I have gone to baseball games my whole life. Starting in the now-demolished Veterans Stadium and continuing at beautiful Citizens Bank Park. When I was younger, I'd go to the park and watch the Phillies any chance I got. I never worried about the team's record (usually terrible) or who was pitching (usually terrible). The only care I had was keeping score and hoping that the Phils would actually win a game.
I cheered my heart out for the likes of Ricky Otero, Kevin Sefcik, Mike Grace, Robert Person, Omar Daal, and Rico Brogna to give my team a lead. Then the 9th inning would arrive, and if they were lucky to have the lead, out would march the closer du jour. Whether it was Jose Mesa, Heathcliff Slocumb, Mark Leiter, or Jeff Brantley, I would still believe we would win. But alas, we usually didn't.
Rooting for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1994 to 2000 was only for a masochist. Then, 2001. Many Phillies fan don't look back on this season as the turning point for the franchise, but in many ways it was the first brick on the road to the golden era. Despite the fact that the team was nowhere near worthy of a playoff spot, they took the Braves to the last week of the season before giving in to the inevitable. Even though that team ultimately failed, they created the spark that eventually rekindled Philadelphia's love of baseball. That spark didn't start the fire until the team signed Jim Thome (the flint?) and ushered in the Phillies place as a contending team.
Now you may be asking, why the walk down memory lane? or I don't care about the Phillies, why should I keep reading? Well, I believe this story is one that any team with a struggling baseball town can be inspired by. Sure, not every team will have the resources to assemble a $175 million dollar payroll, but the idea that all it takes is one successful season in a baseball market (Pittsburgh, I'm looking at you) to rekindle the love for the sport, is universal.
As I watch the Pirates from a far and see the passion that my friends from the Pittsburgh area are showing for the first time since I met them, it's eerily similar to that 2001 season. A band of misfits who are playing above their heads, but most likely will fall short of the goal. My advice to Pirates fans is to enjoy this season, don't get frustrated if they don't win the division, and most importantly, keep going to the ball park. The only way to change the culture of a losing organization is to support them when they are doing well, whether you believe they will make the post season or not. If you need a point of reference, look at Penguins. Sure, they drafted three franchise players during their down years (something the Pirates haven't done), and that played a part in the turnaround. But what really built that new arena in your town was fan support.
If the 2001 Phillies taught me anything, it's that the smallest spark can start the competitive fire for a franchise. So sell out your beautiful ballpark, and the winning teams should come, and eliminate the ghost of Sid Bream.
