NOT ONLY A LOSS FOR THE TEAM BUT A LOSS FOR THE FANS

 

As we all know, the Philles lost there place in the World Series and that was a big blow to Philadelphia fans. This loss was more heart wrenching not because the Phillies were performing poorly, but because they were performing well throughout the season.

The Phillies just got eliminated by a St. Louis Cardinals team that appeared to be eliminated itself six weeks ago. The Phillies were supposed to breeze through the playoffs thanks to the best starting rotation in history. Instead they lost in the first round, and even worse, their lead ace got out-aced. Roy Halladay was great, but Chris Carpenter was just a little bit greater in a 1-0 Game 5 victory last Friday.

 

This was hard for Phillies fans to stomach. The only team that is safe to cheer for in Philly now is the 76ers. Last year, everybody figured the Sixers would be awful. Instead, they made the playoffs. Then, before they could disappoint people, they started canceling games. And now with this NBA lockout who knows what is expected from the basketball industry.

Rosenberg in the article link above goes to say how fans basically let their emotions get the best of them. He states that we can watch lousy teams and enjoy the loss because we don’t expect it.

“We dramatize losing a lot in the sports world. When a team goes through a championship drought, a city is "tortured" and filled with "heartache" at all the lost "clichés" that plague their "writers."

“But losing isn't the worst thing for a sports fan. Cubs fans usually have a blast. Clippers fans rarely get truly angry at their team, because if winning mattered that much to them they would be Lakers fans.(I wasn’t a fan of this comment) Cleveland fans suffer, of course, but the suffering is a badge of honor. They can say it makes them the best fans, the truest fans, the only fans who have stood by their teams for a half-century of lousy winters without winning a title.
Watching lousy teams can be fun, in a twisted sort of way. Watching teams that are supposed to win and flop instead is painful. The problem, again, is not that Philly's teams stink. It's that Philly fans allowed themselves to believe. They are supposed to be the toughest fans in America, inured to failure, hardened by years of losing. They finally thought this was their time.
Now they are left answering one of life's biggest questions: "What the ----?"”