Royalty is going to Tampa/St. Petersburg to see the Mets play in August!

Here's the game plan:

The King & I are flying down to Tampa, Florida on Delta Airlines. We leave New York LaGuardia Airport on Friday, August 7th at 8:25AM Eastern Time, we arrive there at 11:28AM. Upon arrival, I'm renting a car from Alamo Rent A Car for the weekend. We'll be driving to Port Charlotte so we can pick up the King's brother Henry Casiano who likes the Mets as well. We fly back home Sunday night. Our flight departs Tampa at 6:28PM. We're scheduled to land at 9:17PM at LaGuardia Airport if all goes well.    

Friday August 7th Mets at Rays 7:10PM
                              
Saturday August 8th Mets at Rays 6:10PM
                     
Sunday August 9th Mets at Rays 1:10PM

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

A Royal Day at Yankee Stadium with my Cousin Andy on May 3rd!‏

Early in April, I received an e-mail from the Yankees. Since I'm a long time Yankee season ticket holder, they invited me & a guest to come to a special Photo Day before the game between the Yankees & the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday, May 3rd at 1:05PM. I knew the King wouldn't be interested. With that being said, I tried to ask other Yankee fans I knew if they wanted to take part in this unique opportunity. Unfortunately they all said no. Instead of missing out completely, I decided to ask my Cousin Andy if he wanted to go with me since I had gotten him a ticket for that particular game. He said sure. So I put in the request at the last minute. Ten days later, I got two passes in the mail. I told Andy & he was all excited. As a result, we needed to show up at the Stadium by 10:15AM that morning. 

Photo Day at Yankee Stadium

Me on field next to scoreboard on the fence

CC Sabathia passing by us

The night before I went to the game which ended just before 1AM as the Yankees lost to the Rays, 10-5 in 14 innings. That's just what I needed knowing I had to get up earlier than usual Saturday morning. It worked out as I did meet Andy shortly after 10AM at the Stadium. When arrived the line to go inside was around the corner. Thankfully it was organized well so we were able to get inside in a timely fashion. We wound up standing on the warning track which was roped off. Shortly thereafter, all the Yankees players eventually passed by us as they walked out from the dugout. Some actually stopped along the way to take pictures with the fans. Those included Alfonso Soriano & Carlos Beltran to name a select few. Most of them like CC Sabathia waved hello and/or scooted on by. Not surprisingly, most of them really didn't care one way or the another. It's was an obligation for them. As for Andy ‎& I, we couldn't get any really good pictures of them because they were moving too fast. It was cool to see them close up though. In addition, it was also really neat to stand on the actual playing field too. After the players finished walking around, we walked back into the seating area.

Since we had a few hours to kill before the game started, Andy ‎& I decided to do something different. Believe it or not, I had never been to Monument Park before here at the New Yankee Stadium or at the Old Stadium. The reason being I usually come from work so I arrive shortly before game time. On the weekends, I usually like to catch up on lost sleep. With that being said, I never made the time to get to the Stadium early enough to line up to experience it. For that matter, neither did Andy.

Monument Park

‎They only allow fans into Monument Park which is located behind the center field fence up until 45 minutes before the game starts. We got on line & shortly thereafter we got inside. We walked around reading the plagues of Yankee Legends who have either had their uniform number retired and/or warranted a special place in Yankee lore. Here's a sample of those who reside there. They are as follows: #1Billy Martin #3 Babe Ruth #4 Lou Gehrig #5 Joe DiMaggio #7 Mickey Mantle #8 Yogi Berra #9 Roger Maris #10 Phil Rizzuto #15 Thurman Munson #16 Whitey Ford #23 Don Mattingly #42 Mariano Rivera #44 Reggie Jackson & #49 Ron Guidry among a handful of others. They also had a special plague for owner George Steinbrenner, PA announcer Bob Sheppard, Nelson Mandela & Pope John Paul who visited & one to remember those who lost their lives on 9/11. All in all, it was a moving experience to read about these all time great ballplayers & influential people over the history of time.

The Late George Steinbrenner

Yankees remember 9/11/01

Once we finished our tour, we walked around the concourse as we headed upstairs to our seats in section 420B. When we got up there we saw my pal Michael Abrams, a long time Yankee fan. That day was a personal milestone for him as he saw his 1,000th consecutive Yankee home game that was played in the Bronx. Among the people we know he's an iron man fan. He lives & dies with the pinstripes. 
 

My Cousin Andy & I

In addition, the King & our pals Bryan Gilligan & Phil Butleman were present & accounted for as well that day. 

As for the game we saw, the Yankees fell behind 3-0 as Desmond Jennings hit a solo homer off of starter Masahiro Tanaka in the first inning then Wil Myers added a solo shot in the fourth inning. The Yankees got a two run blast from Mark Teixeira in the bottom of the fourth inning to slice the lead to 3-2. In the fifth inning, they got even thanks to a run scoring double by Jacoby Ellsbury to knot the score at three. In the sixth inning, Kelly Johnson hit a solo homer to give them the lead, 4-3. They tacked on two more in the seventh & three more in the eighth as they went on to beat the Rays, 9-3. Tanaka went seven innings, he allowed the three runs & he struck out five as he won another game. 

After the game, I said good bye to Andy. ‎I wound up going to Philadelphia with Bryan who drove the King, Phil & I there. We saw the Phillies host the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park that night. 

Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia

We wound up meeting people we know who live down there. I'm referring to Phil Bruskin who was there with his brother Danny along with his son Benjamin. It was nice to see them all again. 

As for the game we saw, the Phillies got a three run homer from Ryan Howard in the first inning off of Nationals' starter Tanner Roark which set the tone. Cody Asche added a solo homer in the second inning as the Phillies cruised to a 7-2 victory. They got a quality start from starter A.J. Burnett who allowed one run in six innings to earn the win while Tanner Roark suffered the loss giving up four runs in seven innings.

Stay tuned for a special post that will go into detail about this year's installment of the Subway Series between the Mets & the Yankees.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to Fenway Park on Patriot's Day in Boston on Jackie Robinson Day!

Sunday night after the Yankee game, the King drove Vincent Ascanio, Phil Butleman and I towards Boston. We stayed over in Vernon, Connecticut which is about 10 miles north of Hartford at Motel 6. By doing so, we were in position to get to Boston which was 90 miles away in time for their traditional Patriot's Day game which coincides with the running of the Boston Marathon.

We wound up parking the car on the street within walking distance of Fenway Park for free by a meter because it's a legal holiday in Massachusetts at 10AM which gave us plenty of time to make the first pitch which was threw at 11:05AM.

It's always a thrill to go to Fenway Park to see a game. For me, I've seen at least one every year since 1986. This was my 95th baseball game there.

As for our pal Vincent Ascanio this was his first time to the old ballyard. It was great to have the opportunity to show him the way there.

Upon arrival we stopped off outside the Green Monster by the left field gate where we saw our favorite street vendor, Sausage Connection which is run by Harry and his mother who were call affectionately call Mama. They were so happy to see us again. Mama told us she's 81 years young. She looked great. It's always a pleasure to see her. She doesn't work as often as she used to but she always tries to make Patriot's Day. We were grateful she did. Of course, we introduced Vincent to them. They treated us royally as they have for over the 25 + years we've known them. We all ordered steak tips which served as our breakfast on this day. They were delicious.

The King, Harry, Mama, Me & Vincent Ascanio

Once we got done, we headed inside. We wanted to make sure Vincent got to see the unique features of going to Fenway. He said he had a blast.

Green Monster 

Royal View from Section 24 at Fenway Park

As for the game we saw, in honor of Jackie Robinson Day all the players wore the number 42. With that being said, it was hard to differentiate who was who. The umpires also wore number 42.

The Red Sox were playing the Tampa Bay Rays. Both starters, Jeremy Hellickson of the Rays and Ryan Dempster of the Red Sox both threw seven strong innings. The Red Sox lead at that point, 2-1. The Rays tied the game at two in the top of the ninth inning. In the bottom of the ninth, the Red Sox got a game winning double off the Green Monster from Mike Napoli as Dustin Pedroia raced around the bases all the way from first with one out to give the Red Sox a dramatic 3-2 victory at 2:07PM. Since we positioned ourselves out near the left field gate we were able to get out of the ballpark before many of the 37,449 that we were on hand. We stopped by Harry & Mama to say one last goodbye.

We then headed back to the car. In the process, we got to take a peak at the Boston Marathon which runs nearby. We had to go underground to get to the other side of the street so we could get back to the car. Thankfully we did so with relative ease unlike back in the day when we ran into wall to wall people trying to do so.

Stay tuned for a special post that will recap the unexpected turn of events that occurred shortly thereafter. A sad but unforgettable day indeed.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 10/1 in review

Yankees win! 2012 AL East Champions

September was one for me to remember. After the Giants/Eagles game ended, the calendar said it's now October.

October is a month that can be memorable or it can be forgettable. This one I hope is somewhere in between.

With the baseball regular season ending on the third day of the month it's off to a good start.
With that being said, here's how it's started for me.

First of all, since the Yankees and Orioles ended September winning their games, it put them in a tie for first place. The playoff push was on.

As for me, I went to work with less than enough sleep but I managed to get through the day. After work, I went up to the Bronx to see the Yankees play their hated rival, the Boston Red Sox to close out the regular season at home while the Baltimore Orioles were on the road in Florida, St. Petersburg to be exact where they were playing the Tampa Bay Rays as they call them.

Before I went into Yankee Stadium, I got off the subway and I went to Burger King to have dinner. I enjoyed a few Chicken Parm sandwiches which tasted really good considering it was fast food. Once I was done, I headed over to Yankee Stadium so I could get ready for the playoff like baseball I was going to see.
When I went upstairs to go to my seat, I ran into my pals Phil Butleman and David Sack. It was great to see them again. Phil was back after spending a few weeks out on the West Coast while David was busy going to school. After we spoke, they went to their seats and I went to mine where I met up with the King.
As for the game we saw, it was over early. CC Sabathia started for the Yankees and he retired the Red Sox in order in the top of the first which set the tone. The Yankees also went down 1,2,3 in their half of the first.
In the second inning, Red Sox first baseman Mauro Gomez lead off with a double but Sabathia got the next three batters out to leave him stranded.

The Yankees came up and they responded in a monster way. Robinson Cano lead off with a home run to center field to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. After Mark Teixeira struck out looking off of Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz to record the first out, Nick Swisher singled to start the onslaught. Curtis Granderson followed with a two run homer, a high fly ball if you will that just made it to the short porch in right field to extend the lead to 3-0. Russell Martin was up next and he left the yard to make it 4-0. After walks were issued to Eric Chavez and Derek Jeter, Ichiro Suzuki singled to load the bases. Alex Rodriguez hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5-0. With that being said, the Yankees had batted around. Robinson Cano was up again and this time he delivered a two run double to pad the lead, it was now 7-0. I thought for a moment I went to a Monday Night football game. Before this inning finally ended, Mark Teixeira sent a "Tex" message to right to round out the scoring with a two run homer to give the Yankees a commanding 9-0 lead after two innings. Since Roger Clemens wasn't pitching, I felt the lead was safe.

In the end, I was right. The Red Sox broke the shutout in the fourth inning as Daniel Nava lead off with a homer to make it 9-1. The Red Sox added another run in the seventh inning to make it 9-2. The Yankees tacked on another run in the bottom of the eighth when rookie Melky Mesa who was making his big league debut got his first major league hit and run batted in to make it 10-2. That's the way it mercifully ended for the pathetic Red Sox who were playing out the string. CC Sabathia was dominant as he pitched solidly for eight innings to earn his 15th win of the season.

While the Yankees were cruising to an easy victory, the Orioles lost to the Rays which gave the Yankees a one game lead in the battle for first place.

Tuesday night after work I went back for more meaningful October baseball. This time I met the King for dinner at the 7 Fish Market before we went into the Stadium on a misty rainy night. Luckily the game was played through without a delay.

As for the game we saw, the Red Sox got off to a fast start as they lead 1-0 just two batters into the game. A few batters later they scored again to make it 2-0. The Yankees sliced the lead in half as they took advantage of an error by Red Sox third baseman Pedro Ciriaco who made a throwing error on an infield single to put Curtis Granderson in scoring position with two outs. Granderson proceeded to steal third then Eduardo Nunez beat out a grounder to shortstop that plated a run to make it 2-1 Red Sox. It stayed that way until the ninth inning when the Red Sox added an insurance run as James Loney lead off with a homer to make it 3-1 off Yankee closer Rafael Soriano who came on to pitch the ninth inning. The Yankees weren't done just yet. Curtis Granderson lead off the bottom of the ninth with a single. Raul Ibanez was called upon to pinch hit. He came through in the clutch as he lined the ball into the right field porch to tie the game at three. The crowd went crazy.

Meanwhile in Florida, the Orioles just finished beating the Rays and Big Game James Shields who was dominating but was the hard luck loser despite going the distance allowing just two hits one unfortunately was a home run which was the difference as the Rays lost, 1-0. He did set a team record as he struck out 15 Orioles in the process.

Back in the Bronx, we went into extra innings. The Yankees' bullpen held the Red Sox at bay for three innings. In the bottom of the twelveth inning after there were two out, Red Sox reliever Andrew Miller walked Francisco Cervelli after he had him in a 0-2 hole. Curtis Granderson followed with a free pass which set the stage for another dramatic moment as Raul Ibanez came through again. This time he found a hole on the left side of the infield that won the game for the Yankees, 4-3. What a choke by the gutless Red Sox. On the other hand, the Yankees always find a way to win when their backs are to the wall.

Wednesday night after work I went back to the Bronx for the showdown if you will. By winning the first two games of the series against the Red Sox, the Yankees controlled their destiny. Another win and they finish first regardless of what the Orioles did.

Before I went into the Stadium, I went to the Court Deli Restaurant where I picked up a Corned Beef sandwich for dinner. I proceeded to go inside and I went up to my seat and I enjoyed it.
As for the game we saw, it was a battle of two Japanese pitchers. Daisuke Matsuzaka started for the Red Sox and his fellow countryman Hiroki Kuroda who was on the mound for the Yankees.

The Red Sox drew first blood as they got a run scoring single by Cody Ross in the top of the first inning. The Yankees went down in order in their half of the first. In the second inning, Kuroda worked around a walk he issued to get the Red Sox out without further damage. In the bottom of the second, the Yankees went to work on Dice K as Matsuzaka is nicknamed. After a single, a walk and a strikeout, Curtis Granderson hit a fly ball to the right field porch to make it a 3-1 game. In the third inning, Kuroda survived another walk as he got the Red Sox out again. His counterpart, Dice K continued to play with fire. After recording the first out, he allowed a single to Alex Rodriguez. Robinson Cano came up next and he took him deep to make it 5-1. After a single to Nick Swisher, Dice K was done for the night. Kuroda on the other hand, was able to work around a few walks as well as some hits each inning but he kept the Red Sox in check. His teammates responded as they sensed the celebration was on the way. It was only a matter of time as the Yankees pounded the Red Sox into submission. They whipped them, 14-2 as the Chase for 28 was officially on. Another first place finish for the Bronx Bombers.

The Yankees by winning avoided playing a possible tie breaker game in Baltimore on Thursday. Actually the Orioles wound up losing to the Rays before the Yankees officially beat the Red Sox so they clinched earlier than expected if you will. It was a formality when it was all said and done.

More October baseball here we come in the Bronx.

In preparation, I got some needed nights off on Thursday night and Friday night after work.
Thursday night I came home, I ate dinner and took it easy.

Friday night I came home, I ate dinner then I went out and I did my laundry.

Stay tuned as I'm going to write some special posts about my local football filled weekend.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Prince takes in a local two sport doubleheader with royal company!

Columbia wins, 10-9!

On Saturday September 15th, I woke up early so I could do my laundry before I continued my busy day.
Once I got done, I came back home fast and I went back out to see a local two sport doubleheader.

I wound up taking the subway up to Upper Manhattan where I met up with Vincent Ascanio who ironically was on the same train as me but he was in a different car. We met on the platform as we were both going to see a college football game at Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium, which is the home of the Columbia Lions in the Ivy League. They were playing the Red Foxes of Marist on this day. We were joined by our pal and royal follower, Manny Morales who was in the house. This was his kind of game. It was a battle between two bad teams. He lives for these kind of match ups.

As for the game we saw, it lived up to billing. This was the Lions' first game of the season. Marist already had played two games which they wound up splitting.

Marist drew first blood in this one as their kicker and punter Jason Myers kicked a 28 yard field goal with 3:26 left in the first quarter to take the early lead, 3-0. It stayed that way until the third quarter. With 9:53 left in the third, Marcorus Garrett, the running back for the Lions who had a busy day carrying the ball thirty times for 115 yards, found the end zone as he ran in the game's first touchdown from a yard out to give the Lions a 7-3 lead. The Lions got the ball back quickly as they forced Marist to punt from deep in their own territory. The Lions caught a huge break when Red Foxes' Jason Myers took a low snap and his knee hit the ground while he was trying to kick. As a result, the Lions took over at the Red Foxes' 4 yard line. Marist wound up minimizing the damage as they were fortunate to give up just a field goal that extended the Lions' lead to 10-3 with 8:14 left in the third quarter. With 6:30 left in the fourth quarter, Marist scored a touchdown to make the score 10-9 with the extra point pending. Luckily for us they failed to get it because Jason Myers had the kick blocked. So the score remained 10-9 Lions. We didn't need the game to go into overtime so in that regard it was nice to see it end by that same score. It was the Lions' first win of the season.

As for Vincent, Manny and I we all raced out of the Stadium so we could get to the Bronx for game two of the day at Yankee Stadium. We all got on the subway and we made it there barely on time as the MTA did their best to derail our game plan.

As for the Yankee game we saw, they were playing the Tampa Bay Rays again. This time the Yankees beat the Rays as Ivan Nova pitched well for six innings allowing just two runs. Big Game James Shields gave up back to back homers in the second inning to Curtis Granderson who hit a two run homer which was followed by a blast by Eduardo Nunez which gave the Yankees an early 3-0 lead. They tacked on another run off Shields in the fifth inning as Captain Clutch delivered a big two out hit to help the Yankees hold off the Rays, 5-3.

After the game, I went home to have dinner and I was able to rest and relax the rest of the night.

Stay tuned for the special post that will recap the way I spent my Sunday afternoon.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty meets up with a roadtripping family at Yankee Stadium!

Roberto & Sofia Coquis and I in the Great Hall

Back on Friday September 14th, I was heading to the elevator to leave work to go up to the Bronx. Just before I got on the elevator, I saw I had a direct message on Twitter. So I opened it up. It was from a guy named Roberto Coquis who has the Twitter handle @30BallparksBaby. He lives in the Washington DC area. He wrote me and he asked me if I was going to the Yankee game. I was in a state of shock. I responded instantly and I said yes. It was really funny because Roberto and I have gone back and forth for a year or so trying to meet up in person. As it turned out, we finally did by accident if you will. We exchanged phone numbers and we texted and called each other along the way. I was so excited when I found out we were going to meet up once and for all. Roberto wasn't alone. He came up to NYC because his wife Judy was here on business. In addition, Roberto brought their adorable three and a half year old daughter Sofia with him.

Once I got off the subway by Yankee Stadium I called him and I left him a voice mail that I was in the area. I went over to the Court Deli Restaurant and I picked up a Corned Beef sandwich for dinner. After that, I walked back towards the Stadium. I got a call from Roberto he said he was going to a cash machine to get money. He didn't have tickets yet he said. I wound up getting him a pair near McDonald's moments later for $20. They were located out in left field on the main level. They had a $55 face value on them. With that being said, I did good. He said his daughter Sofia didn't need a ticket so it worked out really well for them. What a way to meet and greet. His wife Judy was amazed from hearing about my extensive sports travels. After we spoke briefly outside the Stadium, we all went inside together.

I told them they can come with me to where I sit in the grandstand section 420B which is right behind home plate. It worked out well as we all got to sit together and watch the game. As a result, we continued to tell stories from our past travels.

As for Roberto, Judy and Sofia, they all went to all 30 Major League Ballparks together in 2009 hence that's why Roberto has that Twitter handle. They said they need to go to Target Field in Minnesota which opened in 2010.

They did go to the New Marlins Park earlier this year for the Opening game on April 4th with the St. Louis Cardinals. Judy happens to be from the Miami area so she still has family there so it was very convenient for them to go there.

They said they hope to go to Minnesota next year. This was their first visit to the New Yankee Stadium since their big trip in 2009 when the New Stadium opened.

I want to thank Roberto for contacting me because he made my night. The King had rented a car from Avis for a week so he could drive to Baltimore that Thursday then he went to Chicago and Milwaukee for the weekend where he met up with our friend Bryan Gilligan who flew out there himself. In addition, he got to pick up a few more games that way and he saw the Mets play at Miller Park a few times. He also saw three more games at Wrigley Field too which is always worth going out of the way for.

He sold his Yankee ticket to our pal Vincent Ascanio who was at the game with me. I introduced him to Roberto, Judy and Sofia.

As for the game we saw, the Yankees were hosting division foe, the Tampa Bay Rays. I was looking forward to the game since David Price was starting for the Rays and CC Sabathia was going for the Yankees. With that being said, I knew I had a chance to see a well pitched game. That was before I find out I was going to have some unexpected company.

As for the match up, these two guys locked up in a good pitchers' duel for awhile but the Rays' David Price got the better of it this time around. He allowed two runs over seven innings while CC got touched up for four runs in six and two thirds innings. The Yankees trailed 5-2 going to the bottom of the eighth inning when Alex Rodriguez aka A-Rod delivered a two run homer to get the Yankees back within one at 5-4. In the top of the ninth inning, shortstop Eduardo Nunez made a costly error which lead to an insurance run as the Rays held off the Yankees, 6-4.

It should be noted that we witnessed history again in the Bronx as Derek Jeter got an infield single to second base in the fifth inning. With that hit, he moved into tenth place on the all-time hits list with 3,284 passing the legendary Willie Mays in the process. Ironically he wound up striking out swinging to end the game. Timing is everything.

All and all, it turned out to be a very memorable night in more ways than one.

With that being said, I want to personally thank Roberto, Judy and Sofia for adding to the experience. I truly had a great time with these special people. I hope we can do it again sooner than later.

Stay tuned as I continue to play catch up from that weekend as well as for my w/o 9/17 in review. It's been a September to remember for me that's for sure.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees baseball with Paul Derrick at Tropicana Field as the Red Sox visit the Rays!

View from Section 300 at Tropicana Field 

After spending the night again in Ocala at Super 8, we got up Sunday morning & we drove just over 100 miles to St. Petersburg which is the home of the Tampa Bay Rays. We parked the car in downtown at 1PM which gave us enough time to walk over to Tropicana Field for the 1:40PM start.

The last time the King and I saw a game there was back in July 1998. As for Paul Derrick, this was his first game there. It should be noted the King and I saw a hockey game there back in October 1995 when the Tampa Bay Lightning played there while they were waiting for their new arena to be built. The night before we saw the Braves clinch the pennant in the NLCS against the Reds in Atlanta at old Fulton County Stadium. We also saw the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play football that Sunday afternoon. They won an overtime thriller as they beat the Minnesota Vikings at old Tampa Stadium aka the Sombrero which was located next to where Raymond James Stadium is now.

This time we saw the Red Sox play the Rays. As for the game we saw, the Red Sox drew first blood as they scored a run in the top of the first inning to take an early 1-0 lead. The Rays responded by scoring three in their half of the inning. Their lead was short lived as Mike Aviles of the Red Sox hit a two run homer to tie the game at three in the second inning. The score remained the same until the fifth inning when the Red Sox broke the game open as they tacked on three more runs to take a 6-3 lead. They added another one in the sixth inning & that's how it ended as the Red Sox beat the Rays, 7-3.

After the game, we drove to Tampa which is 20 miles from St. Petersburg so we could drop off Paul Derrick at the airport so he could catch his 7:45PM flight home to Houston, Texas. We got him there at 6:20PM so he had plenty of time to make his flight.

It was great to see Paul again. I want to personally thank him for joining us. I look forward to seeing him again in the future for another road trip.

Stay tuned for the next installment as the King and I made time to see his brother Henry for dinner after we dropped Paul off.

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 w/o 5/7 in review

Andy Pettiitte's Back 

Monday night after work I went home made dinner and I did my laundry. I relaxed briefly after I was done.

Tuesday night after work I went up to the Bronx to see the Yankees open a three game series with the first place Tampa Bay Rays.

I went to the 7 Fish Market for dinner with the King. I also went next door to see my pal Jin Kim at the KJY Fruit Market which is always a must since I can get a cold bottle of water for a dollar plus they have plenty of other snacks to choose from.

After we finished eating, the King and I made our royal entry into the Stadium. There's nothing like seeing familiar faces along the way. While everybody's lined up somewhere else to go in, we get to go in nice and quick because we know all the tricks of the trade. Being a friendly person has its advantages when you see other friendly people who are willing to listen.

We continued through the Great Hall and up the elevator as we went to our seats in the royal box if you will in section 420B row 7 which is right behind home plate. We were greeted by our pal Vincent Ascanio who was there.

We got settled in and we observed the game. With James Shields pitching for the Rays, we had high expectations. He came into the game with a 5-0 record. He was facing Ivan Nova who had a 3-1 record for the Yankees.

James Shields didn't pitch his best like he did in Boston on Patriot's Day when he worked into the ninth inning and shut down the Red Sox as the Rays won that day, 1-0. This time he was ordinary allowing three runs in six innings which still qualifies as a quality start which is a big deal these days. He left the game trailing, 3-1. The Rays chipped away at the Yankees lead but they fell short as they left the bases loaded against David Robertson who picked up his first save filling in for Mariano Rivera. Despite pitching awful he managed to prevent the Rays from scoring as the Yankees held on to win, 5-3.

Wednesday night I returned to the Bronx. This time I met up with the King and Vincent Ascanio at Burger King for dinner.

After we ate, we entered the Stadium in our usual way. We proceeded to go to the royal box and we saw game two of the three game set between the Yankees and the Rays.

This time the Rays beat the Yankees, 4-1. The Yankees scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the first inning thanks to a run scoring single by Robinson Cano.

The Rays didn't score until the ninth inning when the Yankees put David Robertson back in to get another save. This time he loaded the bases and the Rays unloaded them as B.J. Upton hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game at one and Matt Joyce hit a three run homer to lift the Rays to a 4-1 victory as the Yankees' failed to score in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Thursday night I went to the Court Deli Restaurant for dinner. I had a Corned Beef sandwich and the King asked me to get him a Roast Beef sandwich. So I took it out and I proceeded to see Jin Kim at the KJY Fruit Market for some refreshments and snacks.

After I rounded up all the food, I went into the Stadium for the rubber match of the series. With CC Sabathia starting against David Price of the Rays', I hoped to see a pretty good game.

With that being said, I didn't get what I hoped for. Well CC held up his end of the bargain as he pitched eight solid innings allowing two unearned runs while striking out ten Rays. David Price on the other hand, got lit up for five runs and eleven hits over seven innings.

With David Robertson pitching the last two nights, the Yankees decided to give former Ray closer Rafael Soriano the ball in the ninth inning to seal the deal this time. He gave up an infield hit then he slammed the door shut to preserve the victory for CC as the Yankees won, 5-3.

Friday night after work I went back up to the Bronx to see the Yankees take on the Seattle Mariners. Ironically, the Mariners were the only team I didn't see play in person in 2011. When they came to Yankee Stadium last year I was on a road trip with Paul Derrick from Houston.

Before the game I stopped off at Subway for dinner. After I ate, I proceeded to go into Yankee Stadium. I went up to the royal box and I watched the game.

As for the game I saw, the Yankees fell behind 1-0 as Dustin Ackley lead off the game with a home run off of starter Hiroki Kuroda. The Yankees responded with a run scoring double by Robinson Cano to tie the game at one off of Felix Hernandez, the Mariners' ace. Former Yankee Jesus Montero broke the tie in the top of the sixth when he hit a solo home run. The Yankees came back again thanks to Raul Ibanez who hit a three run home run to make it 4-2 in the bottom half of the sixth. Andruw Jones added a pinch hit two run blast to round out the scoring in the eighth as the Yankees beat the Mariners, 6-2.

Saturday afternoon the King and I took a Chinese bus from Chinatown to Philadelphia.

Stay tuned for the special posts I'm going to do about how we spent our memorable Saturday.

Sunday I went back to the Bronx to see the Yankees play the Mariners again. It was a special day indeed not only because it was Mother's Day, it also marked the return of Andy Pettitte to the Major Leagues. After retiring after the 2010 season, Andy decided to return to baseball.

He shined bright early on but he got roughed up for a few two run home runs, one by Justin Smoak and the other by Casper Wells who hit the ball halfway up the right field foul pole to spoil Andy's return. He did pitch into the seventh inning getting an out before departing to a nice ovation from the Yankee faithful.
The Yankees wound up losing the game, 6-2.

After the game I met up with my family as we all got together to have dinner to celebrate Mother's Day. It was great to see them again.

With that another week is in the books.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 9/19 in review

Yankees Clinch AL East!

After going to work exhausted Monday I still found enough energy to go out to MetLife Stadium to see Monday Night Football as the New York Giants played host to the St. Louis Rams.

After a gut wrenching bus ride from the Port Authority Bus Terminal during rush hour, I finally arrived. It took only a mere one hour and 34 minutes to get there. Trust me that's no exaggeration. I told the King to take the train out there since he was leaving later than me. Thankfully he got out there about five minutes after I did.

We rounded up some tickets once we finally got there. We went inside and barely made the opening kickoff but luckily we did.

As for the game we saw, the Giants didn't play great but they managed to beat the hapless Rams, 28-16. Their defense played well as they pressured Rams' second year quarterback Sam Bradford all night long.
The Rams were settling for field goals when they had chances to score while the Giants were able to put up touchdowns including one that Domenik Hixon juggled before catching it in the end zone. Unfortunately it was a very costing catch as he tore his ACL in his knee again and he's out for the rest of the season for the second straight year. On the positive side, the Giants came out victorious on the scoreboard.

Tuesday night after work I went up to the Bronx to see the Yankees play the Tampa Bay Rays. I showed some of my co-workers the royal way there. When we got off the train, I heard somebody call my name. Ironically it was a friend of the family, Danny Michaelson who took his step daughter Deanna to the game. It was a pleasant surprise to see them. I haven't seen them in a very long time. As I like to say, timing is everything. I asked them where their seats were, they told me they were sitting upstairs near third base. I told them come with me, I'll give you an upgrade. True to my word, I did just that. Needless to say, Danny and Deanna were very grateful for the opportunity. They had a blast. They got to see me and the Yankees won, 5-0. I was thrilled that we got to meet up by surprise. We exchanged contact information so we can plan to meet up again in the future.

Wednesday night after work I went back for more baseball in the Bronx. The game was delayed an hour and two minutes at the start by rain. Once it finally got underway, the Yankees took a early 2-0 lead but the Rays fought back to tie the game at two which deprived CC Sabathia of winning his 20th game of the season. The Yankees did score the go ahead runs in the bottom of the eighth inning as they scored two to take a 4-2 lead. That's the way it ended. Since the Boston Red Sox lost, the Yankees with their victory clinched the American League Eastern Division.

Thursday night after work I went back up to the Bronx for the finale of this four game series as the game that was rained out on July 8th was made up on this night. With nothing really to play for except for home field advantage through the ALCS, the Yankees got tossed a beating. The Rays came out with their hitting shoes on as they raced out to a 13-0 lead after five innings. The Yankees fought back but they fall short in this one, 15-8.

Friday night with the Mets and the Yankees both home, mother nature got in the way. As a result, both games were postponed. With that being said, we got to witness a rare major league tripleheader.

Saturday afternoon the Mets played the Philadelphia Phillies in a day night doubleheader with the first game starting at 1:10PM and the second game at 7:10PM. The Yankees were scheduled to play the Boston Red Sox at 4:10PM on Fox.

Stay tuned for the special post I'm going to do about this unique day and weekend in NYC.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty saw plenty of baseball over the weekend!

First Energy Park - Home of the Lakewood Blueclaws

After seeing history made Saturday afternoon, the King drove my Cousin Andy and I to Lakewood, New Jersey for a minor league doubleheader at First Energy Park.

Since the game in Lakewood also got rained out Friday night, they were scheduled to play two 7 inning games starting at 6:05PM instead of one nine inning game at 7:05PM.

We wound up arriving in Lakewood in the top of the second inning. We should have made it on time but we ran into traffic which made it impossible to do that. The King did a nice job getting us there despite the unplanned delay.

We lucked out that the game went into extra innings and it ended after 9 innings as the Kannapolis Intimidators beat the Lakewood Blueclaws, 8-5.

In the second game, the Blueclaws beat the Intimidators by a score of 3-1.

Besides the two games we saw, we were also treated to a musical tribute to local native Bruce Springsteen and the late great Big Man Clarence Cleamons. They played their music throughout the evening. It made for a more entertaining night.

What a day it was for my Cousin Andy. He had a birthday to remember forever. I'm glad that the King and I were apart of it.

Sunday the King and I went back to the Bronx to see the finale of the rain shortened series between the Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. Both teams split the two games they played.. This was the rubber match.

It turned out to be a great pitcher's duel. It lived up to billing for a change. Like in the good old days, both starters James Shields of the Rays and CC Sabathia of the Yankees both pitched a complete game.

The game flew by as both teams matched zeros until the Rays decided to throw the ball away not once but twice in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Yankees took full advantage and capitalized by scoring the only run of the game. They went on to win the game 1-0 and it took only a mere 2 hours and 11 minutes.

In addition to seeing a well played game with enjoyed some great company too. We had our pals Vincent Ascanio and Rich Warnock in the "royal" box with us. It was nice that they were able to join us. Since they're so young, they may not see such a well pitched game again in their lives.

I don't remember the last time I saw both starters finish what they started. In this day and age, it's such a rarity.

Stay tuned as I'm going to write a special post about a roadtripper that does his research to figure out ways to make our national pastime affordable for fans of all ages.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty witnesses history again in the Bronx thanks to Derek Jeter!

Welcome to the 3,000 hit club DJ3K

As far as I'm concerned, Derek Jeter is the greatest modern Yankee to don the pinstripes here in the 21st century.

On Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium, he once again put his name in the record books. This time he became the first Yankee to reach the 3,000 hit plateau and the 28th player to do so in Major League Baseball history.

He needed two hits to get there. In his first at bat of the game, he singled to left to lead off the game after he worked the count to 3 and 2 against Rays' starter David Price. In his second at bat with one out and nobody on base, he did it again but after fouling off a few pitches he delivered a historical blast that went 420 feet into the first row of the left centerfield bleachers. What a way to accomplish his latest milestone. He joined former Yankee teammate Wade Boggs as the only players to hit a home run for their 3,000th hit. Ironically, Boggs did it as a member of the then Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

For good measure, he added a double and two more singles including one in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a 4-4 tie and it proved to be the game winning hit as the Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-4.

He finished the game 5 for 5. By doing so, he joined former Houston Astro and Long Island native, Craig Biggio as the only players to get 5 hits in the same game that they got their 3,000th hit.

I'm known for writing up great scripts for traveling places but I couldn't have imagined a more perfect way to script this day.

To be perfectly honest, I was speechless. This was another incredible day to be a true baseball fan or observer if you will.

To top it off, it was my Cousin Andy's birthday. He told me a few months that he wanted to spend his special day with me. I told him I'm going to make that happen. I got him a ticket for the Yankee game and he saw history. He was so grateful and thankful that I made it possible for him to be there. That's what being treated like royalty is all about.

Speaking of royalty, one of my biggest fans and a Derek Jeter fan since he was only 4 years old, my pal Caleb Feist was there in spirit. He's always there for that matter. He lives out in Burns, Oregon with his family who I met last August at Yankee Stadium. That was their first visit to New York City.

I hope when Derek Jeter retires and they have his jersey retired I hope that Caleb is there in person right by my side. I plan to find a way to make that happen.

Stay tuned as I going more detail about the rest of this amazing weekend that I experienced.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 7/4 in review

"Royal" view at Fenway Park

Monday the King and I spent the Fourth of July in America's Most Beloved Ballpark in America, Fenway Park in Boston.

The Boston Red Sox played the Toronto Blue Jays in an afternoon game that started at 1:35PM. It was the King's 181st game he has attended there. As for me, it was my 93rd game in person in the that old ballyard.

That morning I went to Avis and I rented a car for the day. I went to pick up the King and we were on our way. We arrived within walking distance of Fenway Park around 12:45PM. We parked on the street for free. We did pass a parking lot that wasn't far from where we wound up parking for $40.

We proceeded to take the short walk over to Fenway. Before we went inside, we stopped off at our favorite street vendor whose located right outside the left field gate, the Sausage Connection.

Thankfully we had a beautiful weather wise. As a result, we got to see Mama who was there working with her son Harry. The King and I had a Sausage and a Coke. Needless to say, it was excellent as usual.

We said goodbye to them and we headed into the ballpark.

We got ourselves situated and we got a "royal" view from Section 23 just in front of the Grandstand. We saw a wild baseball game unfold in front of our very eyes. The Blue Jays took a 7-0 lead early on and they had to hold on for dear life as they beat the Red Sox, 9-7.

After the game, we had planned to go to Lowell, Massachusetts to see a minor league baseball game. Quite amazingly, mother nature decided to ruin that opportunity for us. It didn't rain for a long time but it did do enough damage that made the field unplayable when we arrived there. The grounds crew tried their best to fix up the field but they couldn't. So they decided to cancel the game.

So we wound up having head home earlier than expected.

Being that I had to get up early the next morning it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Tuesday & Wednesday night I went home after work to rest up since the Mets & Yankees were both away due to the quirky baseball schedule this season.

Thursday night I went back to the Bronx as the road to 3K continued for Yankee Captain Derek Jeter.

He was hurt for a few weeks but came back and he joined the Yankees in Cleveland and played in the three games there. He needed 6 hits going in. He got 3 more there.

With that being said, he came back to the Bronx needing three more hits to reach this amazing milestone.
He had four games to do it at home before the All-Star Break.

Thursday night he didn't waste time getting his first hit in his very first at bat of the game. That was hit number 2,998 in his career. He didn't get another hit the rest of the night though. The Yankees lost to their divsion rival, the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-1.

We were joined by our friend Phil Butleman who was hoping to see history in person. Apparently it wasn't meant to be on this night.

Friday after work I headed up to the Bronx. Mother nature was at it again. As I went to the subway it was raining. I didn't think it was suppose to rain all night though so I thought they would eventually play.

On my way up to the Bronx, my pal Vincent Ascanio wrote me a message saying the game was cancelled. That was shortly before 6PM.

I had to meet the King anyway because he rented a car for the week and he parked it by the Stadium early so he could get a free spot on the street.

We decided to go to Donovan's Pub earlier than planned.

That's the way it goes. We can't control the weather. Given the circumstances, it was odd that the Yankees called the game off so early especially since it was Friday night. When Jeter broke the Yankee record for most hits as a Yankee, it rained that Friday night too. They waited a few hours and they wound up playing the game.

Over the years, the Yankees have had a reputation of calling games off when it wasn't even raining. It makes you wonder what their motives really were this time around.

I knew some people who had tickets for the game also. Since they decided to make this game up when the Rays return in September, those people got the shaft.

I feel bad for them but as they say and I quote "it's always buyer beware." Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.

I had tickets for the games over the weekend so if indeed it was going to happen in the Bronx, the King and I would be there for it.

Stay tuned for the special post that we'll tell you what happened over the weekend.

In addition, I will be doing a special post about a roadtripper who does his homework to save other people lots of money when they go to a baseball game. Check back to find out how he does it.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 9/20 in review

For the second week in a row I had no nights off between work and play. This past week I spend most of my free time after work in the Bronx in the House that George built.

Speaking of George, the late great owner of the Yankees, George Steinbrenner was honored with a larger than life size plaque in Monument Park in a special ceremony before the Yankees/Rays game on Monday night.

It was a typical Yankee first class production. They had the current team as well as many former players who had the privilege of wearing pinstripes during the George Steinbrenner era which was from 1973 until he passed away on July 13th on hand as well as family members to honor the "Boss". Those included former manager Joe Torre, Don Mattingly, Reggie Jackson, Roy White, Gene Michael, David Cone, David Wells and Tino Martinez to name a few.

George was always remembered for charity work and his relentlessness to have to win at all cost. George symbolized capitalism. He was referred to as the greatest owner in professional team sports. It's hard to dispute that fact.

After the touching ceremony, the Yankees in a George like fashion went on to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays, 8-6!

The Yankees roughed up Rays starter Matt Garza in the process. Curtis Granderson led the way by hitting two home runs including a three run blast that hit high off the foul pole in rightfield that give the Yankees a 8-4 lead at the time.

Tuesday night it was game 2 of this crucial series for first place. The Yankees stormed out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning. They went on to cruise to an easy 8-3 victory as they opened a 2 and a half lead over the Rays for first place.

Wednesday night the game started and the Rays lead 1-0 in the bottom of the third inning when the sky opened up and the game was delayed for 2 hours and 11 minutes due to rain. they finally resumed playing at 10:11PM. The Rays tacked on a few runs to take a 3-1 lead going to the bottom of the sixth inning. It was 11:15PM and I needed to get home at a somewhat reasonable hour so I decided to leave. It was a case of deseperate times since I very rarely leave a game early unless it's a special situation like this.

The Rays hit back to back solo home runs courtesy of Carl Crawford & Evan Longoria in the seventh inning to extend their lead and they eventually won the game, 7-2! It should be noted the game ended at 12:34AM. I got home a minute earlier so if I would have stayed until the end I wouldn't have gotten home until around 2AM assuming I made the necessary train connections.

In retospect, I made the right decision. Thankfully I did. I was tired at work Thursday.

Thursday night after work as tired as I was it was time to go back to the Bronx for more punishment. Actually the Yankees were the ones who got beat up. This was suppose to be a marquee pitching matchup on paper between two Cy Young award candidates in the Rays' David Price and the Yankees' CC Sabathia. Neddless to say, it didn't live up to the hype. In matter of fact, CC took a bath if you will in this one on the mound. He got lit up for 10 hits and he gave up 7 runs as the Rays pulled back within a half game of first place with a 10-3 win!

Friday night the hated Boston Red Sox came back to the Bronx to see if they could keep their slim playoff hopes alive. They got to Yankee starter Andy Pettitte in the second and fourth inning and they knocked him out of the game after they touched him up for 7 runs to take a 7-1 lead after 4 innings. They added 3 more in the fifth inning to go up 10-1. The Yankees thanks to Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez who both hit two home runs got within 2 runs but they couldn't finish the comeback as they fell short, 10-8! Please note that A-Rod hit his 609th and 610th career home runs.

Saturday afternoon it was game 2 of the series against the Red Sox. The Red Sox behind 7 strong innings by starter and  Cy Young award candidate Jon Lester shut down the Yankee offense as they won again, this time by a score of 7-3! A-Rod hit his 611th home run in the loss.

Sunday afternoon I went to see the Giants play the Tennessee Titans at the New Meadowlands Stadium. The Titans took total of a Giants team that couldn't help themselves from self-destructing time and time again.

For all the details of this Giant debacle, please stay tuned for my special posts regarding the game and more importantly the Royalty experience. Trust me it will be worth the wait.

After the Giant game, it was time for me to attend Sunday night baseball in the Bronx as the Yankees were looking to salvage a game in this three series and put a dagger towards the Red Sox slim playoff hopes.

This was a well pitched game for 7 innings between starters Daisuke Matsusaka aka "Dice-K" and Phil Hughes. Then as usual the bullpens took over and they prolonged the agony.

A-Rod hit his 612th career home run to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead in the seventh inning. The Red Sox rallied against Mariano Rivera of all people to tie the game again.The game wound up going into extra innings and the Yankees eventually won in the 10th inning  after Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon blew the game and relief pitcher Hideki Okajima walked Juan Miranda with the bases loaded with one out to give them the victory.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman