Red Sox Irritation Nation
I work downtown. I go to the ballpark for a lot of games and I try to watch just about every game on television that I can. I have a history with the Orioles and I love them. I love Baltimore and I really enjoy the atmosphere of Camden Yards. Here is what I don't enjoy:
I don't enjoy the herd of Red Sox fans that come to town every time the Orioles play them. I don't enjoy the plethora of Red Sox shirts I see on Pratt st. and in a line outside of McCormick and Schmicks (actually I do enjoy that because it's hilarious.).
It's not so much that I mind anyone from Boston making the trek down here as much as I loathe the transplant bandwaggoners that live here in the city and the surrounding area. If you are from Boston and came down here for a game then I honestly salute you. While I really don't find your accent appealing and I'm not a fan of being hugged and made fun of in my home town, I respect that you came down here to support your team. While it is easier now than before because your legion has exponentially grown, I'll try not to take anything away from your commitment. But, I would like to ask you... where were you 10 years ago? Where was this Red Sox "nation" then? It was at home in Boston at a "bahhh", that's where.
What I would like to point out is that this phenomenon is very, very recent. You would think that Red Sox fans had been this rabid their whole lives. You would think that in the Summer, Baltimore was not even it's own city, and that we rented to NY and Boston as if we didn't own our little corner of the Atlantic. This transcendence and emergence of Red Sox fans is so nauseating and sporadic (if you look at a fan timeline) that it grates in the worst way against other Baltimore fans. The 80% of Boston fans at that stadium tonight will be college kids with no affiliation to Boston, turn coats from another team, or just plain posers that are convinced they are Red Sox fans.
While I may be a little jealous of the current tidal wave of Red Sox fans that have come out of the woodwork and that they sort have pushed us off of our block, I still must insist that our legacy as a baseball community not only be recognized but instilled and reinforced throughout our town and people. I grow weary every year that I hear a "Let's Go Red Sox" chant at a game. I grow furious seeing Red Sox fans take over local bars as if it were a fraternity reunion. I implore Baltimore once again to find the will power to drive these fair weather fans back to the late 90's when not a wry 300 would show up in our house, and when a Yankee fan back then was boo'ed, heckled, and picked out of the pack of wolves he was attempting to run with like the lame pup he was.
A man can dream I suppose of these things happening, but in actuality they won't. Tonight happy Red Sox faces will descend on our little downtown. And when the Orioles take their game to Boston, Baltimore will only be represented by the players on the field and a mere few fans in the crowd. I will be watching on TV.
Maybe I'm not the most die hard fan around. I can't afford to spend 40% of my salary traveling to see the Orioles. Maybe the Red Sox do have us licked in the area of fan sacrifice for their team. It is hard for me to swallow that notion but I believe it is true. I believe Red Sox fans may be the greatest 'current' fans around and I think they have earned that moniker. While it may be a tad fair weather, they have yet to drop their banner even after fielding what would be considered two sub-par teams the last two years (given the salary). But does this mean they are less annoying, and does it make those red and blue shirts any more out of place in my town? No, it doesn't.
My hats off to the "Sawx" fans that i'll see this evening and my heart felt thanks to the Oriole fans that I know still love this team. Maybe in 81 years it'll be our turn to one day go to Boston and have a nice old "Ohhh" in the middle of their national anthem. And everyone in the crowd can turn and say to each other "God I hate Oriole fans!".
A man can dream....
