Dodgers Sweep The Giants! Trades From C.R. and K.B. Sweep ATBATT!

Aloha is an interesting word inasmuch that it can be used to express "Hello" as well as "Goodbye".  

Aloha was the word of  the weekend as the Dodgers swept into the Frisco Bay in second place, and then swept first place back to where it belongs, in beautiful Dodger Stadium. 

That epic sweepage calls for a big post with a whole buncha new Dodger cards to be shown. These came to me from two great bloggers and trading partners, Alex over at Chavez Ravining and Kerry who gives us the always entertaining and educational Cards on Cards.

Let's start off with these fine First Place Dodgers cards from Kerry. First up are two of this weekend's Sweeping Stars.

At times this season I've knocked Kemp when I thought he deserved it.  Now I gotta give credit where it's called for. Since he was moved out of center field, he has slowly but surely been reigniting his hitting.  This weekend he was a vital part of the offense, piling onto several Dodger rallies as they - SWEPT THE GIANTS! 

And how about this kid below? He's the new Dodgers center fielder and he feels fine.  Wild Horse Puig exploded during this weekend's SWEEP OF THE GIANTS hitting three triples and a double in one game, and making an over the shoulder,  Willie Mays catch look easy in the Giant's own CF during today's game. 

 Kerry completed the package with some 90's gold foil goodness from two of my past favorite Dodgers. The home whites look magnificent on these '95 Scores, and I dig the circle LA logo. 

Thanks for the great cards, Kerry. 

Next up is the first time Alex or I have sent anything out to each other. I'll be the first to admit I haven't sent anything in return yet, but Alex - and a few more of you out there - rest assured that I have cards set aside for y'all, and I'll get them to the post office as soon as I'm able to block out the time to prepare all of the packages in one mad flurry of blue tape and labels. 

On to the cards from Chavez Ravining. We'll start again with cards from members of the squad who just SWEPT THE GIANTS!

Hanley seems like he's always injured - or being injured by other teams, but when he's in the lineup, he is always a force to be reckoned with.  Hanley was feeling good this weekend, and it showed as he regularly bopped the ball around and ran the bases like we need him to do.  

Next up is odd man out Either.  He played briefly as a late inning sub or pinch hitter, and it appears he's a pine rider for the coming days (at least until the surprise midnight trade of Matt Kemp).

 Golden Bowman coolness brings up the leadoff batter for the First Place Dodgers. Gordon scored a heads up, kinda steal of home when Buster Posey hurriedly threw to first to get lumbering tank, A-Gon.  Giants, why hurry the throw when the guy running to first isn't exactly doing what we would call "running"? 

And then the great second ace who gets forgotten under all of Kershaw's acheivments, who pitched brilliantly to win the second game of the DODGERS SWEEPING THE GIANTS!

 

This package didn't have any Kershaw cards, but it contained plenty of cardboard goodness of the next best Dodger lefty ace to have cards from...

 Whats more - it's die-cut Koufax! BOO-YAH!

Airbrushed Koufax...

Hey Giants fans, what does Sandy's circle text say?

 Horizontal Koufax....

  
Sweet Dodger Blue No-Hitter Koufax...

 And finally, one with Koufax looking like everybody in the Dodger Nation felt after we SWEPT THE GIANTS and reclaimed First Place!

 Great, great cards Alex and Kerry. They really hit the spot after this weekend's....well, you know.  

Contest Winnings From An East Coast Owl

Aloha everybody,

(Although I don't plan to trot out the "aloha" greeting for too much longer, I certainly intend to use it for as long as I remain under that sweet Hawaiian spell. Might it last forever?)

A while back I won a contest from Big Daddy Night Owl, in which he was awarding a group of cards that long held a framed and celebrated place on his wall. It was time for N.O. to replace those cards with a new framed set, so he held a contest. The card and randomizer gods were kind enough to smile upon me, and I came away the winner. 

Of course, Night Owl included a fistful of Dodger cards to go along with my winnings.  All of which are much appreciated, by the way.  Let's check out (in no particular order) my favorites.

Leading off is a former skipper whom I long respected as an opposing field general, and I would not have objected to if he had ever been selected to manage the Dodgers...

Did anybody have more cards than Nomo back in the day?  I remember it was hard as heck to pull a Nomo back then, but now it seems there were thousands out there...

Don't get me wrong. I wanted all the Nomo cards back then, and I still want them. 

Before there was the Garv, there was groovy Wes Parker, my first-ever favorite Dodger...

Extra bonus - Lurking old time Dodger Stadium

Coming up, my favorite Dodger after Wes Parker. One of the greatest Dodger third baggers ever....

N.O. tossed in this very cool oddball, which is now my first of a new collecting angle...

The card above is great on so many levels. Aesthetically, the design and color choices are superb. It's limited to just under 2000, and we get the great comparison of two third basemen who gave it their all in those classic World Series contests.  

I STILL hate friggin' Nettles for single-handedly killing almost every Dodger rally with his impeccable play on the hot corner. 
 

Here's a great shot of Andre Dawson in all his glory, most likely watching one go all the way out....

Here's one that's a classic - at least amongst ourselves in the blogosphere.  Thanks to N.O., I now have my own copy...

Speaking of classics, it's another first. My first card of the greatest baseball broadcaster ever...

Yeah Bootsie, you go with those star shades. Mr. Norris here can hold his own in the funk zone...
 

How about a pomegranate Ryu? Yes, please...

"Anybody can buy their funk at the sunglass hut. I wear my funk on my face."

How about some cardboard action from the Dodgers sparkplug...

Or cardboard from eccentric legends...

Or cardboard from an ongoing legend...

Sir Night Owl outdid himslef with this package. The cardboard awesomeness just kept on rolling out....

Night Owl seems to always know which cards I still need.

And out some more....

And out yet even more....

Finally today, a fantastic card from the man who woulda done exactly what Clayton Kershaw did after the Cardinals beaned Hanley Ramirez (repeatedly!)and Yasiel Puig...

Maybe not exactly - I think Mr. Drysdale would have buzzed one into the Cardinals dugout as well.

Thanks for the great cards, Night Owl. What a grand prize package it was!

Aloha, everybody. 

Where To Get Your Collecting (And Munchies) Fill In Hawaii

 

Yes, I actually own non-blue tank tops.

 Aloha everybody. The L.A. sun is a real scorcher and the Dodgers have the day off, so I find myself longing for those Hawaiian ocean breezes and sunsets.

I previously mentioned that I was lucky enough to hang out with some folks who grew up on Oahu, so I had the extra benefit of checking out some spots that are popular with the locals. 

One of my missions was to find great macadamia nut pancakes for breakfast.  Little did I know the place they took me would open my taste buds AND my collector's eyes. 

Dis place is da kin', bruddah

Boots and Kimo's is located in Kailua, on the Windward Coast area of Oahu.  It's a small place, and I mean small - but it's very popular - and I mean popular.  

I know this is a sportscards-centric blog, but I gotta drop this one on ya. If you like macadamia nut pancakes, you gotta go there! These are the best ever, bar none! But go early, the place is small and the waiting list gets real big, real fast. 

Returning to our collecting topic, apparently the owner of the place is a collector as well.  The tiny restaurant is covered wall to wall with autographed memorabilia and Wheaties boxes.  Check it out...

I spotted a few boxes that I own myself.

 Every wall has these boxes and autograped helmets. There are autographed jerseys galore as well...

Did I mention the popularity of San Francisco here?

Actually, these Montana to Rice jerseys are pretty sweet.

 Every table in the place is adorned with an NFL logo...

And then, you go to the restroom, and you get these...

Sweet, framed, uncut sheets.  Very cool.  Unfortunately, they were hung pretty high on the wall and I couldn't get a shot that would eliminate all of the glare.

But it's not all football and baseball at Boots & Kimo's.  You want hockey? They got hockey...

 Sure there was lots of sports memorabilia - lots of helmets and jerseys, card sheets and logos...but where was something for me???

All I had to do was look up.  My table mates were not too shabby...

I had breakfast with Mr. Mantle and The Kid. 

What a great place to eat.  Aloha. 

Back From The Island Paradise

Aloha, everybody.  Hawaii was fabulous, exciting, fun, dramatic and a real blast. I can't wait to go back again. 

Here's some quick observations from my trip:

If you're like me, an L.A. Dodger fan who has no access to your beloved team on television, just book a flight out of LAX and watch the game in one of the airport bars. Problem solved.

70% of L.A. Dodger fans have no access to the Dodgers on TV, but apparently, the 95% of THE WORLD passing through LAX can watch them.

I only caught the All-Star Game in snippets, but it seemed first-time AS Dee Gordon kicked some 'A' on the bases and with the leather. 

When Gordon scored the first ASG run of his career, he was greeted by a pumped up and emotionally high NL dugout.  However, Yasiel Puig, the man at the far end of the dugout, had a sour puss look and appeared jealous. He didn't even high five Gordon.

 There are SF colors everywhere, and I mean EVERYWHERE around Oahu, especially the Windward Coast and North Shore areas where I spent most of my time. A lot wore 49ers gear, but most wore Giants colors. It was like being constantly surrounded by enemy flags. Dodger fans, if you're headed to Hawaii - REPRESENT! 

More on this next post

If you're going to get married there, have a sunset ceremony, as did my friend.  The sun is much too brutal for afternoon pics wearing gowns and tuxedos on an open beach.  I saw a few wedding parties cooking out there in the afternoon. 

 Girls in bikinis and gorgeous sunsets will quickly take your mind off the fact there aren't any baseball games on. 

Next post: I found something sports-related for us on my trip! 
Aloha!