For the first time in almost five years, I am attending a Kansas City Royals baseball game. The Royals, who currently have the worst record in all of Major League Baseball at 18-49, are closing out a three-game series vs. the Cincinnati Reds. The visitors won the first two games by identical 5-4 scores.
The last time I was in this facility was August 2018 when the Royals lost 3-1 to the Cubs on a Monday night. I wasn’t planning on going, but when Jason Malasovich, a friend from middle school, told me he was in Kansas City with his wife and their two children, I felt like I couldn’t say no when they asked me to join them. Fortunately, I was able to find a seat in the same section as the Malasovich family only one row in front. It rained briefly that night, but the low-scoring game got things over expeditiously.
I’m sitting in the Diamond Club. I figured I don’t go to many games, so I would splurge and see what it was all about.
My seat is right behind home plate. I have a table to type this post and rest my food and drink. The chair is padded. Not bad.
The more expensive Diamond Club seats, the ones with padded theatre-style seats and power outlets, are behind me. Those are more pricey.
The most expensive seats in the house, the Crown Club, are at ground level behind home plate. If I would have held out to buy tickets until this morning, I could have had a Crown Club seat for $370. I would love to sit there, but I’m afraid I’d want to do it again and again, and I don’t have the budget for it.
Diamond Club seats come with unlimited pop and wait service, although I went back on the concourse before the game to purchase a couple of hot dogs, extra sauerkraut.
The dogs were excellent, but I’m miffed as to why there are no stands for some of Kansas City’s famous barbecue joints, namely Joe’s Kansas City, Gates and Arthur Bryant’s, three of the biggest names in barbecue anywhere in the United States, not just Kansas City.
I’m also perplexed as to why the Royals do not open the gates to most ticket holders until one hour before games Monday through Thursday. They’re open 90 minutes prior to first pitch Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
To me, that smacks of being cheap. Why not open the gates two hours before to allow fans to watch batting practice, roam the stadium and make concession purchases? It would also allow more time in the gift shop so people can drop $250 on a jersey, a big waste in my opinion, but to each his or her own.
Spencer Steer just launched a 1-1 pitch into the left field stands for a solo home run to give the Reds the game’s first tally. Royals pitcher Daniel Lynch retired the first four in order.
Kansas City had runners on second and third the bottom of the first, only to leave them stranded when Michael Massey struck out.
Reds 1-0 going to the third. First two innings in 26 minutes, meaning we’re on pace for a one hour, 57-minute game. We won’t keep that pace, but Rob Manfred’s terribly misguided rule changes to speed up games, notably the pitch clock and limits on throwing to first with a runner on, is working.
I couldn’t care less about game length. I have nowhere to go afterward, and I don’t have to be anywhere until 10 tomorrow morning.
Today was Donald John Trump’s 77th birthday. Rot in hell, traitor. Just ensure Dementia Joe gets four more years, you son of a bitch.
Foots Prints 