Dodgers vs Giants Series Old Timers Game 2014

Dodgers vs Giants Postgame Graphing Recap 5-8-14

After the epic fail with Jeter during the Angels vs Yankees series I decided to try my luck with some post game graphing at Dodger Stadium. Maybe a change of venue would bring me some better luck.

I arrived at the stadium around the 8th inning and took a few photos near the Giants bullpen.

In terms of postgame graphing I ended up with one autograph from my favorite pitcher Tim Lincecum who signed my 2010 All Star ball under the logo. The goal this year is to get all four Lincecum All Star baseballs signed.

Old Timers Game 2014: 5-10-14

Since I had work on Saturday I couldn't go to the Dodgers vs Giants game on time. Luckily the Old Timers Game was scheduled after the completion of the Dodgers vs Giants game this year. The Dodgers released a roster of former Dodger greats to play in the Old Timers game which included legends such as Eric Gagne, Darryl Strawberry, Fernando Valenzuela, Nomar Garciaparra, and Orel Hershiser. The goal today was to get Eric Gagne and Darryl Strawberry.

I arrived at the stadium around the 8th inning again like a few nights before. I was bored so I took photos.

I love going to the ballpark for day games.

As soon as the game ended I decided to do some post game graphing. I ended up getting Matt Cain on a photo and Tim Lincecum on a 2011 All Star ball. The Cain photo was a rushed signature. His regular signature is haggard but the one I got from him on my photo is probably the worst autograph he has ever given out. Luckily the photo wasn't expensive to print.

Afterwards I decided to check out the Old Timers Game.

The first autograph I got was from Eric Gagne who signed a ROMLB on the SS for me. He was mobbed as expected so I ended up with his short sig. However I was still stoked to add him to my Dodger PC.

Next up was Steve Finley who also signed a ROMLB on the SS for me as well.

Finally last but not least I finally got Darryl Strawberry's autograph. Darryl was one of my favorite players back in the 80s when I first fell in love with baseball. Even though he was mobbed by everyone he was nice enough to also take a photo with me as well.

Overall it was another stellar day of graphing at Dodger Stadium.

Angels vs Yankees Series

Angels vs Yankees Day 1: 5-5-14

Today was the first game of the Angels vs Yankees series. This was Derek Jeter's last visit to Anaheim before his retirement so I had to attend the entire series. The goal was to get my Jeter jersey signed.

I was able to get out of work early and arrived at the stadium at around 3pm. Look how empty the parking lot looks below.

ESPN LA 710AM radio was live in front of the stadium with Max Kellerman and special guest Jim Leyritz.

As soon as the gates opened I headed toward the Yankees dugout. As you can see below there were a ton of media covering the series.

Since it was Derek Jeter's last trip to Anaheim he was being interviewed by members of the media.

All eyes were on Jeter.

Sadly Jeter only signed for a few fans with field passes. On a brighter note I came up huge by getting Adam Warren to sign his Heritage Rookie card over the dugout. Now I just need Melky Mesa lol.

After striking out with Jeter I decided to take a photo of Jeter at bat.

Angels vs Yankees Day 2: 5-6-14  

Day 2 was no different than day 1. Due to a strict security guard checking bags in the front gates I ended up getting inside the stadium a bit late so I was stuck in the outfield.

When I was finally able to get to the dugout Jeter ended up signing three autographs. Yes only three autographs over the dugout. Luckily my friend Alex was one of the lucky ones to get him on his heritage card.

That was pretty much it for the day. As a consolation though I was able to take a few more cool photos of Jeter.

Thanks to my friend Spencer I was able to watch the game four rows behind the dugout.

I also ended up getting Reggie Jackson via trade with Spencer.

Thanks again Spencer for the trade along with the awesome seats to the game.

Angels vs Yankees Day 3: 5-7-14  

Today was the final shot of getting Derek Jeter's autograph this year. I ended up arriving to the stadium about an hour into batting practice since I got off work late. During the entire drive down to the stadium I was worried that Jeter already started to sign or finished up signing for everyone. Since he didn't sign the first two games everyone expected Jeter to sign today.

The Angels gave out a promotional Derek Jeter Retirement card to the first 40,000 fans in attendance. The format for the card was the same as the one they gave out last year for Mariano Rivera's retirement.

Although I was late Derek Jeter ended up not signing for anyone during batting practice. Again this was a shocker to most of us since we all expected him to sign.

The Angels held a ceremony for Jeter honoring his career and gave him a customized surfboard as a farewell gift.

My buddy Kyle made a painting just for Jeter to sign.

Sadly again Jeter didn't pick up a pen today which disappointed all the fans in attendance who were trying to get his autograph for the three game series vs the Angels.

Angels vs Rangers Series

Josh Hamilton Bobblehead Night 5-3-14

In terms of graphing I didn't get anyone that night. I arrived at the game halfway into BP so there wasn't much action going on. Plus none of the notable Rangers signed. The overall goal of the series was to get my Prince Fielder jersey signed but unfortunately it didn't work out that night.

On a brighter note it was Josh Hamilton Bobblehead night. I was happy to add this one to the collection.

My friend Benson also hooked me up with two Mike Trout bobbleheads since I wasn't able to make it out to the game a few weeks ago. Thanks again for the hookups Benson.

Postgame was tough as well. Got denied by Maddux, Beltre and Andrus. Prince ended up signing but I was at the wrong spot.

Angels vs Rangers Game 5-4-14

I had better luck today in terms of graphing.

First of all I was able to get a signed Daisuke Matsuzaka ROMLB on the SS from my friend Matt through a trade. Thanks again for the trade Matt.

For pregame graphing Jurickson Profar signed a baseball for me. Sadly he is under contracto so I got a side panel. Supposedly he doesn't sign baseballs in person so I felt lucky to get him.

Next up was Prince Fielder. It was finally nice to finally get his autograph after all of these years of missing out on him. Prince signed my throwback Brewers jersey for me.

Prince needs to attend the school of Torii Hunter and Michael Cuddyer. The homie needs to work on his penmanship.

I didn't have tickets to the game but luckily Mr. Chavers had an extra ticket for me so I was able to attend the Angels vs Rangers game for free.

He ended up winning free tickets at the CJ Wilson Cox Solutions Store signing today. Thanks again Mr. Chavers.

As soon as the gates opened I headed towards the Rangers dugout.

If you look closely above you can see Martin Perez near the far side of the dugout. He ended up signing a card for me after I took this photo.

Afterwards I ended up getting Coach Washington on two cards.

Then I ended up having a full blown convo in Korean with Shin-Soo Choo for about 10 minutes as he was signing away for the fans. Choo actually promised he'd sign for us pregame and ended up keeping his promise which is a rare thing in baseball since most players make false promises just so they don't get bothered by graphers. Choo was kind enough to sign a ROMLB on the sweetspot for me along with my Allen and Ginter National Pride card. I want to thank Shin-Soo Choo for being so cool and I also want to thank my friend Austin who gave me the Ginter card last year as a gift. Thanks again Austin. It was nice to finally get Choo's autograph in person.

The last autograph of the day was from Elvis Andrus who was kind enough to give me his full signature and sign my ROMLB on the sweetspot.

Angels Indians Series

I only got one autograph. Jason Kipnis on a 2013 All Star Ball