Bobblehead of the Day : Eric Gagne ( Pewter / Limited Edition )

So prior to this year I was never really got into bobbleheads. I actually went to bobblehead games and sold them to offset the cost of going to the games. This year had the special 50th anniversary bobbles and again it really didn't perk my interest. That is until sometime in April I started looking at my autograph collection and wondered what I would start collecting after I get all the signed baseballs I wanted. As Kemp is my favorite ( as alot of people are in the same boat as me ) active player on the roster I thought it might be cool to get a bobble signed by him. The following day the Dodgers sent out a letter to season ticket holders stating if you bought tickets to a game or two in the all you can eat baseline seats ( highly expensive ) you would be allowed to acquire two special edition bobbleheads. The immortal Sandy Koufax and Vin Scully. I thought that would be a nice thing to have in my collection considering the limited quantity of both of them. Then that same day, I read on Dodgerbobble's blog about the special edition bobbles that have come out over the years and low and behold one of them was of Kemp. I decided then to try to acquire all the special edition bobbles and if possible to get them signed by the players. So now I'm going to start a series of bobblehead posts. Well I did acquire the Kemp, Sandy and Vin and along the way some others. But more on those another day as today I want to discuss Eric Gagne...

Anyone that was a Dodger fan in the early 2000's remembers the sound of Welcome to the Jungle blaring through the sound system at Dodger stadium prior to the start of the 9th inning. It meant to two things, Eric Gagne and game over. Eric gave us a reason to stay til the end of the game instead of leaving in the 7th/8th inning like Dodger fans are notorious for. Which by the way, we do, but every other fan base does the same too we just did it first. Eric was given his first bobble in 2003 but the second one given out a year later in 2004 depicted him in the pose we all became familiar with. It was given out to commemorate him winning the Cy Young Award the previous year and it shows him with his mouth wide open and fist in the air as he records the final out in a save situation. A common occurrence for almost three years.

Now I don't actually own that bobble as of yet but I am sure I will pick it up shortly as I would want to be able to display the variant next to the common version.

So the search began and I saw the pewter one up for sale on eBay and thought why not as I waited for my Vin and Sandy to arrive to try to get another variant sooner. Well a week later I was the the high bidder and winner of this pewter variant of Eric Gagne.

From what I have read there are only 500 made of these. As you can see on the box it states limited edition. I've heard they were sold at the Top of Stadium store when the normal version was given out. When you first take the bobble out of the box you can tell a major difference from the typical bobbleheads. It is heavier since it is not made of resin like most bobbles and that makes it more sturdy and less likely to be broken while handled and it is cool to the touch as it pewter. Under the base is a felt bottom unlike the normal bobbles that have nothing. Now I am thinking of someday of getting this signed which would make it more unique but I don't know of a good pen. Oil base sharpie anyone?

So this came in right before I received my Vinny and Sandy special editions and I think it is a great way to start my collection of Dodger Bobbleheads and more specifically variants.