Royalty Tours USA

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

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

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