In the last 5 days I have been to more sporting events then I care to shake a stick at…. Sunday Cardinals – Giants game, follow on Tuesday/Wednesday with playoff Baseball with the Diamondbacks -Brewers.
I’m not gonna lie it’s been kinda awesome.
The part that was more awesome then winning two out of three of those games though is this little thought.
At Sunday’s Cardinals game, the crowd was in Cardinal Red (and Black) and while yes it was only the Giants they are a old rival from the days back in the NFC East. And lets face it there are a fair number of New York transplants and people who while seemingly normal love the Giants. After the Cowboys game two years ago and the Raiders game last year I had come to the opinion that Arizona sports fans would not measure up to these two “storied” franchises. What I forgot about the Cowboys and the Raiders is that they have endured allot of losing in their time, not Cardinal levels of futility, but bad stretches and to a lesser extent the Giants have had the same issues in the past and I’m sure they will in the future that is just how these things work. While it’s easy to love a team when they are winning and going to the playoffs it takes a real fan to stick with them when the chips are down. And after 5-11 last and off to a 1-3 start this year the Cards are defiantly in the “chips” are down category. Things are looking up, but not that up, they are looking up though. So what did I see on Sunday that inspired me to write this…. well I saw a “Red Sea” that stayed with their team the whole time, I saw parents and kids in supporting the Cards even if the dad (not Cody) was supporting the Giants just a little bit more. And it made me realize, that while Arizona is a transient state and everyone is from somewhere else on home game Sundays we are all from Arizona at a Cardinals games. Except for Raiders fans… those people are just mean.
Now while football is religion baseball is a lifestyle.
The last time I went to a playoff baseball game it was in 2001 and the Diamondbacks may or may not have won the championship that year. It was a bought championship and honestly no one in tow cared we just wanted the championship. Flash forward ten years and the only guy left on the field from the 2001 team is the third base coach and in the playoff hunt we are once again. I don’t remember alot from the 2001 playoffs but I don’t remember the Diamondbacks ragging on the Yankees as much as the Diamondbacks were ragging on the Brewers the last night. My favorite parts were the the “Will it sink or Float” and the sinking wedge of Cheese in the pool with the announcer coming on over the PA system and going something to the effect of “And the cheese sinks just like the brewers tonight” which I thought was very cool, the home team antagonizing the other team which for me as a Arizona sports fan is kinda of cool. Also the Diamondbacks Legends race where the D’Backs mascot came out and beat up on the “german sausages” to clear a path for the legends was kinda cool.
Outside of the Suns Arizona has never really had this much pride in it’s pro-sports teams. And well honestly the Suns are just pissing away what ever good will they had left, and I’m more then happy to see the Cardinals and the Diamondbacks move in for the local pride factor even if most of the support comes from people who already have a another team.
Hell there is even room for those stick wielding Canadians that are in town and are trying like hell to stay here.