6/25/2007
Cataldi, Poster Child For the Bitter and Jealous.
I am a firm believer in the mantra that everyone is entitled to their own individual opinion. It's what gives us an identity and separates us from living in a communist society in the land of milk and honey where everyone gets along and lives in peace and harmony. If I were to live in a world like that, I would almost certainly have a rebellious attitude and I'm almost certain that no person alive would live like that. It is on the topic of opinions in which I would like to write about today. Specifically, I would like to comment on an opinion of one acid-tonged and extremely verbose Philadelphia sports talk show host named Angelo Cataldi who wrote an absolutely callous and unproven response to a question in his monthly mailbag in which he criticized the Boston sports fans for being a bunch of unpassionate people who lack the will to win and who refuse to go the extra mile for their teams in showing their support. I'm here to offer a rebuttal on Mr. Cataldi's claims to prove to him and every closed-minded Philly sports enthusiast that Boston fans are much more than what they think we are. I'm in no way trying to imply that we're better than them, I just want them to realize that the comments are totally wrong and the passion that we exert for our teams is right on par with them.
Let me preface these remarks by saying that it truly hurts to write this column for I am slamming someone who I love and admire greatly. On a personal level, it really pains me to do this because Angelo was a close friend of two of my uncles when they worked together at the Providence Journal back in the early 1980's and any close friend of Bob and Steve McGarry is a friend of mine and is deserving of my respect. Nowadays, with the exception of WFAN's Chris Russo, there is not a more entertaining and charismatic sports talk show host in America than Angelo Cataldi and I also think that no one is more grateful and generous to the needs of his listeners than him. Detractors of Cataldi would much rather listen to him if they had a choice between Dennis and Callahan's conservative political approach and the juvenile humor of Opie and Anthony, as we do here in Providence, trust me. Unfortunately for the pro-Cataldi movement, I was born a Boston sports fan and I'll die a Boston sports fan, and this is a blog that is told from the perspective of a knowledgeable Boston sports fan ideologies. Sorry Angelo, I love you, but the truth must be told.
The ball got rolling with a truly eye-popping and brutal assessment of current Red Sox manager Terry Francona. I am aware of the fact that Cataldi has no love for Francona from his days managing the Phillies during a truly awful era for that team. However, you can't blame Francona for stinking up the joint when he had a team that lacked talent like the scarecrow lacked a brain. In truth, while Francona may have been a bad fit for the Phillies organization, it was more management's fault than his own, and to blast him for his lack of intelligence or guts is downright outrageous. Francona totally proved his smarts as a manager during the 2004 ALCS by doing three things. First, a conservative manager may not have sent even the most speedy runner against Jorge Posada's throwing arm in the 9th inning of game 5, Terry was smart enough to know that the if he does not send Roberts in that situation, the season's most likely over, and Roberts does not score on Bill Mueller's base hit. To make that call when everyone knew Roberts was going was extremely gutsy. What about the next night,when he had to rely on such great arms as Curtis Leskanic and Mike Myers for more than 10 innings in that game, and he was able to maneuver his bullpen brilliantly enough to allow David Ortiz to extend the series another day with his heroics . What about Tito having the guts to keep a struggling Johnny Damon in the leadoff spot throughout the series because he was confident enough that Damon would snap out of it in due time, which he did in a huge way in game 7. All of those decisions took guts and intelligence and Terry Francona deserves respect for his bravery in helping the Sox get a world title.
Cataldi also referred to the Boston fans as a bunch of elitist snobs who lack the will to win and treat baseball as a form of religion, an absolutely ludicrous bunch of claims if you ask me. Most of us are not a bunch of snobs and we do not think of ourselves as being better than any other fans in sports even when the going is tough. The only sort of snobby seating at Fenway Park is the 406 club and even that is an area that is enclosed by glass so that the so called "elitist snobs" can enjoy their wine and cheese platters during the game without disturbing the real fans. Those are the people who lack passion and the will to see their team win. While the tickets to Fenway are vastly overpriced, it is unfair for Cataldi to label our fans as snobs just because they pay top dollar for tickets. I'm sure that there are indeed people that exist who don't have money but are willing to cheer on their favorite team even if only for one night. While snobs exist, they are pushed in the background when compared to the numerous amount of passionate fans not only in Boston but also across New England as well. Oh, and for saying that Boston does not want to win, how do explain the thousands of fans who travel to various cities to cheer on the Sox and Pats to victory, ana often outnumber the fans of the hone team attendance wise, Would they be there if they did not want anything but a victory? I think not. You did not see scores of Red Sox fans in Atlanta last week just to see the Coke factory, they were there to cheer on the team to victory, and to teach the Braves fans a lesson in team support. I don't see Phillies and Eagles fans do that! Lastly, Baseball is not a religion in Boston, it's a passion. People come to Fenway Park because it is a historic building and a reminder of old time baseball when salaries were reasonable, and the ballpark was more about the game than keeping the fan's interest with corny promotions. People who come to Fenway come to see a ballgame in a revered and beloved yard, not to bask in it's presence and worship it.
Perhaps Cataldi was preaching to his core of impatient and knowledgeable fans who are bitter about the fact that they haven't won a championship in 24 years, and he figured that he would pick on Boston because it was the only city he was familiar with from his long career as a sports journalist. The very question of the difference between Boston and Philly sports fans came from a recent appearance by Francona on the "Jim Rome Show" in which he claimed the difference between the two cities was that Boston fans want to win more than Philly fans. While that may be true, Philly fans are just as loyal and vocal about team performance than we are but they are unwilling to go the extra mile to support their teams, as with the Sox and Atlanta fans. There's no question that Philly fans want to win, but the unwillingness to show their support in other venues puts them a notch blow the passionate fans of Boston. Sorry folks, but until you go to the next level, you will always be #2 in my book. the moral of this story, be more supportive!
Let me preface these remarks by saying that it truly hurts to write this column for I am slamming someone who I love and admire greatly. On a personal level, it really pains me to do this because Angelo was a close friend of two of my uncles when they worked together at the Providence Journal back in the early 1980's and any close friend of Bob and Steve McGarry is a friend of mine and is deserving of my respect. Nowadays, with the exception of WFAN's Chris Russo, there is not a more entertaining and charismatic sports talk show host in America than Angelo Cataldi and I also think that no one is more grateful and generous to the needs of his listeners than him. Detractors of Cataldi would much rather listen to him if they had a choice between Dennis and Callahan's conservative political approach and the juvenile humor of Opie and Anthony, as we do here in Providence, trust me. Unfortunately for the pro-Cataldi movement, I was born a Boston sports fan and I'll die a Boston sports fan, and this is a blog that is told from the perspective of a knowledgeable Boston sports fan ideologies. Sorry Angelo, I love you, but the truth must be told.
The ball got rolling with a truly eye-popping and brutal assessment of current Red Sox manager Terry Francona. I am aware of the fact that Cataldi has no love for Francona from his days managing the Phillies during a truly awful era for that team. However, you can't blame Francona for stinking up the joint when he had a team that lacked talent like the scarecrow lacked a brain. In truth, while Francona may have been a bad fit for the Phillies organization, it was more management's fault than his own, and to blast him for his lack of intelligence or guts is downright outrageous. Francona totally proved his smarts as a manager during the 2004 ALCS by doing three things. First, a conservative manager may not have sent even the most speedy runner against Jorge Posada's throwing arm in the 9th inning of game 5, Terry was smart enough to know that the if he does not send Roberts in that situation, the season's most likely over, and Roberts does not score on Bill Mueller's base hit. To make that call when everyone knew Roberts was going was extremely gutsy. What about the next night,when he had to rely on such great arms as Curtis Leskanic and Mike Myers for more than 10 innings in that game, and he was able to maneuver his bullpen brilliantly enough to allow David Ortiz to extend the series another day with his heroics . What about Tito having the guts to keep a struggling Johnny Damon in the leadoff spot throughout the series because he was confident enough that Damon would snap out of it in due time, which he did in a huge way in game 7. All of those decisions took guts and intelligence and Terry Francona deserves respect for his bravery in helping the Sox get a world title.
Cataldi also referred to the Boston fans as a bunch of elitist snobs who lack the will to win and treat baseball as a form of religion, an absolutely ludicrous bunch of claims if you ask me. Most of us are not a bunch of snobs and we do not think of ourselves as being better than any other fans in sports even when the going is tough. The only sort of snobby seating at Fenway Park is the 406 club and even that is an area that is enclosed by glass so that the so called "elitist snobs" can enjoy their wine and cheese platters during the game without disturbing the real fans. Those are the people who lack passion and the will to see their team win. While the tickets to Fenway are vastly overpriced, it is unfair for Cataldi to label our fans as snobs just because they pay top dollar for tickets. I'm sure that there are indeed people that exist who don't have money but are willing to cheer on their favorite team even if only for one night. While snobs exist, they are pushed in the background when compared to the numerous amount of passionate fans not only in Boston but also across New England as well. Oh, and for saying that Boston does not want to win, how do explain the thousands of fans who travel to various cities to cheer on the Sox and Pats to victory, ana often outnumber the fans of the hone team attendance wise, Would they be there if they did not want anything but a victory? I think not. You did not see scores of Red Sox fans in Atlanta last week just to see the Coke factory, they were there to cheer on the team to victory, and to teach the Braves fans a lesson in team support. I don't see Phillies and Eagles fans do that! Lastly, Baseball is not a religion in Boston, it's a passion. People come to Fenway Park because it is a historic building and a reminder of old time baseball when salaries were reasonable, and the ballpark was more about the game than keeping the fan's interest with corny promotions. People who come to Fenway come to see a ballgame in a revered and beloved yard, not to bask in it's presence and worship it.
Perhaps Cataldi was preaching to his core of impatient and knowledgeable fans who are bitter about the fact that they haven't won a championship in 24 years, and he figured that he would pick on Boston because it was the only city he was familiar with from his long career as a sports journalist. The very question of the difference between Boston and Philly sports fans came from a recent appearance by Francona on the "Jim Rome Show" in which he claimed the difference between the two cities was that Boston fans want to win more than Philly fans. While that may be true, Philly fans are just as loyal and vocal about team performance than we are but they are unwilling to go the extra mile to support their teams, as with the Sox and Atlanta fans. There's no question that Philly fans want to win, but the unwillingness to show their support in other venues puts them a notch blow the passionate fans of Boston. Sorry folks, but until you go to the next level, you will always be #2 in my book. the moral of this story, be more supportive!
Labels: Boston, Cataldi, fans, Philadelphia, Phillies, Red Sox, sports
