneakers -- Nike Air Jordan 1's to be exact. Per Mallory Chin at Hypebeast:

But it wasn’t until Vides posted a pair of hand-painted Air Jordan 1s on his IG that his phone quickly blew up. “I posted those shoes near the end of the day. As soon as I woke up I had all these new followers and mentions; all my friends were hitting me up,” Vides says excitedly. But how does he feel to be called a “professional” artist now? “I’ve studied art for a long time and I like crafting things with my hands. I’m really good at building things and molding things with clay. I put up a pair of shoes on social media and it just blows up,” Vides states. “My mom was like, ‘you’ve been doing this all your life and now people are calling you an artist?’”

2020 Topps 'Turn Back the Clock' -- Duke's Big Day

This days Turn Back the Clock Topps online exclusive card makes note of Duke Snider's outstanding day at the plate in 1955. Against the Milwaukee Braves he pummeled the club to the tune of three home runs, a double and six RBI. On top of that, the Dodger overall hit six homers -- establishing a new club record for homers in a game. Go here to check it out and order. Below is what's written on the reverse:

June 1, 1955 -- Duke put on a show for the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field, clubbing three home runs as part of a four-hit game with six RBI. Duke went yard in his first at-bat, before launching blast in consecutive at-bats later in the game. The monstrous performance led the Dodgers to an 11-8 victory over the Milwaukee Braves.

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