It's late in the day, but I want to wish everyone a merry Christmas. I hope you all had a nice holiday and got everything you wanted. I got a few new Dodger items and autographs from Santa this year. I also got myself a gift last weekend, a Dodger bobblehead mini plan for 2013. I picked it up at the second to last stop of the Dodger Holiday Mall Tour at the Westfield Shopping Center in Valencia. I was there on Saturday, December 15 to meet Dodger utility man Nick Punto, who was scheduled to meet fans and sign autograph from Noon to 2:00.
I arrived at the mall about an hour before Punto was scheduled to appear. There weren't many people there and the Dodger ticket reps were setting up for the event. While waiting in line, I decided to pick up my mini plan. If you signed up for any ticket plan, you received a gift bag from the Dodgers, which was a duffel bag full of swag including a Don Mattingly bobblehead, a fleece blanket and a Dodger holiday ball signed by Fernando Valenzuela. It's on a cheapo China ball, but I'll take the Fernando auto!
After I got my ticket plan, I jumped back in line. It was almost 12 o'clock and Nick wasn't there. Finally Noon, still no Nick. The line was getting longer, more time kept passing and still no Nick. We were joking in line that maybe he was designated for assignment. At 12:45 Nick finally arrived. Apparently he went to the wrong mall. But he started signing as soon as he got there. It was one auto per person, so I got a baseball signed then jumped back in line and got a picture signed the second time around.
Thanks to Nick Punto and the Dodgers for putting on a great event and hosting this Holiday tour. Although I only made it to two of the Holiday Mall Tour stops, I was still very happy to get baseball autographs in the offseason. I've gotta give the Dodgers credit too, this was a great idea, getting the fans interested in the upcoming season and giving them incentives for buying tickets in November and December. I hope they do this again next year!
The Dodgers kicked off a Holiday Mall Tour yesterday at the Westfield Topanga Mall in Canoga Park. They're out trying to get fans to give Dodgers tickets as gifts for the holidays. Yesterday's event included appearances by Kenley Jansen from 11-1 and Tim Leary from 1-5.
I haven't been to many autograph events lately, but this one was just minutes from home, so I couldn't pass it up. When I arrived at the mall at 9:45, there were only about 20 people in line. We were told only one auto per person but we could get back in line if we wanted more. I got Kenley's autograph numerous times throughout the season, so I didn't need much signed, only a ball.
At 10:30 we were told Kenley had just left Dodger Stadium and he would be arriving in thirty minutes. Surprisingly, he arrived right at 11:00 then started signing right away. I was at the front of the line five minutes later. Kenley signed my ball then I went home. Nice and easy. I had plans later that day, so I couldn't make it to the Leary appearance.
The Dodgers have four more stops on their Holiday Mall Tour. You can see the entire schedule here.
