Saturday, June 16, 2007

It's Obvious

I'm so completely baffled by this: When ex-Red Sox return to Fenway, even 2004 World Champion ones, there are always some people who have some doubt as to how they'll be received. I couldn't believe when people said "I really hope Trot Nixon gets cheered." And with Dave Roberts, there still was that hint of uncertainty: "If he doesn't get a huge ovation..."

People. It's simple. We love our guys. If they do something stupid, like go to the Yankees, they're gonna get their asses booed. Because we hate the fucking Yankees. It's almost like after Johnny Damon returned, people think this is some crazy vote for each guy that comes back. Nope. No debate. Win us a World Series, or even just be a fan favorite, and come to Fenway, any time, and you'll be welcomed with open arms. Come on, we're the same fans that know to give an opposing pitcher a nice ovation for a good performance.

Okay, maybe I'm just bragging about the fact that I know who's gonna get cheered or booed at Fenway and have the blog to prove it--even though it seems like the most obvious thing in the world. I don't have my finger on the pulse of a lot of things--I still don't have a cell phone or an iPod and I don't have 47263 friends on myspace, as I prefer my friends to be actual people. But I know about this Red Sox stuff.

Please note: The large number above is not one of those "high numbers for comic effect," like when people say "reason number 8,235 why I hate pants" or whatever. You know me better than that. That's real commentary on the number "friends" people (think they) have. I've seen much higher numbers than that...

Comments:
There was never any doubt that Dave Roberts would get a thunderous ovation. Anyone who doubted it doesn't know Red Sox fans. Once Damon gets rid of the pinstripes, I believe that the boos will turn back to cheers for him. He'll always be One of the 25...

Clemens? He will FOREVER be loathed at the Fens, even in his old age.
 
Mom here.
Utterly baffled when Jerry Remy predicted that the fans would show their appreciation for all Johnny G. Damon did for them and would give him a rousing cheer when he returned with the Yankees.
Huh?
We cheered wildly for Carlton Fisk; we cheered wildly for Pedro; etc. etc. We will always show our appreciation unless our player says he will NEVER play for the Yankees and then does it.
Simple. End of story.
 
Mom, nice.

Quinn--Of course, with Roberts, no doubt. So I don't why people didn't just say "I can't wait for the Roberts huge ovation." (like you or I would.) Instead, it was "If he doesn't get a huge ovation, boy..." (Even Tito said it like this), almost like "Oooh, they're unpredictable, look what they did to Damon..." And it's like, uh, no, why would we ever do anything but cheer wildly for Roberts, Nixon, etc.?
 
You're taking credit for knowing that Nixon and Roberts and Cabrera, et al would get ovations? Are you serious?

I don't know who you were talking to, but there was literally zero doubt whatsoever that Nixon and Roberts would get ovations. None.
 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Utterly baffled when Jerry Remy predicted that the fans would show their appreciation for all Johnny G. Damon did for them and would give him a rousing cheer when he returned with the Yankees.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I think he probably just gave them too much credit. His bad.
 
"I would be shocked if, when Davey comes up, the place doesn't explode."
-Francona, in the Globe

"Dave Roberts probably will be hailed as a hero by the Boston fans as the Giants outfielder returns to Fenway Park"

note: probably, says ESPN

"the paying customers should take the opportunity to rejoice in the return of another 2004 Red Sox icon,"
says the Nashua Telegraph (I can't get this article to come up, so I don't know if it was AP or what), note the word "should."

This is what I'm saying--a hint of uncertainty. These weren't "people I was talking to." Other people talked about his return like this on NESN. Same with Nixon--moreso with him.

I personally think it's because people were confused as to why Damon got booed, because they thought he'd get cheered like you did.

There was zero doubt Nixon and Roberts would get huge ovations. In my mind. Which is what I said in this post. But not in everyone's mind.
 
First, I want to say hi to BS Mem. Miss ya! And Jere, there was no doubt in my mind about the thunder of the Fenway Faithful's ovation as Mr. Roberts strode to the plate. And he loved it, as I did.
Today, Sunday, we try yet again to go 20 games over .500. And it's a perfect day for baseball, although here yesterday, without warning, mid-afternoon, thunder and hail descended on us. It's dry now, with a more humid air mass, but that's OK. My eyes, like so many of us, will be glued to NESN after 2pm, with many glances to NBC's coverage of the US Open. Enjoy this Sunday, my friend.
 
Jere's Mom again.
Sorry, BS--not a matter of giving the fans too much credit; he sold them short.
 
Couple things. First- none of the quotes you've provided help your point. They don't show any hesitation w/r/t the reception- you've decided on something here and are now bending these quotes to fit your premise. It's not the end of the world to look back and say, "you know, everyone knew it would happen, and it did. There really wasn't a doubt at all."

Second- ultimately though, you may be right- I bet there were maybe a small handful of drooling morons not particularly familiar with the situation that were not sure if he'd get an ovation. You can literally find people who believe absolutely anything. Anything. So what?

I wish you'd been at the Michael Showalter/ Patton Oswalt/ Janeane Garofalo show at Berklee last Sunday. Showalter was awesome and absolutely lit into the "Yankee Suck!/ Boo Damon" crowd. Great stuff.
 
These were the things I heard before Roberts came back, along with hearing it a lot on NESN (I get a lot of NESN nowadays). I would've thought everyone would have known, but many people talked about it with a hint of doubt, which I was able to prove with documented evidence.
 
The Francona quote shows no doubt.

The ESPN quote doesn't show "doubt." It's just a standard sentence. Obviously you can't say "Dave Roberts WILL be cheered loudly" because it hasn't happened yet and nothing like that can be guaranteed. It's a piece of journalism, not a blog site.

The same is true of the third quote.

Again, the quotes don't show anything. You've decided on a premise and you're reaching like crazy to bend things to fit it.

I'm amazed that you're actually taking credit for this.
 

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