Posted on 12/15/2010 8:14:48 PM PST by max americana
The Philadelphia Phillies reintroduced their big free agent acquisition today — one that Phillies fans grew fond of during a World Series run two years ago. Cliff Lee appeared relieved to be back in Philly after being bounced all across the United States over the past two seasons. Lee, who will wear No. 33 now that Roy Halladay has taken over his old No. 34, spoke about the opportunity to join a rotation that could be “historic,” as he termed it. He also praised the fans in Philadelphia and cited them as one of the main reasons he chose to return.
The Yankees needed to get Lee and they couldn’t pull it off, leaving Brian Cashman with a rotation that is full of holes. Lee will likely be praised for leaving money on the table by signing with Philadelphia, but the lefty said it best when he told reporters that “enough is enough” when you hit a certain point. He turned out to be the Yankees worst nightmare in free agency — a guy who actually cares that fans spit on his wife when he visited Yankee stadium as the opposition more than he cares about a longer, more lucrative deal.
Fans in Texas and/or Seattle might be a little offended by one of the more humorous moments of Lee’s introductory press conference, when he alluded to the fact that Philly fans “don’t need a teleprompter to tell them to cheer.”
What, you don’t think the Overbay/Pearce & Jones/Diaz platoons will carry us to the promise land? You can’t see the genius in marketing Corriea as an ace pitcher and the potential in Scott Olsen? That’ll sell out PNC Park more than bobbleheads and concerts.
Oh what I would give for one damn summer with a Pirates team like the one we had as “recently” as ‘90-’92. Why they ever signed Van Slyke over pre-’roid Bonds is beyond me. I know Andy had 5 GGs, but he was useless after the ‘92 season. He was also the same jagoff Bonds was except on camera.
Got news for you, when the Cubs come to San Francisco, a lot of their fans show up and cheer for them.
I had the pleasure of being at Candlestick the night a Dodgers fan went from upper reserve to lower box without using the stairway. This would never happen with a Cubs fan in SF.
The truth is, the Cubs are a great franchise and there are a lot of baseball fans who would love to see them (or the Rangers, or the Indians) win it all. Trust me, as a Giants fan since 1962, it feels real good when your team wins it all.
Let’s just put it this way, I’m not going to Bradenton again this year.
This Ranger fan is glad Lee didn’t sign here. Overrated? That may be a little strong, but he DID choke in the World Series. The truth is he never had any REAL intention of signing with Texas but strung them along for some reason. Some say it wasn’t money since he took less, but you have to wonder why he settled for a 5 year deal in Philly although, according to Ranger brass, demanded 7 years (for more money) in Texas? This after he damn well knew Texas wasn’t going that long (did Nolan really not make that clear in their first meeting in Arkansas??). I need further explanation to clear that up.
Hey, he helps the Rangers get a ring and I’d say give him 10 years. But as is, the Rangers traded 2 good pitching prospects and another good player for what? Absolutely nothing in the regular season (he had a losing record). Tampa Bay series? Yeah, he played a very significant part, but the Rangers dominated the Yankees with him only pitching once. Laid a huge egg in the Series. I agree its tough getting the Rangers to the series without him, but that’s not case closed.
Phillies were/are the losingest franchise in all of professional sports. After suffering through the days of guys like Robert Person as the #1 pitcher and Travis Lee as first baseman, I don’t feel guilty AT ALL about these Yankee-esque moves.
>>At a Cubs game this May, half of the stadium were cheering for the Cubbies.<<
That’s because nobody moves from Texas to Chicago, New York, Philly, Boston, or whatever other place you’d call a baseball town. You can’t sling a dead cat in DFW without hitting someone that’s a northern transplant. Further the Rangers to WAY back to ... 1972. 5 years AFTER Yaz won the last triple crown. The first 10 years, the franchise was basically a joke — horribly under financed, poorly managed (field and upstairs), and playing in a minor league stadium. First generation Ranger fans aren’t finished having kids yet!
And you seriously think its reasonable to compare what happens in the Ballpark to Wrigley or Fenway? Hell, Hockey won a title a decade before the Rangers played for one.
“Let’s just put it this way, I’m not going to Bradenton again this year.”
Yep. Me too. I don’t go to PNC Park anymore. I used to attend 30+ games a year. I’d be a season ticket holder in a heartbeat if they’d field a respectable team. After seeing how they handled Aramis Ramirez, I doubt I’ll be one. I can see them having financial difficulties, but trading a promising 3rd baseman and resurgent Kenny Lofton to the Cubs for a strikeout machine, a fringe prospect, and a box of rocks kind of torqued me off. They could have gotten more. Since then, salary dumps are the norm. Anything resembling talent is traded away for a future that never comes.
I’ve been to a grand total of 3 games since 2007. I got tickets for free in all three cases and limited myself to two beers (for the pain). I did have my wedding reception down at PNC Park, but the Pirates really don’t get much from that believe it or not :-)!
Also, I just watched Game 7 of the 1960 World Series tonight ... man was that cool :-). My only memories of watching a Pirates World Series live are some faded ones of Teke kicking ass in all but one of his appearances. I was six years old then. I was a deranged, depressed teenager after our last playoff appearance. Now I’m just a “bitter clinger” when it comes to the Pirates :-). I flat out love the game of baseball ... the NFL is nothing but a joke circus anymore and I really cannot get into the NHL with its semi-annual rule changes anymore. I just cannot support the current owners as they are simply milking every last dime out of Taxpayer Park and doing little to improve the team.
I keep telling myself “someday”, but I fear that by the time Alvarez, Tabata, and McCutcheon start “dominating”, we’ll be trading them for rocks and shoelaces. What’s ironic is that we’ll probably have a dominating pitching staff in 2013 with the pitchers we drafted this year ... it’ll be just in time to kiss this potential offense goodbye. I have to admit that I really like the Pirates’ past few drafts, but they keep on failing at the major league level.
OTOH, Philly fans are considered some of the worst in professional sports.
I don’t know about Rangers fans, but I do know that it amazes me when I take in a Red Sox game in Baltimore that the fans only make noise on command of the scoreboard “Let’s Go O’s” or “Get Loud” or “Cheer”. And the minute the message goes away they stop cheering. In the meantime the Red Sox fans in attendance know when to cheer or make noise without being told to do so...waves of “Let’s go Red Sox...clap, clap, clap” and “Yankees suck”.
Even in New York, while nowhere near as bad as Baltimore, they have those cute little “Make Noise” messages etc to get the crowd going. You never see that in Boston.
1) People don't tend to move that much, and as such they tend to identify with the team very strongly. Essentially if you look at the population of a city in the areas I mentioned, the vast majority of the population in a major metropolitan area are born within 70 miles of a major city where a major sports team is located.
2) Rooting for a sports team is essentially their form of recreation. Unlike the southern and western parts of the USA, there aren't much other diversions than rooting for the local sports team. Note that the "super" team of the current Miami Heat are not selling out their home games, while it's nearly impossible to get tickets for New York Knicks and Boston Celtics home games.
As a Ranger fan, I must say .... TOO RIGHT, CLIF! Man, Ranger fans are the quietest bunch in the entire major league.
Or one of the fashion shows known as a Dallas Stars game. Drives me nuts the way the elite show up no earlier than the 2nd period decked out for a night on the town.
Thank God I have my Allen Americans for some of that old time hockey.
Or as the Little Ticket refers them to as, the "Cocaine and Boob Job Crowd."
The Padres' 10-game losing streak was part of it--without that, the Giants might not have been in the post-season.
That’s funny!!!!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.