WEBBTIDE 2001-2002 @ SHORELINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Volume 37 No.16 May. 24 - Jun. 06, 2002 [ ARCHIVE ] [ FEEDBACK ] [ HELP ]
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Mind your manners with the Seattle Mariners

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      Mariners fans, it's time for a reality check. Within the last seven years the M's have become one of the hottest teams in baseball, coming only a few victories shy of a World Series appearance three times. However, with great success comes great responsibility; the responsibility of having an identity.
      Ever since 1995 Seattle has been obsessed with their hometown nine, and for the first few seasons it was acceptable. But having mostly fair-weather fans and bandwagon jumpers as your fan base is ridiculous. Fans cheering wildly for a shallow fly ball hit to the shortstop is getting old --fast.
      In an era of political correctness that bans "Yankees Suck" t-shirts from the ballpark, M's fans have become a disgraceful representation of one of the most dominating teams in the majors. Perhaps instead of having a goofy moose as a mascot, the Ms should hire Billy Quan to make sure that fans mind their manners.
      Couple that with the fact that most Mariner fans don't seem to understand, or want to understand, the sport that they are so smitten towards, and you've got the two biggest causes for the most appalling group of fans in all of sports.
      When he catches word about the baseball fans in Seattle, Abner Doubleday will be turning over in his grave.
      After over six seasons of having your team among the premier clubs in the sport, the fans should catch on to the game a little. They should know the difference between a can of corn and a bloop single by now. I am not suggesting that every M's fan be able to give a lengthy diatribe about the nuances of the infield-fly rule, I am merely suggesting that every time a ball is hit out of the infield that fans should hold off on all of the oohs and aahs. Or maybe when a batter hits into a fielder's choice and the M's score a run, fans should cheer for the run scored, not boo for the ground out.
      In Boston, hope springs eternal every Opening Day as every fan's dreams about the possibility of breaking "the curse" reaches a fever pitch. In Chicago they've got the Bleacher Bums in left field. The Cubs haven't won a World Series since 1908 but almost every game is a sell out. The Dodgers have fans that "Bleed Dodger Blue." And Yankee fans ... well they're Yankee fans.
      The difference between these cities and Seattle is that these fans have carved out an identity for themselves. These are baseball towns. Half of the fans at any given M's game probably couldn't even define Sodo Mojo if the sake of their big foam M hat depended on it.
      In case you were wondering, Sodo is short for south of the Dome, which is where Safeco Field stands. As for the definition of Mojo, I'll leave that one up to you.
      Safeco Field is definitely a majestic place; it is a respectable throwback to older stadiums like the Polo Grounds and Ebbet's Field. However, fans are more preoccupied with their $5 lattŽs and IchiRolls to even begin to pay attention to the game.
      A baseball stadium should bring fans into the game and exude the essence of the sport, not be more of a spectacle than the game itself. Safeco Field does a wonderful job of doing just that, but the fair-weather fans care more about being on the Jumbotron than they do a 3-2 pitch.
      It wasn't that long ago that names like Erik Hanson, Scott Bankhead and Brian Holman filled the rotation and guys like Steve Balboni, Jim Presely, Mickey Brantley and Darnell Coles were in the lineup. How quickly fans forget.
      I suppose Seattle's fair-weather fans should be accepted for what they are, baseball posers. It is possible that there within lies this city's baseball fan base identity: baseball posers. It's just a lot more convenient for Seattleites to be fans when the home team is winning.
      There is no doubt that Sweet Lou and the gang have transformed Seattle into a baseball town. Whether or not the fans at the ballpark want to act like it is one or not is another story.

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by Travis Hay

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wEbbtide Webmaster: Henry Lai

Mind your manners with the Seattle Mariners
.	Mariners fans, it's time for a reality check. Within the last seven years the M's have become one of the hottest teams in baseball, coming only a few victories shy of a World Series appearance three times. However, with great success comes great responsibility; the responsibility of having an identity. Ever since 1995 Seattle has been obsessed with their hometown nine, and for the first few seasons it was acceptable. But having mostly fair-weather fans and bandwagon jumpers as your fan base is ridiculous. Fans cheering wildly for a shallow fly ball hit to the shortstop is getting old --fast. In an era of political correctness that bans "Yankees Suck" t-shirts from the ballpark, M's fans have become a disgraceful representation of one of the most dominating teams in the majors. Perhaps instead of having a goofy moose as a mascot, the Ms should hire Billy Quan to make sure that fans mind their manners. Couple that with the fact that most Mariner fans don't seem to understand, or want to understand, the sport that they are so smitten towards, and you've got the two biggest causes for the most appalling group of fans in all of sports. When he catches word about the baseball fans in Seattle, Abner Doubleday will be turning over in his grave. After over six seasons of having your team among the premier clubs in the sport, the fans should catch on to the game a little. They should know the difference between a can of corn and a bloop single by now. I am not suggesting that every M's fan be able to give a lengthy diatribe about the nuances of the infield-fly rule, I am merely suggesting that every time a ball is hit out of the infield that fans should hold off on all of the oohs and aahs. Or maybe when a batter hits into a fielder's choice and the M's score a run, fans should cheer for the run scored, not boo for the ground out. In Boston, hope springs eternal every Opening Day as every fan's dreams about the possibility of breaking "the curse" reaches a fever pitch. In Chicago they've got the Bleacher Bums in left field. The Cubs haven't won a World Series since 1908 but almost every game is a sell out. The Dodgers have fans that "Bleed Dodger Blue." And Yankee fans ... well they're Yankee fans. The difference between these cities and Seattle is that these fans have carved out an identity for themselves. These are baseball towns. Half of the fans at any given M's game probably couldn't even define Sodo Mojo if the sake of their big foam M hat depended on it. In case you were wondering, Sodo is short for south of the Dome, which is where Safeco Field stands. As for the definition of Mojo, I'll leave that one up to you. Safeco Field is definitely a majestic place; it is a respectable throwback to older stadiums like the Polo Grounds and Ebbet's Field. However, fans are more preoccupied with their $5 lattŽs and IchiRolls to even begin to pay attention to the game. A baseball stadium should bring fans into the game and exude the essence of the sport, not be more of a spectacle than the game itself. Safeco Field does a wonderful job of doing just that, but the fair-weather fans care more about being on the Jumbotron than they do a 3-2 pitch. It wasn't that long ago that names like Erik Hanson, Scott Bankhead and Brian Holman filled the rotation and guys like Steve Balboni, Jim Presely, Mickey Brantley and Darnell Coles were in the lineup. How quickly fans forget. I suppose Seattle's fair-weather fans should be accepted for what they are, baseball posers. It is possible that there within lies this city's baseball fan base identity: baseball posers. It's just a lot more convenient for Seattleites to be fans when the home team is winning. There is no doubt that Sweet Lou and the gang have transformed Seattle into a baseball town. Whether or not the fans at the ballpark want to act like it is one or not is another story.	.
by Travis Hay