Bob Ryan… Better Than Dan Shaughnessy

OK, I hate to admit it but Bob Ryan actually wrote a good column for the first time in awhile. However, before we talk about it, I have to make everyone aware that I consider Dan Shaughnessy the spawn of Satan. Whereas I will tolerate Ryan even though I dislike his brand of obnoxious television journalism, Shaughnessy fills me with a burning passion to, in the words of Hannibal Lector, "[eat] his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti." That's right, Dan Shaughnessy may, someday soon, drive me to cannibalism with his terrible, self-aggrandizing, and personally vindictive columns.

Now, on to the column. Although some might suggest that I picked this because it criticizes the so-called Red Sox Nation, this is not the case. In this instance, I believe that his criticisms of Red Sox fans apply equally to Yankee fans. To me, the most salient point that he makes in this article is to point out how me-centric fans have become. If you listen to sports talk radio, especially local stations like WEEI or WFAN as opposed to national ones like ESPN Radio or Sporting News Radio, you'll see what he means. About every fourth caller seems to be of the opinion that if their team loses that there must be a) a specific person to blame for said loss and b) that said person has injured the caller first and their team second. As Ryan so astutely points out, fans have come to take each negative result for their team as a personal slight. This is not only a ridiculously self-centered point of view, it also takes away from everyone's enjoyment of the game by creating a noxious and poisonous atmosphere. It turns the idea of fandom and rooting on its head.

We are fans because we love the sport and our team. I wouldn't root for the Yankees if I didn't love baseball. Granted, there are teams that I casually root for because of where I grew up, regardless of what sport they play. However, you won't find me calling up a radio station to complain about the New York Rangers because I am only a casual fan and I don't even like hockey that much.

I guess, when it comes down to it, I decided to write about this article because I think the point of view Ryan expresses in this column is at the core of why I enjoy my friendship with Theo so much (right next to the highly viscous molten material that makes up the mantle of our friendship). We both love baseball first and our respective teams second. It's okay to be upset when your team loses. It's not okay to act as if your team, which you love and are devoted to has dealt you a personal insult through their performance (unless Trot Nixon jogs out to right field holding a sign that reads "We Hate Theo Von HoHenHeim" and then refuses to drop the sign resulting in a two base throwing error because Trot was forced to throw the ball with his glove hand).