Last Friday night was Andy Cohen Night at the Ballpark. Busch Stadium was packed with diehard Cardinals fans, the occasional Little League kid all dressed up in his uniform, and thousands of middle-aged women.

Cohen, a Clayton High School Class of ’86 graduate and the youngest inductee in the Clayton Hall of Fame,  is the producer of several shows on BRAVO and hosts his own late-night: “Watch What Happens Live.” His nightly interviews with reality TV’s finest and the occasional famous actor provide a quirky and hilarious insight into the world of the celebrity.

In addition to being an Emmy-award winning producer of addicting TV, Cohen is my second cousin.

Though he comes in town only about twice a year, being related to him has its perks when he visits. This time he came in town, guess who got suite tickets to the Friday night Cards game? This reporter.

The night started off with a ceremonial first pitch by Cohen. Despite his lack of Major League Baseball skills, he threw out a pretty great pitch. Third baseman David Freese (or “DFreese” as he is affectionately called by Cohen and the rest of his loyal Twitter followers) caught the ball and then snapped a few quick pictures with Cohen and Fredbird.

“I can’t believe the Cardinals are letting me loose on the field — total bucket list moment!” he said in a release.

And “bucket list moment” it was. Sitting next to Cohen during the Cardinals game was a crazy experience. In addition to being the loudest fan in the family, he was live-tweeting, posting videos on Vine, texting, emailing, and talking to the various members of the family he invited to join him on his day at the ballpark.

The guy is a social media whirlwind, reality TV star whisperer, graduate of Clayton High School,

and the most sincere Cardinals fan you’ll ever meet.

Hats off to my cousin for turning family night into the best night of the week.