Here is the 2nd of 5 in the 2010 Padres bobblehead set, 3rd baseman Chase Headley. If you recall, in my last post I questioned his bobblehead worthy-ness. Regardless, it’s still a pretty cool bobblehead. It was given away at the game on May 29th this season when the Padres took on the Washington Nationals. Attendance is what you’d expect from a Strasburg-less Nationals team to draw….25,956. Much like the last bobblehead game, Nick Hundley provided all the offense the Padres needed by going 2 for 3 with a home run, a triple and 3 RBI’s. Bobblehead honoree Headley went 1 for 3. Padres starter Mat Latos went 6 innings, striking out 8 and giving up 2 runs and then handed it off to the dreaded trio of Luke Gregerson, Mike Adams & Heath Bell, who went scoreless the rest of the way. Padres win 4-2.
With the Clayton Richard bobblehead night fast approaching (it’s this Saturday 7/31/10 GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!) I figured I’d fire off the other 3 bobbleheads that have been given away this season. First we’ll start with the first one of the group…David Eckstein. I have to admit, ever since the Dave Winfield, Randy Jones & Chicken ones of 2003, it’s been all downhill for the Padres and bobbleheads in years past (mini, race car, Adrian wearing lipstick) but this year they finally got it right with the set. Semi-realistic (as realistic as bobbleheads can get) and were pretty solid. I have a couple minor complaints though. One would be the flimsy background cards (that when the set is complete and pushed together form a shot of Petco Park). The cards cheapen the whole thing. Why couldn’t they have just done a mini background that’s a part of the bobblehead like the Reds did? The other is the selection of players. Before the season Eckstein, Kyle Blanks and Everth Cabrera were no brainers. Eckstein the fan favorite and Blanks and Cabrera who were young (IE: under control for a long time) and destined for big seasons this year after what they did last season. Chase Headley & Clayton Richard were big question marks though. If they were expecting to deal Adrian Gonzalez mid-season then why couldn’t they have given his away first. He’s the biggest name on the team yet no bobblehead? The excuse was that he had one last year (a horrible one, mind you), but I don’t buy it. Of course Heath Bell was in the same boat as Adrian yet there was no excuse given for his omission. Richard, while showing signs of promise last year, didn’t exactly earn a bobblehead. Why not the newly signed Garland or the young flame thrower Latos? Oh well enough of my complaining…..these bobbleheads still are great.
The game drew a respectable 31,324 to see the Padres take on the Diamondbacks. Kevin Correia pitched 5.2 innings of scoreless ball, striking out 8 in the process. Then the bullpen of Cesar Ramos, Luke Gregerson, Mike Adams & Tim Stauffer shut down the D-Backs the rest of the way. Nick Hundley provided all the offense the Padres needed by going 3 for 4 with a home run and 3 rbis. The man of the hour, David Eckstein, went 1 for 4 with a stolen base and was hit by a pitch. Padres win 5-0.
Having played soccer since I was 6 years old I became fully aware of the “soccer-style scarf” years ago. Apparently with everyone Stateside being bit by the World Cup bug this year, they also became aware of the scarves and it in turn made this one of the hottest giveaways this season. I’ve spotted scarves on ebay that have been sold for over 40 bucks a piece. But here’s the thing….the game itself only drew 30,019 (11th highest drawing home attendance so far). It’s a very cool item and surprisingly very well made for a giveaway.
The game itself pitted the Padres vs the Mariners and Wade LeBlanc vs Cliff Lee. Adrian Gonzalez hit a 2 run shot in the first inning and finished the night 2 for 3. LeBlanc out dueled Lee by throwing 6 innings of 1 run ball. Oscar Salazar put the icing on the cake in the 8th inning with a 3 run homer. Padres win 7-1.
It’s been 5 months since my last post here so I thought I should re-introduce myself. Hi my name is SDPads1 and I’m a Padres memorabilia addict. Ok now that we’ve got that out of the way let’s post quite possibly the coolest thing in my collection (also one of the newest).
It’s a Padres CLIP ON TIE!!!
It’s the late 80′s colors and style so it’s obviously from sometime between 1985-1990. It’s 100% Polyester and was made by Corporate Textiles Inc. When I looked up this company it says that they make custom ties so it’s possible this is a custom creation and I have the only one. It’s also possible they had a contract with MLB and sold millions of these bad boys. Either way it’s pretty cool and I will be sporting it at games this season.
