Claude Shafer Cartoon (1920)

Shafer
Newspaper cartoonist Claude Shafer (1878-1962) found the fight for first place in the National League in the 1920 baseball season interesting enough to dedicate a cartoon to. The Cincinnati based cartoonist, creator of Old Man Grump, was a Reds fan and saw his team battle for a place in the World Series with the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Robins.

The Sketch
The original sketch has seen better days. It has quite some water marks and mold. It’s approximately 14x8-1/4” (35,5x20,9 cm) and signed by Shafer on the bottom right corner. It features Old Man Grump sitting in a boat, fishing while smoking a corn cob pipe. Below the hook with worms and a card saying ‘first place’ three fish jump out of the water. They all have a ‘name’: Reds, N.Y. and Brook. Grump addresses the reader: ‘Look! In all yer life did ya ever see ‘em bite like that?’

The Season
When you look up the 1920 season the three teams were closest at the beginning of September. On September 5th, for instance, Brooklyn was on 73-55 (0.5 up), Cincinnati on 71-54 and New York on 71-57 . At the end of that month, though, the Reds would be 9.5 games behind, the Giants 5. The Robins would go on and face and lose to the Indians in the World Series.

Why buy a century old drawing from a Reds fan? I think it's a nice peek into the history of the Dodgers. On the brink of their second World Series appearance in 4 years. It would be quite some time before they would reach again (1941). It predates the first Yankees win, Jackie Robinson was far away and Branch Rickey was still with the Cardinals and exactly 100 years later the Dodgers would win their 7th World Series title. I really like that way of looking at history.

A Dodgers Christmas (card)

Karl Hubenthal, cartoonist and illustrator, five time Pulizer nominee and winner of multiple awards, made striking images that always remind me of those by fellow cartoonist Eddie Germano.

Hubenthal did a lot of artwork for the Dodgers organization over the years. In the 60’s and 70’s he did covers for yearbooks, world series programs, scorecards and… at least two christmas cards.

One of them (1977), I found on Ebay, some years ago, the other (1974) just recently.

1977

Santa Lasorda, or Lasorda Claus carries a presents filled bag on the cover of this card. When you open the card up we get to see who they are for. 

No surprise, the presents are for the best players of the year. 20 games winner John, manager of then year Lasorda and All Star MVP Sutton, to name a few.

All presents are placed under a tree and Tommy is busy decorating the room with the pennant. 

1974

On the front we see a group of Dodgers hoisting the pennant high in the christmas tree which has has been trimmed with ornaments describing the feats of that years players.

When you open the card you see a big present. The best a team can get. A world series championship (card says world championship, which is weird because there is no world baseball championships for teams). I love the reference to the well known and often used quote "wait till next year". 

They make a very colorful pair and both of them will be featured in the christmas displays at my home for years to come.

Zack Wheat: the Life of the Brooklyn Dodgers Hall of Famer: Review

Zack Wheat: the Life of the Brooklyn Dodgers Hall of Famer by Joe Niese is my first read of a book by a fellow SABR-member. And all I can say is it is well written and researched. Sure, that can be expected from SABR-members, but still…

I've mentioned it before in my blogs, for years the Brooklyn years of the Dodgers were one black and white blurr filled with players I only knew by name. Then I started reading about the boys of summer and they all came alive.

Then the daffiness boys got their turn and the Bridegrooms, but the 1910’s were still a big black hole for me. Sure, I’ve heard of the likes of Wheat and Grimes and Dahlen, but I never got to reading about them. Turns out…not many is written about those guys. So I kinda stumbled on the Niese book.

Niese manages to bring Wheat to life. With statistics but also with personal details. It takes the reader to the first two Dodgers World Series appearances and mentions plenty of teammates and even gives you a better picture of Wilbert Robinson (I really have to read more about this guy!).

In short, Joe Niese knows how to paint a picture, he got me more enthusiastic about the Dodgers era when they were called the Superbas and Robins.

World Series Press Pins IV - 1974 & 1981

Press pins have been around since the 1911 World Series. Which means there is one for every Brooklyn & Los Angeles appearance. They are small and great items for collectors who do not have a lot of space, like me, to display their Dodgers related stuff. When collecting, the first thing popping in my mind is: COLLECT THEM ALL! In the case of press pins that will never work for me since some of them are quite expensive. The 1916, 1920 pins probably will set you back at least $2000 each. Maybe if I win a lottery, but for now I decided to try to get my hands on one pin for every decade our boys played in the World Series. That comes to 7 press pins: one from the 1940’s, 1950’s, 1960’s, 1970’s, 1980’s, 2010’s and 2020s. 

That being said... my favorite press pin from the 1970s is the one from 1978. But I got a good deal on the ‘74 one, so... I just broke my own rule. But together with the one from ‘81 it makes a nice pair.
Press pins are weirdly different, design wise. Sometimes it’s like the designers didn’t have any inspiration. The 1955 press pin is boring, as is the one from 1977 or the 2020 one to name a few. Dodger Stadium, though, has been a source for inspiration since 1963. Of the 12 press pins 4 featured Dodger Stadium as its center piece.

1974

The oval pin has an embossed Dodger Stadium in matt brass color in the middle and a border in blue and the text World Series Dodger  Stadium. The brass/blue combination has been used quite some times on Dodgers WS press pins. This edition looks a bit like an oval version of the 1947 pin with the Brooklyn Bridge. It's kinda classy. 

1981

Again Dodger Stadium takes center stage. In a shiny gold colored pin, we look into the stadium and see downtown LA in the backdrop. The text reads World Series LA Dodgers and two American flags flank the stadium on both sides. 

Honestly, this edition is a bit too much. Too shiny, too much going on. Still, better than the 1988 pin which compensates by being too dull.

Can't win 'em all! 

Remembering Vin Scully

Some people die young, which is horrible. Then there are people who reach a ripe old age and still die to young. Vin Scully is one of those people. One I thought would always be around.
He HAD been around forever! When I started to follow the boys in blue, Vin had been the voice of the Dodgers for over 30 years. He had so many famous soundbites and he kept on piling them up.
People took Vin to the Coliseum on their transistor radios and later to the Stadium. Me too, on a radio walkman. He gave you so much more insight during the game.
One of the best Vin moments for me personally was attending the Vin Scully appreciation game in 2016. The mayor, Mark Walter, Koufax, Kershaw, Costner giving heartfelt speeches and ofcourse Vin, his modest self, thanking everybody.
He retired but got to see the Dodgers win one more World Series. Beautiful!

To quote Obi-Wan after Alderaan was destroyed: “ As if millions of voices cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced”. The collective Dodgers fanbase fell silent after the news and we will be for quite some time.

Thanks, Vin, for being a brother, a father a grandpa, the all knowing voice of many generations, a tranquil beacon, a Dodger! 

I'll miss you, Vin!

Dodgers Live or: An Updated Blog about Seeing my Boys in Blue play!

When you live in Europe it can be hard to have your favorite baseball team play on the West Coast. Still, since 2003, when I saw them play for the first time, I've managed to visit some games. I posted about the games I visited in a blog years ago. I'll update every visit here. Even if it's just for myself, to keep tabs on box scores and lineups.

So, without further ado... the games and links to the scores.

Attended Dodgergames since 2003

Date	Home/Away	Opponent	Score
May 3rd 2003	Home (1)	Pirates	W 4-1
September 4th 2007	Away (1)	Cubs	W 6-2
September 5th 2007	Away (2)	Cubs	L 2-8
September 6th 2007	Away (3)	Cubs	W 7-4
May 29th 2008	Away (4)	Mets	L 4-8
May 30th 2008*	Away (5)	Mets	W 9-5
May 31st 2008	Away (6)	Mets	L 2-3
June 1st 2008	Away (7)	Mets	L 1-6
August 10th 2009	Away (8)	Giants	W 4-2
April 14th 2011	Home (2)	Cardinals	L 5-9
April 10th 2012#	Home (3)	Pirates	W 2-1
April 11th 2012	Home (4)	Pirates	W 4-1
April 25th 2013	Away (9)	Mets	W 3-2
September 19th 2016	Home (5)	Giants	W 2-1
September 20th 2016	Home (6)	Giants	L 0-2
September 21st 2016	Home (7)	Giants	W 9-3
September 22nd 2016	Home (8)	Rockies	W 7-4
September 24th 2016@	Home (9)	Rockies	W 14-1
October 24th 2017$	Home (10)	Trashtros	W 3-1
October 25th 2017	Home (11)	Trashtros	L 6-7
October 27th 2024	Away (10)	Yankees	L 4-11
April 6th 2026	Away (11)	Blue Jays	W 14-2
April 7th 2026	Away (12)	Blue Jays	W 4-1

* Kershaw's 2nd MLB-game
# Opening Day at Dodger Stadium exactly 50 years after the first opening day on April 10th 1962
@Vin Scully Appreciation Day
$ First World Series Game since 1988

Return to Sender

I’m always rooting for a Dodgers win, so is LA and so were the Brooklynites. So when the Dodgers where in the losing side of one of the best known moments in baseball history, it must have hurt. It did hurt! You can look it up in the books that where written about that October 3rd 1951. The day of ‘The Shot Heard Around the World’. Still, even if the Dodgers were on wrong end they will forever be one of the teams that played this historic ninth inning.

Gateway Z
I never knew Gateway cachet Z silk envelopes were a thing before I found them online. Envelopes with a color printed piece of silk with a baseball theme. Celebrating rookies, stadiums, cooperstown players and... famous happenings like the one in 1951.

The Envelope
This envelope, number 425 of 500, has a print of the Polo Grounds and the face of Bobby Thomson, a bum and some newspaper headlines. It ‘celebrates’ the 35th anniversary of the homerun. There are two stamps, one of which is from 1939 and celebrates the centennial of baseball. The date stamp, of course, is October third 1986. Below the stamps is the text:

1951 national league playoff
“The Giants win the pennant, the Giants win the pennant!” Such were the the joyful shouts of sportscaster Rus Hodges as Bobby Thomson’s home run disappeared into the left field stands over Andy Pafko’s head. This home run remains as one of baseball’s most dramatic.

Autographs
Collector and dealer Carl Pettit was able to make this envelope even more interesting. While setting up at baseball card shows he got the John Hancocks of the leading men in this drama: pitcher Ralph Branca, home run hitter Bobby Thomson and the guy in the outfield who could only watch it fly into the stands Andy ‘at the wall’ Pafko. Pettit remembers Bobby and Ralph having a lot of fun together.

All in all a great piece with some awesome autographs of men who where a part of history. I must say, I’m glad I wasn’t born yet, because that loss would have been hard to swallow after a season where the boys were still 13 games up on August 11th.