Mansfield Fox

Law student. Yankees fan. Massive fraggle. Just living the American dream.

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

Ugly Fan Culture

Jim Geraghty on the ugly culture of contemporary sports fandom. Of note:
I've gone to games wearing the jersey or hat of the visiting team - sometimes the ribbing is good natured, but increasingly, a four-letter dismissal of my team and me is considered the appropriate response. I know a lot of folks who wouldn't wear the wrong team's apparel to a game - why run the risk of running into a drunken lout looking for a fight?
I've been on the wrong end of this phenomenon two times.

1. I went to a Yankees-BoSox playoff game in Fenway back in '99. We had way-way nosebleed seats. Under a sweatshirt and a flannel shirt, I was wearing my Hideki Irabu t-shirt. I spent most of the game, in other words, a covert Yanks fan. When Clemens got knocked out and they brought in, of all people, Irabu to replace him, I knew my moment had come. I removed all the outer layers, and proudly bore my Irabuitude to the world. Needless to say, the Boston fans were not amused. Actually, they were amused, just in a "lets-harass-this-kid-for-the-rest-of-the-game" kind of way. One guy offered me $20 for the shirt so he could wipe his behind with it. (I seriously considered the offer.) In the words of the elderly, abused Irishman on the Simpsons: "Aye, but 'twas all in good fun." I never felt seriously threatened, some of the taunts were pretty funny, and given the circumstances (playoff game, archrivals, etc) I understood where they were coming from.

What I don't understand is:

2. Over the summer my roommate and I caught a Mets game at Shea. It was Mets-Braves, pretty sparsely attended. Being a Yankees fan and needing protection from the sun, I was wearing my Yankees cap. The Mets rallied to win, and my roommate starts high-fiving the guys behind us (who, as an aside, had annoyingly spent the entire game discussing their fantasy baseball league). I turn to high-five as well - I'm not a Mets fan, but I'm at least happy the guys won - and instead of high-fiving they knock my cap off my head and start playing keep-away. I'm sorry, wha? I mean, I know Mets fans are jealous of the success of their crosstown rivals, but do you have to abuse a fan who's trying to congratulate you on your team's victory? And do we really have to act like we're seven again? It's incidents like this that make it hard to respect Mets fans. I feel sort of like Yahweh vis a vis Sodom: for the sake of a few righteous fans, I'll not condemn the whole lot. Though my brimstone finger is getting itchy.

Have I been on the giving end? Only very mildly: I've done the "ASS-hole, ASS-hole" chant that Red Sox fans are given as they're escorted out of the Yankee Stadium bleachers. That's about it. Though I have chuckled as visible Giants fans are mocked at Jets games. But I'd never take a guy's cap. There are lines one does not cross.

UPDATE: I've added a link to another Mets fan who protests that he, too, is righteous. Sorry Tripp.