Confession of a Former Royals Fan

[TroutBaseball]

I grew up a diehard Royals fan and "converted" to the Angels in 2005. Last night I was swirling with emotions because, as you can imagine, this is a dream come true, a nightmare scenario for me.  Or perhaps it's a nightmare scenario a dream come true. I can't make up my mind. 

 

I'll spare you the 10,000 word post that would express everything I have to say about this series. But I will leave you with this:

 

Ned Yost represents EVERY reason why I'm no longer a Royals fan. There are too many limitations placed on this team to have the extra burden of mismanagement and stupid baseball decisions. The old demons came back to haunt around the 6th inning last night for me and it wasn't pretty.  As much as I don't like the cognitive dissonance from this match up, as an Angels fan I'm thrilled we are playing KC. The Royals not only have to beat the best team in baseball but they also have to beat the worst manager in baseball. I like our chances. Ned Yost literally cost them the Division Title. That's hard for a manager to do.

 

If the Royals do happen to advance I'll find myself in the uncomfortable position of being something akin to an ex-Mormon rooting for BYU.

[Blarg]

Yost did fine last night. His relief corps in the 6th didn't. In the end he did enough right to outlast Melvin's mistakes.

Edited October 1, 2014 by Eric Notti

[T.G.]

 

 

I'll spare you the 10,000 word post that would express everything I have to say about this series. But I will leave you with this:

 

 

Dude,

 

I'd read your 10,000 word post.  I'm not kidding.  I think it would be an interesting read.

[19HALO71]

Eloquently stated.

[Guest]

I don't understand how you can be a former fan of a team....you just decided to become an Angels fan in 2005?

[Hollyw00d]

This will go well.

[TroutBaseball]

I don't understand how you can be a former fan of a team....you just decided to become an Angels fan in 2005?

 

I'm certain this can run us aground into a never ending debate about what it means to be "a fan".  I don't want to set a definition for everyone across all space and time, but for me, it means something particular.  It means I'm going to devote my time and emotional energy into exploring all the facets of the team. I'm going to forgo some activities and money so that I can experience the game with the players.  It means the team has my loyalty, devotion and emotional capital.  I'm not simply hoping they win, I'm willing to be deeply disappointed if they lose.

 

The 2001 Jermaine Dye/Neifi Perez trade utterly destroyed me. It was clear that the Glass family did not respect me and I was giving the team more than they would ever give me.  I still hung in there for another 3 years (man crush on Mike Sweeney). 

 

Did I just decide to become an Angels fan?  In a word, "yes".  I decided to give myself a 2 year transition period to root for both teams and then I forsook the Royals.  I stopped checking box scores.  I didn't care who was starting.  I moved on.

 

I didn't burn my George Brett signed World Series ball or anything.  I still own my cap and I reserve the right to put it on any time I want.  But I'm not going to live or die with them. I went from being an active fan to a passive fan (although in 2006 I probably felt hate for them).  I experienced all the emotions of a breakup with a girlfriend. It just so happens that my ex-girlfriend is now in a beauty contest with my wife.

Edited October 1, 2014 by TroutBaseball

[Coachbulldog]

I grew up a diehard Royals fan and "converted" to the Angels in 2005. Last night I was swirling with emotions because, as you can imagine, this is a dream come true, a nightmare scenario for me.  Or perhaps it's a nightmare scenario a dream come true. I can't make up my mind. 

 

I'll spare you the 10,000 word post that would express everything I have to say about this series. But I will leave you with this:

 

Ned Yost represents EVERY reason why I'm no longer a Royals fan. There are too many limitations placed on this team to have the extra burden of mismanagement and stupid baseball decisions. The old demons came back to haunt around the 6th inning last night for me and it wasn't pretty.  As much as I don't like the cognitive dissonance from this match up, as an Angels fan I'm thrilled we are playing KC. The Royals not only have to beat the best team in baseball but they also have to beat the worst manager in baseball. I like our chances. Ned Yost literally cost them the Division Title. That's hard for a manager to do.

 

If the Royals do happen to advance I'll find myself in the uncomfortable position of being something akin to an ex-Mormon rooting for BYU.

 

I can relate to a lot of what you said and I too could write a dissertation about my feelings about the upcoming series. I am from Kansas City and was 12 years old in 1969 when the Royals came into existence. I saw the second game the Royals ever played, the first game at what is now called Kauffman Stadium, and several of the playoff games in the 70s and 80s. I still remember how wonderful I felt when the Royals finally beat the Yankees in 1980 to advance to the World Series and the total euphoria when the 1985 World Series ended. I moved to Utah in 1991 and continued to be a Royals fan until distance and the continuing disgrace the organization was becoming opened the door for me to follow other teams.  

 

When the Rockies came began they were on television here and it was fun to have a team to watch that was competitive. I'm still a Rockies fan even though the state of their organization rivals the Royals at their lowest depth. I became an Angels fan in 2001 when Salt Lake became the Halos affiliate. For most of the time, the Angels have had a great farm system and a lot of good ball players have come through here on their way to Major Leagues. When the Halos take the field on Thursday it will feature many former Salt Lake players. Jered Weaver, Erick Aybar, Howie Kendrick, Kole Calhoun, Mike Trout, etc.... Even though the Rockies and Angels are the MLB teams I follow and root for, the Salt Lake Bees are my favorite team and it is impossible for me to root against guys that played here. If you would have asked me two nights ago if the Royals end up playing the Angels who would I root for I would have quickly said the Angels. But now I'm really torn.

 

I don't like Royals GM Dayton Moore or manger Ned Yost, and I only watched the Royals once or twice a week this season. But as the game progressed last night, feelings for the Royals that I haven't experienced in decades came pouring out. Turns out, that buried under the huge pile of three decades of losing and poor organizational decisions, the part of me that is a Royals fan is still there. It might be foolish for a 57 year old man to be conflicted about a post season baseball series but I am. My family and friends in Kansas City are all excited about the Royals. My Utah family and friends are Angels fans. And me, I'm both. 

[Angel Oracle]

I rooted hard for them against the Skanks in 1976-1978. 

I'm guessing that the hardest to take for Royals fans had to be 1977, yes even more so than Chambliss in 1976 which was in NY.

The Royals led in the top of the 9th inning of ALCS game 5 at home, lost the lead, and then had a rally started only to see Freddie Patek hit an ALCS ending GIDP.

Seeing Patek being so forelorn in shallow RF after that had to hurt.

[Don]

Yost did fine last night. His relief corps in the 6th didn't. In the end he did enough right to outlast Melvin's mistakes.

He bunted with a runner on first four times. It worked once thanks to Dyson saving his ass by stealing third. I always have and always will hate that move, unless it's a pitcher at the plate. Even then, if there's speed on first I want my pitcher to take a few pitches so my guy on first can try to run.

[Angel Oracle]

Concur, why bunt when your runners can steal 2nd base anyway?

Then a productive out still has the runner at 3rd with only 1 out.

[disarcina]

TroutBaseball -- excellent stuff -- a lot of Royals fans don't like Yost 

 

His in game decision making is very poor.

 

I also have mixed emotions about the upcoming series........

 

Danny Duffy is from our area, went to my high school (a 'few' years after I did). My kids played little league ball with him and I played little league ball with his father (we were on the same team).

 

I ran into his father down at Scottsdale this past Spring Training and we talked about the old little league days -- at the time, his kid, Danny, was in the process of losing his rotation spot to Ventura and was going to pitch that night (at Surprise) against the Cincy Reds.......we all went to the game........Duffy was warming up in the pen to come in the next inning when Salvadore Perez hit a line shot back through the middle that struck Arnoldis Chapman in the face........the game was halted (as it should have been) and Duffy didn't pitch that night - he was later sent out to Omaha to start the season........

 

so I have mixed feelings about the series -- I really like KC's scrappy manufacture run type team..........but I am not a fan of Ned Yost.

 

Here's to Angels in three games!

[kurtiebird]

Yost did fine last night. His relief corps in the 6th didn't. In the end he did enough right to outlast Melvin's mistakes.

 

Sort of. The biggest problem was that Shields was having trouble finding the strike zone. We really needed him to have a solid start. And then the 2nd problem, Ned didn't use one of his usual relief pitchers; Ventura is a rookie starter, with practically no experience as a reliever, who just pitched Sunday. In Ned's press conference, he said he wanted to go with "gas", but if that was the case, he should have brought in Herrera or Davis (I know Herrera relieved Ventura and gave up a couple of RBI singles, but he's usually nails).

 

Actually, many of us were calling for Finnegan (a lefty), our very young future starter, who has been thrown into the mix late in the year, after having just pitched in the College World Series earlier this year. If he had come in the 6th instead of the 10th, it might very well have been a 9 inning win.

 

Also, the sacrifice bunting drives me crazy. Especially as a poster here points out, we're a fast team - why not just steal 2nd?

 

For better or for worse, we're likely stuck with Ned for the foreseeable future. I do see why Milwaukee fired him in the middle of a pennant race.

[ukyah]

I'm certain this can run us aground into a never ending debate about what it means to be "a fan".  I don't want to set a definition for everyone across all space and time, but for me, it means something particular.  It means I'm going to devote my time and emotional energy into exploring all the facets of the team. I'm going to forgo some activities and money so that I can experience the game with the players.  It means the team has my loyalty, devotion and emotional capital.  I'm not simply hoping they win, I'm willing to be deeply disappointed if they lose.

 

The 2001 Jermaine Dye/Neifi Perez trade utterly destroyed me. It was clear that the Glass family did not respect me and I was giving the team more than they would ever give me.  I still hung in there for another 3 years (man crush on Mike Sweeney). 

 

Did I just decide to become an Angels fan?  In a word, "yes".  I decided to give myself a 2 year transition period to root for both teams and then I forsook the Royals.  I stopped checking box scores.  I didn't care who was starting.  I moved on.

 

I didn't burn my George Brett signed World Series ball or anything.  I still own my cap and I reserve the right to put it on any time I want.  But I'm not going to live or die with them. I went from being an active fan to a passive fan (although in 2006 I probably felt hate for them).  I experienced all the emotions of a breakup with a girlfriend. It just so happens that my ex-girlfriend is now in a beauty contest with my wife.

 

 

i understand this completely.

[totdprods]

All I know is that if the Angels were to lose to one team in the playoffs that I wouldn't be livid about, it'd be Kansas City.

Oakland? Detroit? Even Baltimore? Hell no.

A team that hasn't been to the playoffs since '85? Okay fine.

[Torridd]

On the contrary, the Angels, to me, are plainly better than KC. I would be livid if they lost to them rather than any other team still playing. 

[Angelsjunky]

It is rare that you find someone who is actually able to switch allegiances. I tried briefly back in the 90s at some point, tired of year after year of mediocrity. I'm glad I was unsuccessful, as I was rewarded in 2002.

 

Anyhow, it will be interesting to see how you actually feel tonight, how deep your new allegiance goes or whether underneath it your love of the Royals remains. Let us know - we'll love you regardless! (Well, some of us will).

[mulwin444]

My first memories of the KC Royals was really the '80 WS.  I was 8 and was one year removed from my Angels getting ousted by the Orioles on their way to a WS loss to the Pirates.  My uncle's in-laws were from MO and huge Royals fans, one of them even had a cake made in the shape of the stadium to celebrate the WS appearance.  My Dad played for the Phillies org (pitched to Bob Boone) so my NL team was the Phillies and I knew, from an early age, not to celebrate too much when the Phils did well.  They were classy people and handled the loss well so I always rooted KC in a passive way.  I remember the '85 playoffs very well, coming back from 3-1 deficits against both the Blue Jays and the Cardinals to finally break-through and win it.  I was happy for the them but, by then, I had '82 still in my mind and was wondering when the Angels would get their shot.  Little did I know, one year later, I'd be experiencing the depths of baseball despair myself.

[Angel Oracle]

I still remember the Halos being in good shape in 1985 with 9 games to play and up 2 in the standings. They then proceed to blow a 5-0 8th inning lead in Cleveland, and then the wheels come off in KC.

[Brandon]

I'm a passive Royals fan. Grew up liking George Brett and my tie to KC sports because of family out there....we had a baseball team though and I simply never felt a closeness to the Raiders or Rams when they were out here, so being a Chiefs fan is easy.

I went from just following up on them casually to really liking the team the more I went out to KC. They just have that 90s Angels vibe of sucking constantly like we did. Their fans are super nice and complimentary when I would wear Angels clothing to games out there.

Just one of those teams, fan bases, and cities that it's easy to root for. They deserve a run, just not this year.

[AngelsFaninGA]

It is rare that you find someone who is actually able to switch allegiances. I tried briefly back in the 90s at some point, tired of year after year of mediocrity. I'm glad I was unsuccessful, as I was rewarded in 2002.

 

Anyhow, it will be interesting to see how you actually feel tonight, how deep your new allegiance goes or whether underneath it your love of the Royals remains. Let us know - we'll love you regardless! (Well, some of us will).

 

It's especially rare to see someone change allegiances as an adult after they've invested so many years into rooting for one team. I used to root for different teams than I do now in virtually every sport when I was little, but around the time I was 12-14 I found my permanent teams for one reason or another and have stuck with them ever since. 

[haloman]

There were years/decades the Angels were unwatchable. Even though I may have not lived and died with

Every pitch or check every box score as I do now, I can't imagine giving up on them

Completely. I shutter to think I would make an Avatar with some other team on it. I appreciate the fan who sticks with his team through very tough times. Makes it sweeter. -2002

[Lou]

TB, why KC? 

[TroutBaseball]

TB, why KC? 

 

When I was 4 years old I discovered baseball for the first time. My family lived in Olathe, Kansas.  We were going to Worlds of Fun and I needed a jacket, my dad just happened to buy me a KC Royals jacket.  I remember the EXACT moment. I was sitting on a bench next to an old man, he asked me if I went to the baseball game and I told him I didn't know what that was.  He pulled out some novelty map of the city and showed me where the stadium was.

Shortly after that we moved to a part of Oklahoma that was in the Royals broadcast area.  Being one of the most dominant teams of the era probably helped too (playoffs in 7 of 10 years).

[NorCal Halo]

TB, I totally understand. 

 

My first baseball game was in 1979 at Angels stadium, and I have been an Angels fans since.  My son's first game was in Milwaukee (we were visiting relatives).  He likes the Brewers.  To get him more into the game, I offered to become a Brewers fan.  He declined even though I was serious.  The bottom line is that I love my son more than baseball, and I love baseball more than I love the Angels. 

 

Having said that, go Halos!