Royalty w/o 4/23 in review

Royal View from Section 420B Row 7 at Yankee Stadium

Since the Mets and Giants got rained out Sunday afternoon, they were forced to play a single admission old school doubleheader Monday starting at 4:10PM.

Since I had to work until 5:30PM, I couldn't get to Citi Field in time to see an official game so I caught the last few innings of the first game that the Mets lost, 6-1.

There was a very sparse gathering for the twin bill. With that being said, I still knew a number of people who were sitting in the area where the King and I sit. Our friends, Frank Anichiarico and Al Linderman were among them. They both like the Giants so they got to take advantage of the opportunity to see two games for the price of one like the good old days. Our pal Mike Jaffee was also in the building. He usually comes to the midweek afternoon games which I'm not able to attend because of work. With that being said, it was nice to see him again.

In addition, Vincent Ascanio and his father Ralph were present and accounted for.

It was a brutally cold night and the Mets play on the field made it feel even worse as they proceeded to lose the second game of the double dip by a score of 7-2. They fell behind 3-0 in the first inning and they couldn't catch up the rest of the night.

Tuesday night I went back to Citi Field as the Mets welcomed back former Met shortstop Jose Reyes who signed to play with the Miami Marlins as a free agent in the off season. The Marlins were visiting for the first time this season.

The Mets showed class as they gave him a video tribute before the game. The Met fans on the other hand, greeted him with a serenade of boos when he came up to lead off the game. The last game he played as a Met didn't sit well in the eyes of many Met fans and it showed. He got a hit and he left the game to preserve his batting title. Now he's playing for the enemy.

Reyes hit a long fly ball that center fielder Kirk Nieuwenhuis snagged at the wall for the first out of the game. He proceeded to go hit less the rest of the night in his four at bats which really pleased the crowd.

The Mets went on to beat the Marlins, 2-1 as Lucas Duda broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning. Lost in the shuffle were the wasted pitching efforts by the Marlins' Josh Johnson who pitched well for six and two thirds innings as he walked one and struck out nine and Johan Santana of the Mets who matched him as he walked two and fanned eleven batters over his six and two thirds innings of work. The Mets failed to hold their 1-0 lead. As a result, Santana got a no decision as did Josh Johnson.

Wednesday night after work I went back to Citi Field for more. This time Jose Reyes after going hit less in three more at bats finally got a hit against his former team in his last at bat as he delivered a single. The Mets wound up getting the last laugh as they beat the Marlins again, 5-1.

Thursday night after work I went home to rest up and recharge the batteries.

Friday night after work I went up to the Bronx as the Detroit Tigers were making their only visit to the Stadium to play the Yankees. The last time the Tigers came to Yankee Stadium they ended the Yankees' season prematurely in early October.

With Justin Verlander starting for the Tigers, it looked like the Tigers would pick up where they left off. He left the game with a 6-5 lead after six innings but the Tiger bullpen sprung a leak as they blew the lead and the game in the eighth and ninth innings as the Yankees emerged victorious, 7-6.

Saturday afternoon I went back to the Bronx to see game two of the series.

The Tigers rebounded to even the series at a game a piece as rookie Drew Smyly pitched well for six plus innings as he picked up his first Major League win. He allowed a run on two hits as the Tigers beat the Yankees, 7-5. Freddy Garcia of the Yankees got hit hard as the Tigers knocked him out of the game in the second inning. The Yankees stormed back in the ninth inning against Tiger closer Jose Valverde who needed the work but they fell short as Eric Chavez flew out to the warning track in right field to end the game with the tying run on base.

After the game, the King and I were joined by our friend Frank Anichiarico as we went to Donovan's Pub for dinner. We all enjoyed our meals and drinks. As for me, I had a pair of pork chops that were to die for. It was a pleasant surprise that they were listed on the specials that night. I lucked out big time.

Sunday afternoon the King and I returned to Yankee Stadium for the rubber match between the Yankees and the Tigers.

CC Sabathia tamed the Tigers for eight innings as the Yankees won the series behind their ace by a score of 6-2. The Tigers hung around for six innings as they trailed by a run 3-2. The Yankees tacked on some insurance runs in the seventh inning and they added another one in the eighth which cost their closer Mariano Rivera a save opportunity. Instead David Robertson came on to pitch the ninth inning and he retired the Tigers 1, 2, 3 to preserve the win for the Yankees.

With that being said, another week of baseball is in the books.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 9/26 in review

Post Season in the Bronx

This was the last week of the baseball season. The regular season that is. For the fifth consecutive season the Mets were playing out the string. It was another up and down season for the Metropolitans. They started the season 5-13. From that point on, they played .500 ball the rest of the way.

In years past, the season normally ended on a Sunday but this year was different. The season ended on a Wednesday. The reason being they didn't want the World Series to be extended into November again.
Much to my chagrin, the Mets played an afternoon game in the closing game. Unfortunately, I had to work.
I did see them wrap up with the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night and Tuesday night though.

Monday night they battled it out with the Reds before they lost, 6-5.

Tuesday night was my grand finale at Citi Field for this year and it was a fun night up in the stands as the King entertained the crowd who was sitting around us with his unique strikeout call. Some nights are better than others. It depends on the pitcher on the mound and the people in the stands. On this night, he had a very captive audience and they thoroughly enjoyed his act. In addition, we had some surprise guests. They were the King's father, Miguel and his half brother Charlie. We also had our good friend James Gabriele and his son Andrew too. Their company added to the atmosphere which was very festive.

One person in particular, Phillip Poeta who I believe I've seen in the past near where we sit up in section 516/517 depending on the size of the crowd was on hand.

I decided to reach out to him and we enjoyed each other company during the game. He said he comes to around 20 games a year. He does live in New Jersey so that's not bad all things considered. He said he likes to travel. I told him about all the places the King and I have gone. He said he's been to seven different ballparks this year. I told him that's great. He said he went to Pittsburgh for the first time. He also mentioned Chicago and Milwaukee. He sounds like an up and coming ballpark chaser.

I told him to check out my blog so he can get a more in depth overview of what royalty is all about. I plan to stay in touch with him. That way if and when he needs my expert advice on getting from ballpark to ballpark and/or place to place, he knows I'm here if and when he needs me.

As for the game we saw, it was a long one. The Mets eventually lost to the Reds again, 5-4 in 13 innings as Drew Stubbs laid down a beautiful squeeze bunt to end this marathon. The Mets' bullpen collapsed again in this one causing the game to go into extra frames. It was prolonged agony in what may have been the last time I saw Jose Reyes wear a Met uniform. If that's the case, at least Jose gave me a lasting memory. He hit two home runs in the losing effort.

Like they say, wait till next year. For us Met fans that's all we can do. With or without Jose Reyes, I plan to be back at Citi Field on April 5th for Opening Day against the Atlanta Braves.

I wound up going home after work Wednesday and Thursday night. Friday night after work I went up to Yankee Stadium after stopping off at Donovan's Pub for dinner in Queens first to see post season baseball but after the Yankees played an inning and a half against the Detroit Tigers, mother nature unexpectedly got in the way for a change. After waiting until around 10:30PM they suspended the game. They were planning to resume Saturday night at 8:37PM.

Stay tuned for the recap of our adventurous weekend. Just so you know we didn't return to Yankee Stadium. We went out of town instead as planned.

In addition, I plan to write a special post about my boy Gio Gonzalez of the Oakland Athletics who had a solid season on the mound.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty enjoys the added entertainment of the Hooligan's and Hooligals at Citi Field!

CitiFSHooligan's in Section 516

Back in the good old days when the King and I went to see the Mets play at Shea Stadium, the place always seemed to rock and occasionally shake from time to time thanks to the people who were in the building.

The King was always notorious for his signature strikeout call which some people liked and others didn't. But like anything else that's just the way it is
.
Nowadays the people who go to a game seem like robots all the time. When the scoreboard says make noise, they make noise.

Citi Field is nothing like Shea was. I know some people think it's such a better place than Shea. That's only true you're a corporate person or somebody who happens to have a lot of money to burn. For us real baseball fans and/or everyday people, that's not the case.

Needless to say, I miss Shea big time. That place was not as bad as people said. The City of New York owned that building and they never properly maintained it. That's why people mainly influenced by the media preferred to call it a "dump".

Shea Stadium held 55,000 people and majority of the seats were in foul territory which meant most of the views weren't bad and they were much more affordable to all walks of life.

Citi Field on the other hand, has many obstructive views or "blind spots" if you will. That's not an opinion that's a true fact. It's sad but true. It only holds 41,000 give or take. A good number of them are horrible seats mainly in the outfield. Fortunately for the King and I we were blessed to have a few of the better seats as we see it at a somewhat reasonable price. In matter of fact, our seats are a bargain compared to many others there.

Furthermore, the Mets had a distinct advantage playing at Shea, where those of us who were old enough witnessed two World Series Championships in miraculous fashion. I was only a year old when they won in 1969 so I can't relate to that. But in 1986, it was an unbelievable feeling to be a Met fan.

With all that being said, I want to point out and acknowledge a special group of people who have been coming to Citi Field a few times a month and they happen to sit in our section 516.

They refer to themselves as the "CitiFSHooligan's". They consist of a bunch of guys who they say are the "Hooligan's and there are some young ladies as well who go by the name "Hooligals". They also wear their own personalized jerseys so they're easy to distinguish amongst the rest of the section.

They like to enjoy the game, get the crowd involved, drink their beer, have lots of fun and be merry.

They have different antics that they roll out as the game goes on. For example, they sing different songs for the Mets when they come up to bat. They have different chants as well for opposing fans. They do everything in good fun which makes for an entertaining night out at the ballpark for everyone who's there.

When they show up at the game, they say and sing I quote "I believe the Mets will win." That doesn't always hold true but it doesn't hurt to believe like the late great Tug McGraw said "Ya Gotta Believe" back in the day.

Their record is 6-3 they said when then show up. Based on my math, that's the equivalent of the 1986 Mets overall record of 108-54. That's a winning percentage of .667. So like Meatloaf sings, "two out of three ain't bad".

Last Tuesday night, they kept us entertained and their belief willed the Mets to an improbable 5-4 win.
Even when the Mets lost a few weeks ago, Christine aka "Bean" one of the Hooligals said and I quote "I try to keep it positive".

We need more people like them on a daily and nightly basis to inject some life into the building.

For some reason, the Mets have had a hard time winning at home.

Don't blame it on the spacious field of play, that's one of the few things they got right with the ballpark in my eyes.

The Mets need to build a team that strives on speed so they can take full advantage of their new home field.
After all, the dimensions are for both teams. It would help if they could add a true power hitter or two so we can see the "Apple" in centerfield go up once or twice a game.

This year and last year the Mets have been like a roller coaster ride with plenty of ups and downs.

I think going forward in 2012 and beyond, they need to take my advice. Hopefully they can find a way to keep Jose Reyes in a Met uniform and hopefully he'll stay on the field so he can spark the Mets resurgence to the glory days here at Citi Field.

Off the field, I think the Mets should set up a special section so people like the "CitiFSHooligan's" can take over and energize the rest of the crowd throughout the game. For further details about them, look for them on Twitter and follow them and while you're at it, you can follow me @royaltytoursusa if you're not already doing so.

Believe it or not, I'm trying to be realistic in my thoughts and ideas, we'll have to wait and see what actually happens in the future.

Met fans, hang in there. I expect to enjoy another World Series Championship before my time is up.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 5/2 in review

Citi Field

After getting a much needed night off on Monday night after work, I wound up going to Citi Field to see the Mets who returned home.

Tuesday night the 2010 World Champion San Francisco Giants made their one and only visit to Citi Field to play the Mets.

This night turned out to be a very entertaining one in the stands. With the threat of rain in the air, the King and I decided to move up towards the top. We wanted to be under cover so we could keep score of the game without getting our scorebooks wet in case it did indeed rain. Luckily it rained lightly for a brief time but it didn't stop the game.

Since we decided to sit higher up we got treated to a musical comedy show if you will in the next section. There were a group of Met fans sitting together across a few rows who provided some great entertainment.
They were having fun and since there were a number of Giant fans sitting nearby they turned up their act another notch. It made for an amusing night as they sang songs when different Met players batted. They had fun with the Giant fans too.

One guy was dressed up with a light green Citi Field style staff jacket. He went over to a Giant fan and acted like he was Citi Field security and he was going to throw them out. He had me fooled for a minute. Then I saw it said "Hooligan's" on it so I knew it was a prank.

In matter of fact, a few of the guys amongst these people thought I was Josh Hamilton who plays for the Texas Rangers. He's hurt now. They asked me how I was feeling. I played along with them. They even wanted to take a picture with me so I complied with their request.

It was lots of fun thanks to these people who sat nearby.

As for the game we saw, it was a seesaw battle as the game was tied at 6-6. The Mets blew chances to win this game. Finally in the tenth inning, Aubrey Huff delivered the game winning blow when he hit a solo home run to give the Giants the 7-6 victory. As a result, the Giant fans in the house got the last laugh on this night.
Wednesday night we were back at Citi Field. This time it was for the "Freak" show as slender Tim Lincecum took the mound for the Giants.

The "Freak" didn't disappoint. He got off to a slow start but he certainly finished strong. He wound up walking three and he struck a dozen including the last five batters he faced in his seven innings of work.
Thanks to Met killer Pat Burrell who had a run scoring single and Mike Fontenot who also drove in a run, the Giants had all the run support they needed as their bullpen came in and shut the door. They used three pitchers to get through the eighth inning which was ridiculous to say the least after the "Freak" was allowed to throw 114 pitches in seven innings. Brian Wilson, their bearded closer finished and preserved the shutout as the Giants won, 2-0.

Thursday night I went home after work. I needed to catch up on things at home so it worked out well.
Friday night I went back to Citi Field as the Los Angeles Dodgers returned "home" if you will. The Dodgers like the Giants left their original home in New York to head out West 53 years ago.

With the return of the Dodgers, the Mets drew a very nice crowd. The Mets fresh off a win Thursday afternoon, were looking to make it two in a row. Thanks to their spark plug, Jose Reyes they did just that. Reyes had two triples, a double and a walk in five plate appearances to pace the Mets past the Dodgers, 6-3.

It should be noted the Mets pitchers couldn't shut down Dodgers' outfielder Andre Ethier who came into the game with a 29 game hitting streak technically speaking. For some reason, he didn't play their last game in Chicago which tainted the so-called streak. Nonetheless, Ethier was lethal on this night as he got three hits to extend his streak to 30 straight games with at least one hit in the games he's played in.

Saturday night I returned to Citi Field. I was greeted by my fan club when I got to my seat by Manny Bonilla and Arjun Lal who were in the house. I hadn't seen them in a few weeks so it was a welcome sight to have them there. As usual, they were thrilled to see the King and I.

In addition, our good friend Manny Morales was there present and accounted for. Manny was with some of his friends who have had a Saturday plan for years for the Mets. At Shea, they sat on the Mezzanine level just to the left of home plate. When they opened Citi Field they gave them lousy seats way out just past first base in short right field. Needless to say, Manny and his friends weren't too happy. Last year they got upgraded to be closer to home plate. It was a slight improvement. This year they got a major upgrade because they now sit in our section higher up than us but it's a much better view than they had since Citi Field opened in 2009.

Manny missed the first few Saturday games so this was his first time sitting in his new seat. He seemed happy with the upgrade. As he said and I quote " he's now sitting in the "royalty" section.

As for the game we saw, the Mets were looking to make it three wins in a row so they could get back online. They did indeed as they beat the Dodgers, 4-2. In the process, they put an end to Andre Ethier's 30 game hitting streak for what it was worth.

Sunday I spent my Mother's Day afternoon at Citi Field hoping to see the Mets sweep the Dodgers before going out with Mom for dinner. It wasn't in the works as the Dodgers dodged the broom. They beat the Mets, 4-2.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman