Dodgers on The Price is Right - Amber Matsumoto/Dodgers

The Dodgers showed up on the Price Is Right this last week.  My grandpa watches that show every single day, so I had to check out the action.  It took me a little bit to find it, but I was finally successful. Here’s the story from the Dodgers website too.

Below is the video (my apologies for the commercial at the start), but first let me say that the guys shouldn’t quit their day jobs.  They are good ballplayers…but definitely awkward on camera.  Delwyn Young has the enthusiasm, but almost too much.  Russell Martin cracked me up.  The guy is a great catcher, but I don’t think he took his hands out of his pocket both times he was on camera.  He has that look like…”I have to stay cool, but this is really embarassing…”  I think James Loney had that same look…but he always has funny looks in his pictures anyway.  Mark Loretta actually looked fairly comfortable.  I wonder if he has a broadcast career ahead of him.

So when I first heard about them having the showcase showdown, I thought the price was $31,000.  Ends up it was $38,000, so the other guy would have won anyway.  It was a cool prize.  I would have gladly taken the press box, the front row seats, the Camelback ranch experience and the car.  They never say which Dodger legend will visit you in the press box, but I wonder if it’s like Vin Sculley, Tommy Lasorda or Fernando Valenzuela.  Just to be down on the field for batting practice would be cool.

Either way – all for naught.  Joel didn’t win the prize and the Dodgers don’t have to donate it.  I wonder what that would go for if they put it on Ebay.  I’d bid on it.

Defense Shift used at the Coliseum

So a buddy called me with a ticket to the Coliseum game against the Red Sox.  I went down south and what a memory.  The place was just cool.  Old Coliseum, but cool to see a Dodger game there.  The fence was a real trip.  Hard to believe they played like this for a while.  It isn’t exactly the same, but close enough.  The game set an all time record for fans, and the place still wasn’t full.

Here was my highlight – Andruw Jones catching a throw from Russel Martin on the stolen base attempt at Second base.  Because the Dogers played the weird alignment, Andruw was basically an extra infielder and Eithier was in Center.  I’ve never seen that happen and probably never will.  Too bad the Dodgers didn’t win, but still cool.  It was neat to see Vin Scully get a plague on the wall.  Hard to belive that 50  years have passed, but not the voice of the Dodgers.  He’s the best there is.

Now for the bad part…The Dodgers had this plan to have fans park at Dodger Stadium and then be bussed to the Coliseum.  Good plan in theory…but not on the way home.  I walked in a line for 2.5 hours snaking around the campus after the game waiting to catch a bus.  A memory…but not one we wanted to choose.