maqroll Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I'm also new to baseball thanks to ESPN - was wathing the Red Sox @ Rangers game this morning. I'm hooked. Absolutely love it (and the LLWS :shock:) But I don't know who to support - I always watch wanting the losing team to win.... Who in the MLB is the equivilent of Aston Villa? It was the Boston Red Sox until 2004....Traditional club, great stadium, hadn't won much in a long time, etc... If you want to follow a club that is desperate for a trophy, has tons of tradition, great stadium, etc., I'd go for the Chicago Cubs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunRickyRun Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I'm also new to baseball thanks to ESPN - was wathing the Red Sox @ Rangers game this morning. I'm hooked. Absolutely love it (and the LLWS :shock:) But I don't know who to support - I always watch wanting the losing team to win.... Who in the MLB is the equivilent of Aston Villa? It was the Boston Red Sox until 2004....Traditional club, great stadium, hadn't won much in a long time, etc... If you want to follow a club that is desperate for a trophy, has tons of tradition, great stadium, etc., I'd go for the Chicago Cubs. Noooooooooooooo Don't become another flub bum. Most people in the UK support the Red Sox, Yankees or the flubs. If you choose to support one of these teams then you're the equivalent of someone abroad supporting one of the sky 4 (Man Utd, Liverpool etc). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted August 25, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted August 25, 2011 Go Sox (and thank you, Oakland!) Houston become the first team to get eliminated from the playoffs. I like Brian Wilson -- some of his interviews are very amusing. Which team is the equivalent of Aston Villa? Hmm, no candidate immediately stands out. Cincinnati Reds is somewhat analogous, given the traditional and the not overwhelming level of success. Levi will have a better answer. Over to you, Mr. Ramsey. I second the Cubs: * biggest club in the Second City (though LA has passed Chicago, Chicago is still the Second City...) * one of two founding clubs of the National League (which of course provided some inspiration to McGregor) that's still active, and of those two, the one who hasn't moved (the other was the Boston NL club (originally the Red Stockings, known through most of their history as the Braves, who left Boston in the 1950s for Milwaukee before settling in Atlanta in the 1960s)... the Boston Red Sox essentially appropriated the Red Stockings name after the Red Stockings became known as the Beaneaters (the nicknames were basically epithets used by the press... it wasn't until somewhat later that the nicknames became official); interestingly enough the Cubs were founded as the White Stockings and the same process basically gave the Chicago White Sox their name) * Have played continuously since 1874 * With regard to the local derby, some parallels can be drawn: - Cubs on the north side of town, White Sox on the south side - Cubs have the bigger fan base of the two - White Sox have a decidedly more working class/poorer fanbase than the more across the social spectrum Cubs - Cubs draw fans from much further afield than the White Sox The Cubs' fans' reputation for being apathetic is a stumbling block, though. The stereotypical Cubs fan doesn't expect the team to be successful and goes down to Wrigley to have some beers with friends, enjoy summer in Chicago (winter is brutal there, after all), and if the Cubs are any good that's a bonus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunRickyRun Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I second the Cubs: * biggest club in the Second City (though LA has passed Chicago, Chicago is still the Second City...) * one of two founding clubs of the National League (which of course provided some inspiration to McGregor) that's still active, and of those two, the one who hasn't moved (the other was the Boston NL club (originally the Red Stockings, known through most of their history as the Braves, who left Boston in the 1950s for Milwaukee before settling in Atlanta in the 1960s)... the Boston Red Sox essentially appropriated the Red Stockings name after the Red Stockings became known as the Beaneaters (the nicknames were basically epithets used by the press... it wasn't until somewhat later that the nicknames became official); interestingly enough the Cubs were founded as the White Stockings and the same process basically gave the Chicago White Sox their name) * Have played continuously since 1874 * With regard to the local derby, some parallels can be drawn: - Cubs on the north side of town, White Sox on the south side - Cubs have the bigger fan base of the two - White Sox have a decidedly more working class/poorer fanbase than the more across the social spectrum Cubs - Cubs draw fans from much further afield than the White Sox But they play in blue and have won f*ck all in 100 years (like blues) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eames Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 Aren't the Cubs cursed or something? It have I made that up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted August 25, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted August 25, 2011 Billy goat curse The Billy Goat curse was supposedly placed on the Cubs in 1945 when Billy Goat Tavern owner Billy Sianis was asked to leave a World Series game against the Detroit Tigers at the Cubs' home ground of Wrigley Field because his pet goat's odor was bothering other fans. He was outraged and declared, "Them Cubs, they aren't gonna win no more," which has been interpreted to mean that there would never be another World Series game won at Wrigley Field. The exact nature of the curse differs in various accounts of the incident. Some state that Sianis declared that no World Series games would ever again be played at Wrigley Field, while others believe that his ban was on the Cubs appearing in the World Series, making no mention of a specific venue. Sianis’ family claims that he dispatched a telegram to team owner Philip K. Wrigley which read, “You are going to lose this World Series and you are never going to win another World Series again. You are never going to win a World Series again because you insulted my goat.” Whatever the truth, the Cubs were up two games to one in the ’45 series but ended up losing Game 4 and the best-of-seven series, four games to three. The curse was immortalized in newspaper columns over the years, particularly by syndicated columnist Mike Royko, and gained widespread attention during the 2003 postseason when Fox television commentators played it up during the Cubs-Marlins match-up in the National League Championship Series. Sam Sianis, nephew of Billy Sianis, has been brought out onto Wrigley Field with a goat multiple times in attempts to break the curse: on Opening Day in 1984 and 1989 (in both years, the Cubs went on to win their division), in 1994 to stop a home losing streak, and in 1998 for the wild card play-in game (which the Cubs won). In 2003 (incidentally, the Chinese zodiac's Year of the Goat), a group of Cubs fans headed to Houston with a billy goat named "Virgil Homer" and attempted to gain entrance to Minute Maid Park, home of their division rivals the Astros. After they were denied entrance, they unfurled a scroll, read a verse and proclaimed they were "reversing the curse." The Cubs won the division that year and then came within five outs of playing in the World Series but were undone by the Florida Marlins' eight-run rally, and possibly the Steve Bartman incident; they then lost the following game and with it the series (the Marlins went on to win the World Series against the New York Yankees.) Further salting the wound, the Astros earned their first World Series berth two years later. In another bizarre twist, it was reported that a butchered goat was hung from the Harry Caray statue on October 3, 2007, to which The Chicago Sun-Times noted: "If the prankster intended to reverse the supposed billy goat curse with the stunt, it doesn't appear to have worked." While the Cubs did win the NL Central Division title in 2007 and 2008, they were swept in the first round of the playoffs in both years: by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2007 and the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008. The elimination by Arizona came on October 6, the same date that the goat appeared at Wrigley Field in 1945. The act was repeated before the home opener in 2009, this time a goat's butchered head being hung from the statue. The act was futile as the Cubs were eliminated from postseason contention on September 26, 2009. Cubs fans have also brought in priests that have blessed the field, stadium, and dugout. According to three interviews with Sam Sianis, William Sianis' nephew-in-law, the Curse of the Billy Goat can be dispelled only by the Chicago Cubs organization's showing a sincere fondness for goats; allowing them into Wrigley Field because they genuinely want to and not simply for publicity reasons. (According to an account in the Chicago Sun of October 7, 1945, the goat was turned away at the gate, and Sianis left the goat tied to a stake in a parking lot and went into the game alone. There was mention of a lawsuit that day, but no mention of a curse.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted September 1, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted September 1, 2011 This looks to be a rather lackluster September. Most of the races are just about decided, it's just a lot of September call-ups and managers setting up their rotations for the postseason. * AL East is up for grabs, but whoever finishes 2nd will get the wild card (Yankees currently 9 games ahead of the Angels for the wild card) * AL West is still in play (Angels 3.5 behind the Rangers) * None of the NL races is closer than the 6 game gap between the Giants and D-backs (and the Giants have basically given up and started jettisoning players to prepare for next year) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 I'm also new to baseball thanks to ESPN - was wathing the Red Sox @ Rangers game this morning. I'm hooked. Absolutely love it (and the LLWS :shock:) But I don't know who to support - I always watch wanting the losing team to win.... Who in the MLB is the equivilent of Aston Villa? The Atlanta Braves. Proud History (recent and past), strong sense of belonging, never quite smashed into the elite but always threatening, fans love a good moan too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted September 2, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted September 2, 2011 And THAT happened Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parisvilla Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Dodgers? Historically one of the biggest franchises but have not won the world series since '88. Over the past 12-18 months the money has dried up and attendances have fallen sharply..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurtsimonw Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Mets. Big city team. Last champions in the 80s. Cut spending big time recently. Current team has alot of players that've come through their system. And both are depressing, of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 I'm also new to baseball thanks to ESPN - was wathing the Red Sox @ Rangers game this morning. I'm hooked. Absolutely love it (and the LLWS :shock:) But I don't know who to support - I always watch wanting the losing team to win.... Who in the MLB is the equivilent of Aston Villa? The Atlanta Braves. Proud History (recent and past), strong sense of belonging, never quite smashed into the elite but always threatening, fans love a good moan too. Problem is, the Braves were originally from Boston. Then they moved to Milwaukee. It's only been the last 40 years or so they've been in Atlanta. And while in Boston, they were the smaller club.....kind of like..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Dodgers? Historically one of the biggest franchises but have not won the world series since '88. Over the past 12-18 months the money has dried up and attendances have fallen sharply..... Looks like McCourt may have found a buyer. Over $1 Billion..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parisvilla Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Dodgers? Historically one of the biggest franchises but have not won the world series since '88. Over the past 12-18 months the money has dried up and attendances have fallen sharply..... Looks like McCourt may have found a buyer. Over $1 Billion..... Yep, read something in the LA Times about it. $1.2 billion with US and Chinese investors. Surely McCourt sells at that figure? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billy_loes Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Am I the only Detroit Tiger on here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Dodgers? Historically one of the biggest franchises but have not won the world series since '88. Over the past 12-18 months the money has dried up and attendances have fallen sharply..... Looks like McCourt may have found a buyer. Over $1 Billion..... Yep, read something in the LA Times about it. $1.2 billion with US and Chinese investors. Surely McCourt sells at that figure? At this point, I don't think he has much of a choice. That's a pretty penny though, isn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Zen Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 I'm bumping this in honour of Mariano Rivera, as Mo passed Trevor Hoffman to sit alone on top of the all time saves leaders list, getting his save no. 602 closing out a 6-4 win over the Twins at the Stadium. Meanwhile, the Red Sux are shaking as the Rays are getting awfully close in the WC race. What's happening at Fenway, Levi? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 Nothing we haven't seen here before But we just split a doubleheader with Baltimore, scoring 18 runs in the 2nd game. Everything is well in hand, YankeeLover :winkold: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Zen Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 With the Rays still to play the Yankees seven times down the stretch, how does it feel for a Boston fan having to root for the Bombers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NibblyPig Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 I want the Rays to win all seven and knock the Yanks out of the wild card position. Highly unlikely... but, by golly, it would be amusing if it happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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