Author: John King
The only thing I know for sure in life is death, taxes and that the New York Yankees are evil. I grew up in a “crazy for baseball” home. My mom and dad raised my three brothers and myself to love the game. We love the game so much we watch the movie Major League every year, and my mom cries at the end. We’re a crazy baseball family.
Every year for Christmas, since I started college in 2002, my Grandad bought my three bothers and I season tickets to the Royals. My current streak of Opening Day sits is at 15 years in a row and counting. Some years it has been cold, others it has been warm. And sometimes it seems the Royals don’t show up. But we love them anyway.
When Spring starts to roll around, a flurry of text and emails are exchanged by my brothers to organize the yearly event. Some years my dad can make the game, some years one of my brothers must miss for work. The first date I went on with my wife was a Royals game. Sometimes she can get away from teaching to attend. The Opening Day crew has ebbed and flowed with additions to our family and friends. I have yet to bring my little ones, they are still a little too young.
I think my favorite Opening Day was 2015. It was the first game after we lost to the Giants in Game 7 of The World Series. I was there with my three brothers the night we lost to the Giants. The drive home was quiet. All winter we debated if they should have sent Gordon.
As we got closer to the first game we grew more and more excited. As they say, hope springs eternal. It was cold and damp that day, but it didn’t matter. For the first time in my life (I was two years old in 1985) we were the American League Champions. We beat the White Sox 10-1 that day. And 2015 was going to be our year! And we all know what happened next.
Baseball is a crazy tradition in my home. As my desk at work can attest, I love the Royals. My 3-year-old is understanding the game and he can recognize most of the player and even Joel Goldberg. My Dad raised crazy baseball fans and I plan to do the same with my two little ones!
