Royals superfan celebrating World Series anniversaries with title bet on this year’s team
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - With Opening Day at the K less than 24 hours away, Betty Birzer hung her Royals flag on the flagpole in front of her Ottawa home, then opened the door to her basement level room to reveal years of memories.
“I’m so excited. I can’t tell you how excited I am,” she said, her voice raising an octave as she thought about the day ahead.
She opened a photo album with plastic film over a sticky background — the kind you would buy in the 1980s.
“This is the ‘85 World Series, the tickets to the game we went to,” she said.
There were the tickets, newspaper clippings, and a photo of her in the stands for Game 7. She wore a blue curly wig and held a sign that was hard to read. She couldn’t remember what it said. She was there with her husband, since deceased, as a 27-year-old newlywed.
“Right after that, we got season tickets, and we were hoping for another one, but nope,” she recalled. “Until 2015. But it came!”
A folder of yellow carbon copy receipts goes back to December of 1985 for the 1986 season. There’ve been good years and bad years since then, but she’s never stopped cheering for them, and she always has something new to be excited about.
At this year’s Spring Training, she sat close up, behind home plate, and was struck by the beauty of a certain sound.
“I don’t usually notice it when I’m at an actual game, because I’m not close enough to the field, but if you’re sitting down closer to the batters, you can really hear that crack of the bat on the ball,” she said, leaning forward in her chair. “How exciting. That was so cool at spring training to hear that.”
She just picked up two more blue wigs, including a curly one like she wore in ‘85. She got back to the blue wig wackiness in 2020 to bring some fun to a dark time.
Beside the wigs is a stash of blue goodies she picked up when Party City went out of business. She’ll be bringing strands of beads to pass out at Opening Day. It’s all about spreading enthusiasm, something she’s convinced helps the team.
Here she is explaining why.
She talked about the balls she’s had signed, including the one she threw for opening pitch during the 2023 season. She was invited because of a viral social media moment when she offered a Yankees playing card to one of their fans during her quest to hit away games.
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She had signed baseballs, playing cards, a wall full of bobbleheads, but what she gravitated to early on in her tour was a cardboard sign in marker. She held it in Game 1 of the 2015 World Series. A photo of her in the stands in 1985 is accompanied by the word “BLESSED.” She’s blessed, but she’s far from done.
“I want to see another one,” she said as she held the sign the way she did in 2015.
Asked if this could be that year, she said yes.
“Look at that,” she said, pointing at the sign, with the look and tone of a sudden realization. “‘85. Ends with a five. 2015. Ends with a five. 2025. Ends with a 5! I’d put my money on it. I did.”
Turns out, she’s a betting woman. And she’s counting on fellow fans to help the team make it happen.
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Her goal this season is to see everyone in the stands sport a blue wig if they make it to the playoffs again.
“I just want to share my enthusiasm for the game and hope that people catch it,” she said, pausing for another sudden realization. “Catch the enthusiasm. Hey, I didn’t notice… to catch it. You know? Throw, catch.”
Look for her on Opening Day. She’s full of wit and genuine joy. She’ll be the one with the blue wig on. If she gets what she’s hoping for, you’ll soon have a hard time picking her out of the crowd.
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