I am legitimately curious where everyone on the board is now a days. My fandom has definitely changed over the last 20 years.
How much does winning and losing affect your fandom?
- Thread starter TomRicardo
- Start date
I want them to win but I don't get too emotional about it and can handle losing no problem. How should I vote?
Yeah none of these really works for me becaue my answer would probably be... I care that it appears the team is trying to win, whether that is the players playing hard, the front office making moves to improve the team, or yes, the ownership showing that they care about winning.
#2 I agree with TR. In my youth I was a hard core member of The Nation, not anymore. I want to like the players and the team. Their stories, the teams arc of their seasonal story are interesting to me. Weirdly, I am also much more interested in the 40 man, its composition, then I am the actual win / loss record. Just entertain me.
My fandom has changed as I’ve gotten busier with a family. I love listening to the game on the radio, but it takes more to sit down and watch it. Either way I can get invested enough to get angry when they’re losing, so there’s no reason to do that to myself (and those around me) if the team is terrible.
The current approach won’t negate my interest/ curiosity, but if the team isn’t invested then I will approach the season similarly.
The current approach won’t negate my interest/ curiosity, but if the team isn’t invested then I will approach the season similarly.
It's a little bit of a mix of a lot of these options for me. Post-2004 and with the embarrassment of titles we've had this century, my mentality is definitely not " championship or bust" every year. I want the team at all levels - ownership, front office, players - to be committed to trying to play enjoyable-to-watch baseball day-in and day-out. On net, that means winning more than losing. It also means having some franchise cornerstones who are "must sees" whenever they pitch or come to bat, and whose stories and lives we can follow through the years. If I get the sense that some part of the club doesn't have that commitment to fielding the best, most enjoyable team it can then it definitely impacts my level of interest and enjoyment. Not every year can be the highest of highs, but I want to know that everyone tried their best with the resources they had available to them. And the cornerstone players help a lot in the years where things just don't quite click. Feels like we haven't had all those components in alignment since 2018 and it's definitely impacted/impacting my fandom.
I will never, never not be a Red Sox fan. That said, I do care that ownership and management give these guys their best chance of excelling. And from what I've seen recently, I don't feel as if ownership cares one way or another. It's a disservice to both the players and the fans. If you don't care, just sell the team to someone who does.
I love baseball and the Sox, and get excited every year in the spring and bummed in the fall, no matter how the team does. I certainly don’t get all that high or low based on how the team does as I’ve aged, but I would like a competitive team that I can at least dream about winning it at all, at some point in the season, even if those odds are somewhat remote.
The revolving door roster of players, the openers, stuff like that makes the game a little less appealing especially without Eck and Remy. Theres some comfort in the familiar, and the constant change in a world full of it can kind of make things a little less fun, I guess?
But even after lousy offseason, I think I will be excited and hopefully in Opening Day. It’s baseball, it’s spring, and who knows many seasons of it any of us have left. Might as well enjoy it.
The revolving door roster of players, the openers, stuff like that makes the game a little less appealing especially without Eck and Remy. Theres some comfort in the familiar, and the constant change in a world full of it can kind of make things a little less fun, I guess?
But even after lousy offseason, I think I will be excited and hopefully in Opening Day. It’s baseball, it’s spring, and who knows many seasons of it any of us have left. Might as well enjoy it.
I don't have the patience or interest in a team that's not truly committed, so I voted that, but I want to like the players. I for sure do not think that it's championship or bust anymore - I'm fine with a team where I like the players, an honest effort is being made to win a championship, and the season ends up not a total dumpster fire. The current Sox team a) doesn't feel like an organization giving its honest best effort to win a championship and b) they're still wearing the stink of the trade (and will be until they rectify point A by more than a surprise ALCS run off a wild card berth), so they're 0 for 2 in my book.
I still get pissed off when we suck but it's different now than it was pre-4 world series.
Now its just a festering anger and detachment. Before it would be "I'm still gonna watch all 162 piles of shit slopped on my plate by these guys"
Now its just a festering anger and detachment. Before it would be "I'm still gonna watch all 162 piles of shit slopped on my plate by these guys"
Stole my answer.
Yeah, I care. The Sox have been the only pro sports team I have ‘always’ loved—the only one I have a commitment to, even though I’m not from the area. I’ve watched 130 games a year for the last ten years, and dealt with the ups and downs, but there seems to be a different kind of trend now, and I’m at the age where I’m reconciling the stupidity in dedicating/wasting 3 hours a day on a team that is now more likely to end up in last place than to be a playoff contender. Definitely going to taper down my watching if i can’t find legitimate reason for optimism. This will always be my team. Now, more than ever, though, winning will definitely determine how much time I give and how much I care.
How engaged I am does depend on whether they are playing well or have exciting players, year to year. But it doesn’t change the fact they are in my blood.
I grew up a Sox fan and will probably always remain one. I have followed the team since the 1970s, when I was a kid growing up in Central Mass. That said, I want two things out of the fan experience: Good baseball and reasonably priced tickets. Last season, there was no guarantee of the former, and the latter is out the window. So I'll probably go see the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the Portland Sea Dogs or the WooSox this coming summer, and listen to the MLB club on the radio.
Sadly, it’s likely you’ll be able to find affordable tickets on the secondary market this season. They were there last season as well. But yeah, the good baseball thing was lacking.
Too much investment if they're shit. I'll casually check box scores and story lines, but if they aren't competitive, I'm not watching.
For me, it’s just a level of engagement. As long the Sox are in the hunt or within striking distance, I will follow/watch game to game. Otherwise, I’ll catch a game here and there.
This is me as well. Show me you care and I will follow. The difference in winning vs losing for me is I will probably watch a few more games instead of listening to the radio call. I love listening to baseball so I do that most of the time.
I'm not keen on watching baseball played poorly. The team can play well and come up short (just like they can play poorly and win because others teams are worse or the Sox are just luckier). The performance on the field is certainly related to how the people in charge construct the team, but the two things aren't identical. I'm more tolerant of players underperforming (athletes sometimes flop, and it's part of life) than I am of management putting poor teams together. I love baseball enough to watch the Sox in both cases, but if management doesn't give a team a reasonable chance to be competitive, it's a different kind of turnoff for me than sheer poor performance (which can always happen even when players are trying their best).
An earlier version of me would have been disgusted by the person I've become (this might not be the only thread I could write that in) but I just can't unless they are good.
I should be 5 and maybe I will be when my kids are a little older and I move back to New England full time, but I'm really an 8. But for me the 'expense' that I can't afford is getting myself inside the narrative of the season when it is, you know, another year of thinking that maybe Dalbec is going to turn into peak George Scott.
I should be 5 and maybe I will be when my kids are a little older and I move back to New England full time, but I'm really an 8. But for me the 'expense' that I can't afford is getting myself inside the narrative of the season when it is, you know, another year of thinking that maybe Dalbec is going to turn into peak George Scott.
I laughed out loud. Perfect.
To the question at hand: it got into my blood over sixty years ago, in the Eddie Bressoud days when winning wasn't even a thought, and I still can't get it out. The biggest obstacle for me these days is the constant flow of new, one expects exciting, new young comets. This year for me it's Grissom, Abreu and C-Note. I'll stick in place watching this year and next year for them, and for those who come up after them. The team may lose eighty-four games again, or 168 in the next two years, but I'll still be there.
Some of it is age, but a lot of it is 2004 (and 2 decades of Boston playoff/championship sports). My daily mood used to largely hinge on whether the Red Sox won or lost that day. Now, maybe just the big games (playoff losses).
Same. I chose that I don't have time for them if they're not committed.
It's not just about whether they're competitive. I'll watch a bad team for Bello starts and Casas at bats, if we're legit building towards something. But after a few years of suck, I expect an investment in winning. That means spending money plugging the super obvious fucking holes in the rotation, not another year of laser focus on the lux tax line and trying to outsmart everyone at Building 19 prices.
If they're telling us that 2024 doesn't matter beyond wishcasting and lucky dice rolls, then fine, 2024 doesn't matter to me either.
None of the above.
Rationally, I know baseball is a complete waste of my time. I'm watching (nominally) rich adult men play a child's game.
But I simply enjoy watching the Sox regardless. Some of it is my history and habit of doing so, and some is simply the rhythm and ritual of the game itself.
It's a bit foreign to me that people only tune in for the winning part; that they'd really just rather not watch a crisply played game where fate or fortune simply does not favor their chosen team. I honestly don't get that. I sort of get the hero worship thing, but not exclusively. Pedro was great. But I'm also very much there to be surprised, to see the Navas and Bernardinos and Wakefields come out of nowhere. I am old enough to remember when possibility was exciting, when it wasn't shameful to root for an underdog team; but things change. Perhaps baseball is one of the things I don't wish to change as much or as quickly.
Perhaps that's why I only follow baseball and don't really watch other sports. They're all silly. But baseball is my kind of silly. It is such a mix of individual contests, tactics, and strategy, and it abounds with stories and oddities and quirks.
I used to enjoy discussing and analyzing the game here, but although there are still some notable exceptions, in general the board has been a storm of anger and grievance and negativity and sit-com one-liners lately. Like every post is some kind of entry in a shadow war over issues that, frankly, nobody here is going to affect.
But it's become a bit more fundamental than that. At this point, I don't believe I could really explain to many people here how much I love the game, in all it's silliness and particularity. And it's difficult to want to interact with people who constantly complain, or who feel I'm contemptible because I'll be watching the team, even if they're not going to win.
Rationally, I know baseball is a complete waste of my time. I'm watching (nominally) rich adult men play a child's game.
But I simply enjoy watching the Sox regardless. Some of it is my history and habit of doing so, and some is simply the rhythm and ritual of the game itself.
It's a bit foreign to me that people only tune in for the winning part; that they'd really just rather not watch a crisply played game where fate or fortune simply does not favor their chosen team. I honestly don't get that. I sort of get the hero worship thing, but not exclusively. Pedro was great. But I'm also very much there to be surprised, to see the Navas and Bernardinos and Wakefields come out of nowhere. I am old enough to remember when possibility was exciting, when it wasn't shameful to root for an underdog team; but things change. Perhaps baseball is one of the things I don't wish to change as much or as quickly.
Perhaps that's why I only follow baseball and don't really watch other sports. They're all silly. But baseball is my kind of silly. It is such a mix of individual contests, tactics, and strategy, and it abounds with stories and oddities and quirks.
I used to enjoy discussing and analyzing the game here, but although there are still some notable exceptions, in general the board has been a storm of anger and grievance and negativity and sit-com one-liners lately. Like every post is some kind of entry in a shadow war over issues that, frankly, nobody here is going to affect.
But it's become a bit more fundamental than that. At this point, I don't believe I could really explain to many people here how much I love the game, in all it's silliness and particularity. And it's difficult to want to interact with people who constantly complain, or who feel I'm contemptible because I'll be watching the team, even if they're not going to win.
Only really care when they are competitive, but I also went to bed before the end of games 4 and 5 of the 2018 WS, something that 2004 me would have thought impossible.
Very well said, RR. I enjoyed reading your post as well as any this off season. Thank you for reminding me of the best of what this board can offer.
Absolutely number 1. I'll always root for the uniform first. I guess I feel kind of patriotic towards the Sox.
None of these quite capture what I feel about the Sox and being a fan. I like baseball. I like watching baseball. My family have been New Englanders and Sox fans for generations and I've never really contemplated rooting for another team.
Of course I like it when they win - winning is fun. I get frustrated when they make boneheaded mistakes on the field. But management decisions don't really effect my fandom much, even when I don't like those decisions. I do get attached to players, but I know they are going to retire or move on eventually, and I'll root for the new guys. Even kinda bad things can become part of the whole fan experience (my dad's endless texts complaining about Chris Sale were hilarious.)
In any case, I'm looking forward to spring and to watching baseball again. Go Sox!
Of course I like it when they win - winning is fun. I get frustrated when they make boneheaded mistakes on the field. But management decisions don't really effect my fandom much, even when I don't like those decisions. I do get attached to players, but I know they are going to retire or move on eventually, and I'll root for the new guys. Even kinda bad things can become part of the whole fan experience (my dad's endless texts complaining about Chris Sale were hilarious.)
In any case, I'm looking forward to spring and to watching baseball again. Go Sox!
I only loosely pay attention to standings, watch the occasional game, and follow game threads here (even when not watching the game) when they are competitive. I always watch all of the end-of-season and postseason when they are close/qualify. As far as going in person: It always works out to just one or two games every year no matter how good or bad they are.
After Mookie was traded and the shortened 2020 covid season, baseball and the Sox became less important in my life. While I will always be a Sox fan and still follow and enjoy sports and my teams way more than a 70-something guy should, I cant easily imagine Aaron Boone's HR giving me an anguished sleepless night,
But Fuck Aaron Boone
But Fuck Aaron Boone
I’d be interested to know if the Sox’s fortunes wane, does anyone shift to another team, or to a more diffuse look at the rest of baseball?
I only follow baseball, and only the Sox. If the Sox aren’t playing, I don’t care much for the playoffs. I will also follow, but not necessarily watch or listen if they’re bad. Maybe it doesn’t help that my kids aren’t as interested in baseball (for no lack of my trying), but I can watch the 5 minute recap the next morning of a shitty team and keep an eye on the standings, although the last few Septembers I’ve been just rooting for better draft position…
I’m interested if the kids come up, and the draft, but these may not be things that put $ into FSG’s pockets.
I only follow baseball, and only the Sox. If the Sox aren’t playing, I don’t care much for the playoffs. I will also follow, but not necessarily watch or listen if they’re bad. Maybe it doesn’t help that my kids aren’t as interested in baseball (for no lack of my trying), but I can watch the 5 minute recap the next morning of a shitty team and keep an eye on the standings, although the last few Septembers I’ve been just rooting for better draft position…
I’m interested if the kids come up, and the draft, but these may not be things that put $ into FSG’s pockets.
I voted for 4 but it's really more than that - I love the game of baseball and have always followed the Red Sox because they're my home town team. Of course I'd rather see them win but I'll follow them regardless. I did give up my season tickets in 2021 because with less fan interest in general I wasn't able to sell the games (or could only sell them at a loss) I didn't go to. Now if I want to go to a game I spend more money for a better ticket but it's only maybe 3 a year.
This is me. Getting pissed ended when Johnny Damon hit a grand slam home run in game 7 of the 2004 ALCS. After that, it is all gravy. Stupidity bugs me (missing a cutoff man, base running errors) but Boston is still good enough for me to care. If they lost 90 games consistently I would probably feel differently.
It is baseball - I like the pace and I like the game and Fenway is a Cathedral.
I also voted 4, but I'm right there with geoflin and RR. I love baseball and barely pay attention to other sports.
I love the history. Players from before the age of TV with their accomplishments and characters are still in there to learn about by obsessive fans. A kid can grow up in 2024 having Satchel Paige be his favorite player ever and it would be totally reasonable.
I love the pace of the game (especially after the pitch clock). It's relaxing and boring for a while, but then something really exciting happens. Or the tension level is suddenly ratcheted up to 11. But there's always enough downtime between plays to put yourself in the head of the batter, pitcher, or manager and think about what you'd do in that situation.
I love how people of all shapes and sizes can play. You could be a fat guy who can slug or an agile wizard who can turn impossible double plays and there's a place for you in the game.
I love sitting in a ballpark on a nice day and taking in a game. Especially at Fenway, where everything feels a lot smaller and more intimate. I still hate the nets, though.
And I love how you can do everything right, including filling all the holes on your team with the best available players, and it just doesn't work out sometimes. You can make the perfect pitch, but the hitter will bloop one for a hit. Or you could square up a ball perfectly and it finds it way into a glove. Sometimes life isn't fair, but you stick with what you know is right and hope it works out in the end.
Having the Red Sox spending less on winning sucks, but I'm still going to watch almost every game and go to a lot of them in my season ticket package. I'd rather watch baseball than almost any other form of entertainment available out there.
I love the history. Players from before the age of TV with their accomplishments and characters are still in there to learn about by obsessive fans. A kid can grow up in 2024 having Satchel Paige be his favorite player ever and it would be totally reasonable.
I love the pace of the game (especially after the pitch clock). It's relaxing and boring for a while, but then something really exciting happens. Or the tension level is suddenly ratcheted up to 11. But there's always enough downtime between plays to put yourself in the head of the batter, pitcher, or manager and think about what you'd do in that situation.
I love how people of all shapes and sizes can play. You could be a fat guy who can slug or an agile wizard who can turn impossible double plays and there's a place for you in the game.
I love sitting in a ballpark on a nice day and taking in a game. Especially at Fenway, where everything feels a lot smaller and more intimate. I still hate the nets, though.
And I love how you can do everything right, including filling all the holes on your team with the best available players, and it just doesn't work out sometimes. You can make the perfect pitch, but the hitter will bloop one for a hit. Or you could square up a ball perfectly and it finds it way into a glove. Sometimes life isn't fair, but you stick with what you know is right and hope it works out in the end.
Having the Red Sox spending less on winning sucks, but I'm still going to watch almost every game and go to a lot of them in my season ticket package. I'd rather watch baseball than almost any other form of entertainment available out there.
TRic, I'm a lot older than you and have seen more down years than up for several of my teams. For me, it only makes the winning that much more exciting and I'm willing to sit through and cheer on my teams when they struggle hoping for the high of another championship. When we're in the hunt, great. When we're not, it sucks and I focus instead on the youngsters like Rafaela and (likely) get my hopes up for the next season.
Chose option 4
Chose option 4
I'm diehard, but it's all about entertainment. If a team is losing they become background noise. Now, if a team is full of young exciting kids, then they'll be more interesting to me. If a team (or, I guess, ownership) is playing out the string then why am I expected, even has a diehard, to invest 3 hours 5 or 6 times a week?
I don't know if I'm making the distinction I want between what I do and a fairweather fan, but I always follow them. The levels of that fluctuate depending on what they are bringing to the table.
I don't know if I'm making the distinction I want between what I do and a fairweather fan, but I always follow them. The levels of that fluctuate depending on what they are bringing to the table.
Red Sox wins rock.
Red Sox losses suck.
Does that cover it?
I've been following the team intensely since 1969, went through all the heartbreaks, experienced the joy of the 4 rings.
In spite of the rings, I'm embarrassed by the 6 sub-.500 seasons in the last 12, I can't help it. The Sox are just part of my psyche and my identity. If they lose, I lose.
Red Sox losses suck.
Does that cover it?
I've been following the team intensely since 1969, went through all the heartbreaks, experienced the joy of the 4 rings.
In spite of the rings, I'm embarrassed by the 6 sub-.500 seasons in the last 12, I can't help it. The Sox are just part of my psyche and my identity. If they lose, I lose.
You know what? I want an ownership and front office that cares as much as I do--or at least provides the illusion that they care.
I don't think that's a huge ask. The Red Sox have given us a lot over the years: ups, downs, championships, near misses, awesome displays of athletic achievements, wonderful bonehead moments that remind us that these are normal human men, characters and charlatans. If you meet a Red Sox fan in a strange land, you can spend hours talking to him or her about what they've seen. That's a gift.
But at the same time, we've given the Red Sox a lot too. We've given them our money, our attention and time and most of all, we've given them ourselves and our optimism. The latter is a giant present in a world that increasingly routinely punishes optimism.
The only thing that we ask is for the Red Sox to try. Try to get players better than we watched last year. Try to do their best to ensure a fun summer. No one is expecting a championship every year, but everyone is expecting that no stone has been left unturned trying to field a competing team. Ownership owes us that for optimism and I don't think that they've lived up to their side of the bargain for five years.
What does this mean? It means I'm going to follow the Sox again this year, like I have every single year since 1986. But I'm not giving these motherfuckers my optimism or trust. They blew that.
I'm not sure how this existential ephifany corresponds to one of the eight choices above though.
I don't think that's a huge ask. The Red Sox have given us a lot over the years: ups, downs, championships, near misses, awesome displays of athletic achievements, wonderful bonehead moments that remind us that these are normal human men, characters and charlatans. If you meet a Red Sox fan in a strange land, you can spend hours talking to him or her about what they've seen. That's a gift.
But at the same time, we've given the Red Sox a lot too. We've given them our money, our attention and time and most of all, we've given them ourselves and our optimism. The latter is a giant present in a world that increasingly routinely punishes optimism.
The only thing that we ask is for the Red Sox to try. Try to get players better than we watched last year. Try to do their best to ensure a fun summer. No one is expecting a championship every year, but everyone is expecting that no stone has been left unturned trying to field a competing team. Ownership owes us that for optimism and I don't think that they've lived up to their side of the bargain for five years.
What does this mean? It means I'm going to follow the Sox again this year, like I have every single year since 1986. But I'm not giving these motherfuckers my optimism or trust. They blew that.
I'm not sure how this existential ephifany corresponds to one of the eight choices above though.
I am a Red Sox fan. I can’t remember not being a Red Sox fan. I watch most games. I go see them when they are in the area. I go to Fenway at least once a year. I can’t imagine that will ever change.
I'm kind of a mix between #5 and #2. I don't like it at all when the Sox lose, but after some reflection I realized my displeasure level varies with the situation. A loss in early April results in a "oh well, that kind of sucks" feeling, a long losing streak in August capped by a sweep by the mfy results in a "I'm pissed, leave me alone" reaction and a Bucky Dent/Bill Buckner/Grady Little type game leaves me wanting to break things. But after thinking about it I came to recognize that there were moments when the results weren't the only reason I follow the Red Sox. I was there for Yaz Day at the end of the 1983 season. If you were around then you probably remember that from the 1979 until 1986 the Red Sox weren't contenders. Still, when Yaz took that lap around the warning track I got a little dust in my eyes, and after leaving Fenway I remember thinking to myself "I'm glad I'm a fan of the Boston Red Sox". I had the same feeling when Papi came out and tipped his cap to the fans after loss to the Indians in the 2016 playoffs. And like Rovin Romine said a few posts above, it isn't strictly a hero worship thing. A few years ago, Brock Holt came over and gave my then ten-year-old daughter a ball during pregame warmups. She was so excited that we actually had to go across the street during the game and buy a Brock Holt name and number tee shirt. The fact that they didn't have any in kid's sizes didn't matter, she insisted I buy an adult size one and she wore it the rest of the day. For the rest of that season and until his time with the Sox had ended, she expected me to let her know when he was batting, and she'd run up to the TV to watch. Those kinds of feel-good moments keep you a fan even when the team isn't doing well. The romantic side of baseball can keep us drawn in.
This is why the whole l’affaire d’Xander was a turning point. It left a bad taste in the mouths of lots of fans and changed the calculus of their fandom. By all accounts Xander is a very good baseball player, and an all-around good guy who expressed interest in being a career Red Sox. But instead of taking care of business and wrapping him up ahead of time, management jerked him around until it was too late. So rather than having a stronger team with a guy that could be easily rooted for, the result was a much weaker team with only a hope of someday having someone just as good and likeable. Lately I've been thinking of the parallel between fandom and a long term, committed primary relationship. No relationship is going to be all sunshine, rainbows and butterflies. But if you can see that your partner is really trying to make things work and prioritizes the relationship you can navigate through the rough patches. However, if your partner starts unilaterally starts doing questionable things, lets themselves go and gives you reason to believe that they don't care as much as they used to it's easy to say draw away as well.
This is why the whole l’affaire d’Xander was a turning point. It left a bad taste in the mouths of lots of fans and changed the calculus of their fandom. By all accounts Xander is a very good baseball player, and an all-around good guy who expressed interest in being a career Red Sox. But instead of taking care of business and wrapping him up ahead of time, management jerked him around until it was too late. So rather than having a stronger team with a guy that could be easily rooted for, the result was a much weaker team with only a hope of someday having someone just as good and likeable. Lately I've been thinking of the parallel between fandom and a long term, committed primary relationship. No relationship is going to be all sunshine, rainbows and butterflies. But if you can see that your partner is really trying to make things work and prioritizes the relationship you can navigate through the rough patches. However, if your partner starts unilaterally starts doing questionable things, lets themselves go and gives you reason to believe that they don't care as much as they used to it's easy to say draw away as well.
Fantastic post.
I’ll add that Sox ownership is incredibly fortunate that baseball is played in the summer. That 2 1/2 month stretch where New England is in its full glory, and the people here do their best to stop time and enjoy every last minute.
I’m a huge sports fan and I follow 6 teams closely: Sox, Pats, Celtics, Bruins, Syracuse football & basketball. Only one of those teams plays from June thru August.
The Sox have always been an integral part of my summer, and they always will be to some extent. The older I get, and the more curveballs life throws at me, the more I enjoy a weekday evening out on my back deck with a beer and a Sox game on.
Ownership’s commitment to fielding a playoff caliber team is the difference between me looking forward to a 7pm first pitch every night, or flipping on the game every fourth or fifth day.
This is pretty much where I am at. As I have gotten older, my love has tilted more toward a love of "the game" as opposed to "the team". Don't get me wrong, I am still first and foremost a Red Sox fan, and will root for them against any other team in the league, but I have also become more a fan of watching the fun players around the league. I realized at some point that I haven't watched and appreciated Mike Trout nearly enough, and it is sad to me that I probably missed out on his peak, so I am trying to watch Shohei and Julio Rodriguez and (puke) Gunnar Henderson as much as I can.
That said, the biggest way that the last couple season have affected me is in the discourse, especially on SoSH. I love talking about baseball with anyone, though I am far from an expert on it, and for almost two decades SoSH has been my go to for that, partly because it is the only link to home that I have, and partly because most of us got joy out of talking about baseball. The last 4 years have made it really hard to just "talk baseball" around here. That joy is largely absent, and I have mostly stopped posting here on the main board because of it (and admit that I have contributed to it in some ways as well).
I just want the joy back.
There’s some great posts in here highlighting what makes baseball so special compared to most other team sports, which is usually just some variation of advancing up and down the playing surface and putting the ball/puck/whatever into the goal more times than your opponent does before time runs out. Baseball has nothing to do with any of that, which to me makes it the only interesting sport and the only one I follow.
I follow the Red Sox just the same whether they’re good or bad. It’s about the overarching storyline for me, though obviously it is a much more fun ride when they are good! When they’re bad, I can still enjoy watching the young, homegrown players develop and dream on a brighter future. Seeing the team develop from 2015 to 2018 is a shining example of this. Oddly enough, it was the crescendo of that 2018 team that wiped out my interest in watching the Red Sox for a couple seasons (though I still followed them religiously here). It wasn’t that 2019 and 2020 were such a letdown, it was that the 2015 to 2018 run gave me everything I wished for as a fan by absolutely dominating start to finish with a mostly home grown lineup of position players I had followed up from the minors.
As for where we stand right now, I’m fully on board with seeing where this new youth movement goes. There’s definitely enough interesting talent emerging to keep me engaged even if they turn out to be a bad team this year. That said, I still am hopeful they’ll supplement what they have right now with free agency to at least try and give it a shot this season. I’ll be frustrated if they don’t. I don’t want to see the team mortgage the future but I believe they can add one more starting pitcher and one more bat without doing so, all while staying under the CBT threshold to boot. I don’t think trying to win in 2024 vs. winning in the future necessarily has to be mutually exclusive. And yet, for better or for worse, I’ll still be watching the games if they decide I’m wrong about that.
Oh yeah, and Bobby V. Almost forgot about him. That’s the only other time I checked out on the team since John Henry et al. took over.
I follow the Red Sox just the same whether they’re good or bad. It’s about the overarching storyline for me, though obviously it is a much more fun ride when they are good! When they’re bad, I can still enjoy watching the young, homegrown players develop and dream on a brighter future. Seeing the team develop from 2015 to 2018 is a shining example of this. Oddly enough, it was the crescendo of that 2018 team that wiped out my interest in watching the Red Sox for a couple seasons (though I still followed them religiously here). It wasn’t that 2019 and 2020 were such a letdown, it was that the 2015 to 2018 run gave me everything I wished for as a fan by absolutely dominating start to finish with a mostly home grown lineup of position players I had followed up from the minors.
As for where we stand right now, I’m fully on board with seeing where this new youth movement goes. There’s definitely enough interesting talent emerging to keep me engaged even if they turn out to be a bad team this year. That said, I still am hopeful they’ll supplement what they have right now with free agency to at least try and give it a shot this season. I’ll be frustrated if they don’t. I don’t want to see the team mortgage the future but I believe they can add one more starting pitcher and one more bat without doing so, all while staying under the CBT threshold to boot. I don’t think trying to win in 2024 vs. winning in the future necessarily has to be mutually exclusive. And yet, for better or for worse, I’ll still be watching the games if they decide I’m wrong about that.
Oh yeah, and Bobby V. Almost forgot about him. That’s the only other time I checked out on the team since John Henry et al. took over.
As someone who was around and following the team in the late 50s and the first half of the 60s, a winning record wasn't in the headlights. You had to enjoy one game at a time and enjoy any positive individual performances. It was just enjoyable from many miles away from Fenway to tune into WHDH and listen to Curt Gowdy. When the fortunes turned around in 67 it was great but my love of the team didn't change. Post four World Series Championships, my view is still the same. I wish the owners would open the purse strings some more but I won't miss a game on TV if I can help it. I can bear no ill will whatsoever as the Red Sox organization has been so good to we fans here in Nova Scotia.
I spend a lot of time at home, caring for adult sons with intellectual disabilities and autism. Following the Red Sox during the Spring/Summer allows me to focus on something that is mine, all mine, as opposed to what I need to do to help them through life. It's obviously more fun if the Red Sox are winning and field likeable players. However, I'll take sucky baseball over no baseball every time.