A month ago Dodgers gear festooned with colorful flowers in the unmistakable designs of acclaimed Japanese artist Takashi Murakami sold out in minutes at a pop-up on Fairfax Ave. A couple hundred Angelenos lined up overnight to purchase gear, generating $40 million.
The pop-up, called the MLB Tokyo Series collection, preceded the two-game, season-opening series in Japan between the Dodgers and Chicago Cubs, and items soon hit the secondary market for four times the purchase price.
The merchandise was so popular that Murakami and the Dodgers responded by approximating the famous words of Hall of Fame Cubs shortstop Ernie Banks: “Let’s play two!