Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Loving a Loser
What would this be without a post about the Mariners? A better blog? Maybe. But a blog of mine? No sir, and no ma’am. So, enough fluff: The Mariners Suck. There is no shortage of blogs detailing the collapse of the Mariners, saying I told you so to M’s management (and they did if fact tell them so), and offering advice on how best to fix the team that won the most games from 2001-2003, yet currently lies 11.5 games behind the Angels, or, perhaps, six feet under. This will not be one of those blogs. (ok, it probably will, but not just yet). Rather, I’d like to focus on how to remain a fan.
I and many M’s fans called ourselves such in the 80’s and early 90’s when there were roughly 6500 fans at any given game and 65 wins in any given season. I loved those teams. Couldn’t get enough. But somehow, over the last 8 seasons, I’ve forgotten how to love a loser. Chris, over at At Least the Red Sox Have 1918, reminded me. Pick a player. Root for him. Revel in his successes, offer thoughts of encouragement during his tough times, observe moments of silence for demotions. This, my friends, is the season of J.J. Putz, Rafael Soriano, and any other young pitcher the Mariners wisely promote. And Freddy Garcia. Tough not to like the chief. Another thing to root for is the continued failure of any untradeable Bill Bavasi acquisition – Ibanez, Spiezio, Aurilia, Villone, Myers, McCraken – to expedite the departure of Mr. Bavasi from the Mariners organization.
Of course, I loved those old Mariners teams as a whole, rather than simply rooting for specific players. It may be that Bavasi and co.’s total fumbling of the offseason, coupled with my agreement with those who told them so, makes it harder to support this team. A team built out of stupidity, while smart people were pointing out the stupidity and washed up players were taking advantage of it, is tough to call your team. Or it could be just that I have grown accustomed to winning. I need a gateway to fully supporting a crap team, and picking a few horses may just be the answer.
Edit: Ichiro. How could I forget Ichiro? Sure, he may not be worth 11 million, his skills may be declining, and pitchers may have figured him out, but is there a more exciting player to watch in baseball? It's more fun watching him get ready in the on deck circle than it is to watch most anyone else on the roster do anything. Unless they started breakdancing. That would be pretty entertaining. Like, say, instead of throwing the ball around the horn after an out, the the infielders quickly toss it back to the pither and drop and do a couple moves. My eyes would be on Olerud - just think what he could do with that helmet!
I and many M’s fans called ourselves such in the 80’s and early 90’s when there were roughly 6500 fans at any given game and 65 wins in any given season. I loved those teams. Couldn’t get enough. But somehow, over the last 8 seasons, I’ve forgotten how to love a loser. Chris, over at At Least the Red Sox Have 1918, reminded me. Pick a player. Root for him. Revel in his successes, offer thoughts of encouragement during his tough times, observe moments of silence for demotions. This, my friends, is the season of J.J. Putz, Rafael Soriano, and any other young pitcher the Mariners wisely promote. And Freddy Garcia. Tough not to like the chief. Another thing to root for is the continued failure of any untradeable Bill Bavasi acquisition – Ibanez, Spiezio, Aurilia, Villone, Myers, McCraken – to expedite the departure of Mr. Bavasi from the Mariners organization.
Of course, I loved those old Mariners teams as a whole, rather than simply rooting for specific players. It may be that Bavasi and co.’s total fumbling of the offseason, coupled with my agreement with those who told them so, makes it harder to support this team. A team built out of stupidity, while smart people were pointing out the stupidity and washed up players were taking advantage of it, is tough to call your team. Or it could be just that I have grown accustomed to winning. I need a gateway to fully supporting a crap team, and picking a few horses may just be the answer.
Edit: Ichiro. How could I forget Ichiro? Sure, he may not be worth 11 million, his skills may be declining, and pitchers may have figured him out, but is there a more exciting player to watch in baseball? It's more fun watching him get ready in the on deck circle than it is to watch most anyone else on the roster do anything. Unless they started breakdancing. That would be pretty entertaining. Like, say, instead of throwing the ball around the horn after an out, the the infielders quickly toss it back to the pither and drop and do a couple moves. My eyes would be on Olerud - just think what he could do with that helmet!
# posted by Anonymous @ 1:27 AM 
