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April 29, 2005
Anaheim fans more like devils than angels
Ever since 1985, that puts me at 4 years old, I have been an Oakland A's fan. I went to my first game in 1986 and sat on the wooden bleacher seats during a field trip, loving every minute of it. The ballpark is only five minutes from the house I grew up in, and I would start to think of it as my sanctuary. I've been playing some form of ball since I was 5 years old. I went from Bobby Sox and hitting a rag ball off a tee to the college level with metal spikes and yellow balls. Now it's slow-pitch and beer that keeps me occupied. I truly think instead of blood, I have red thread pumping through my veins. Through the years, I've become a die-hard A's fan. I have pictures of the boys (that's what I like to call the team), in my living room, kitchen, office, bedroom and bathroom. They are even in my closet with all the green and gold I own. When I was in high school, my boyfriend at the time worked for the A's organization and I would get free tickets to attend games. That honestly is right up there with the best memories of my lifetime. As our relationship started to take a turn for Splitsville, I contemplated staying with him just for the tickets. My morals kicked in at the last second and I knew a true fan wouldn't mooch off of someone else's ticket benefits. I remember watching Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco - the Bash Brothers. Later in life, I would learn to badmouth Canseco in public for his Joe McCarthy-like accusations of baseball players and steroids. As the years went by and I changed once a day on what I liked and disliked, my love for the A's never faded. Watching the A's has been one of the only consistent things I've ever done in life. I even try to work around their schedule so I can watch games, and I buy the TV sports package every year. When I moved to Oklahoma to go to college, I told myself I would never move somewhere that didn't have professional baseball or the American League. I found myself in Nevada four months after making that pact. The good thing about Pahrump is it's not too far from Southern California, home of the Anaheim Angels - er, I mean, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. That gave my sister and me the perfect opportunity for a road trip. In the past couple of years, the A's and the Angels have developed some type of rivalry. I actually like the battle between the North and the South. It's no secret the two portions of the state want to be separated from each other. Last weekend, I crossed enemy lines to support the A's, clad in a bright yellow sweatshirt with a green A, along with my green and yellow shoes. I made my sister buy a green sweatshirt with a yellow A so we could be twins. I think she secretly hates me for that. We got dirty looks throughout the evening from the thousands of fans in red and white. A few even said mean things as we walked by, but I didn't care. My current favorite player, Mark Ellis, was in the lineup and I was excited to see him since he missed the entire 2004 season with a shoulder injury. As the game got under way, I thought we had a decent chance, even though the offense had been off to a slow start this season. As Angels fans yelled down in my ear and even vendors joined in the taunting, my sister and I looked ahead and cheered. Going into the fifth inning, we were down by three, but I still had faith in the boys. Bobby Kielty knocked a three-run homer and the game was suddenly tied. I screamed and jumped up and down while Angels fans everywhere booed me and told me to shut up. I did quiet down, but only after doing the happy dance. In the bottom of the fifth, the game was 5-3 and I thought we had a shot. Not for long. The Angels answered our run streak by grabbing six more runs. The game would end at 9-5. I'm not the type of fan who thinks the boys let me down. I think I somehow let them down. Did I hold my cup just the right way? Did I really have to take that bathroom break after their hot streak? Was I wearing my lucky underwear? Before the game was over, my sister and I decided to make a run for it. Not because we were embarrassed to be A's fans, but because we were A's fans. We both got booed right out of the stadium and I'm almost positive someone threw something at me. As we took a quick-paced walk to the parking lot and back to our hotel room, we found other A's fans to walk with. "Us A's fans have to stick together," my sister said. "Safety in numbers." I'm all for baseball chatter, but I don't remember out of all my baseball park experiences ever really being treated that way, or treating anyone else in such a fashion. So Angels fans maliciously taunted my sister and me. That's snobby Southern Californians for you. In the north, we accept all walks of life. We're so much cooler up north. If I had to do it all over again, I'd still wear my bright yellow sweatshirt and support the boys. I would wear it anywhere - well, almost anywhere. I probably would pose as a Red Sox or a Yankees fan if I caught a game on the East Coast. Those people are crazy and I'm not sure I would want to cross them. But, don't tell the boys I said that. Please. Write to Breanne Hubbard at bhubbard@pvtimes.com. |
