We heard a story in class today about the first ever professional baseball club, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, that rivaled some of the fan sentiment from today and even outdid some of the extreme nature of fan behavior present in todays society. A little background, in the mid 1800s, baseball was taking off and truly becoming our nations pastime as men, and women, all over the country were playing the exciting new game. No city took to the game more than that of New York, with over 50 teams competing against one another in 1858. The popularity of the game even grew throughout the Civil War as men on both sides were playing constantly. One of the main rules set up as baseball was founded, though, was that of it always remaining an amateur game, meaning, the founders of baseball never wanted their players to be paid. This all changed in 1869 when Harry Wright founded the Red Stockings and begin paying his players, many of whom were from the New York area. His investment in players paid off as they won all 65 of their games in the '69 season, they even turned a profit on the season for their investors of $1.39. The roll continued as the next season began and they won their first 27 games, beating teams on either coast with help from the intercontinental railroad. It wasn't until a matchup in front of 20,000 spectators in New York, playing against the Brooklyn Atlantics, that the Red Stockings first tasted defeat, an 8-7 extra innings loss. The Cincinnati fans took this loss so badly that many refused to show up for future home games and eventually the team was disbanded. All based on ONE loss!
Talk about fans not putting up with losing. I have seen this scenario play out more times than I care to count, though not as extreme, in recent memory with not only my alma mater, The University of Texas, but also with some of the other teams I pull for, the Texas Rangers, Dallas Cowboys and even Manchester United.
All of these situations have their differences, but the long and short is still that winning and being competitive in your league has fostered a sense of entitlement in the fan base to where the slightest hiccup causes massive uproar. Don't get me wrong, there are issues at hand with all of the aforementioned teams, but is it really the worst of times as some would have us believe?
For example, when the Rangers lost game 163 this year to the Rays, I was as disheartened and bummed as any Ranger fan. I wish we had done more to solidify our spot in the postseason and given ourselves a shot at another World Series run. The unfortunate part, though, is that we didn't. We lost our way mid-September and without a furious last week of play, wouldn't have even had the shot at game 163. Yes, there are some changes that need to be made, but if you had listened to some of the venom being spewed after that loss, you would think we had lost every game along the way. Some of it was pretty brutal. The other end of the spectrum is the "well, at least we made it this far" fan that's okay as long as their team plays well and always wants to keep everyone around because of the good ole days.
A lot of both is going on down here in Austin with the sometimes scuffling, always confusing 2013 version of the Texas Longhorns football team. One week we suck and need to fire Mack, the next week we are better and turning the corner, the next we win, but sucked doing so and probably got lucky so Mack needs to go again and the next, we do the improbable and win a game that we probably shouldn't have and maybe all is well. Who really knows? I know I don't. I know there have been times where I've sung the praises of these kids and other times where it wasn't fun at all and I would rather not watch the game at all.
When you talk the Cowboys... on second thought, I'm not gonna address that here. I have my own opinions that some others share and many others don't about what is going on with those guys. I get really more frustrated with talking Cowboys than anything else I talk about, mainly because I do feel so strongly towards how a certain player performs versus how many within the fan base of those cheering view him.
All in all, if we view fandom as a spectrum, where one end is the 'Chicken Little sky is falling end' and the other is the 'Never change the good ole days end', I fall somewhere in the middle. I like nostalgia and longevity but at the same time, when something is broken, it needs to be changed. That's where I am on Texas football. I know we are playing better and our kids haven't given up on this season and still DO have a lot to play for over the remaining 6 games, but I think it's time for a change at the top and time for a new voice to be heard in the room. Not to disparage what Mack has done for the profile and strength of the program, but the time has come if you ask me. My hope for the rest of the season? That we win out! Win the Big 12 and play in a BCS bowl and win it and allow Mack to step aside a winner, like he wanted to do after 2009.
As for the Rangers, I don't really know what I want. I do know I wish they were on the verge of their third World Series matchup in 4 years and a chance for revenge against a team that sometimes makes it hard for me to fully trust baseball again. Many people have had this phenomenon after getting their hearts broken in relationships, mine is still mending two years later after the blow the Cardinals laid on me. Instead we are home, watching other teams get their chance at glory, figuring out how to take that next step back into the fray. I have utmost faith, though, that the right moves will be made to make sure that this thing heads in the right direction, though.
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