East Coast Sports Fans: Why They Suck Just as Much as the Rest of us

The other day I was on Facebook engaging in my usual early afternoon time wasting. I can’t remember the initial post, but a Facebook friend posted something NFL related and the thread turned into several of us making fun of the sudden rise in Packers and Steelers “fans,” especially in the LA area. One of his Facebook friends, in an intentionally smug way, made a comment to the effect of how that is business as usual for Southern California sports fans.

And while I’m not this guy’s friend, I remembered his name from past exchanges and recalled he is a Yankees fan (In his profile picture, he’s also wearing a Yankees hat. I know, I’m a regular ol’ Sherlock). I also recalled that whenever I see this guy comment, he likes to mention how Southern CA sports fans lack “passion,” presumably because we don’t get a hard on every time a our team’s closer walks onto the field and our overrated shortstop makes a jump throw.

Spoiler alert: he throws it into right field

This stereotype is an epidemic in the sports world, a stereotype that ESPN helps perpetuate. Basically, the myth states that unless you are from an east coast region* you are a lousy sports fan. It’s a self-congratulatory circle jerk that is widely accepted without any real evidence.

* It mostly pertains to New York, Boston, Philadelphia. Miami is on the east coast, but nobody would confuse it with a good sports town. Have you seen how many people go to Marlins games?

The schadenfreude that fans across the country lap up whenever the Yankees or Red Sox lose has little to do with our hate for Yankee/Red Sox entity; most of it has to do with our disdain for the obnoxious fans of those teams. I don’t hate anyone on the Yankees. They have many great players that I respect. But I do hate when their fans hold Yankee dominance over fans of other teams and then have the gall to say they are more passionate fans when their Jeter jersey still has the tag on it.

The classic myth is that East Coast sports fans are more loyal than fans of other teams across the country and show undying support for their teams. However, if one were to look at something as simple as attendance for Yankees games or TV ratings for Red Sox games, we would discover that the myth is simply untrue.

You’ll probably hear east coast fans say inane things like “oh we always sell out our stadium and even if there is an asteroid headed straight for home plate we would stay” (even though for a rainy playoff games between the Yankees and Tigers this October I saw plenty of empty seats, but ok whatever). Northeast fans love to boast their undying support of their teams. But many of these fans are new generation fans that seem to think loyalty is simply knowing all the lyrics to “Empire State of Mind” or a Dropkick Murphys song or going to that one bar once on Yawkey Way.

Much of Yankees fandom is based in counting. 27 World Series titles since 1923 is a ridiculous ratio. Who wouldn’t want to cheer for a team that wins 1 World Series every 4 years? Have you seen those T-shirts Yankees fans wear that say “Got Rings?” on the front? The obnoxious punch line is on the back of the shirt, with a picture of 27 championship rings. Spike Lee wears a hat that lists the years of all the Yankees championships, which is ironic and amusing when you consider that Lee, who has dedicated his filmmaking to progressing black ideals and unabashedly depicting black culture for a wider audience, is wearing a hat celebrating 10 World Series championships that occurred before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. But hey, all in the name of addition. 

Gross, right? Don't you just want to punch the invisible person wearing this?

Lost in the arithmetic of Yankee accomplishments is the fact that Yankee fans will abandon their team.

The truth is that every fan base, regardless of location, will be only as loyal as their team is successful. Granted, if the Yankees became a last place team their attendance wouldn’t fall to Marlins-type lows. But much of that is because the Yankees are more brand name than baseball team. Their hats are cool/fashionable, their pinstripes classic, and they have a rich history which they will happily exploit. Yet, we don’t have to go far into the past to see the effects a winning Yankees team has on attendance.

From 1989-1992, the Yankees were, indeed, marvelously mediocre and in some cases, just plain bad. The low point came in 1990, when the vaunted Yankees lost 95 games while trotting out guys like the immortal Alvaro Espinoza.** That season, the Yankees ranked 9^th (out of 14) in American League attendance.  Predictably, following such a dismal season, in 1991 the 91-loss Yankees ranked 11^th in attendance.***

** Don Mattingly posted a Jeff Mathis-ian -0.6 WAR.

*** It’s also important to remember that Yankee Stadium held significantly more fans than many other stadiums. After 1970s stadium renovations, The House That Ruth Built While Not Facing Black People could seat about 55,000, about 10,000 more than the current Angel Stadium incarnation. So despite the Red Sox selling out each home game this past season, they only rank 4^th in AL attendance because Fenway only seats about 37,000.

In 1992, another poor team resulted in poor attendance (11/14). It wasn’t until 1993 did Yankee attendance reach respectable levels: 5^th in the American League. What changed between 1992 and 1993? Try 12 more wins and a 2^nd place finish in the AL East.

The Yankees didn’t become the perception of the Yankees until later in the 90s. In 1996, The Yankees won their first World Series since the 70s and pulled in 2.5 million fans. 5 years later, when the Yankees battled for a 4^th straight World Series championship, they pulled in 3.2 million fans. The evolution was complete; in 10 seasons, the Yankees went from 11^th in AL attendance to 2^nd and the only difference was Derek Jeter, 

Mariano Rivera, and 4 World Series championships.

Contrast the Yankees with the Dodgers. Being an Angels fan, I also hate the Dodgers, but they provide for good analysis when comparing the Yankees. The Dodgers are essentially the West Coast version of the Yankees; sexy brand name, rich tradition, New York roots, wide appeal, big market, and above average stadium capacity (currently about 56,000).

Since the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles in 1958, the lowest they’ve ranked in National League attendance was 7^th (out of 16) in 2000, a curious year since they had a pretty good club that won 86 games. Also in that span, the Dodgers have finished tops in National League attendance an astounding 28 times.

And like the Yankees, the Dodgers also bottomed out performance-wise in the early 90s. In 1992, the team lost 99 games, yet still finished 2^nd in NL attendance. Usually after teams play like crap for a season, the attendance suffers the next season; yet, in 1993, the Dodgers actually drew 700,000 more fans, despite being only a .500 team (finished 3^rd in attendance).

Since 2000, the Dodgers have dominated NL attendance, finishing 1^st 5 times. And while the Dodgers have had good clubs, they haven’t been nearly as imposing as the Yankees in that time span (4 playoff appearances to 11 for the Yankees), including losing seasons in 2005 and 2010.

The Dodgers saw a dip in attendance this past season; 10,000 fans less per game than in 2009. Much, if not all of that, was due to Frank McCourt’s mismanagement. The love for the Dodgers was still palpable, but it was hard for Dodgers fans to support the owner. The lagging attendance served as a form of protest. With McCourt and his divorce proceedings, paying fans didn’t want to spend their money if they weren’t certain the money would be invested back into the team.

Now that McCourt is being forced to sell the team, expect the Dodgers to rival the Yankees for attendance despite the lesser product on the field. 

***

The Red Sox aren’t impervious to the bandwagon phenomenon either, despite selling out over 700 consecutive games, a streak that dates back to May 2003. While the media and Red Sox nation loves to focus on the streak (and it is admittedly impressive), I wonder, what changed? If the Sox have such great fans, why doesn’t this streak date back a few millennia? Why doesn’t Moses boast in Genesis about seeing the Sox crush the Mount Sinai Tablets in front of a packed house?

Like the Yankees, the Red Sox started drawing better because they became a powerhouse. Since 2003, the Red Sox have only missed the postseason 3 times, thanks to a payroll that has grown from $100 million to $161 million. The Red Sox consistently attract top dollar free agents, a figure that undoubtedly draws fans that love watching star power.

Additionally, as previously mentioned, the Red Sox have one of the smallest ballparks in baseball. While it’s still difficult to fill up a park that holds 37,000 every night, it’s a lot easier when the team is actually, you know, good. The lack of seats during the past decade has created an increase of demand that works magic when teamed with the low supply. Bandwagoners from all over the country want to come see the Red Sox after their “curse” was broken in 2004. Red Sox brass also wisely kept Fenway Park on the public’s mind when installing seats above the Green Monster in left field, seats that are wildly popular due to their short supply and the novelty of sitting atop the ballpark’s most famous feature. Even if you aren’t able to get tickets to sit on the Monster, many fans were likely drawn in 2004 to simply see the seats. The World Series victory in 2004 did the rest of the leg work to draw attendance.

It also helps Fenway’s case that the park is essentially a tourist spot for baseball fans that visit Boston (the park, opened in 1912, is the oldest park in MLB; it’s a safe bet the Sox will sell out every game next year as ownership pimps out the 100^th anniversary angle). I hate the Red Sox, but I love baseball. And since I’ve been told since I was 5 that Fenway Park is cool, I’ve wanted to go, regardless of the two teams playing. Like Wrigley Field in Chicago, the media and fans romanticize the stadiums, even if it is more for nostalgic purposes than ballpark quality. It’s a self-perpetuating phenomenon that generates attendance in and of itself, regardless of team success. Even if the Red Sox stopped playing well, they will likely be one of MLB’s most desired tickets simply because of the park they play in. It has little to do with how “good” their fans are.

No really Red Sox Nation, you can keep them

 However, there is one place where a declining Red Sox team is visible: TV ratings. In 2010, the Red Sox failed to finish in the top 5 for MLB team ratings for the first time in 5 years, according to Sports Media Watch.**** The Sox ratings fell 38% from 2009 to an average 5.87 rating even though the team only won 6 fewer games. The win difference, however, was enough for the Red Sox to struggle to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Rays and the Yankees throughout the season. It was also enough, apparently, to cause disinterest among fans not going to games.

****The top 5: Cardinals, Twins, Phillies, Reds, Rays. All of them (except Philly) play in middling media markets and all of them (except the Cardinals, who were still good) made the playoffs. Also, notice anyone that didn’t make the list despite making the playoffs? The Yankees.

In a 2010 ESPN blog post, Rob Neyer theorized that the declining ratings can be attributed to several factors. One he cites was a deep playoff run for the Celtics; I don’t buy this because the Celtics won the NBA title in 2008 and the Red Sox still topped MLB in TV ratings (2008 – also the year after the Red Sox won their 2^nd World Series of the decade…just saying). The other two factors Neyer cites are the struggling team as well as a boring offseason after the 2009 season, one in which the Red Sox’ big ticket acquisitions were Adrian Belte and John Lackey (lolololololololololololololol). The two were considered good players (Lackey was at the time, anyway), but hardly stars. 

Spoiler alert: it's a home run

Are Red Sox fans really that shallow? Unless their team is winning 95 games and spending $200 million every offseason they won’t be as interested in the team? Hmm, sounds like every other fan base.

Unless specified, it's safe to assume all factoids were taken from Baseball-Reference.