The Baseball Reporters Show Recap 7/2
Today on The Baseball Reporters Show, Tony Massarotti looks at the All-Star Game voting as a barometer for the intensity of a fan base. Mazz thinks that this Red Sox team is worthy of praise and attention that it is not getting. He wonders why? And some of the callers give their 2 cents on the matter.
As of today, there are no Red Sox starting in the All-Star game, barring any injuries and last minute substitutes. The Red Sox are 4th in the league in attendance and are a big market team with a ton of fan support. Tony wonders why then is this fan base not going to bat for this team?
Tony on the lack of Red Sox support in All-Star voting, "The Red Sox don't have anyone who has, roughly, more than half the votes of the player that is leading that position. And this all reflects, along with television ratings and things of the like, a relative decrease in interest, passion, and intensity among this Red Sox fan base. They are the only team to have 3 players elected in the final vote via the internet balloting. And part of the reason was this is a rabid fan base, or was a rabid fan base, that went out of its way to promote its players and promote its team. I'm not sure that's happening anymore. The question is why"?
Pat from Middleton is a 21 year old fan and says the cost of the games keeps him from attending. He describes it as a cycle, where he can't afford to go to the games so therefore doesn't follow them on television. Tony does not discount that the economy has made an impact on fan support. But he wonders if it's a bigger issue. Tony thinks that winning leads to complacency.
Chris in the car blames lack of fan support on the over saturation of the Red Sox by the management. Everywhere you go, whether it's the gas station, Dunkin' Donuts, billboards, all you see is the Red Sox. Chris goes on to say that it is unrealistic to maintain level of interest after 4 ALCS appearances in 6 years.
Eric in the car blames Theo Epstein. At the beginning of the year, this team was marketed as defense and run prevention, which is not exciting to watch and does not draw the fans. Eric also said that the injuries have hurt the fan support because casual fans have no idea who guys like Daniel Nava, or Darnell McDonald are.
Whatever the reason may be, this Red Sox team deserves a lot more attention than what it is getting. Maybe it's the Celtics/Bruins hangover, or even the World Cup. NBA free agency is also dominating the headlines, so maybe that has something to do with it.
The Red Sox begin their 3 game series with the Baltimore Orioles tonight as Tim Wakefield starts opposite Brad Bergesen.
