From The Sports Quotient by Jake Eisenberg
By theΒ numbers:
- The Los Angeles Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals have the most giveaways scheduled this month, with three. The Milwaukee Brewers, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Arizona Diamondbacks all have twoΒ scheduled
- July 11 and July 25Β are the most popular days, when four different bobbleheads will be handedΒ out
- Two teams hand out their first bobbleheads of theΒ season
The first bobblehead of the month, on July 1,Β comes from the Detroit Tigers, and itβs a fan-favorite βΒ Yoenis Cespedes.Β Itβs only fitting that Cespedes is shown holding a bat. While Cespedes may not start in Cincinnati (heβs fourth in A.L. OF voting), we can expect him to try and defend his Home Run Derby title for the second straight year. If he wins, it would be his third consecutive title, and third overall,Β tying him with Ken Griffey Jr., the only other player to win back-to-back titles,Β for most all-time. The only criticism for this bobblehead is that Cespedes isnβt displayedΒ pointing his fingerΒ after a ridiculous throw.
The Washington Nationals will give away their third of five βGreat Moments in Nationals Historyβ bobbleheads on July 5 to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of their franchise. On Sunday, theyβll celebrate the electricΒ Major League debut of Stephen Strasburg, when the former first-overall pick struck out 14 over seven innings en route to a 5-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Unfortunately, the timing of the promotion is just slightly off, as Strasburg is scheduled to start on Saturday, IndependenceΒ Day.
On July 6, the Los Angeles Dodgers have a throwback promotion: 1960βs All-Star Maury Wills. Willsβ middle name is Morning, and boy, did he make sure you were awake on the field and in the stands. The switch-hittingΒ Wills led the league in steals for six consecutive seasons (1960-1965), topping out at 104 in 1962, his MVPseason.Β The shortstop helped the Dodgers β who had recently made the move to Los AngelesΒ β to three World Series titles. The bobblehead shows Wills sliding into a base feet-first, a style seldom-seen unless a player is trying to break up a double play. But maybe, players should slide feet-first more often.
Carlos Santana is one of the newest fathers in the Major Leagues, after he and his wife welcomed a baby girl to the Santana family last month. On July 8, heβll get another miniature version of himself with a bobblehead. He might be a bit tired and unfocusedΒ from the exhaustion that comes with fatherhood, as Santana is hitting just .211 with nine home runs thus far.Β Itβs the Cleveland Indians second bobblehead giveaway of theΒ season,
Remember when the Mets traded Marlon Byrd the same day as Marlon Byrd t-shirt night last season? Or, more closely related, when the Philadelphia Phillies gave out a Hunter Pence bobblehead a month after trading him? Well, itβs happening again, but with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who will go through with their Juan Uribebobblehead night on July 11Β despite trading the infielder to the Atlanta Braves about a month ago. The Dodgers even acknowledged it on their promotionsΒ page:
βWe are proceeding with our Juan Uribe Bobblehead promotion on July 11th. The Dodgers have a long tradition of recognizing players who have made great contributions to the organization. Juan Uribe will hold a special place in Dodgers history for always being a fan favorite and a consummate professional. There was no better teammate to have than Juan Uribe.β
Also on July 11, the first 10,000 fans arriving at Target Field will be greeted with a Phil Hughes bobblehead. Maybe this is the Minnesota Twinsβ way of rewarding Hughes for his performance last season, when he came up 1/3 of an inning shy of triggering a $500,000 bonus. Or maybe, the Twins are thanking him for setting the record for the best all-timestrikeout-to-walk ratio (11.63). In any case, Hughes will have his first not-Star Wars themedΒ (βHughes the Forceβ)Β TwinsΒ bobblehead.
July 11 also marks the New York Metsβ first giveaway of the season, leaving just four teams in the No-Fun club (no giveaways yet this season). The featured Amazinβ is Juan Lagares, whoβs had a lackluster season thus far after a shiny, 2014 Gold GloveΒ campaign. Lagares is shown making a leaping catch at the Citi Field wall β like many of his highlight real plays β using his GoldenΒ Glove.
The final of the four July 11 bobbleheads comes from Seattle, featuring the βBoomstick,β Nelson Cruz. As of the final All-Star game update, Cruz overtook Kendrys Morales at the top of the list for Designated Hitters, and deservedly so. Cruz is third in the American League with 19 home runs, trailing only the Angelsβ Albert Pujols and MikeΒ Trout.
A day later, on July 12, the Miami Marlins will break their season-long bobblehead silence with Henderson Alvarez. Alvarez has struggled throughout 2015, owning a 6.45 ERA and an 0-4 record in four starts. The young righthander is displayed in the old-school stance he takes for hisΒ first pitch of every game, and only the first pitch of theΒ game.
Also on July 12, the Texas Rangers with pay homage to Michael Young, who spent 13 seasons in Arlington before finishing his career with a year each with the Dodgers and Phillies. Young collected 2,735 hits in his career as a .300 hitter, with 2,230 of them coming as aΒ Ranger.
After Michael Young, thereβs a six-day wait for the next regular-season bobblehead thanks to the All-Star break. But, not to worry! There are three special All-Star Game bobbleheads from the Cincinnati Reds to tide over the baseballΒ world.
All three of the All-Star Game bobbleheads feature a Cincinnati Reds mascot standing on a platform of the All-Star game logo. From L-R: Mr. Red, Gapper, and Mr. Redlegs.Β
The first bobblehead after the All-Star break is of the Star Wars variety. Itβs Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder A.J. Pollock, using a lightsaber as a bat. Pollock has had a stellar season thus far, slashing .290/.340/.455 with nine home runs and 16 stolen bases. This is the second Star Wars-themed bobblehead this season, but the edge goes to the Milwaukee Brewers and their Jonathan Lucroy bobblehead, named βJedi Luc.β
Also on July 18, the St. Louis Cardinals have their first of two July bobblehead nights with Matt Carpenter. He is currently set to start at third base for the National League, as he leads all NL third basemen in votesΒ as of the final update. Carpenter has already tied his 2014 home run total, and has a good chance of surpassing his 2014 totals in RBIand doubles asΒ well.
The Milwaukee Brewers make their July appearance with a Khris DavisΒ bobblehead on July 19. Davis, hasnβt played since May 30, when he suffered a torn meniscus. The outfielder hit .244 with 22 home runs lastΒ season.
Vanderbilt University may not have won a second straight College World Series title, but David Price still has a reason to smile. The hurlerβs bobblehead day is on July 20, the Tigersβ second giveaway day of the month. Price is 7-2 this season with an even 100Β strikeouts.
Arguably the best bobblehead of the month comes from none of than the Milwaukee Brewers on July 21. Itβs Harry Doyle (as played by Bob Uecker) from the movie Major League. Itβs a talking bobblehead, too, featuring some of the most well-known Doyle quotes from theΒ movie:
βThis guy threw at his own kid in a father-son game.β
βPersonally, I think we got hosed on that call.β
βJuuuuuust a bit outside.β
While the movie featured the Cleveland Indians, much of it was filmed in Milwaukee at County Stadium.Β In order to get your hands on this one-of-a-kind piece of both real and fake baseball history, youβll need to be one of the first 4,000 to purchase a special ticket to Major League night. (Unfortunately, there was no picture available for thisΒ giveaway.)
The Cardinalsβ second bobblehead of the month, on July 24, is Al Hrabosky. Hrabosky, also known as βThe Mad Hungarian,β or, the inspiration for Danny Espinosaβs fu-manchu,Β pitched in relief for St. Louis for eight seasons, leading the league in saves with 22 in 1975. The β75 season was a career best, as he reached career bests in innings pitched, saves, ERA andΒ strikeouts.
The Colorado Rockies also have a bobblehead giveaway scheduled for July 24 β Charlie Blackmon. Blackmon is having a terrific 2015 season, batting .275 with ten home runs and 21 stolen bases through 75 games. Whatβs better? WithΒ his extraordinaryΒ beard and interesting pose,Β he looks more like a lumberjack than a baseball player (and thereβs nothing wrong withΒ that).
On July 25, the Diamondbacks will give away a special Randy JohnsonβHall of Fameβ bobblehead, the day before Johnson is set to be officially inducted into Cooperstown as a first-ballot inductee. Johnsonβs career numbers are staggering: five Cy Young awards, five seasons of 300+ strikeouts, a major-league record 10.6 K/9 rate and ONE HIT BIRD. Funny enough, the logo of the Big Unitβs photography company is (yeah, you guessed it), a dead bird. Hereβs a fun video of ESPNβs John Kruk being terrified of Johnson at the 1993 All-StarΒ game.
The second June 25 bobblehead is one of the lesser-talked about Chicago Cubs young players β Jorge Soler. Soler is currently sidelined with an ankle injury, but should be back in time for his bobblehead debut. The outfielder is batting .265 this season with four homeΒ runs.
The first 10,000 fans at Kauffman Stadium on July 25 will receive aYordano Ventura bobblehead, the fourth commemorative postseason bobblehead from the Royals. In the World Series, the young fireballer was stellar β starting Game 2 and Game 6. In Game 6, Ventura pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out four to help force Game 7.Β However, heΒ has disappointed this season, posting a 4.68 ERA in 12Β starts.
The final bobblehead on July 25 belongs to Brian Dozier of the Minnesota Twins. Dozier is vying for a spot in the All-Star game this season, and deserves it too, with 16 home runs and aΒ league-leading 58 runs, but trails Omar Infante, much like all of the other more deserving American League secondΒ baseman.
Nolan ArenadoΒ had one of the best months in the major leagues, batting just over .300 and smacking 12 home runs en route to taking over the league lead in RBI. Itβs his bobblehead night on July 26, and it features his Gold Glove from 2014. And, with the plays heβs been making, thereβs a good chance he wins another one thisΒ year.
The Dodgersβ final bobblehead night falls on July 29, when itβs Yasiel Puig night at Chavez Ravine. Puig has had aΒ troubled 2015, dealing with a hamstring injury and a ruptured callous. Puig is shown in his bobblehead making a diving catch, but itβs disappointing that the depiction isnβt some sort of bat flipΒ or pumped-up dancing. (Yes, itβs the same video because itβs prettyΒ awesome.)
There are two Hall of Fame bobblehead giveaways on July 31. The first is from the Cardinals. Lou Brock led the league in steals eight times during his 19-year career, swiping a career-high 118 bags in 1974. He played for the Cardinals for 16 of those seasons, winning two World SeriesΒ titles.
The final bobblehead of the month, also July 31, is a commemorative Hall of Fame bobblehead for the Houston Astrosβ Craig Biggio, who will be inducted along with Randy Johnson and John Smoltz on July 26.Β Biggio played all 20 of his seasons with the Astros, collecting over 3,000 hits and batting .281.
Stay tuned for next month, whenΒ there will be 22 more bobblehead giveaways.
Teams that still have yet to have a bobblehead giveaway: Chicago White Sox, San Diego Padres, BaltimoreΒ Orioles.