Hatin' the Sox

Now that the Sox have won 2 World Series' in the past 4 years and are poised to win a 3rd (back to back, no less), it seems as if the whole world is hatin' the Sox.

This is an anonymous comment in response to an earlier post:

As much as I would love to see the Dodgers hand Boston their arse in the Series this is Tampa Bays year. Do Red Sox fans know they have now become the Yankees and more peeps hate 'em because of it? Once they are no longer the reigning champs the economy will improve and gas prices will go down.

Fenway West also posted earlier about hating the Sox.

Baseball should be happy that it's not the Yankees and the Braves in the WS for the umpteenth time in a row. One would think that baseball fans would be happy for the Sox enjoying a little bit of success after 86 years of drought. Let's not forget this is the first time in a while the Sox have finished ahead of the Yankees in the division, too. Yeah, we can be a little bit giddy*, but can you blame us after 86 years of misery? Did the A's and Royals catch this shit when they had their strings of success? How about the Big Red Machine?

So why hate the winners? Will the Cubs get it when they start winning World Series'? What about the Giants? They've got their own drought going on as well. I am happy for the Brewers and the Phillies for getting into October this year. And yes, the Rays, too. I'm glad to see different teams playing in October. Different teams getting into the playoffs is good for baseball. (In the grand scheme of things, the Sox are still a 'different' team in the WS. Still there ten years from now? Then it would be old.)

Complaints have been lodged over the Sox's payroll. You can thank the Yankees for raising the payroll bar so damn high that the only way to compete in the AL East is to raise your own. Gotta give 'em credit though, for not matching them dollar for dollar. For the record, the Sox are 4th in MLB in top salary totals in 2008. This after being in the 2nd spot in 2005 and 2006. This year, they trailed the league leading Yankees by $76 million dollars in that department.

As a Sox fan of over 40 years, of course I want to see the Sox win another WS this year, but I am not so naive to think that they will do it every year. Rivalries I get, but this hating thing, I don't. The Sox won't be winning divisions, pennants, and World Series' every year. Somewhere down the line, (hopefully not in my lifetime), the Sox will flounder, but for now, they've built a system designed for some extended success. Compared to the monopoly the Yanks have had on the WS over the years, this run of success (to date) is relatively short, so why the hate? Life is too short to be 'hating.' Trash talk your opponent, but respect them as well, for there are no winners without losers. (It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it, and everyone gets their turn with the shovel, Yankees, too. Sox had it for 86 years.)

Enjoy the game, and may the better team win.

*Preemptive rebuttal: Yes, I know we have obnoxious fans, but no more than any other team. Can't judge the whole fan base by the actions of the few stupid ones.