Thursday, May 09, 2013

Meet Josh Jones - The Young Man Battling Cancer

Please take a moment to meet uber-Dodgers fan Josh Jones.  As you know, during the recent Dodgers roadtrip to San Francisco, slugger Matt Kemp came to his side and provided a little bit of joy and happiness.  And maybe, just maybe...
“Made me want to keep fighting cancer, made me really happy when he did this,” Jones said.
Sometimes, all we need is a random act of kindness.

Via CBS Sacramento, they meet with Josh and share a video that you have to see.  So, please drop what you're doing and take a moment to watch his story.  You won't regret it.  Here is the link to the video.

(HT Tip: kbuis on reddit)

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Dodgers and Denny's Make a Deal

Is Denny's mocking us by becoming the official sponsor of Friday Night Fireworks at Dodger Stadium this season?  Really... I'm not joking about this one.

Announced today, America's favorite comfort food restaurant has partnered with the Dodgers to regale us with bright lights and loud booms. 
“Baseball is the quintessential American sport, so it’s only fitting that America’s diner would partner up with the Los Angeles Dodgers,” said Brian Tademy, senior director of field marketing for Denny’s. “After the fans work up an appetite cheering on their Dodgers and enjoying the Friday Night Fireworks, we hope they’ll take advantage of our great deals on delicious selections at Denny’s.”
So, after watching the Dodgers wither away, you want us to go to Denny's for a Grand Slam breakfast?  Is this a way of telling us that if we want to see a grand slam then we have to go to Denny's to get one? 

OK... I admit that this post is a poor attempt at humor, so I am sorry.  It's just that if I try to write anything serious about the team right now it will just end up including a string of expletives that no person should hear- let alone read.  After all, I'm trying to make this blog a family friendly place.

BTW, as a part of this new partnership, fans attending the Friday Night Fireworks game will receive a coupon for 20% off the entire check.  And with the lunch bell about to ring, I think their new Baconalia menu is calling me.  Mmmmm... bacon.

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A Ryu Topps Rookie Card Error, a Missprint and Huge Autograph Asking Prices

As the Dodgers sink lower into the abyss, I often find some levity in the card hobby that I have grown to love.  Believe me, it's a great departure from the mess we are witnessing with the Dodgers, and anything that takes my attention away for even a second is worth it.

With that in mind, a glaring error has just been discovered on Hyun-Jin Ryu's 2013 Bowman rookie card, and I can't help but laugh at it.  Heck, it's so bad I had to wonder if it was on purpose. 

The mistake was first reported by Dan K at MyKBO fame.  He has become the go to voice on Korean Baseball, and is very active on twitter.  Check him out here and be sure to follow him. Anyway, he posted on his blog the first pic of the error and it's a bit of a doozy.  Then, earlier this morning he tweeted about it.  See it below.
(twitter link)

Yeah, how did Topps screw this one up.  As you can see, on the reverse they mention his connection to Korean Baseball throughout, but end up messing up the most prominent mention on the card.  In his statistics line they write in Japanese League instead of Korean League.  Doh'!

And now you're probably wondering, "but Ernest, why would you think this is on purpose?"

Well, it wouldn't be beyond a card manufacturer to artificially create an error card in order to build value, and I guess we'll find out soon if this is the case. 

So, I ask all of you 2013 Bowman collectors, please check out the back of your Ryu cards and let us know if any corrected version exist.  This collector wants to know!

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In other Ryu collector news, a printing error has just been revealed on eBay.  Check out the auction here.  As you can see in the pic on the left below, the silver foil that is used for the Bowman logo and the players name is missing.  Somewhere along in the printing process this particular card was not stamped.  This is actually not that unusual, as you'll find examples of this kind of printing error in just about every product and every year since they started using foil printing.

At the moment, the card has not received a bid- even at it's low opening price.

Do I expect this card to be worth a ton?

Heck no!  There is no telling how scarce it may be, and at the end of the day it is really only of interest to a Ryu player collector - a completist. 
(auction link)
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Last week, I featured a redemption Hyun-Jin Ryu autographed card that would be available in the 2013 Bowman set.  Topps provided a preview pic of what it would look like (see that at the very bottom), but did not provide details about its eventual print size.

Anyway, examples of the "Lucky Redemption 1" have been arriving on eBay, and I thought the current sale and asking prices were worth mentioning.

Only one sale has been completed and it was at a "Buy It Now" value of $499.99.  Furthermore, there are 5 other "Buy It Now" listings ranging in value between $350.00 to $699.99.  That's a big range, eh?

Of great interest, though is a current active auction that started with a low bid price.  There are 6 days remaining in it, and it is already at $102.50 at the time of this posting.  I am wondering at what price it will end up at.  Anyone have any guesses?


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Blog Kiosk: 5/9/2013


Here is Dee Gordon racing around third, heading home.  Pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2013.
The Dodgers are increasingly convinced that Kemp's struggles are the indirect result of last August's shoulder injury and the surgery that followed in October. Through this season's first 32 games, Kemp has one home run and has a.681 OPS. Through 32 games last year, Kemp had 12 home runs and a 1.222 OPS. 
“I don’t think there’s any magic formula,” Mattingly said. “We have our guys here. You have to perform. There’s no real tricks. You can move the furniture, we can try guys in different spots.

“But all that really is is trying to get a little different feel and spark something. But once we get past all that smoke and mirrors, we have to perform. That’s what these guys do. They come and get ready to play, and they have to play better.”
Sara Aguilera, a mother of two who is battling breast cancer, will be the honorary bat girl on Sunday when the Dodgers host the Marlins on Mother's Day. 


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