Playoff Thoughts

I was talking to my father in-law Dave earlier about the opening game of the ALCS. He asked me if I was rooting against a Dice-K no hitter. I think when I told him "no, not really," that it kind of surprised him since he knows how big of a Yankee fan I am. He asked me if I was pulling for the Sox to win, and I told him that I didn't really care who won. What it bolis down to is that there are only 2 teams out there. There's the Yankees and there's "not the Yankees." And if it's "not the Yankees" winning the World Series, then it's all the same to me.

Now don't get me wrong. If you ask me to pick a team that prefer not to win, it's the Red Sox. But if they happen to, it doesn't bother me because like every other team out there, they're "not the Yankees." But I'm having a really hard time rooting for the Rays because of their quote/unquote fans. I wonder how many of them are attending a Rays game for the first time? Here's a team that was lucky to bring in 15000 people for a game. If the Yankees or Red Sox were in town, maybe they'd get 25000, and most of those people were rooting against the Rays. And now that the playoffs are in full swing, boom! The place is jam packed full of Rays "fans." I found myself getting annoyed last night whenever the cameras panned to shots of the crowd. I don't know why it bothers me so much. but that's just how I feel. If you're going to support a team and root for them, do it all year, not just for the last two to 12 games! And if there's any team that deserved the support of their fans all year it was the Rays. They kicked some major ass and deserve more love that what they were given. What really sucks is that the true Rays fans out there are going to get lumped in with all of the bandwagon riders. I wonder how much Rays gear we'll see out there if they happen to win it all. Ahh, it's annoying.

What it all boils down to is that I'm pulling for the Dodgers, because of the Yankee connection with Torre, Mattingly, and Bowa. If they can't pull it out, then I'd like to see the Phillies win. Even though I'm rooting against the Rays "fans" I'd still rather see them win over the Red Sox, but if they do, I hope they get swept in the World Series. In the end though, if it's "not the Yankees" winning it all, it's all the same to me.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie