The Newest Fad on the Block

[Heretic121]

Today i went into work downtown (in Newport) which is still a big tourist spot even in the winter months because of all the cruise ships going around. Well i come in today to see something that i was very afraid of...

I walk into work like any normal day, say hi to the manager and whoever else is working, walk into the back punch in and come back out to see what work he has for me in the shed. While I'm walking back to the counter from the back i look on the shelves and see the Boston Red Sox shirts almost sold out... i then proceed to walk upfront and see that most of the hats we sell only have one or two left. This is the one reason i am regretting to be a Boston Red Sox fan right now.

This next week or two is going to be hell for any Red Sox fan for the fact that most people seen with a Boston hat or shirt will automatically be called a poser, especially in New England. Just for the 2 hours i was working, i saw about 15 shirts sold and about 20 hats sold, and this was out of about 30+ customers i saw. I found this a disgrace to the Red Sox fans, especially how passionate we are about our team, and would do anything to see them win a World Series, and now we have a chance. But for me as a Born and Raised New Englander (Red Sox, Celtics, Bruins, and Patriots), It is hard for me to take a lot of people seriously about this whole thing.

I just want to say that if the Red Sox do win the World Series, I will almost be ashamed to be a Red Sox fan because our team will be tainted by posers and non baseball fans who call themselves apart of Red Sox Nation just because they wear the merchandise and root for the team BECAUSE they won the WS. This is the only reason i want to see the Astro's take it all (if they win) to see Clemens again in Boston, and to see the Stro's win their first ever MLB Championship.

[Matt Attallah]

And this is not normal how?

Most people like winners. BIG winners.

Every sport has them. Look at the Detroit Red wings - ask how many people where fans in the late 80's/Early 90's.

Nothing you can do about it. The owners are not complaing about it though - big $$ commin' in!

Just wait until next year. Deal with the 'harassment' of other people, say you don't care (and don't care what they think) and move on. All will be well

[Amanda Morrison]

Cubs fans know this. When the Cubs are winning (i.e. last year), everyone is a Cubs fan.

I was watching Grace and Ryno when most of you kids were in diapers! (Well, at least my brother was, anyway.) Fans come and go... but if you're a diehard, you stick around during the losing seasons, too.

[Jeff Rodriguez]

I don't know if they are posers so much as updating their merchandise. For instance, I'm a Mets fan, GO Mets!!! Before 2000 I had an old mets hat and old jersey. In 2000 they went to the world series. That was reason enough for me to get a new hat (with WS logo on the side) and new black jersey.
For Sox fans, it's been even longer. Getting to the WS is a good reason to get a crisp new hat or new shirt with a player who's curently on the team.

[VGMasterShadow]

Originally Posted by Amanda Morrison

Cubs fans know this. When the Cubs are winning (i.e. last year), everyone is a Cubs fan.

Tis called "taking the winning side."

[MikeDubreuil]

Originally Posted by Heretic121

I just want to say that if the Red Sox do win the World Series, I will almost be ashamed to be a Red Sox fan because our team will be tainted by posers and non baseball fans who call themselves apart of Red Sox Nation just because they wear the merchandise and root for the team BECAUSE they won the WS. This is the only reason i want to see the Astro's take it all (if they win) to see Clemens again in Boston, and to see the Stro's win their first ever MLB Championship.

I was never really a baseball fan until I came to school in Boston. I didn't root for any teams. Then I started watching the Red Sox play. Now, I try not to miss a game on TV. There's just a magical connection you make when you live in the city to the boys in red.

You're saying that people are joining Red Sox Nation because they're winning? Is it bad to be a red sox fan just because you live in Boston? That's probably the majority of college aged fans in Boston.

I wouldn't necessarily say that everyone buying merchandise now are bandwagon fans. It might be that they need more than 1 Red Sox shirt to wear during this important series which the Sox haven't seen since '86. I'd much rather they flock to stores than wear the same shirt everyday.

EDIT: I think it's an unwritten rule that locally based people are allowed to become "bandwagon" fans. They're not really jumping on a bandwagon, they're just supporting their home team.

[White_Orpheus]

Afraid people are going to jump on the band wagon? Boo hoo. Who cares if other people like your team? Shouldn't you be happy about it? I live in San Francisco and practically no one cares about the Giants here. When we have a surge of bandwagon fans (i.e. during the 2002 season), we see it as a blessing that people are starting to care about the team. I think part of Red Sox fandom is feeling sorry for yourself. It seems that Sox fan's relish the part of being such an "underdog" and if the mainstream starts to care about their team, they see it as contamination of the sacred Red Sox self-pity. I think having the Red Sox win wouldn't be a blow to the fanbase because there are posers, but it definitely would deplete a lot of the the old fans simply because they couldn't whine about not winning a series in years.

[Katie Reynolds]

Originally Posted by White_Orpheus

Afraid people are going to jump on the band wagon? Boo hoo. Who cares if other people like your team? Shouldn't you be happy about it?

I think the point he's trying to make, is that the people don't really like the team -- they're just "fair-weather fans".

[Cory]

Originally Posted by Heretic121

This is the only reason i want to see the Astro's take it all (if they win) to see Clemens again in Boston, and to see the Stro's win their first ever MLB Championship.

Any true fan would never want their team to lose... especially not because a bunch of people are jumping on the bandwagon. You should be proud that your team won the AL and that they're going to the Series, regardless of how many people are only rooting for them because they finally beat the yankees and made it to the World Series.