Royalty spends the last weekend in July in Washington DC watching baseball & soccer!

Saturday morning July 27th I got up early so I could take public transportation out to Avis on Long Island in New Hyde Park which is right near where I used to live. I decided to rent a car for the weekend so I could see the Mets play the Nationals in our Nation's Capitol. In addition, I went to see a soccer game too. More importantly, I was hoping to see some people I know who live down there.

I wound up getting a Chevy Impala which was equipped with an XM radio. With that being said, I had the luxury of listening to all kinds of different music and sports. It worked out really well. Since they gave me a car with a half a tank of gas, I had to stop to get more on my way down. I did that at a familiar place. I went to Wawa's in Elkton, Maryland.

I ran into some pockets of traffic along the way but luckily I was able to park the car on the street for free within walking distance of Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals. I was considering parking by RFK Stadium where the DC United play soccer since I was going to see them after the baseball game. I would have taken the Metro to Nationals Park. Since I was pressed for time, I decided to drive straight through.

Prince Outside Nationals Park

The King and our pal Vincent Ascanio were already down in Washington because they went to the day night doubleheader that was played on Friday. They stayed over in the area. By doing so, they got to the ballpark early. As a result, they were able to get to $5 tickets at the box office a few hours before the game started. They were able to get me one as well. As I like to say, teamwork makes the dream work. I wound up parking the car at 2:46PM. I called the King and he met me at the gate at the ballpark at 3PM. He passed me out the ticket. Shortly thereafter, I met up with a young lady named Neva outside the ballpark by the team store. She was with her cousin and a friend of hers. They couldn't make the game due to a prior engagement. She met me because I arranged to get a picture signed that she had taken with Gio Gonzalez at one of his foundation's functions. I told her I was going to do my best for her. True to my word, I did indeed. When I saw Gio at Citi Field at the end of June, he signed it. Being the special person he is, he said he remembered her when I asked him. When Neva found out that I got it signed, she was lost for words. She was so happy. She couldn't thank me enough. She told me I made her entire summer. I didn't do anything special. I just asked Gio to sign the picture I printed out in color for her. Thankfully I was able to see him in order for him to do so. When I told her I got it for her, she wanted to know how she could get it. I told her we can meet at the ballpark. True to my word, we did. Ironically the other day she told me she bought a frame for it. That put a big smile on my face. Thanks to me, she now has an autographed framed picture of her and Gio. It's amazing how a small gesture can go so far in someone else's life. With that being said, I feel so good. I know I made a difference just by being who I am.

Gio Gonzalez on cover of Nationals' program

After we spoke briefly, I walked into the ballpark so I could see the game. I stayed downstairs for the first inning then I went upstairs to stand under the press box with the King by section 312. Shortly thereafter, we got a surprise visit by our friend Joe Rossi who came down for the game with a few buddies of his. As always, it was a pleasure to see him again. Later in the game, I got a visit from another person I knew. I'm referring to fellow ballpark chaser David Cordell who came by with his son Sam. Ironically they saw Gio Gonzalez before the game on the field. Since they have season tickets for the Nationals, they were able to take part in a special meet the players event. David said and I quote "Gio signed autographs for everybody who was there." I wasn't shocked at all. That's the Gio I know & love as a baseball player and a fellow human being. He's an inspiration to others. David also told me that his son Sam who is autistic was going to Gio's Special Camp in August. Sam is a lucky child even though he has a disability. He's blessed with great parents. David's wife, Janice who I met at Citi Field in April is a baseball fan too. She stayed at their seats while they came over special to see me. I want to personally thank David for being so kind & thoughtful.

As for the game we saw, the Nationals hit three home runs off Mets' starter Dillon Gee that afternoon. Ian Desmond & Denard Span hit back to back homers in the second inning and Bryce Harper hit a two run homer to back the great pitching that day by starter Dan Haren who was finally on his game. As a result, the Nationals went on to beat the Mets, 4-1. It should be noted that the King, Vincent & I left the game in the bottom of the eighth inning when the sky opened up. The game wound up being delayed an hour and two minutes. They were going to Baltimore to see the Orioles play the Red Sox at Camden Yards on their way home & I decided to go to see the DC United play the New England Revolution in a soccer match at RFK Stadium.

When I got to the parking lot, I heard the end of the baseball game I left. Nothing special happened so I'm glad I did what I did. I parked in Lot 8 since Neva told me that's where the supporters hang out before the game. Mother nature dampened the party atmosphere somewhat. Since I needed a ticket for the game, I decided to go inside so I could relax before the game started once I got one. I wound up buying a ticket outside from someone for $15. It worked out well since the seat was located by mid field so I had a good view of the action. By going there, I was able to say that I've now seen three different sports in RFK Stadium. In 1996, I saw a Redskins game and in 2005, 2006 & 2007 I saw 20 Nationals' games there. It was great timing because the week before I read that they're building a new stadium for the United so their days are numbered at RFK. That sealed the deal for me. I decided I'm definitely going to see that game. In addition, I needed a break from baseball.

Prince at RFK Stadium for DC United

As for the game I saw, I finally saw my first ever goal in an outdoor soccer game in the 8th minute as Luis Silva of the United scored to make it 1-0. In the second half, the Revolution, got even and then some as they went on to beat the United, 2-1. The best part of the game was that at 9PM it was over. They play two 45 minute halves in running time. They usually add on some extra time but in general soccer matches are played in a timely fashion. On this night, I was tired and hungry so I wanted to take care of my body. After the game, I did just that. I drove to Jessup, Maryland where I spent the night at Knights Inn. They also had a Country Pride restaurant there which was open so after I checked in, I went there & I had a hearty dinner.

Live action from DC United game

After I got a good night sleep, I went back there for breakfast. When I got done, I went to Nationals Park to see the Nationals wrap up their weekend series with the Mets. I bought a $5 ticket at the box office & I went inside when the gates opened. I was hoping to see Gio Gonzalez again but there was no batting practice so I was unable to see him. I plan to catch up with him at Citi Field in September when the Nationals return to NYC.

Prince at Nationals Park on Sunday

As for the game I saw, the Nationals took batting practice during the game as they went on to whip the Mets, 14-1. Wilson Ramos hit a grand slam to lead the offensive explosion.

As for the traditional President's race, Abe Lincoln aka Honest Abe won that.

After the game, I drove back home. On the way back, I stopped off at Golden Corral where I helped myself to happiness in Bensalem, Pennsylvania. It was a perfect to end off another memorable weekend.

Stay tuned for my w/o 7/29 in review as I slowly but surely play catch up. Please bear with me.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty meets up with roadtripper David Cordell who came to Citi Field with his family to see the Nationals play!

Nationals Lineup

Saturday afternoon I went to Citi Field to see game two of the three game series with the Washington Nationals which started at 3:05PM thanks to Fox. With that being said, the King and I couldn't possibly see a second game so we went home after the game. We ate dinner and relaxed.

I wound up meeting up with a guy I met in Washington a few times at Nationals Park. The first time we met was last September and then I saw him again on Gio Gonzalez bobblehead doll day. His name is David Cordell. His Twitter handle is @dcinwashington. He's originally from England and but he's taken a liking to the game of baseball. He came up to see the Nationals play on the road with his wife Janice who's originally from Bellmore, Long Island and their son, Sam. It was great to see him again. It was also nice to meet his wife and their son.

As for the game we saw, Gio Gonzalez started for the Nationals. With that being said, I'm glad it worked out that I saw him after batting practice Friday night. When I did see him he was complaining about the weather, he said and I quote "it's too windy." Saturday afternoon was more of the same. As a result, Gio had trouble with his control. He threw a lot of pitches but he was able to get in & out of trouble for the first three innings. He didn't allow a run and he had a 3-0 lead thanks to home runs by Ian Desmond and Bryce Harper. In the fourth inning, Gio got himself into trouble. The Mets batted around as they scored five runs off Gio who walked three including Lucas Duda who had two pitches land behind him. I was sitting with my pal Manny Morales who was there. He was with his buddy Marc Beck who thought Gio was throwing at Duda. I told Marc he wasn't. Gio was just wild. He has a tendency to lose control when he's on the mound. This was one of those times. Gio got through the fourth inning but that was it for him. Thankfully the Nationals got another home run, this one was a three run blast by Adam LaRoche which gave the Nationals a 6-5 lead. I jumped for joy because it got Gio off the hook for the loss. In the seventh inning, John Buck tied the game again at six with a clutch two out double. It was short lived because Bryce Harper led off the top of the eighth inning for the Nationals by breaking the tie as he hit his second homer of the game which gave the Nationals a 7-6 lead. Former Yankees Tyler Clippard & Rafael Soriano held the Mets in check as the Nationals held on to beat the Mets, 7-6.

Stay tuned for another special post that will recap the doubleheader we saw with another special guest on Sunday.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to Bowie, Maryland to see a minor league baseball game after Nationals game in DC!

Prince Outside Prince George's Stadium in Bowie

After the King & I said our goodbyes to Roberto Coquis, Tolu Robertson and David Cordell at Nationals Park, we drove to Bowie, Maryland which is only about 15-20 miles from our Nation's Capitol which made for a relatively easy baseball doubleheader for us. The National game ended in a timely fashion which gave us some spare time to stop off at Wendy's which was right by Prince George's Stadium, the home of the Bowie Baysox. They're the Double A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles in the Eastern League. On this night they were hosting the Akron Aeros who are the Cleveland Indians' farm club.

As for the game we saw, the Baysox took a 2-0 lead which they held for the first five innings of the game. In the top of the sixth inning, the Aeros scored five runs to take a 5-2 lead. In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Baysox got one back to make it a 5-3 game. They added four more in the bottom of the seventh inning to regain the lead at 7-5. The Aeros scored a run in the ninth inning but they fell short as they lost, 7-6 to the Baysox in front of an announced crowd of 5,542 people who were treated to a post game fireworks show.

As for the King & I, we were able to see part of it as we made our way to the car since we wanted to get home as soon as we could. It was a nice way to cap off a great day of baseball.

Stay tuned as I'm going to write a special post that will go into detail about another doubleheader we saw that Sunday.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to Nationals Park on Gio Gonzalez Bobblehead Doll Day and meets up with other Roadtrippers!

The King was in the midst of a 15 day rental he got from Avis earlier in the week. With that being said, we got up bright and early Saturday morning April 13th so we could be in position to get to Nationals Park early enough to get a Gio Gonzalez Bobblehead Doll which was being given out to the first 15,000 fans who entered through the center field gate. It should noted we didn't have tickets for the game yet either because they wanted too much online during the week. Otherwise we would have bought them in advance. We knew from our past experience that the Nationals sell a limited number of $5 tickets a few hours before the game. Once those go, they put standing room tickets on sale.

The King wound up dropping me off by the left field gate at 11:40AM and he went to park the car. I walked around to the center field gate so I could see if they still had bobblehead dolls left before I went to the box office. They did have a number of boxes of them stacked up so I knew we would get one. As for tickets, thankfully I was able to get us standing room for $15 each since the $5 ones were all gone. As a result, my decision to want it out turned out to be a wise one just like it was Opening night in Houston.

It should be noted that I was in contact with fellow roadtripper, Roberto Coquis who was going to meet me at the ballpark. He had a friend who was already inside the ballpark tell him that they had a lot of bobblehead dolls left so I didn't get too stressed out thinking about it. In addition, I was planning to meet another roadtripper named Tolu Robertson who I follow on Twitter. His handle is @DArkMEATHOOK. He told me earlier in the week he would look out for me to make sure I got a bobblehead since it was my boy Gio and he knew I wanted one badly.

Gio Gonzalez Bobblehead Doll 

I wound up getting Roberto a ticket since I got to the ballpark before he did. Tolu was already inside. I texted Roberto and I met him by the gate after I went inside myself. I got my bobblehead & I was able to pass him & the King out their tickets. They also got in before the rest of the bobbleheads were gone.

The King came first. I told him I'm waiting for Roberto. He said he'll meet me upstairs under the press box. That worked out well as I met up with Roberto shortly thereafter. After we spoke for a short time we wound up meeting up with Tolu by the Red Loft which is located out in center field. We all introduced ourselves.

After we spoke for a little while, Roberto & I said goodbye to Tolu and we went upstairs to meet the King.
We got upstairs just as the National Anthem was being sung after we walked around the lower level. I noticed four empty seats in section 312 row J so we can just sat down and looked like we belonged. Quite amazingly, nobody came for those seats. It was a royal upgrade indeed. I was planning to stand and watch the game from behind the last row like I've done a number of times in the past.

Ironically there were four Brave fans in the row in front of us. Since the Nationals were playing the Braves, it was nice to see some visiting fans there. We wound talking to them during the game. They turned out to be good people. They were Aaron Ellenburg and his friends Andrew Quinn from Danville,Virginia, Ryan from Seattle and Jayme McCormick from Alabama.

Me, Aaron Ellenburg, Andrew Quinn, Ryan & Jayme McCormick 

After a few innings, Tolu came up to join us for the rest of the game. When we first saw him he was talking to some people he knew that were at the game too.

We got to see the President's Race which is run every game there. This year they added another candidate to the race, William Taft aka Bill to go along with George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson & Teddy Roosevelt. Click on the video to see the actual race.

Later in the game, another roadtripper I met last year at a Nationals game named David Cordell, came by to say hello to the King and I. It was great to see him again. I met him on Twitter as well. His handle is @dcinwashington. He's another good guy who was born in England. Despite that he has become a big fan of baseball, our National pastime. We all exchanged stories about our love for the game of baseball. In addition, we spoke about different road trips we've taken.

For example, Roberto went with his wife Judy and new born baby at the time, Sofia to all the major league ballparks in 2009. Hence Roberto's Twitter handle is @30BallparksBaby. Feel free to follow him. He also has another handle which is @Sportsnpolitic which highlights the intersection of sports and politics.

Roberto Coquis, David Cordell, Me, The King & Tolu Robertson

As for the game we saw, the Nationals made a costly error that prolonged the third inning and it cost them two runs as the Braves' rookie Evan Gattis hit a home run off Stephen Strasburg that made it 2-0. Danny Espinosa got the Nationals on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fifth inning when he hit a solo homer to cut the Braves' lead in half at 2-1. Jason Heyward drove in an insurance run as the Braves went on to beat the Nationals, 3-1. Tim Hudson who started for the Braves out pitched Stephen Strasburg in front of a standing room only crowd of 41,992.

After the game ended, we said our goodbyes to everybody. Hopefully we'll all meet up again in the future.
Stay tuned for a special post that will recap the second game the King and I saw that night in Bowie, Maryland.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman