Royalty is returning to Cleveland, Ohio & Pittsburgh, PA over Memorial Day Weekend!

Here's the game plan:

I'm renting a car from Budget Rent A Car on Saturday morning to enjoy my Memorial Day weekend the right way.

I'll be driving all day to Cleveland, Ohio then to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to see a few Major League Baseball games before returning to NYC late Sunday night. It's an annual tradition. I've seen a game  almost every year in these cities including at least one at PNC Park every year since it opened up in 2001.     
             
Saturday May 26th Astros at Indians 7:15PM                                  

Sunday May 27th Cardinals at Pirates 1:35PM                        
          
If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join me.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is hitting the road again to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Buffalo, Cleveland, & Pittsburgh over Memorial Day Weekend!

Here's the game plan:

I'm renting a car from Enterprise Rent A Car on Friday morning to start Memorial Day weekend off right.

I'll be driving up North of the Border to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Buffalo, Cleveland & Pittsburgh to see some Major League Baseball games before returning to NYC early Monday morning. My pal Mike Carroll aka Sabre Mike as we call him is joining me as is my pal John Newkirk. In addition, I plan to see our pals Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell aka USRT who live in Buffalo along the way either in Toronto and/or in Buffalo for dinner Saturday night. Furthermore, due to a change in plans, another sports traveler, Paul Nieuwland who lives in Mississauga, Ontario which is a suburb of Toronto won't be able to join us now. Moreover, Sunday we'll be joined by our pal, Scott Bultman who's driving from Indianapolis to spend the day with royalty in Cleveland & Pittsburgh. 
             
Friday May 26th Columbus Crew at Toronto FC 7PM

Saturday May 27th Rangers at Blue Jays 1:07PM                                  

Sunday May 28th Royals at Indians 1:10PM

                              Mets at Pirates 8:05PM

Monday May 29th Brewers at Mets 4:10PM
           
If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join Mike, John & I as well as the rest of the very special guests we're meeting along the way.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is going to Chicago & St. Louis over Mother's Day weekend!

Here's the game plan:

The King & I are flying to Chicago Midway Airport on Southwest Airlines. We leave New York LaGuardia Airport on Friday, May 6th at 6:10AM Eastern Time, we arrive in Chicagoland at 7:35AM Central Time if we're not delayed for any reason. Upon arrival, I'm renting a car from Hertz for the weekend. We'll be driving towards St. Louis Friday night so we can be there in time for the Cardinal game Saturday afternoon. After that game, we're going to Peoria, Illinois before we come back to the Second City. We fly back home Sunday night. Our flight departs Chicago Midway Airport at 8:10PM Central Time. We're scheduled to land at 11:15PM Eastern Time at LaGuardia Airport if all goes well.    

Friday May 6th Nationals at Cubs 1:20PM Central Time

                          Twins at White Sox 7:10PM Central Time
                              
Saturday May 7th Pirates at Cardinals 1:15PM Central Time

                             Dayton Dragons at Peoria Chiefs 6:30PM Central Time
                     
Sunday May 8th Twins at White Sox 1:10PM Central Time

If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join the King & I.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is heading to out to the Midwest to start the new baseball season!

Here's the game plan:

I'm renting a car from Avis for the first week of April.

I'll be driving out to Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Cleveland, Cincinnati & Columbus, Ohio to see some major league & minor league baseball to start the baseball season before returning to NYC early Friday morning in time to be at Opening Day at Citi Field that afternoon.

Sunday April 3rd Cardinals at Pirates 1:05PM Opening Day

Monday April 4th Giants at Brewers 1:10PM Central Time Opening Day

Tuesday April 5th Mets at Royals 3:15PM Central Time

Wednesday April 6th Red Sox at Indians 6:10PM 

Thursday April 7th Phillies at Reds 12:35PM

                                 Indianapolis Indians at Columbus Clippers 6:35PM Opening Night

Friday April 8th Phillies at Mets 1:10PM Home Opener

                           Erie Seawolves at Trenton Thunder 7PM
                
If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join the King & I.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is on the road again over the first weekend in June!

Here's the game plan:

The King is renting a car from Dollar Rent A Car for the first week of June.

We'll be driving us out to Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Reading, Pennsylvania & Baltimore to see some major league & minor league baseball over the weekend before returning to NYC late Monday night.

Saturday June 7th Brewers at Pirates 4:05PM

Sunday, June 8th Phillies at Reds 1:10PM

Monday, June 9th Richmond Flying Squirrels at Reading Fightin Phils 9:35AM

                             Red Sox at Orioles 7:05PM
                
If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join the King & I.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty returns to Wrigley Field as roadtrippers reunite over Fourth of July weekend!

After the King, Dave Block & I got a much needed good night sleep, we drove towards Chicago. We made a pit stop at a royal restaurant first for breakfast. I'm talking about The Point Pancake House in Gurnee, Illinois. We weren't disappointed. I had my usual breakfast there which consisted of two charbroiled pork chops, eggs, fruit salad and pancakes. It was excellent. Dave & the King were also very satisfied as well.

Me & Dave Block Outside Wrigley Field

After we finished eating we drove to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs host the Pittsburgh Pirates that afternoon at 3:05PM local time. It worked out well. We got to the neighborhood early so we could park the car within walking distance for free at 1PM. We then proceeded to walk over to Wrigley Field. We went to the box office in hopes of getting some standing room tickets. They told us they weren't selling any. We asked what the cheapest tickets they had available were. They told us $51.52 in the upper deck with all the added taxes.
As a result, we decided to walk away and press our luck on the street instead. Luckily I ran into a guy who said he wanted $40 for a pair of tickets on the lower level in section 229. He said there were his season tickets. Without hesitation, I grabbed them for the King & I. We still needed one more for Dave. He wound up getting a single near us in the same section for $20 he said. Ironically I planned to meet some fellow roadtrippers at the game who had seats in section 130 which was right below where our seats were. I'm referring to Bob DeVries and his lovely wife Charlie. They were there with their friends Kristin & Dan who they introduced me to. It was great to see them again.

Me with Charlie & Bob DeVries

We also had another special treat on this day. Before the game started the 2013 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks brought the Stanley Cup to Wrigley Field. That was an added thrill. As part of the festivities, coach Joel Quenneville threw out the first pitch with the Cup resting by the pitcher's mound.

It was so cool to see the holy grail in baseball heaven. It was fitting indeed.

As for the game we saw, the Pirates scored first when third baseman Pedro Alvarez hit a solo homer to give the Buccos a 1-0 lead. The Cubs answered in the bottom of the fourth inning when Alfonso Soriano hit a two run homer to give the Cubs the lead, 2-1. In the fifth inning, Soriano did it again as he hit another two run blast to make it a 4-1 game. That's the way stayed as the Cubbies beat the red hot Pirates. By doing so, the natives got to sing the song Go Cubs Go as they made their way to exits.

After the game, on the way back to the car we stopped off at Artemio's Bakery and we got some cookies before we hit the road.

Dave along with the King and I  proceeded to drive to Indianapolis where we were spending the night before we continued on to Cincinnati to see the Reds play on Sunday afternoon.

Stay tuned for a special post that will go into further detail about that day.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is hitting the road again before the MLB All-Star Break at Citi Field!

Here's the game plan:

I'm renting a car from Avis for the weekend.

I'll be driving to out to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Baltimore & Aberdeen, Maryland to see some major league & minor league baseball over the weekend before the All-Star Break before returning to NYC late Sunday night.

Friday, July 12th Royals at Indians 7:05PM

Saturday July 13th Mets at Pirates 7:15PM

Sunday, July 14th Blue Jays at Orioles 1:35PM

                           Williamsport Crosscutters at Aberdeen Ironbirds 5:35PM

If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join me.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees plenty of baseball over Mother's Day weekend!

Saturday afternoon May 11th the King & I went back to Citi Field for game three of the series between the Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates. We met up with Jean Ann Harrison, Bryan Gilligan, Frank Anichiarico, Manny Morales, Pat Gorman, Rich Wolber, David Sack and Michael Carson who were also in attendance.
As for the game we saw, the Pirates beat up the Mets. They raced out to a 9-0 lead after five innings. They lit up Mets' starter Jonathon Niese who gave up eight runs in four and a third innings. The Mets finally broke the shutout in the sixth inning when they got a run off of starter Francisco Liriano who was making his first start for the Pirates after overcoming injuries to get back to the Major Leagues. Liriano went five and a third innings. He walked two and struck out nine. He earned the victory as the Pirates cruised to a 11-2 victory.


With rain on its way to the area, we wisely left after eight innings at 4:01PM so we could get to the car without getting soaked since the King was driving us to Scranton, Pennsylvania to see a minor league baseball game. We almost avoided the rain. As we got close to the car, the sky opened up. Luckily we didn't get too wet.

The game was delayed after the Pirates batted in the top of the ninth inning. As a result, we made a sound decision leaving when we did. After a 47 minute rain delay, the game resumed. We wound up missing a lead off homer by Andrew Brown of the Mets which made it 11-2 Pirates.

As we got further away from NYC, the weather improved for us. We wound up getting to Scranton with plenty of time to see the first pitch at newly renovated PNC Field which is the home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. It's the Yankees' Triple A affiliate in the International League. On this night, they were playing the Gwinnett Braves, the Atlanta Braves farm club on Bark in the Park night. It should be noted there were dogs galore.

Jason Heyward playing for Gwinnett Braves

Curtis Granderson playing for the RailRiders

In addition, we wound up seeing a few Major Leaguers play because they were on rehab assignments. I'm referring to Jason Heyward who was playing for the Braves and Curtis Granderson who played for the RailRiders. Furthermore, we also saw former Major Leaguer Chien-Ming Wang start for the RailRiders as he attempts to make a return to the big leagues. He pitched well on this night as he allowed three runs in seven and two third innings. He didn't get a decision because he left with the game tied. The RailRiders got the winning run in the bottom of the eighth as Melky Mesa delivered a double that proved to be the difference as the RailRiders beat the Braves, 4-3.

Trevin Jaggars & I at PNC Field in Scranton, PA

During the game I got to meet another person I follow on Twitter who was also there. I'm referring to Trevin Jaggars. His Twitter handle is @Trevin8. Please feel free to follow him.

What a week it was for tweets and greets.

Sunday May 12th was Mother's Day. The King & I went back to Citi Field to see the Mets and Pirates wrap up their four game series as Matt Harvey tried to get a split for the Mets.

We were joined by Jean Ann Harrison, Phil Butleman, David Sack, Al Linderman & Alan Gimpel. In addition, we also had our friend Alvin Pachter and his father from Scranton there. They weren't able to join us Saturday night so it was nice to see them Sunday instead.

As for the game we saw, the Mets got Matt Harvey off the hook for the loss as Mike Baxter came through again as he tied the game at two in the seventh inning with a run scoring single. The Mets' bullpen gave up the go ahead run in the eighth inning. By doing so, it gave Jason Grilli a chance to get another save. He pitched a 1,2,3 ninth inning as he struck out two Mets to preserve the 3-2 win for the Pirates as they took three out of four from the Mets.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 9/24 in review

Jason Grilli

Monday morning after driving back from Baltimore I arrived home at 4:30AM. I decided that it didn't make sense to lay down even for a half hour. I decided to unpack from the weekend instead. I got myself together then I ate breakfast and took a shower before I had to go back out to return the Toyota Camry I rented for the weekend from Avis. I wound up driving 519 miles safely over the two days. I got a ride to the subway then I went to work tired and all. I didn't take any energy drinks either. I found enough natural energy that I managed to get through the day. I took a nap during lunch which gave me the boost I really needed to do so.
After work I still went out to Citi Field to see the Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates play out the string. Upon arrival, I was greeted by Sam Citron. He always brings out the best in me regardless of how I feel. Like he always says, it's always a pleasure. That is so true. After I said hello and goodbye to him, I decided to go out to the center field food court area to have my dinner since I had some money left on the gift card I had. Quite amazingly, the line at Shake Shack was very short so I decided this was a perfect opportunity for me to go there. I ordered a double and I got a vanilla shake. Wow it was delicious. I can see why the line is so long almost every game no matter how many people actually show up at the ballpark.

After I ate, I made my way around to the other side of the ballpark so I could get to the area where we sit behind home plate to watch the game. I was joined by the King, Vincent Ascanio and Bryan Gilligan. Shortly thereafter, we got a visit from a few special guests. I'm referring to Alvin Pachter and his father who made the trip from Scranton, PA. They like the Pirates and they had to wait all season to see they play at Citi Field. As the saying goes, better late than never. It was great to see them both again. Since their local team, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees had their stadium renovated this year they didn't have any games to go to in their own backyard. Hence they didn't get to see a lot of baseball games. However they did go to Pittsburgh a number of times they said though to see their Pirates play at PNC Park.

As for the game we saw, the Mets beat up the Pirates who were in the midst of finishing under .500 again for the 20th straight year. They were playing so well until August came around. All of a sudden, like the Mets they totally fell apart. It's a shame that this happened to them. The Mets got a rare power surge as Ike Davis hit two home runs and he drove in five runs to lead the way as the Mets got a 6-2 victory.

Tuesday night after work I went back to Citi Field for more baseball as the Mets were playing their out last homestand of the season. After I saw Sam again I went inside to see batting practice. My main goal was to see if I could find Jason Grilli. After I looked around the outfield, I spotted him in left center field. I went down near the Party City Party Deck and I got his attention. Moments later, he came towards me and he threw me a batting practice baseball. I caught it. I told him thank you. We chatted for a few minutes. I did tell him I'll see him in Pittsburgh Saturday night at PNC Park. I was so excited to see him. He made my night complete especially since I had a very rough day at work. I told his business partner and friend of mine, JeanAnn Harrison I was on a mission to see him and true to my word I made it happen. She told me he was visiting family while he was in town.

After seeing Jason, I went over to Blue Smoke and I had some Kansas City spare ribs for dinner. They were so good. After I ate, I went up to our perch in the upper deck behind home plate to watch the game. This time I was joined by the usual bunch. In addition, we had our pals Manny Morales, Charlie O'Reilly and Michael Abrams amongst us.

As for the game we saw, the Pirates beat the Mets, 10-6. Jason Grilli came in the eighth inning and he got the Mets out 1,2,3. On a positive note for the Mets, David Wright got a single to right center in the seventh inning which was his 1,418th career hit as a Met. It tied him with Ed Kranepool for the most hits by a Met all time.

Wednesday night after work I went back to Citi Field for the last time this season since they were closing out on Thursday afternoon and I had to work. I wound up starving all day due to religious observance. When I got to Citi Field I made sure I fed myself. I didn't want to eat a lot so I wound up getting a few slices of pizza from Two Boots. They make good brick oven pizza.

After I ate, I got ready for the game. I met up with the King and Vincent Ascanio in the upper deck.
As for the game we saw, the Mets got a solid performance from young Jeremy Hefner who threw seven shutout innings as the Mets beat the Pirates, 6-0. In the process, David Wright entered the Mets' record book by himself as he got an infield single to third base in the third inning. It was his 1,419th career hit. With that hit, he moved into sole possession as the Mets all time hits leader.

Thursday night after work I came home and I made dinner. After I ate, I went around the block and I did my laundry which had been piling up since I was so busy running around.

Friday night after work I went home to rest and relax. I got a text message late in the afternoon at work from my friend and big fan of my blog, Eddie Pelle. He wanted to see me he said. I told him I get out of work at 5:30PM. He told me he'll meet me then. It worked out perfectly as I met him when I got out. He had a personalized autograph of former Colts' quarterback and broadcaster Mark Herrmann for me. He jokingly told him that I'm his long lost cousin. Eddie had a conversation with him when he was at the Indianapolis Colt game against the Jaguars. He told him about my passion for football and my blog. Mark Herrmann seemed very interested. I hope I get to meet him some day myself.

Stay tuned as I'm going to recap my latest weekend getaway with some more special posts. Please bear with me as I try to find time to do them.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty does the Chicago/Milwaukee shuttle to start the Labor Day weekend Part 1!

New Video Board at Wrigley Field

Friday morning the King and I went to Dollar Rent A Car to return the car I rented for the day to take him to Philadelphia after he officially finished his last day of work at the Post Office at Grand Central Station.

After we returned the car, we took the courtesy shuttle bus to LaGuardia airport which is right nearby. We got dropped off at the Central terminal where Air Tran Airways is located. We arrived there with plenty of time to catch our 7:25AM flight to Milwaukee.

You may be asking why did we fly into Milwaukee instead of Chicago since we were going to Wrigley Field first. Well when cost cutting is top priority you need to look at all your options to make them work out so it can be affordable, effective and efficient. Since I have so much experience from all the traveling I've done over the years I know driving an extra 80 miles or so each way won't hurt me especially when I can save some money in the process.

We usually fly into Chicago O'Hare airport but this time I decided that when I saw the additional cost of the flights coupled with renting of a car in Chicago compared to Milwaukee it was a no brainer to do it the royal way. We did this once before a few years back so I knew exactly when I needed to do to make it happen without a hassle.

As Chuck Booth, travel expert and Guinness Book of World Records holder of seeing all 30 current MLB ballparks in 23 days says and I quote "Milwaukee is the cheapest city to rent a car in." I remember that being the case the few times I've had to rent there in the past. I know when he reads this he's going to be proud of me. He does extensive research like me and he knows many tricks of the trade.

As for the King and I, we landed in Milwaukee nice and early thanks to Air Tran Airways for making sure we got our money's worth and then some. We saved some money flying there and we even got in early too. We landed at 8:35AM Central Time which was ten minutes before our expected arrival time. In addition, the airport in Milwaukee is nice and relaxing compared to Chicago O'Hare which is gigantic and very crowded all the time.

After we got ourselves together we walked over to Hertz to pick up the car I reserved. As a Club Gold member I had my name in lights on the board which was pretty cool. I wound up getting a small car, an Chevy Aveo which was perfect for this getaway since it was just the King and I. It looked like a matchbox car but it served it's purpose and that's all that matters.

We left the airport and we headed towards Chicago to go to Wrigley Field. Since we had a lot of time to kill we decided to avoid the tolls and the construction on I-94 so we stayed on US 41 when it split up with I-94 right near Six Flags in Gurnee, Illinois which is about halfway to Chicago from Milwaukee.

We stopped off at The Point Pancake House which is a great place to have breakfast and/or lunch since they only stay open from 6AM-3PM everyday. It should be noted that the sign outside said that they're excited to now offer gluten free pancakes. Being able to go there was an added bonus of flying into Milwaukee to start the journey.

As for me, I had my usual pork chops and made to order eggs breakfast along with pancakes and a cup of fruit. It was excellent.

After we finished eating we got back into the car and off to Wrigley Field aka baseball heaven we went. We arrived in Wrigleyville as they affectionately call it just before Noon Central Time. With the game starting at 1:20PM there we had plenty of time to get ready. We walked around the outside of the ballpark as well as the inside. The ballpark is one of a kind. This was my 75th game there. I've seen at least one there every year since 1988. I can't wait to go back next year again.

As for the game we saw, the Cubs played the San Francisco Giants who are battling for first place in the West division. As for the Cubs aka the lovable losers it's been a lost season. They started poorly and they never recovered.

The Cubs quite amazingly jumped out to a fast start as they lit up Giants starter Madison Bumgarner for five runs in four innings as they built up a 6-1 lead. The Giants made a comeback but they fell short as the Cubs held on for the victory, 6-4. Alfonso Soriano lead the way with a few hits including a home run and he drove in three runs to pace the baby bears on this day.

After the game, we went back to the car which was parked in the neighborhood on the street. We drove on the local streets as we angled towards US 41 and I-94 so we could go back to Milwaukee to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play the Brewers at Miller Park at 7:10PM.

We arrived at 6:52PM on the street which was within walking distance from Miller Park. We once again avoided paying to park.

The King and I walked over to hopefully get to the game on time. Since we didn't have tickets the challenge was really on. Upon arrival, I found someone who had an extra ticket he wanted $10 so I told him I'll give him $5 and thankfully he took it. A few minutes later, another guy had a sheet of paper and he wanted a beer inside. I called the King over. The guy told him just give me $5 so he did and we raced in just in time for the 7:10PM first pitch. We watched it from downstairs then we went up to the upper deck to our usual perch right behind home plate.

As for the game we saw, the Pirates who have been reeling lately continued their slide as the Brewers turned up the offense on them. In the bottom of the first inning, Corey Hart hit a two run home run to cap off a four run inning to set the tone for the rest of the evening as the Brewers cruised to an easy 9-3 decision. It should be noted that Pirates' starter and former Yankee Jeff Karstens left the game due to an injury.

When he got hurt it gave the King and I some time to get ourselves some brats which are a tradition in Milwaukee. They were so good.

Despite the lack of a competitive game on the field, the Brewer game experience can't be beat. Between the famous Sausage race they have, Bernie Brewer and roll out the barrel they entertain people of all ages.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of the Chicago/Milwaukee as well as the rest of this classic weekend getaway.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

The King sees his historic 7,000th baseball game at PNC Park in Pittsburgh on 6/10/12!

The King with Mike Carroll & Peter Farrell

Sunday morning we started the day off right. After we spent the night at Super 8 near the airport, we drove to Kings Family Restaurant in Crafton to have breakfast. We met up with Steve Fekete there since he was staying a hotel which happened to be right up the road as well as our friends from Pittsburgh, Mike and Alicia Irr who said they would meet us there for breakfast since they couldn't make the game. As always it was a pleasure to see them again. The last time they were in the New York area back in the middle of March we were away in Albuquerque and Phoenix watching March Madness and Spring Training baseball so we missed them. As usual, we enjoyed each other's company. Alicia told us that she's officially retired as of February 29th and she's loving every minute of it. Mike, on the other hand, has been retired a few years now and he's loving it too. He did say we're older so in that regard it's not worth rushing it. I do hope they get to enjoy many years of retired life together.

After we enjoyed our meal, we said our goodbyes and we went to PNC Park to see the Pirates play the Royals which was indeed the King's big day as he was witnessing his 7,000th live baseball game in person. What an accomplishment it was for him.

It was reported in Artvoice which is a local paper that circulates in the Buffalo, NY area back in late May that this day was coming sometime in June. This was the special occasion that the King had been waiting for quite some time. He started counting down when he was over two hundred games away.

Upon arrival at the ballpark we were greeted by another special guest none other than Peter Farrell from the USRT by the Willie Stargell statue out behind the left field gate. Peter drove three and a half hours to take part in this historic day. It was great to see him again. He joined the King, Steve Fekete aka the Padre Punk, Mike Carroll aka Sabre Mike and I for the festivities.

It was a fun day to be at the ballpark, which I might add is one of the best around. PNC Park is a modern jewel. This venue is intimate and the scenic views are second to none. The backdrop makes this ballpark what it is. With the Roberto Clemente Bridge behind right center field, the river behind right field and the downtown skyline in the distance right behind the bridge, it's a site to behold. They did a tremendous job laying the ground work for this ballpark when it was being built.

As for the game we saw, the Pirates' A.J. Burnett, a former Yankee, pitched well. He held the Royals hitless for the first five and a third innings but then the Peter Farrell Quest for a No Hitter jinx took over as the Royals finally got a hit by Alex Gordon to ruin Peter's day.

As for the King, he was in his glory especially in the top of the fifth inning. A.J. Burnett had walked a batter and hit another with one out the King yelled out one of his famous sayings. He said and I quote "did anyone say double play." With the next pitch to Jarrod Dyson, a ball was hit right to the shortstop who stepped on second and fired to first for the inning ending double play. That was just what the King had ordered. His loud mouth got the attention of the usher who was by section 116 where we were standing to watch the game behind home plate and he came by and gave the King a nice high five for his brilliant call. With that, the game became official because the Pirates were winning. As a result, his 7,000th game is now in the books. What a way to acknowledge it.

Before departing after pitching seven and a third innings, A.J. Burnett struck out six Royals prompting the King to do his signature strikeout call which caught the attention of three young lads in particular who thoroughly enjoyed his act. It made for a perfect afternoon to cap off his milestone day.

With the Pirates clinging to a 3-2 lead in the ninth inning, we got to see Jason Grilli come in to attempt to seal the deal. He did indeed despite allowing a lead off base hit that fell softly into right field and a walk along the way after a sacrifice bunt. Grilli came back to blow away the last two hitters one swinging and the last one looking to close out the game and he picked up his first save as a Pirate. It was a perfect ending to a very memorable day for the King.

After the game, we said goodbye to Steve and Peter and we made our way back home.

Stay tuned for the special post I'm going to do about Jason Grilli who has overcome numerous obstacles to get back into the Major Leagues again.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty returns to Miller Park unexpectedly thanks to mother nature!

View from Section 422

After suffering through the brutal weather Saturday night, the King and I knew the weather forecast was not going to be any better in Chicago on Sunday.

With that being said, we knew that the Brewers were also home and they were guaranteed to play their game because Miller Park has a retractable roof.

We also knew that we had enough time to get back to O'Hare airport to catch our flight home that was scheduled to depart at 8:15PM Central time.

After we got a good night sleep, we decided to take the smart way out this time. It turned out to be a great decision because Andrew Van Cleve contacted me and he said the Cub game was postponed due to rain.

As much as we wanted to go back to Wrigley Field one more time, it just wasn't meant to be.

I really wanted to see Andrew again and fellow roadtripper Bob DeVries and his fiancé Charlie Cahill were also planning to join us.

In addition, the Giants were planning to start the "Freak" Tim Lincecum.

Instead we drove towards Milwaukee. On the way, we stopped off for breakfast at The Point Pancake House in Gurnee, Illinois which is located right near Six Flags Great America and a nice shopping mall area called Gurnee Mills. It's also only 35 miles from Wrigley Field and 50 miles from Miller Park.

What a way to start our day. I had a breakfast that consisted of the following: Two center cut thick pork chops with apple sauce, two eggs, two pancakes and a bowl of fruit all for a mere $8.95. What a meal it was.

After breakfast, we proceeded to drive to Miller Park to see the Brewers play the Pittsburgh Pirates again at 1:10PM. We barely got there on time.

We wound up sitting upstairs in section 422 right behind home plate.

We got ourselves situated and we started keeping score of the game like we always do when we attend a game.

All of a sudden, a gentleman in the row behind us starting talking to the King. He noticed his notebook that he uses to keep score of all the baseball games he attends for the season.

This guy was very impressed he said. As the game went on, we spoke back and forth.

I joined in the conversation and we wound up exchanging contact information. His name was Pablo Amaya. He said he's from Milwaukee. He was with his girlfriend Allison as well as some other friends. They said they got into the parking lot at 10AM.

They had a great time together. I want to thank them all for keeping us company as they helped us make the most of our altered game plan.

I plan to take in touch with Pablo who said he has an orchestra that plays classical music. He said they've played in NYC in the past. He said he's looking to coming back again next year. I told him to let me know so we can get together.

I told him that I hope to get back to Green Bay some day to see another Packer game. I also said I want to go to see the Wisconsin Badgers play too. Pablo is a big Packer fan and surprisingly he hasn't seen them play at Lambeau Field yet. He did say he saw them when they played at County Stadium back in the day.

I look forward to returning to Milwaukee in the future. If and when we do I'll make sure I contact Pablo so he can join us.

After the game we drove back to Chicago O'Hare airport to catch our flight. We got there with plenty of time to spare. Upon arrival, we found out our flight was delayed due to the horrible weather throughout the day in the area.

We eventually took off at 9:45PM and we land around 12:45AM at New York LaGuardia airport. I proceeded to take the King home fast then I took him to the subway so he could get to work for 2AM. He barely made it. Ironically around that time is when I finally got home.

I got a few hours of sleep and I went off to work.

Another memorable weekend lived up to the hype.

In the future, if and when you're ready to go somewhere please let me know so I can make it happen for you.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty returns to Wrigley Field and Miller Park in the middle of May!

Here's the game plan:

Friday, May 13th

The King and I are flying into Chicago O'Hare airport in the morning. We leave NY LaGuardia airport at 8AM Eastern Time. We arrive on American Airlines in the Second City at 9:40AM Central Time. Upon arrival, I'll be renting a car for the weekend.

We plan to spend some quality time with fellow roadtripper Andrew Van Cleve and his family while we're there. Andrew has arranged to get us tickets for the three Cub games we'll be seeing there. In addition, we'll be driving up to Milwaukee to see the Brewers play at Miller Park.

Andrew has a great website and blog, here's the link, it's also on my blog list:

http://www.anygame-anywhere.com/

As for the games we're planning to see, they are as follows:

Giants at Cubs 1:20PM

Pirates at Brewers 7:10PM

It should be noted we're planning to meet up with another road tripper Bob DeVries and his fiance Charlie Cahill too. I had the privilege of meeting these great people over Christmas weekend when I was there for the Jets/Bears and Blue Jackets/Blackhawks doubleheader. Bob said he wanted to join us as we make our way to Milwaukee to see Miller Park again. It will be a treat to have him along with us.

Saturday, May 14th

Giants at Cubs 6:10PM (a rare night on a Saturday night no less)

Sunday, May 15th

Giants at Cubs 1:20PM

After the game we're flying home.

Our flight leaves O'Hare Airport at 8:15PM Central Time and arrives at NY LaGuardia at 11:25PM Eastern Time.

This will be another blast courtesy of Royalty.

When you're ready for a sample you know who to contact.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 9/13 in review

This past week was a busy one. It's was all work and play. There was no time to catch up on rest.

Monday night after work I went to see the Jets play the Ravens in the first Monday Night Football game at the New Meadowlands Stadium. You can see all the details here.

Tuesday night I went to Citi Field to see the Pirates play the Mets. R.A. Dickey who's been the Mets best pitcher throughout this season, delivered a complete game gem. He lost the shutout in the ninth inning after he gave up a lead off triple. The Mets wound up winning the game, 9-1!

Wednesday night I was back at Citi Field again and we had some special guests from Scranton, PA. Our friends Alvin Pachter and his father, Howard, made their first visit to Citi Field this season. Earlier this year we saw them in their backyard when we went to see the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees play. It's always a pleasure to see these special people. As for the game we saw, the Mets fell behind 5-0 then they came back by scoring 7 runs in the fourth inning to take a 7-5 lead. They added another run which proved to be the difference as they hung on for a 8-7 victory.

Thursday night was a nightmare getting to and from Citi Field. I left work like I normally do but it started raining at that time. I waited for it to let up and I walked to the subway to go to Citi Field. My path to the game was impeded by a fast moving tornado that left property damaged in the form of downed trees and it caused delays on the 7 train which goes to Citi Field. I wound up waiting a half hour before they informed us that the 7 train wasn't running in either direction then I met the King and we decided to take an alternate route to the game. We wound up catching up with Alvin Pachter who went home and came back this time with his friend Phillip Cutler. They were driving acrross the Triboro bridge which allowed us to meet them in Astoria. We hitched a ride to Citi Field. What a mess it was thanks to mother nature. We finally arrived at Citi Field in the fourth inning an hour after the game started.

As for the game, the Mets behind Mike Pelfrey who's been pitching well delivered 7 more strong innings as the Mets went on to sweep the Pirates, 6-2!

After the game I endured another nightmare going home. Luckily for me my car was in one piece when I got back to it after the game. The block I parked on had trees knocked down from the tornado that ripped through the area. It took me a little over 2 hours to get home. Mind you I only drove 10 miles. It was beyond belief how much damage was done in a short period of time.

Friday I went to work and headed back to Citi Field to see the Mets try to spoil the playoff hopes of  their division rival, the Atlanta Braves. The Mets took an early 3-0 lead but starting pitcher Jonathon Niese gave up 6 unearned runs thanks to an error by David Wright but Niese can take alot of the blame since he walked opposing pitcher Tommy Hanson not once but twice in this game. That's a cardinal sin. By doing so, he cost his team the game. The Mets lost, 6-4.

Interesting notes in this game were as follows:

Braves manager Bobby Cox who's retiring at the end of the season was ejected from the dugout for questioning balls and strikes. It was the 158th time he has gotten the boot which padded his own record.

For the Mets, leftfielder Lucas Duda hit his first major league home run.

Saturday I went back to Citi Field for more punishment as the Mets fell again to the Braves, 4-2! Tim Hudson who started for the Braves outpitched Mets rookie Dillon Gee.

Sunday I went to see the Jets take on their divsion rival, the New England Patriots at the New Meadowlands Stadium. The Jets after a slow start turned it around to pick their first win of the season as they beat the Patriots, 28-14!

When I get a chance I'm going to write a detailed post about the game. In addition, I'll do a post regarding the transportation in particular after the game.

Please stay tuned for those.

Thank you for reading and following along. 

Yours truly,

Gary Herman                   

Royalty goes to the Steel City!

PNC Park

After returning to NYC Thursday night because the King had to go to work, it was off to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Friday morning.

We drove all day to get to Pittsburgh in order to see the Philadelphia Phillies take on the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, America's best ballpark they claim.

In some regards, that may be true. PNC Park is a nice ballpark for the most part. The backdrop is second to none. As you can see in the picture the City of Pittsburgh with the bridge and the rivers in the background. It makes for a beautiful setting.

Unfortunately for the team it's not quite the same. The Pirates have been a bad team for a long time.

As for the game we saw, the result was different on this night. The Pirates won the game 2-0 behind former Yankee farmhand Ross Ohlendorf who picked up his first win of the season.

As for the Phillies, 47 year old Jamie Moyer was the hard luck loser. The game was nice and fast too. It took only 2 hours and 22 minutes to play.

More importantly, besides making our annual visit to PNC Park, we got to catch up with some friends that we know from Pittsburgh, Mike & Alicia Irr.

It's always great to make a road trip and see familiar faces along the way.

Mike & Alicia are big sports fans as well.

They have half season tickets for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

With the Penguins being so successful lately, they play in the playoffs that cuts into the baseball season so the Pirates take a backseat for Mike & Alicia. This game was only their second they've seen in person this year. Despite the horrible team they have, Mike & Alicia still show their support. It was great to see them again.

We look forward to meeting them again during the hockey season. The Penguins are opening a new arena in the Fall, the Consol Energy Center.

In addition, on New Year's Day the Penguins host the Washington Capitals at Heinz Field that Royalty is planning to attend. For that matter, Alicia is ready to go as well. Mike said and I "he's lukecold" about the thought. Hopefully mother nature will cooperate and it will be a day to remember for all of us.

Phillies hold off Pirates, 4-3!

Royalty went to Citizens Bank Park to tune up for the official start of the 2010 season.

We saw the last exhibition game between the 2009 National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Both teams used almost all their players in this game in preparation for the season that starts Monday for most teams.

The Phillies did all their damage on offense mainly with their starters in the first 4 innings.

They scored all their runs and hits during that time.

Jayson Werth hit the lone home run in the game for the Phillies.

As for the Pirates, they wrapped up a dreadful spring.

They fought to the end but fell a run short. They had the tying run on 3rd base with 2 outs in the 9th inning but first basemen Steve Pearce got called on strikes after hitting numerous foul balls to end the game.

We had a few friends/royalty regulars join us for the trek to the City of Brotherly Love.

We had Bryan Gilligan and Rich Wolber aka Staten Island Rich.

Bryan joined the King and I at the baseball game while Rich went to the Philadelphia 76er game against the Toronto Raptors instead.

Rich wound up seeing a good one. He said the Raptors blew a 17 point lead early in that game. In the end, Chris Bosh missed the last shot in regulation. The Raptors did eventually survive and they won in OT, 128-123!

In addition, we saw some familar faces at the ballpark as well.

First we saw our buddy, Jim Lowry who took us up on the elevator. Jim and I exchanged goodies that were had for each other.

Secondly, when we were exiting the right field gate we got to say a quick hello and goodbye to our lady friend, Lisa Wilson who's a supervisor at the that gate. She always so happy to see us. She knows we're real fans and we usually bring the Phillies luck.

We bought $10 tickets when we got to the ballpark.

When we told Lisa that she said and I quote "somebody gave me 5 tickets I wish I would have knew I would have gave them to you guys".

In this day and age, thoughtful and caring people are hard to find but royalty has the knack to find them.