Royalty w/o 6/18 in review

MCU Park - Home of the Brooklyn Cyclones

Monday night after work I met up with the King at Queensboro Plaza which is an express stop during rush hour on the 7 train. We went down to the street to have dinner at Checker's which opened up recently a few blocks from the train station. Our friend Manny Morales told us about it. It's fast food but it was really good. It's nice to know we have another option to eat along the 7 line as we make our way to Citi Field to see the Mets play.

Speaking of the Mets, we saw them open a three game series with the Baltimore Orioles who were visiting Citi Field for the very first time. After getting swept away over the weekend by the Reds, the Mets needed to get back on the winning track. We got to see Vincent Ascanio who's become a regular amongst us at the ballpark.

As for the game we saw, R.A. Dickey was pitching for the Mets. He gave the Mets the jolt they needed. He continued his amazing dominance this season as he dazzled the Orioles with his knuckleball. He allowed just one hit for the second game in a row. In the process, he struck out a career high 13 Orioles as he went the distance as the Mets won the game, 5-0. Mind you the game remained scoreless until the sixth inning when Ike Davis hit a grand slam to put the game away for R.A. and the Mets. It was a great team effort.

With all the excitement, the King nearly lost his voice doing his signature strikeout call much to the delight of the people who were sitting by us in section 516. The Hooligan's were there too. They've moved to section 513 this year. They were echoing the King's strikeout call from three sections away. It was really awesome just like R.A. Dickey's pitching performance was that night.

Tuesday night after work I went to Taste of Dolly's for my pre game meal on my way to Citi Field for game two of the series.

On this night, they gave out t-shirts commemorating Johan Santana's no hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 1st to the first 25,000 fans who walked through the gates. Amongst them was our friend Mike Klein who came with his nephew Joe Klein. As always, it was great to see them. Back in the day, Mike was a regular with us. Nowadays he shows up once in a long while so it was a rare treat to see him again.

As for the game we saw, the Mets continued to win as they beat the Orioles again by the same score of 5-0. This time Johan Santana threw six shutout innings to pace the Mets to the victory. He got help from Lucas Duda who hit a two run home run in the sixth inning to extend the lead to 3-0 and in the seventh inning, Jordany Valdespin added some insurance for the bullpen as he delivered a two run single to put the game out of reach.

Wednesday after work I went to Subway and Carvel to eat as I made my way to Citi Field. I got off the 7 train at Junction Blvd which is an express stop so I could have my meal. After I ate, I got back on the train and I went to the game.

This time we were joined by our pals Phil Butleman and David Sack. It's always nice to see different familiar faces from night to night.

As for the game we saw, it was scorching hot weather wise as the temperature at game time was 94 degrees. It was brutal to say the least. Dillon Gee started for the Mets this time. He pitched well allowing two runs in seven and a third innings of work. He left the game with the Mets ahead 4-2. He earned the win but it wasn't without a scare from Frank Francisco who allowed a run to score and before he finally got the last out with the bases loaded. The Mets luckily escaped as they swept the series from the Orioles, 4-3.

Thursday night after work I went to Coney Island to see the Brooklyn Cyclones host the Staten Island Yankees in the Battle of New York on a minor league level. I would like to thank our pal Vincent Ascanio who got the King and I free tickets for the game.

As for the game we saw, it was a sloppy one. The Staten Island Yankees broke the game open as they scored six runs in the seventh inning to beat the Cyclones, 8-1. They capitalized on mistakes which included a botched up a sacrifice bunt and they took advantage of three walks in that inning to go along with three doubles they hit.

Stay tuned for a special post that will recap the latest installment of the Subway Series that took place at Citi Field.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 6/4 in review

Monday night after work I had a night off so I was able to come home and rest up for the busy week I had planned.

As for the rest of the week, here's how it went:

Tuesday night after work I went up to the Bronx. I met up with the King and we ate dinner at the 7 Fish Market. After we ate we went next door to get a few bottles of water from the KJY Fruit Market. Jin Kim was out on the street hawking the water as only he can. He's a treat to watch in action. Sometimes he's inside or off and there's another guy there but it's not the same. The price of water is though so you can't go wrong.

We proceeded to go inside the Stadium to see the Yankees open a three game series with the Tampa Bay Rays who were back for more. They were in the Bronx in early May and they lost two out of three to the Yankees.

When we got up to our seats in Grandstand Section 420B row 7, we were greeted by our pal Phil Butleman who was at the game with David Sack, a nice young man who's been coming regularly lately.
This time the Rays faced Andy Pettitte who wasn't back in the Major Leagues yet when they played. They wish he stayed retired based on the fact they couldn't score off of him. For that matter, they could barely touch him as he allowed just two hits and they struck out ten times against him as he worked into the eighth inning as he departed after registering the first out to a rousing ovation from the Yankee faithful. Andy pitched a dandy as the Yankees shutout the Rays, 7-0. With the victory, he won his 243rd lifetime game of his career.

As for the Rays, James Shields started for them but he lasted only five innings. His teammates didn't play well behind him early as the Yankees capitalized in the first inning as they cashed in on an error which lead to two unearned runs. In the fourth inning, Russell Martin hit a grand slam to put the game away for the Yankees. That guaranteed a short night for James Shields who's normally known for pitching deep into games when he's on.

Wednesday night after work I met the King for dinner at Burger King before the game in the Bronx.
This time we were joined by Vincent Ascanio aka the Kid as Steve Fekete aka the Padre Punk calls him. It's always a pleasure to see the "Kid." He's always respectful to us.

As for the game we saw, the Yankees aided by solo home runs by Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano built a 2-0 lead and they tacked on a few more in the bottom of the eighth inning before the Rays finally scored a run during their return to the Bronx as Desmond Jennings and B.J. Upton both tripled to break the scoring drought. The Yankees went on to win the game, 4-1.

Thursday night after work I went up to the Bronx again. This time I dodged the rain drops as I went to the Court Deli Restaurant to pick up dinner for the King and I. I got us Roast Beef sandwiches. I got to see Chris who took good care of me. I took them inside the Stadium we could eat them. Needless to say, they were really good.

Since there was a passing shower that was moving through the area, the start of the game was delayed by 26 minutes.

As for the game we saw, it looked like we had a good game ahead of us as the Rays were throwing David Price who served up Derek Jeter's 3,000th hit last July 9th. As for the Yankees, CC Sabathia was on the mound. The Rays got on the scoreboard first this time as they took a brief 1-0 lead in the second inning. The Yankees answered in the bottom of the second as they tied the game at one. The Rays added a few runs in the third and another pair in the fourth to break open the game as they roughed up the Yankees' ace. They went on to win the game to salvage the series as they avoided being swept by the Yankees, 7-3.

Friday night after work I went back to the Bronx to see the first game of this year's Subway Series as the Mets came to Yankee Stadium to play the Yankees.

Johan Santana was pitching for the first time since he made history the Friday night before at Citi Field for the Mets. Johan showed no signs of wear and tear as he set the Yankees down in order in the first inning. In the second inning however, after he allowed a lead off walk to A-Rod, Robinson Cano ended his latest no hit bid as he hit a two run homer to right field to give the Yankees' a 2-0 lead. In the third inning, the Yankees padded their lead as Robinson Cano homered again as did Nick Swisher and Andruw Jones who followed Cano's lead to extend the Yankee advantage to 6-0 as Johan Santana wasn't long for the night. He wound up going five innings as the Yankees beat up the Mets, 9-1.

Stay tuned as I recap the historic weekend we had as we escaped New York to watch baseball in Pittsburgh at PNC Park. It promises to be a great read.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty follows up No-Hitter with Amazin' weekend of baseball!

History Made at Citi Field 6.1.12

After witnessing the first no-hitter in Mets' history thanks to Johan Santana Friday night, the Mets followed that up with more dominant baseball as they beat the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals over the weekend too.

Saturday afternoon they shut the Cardinals out again, 5-0 behind a complete game by R.A. Dickey. He threw a seven hitter. He walked none and struck nine. The Mets used different methods to generate their offense on this day. They scored on a few ground outs, an error, a wild pitch and a solo home run by David Wright. It was a total team effort.

Sunday night they were showcased on ESPN Sunday Night baseball. They continued their winning ways as pitcher Jonathon Niese started the game and he threw six more shutout innings. The Cardinals finally got a run on the scoreboard in the eighth inning when Adron Chambers delivered a two out single to end their scoring drought. The Mets went on to win again, 6-1.

Before the game, the Mets enshrined John Franco into the Mets Hall of Fame.

As a pitcher, I wasn't a big fan of his when he played. However he did play his college ball at nearby St. John's University in Queens and he was born and raised in Brooklyn. In that regard, it was a nice gesture by the Mets.

The best memory I had of him was back in 1998 when he finished the season with a record of 0-8. As a result, I remember someone calling into the local sports talk radio show and the person said John Franco ruined his summer. That sums up what you need to know about this so called Mets Hall of Famer.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty witnesses history as the Mets finally pitch a No-Hitter thanks to No-Han at Citi Field!

No-Han!

After work Friday night I went to Taste of Dolly's again to have dinner. While I was there, my pal Manny Bonilla called me. I told him I was there. He wanted to join me. I waited for him. We ate then we took the train to Citi Field to see the Mets host the Cardinals.

We went to the Rotunda entrance where we were greeted by Sam Citron which set the tone for a memorable night.

We proceeded up to the upper deck to our usual perch. On this night, our bunch decided to sit in section 517. I wound up sitting in row 14 seat 5. I never moved.

We had a nice gathering on hand. We had the King, Frank Anichiarico, Bryan Gilligan, Ralph & Vincent Ascanio. Phil Butleman, David Sack & Joe Klein were all back for more on this night. In addition, we had Danny Werba and Donald Cohen aka Fuzzy a New York institution as he's known by many over the years.
Little did we know, we were going to see history on this night.

After playing 8,020 games in their 50 plus year history, the Mets finally got a no-hitter as Mets' pitcher Johan Santana etched his name in the history book as he didn't allow a hit as he beat the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, 8-0 to become the first Mets' pitcher to finally throw a no-hitter.

Despite a blown call by third base umpire Adrian Johnson in the sixth inning, the no-hitter remained intact. In the seventh inning, Mets' outfielder Mike Baxter who's from nearby Whitestone, NY saved the day in his backyard as he reached out with his left arm to make a great catch before he ran into the wall. He managed to hold on to the ball. He wound up leaving the game with a shoulder injury though.

At 9:48PM, Santana got World Series MVP David Freese to swing at ball four to end the game which preserved his no-hitter with Yadier Molina left on deck. Santana finished the game allowing 5 walks and he struck out 8 while throwing 134 pitches to complete the game.

In unison, we all jumped for joy in stunned disbelief. Finally a Met pitcher has thrown a no-hitter.

It was the first no-hitter witnessed by many of the young fans who were amongst us.

It was my first National League no-hitter and my sixth overall that I've been fortunate enough to see.

Here's a list of the other ones I've seen.

1. May 14,1996 Dwight Gooden, a former Met, pitched a no-hitter for the Yankees as they beat the Seattle Mariners, 2-0 at Yankee Stadium. Gooden struck out 5 and he walked 6. Ironically he threw 134 pitches that was the same amount Johan Santana needed to secure his.

2. May 17, 1998 David Wells pitched a perfect game against the Minnesota Twins as the Yankees won, 4-0. Wells struck out 11 that day at Yankee Stadium.

3. July 18, 1999 David Cone, another former Met, pitched a perfect game on Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium as the Yankees beat the Montreal Expos, 6-0. Cone fanned 10 batters in the process.

4. June 11, 2003 It took six pitchers to no-hit the Yankees as the Houston Astros accomplished the feat. Starter Roy Oswalt got hurt and he only lasted one inning. He was followed by Pete Munro, Kirk Saarloos, Brad Lidge, Octavio Dotel and Billy Wagner who all combined to not allow a hit as the Astros beat the Yankees, 8-0.

5. July 27, 2011 I saw my first no-hitter on the road in Cleveland at Progressive Field with Paul Derrick. The Angels' Ervin Santana allowed a run but not a hit as the Angels beat the Indians, 3-1. He walked one and struck out 10.

Stay tuned as the amazing weekend continued.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees a Tripleheader and a Doubleheader over Memorial Day Weekend!

Prince Outside First Energy Park in Lakewood, NJ

Saturday morning I went to Avis to rent a car for the holiday weekend. With no major plans due to the baseball schedule being what it was, we wound up spending some time near the Jersey Shore in Lakewood, NJ Saturday and Sunday night.

I was originally considering possibly going to Boston to see the Red Sox play the Rays at Fenway Park Saturday night after the Met game Saturday afternoon at Citi Field.

When the King and our pal Vincent Ascanio heard the Lakewood BlueClaws were playing a doubleheader at First Energy Park, they said they wanted to go there instead. Since I was doing the driving, I told them that's not a problem.

Luckily the Mets behind Johan Santana who pitched a gem of a game we were able to get to Lakewood with a little time to spare for their 6:05PM double dip. Our friend Frank Anichiarico decided to join us too.
As for the performance by Santana, he went the distance for the first time since 2010. He did miss the whole season last year due to injury. He returned to his old form on this day as he shutout the Padres, 9-0. He scattered four hits and he pitched in a timely fashion so it was a pleasure to watch him.

As for the games we saw in Lakewood, the Blueclaws who are the Single A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies split a doubleheader with the Hagerstown Suns, the farm team of the Washington Nationals nowadays. I've seen them play when they were affiliated with the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants.

In the first game, the Suns won, 7-1 as Nathan Karns a highly touted prospect who has had to overcome injuries, pitched lights out as he struck out ten and he allowed one hit over seven innings to win the game. It was a complete game for him because in the minor leagues when they play a doubleheader both games go only seven innings unless the game is tied.

In the nightcap, the Blueclaws won the game, 7-5 to gain a split.

After the game, we went back home.

Sunday we went back to Citi Field to see the Mets again as they wrapped up their four game series with the Padres. We saw another fine pitching performance this time by R.A. Dickey who worked into the eighth inning. He allowed no runs as the Mets shutout the Padres again, 2-0.

After the game, Vincent Ascanio joined the King and I as we went back to Lakewood to see another game there since they were playing at night.

This time they played a full nine inning game as the Suns came out ahead, 7-6 despite a controversial call in the eighth inning that cost the Blueclaws a chance to possibly tie the game. As a result, Blueclaws' manager and former Philadelphia Phillie Mickey Morandini got thrown out of the game.

Stay tuned for the special post about a restaurant we found in Lakewood before the game Sunday night.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 8/23 in review

Monday night I came home after work to recharge the batteries and to catch up on my blog.

Tuesday night I was out at Citi Field to see the Florida Marlins play the Mets. Josh Johnson started for the Marlins and R.A. Dickey pitched for the Mets. With that being said, I expected to see a well pitched ballgame. Much to my chagrin, neither pitched well. Josh Johnson lasted only 5 innings and R.A. Dickey went 7 innings but he blew a 4-2 lead when he gave up a 3 run home run to Gaby Sanchez in the 7th inning. The Mets managed to bail out Dickey when they tied the game in the 8th inning when Carlos Beltran delivered a clutch 2 out hit. In the 9th inning, Luis Castillo came through with the game winning hit to give the Mets a dramatic 6-5 win.

Wednesday night I was back at Citi Field for the second game of the series between the Mets and the Marlins. This time the Mets fell short when Jose Reyes ended the game by grounding out with the bases loaded and the Mets down by a run. They lost, 5-4!

Thursday night was the rubber match between the two teams. The Mets took a 4-0 lead after 3 innings. The Marlins got 2 back in the 4th inning then they chased Mets starting pitcher Jonathon Niese in the 6th inning when they scored 7 more to break the game open. The Marlins went on to win the game, 11-4 and they won the series.

Friday night the Houston Astros came to Citi Field for the first time this season. They just sweep the Phillies 4 straight in Philadelphia. Mike Pelfrey pitched well again for the Mets throwing 8 shutout innings. Bobby Parnell gave up a run in the 9th inning but the Mets managed to hang on for the 2-1 victory despite getting only 3 hits. Former Met Nelson Figueroa walked in a run which proved to be the difference in this one.

Saturday night the Astros jumped on Mets ace Johan Santana as they scored 2 runs in the top of the first inning. They went on to beat the Mets, 4-1! The Mets had numerous chances to capitalize but they failed to deliver the clutch hit when they need it.

Sunday afternoon was the rubber match in this series. With R.A. Dickey back on the mound, the Mets were able to take the series this time. Dickey pitched well giving up just one run over 7 innings as the Mets cruised to a 5-1 decision.

Special guests this week included our new found friend Manny Bonilla. Manny attended all 6 games with us. His mother came along with him on Friday night. We told her he's a good kid and I mentioned to her he wants to go with us to Philadelphia on Labor Day for the Day/Night doubleheader. She said it's not a problem for him to go with us. After all, he's only 17. I told her he's in good hands with us.

Friday night we saw regulars Steve & Jon Work.

In addition, on Sunday my Cousin Andy joined us for the game. He finally saw the Mets win a game. He came a few times earlier in the season and they lost. He had a great time spending time with Royalty and company. More importantly, he got to spend quality time with his favorite relative. We went out for dinner after the game as well.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Stay tuned for the week ahead.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman    


       

Royalty w/o 7/5 in review

This past week I basically stayed home, my summer home that is.

I went to 6 games at Citi Field this past week.

They played 3 games Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday against the surprising Cincinnati Reds. The Mets wound up losing 2 out of 3.

Johan Santana pitched a complete game 3 hit shutout to get their lone victory.

Thursday night I decided it was better to say home and rest up instead of running to Brooklyn to see the Cyclones.

I'm sorry Sean for disappointing you.

Speaking of disappointment, I put the radio on so I could hear what LeBron James was going to do.

I stayed close to home this week.

I was hoping LeBron would do the same but apparently the statement "there's no place like home" doesn't make LeBron happy.

He told a national audience in a spectacle that he's running away to South Beach.

Rightfully so his jersey was seen burning by his fans in Cleveland.

In retrospect, LeBron betrayed his hometown and his faithful fans.

It's not about the money he said. It's about winning a championship. Well he should have stayed home and brought the championship home then.

After all, he's considered the greatest basketball player of modern time.

In my eyes, he's no Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant.

Friday night I was back at Citi Field to see the division rival Atlanta Braves.

My Cousin Andy joined me to celebrate his birthday.

Despite the Mets losing again, he had a great time together.

We went to Donovan's Pub in Woodside after the game as well.

I told him how good their pork chops are.

They only serve them on Friday nights as a special.

Needless to say, we were satisfied customers.

Please free feel to see my previous post about Donovan's.

It will tell you all you need to know.

Saturday the Mets lost again to the Braves.

Afterwards it was back to Donovan's for a post game dinner.

 Today the Mets thanks to Johan Santana were able to salvage a game from the Braves. Santana threw 7 more shutout innings picking up the victory in the 3-0 win. Ike Davis supplied the power with a home run just to the left of the Apple in centerfield as you can see in the picture.

 Thanks for following along.

 Stay tuned for the schedule for the week ahead.

Yours truly,

Prince Charming