TP Chisel - June 30th (St. Cloud Rox)

The Rox are doing a fun new bobble with their mascot Chisel.  The Rox have done several Chisel bobbles and this is one of my favorites!!

Barry in a Corvette - June 15th (Willmar Stingers)

The Stingers have another Barry bobblehead coming out this summer - in a Corvette!  Fans and collectors love Barry and I'm sure this one will be a huge hit!

Sneak Peek - Championship Chisel Bobblehead

Tonight, the St. Cloud Rox are giving away 400 Championship Chisel bobbleheads!  As is typical with these, they are outstanding bobbles!  Great detail and Chisel is a great looking mascot!  The Rox have done another great bobblehead this season, of course celebrating their Northwoods League Championship Season from last year!  Get your tickets here!

New Addition - Barry - Willmar Stingers

Another new addition of mine, from the Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League!  I wasn't expecting the size of this bobble, the entire thing is just as tall as a normal bobblehead!  Great deal and several other teams are doing or have done similar looking bobbleheads and vehicles where the plaque sponsor is most likely a car dealership!  

Sneak Peek - Zack Granite Bobblehead - Lakeshore Chinooks

Here's another Sneak Peek!  This time around, its Zack Granite.  He's not currently with the big club but fans like his work ethic and defensive tools!  It's a fun "diving" bobble!  Zack played for the Chinooks in 2012 in the Northwoods League! 

New Add - Ringo

Here's another new addition to my collection.  Ringo from the now defunct, Alexandria Beetles (of the Northwoods League).  There are 2 versions of this one, I believe this is the retail version the club sold, while the other version, although almost exactly the same has 1 slight difference.  Instead of saying "Ringo" on the base, it displays the sponsors name.  I had been searching for this one a long time.  I honestly didn't think it would take me this long to find it.  Typically the retail versions are quite a bit easier to find because there are more of them.  Either way, I'm definitely happy to add this one! 

Gopher Alumni Eric Decker Bobblehead

A few years ago the St. Cloud Rox (of the Northwoods League) gave away an Eric Decker bobblehead, of course Decker was "decked" out (see what I did there?) in Gopher colors.  Wanted to blog about this one since its football season and the Gophers are 2-0.  I'll have another Gopher related bobblehead up next!

New Addition - Clark the Lark

The Bismarck Larks, the Northwoods League's newest team gave away a couple different semi-mini bobbleheads of their mascot, Clark.  Below are the 2 variations.  Mascot collectors will enjoy this one and since I collect Northwoods bobbles, this fit into my collection as well!

Sneak Peek - Al Newman & Augie Rodriguez Bobblehead

First off, I'm sorry for the terrible picture, its the best one I currently have, but will try to find a better one and update this post.  The St. Cloud Rox are giving this dual bobblehead of Al Newman and Augie Rodriguez away on August 10th.  Twins fans will be intrigued by Newman!  Dual collectors will want it as well.  It's a cool bobblehead!

Mayor Ardell Brede Bobblehead

Remember in just a few days (June 14th) the Rochester Honkers are giving away this bobblehad of Mayor Brede!!

Coming Soon: Mayor Ardell Brede Bobblehead

The Rochester Honkers are giving away 500 Ardell Brede bobbleheads on June 14th.  Brede is the mayor of Rochester (and has been since 2003).  As a well respected community member and political figure, the Honkers decided this was the year that Brede would be depicted in bobblehead form.  I'm sure it'll be a popular giveaway!  Check out the picture below!

New Addition - Earl (St. Cloud River Bats)

Another new addition of mine is the St Cloud River Bats mascot, Earl!  Earl has several different bobbleheads.  The River Bats were a part of the Northwoods League and are now called the St Cloud Rox.  This happens to be a retail version (there was an SGA version that looked very similar instead of "Earl" on the base it included the sponsors logo).  This is the black jersey version and there is also a white jersey variation (both with Earl on the base as well as an SGA version).  

New Addition - Bernie Gerl Bobblehead

Here's a recent addition of mine!  Bernie Gerl (click his name to learn more) has a fascinating yet tragic story.  The Duluth Huskies gave out this bobblehead earlier this summer.  Thanks to a friend of mine I was able to add it to the collection.  The Huskies kept this as a secret until the giveaway actually happened.  People waiting in line didn't know what bobblehead they were getting, even several Huskies employees didn't know.  Bernie Gerl didn't even know they were doing a bobblehead of him.  The Huskies worked with Bernie's family (who knew he'd absolutely love the bobble) to get the bobblehead produced.  This was quite a surprise to everyone in Duluth and a pretty memorable night at the ballpark.

Now, more about the bobble itself.  Obviously it has TONS of detail - which I love.  The catcher's gear is amazing.  The fact that the chest protector is being held is awesome.  And beyond that, its a nice heavy bobblehead.  I'd have to say...out of all bobblehead giveaways in 2016 (that I collect, which means anything related to Minnesota and their affiliates) this is the best one.  The detail, the weight, nothing is cheap about this bobble!

New Addition - Reese Gregory

Here's a recent new addition to the collection.  Reese Gregory from the St. Cloud Rox of the Northwoods League.  He's a pretty popular pitcher for the team and from a fan vote was voted the bobblehead this year.  I picked this up a couple weeks ago.  The Rox do some great full size bobbles, and just like last year, this one is one of 360 given away!  

New Addition - Ringo Bobblehead

I've been looking for this one for quite a while.  I new it was out there as a buddy of mine thought he had a deal for a couple of these.  The deal fell thru and I haven't seen one since.  Recently was able to pick this one up.  It's a giveaway bobble from the now defunct Alexandia Beetles of the Northwoods League.  Their mascot, Ringo has a couple different bobbleheads and this one seems to be the most rare (or at least the one I haven't seen much of).  If you are an avid reader of my blog, you'll know I enjoy mascot bobbleheads - because they look like this - super cool, pretty spot on and great detail.

Sneak Peek - Reese Gregory Bobblehead Day

Today the St. Cloud Rox are giving away a Reese Gregory bobblehead.  The Rox always do a good job with their bobbleheads.  Last year was their mascot Chisel and the year before that was local sports hero - Eric Decker.  Gregory was picked through a fan vote earlier this year, another solid looking bobblehead!  

2016 Bobblehead Update

As I mentioned in a blog post about a week ago, click the link to read it, teams will be announcing their promotional schedules over the next several weeks.  When I hear about bobbleheads I'll be sure to write a blog post.  Accordingly when I hear teams aren't doing bobbleheads (that have in the past) I'll also pass along that information.

Unfortunately this post is more of the latter.  I recently communicated with the Rochester Honkers and sadly to say they won't be doing any bobblehead giveaways this season.  Last year they did 2 different versions of their mascot, Slider.  I know a big part of minor league, northwoods league and independent league baseball promotions is finding sponsors for specific promotions.  

Finally - Checked another one off my want list

I've been looking for this one for quite a while.  I had only seen 2 pictures of it online and a couple of short press releases/stories.  I knew I'd have it in my collection at some point, but I didn't think it'd be this long.  Several friends of mine also collect and deal in bobbleheads and sports memorabilia in general.  I figured if I didn't find it personally, one of them would.  I'm happy to say, Don Shelby, the bobblehead, is now in my collection.

In 2011 the Alexandria Beetles did a Don Shelby bobblehead giveaway, I believe it was limited to 500.  Click on the link above to learn more about Shelby, but guessing, if you live in Minnesota, you know who he is.

Allen Craig Bobblehead - Alexandria Beetles

Here's an SGA bobblehead of Allen Craig from when he played for the Alexandria Beetles of the Northwoods League.  The Beetles changed their name to the Blue Anchors in 2013 under new ownership.  Craig played for the Beetles in 2003 and 2005.

Another Mascot Bobblehead - Muttnik (Mankato Moondogs)

Here's the latest bobblehead from the Mankato Moondogs of the Northwoods League.  I think this is the 4th version of their mascot, Muttnik.  This is a mini bobblehead.  I'm not surprised more and more minor league and Northwoods league teams are going to the mini bobbleheads.  Some are true mini's while others are quasi-minis (where they are in between mini's and regular bobbleheads in terms of height).  Details are still pretty good tho!