evolution

Yesterday, I went to the third game of a three-game series between the Kansas City Royals and the St. Louis Cardinals. I scored the ticket thanks to the family of evolution’s counter-terrorism expert and childhood friend Michael. On Saturday, I met Michael at his Topeka home, and then we went out to his parents’ farm just west of Tonganoxie, KS (northeast of Lawrence). Then, on Sunday, we went to the ball park.

Saturday night was low-key - just the way I like it. A wide range of topics - politics, technology, science - were discussed over the leftover barbequed pork I’d brought from home, with the over-the-top humor familiar to us. Michael’s father is a trucker (Michael himself is an ex-trucker, and still carries a CDL) whose CB handle is “Mad Dog”, and his mother’s name is Judy (who is sometimes an evolution commenter).

They own a Chrysler Sebring convertible. It was 73°F, at around 11:00, so we put the top down. (Images that follow are links to larger versions.)

Me (motioning toward the backseat): I’ll get in the back seat, if you’d like.
Mad Dog: Nah, I’ll get back there, I want to feel the wind.
Michael: We’re gonna drive the old people around for a while.

That’s Michael at the wheel of the convertible, somewhere on Route 24 just outside Kansas City.

Shortly after that, we arrived at Kaufmann Stadium, the home of the Royals, on the north side of Kansas City, Missouri. There was a good mix of Cardinals and Royals fans at the game. Since St. Louis is only four hours’ drive away, the yearly series is a nice weekend getaway for many St. Louis residents.

I had three photo missions to take care of before we found our seats. I was able to take care of two of them right away:

The first statue is of former Royals second baseman Frank White. White was what they call a “five-tool” player - he could hit for both average and power, he had a great throwing arm, he was great defensively, and had terrific speed. His #20 is one of three retired by the team.

The second is of legendary Royals third baseman George Brett. Brett was one of the most dangerous hitters in Major League Baseball’s history. He is also the main character in one of baseball’s most bizarre incidents: Once during a game with the New York Yankees, he was called out after hitting a two-run homer to take the lead late in the game, for having too much pine-tar on his bat. Brett went berserk and charged out of the dugout; his hair wild, his face maniacal, and his blood pressure off the charts. That’s the way he played most of his games. He was also part of a number of brawls that took place in Royal/Yankee games in the 70s and 80s. He played twenty seasons for the Royals, and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 1999.

As I was shooting the picture of Brett’s statue, a Cardinal fan walked past me and said, “It don’t get much better than him, buddy.” It sure doesn’t.

Our seats were behind home plate in the upper deck, about halfway up the bowl. It was a clear, sunny day, so we could easily see the entire field with the famous Kaufmann Stadium backdrop:

In my opinion, Kaufmann Stadium is the most beautiful ballpark in America. It’s 40 years old, so some of the concourses are somewhat narrow, but it stands unique among major league parks. Here’s another shot of the scoreboard and fountains:

I mentioned earlier that there were lots of St. Louis Cardinal fans in attendance. The Cardinals and their fans are part of a bit of Royals history, and not-so-subtle reminders of this history were on display on the Jumbotron and throughout the stadium. One reminder sits in a glass case in the Royals Hall of Fame display in the lower concourse:

That’s the 1985 World Series trophy. Twenty years ago, at this very stadium, OF Darryl Motley made the final put-out to touch off one of the wildest parties in Kansas City’s history, as the Royals beat the Cardinals in seven games to win the World Series. The Royals haven’t been to the playoffs since, but this moment lives on in the memories of many fans, including this one.

Back to the game:

That’s Royal first baseman Mike Sweeney, playing DH this day, standing in against Cardinal pitcher Jeff Suppan during the bottom of the first inning. Sweeney went on to ground out, but the Royals put up six runs during the first inning due to three errors charged to Cardinal shortstop David Eckstein. Suppan had a rough day, and got no help from his defense. The Royals won the game, 9-2, behind a three-run shot by catcher John Buck and a solo homer by second baseman Ruben Gotay; and some solid pitching by rookie Ryan Jensen, middle reliever Leo Nunez, and closer Mike MacDougal - a perfect end to a perfect day.