New Add - Zach Johnson (Cedar Rapids Kernels)

Here's another new addition of mine, Zach Johnson from the Cedar Rapids Kernels.  I don't have a ton of golfers, but this one fits my collection as its from a Twins affiliate (granted, the giveaway happened around 2010 or earlier, when they weren't the affiliate).  It's a pretty hard to find bobble! 

Sneak Peek - Royce Lewis Bobblehead

Tonight, the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Twins single A affiliate) will be giving away a bobblehead of last year's #1 draft pick, Royce Lewis!  The Kernels have been spot on the last several years with their bobblehead giveaways and this is no different.  1000 of these will be handed out to all fans and it's sure to be a popular bobble!  Get your tickets here!!

Sneak Peek - Mike Trout (Kernels)

The Cedar Rapids Kernels are giving away a Mike Trout bobblehead this Saturday, the 17th of June! I know, I know, Trout has nothing to do with the Twins or Minnesota.  However, the Kernels certainly do!  Obviously they are an affiliate of the Twins and a great one since its not a bad drive from the Twin Cities to Cedar Rapids!  The Kernels used to be an Angels affiliate and Trout is one of the most popular players that played for them.  Plenty of minor league teams do giveaways of guys that have no affiliation with their current major league affiliate.  I'm doing the same thing if I'm the Kernels. What's even better about this bobblehead, Success Promotions created/produced it!    Click here to order tickets!!  As you all know, I'm a big fan of theirs!  Without further ado, here it is!

New Addition - Rocky

Here's another recent addition.  Rocky from the New Britain Rock Cats, former Twins affiliate.  If you have read my blog for a while, you'll know that a lot of minor league teams did 2 versions of the same bobblehead.  The first is the giveaway version (which this is) and the second is the retail version. Typically the only difference is the addition of a sponsor plaque.  I've had the retail version of this one for a while, but recently was able to add the SGA version to the collection!

Looking forward to 2017

For the most part, it's not very difficult to find most of the current MN bobbles.  Typically the hardest are theme events and season ticket hold bobbles from the Twins.  So I've been expanding the collection a bit - looking at former minor league affiliates of the Twins.  I've found a few more but a lot of minor league clubs want to promote current players or fan favorites, and lets face it...there aren't a ton of fan favorites when it comes to Twins players from minor league teams.  However, the Salt Lake Bees (formerly the Salt Lake Buzz) did a David Ortiz bobblehead this past season that I previously blogged about.  Those are exactly the kind of bobbleheads I'm adding to my collection now.

Typically the collecting year starts with Twinsfest.  However, one of my favorite days of the year is January 7th.  Also known as National Bobblehead Day.  It'll be trending on pretty much all social media sites and its pretty damn fun to see other collections and specific bobbleheads.  I believe come February the Twins will announce their promotional schedule and we'll learn more about the bobbleheads they plan on doing in 2017!  Their minor league affiliates will most likely start announcing their promos in February or March.

Roady - Cedar Rapids Kernels

I always tell myself I have to have a reason to buy a bobblehead that isn't necessarily from Minnesota or a player affiliated with Minnesota (it makes me sleep better at night).  This is one of those bobbles. Ron "Roady" Plein is the clubhouse manager for the Cedar Rapids Kernels, of course they are the Twins Class A Affiliate (see, there is the reason I needed).  This bobblehead was given away in 2012 as Roady is an icon in the Cedar Rapids area and easily one of the most sought after collectibles for the locals!  

Santa Claus Bobblehead

Here's another recent new addition to the collection.  This one is a bit older tho, its Santa Claus from the Houston Aeros (Former Minnesota Wild Affiliate).  I think this is from 2004 and was limited to 3000.  Definitely a more rare bobble and it is pretty hard to find, but a cool one in Wild colors!

Matt Garza Beloit Snappers Bobblehead - 1st Edition

Been looking for this bobblehead quite a while.  This is the first Garza bobblehead the Snappers did...when they were a Twins affiliate.  They just did another Garza this past year.  I wish bobbles were still produced like this one...nice, sturdy, well built/molded.  Some are still very good, others leave a lot to be desired.  There is a specific box for this one, that I'd still like to have, but I wasn't passing on this one because it didn't come with a box.  I'd much rather have the bobble than the box, right!?!