Dodger Closer Jonathan Broxton made an appearance today at the Sports Authority in Burbank. The event was scheduled to start at 11:00am. I got there at 8:45. A head count was taken around 10:00, and I was the 201st person in line. I brought my sons Kevin and Shawn with me today. It was Kevin's first player appearance. Shawn was with me last year at the Andre Ethier/Clayton Kershaw appearance in Northridge.
The event started on time, but the line moved very slowly. We were told only one item would get signed, and pictures were ok, but we couldn't take a picture with him. Event staff walked up and down the long line letting everyone know that Brox would only be signing until noon. We got to Broxton at 11:50. We made it with 10 minutes to spare. Not everyone was as lucky though. There must have been 300 people who didn't get autographs.
I was at the last Broxton signing on June 12 in Koreatown. I got my
bobblehead signed then. I still needed to get my team ball signed. So I brought the ball and my sons brought cards.
I did have a good time today. The fans in line are always great. There was a group of guys in front of us who were autograph collectors. We shared stories of the different events we had attended.
I do have two complaints though: 1. I wish there were more events in the San Fernando Valley, where I live. And 2. I think the events should be longer than an hour. There are a lot of people who come from far away to see their favorite players. Too many fans are turned away after waiting in line a long time.
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| The long line of people in front of us |
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| This was the enterance to the event |
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| Brox signing my ball |
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| My team ball with Broxton's signature |
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| Shawn's signed 2009 Topps 206 Broxton |
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| Kevin's signed 2010 Allen & Ginter Broxton |
Once again, I had a great time with my boys. I can't wait for the next Dodger event.
Nice, sounded like a great time.
ReplyDeleteWho else have you gotten on the team ball?
Greg - Only Andre Ethier and Claton Kershaw. I only want to get the young core on there. I still need to add Kemp, Bills, Loney, Kuo and maybe Russ. I don't get too many opportunities to go to player appearances, especially if they are far from my home in the Valley. I wanted to go to Monasterios, but I would have missed out by the time I got to Torrance.
ReplyDeleteNice, sounds like it'll end up as an awesome baseball.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to meet Clayton.
Very cool experience. I actually had a very similar experience today at a Matt Wieters signing.
ReplyDeleteRyan - Very nice. You gonna post the experience? Did the O's give away a Wieters bobblehead?
ReplyDeleteWe were a few people behind you! Broxton signed a ball for my daughter and a photograph for me at about 11:57. I felt really bad for the 300 or so people that had the door closed on them. It seems they should have been able to let people that far back in line know that they wouldn't get in as opposed to letting them stand in line for so long for nothing.
ReplyDeleteAnon - You were a few people behind me? I hope you and your daughter had a good time. I agree with you, they need to let people know if they're gonna get to meet him or not. I feel terrible for those people who didn't get to meet Brox.
ReplyDeleteBTW, did you recognize me from pictures I've posted of myself, or from the picture I have at the top showing my position in line?
From the picture of the line and from the number. Someone told us we were 221 and 222 in line (so we were actually about 20 behind you).
ReplyDeleteIt was great. Brox was cool. Pretty amazing that he did sign close to 225 items in an hour. But, then again, I guess if you can throw a baseball 100 mph...
This was our first autograph event. The people in the line were terrific. I am very glad we got there when we did. Started getting nervous as it got closer and closer to 12.
Great blog. Keep up the good work.
Mike and Daughter
Mike - Oh yeah, the number, duh.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how many people show up for a Broxton. I keep hearing how few people showed up for the Monasterios and Ely events.
There were at least a couple hundred for Ely.
ReplyDeleteGreg- really? I thought it was dead.
ReplyDeleteYou r so lucky man! I was ten people short from getting in before they closed the door.guess I should go earlier next time.
ReplyDeleteTom
Yeah, the Ely signing was pretty packed, all things considered. People there as early as 4:30 in the morning.
ReplyDeleteGreg - For some reason, I thought you had told me it was a quiet appearance. I have such a bad memory.
ReplyDeleteTom - That sucks. They really need to make these things longer. I need to get to them earlier too. I got lucky this time around.
ReplyDeleteHaha no worries.
ReplyDelete