Red Sox Fans - Serious Question

ToddInVegas · Mar 27, 2008

Do you feel that Red Sox fans are as passionate as they were before 2004? Every year it was maybe this year etc and now that they have won 2 World Series is it as much fun being a Sox fan.

Being a Toronto Maple Leaf fan I've often felt that the worst thing that could happen for the fanbase is to win the Stanley Cup. The chase is so intense each year that winning might not be satisfying enough.

For me being a Yankees fan it was a great time to be a fan leading up to the 1996 Championship. This may sound strange but by the time they won three straight in 2000 it almost became boring. Winning the series was expected and when they did it wasnt as special. i look at the 2008 team and see the future in Joba, Hughes, Kennedy along with the old vets Jeter, Posada and Arod and it is exciting again.

I guess my main question is....was it more fun, as a fan, to be cheering for the Sox to break the curse or as a fan of the perennial favorite team? This is not intended to be a Red Sox bashing thread or Yankees VS Sox...there is plenty of time for that. Just want to know where Red Sox nation is right now.

djmatt · Mar 27, 2008

Well.. after having an argument with a Cubs fan and trying to tell him that Cubs winning back to back divisions is nearly impossible and him still saying this is their year this is their year.. I would have to say I would side with the fans not wanting it as bad..
But then again.. growing up a Bulls fan as a kid I was a huge fan and I expected them to win.. so BoSox fans... prob expect them to win, it isn't just rooting for the underdog its rooting for "your" team

BlackBart · Mar 27, 2008

The worst thing about being a Red Sox fan in the last few years is the large number of people who have jumped on the bandwagon. It used to be that if you saw a guy wearing a Sox hat in the airport, you could go up and start a conversation and it was likely that the guy grew up near you or had some common experience.

I have lived up and down the East Coast and, with the possible exception of the Redskins in DC and the Packers in Green Bay, I have never encountered anything like how the Red Sox are woven into the fabric of New England. My grandmother could tell you the starting lineup of the '75 Red Sox back then. My mother--who has little interest in other sports of any kind--woke me at 5:30A on Sunday because she and her other old lady friends were vacationing in a condo in Jacksonville and wanted to know what channel the Red Sox EXHIBITION GAME AGAINST THE YOKIMURI GIANTS was on that morning. (It never occured to her that the game might not be on television in Florida.) I have email trails of conversations with friends about the smallest details of the Red Sox lineup that have absorbed us through entire winters. If you thing we're all nuts for hanging around on this forum, you should experience the guys over at the Sons of Sam Horn forum. (There are people there that need to get a life.)

I still follow and obsess about each and every game and every box score as I have done for thirty years. The fact that the Sox have 2 WS titles has not in any way changed that.

It's not as much fun to be a Sox fan as it once was and, again, I attribute that to the fact that what was once a comfortable seat on the bandwagon with close friends has now turned into a standing room only affair with a bunch of strangers. It is probably similar to what happens to shareholders in a small private company that then goes public to the masses.

DennyCrane+ · Mar 27, 2008

agreed black bart. I have friends who never watched a game in their life and now are sporting gear. I have to laugh everytime I see them in a sparkling new cap that never gets worn except for when a game is on.

MIKEY.1TIME · Mar 27, 2008

Black Bart said:
The worst thing about being a Red Sox fan in the last few years is the large number of people who have jumped on the bandwagon. It used to be that if you saw a guy wearing a Sox hat in the airport, you could go up and start a conversation and it was likely that the guy grew up near you or had some common experience.

I have lived up and down the East Coast and, with the possible exception of the Redskins in DC and the Packers in Green Bay, I have never encountered anything like how the Red Sox are woven into the fabric of New England. My grandmother could tell you the starting lineup of the '75 Red Sox back then. My mother--who has little interest in other sports of any kind--woke me at 5:30A on Sunday because she and her other old lady friends were vacationing in a condo in Jacksonville and wanted to know what channel the Red Sox EXHIBITION GAME AGAINST THE YOKIMURI GIANTS was on that morning. (It never occured to her that the game might not be on television in Florida.) I have email trails of conversations with friends about the smallest details of the Red Sox lineup that have absorbed us through entire winters. If you thing we're all nuts for hanging around on this forum, you should experience the guys over at the Sons of Sam Horn forum. (There are people there that need to get a life.)

I still follow and obsess about each and every game and every box score as I have done for thirty years. The fact that the Sox have 2 WS titles has not in any way changed that.

It's not as much fun to be a Sox fan as it once was and, again, I attribute that to the fact that what was once a comfortable seat on the bandwagon with close friends has now turned into a standing room only affair with a bunch of strangers. It is probably similar to what happens to shareholders in a small private company that then goes public to the masses.

great post:toast:

wannabewhale · Mar 27, 2008

The fun part of it is getting my son to be a die hard in RSN. We watch every game--most times every pitch--but equally as fun is I am a Yankee HATER.
While RSN has grown as others have suggested-so have the Haters. It is natural when teams are successful. However, when the first pitch is thrown it is all baseball and expectations are now sooo much higher.

TomBrady#1 · Mar 27, 2008

I agree that the emotion has changed but no way has it lessoned. The Sox are bigger than big and you can't get tickets even though the prices are the highest in baseball or close. Everyone knows and talks about the Red Sox. Bigger than big.

joeyfitzclick · Mar 27, 2008

All I know is the Bruins are gonna whoop your boys again tonight.

burn_in_hell_Atta · Mar 27, 2008

Bart - dead on with how it is., christmas shopping in the mall in 2004 I seen a 350+lb fat whale bitch wearing a T-shirt that said " NOW I CAN DIE IN PEACE RED SOX WS CHAMPS". No doubt she also wears a Varitek jersey. This fat bitch had like a 36 ounce coffe coolatta from dunkin donuts in one hand and was screaming at her snot nose loser kids.

DennyCrane said:
agreed black bart. I have friends who never watched a game in their life and now are sporting gear. I have to laugh everytime I see them in a sparkling new cap that never gets worn except for when a game is on.

oldmanshuckle · Mar 27, 2008

The downside of the Red Sox success has been some of the people that attend games to be be seen not to watch the game. Case in point was a guy sitting on his seat blocking the view of fans behind him. When asked to sit down, he replied that " if you want to watch the games buy better seats." This was said to a group of twenty year season ticket holders.

RobFunk · Mar 27, 2008

SkinsRaj says it best we have a LOT more 'fair weather' fans. And lots of girls all of the sudden happen to have a user name like 'redsoxchic1979'.

But rooting for the sox is more fun than ever. It's nice when your top 2 pitchers go down and you still have a competitive ball club. I mean it's fun to root for a team that has depth, can put up runs and win games. I was so happy for Moss the other day, he wasnt even supposed to be on the opening day roster and he was key to winning the game.

Fishhead · Mar 27, 2008

Black Bart said:
The worst thing about being a Red Sox fan in the last few years is the large number of people who have jumped on the bandwagon. It used to be that if you saw a guy wearing a Sox hat in the airport, you could go up and start a conversation and it was likely that the guy grew up near you or had some common experience.

I have lived up and down the East Coast and, with the possible exception of the Redskins in DC and the Packers in Green Bay, I have never encountered anything like how the Red Sox are woven into the fabric of New England. My grandmother could tell you the starting lineup of the '75 Red Sox back then. My mother--who has little interest in other sports of any kind--woke me at 5:30A on Sunday because she and her other old lady friends were vacationing in a condo in Jacksonville and wanted to know what channel the Red Sox EXHIBITION GAME AGAINST THE YOKIMURI GIANTS was on that morning. (It never occured to her that the game might not be on television in Florida.) I have email trails of conversations with friends about the smallest details of the Red Sox lineup that have absorbed us through entire winters. If you thing we're all nuts for hanging around on this forum, you should experience the guys over at the Sons of Sam Horn forum. (There are people there that need to get a life.)

I still follow and obsess about each and every game and every box score as I have done for thirty years. The fact that the Sox have 2 WS titles has not in any way changed that.

It's not as much fun to be a Sox fan as it once was and, again, I attribute that to the fact that what was once a comfortable seat on the bandwagon with close friends has now turned into a standing room only affair with a bunch of strangers. It is probably similar to what happens to shareholders in a small private company that then goes public to the masses.

Well stated.....and very sad when looking back on my days of listening in on an out of town fuzzy radio station sweating out the RED SOX when they were 10+ games out in late August.

I will go on record right now and state that there was probably no bigger BOSOX fan from 1968-1986.........at least outside the state of Mass........and certainly in the state of Iowa.

SlevinKabrera · Mar 27, 2008

how to tell a true sox fan

If you want to know if someone is a real red sox fan, a true fan, ask them what number Bernie Carbo wore. If they do not answer correctly, immediately, than they are posers. The best times were getting to work at 10 pm with the sox on the west coast and listening to the game for half the shift. Sometimes I'd rather hear it on the radio. When I was a kid, before the games were on TV, every night I would go to sleep after listening to Ken Coleman or Ned Martin call the games on the radio. It was like being at Fenway. Winning the World Series has been awesome, but that feeing can never be duplicated. A guess a little luster has been lost.

Mr.Smith · Mar 27, 2008

winning is a lot more fun than heartbreak.

wilheim · Mar 27, 2008

Depends how old you are.

If you want to know if someone is a real red sox fan, a true fan, ask them what number Bernie Carbo wore.

In my case it would be what number did Jackie Jensen wear.

wil.

BlackBart · Mar 27, 2008

Not to take this thread on a different turn, but the single greatest home run in Red Sox history was that hit in Game 6 of the 1975 WS by Bernie Carbo (and the second one may have been by Don Baylor in Game 5 of the 1986 ALCS.) As far as I'm concerned, if you can't describe those two moments in Red Sox history, you're not a fan. If you can remember the hopelessness that you felt in both situations, only to be brought to sheer joy when both those balls landed, it is amazing.

The Sox were the language through which my father and I communicated for almost 40 years. The last few moments I spent with him while he was well was this past Mother's Day where we watched on TV while the Sox scored 5 runs in the bottom of the ninth to beat Baltimore. I saw him a few weeks later while, riddled with cancer, he asked me to stay in his room that night and watch the Sox with him. Just as the game was about to start, he waved me off and told me he needed to get some rest. We both thought he would be home the next night and we could watch the Sox/Tigers that night. It was the last real conversation we would ever have. He made it home, but he passed away the next evening.

Those are the stories of REAL Sox fans.

FairWarning · Mar 27, 2008

wilheim said:
In my case it would be what number did Jackie Jensen wear.

wil.

Just for Wil

The one thing that annoys me more than anything about Red Sox "fans" are many I see in the Chicago-area who are Cub fans and Red Sox fans, huh? I doubt too many Red Sox fans are walking around Worcester wearing Cub hats.

doubledeuce22 · Mar 27, 2008

Black Bart said:
Not to take this thread on a different turn, but the single greatest home run in Red Sox history was that hit in Game 6 of the 1975 WS by Bernie Carbo (and the second one may have been by Don Baylor in Game 5 of the 1986 ALCS.) As far as I'm concerned, if you can't describe those two moments in Red Sox history, you're not a fan. If you can remember the hopelessness that you felt in both situations, only to be brought to sheer joy when both those balls landed, it is amazing.

The Sox were the language through which my father and I communicated for almost 40 years. The last few moments I spent with him while he was well was this past Mother's Day where we watched on TV while the Sox scored 5 runs in the bottom of the ninth to beat Baltimore. I saw him a few weeks later while, riddled with cancer, he asked me to stay in his room that night and watch the Sox with him. Just as the game was about to start, he waved me off and told me he needed to get some rest. We both thought he would be home the next night and we could watch the Sox/Tigers that night. It was the last real conversation we would ever have. He made it home, but he passed away the next evening.

Those are the stories of REAL Sox fans.

you mean dave henderson?

BlackBart · Mar 27, 2008

How about that.....I am not a fan!

I going through the entire sequence in my head and trying to finish the post before I left the house for an appointment. Baylor hit the HR before Henderson, I believe. Or maybe he was HBP. I seem to remember that Baylor hit a HR, then Gedman got on (HBP?), and then Hendu.

What an idiot I am.

Fishhead · Mar 27, 2008

I WATCHED all of probably 30-50 innings of the entire Red Sox 1986 season.

The Red Sox were one of the main reasons I moved to Vegas........so I could watch them in the sportsbook everyday.