So I've been watching the MLB Playoffs because I'm a red blooded American who is entertained by other things besides a panel of national experts analyzing cell phone pictures of Brett Favre's penis or Tom Brady's hair. I have been paying a lot of attention to the Phillies. I'm not exactly rooting for the Phillies, but I keep finding myself fascinated with how this team was constructed.
A solid mix of veterans. Very few rookies and young guns, but guys who have been there before. I will argue that the Phillies are the model franchise in baseball. Meanwhile, bloggers and fans alike try to compare the Royals current MiLB renaissance to the 2008 Rays or the 2010 Rangers or the 1969 Mets and everyone is left scratching their head on who exactly to compare this group of young minor league studs to!
Then it hit me. Like a big, neon, swinging Liberty Bell in centerfield.
The Royals are being built like the Phillies.
Think about it. It's not too far off, is it? I mean, Mike Arbuckle, the guy who had a hand in drafting Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, Shane Victorino and Jimmy Rollins is currently employed by the Kansas City Royals.
People love knocking Dayton Moore for being a Braves guy. But, man, when you put this thing under the microscope, the similarities really start to pop.
First off, let's look at the Braves. Who are their core* players? Brian McCann, Jason Heyward, Tommy Hanson...and that's it. So you say, well that's just 2010! Ok, let's go back further:
*I define a "core" player as a player who is under 30 years old, was drafted by said team, was acquired via the Rule 5 draft or was acquired by said team via trade and spent time in said team's minor league system.
Atlanta Braves core players
2009- Brian McCann, Yunel Escobar, Jair Jurrjens, Tommy Hanson
2008- Brian McCann, Yunel Escobar, Jari Jurrjens
2007- Brian McCann, Yunel Escobar
2006- Brian McCann
Pretty good players, right? Yeah, but only FOUR each year. The Braves weren't built to last while Dayton Moore was in their front office. Maybe he got sick of the "Braves Way" and wanted to move on. Think about that. The Braves really didn't see many marquee players come up after Dayton Moore left. An outside guess on my behalf says that DM did not like the direction of the Braves and moved on to KC. Who better to bring in than Mike Arbuckle? A guy who built an awesome farm system in Philadelphia? The farm system that has payed dividends for the Phillies over the last three years? The farm system that has put the Phillies in three consecutive National League Championship Series?
So let's take a look at the Phillies core:
2010- Carlos Ruiz, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino, Cole Hamels, Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Madson
2009- Carlos Ruiz, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino, Cole Hamels, Jimmy Rollins
2008- Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino, Cole Hamels, Jimmy Rollins
The Phillies are built for longevity. Dayton Moore likely saw this and made the call to Mike Arbuckle, realizing that he may not have learned everything he needed to know in Atlanta. The track record shows that the Phillies have a system in place that builds the team for the long term, whereas in Atlanta during Dayton Moore's time, the team was not built for the long term. Dayton Moore wasn't around in Atlanta during the 90s when the Braves won division championships every year. In fact, he was in Atlanta when their downturn started in the early to mid 2000s.
So now, let's take a look at how the Royals core will potentially look moving forward, of course this is all speculation. There will be trades, etc.:
2011- Mike Moustakas, Billy Butler, Zack Greinke, Joakim Soria
2012- Mike Moustakas, Billy Butler, Zack Greinke, Joakim Soria, Eric Hosmer, Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer
2013- Mike Moustakas, Billy Butler, Joakim Soria, Eric Hosmer, Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer, John Lamb, Wil Myers, Christian Colon
2014- Mike Moustakas, Billy Butler, Joakim Soria, Eric Hosmer, Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer, John Lamb, Wil Myers, Christian Colon, Cheslor Cuthbert
Of course, there will be busts, injuries (God forbid), trades and other unforeseen circumstances, but this team is being built for the long term. The benefits of being patient and trusting The Process will be rewarded if these guys become our core. Then throw in some moves like trading for a Cliff Lee at the deadline or signing a Roy Halladay in the offseason, and we're not just looking at a perennial division champion, but a World Series contender year in, and year out.
Be patient. We'll get there soon enough.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Growing Pains: to 2011 and beyond
Show me that smile...
It's over. Mercifully so, if I could add. Once again, another piss poor season by the Kansas City Royals. So many frustrating elements in a season that was full of some clever marketing and mind numbing praise towards some of the Royals worst players. Also a season that saw the reigning Cy Young winner go from an untouchable, young stud, to a hittable, malcontent complainer.
Trey Hillman was fired early in the season, although it's been well discussed that he should have been fired after last year. Hillman was in no way suited for this job or for any managerial job in Major League Baseball. Instead of treating Hillman's job interview like a job interview, Dayton Moore seemed to treat it like an awesome night out at a bar where he and Hillman became bros for life. Well, after the first two seasons of Hillman's tenure, it was quite obvious that he was in over his head. Players didn't respect him, fans grew tired of his "Treyspeak" in postgame pressers and it all seemed like a cruel joke.
Of course, Ned Yost replaced Hillman and took the Royals to the brink of quasi-contention in late June, where the Royals just sat seven games under .500 and eight games back from the division lead. I got excited for about three hours during this time, and then the Royals went into Chicago and got bitch-slapped back down to reality and so began the decline.
Scott Podsednik was traded. A guy who the Royals PR department loved, and I'll give them credit, Scotty Pods had a good year for the Royals. But to suggest that he was playing at an All Star level was kind of absurd. Podsednik was a good veteran presence on the team...oh jeez, now I'm starting to sound like the Royals PR department. But he stabilized the top of the lineup, as we saw the offense sputter after Pods left for the Dodgers.
Yuniesky Betancourt had a "career year" according to most Royals fans on Facebook. Sure he did, after all, he did post an 88 OPS+...
Ok, that's all I really can muster on 2010. It was a terrible year, from the Winter Meetings all the way until 4pm today. Too much energy was wasted on my end from complaining about Rick Ankiel, Juan Cruz and Dave Owen.
Time to recharge the batteries, KC! 2011 will be a new year, with exciting new toys coming up through the system. The bullpen will be MUCH better with the additions of Tim Collins, Blaine Hardy, etc. The bullpen is where we are going to see our young arms make their first impact at the big league level. Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer and other starters will likely start out of the bullpen before making their mark in the rotation.
Mike Moustakas will be here at some point next year, and so will Eric Hosmer if all goes well. John Lamb and Wil Myers might shoot through the upper minors and be knocking on the door come 2012.
I'm expecting at least one of our prospects to have an immediate, Evan Longoria/Ryan Braun/Buster Posey type impact at some point in the next two seasons. Will it be Moustakas next year out of Spring Training? Will it be Hosmer coming up in mid season? Will it be Mike Montgomery filling in for an injured starter? Who knows. These questions will be answered. Next year may not be much better than 2010, but one thing is for sure, it will be a lot more fun.
As long as we have eachother...
It's over. Mercifully so, if I could add. Once again, another piss poor season by the Kansas City Royals. So many frustrating elements in a season that was full of some clever marketing and mind numbing praise towards some of the Royals worst players. Also a season that saw the reigning Cy Young winner go from an untouchable, young stud, to a hittable, malcontent complainer.
Trey Hillman was fired early in the season, although it's been well discussed that he should have been fired after last year. Hillman was in no way suited for this job or for any managerial job in Major League Baseball. Instead of treating Hillman's job interview like a job interview, Dayton Moore seemed to treat it like an awesome night out at a bar where he and Hillman became bros for life. Well, after the first two seasons of Hillman's tenure, it was quite obvious that he was in over his head. Players didn't respect him, fans grew tired of his "Treyspeak" in postgame pressers and it all seemed like a cruel joke.
Of course, Ned Yost replaced Hillman and took the Royals to the brink of quasi-contention in late June, where the Royals just sat seven games under .500 and eight games back from the division lead. I got excited for about three hours during this time, and then the Royals went into Chicago and got bitch-slapped back down to reality and so began the decline.
Scott Podsednik was traded. A guy who the Royals PR department loved, and I'll give them credit, Scotty Pods had a good year for the Royals. But to suggest that he was playing at an All Star level was kind of absurd. Podsednik was a good veteran presence on the team...oh jeez, now I'm starting to sound like the Royals PR department. But he stabilized the top of the lineup, as we saw the offense sputter after Pods left for the Dodgers.
Yuniesky Betancourt had a "career year" according to most Royals fans on Facebook. Sure he did, after all, he did post an 88 OPS+...
Ok, that's all I really can muster on 2010. It was a terrible year, from the Winter Meetings all the way until 4pm today. Too much energy was wasted on my end from complaining about Rick Ankiel, Juan Cruz and Dave Owen.
Time to recharge the batteries, KC! 2011 will be a new year, with exciting new toys coming up through the system. The bullpen will be MUCH better with the additions of Tim Collins, Blaine Hardy, etc. The bullpen is where we are going to see our young arms make their first impact at the big league level. Mike Montgomery, Chris Dwyer and other starters will likely start out of the bullpen before making their mark in the rotation.
Mike Moustakas will be here at some point next year, and so will Eric Hosmer if all goes well. John Lamb and Wil Myers might shoot through the upper minors and be knocking on the door come 2012.
I'm expecting at least one of our prospects to have an immediate, Evan Longoria/Ryan Braun/Buster Posey type impact at some point in the next two seasons. Will it be Moustakas next year out of Spring Training? Will it be Hosmer coming up in mid season? Will it be Mike Montgomery filling in for an injured starter? Who knows. These questions will be answered. Next year may not be much better than 2010, but one thing is for sure, it will be a lot more fun.
As long as we have eachother...
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Royals Kingdom Annual "I Give Up" Extravaganza
I give up.
I haven't watched a full game in over two weeks. To try and give you some comprehensive and coherent analysis wouldn't be fair to you. So I give up.
We've lost 80 games and Jason Kendall for 8-10 months. We called up Jarrod Dyson. Mous won the Texas League POTY, despite Clint Robinson winning the Texas League Triple Crown.
I had the chance to meet Ned Yost and he's a straight shooter. Easy to like and I honestly believe he will lead us back to the playoffs.
But as far as this season goes, I give up. I can't put effort into this team anymore. I will continue casually watching, but my brain can't take it. Trey was terrible, then Ned was awesome, then we were in the pennant race in late June, then we lost 10 out of 13, then Yuni is all of the sudden a 25 year old Alex Rodriguez according to the Royals PR department, then he's Yuni, then Billy can't hit homeruns, hey, there's Alex Gordon! Kila can't hit to save his life all of the sudden
I'm tired. Time to recharge the batteries. Sorry.
I haven't watched a full game in over two weeks. To try and give you some comprehensive and coherent analysis wouldn't be fair to you. So I give up.
We've lost 80 games and Jason Kendall for 8-10 months. We called up Jarrod Dyson. Mous won the Texas League POTY, despite Clint Robinson winning the Texas League Triple Crown.
I had the chance to meet Ned Yost and he's a straight shooter. Easy to like and I honestly believe he will lead us back to the playoffs.
But as far as this season goes, I give up. I can't put effort into this team anymore. I will continue casually watching, but my brain can't take it. Trey was terrible, then Ned was awesome, then we were in the pennant race in late June, then we lost 10 out of 13, then Yuni is all of the sudden a 25 year old Alex Rodriguez according to the Royals PR department, then he's Yuni, then Billy can't hit homeruns, hey, there's Alex Gordon! Kila can't hit to save his life all of the sudden
I'm tired. Time to recharge the batteries. Sorry.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Texas Rangers: Endgame
Tonight, the Royals open up a series against the Texas Rangers. The Rangers are one of the best run franchises in Major League Baseball. Their prospects like Ian Kinsler, Nelson Cruz, Tommy Hunter and CJ Wilson (to name a few) are all homegrown talent that are big parts to the Rangers' run to the AL West pennant this season. They traded away Justin Smoak, one time Baseball America Top 10 prospect for the anti-walk, Cliff Lee. They were savvy with trades. Mark Teixeira was turned into Neftali Feliz. Vlad Guerrero was signed for a bargain bin rate in Free Agency.
Oh yeah, they were bankrupt at one point this year. But that is neither here nor there.
The Rangers are a FANTASTIC model for the Royals. Of course, the Royals don't have the population of a Dallas/Ft. Worth area, but the Rangers built their team the right way. Their Opening Day payroll was ranked 26th. The Royals were at #20!
This is the new era of Major League Baseball. The argument of small market/big market, small payroll/big payroll is over. Homegrown talent is the key.
But it isn't the only key. You've got to spend wisely in free agency. You've got to make good trades for veterans on the cheap and give very little away.
Follow the Texas Rangers' model and you will succeed.
Oh yeah, they were bankrupt at one point this year. But that is neither here nor there.
The Rangers are a FANTASTIC model for the Royals. Of course, the Royals don't have the population of a Dallas/Ft. Worth area, but the Rangers built their team the right way. Their Opening Day payroll was ranked 26th. The Royals were at #20!
This is the new era of Major League Baseball. The argument of small market/big market, small payroll/big payroll is over. Homegrown talent is the key.
But it isn't the only key. You've got to spend wisely in free agency. You've got to make good trades for veterans on the cheap and give very little away.
Follow the Texas Rangers' model and you will succeed.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Yuni: Every Rose Has Its Thorn(s)
So a recent outburst of offensive production by Yuniesky Betancourt has some Royals fans laughing and pointing at us "basement dwellers". But since then, he's sunk back to regular YuniLevels.
His season stats are impressive. Sure, if you look solely at home runs and RBIs (worst stat ever for evaluating individual talent), he seems like he's a very productive player.
But if you look just below the surface of those stats...no, actually if you look just to the right of those stats, you'll see that his OBP is still well below .300, he still swings and misses at 47% of pitches out of the strikezone, and still has a negative UZR at -7. Oh and his OPS is at a strong .714, or in simpler terms, "Eleven-Points-Better-Than-Mitch-Maier". This guy is legit! SUPER LEGIT!
ERRRRRRRR. No he's not. He's still terrible. And don't tell me that I just think he's terrible because I don't "watch the games" or "listen to Ryan Lefebvre's analysis of Yuni". He's terrible. He swings at everything. Heres the messed up part: HE WOULD PROBABLY BE A DAMN GOOD PLAYER IF HE DIDN'T SWING AT EVERY DAMN PITCH!!!
The fact that he swings at so many pitches early in the count and out of the strike zone actually makes him terrible. If he wouldn't swing at those pitches, he would walk more, meaning he would get out less and help the team out more. Also, he would get better pitches to hit, his average would go up, he'd hit for more power and...dare I say it? Or will I get banished back to my mother's basement? HE WOULD WALK MORE.
He's not a good player. He's having an ok season. THAT'S IT. This year doesn't warrant an extension or whatever. Don't fool yourself. On Fescoe's show yesterday, Bob asked George Brett about Betancourt and George started talking about Wilson Betemit. I think that was George's polite way of saying, "I would rather s**t my pants at the Bellagio again than talk about Yuni."
He's a serviceable stopgap for the time being. But don't fool yourself into thinking that he's the future of this team. He's here through next year or until Christian Colon comes up. THAT'S IT.
His season stats are impressive. Sure, if you look solely at home runs and RBIs (worst stat ever for evaluating individual talent), he seems like he's a very productive player.
But if you look just below the surface of those stats...no, actually if you look just to the right of those stats, you'll see that his OBP is still well below .300, he still swings and misses at 47% of pitches out of the strikezone, and still has a negative UZR at -7. Oh and his OPS is at a strong .714, or in simpler terms, "Eleven-Points-Better-Than-Mitch-Maier". This guy is legit! SUPER LEGIT!
ERRRRRRRR. No he's not. He's still terrible. And don't tell me that I just think he's terrible because I don't "watch the games" or "listen to Ryan Lefebvre's analysis of Yuni". He's terrible. He swings at everything. Heres the messed up part: HE WOULD PROBABLY BE A DAMN GOOD PLAYER IF HE DIDN'T SWING AT EVERY DAMN PITCH!!!
The fact that he swings at so many pitches early in the count and out of the strike zone actually makes him terrible. If he wouldn't swing at those pitches, he would walk more, meaning he would get out less and help the team out more. Also, he would get better pitches to hit, his average would go up, he'd hit for more power and...dare I say it? Or will I get banished back to my mother's basement? HE WOULD WALK MORE.
He's not a good player. He's having an ok season. THAT'S IT. This year doesn't warrant an extension or whatever. Don't fool yourself. On Fescoe's show yesterday, Bob asked George Brett about Betancourt and George started talking about Wilson Betemit. I think that was George's polite way of saying, "I would rather s**t my pants at the Bellagio again than talk about Yuni."
He's a serviceable stopgap for the time being. But don't fool yourself into thinking that he's the future of this team. He's here through next year or until Christian Colon comes up. THAT'S IT.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Jason Whitlock is my hero
How about that for a title?
He's one of my biggest influences. From ages 8-24, I read every single Jason Whitlock article. From Dr. B.A. Homer to Jeff George to King Carl, I read every single word. And I loved it. I didn't agree with everything, but his prose and style was (and still is) amazing.
Jason Whitlock got a lot of grief from Kansas City Star readers. I'm not trying to imply anything about the Kansas City demographic, but I'm pretty sure Whitlock made people uneasy because he was opinionated, brash and black. To some people he had an agenda. What that agenda was, I'm not sure. But I'm pretty sure he was one of the first media members to spearhead the "Fire Carl Peterson" movement. He was the first to question the Buddy Bell hiring...at the press conference announcing the hiring of Buddy Bell. He was the first to call for Allard Baird to be fired. He sees right through the NCAA and sees a corporation just as corrupt as Fannie Mae and Goldman Sachs. He saw right through Larry Johnson and saw an immature punk with serious psychological and anger issues. He exposed people in the right way. He is intelligent, savvy, smooth and most importantly, he brought KC to the forefront in national sports journalism.
Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn, The Sports Reporters, Fox Sports, ESPN.com all featured Whitlock for long periods of time. You don't get to that point unless you're damn good. ESPN is the NFL of sports journalism, reserved for the top .01% of journalists in the world (although it may not seem like it when Chris Broussard or Joe Schad come on).
He is a big time player in a small market. KC had been a backwards thinking town up until a few years ago, Whitlock brought some panache and style to the town. When he wrote, people read. People read and they talked about it. "Did you see what Whitlock wrote today?" How many times have you heard that in your life?
That's what a great journalist does. They inspire discussion, debate, controversy and entertain. Jason did all of those things and was undeservedly criticized for it. To me, it seemed people often confused Jason Whitlock: the journalist, with Jason Whitlock: the person. Jason Whitlock the person may be a diva, primadonna or whatever. But Jason Whitlock the journalist is a man who is an equality rights activist. Whether for immigrants, homosexuals or those who are victims of prejudice.
Just like people are able to seperate Kanye West: the man, from Kanye West: the rapper, you must do the same with Whitlock. Kanye: the man, is an arrogant moron who thinks he is the second coming of John the Baptist, while Kanye: the rapper is perhaps the greatest lyricist of our generation. You have to seperate the two in order to see where I'm coming from
I have never met Jason Whitlock. I read his column for 16 years. His work has influenced me in so many ways. He and Joe Posnanski taught me how to captivate (or at least try to) readers. Draw the reader in with shock value, and trick them into reading a great story. Sure, some people couldn't seperate the shock value from the meat and potatoes of the actual column. But then again, some people don't have the capacity to seperate opinion from journalism.
I will miss Jason Whitlock.
He's one of my biggest influences. From ages 8-24, I read every single Jason Whitlock article. From Dr. B.A. Homer to Jeff George to King Carl, I read every single word. And I loved it. I didn't agree with everything, but his prose and style was (and still is) amazing.
Jason Whitlock got a lot of grief from Kansas City Star readers. I'm not trying to imply anything about the Kansas City demographic, but I'm pretty sure Whitlock made people uneasy because he was opinionated, brash and black. To some people he had an agenda. What that agenda was, I'm not sure. But I'm pretty sure he was one of the first media members to spearhead the "Fire Carl Peterson" movement. He was the first to question the Buddy Bell hiring...at the press conference announcing the hiring of Buddy Bell. He was the first to call for Allard Baird to be fired. He sees right through the NCAA and sees a corporation just as corrupt as Fannie Mae and Goldman Sachs. He saw right through Larry Johnson and saw an immature punk with serious psychological and anger issues. He exposed people in the right way. He is intelligent, savvy, smooth and most importantly, he brought KC to the forefront in national sports journalism.
Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn, The Sports Reporters, Fox Sports, ESPN.com all featured Whitlock for long periods of time. You don't get to that point unless you're damn good. ESPN is the NFL of sports journalism, reserved for the top .01% of journalists in the world (although it may not seem like it when Chris Broussard or Joe Schad come on).
He is a big time player in a small market. KC had been a backwards thinking town up until a few years ago, Whitlock brought some panache and style to the town. When he wrote, people read. People read and they talked about it. "Did you see what Whitlock wrote today?" How many times have you heard that in your life?
That's what a great journalist does. They inspire discussion, debate, controversy and entertain. Jason did all of those things and was undeservedly criticized for it. To me, it seemed people often confused Jason Whitlock: the journalist, with Jason Whitlock: the person. Jason Whitlock the person may be a diva, primadonna or whatever. But Jason Whitlock the journalist is a man who is an equality rights activist. Whether for immigrants, homosexuals or those who are victims of prejudice.
Just like people are able to seperate Kanye West: the man, from Kanye West: the rapper, you must do the same with Whitlock. Kanye: the man, is an arrogant moron who thinks he is the second coming of John the Baptist, while Kanye: the rapper is perhaps the greatest lyricist of our generation. You have to seperate the two in order to see where I'm coming from
I have never met Jason Whitlock. I read his column for 16 years. His work has influenced me in so many ways. He and Joe Posnanski taught me how to captivate (or at least try to) readers. Draw the reader in with shock value, and trick them into reading a great story. Sure, some people couldn't seperate the shock value from the meat and potatoes of the actual column. But then again, some people don't have the capacity to seperate opinion from journalism.
I will miss Jason Whitlock.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Yankee "fans" will never be better than us
Big credit to Travis Pflanz of One Royal Way* for giving me the motivation to write this post.
*By the way, if you haven't stopped by One Royal Way, it's phenomenal. He's a good writer and the site is really well designed. Hope to have him help me redesign my blog.
We're used to it. Whether it's the Twins, Cardinals, Red Sox or White Sox, Kauffman Stadium is a hot spot for opposing fans to flock to when their teams are in town. I can't blame them. The tickets are the cheapest in baseball. There's usually no problem getting a hold of some good seats outside of Opening Day. Kansas City is accessible from every major Midwest city within a few hours drive. There are fans of every team everywhere. The Twins, Cards and both Sox are teams that have earned my respect throughout the years.
The Twins are a model franchise for small market teams like the Royals (even though I would hardly consider Minneapolis/St. Paul "small market"). The Cardinals are a franchise with fantastic history and passionate fans. Although they may be cocky and arrogant, they usually have regional ties to St. Louis and have been lifelong fans. The Red Sox have become a "trendy" team in the last decade, but ask most fans at a Royals/Red Sox series and it's likely that they're actually from New England and will tell you exactly where they were when the Sox won it all in 2004. White Sox fans are as loyal as they come. The second team in the Second City. I hate the White Sox players, but have a large amount of respect for anyone who sticks by a franchise like the White Sox, who are continuously spat on by Cubs' fans for being trashy and poor.
Being a fan of most sports teams isn't easy. I'm a prime example. Lifelong Kansas City Royals, Chiefs and Missouri Tigers fan. Ask anyone born after 1985 and they'll tell you why. Hell, ask anyone born after 1970 and they'll show you why. KC is littered with the memories of Lin Elliot, Steve Bono, Tyus Edney, John Elway, Chris Chambliss, 5th downs and kicked footballs for game tying touchdowns.
My sports life hasn't been easy. I know why I stick by my teams though. They wear the banner of my city. Where I was born and raised. They wear the colors of my college where I had my finest moments. I am connected with these teams in a way that most fans are. They've given me my greatest memories and worst nightmares. I cried as Lin Elliot's wounded duck kick sailed left of the goalposts as time expired in 1995. I screamed for someone to just step in front of Tyus Edney in Boise. I feel the passion and love leaving my body with every dropped pop up and terrible free agent signing. But at least I feel something.
These Yankee "fans" don't feel anything. Did they cry as the Yankees won their 26th World Championship? Did they thank God for blessing them with a fantastic franchise that has committed itself to winning during its entire existence? Did they think life itself wasn't going to go on after Luis Gonzalez dashed the hopes of New York City just weeks after 9/11?
No. They point and laugh as if to say: "Look at me! This is the good life! I'm so glad I chose to be a Yankee fan!"
I have all the respect for those who were born in New York City. It's a great city. Maybe the best in the world. My family has ties to New York. My great-great grandfathers came off the boat from Scotland and Ireland to start a new life in America. If you're born in New York, chances are you're a Yankee fan.
However, if you're born in Omaha, Little Rock or Paola, you don't have the luxury of a professional sports team in your city. You get to choose. People who cheer for the Yankees from cities like these probably have family members who grew up in New York or just wanted to take the easy way and cheer for a winner. But there are people from Kansas City, born and raised, who are Yankee fans. I'm sorry, you're a poser. You're not from New York. That youth group trip you took to NYC in 1996 doesn't count either. I know you're a huge Alicia Keys fan and INSIST on blasting "LETS HEAR IT FOR NEW YOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRK" every time you take your '97 Chevy Blazer out to cruise Zona Rosa for chicks, but come on, you're not fooling anybody. It's easy to root for the Yankees because they win. In all likelihood, they've probably never been to New York City, or even the East Coast for that matter. But they see Eminem and LeBron James wearing Yankee hats and think that being a Yankees fan is cool.
Let me tell you something, being a fan of a sports team isn't supposed to be cool. It's supposed to be intense, visceral, passionate, loving, a roller coaster of emotion. Being a Yankee fan isn't like that to these people. It's the easy way out. The effort-free version of being a sports fan. If being a sports fan was a video game, the difficulty would go as such:
Easy- Yankees
Medium- Braves
Hard- Indians
Batshit crazy insane difficult- Royals
I didn't choose to become a Royals fan. I was born into it. But I choose to stick by the team. I choose to be loyal. Am I a better person for it? Probably not. But am I a better sports fan for doing it? Absolutely.
Because when the Royals do raise that trophy, I won't be pointing and laughing, begging for the world to notice how much better than everyone I am. I'll be right next to you. Soaked in beer and tears, hugging complete strangers. Knowing that choosing to stay loyal was the right choice.
*By the way, if you haven't stopped by One Royal Way, it's phenomenal. He's a good writer and the site is really well designed. Hope to have him help me redesign my blog.
We're used to it. Whether it's the Twins, Cardinals, Red Sox or White Sox, Kauffman Stadium is a hot spot for opposing fans to flock to when their teams are in town. I can't blame them. The tickets are the cheapest in baseball. There's usually no problem getting a hold of some good seats outside of Opening Day. Kansas City is accessible from every major Midwest city within a few hours drive. There are fans of every team everywhere. The Twins, Cards and both Sox are teams that have earned my respect throughout the years.
The Twins are a model franchise for small market teams like the Royals (even though I would hardly consider Minneapolis/St. Paul "small market"). The Cardinals are a franchise with fantastic history and passionate fans. Although they may be cocky and arrogant, they usually have regional ties to St. Louis and have been lifelong fans. The Red Sox have become a "trendy" team in the last decade, but ask most fans at a Royals/Red Sox series and it's likely that they're actually from New England and will tell you exactly where they were when the Sox won it all in 2004. White Sox fans are as loyal as they come. The second team in the Second City. I hate the White Sox players, but have a large amount of respect for anyone who sticks by a franchise like the White Sox, who are continuously spat on by Cubs' fans for being trashy and poor.
Being a fan of most sports teams isn't easy. I'm a prime example. Lifelong Kansas City Royals, Chiefs and Missouri Tigers fan. Ask anyone born after 1985 and they'll tell you why. Hell, ask anyone born after 1970 and they'll show you why. KC is littered with the memories of Lin Elliot, Steve Bono, Tyus Edney, John Elway, Chris Chambliss, 5th downs and kicked footballs for game tying touchdowns.
My sports life hasn't been easy. I know why I stick by my teams though. They wear the banner of my city. Where I was born and raised. They wear the colors of my college where I had my finest moments. I am connected with these teams in a way that most fans are. They've given me my greatest memories and worst nightmares. I cried as Lin Elliot's wounded duck kick sailed left of the goalposts as time expired in 1995. I screamed for someone to just step in front of Tyus Edney in Boise. I feel the passion and love leaving my body with every dropped pop up and terrible free agent signing. But at least I feel something.
These Yankee "fans" don't feel anything. Did they cry as the Yankees won their 26th World Championship? Did they thank God for blessing them with a fantastic franchise that has committed itself to winning during its entire existence? Did they think life itself wasn't going to go on after Luis Gonzalez dashed the hopes of New York City just weeks after 9/11?
No. They point and laugh as if to say: "Look at me! This is the good life! I'm so glad I chose to be a Yankee fan!"
I have all the respect for those who were born in New York City. It's a great city. Maybe the best in the world. My family has ties to New York. My great-great grandfathers came off the boat from Scotland and Ireland to start a new life in America. If you're born in New York, chances are you're a Yankee fan.
However, if you're born in Omaha, Little Rock or Paola, you don't have the luxury of a professional sports team in your city. You get to choose. People who cheer for the Yankees from cities like these probably have family members who grew up in New York or just wanted to take the easy way and cheer for a winner. But there are people from Kansas City, born and raised, who are Yankee fans. I'm sorry, you're a poser. You're not from New York. That youth group trip you took to NYC in 1996 doesn't count either. I know you're a huge Alicia Keys fan and INSIST on blasting "LETS HEAR IT FOR NEW YOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRK" every time you take your '97 Chevy Blazer out to cruise Zona Rosa for chicks, but come on, you're not fooling anybody. It's easy to root for the Yankees because they win. In all likelihood, they've probably never been to New York City, or even the East Coast for that matter. But they see Eminem and LeBron James wearing Yankee hats and think that being a Yankees fan is cool.
Let me tell you something, being a fan of a sports team isn't supposed to be cool. It's supposed to be intense, visceral, passionate, loving, a roller coaster of emotion. Being a Yankee fan isn't like that to these people. It's the easy way out. The effort-free version of being a sports fan. If being a sports fan was a video game, the difficulty would go as such:
Easy- Yankees
Medium- Braves
Hard- Indians
Batshit crazy insane difficult- Royals
I didn't choose to become a Royals fan. I was born into it. But I choose to stick by the team. I choose to be loyal. Am I a better person for it? Probably not. But am I a better sports fan for doing it? Absolutely.
Because when the Royals do raise that trophy, I won't be pointing and laughing, begging for the world to notice how much better than everyone I am. I'll be right next to you. Soaked in beer and tears, hugging complete strangers. Knowing that choosing to stay loyal was the right choice.
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