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Henry’s Random Thoughts
2013 Cincinnati Reds SGA Bobbleheads
April 20-Brandon Phillips Bobblehead
4/20 had something for us to
look forward to this year, even those of us who do not inhale any mind-altering
substances. It was the opening of bobblehead season
for Reds fans. This is the earliest in the year that they have ever been handed
out, beating the April 30 giveaway in 2011. The weather was unseasonably cold,
and when you add to that the early start time, the game had a winter feel. However,
the first 30,000 fans got the bobblehead, there was
some free baseball (in the form of extra innings), and the Reds won, so those
who braved the cold went home happy. The bobblehead
honoree even drove in the winning run on a sacrifice fly. The paid gate was
around 35,000, so if a number of them no-showed due to the cold, it’s
conceivable that almost everyone who wanted the giveaway got one.
The Reds honored Brandon
Phillips with this one. This is the third time they’ve honored him. Since the
first one was a dual “30/30” commemorative, and the second one was a fielding
pose, they could lay claim to offering something new in the form of this
batting pose. As they have with recent ones, they shipped the bat as a separate
piece that goes into a hole in the figure’s hands. PNC Bank sponsored this one,
so perhaps they are back to having really big-name sponsors.
This one was furnished by
Impact Promotions, the same company that has had the Reds’ business for a
couple of years. The square green base is the same as the one used for active
players last year.
While the Reds did lean on
stars who have already appeared on bobbles with this Phillips and a later Votto giveaway, those who like to see new players featured
need not fear. There are five giveaways scheduled this year, and they are all
active players. So that leaves three slots for new faces.
May 11-Aroldis Chapman Bobblehead
May 11’s day game once again
gave the fans everything they could have asked for: cool weather, a big Reds
win over the Brewers, and the most-hyped giveaway of the year, the Aroldis Chapman bobblehead. The
game was a sellout, but without standing room tickets being sold. As the Reds
dip further into moving their ticket prices up as demand surges, it’s more
likely that the goal will be to sell out at the last minute at a higher price
rather than early at a lower one. Bobblehead fans as
well advised to get tickets well in advance for the well-hyped Saturday games,
before they start fiddling with prices. You still want to get to the game
early, though, as long as the number they pass out is lower than stadium
capacity. This time, they passed out 30,000, more than enough for those who
made it early.
The above bobblehead, like many others, doesn’t err on the side of subtlety.
The player’s pitching motion is pronounced for all the
world to see, with a fire effect showing behind the baseball he’s holding. It’s
really meant to convey what Chapman stands for from all the way across the
room.
The above picture shows that
it’s a bit daring to attempt fine details in this particular medium. As is
often the case, the part of the hand near the ball has some white paint on it.
But overall, the effect is pretty good if you aren’t scrutinizing it. The
picture below shows that the flame effect is attached to the back of his pants
leg for stability. It makes it look sort of silly from the back, but hey, this
thing is meant to be viewed from the front or, at worst, the side. It’s better
to do something like that than have half of them break in shipping.
Like last year’s most-hyped
bobble, the Joey Votto Gold Glove, the Reds sold a
six-pack with a guarantee that a purchaser of such a package would get their bobblehead, even if they showed up late. This year, in a
thumb to the eye of those who get multiples to resell, they reserved the gate
closest to the exit exclusively for those who bought the package. Since it’s
uneconomical for a reseller to buy a multi-pack for one bobblehead,
it meant that those single-game ticket holders had to run halfway around the
stadium to get each one. If their goal was to turn the venue into a
mini-Kentucky Derby with people running around instead of horses, annoying
other patrons all the while, they succeeded. If the goal was to prevent me from
getting mine, they failed. I just had to run until I darn near keeled over.
Most of the people who run for them are younger than me and therefore fared
even better.
June 5-Mat Latos Bobblehead
June 5 saw the Reds forced
to make an emergency call-up for a starter due to injury, and of course he got
pounded pretty hard in the Reds’ loss to the Rockies. About 27,000 showed up
for the Wednesday night game, meaning there was enough of the night’s giveaway
for everyone, even the late arrivals. That item featured Mat Latos, whose excellent work contrasts with what Reds fans
witnessed in person the night of the giveaway.
When this giveaway was
announced, I wondered if the somewhat cautious Reds promotions department would
throw long sleeves over the vast assortment of tattoos the real-life Latos sports. After all, this is the kind of player Marge
Schott would have passed on just due to the fact that he looks a bit too
non-conformist. But in fact, they took the chance and showed them.
In fact, the tattoos are the
defining feature of this one. Otherwise, it’s just a pitcher standing there,
not too different from the Pete Harnisch and Danny
Graves ones made in 2001. Obviously, a contract manufacturer in China isn’t
going to replicate the minutest details of such a thing, but they pulled the
effect off pretty well. Basically, the things were created by etching grooves
in the arms, making the coloring of them a little easier for the workers. They
also put the Nike Swoosh on his glove.
This one was sponsored by Toyota,
which sponsors the well-publicized “hit the sign” contest. You know the sign.
It’s the one nobody ever hits.
Toyota’s North American
operations have offices in Northern Kentucky, and their oldest plant in the US
is in Georgetown, Kentucky, about an hour’s drive from Cincinnati. Although a
Ford plant still exists in Cincinnati’s suburbs, Toyota is more of a local name
than any of the Big Three Detroit-based automakers.
July 3-Todd Frazier Bobblehead
July 3 saw the Reds beat the
Giants in 11 innings by a score of 3-2. While the win pushed the Giants farther
away from a repeat of a championship, I can’t say it made up for what the
Giants did to the Reds in the 2012 playoffs. But anyway, the house was
basically full, as this was the beginning of a four-day weekend for a lot of
people. It was essentially like a Friday game.
The first 30,000 fans got
this bobblehead to sooth those bad memories of the
prior October. The player featured was Todd Frazier, runner-up to Bryce Harper
for Rookie of the Year in 2012. Frazier was considered the top rookie most of
the year, but Harper got the award either because he finished stronger or
because the writers bought into the hype. It depends on who you ask.
This bobblehead
featured an open-mouth pose, which is something I’ve never seen before. It’s
either a little creepy-looking or a nice innovation. Like the Rookie of the
Year debate, it depends on who you ask. The item was sponsored by the Ohio
Lottery.
August 6-Joey Votto Bobblehead
The promotions department
went to the Votto well once again this year,
something they’ve done just about every year since he won the starting job. And
who can blame them? Once again, he’s among the league leaders in batting and
on-base percentage. If his career keeps going this way, he might be featured on
15 different ones before he retires.
This one was sponsored by
Formica, a flooring company that sponsored one of last year’s, too. So they
seem to be in the rotation of sponsors for now. When somebody has been on so
many items as Votto, it’s a little tough to do
anything new. But I do notice that they have his front heel off the ground,
something that mimics the real Votto’s batting
stance.
The game is against the A’s.
It’s going on as I type this, so I can’t say who will win. The crowd will
probably be around 30,000, since while the weather is perfect, that’s about the
ceiling for a Tuesday game. So even the latecomers should get
the bobblehead.
The raised foot really shows
on the above view. I’m not sure how many people will display it facing this
way, however.
I sign off for the year with
this display, which is shown on every Reds broadcast from Miami. The shelves on
the display vibrate so the heads bobble. A collection like that could have been
assembled over the last decade or so, even by an average Joe spending most of
his collectibles budget on bobbleheads. The
impressive thing is the display itself, which I believe cost more than the
items inside it. I wish the Reds have one of these, but hey, the Reds aren’t
regularly dumping young stars the way the Marlins always seem to.
