Struggling to get into a Baseball mood this season

[John Taylor]

Every season since I was a kid I would literally be counting down the days until Spring Training, and then would try and watch every ST game as I counted down until Opening Day. This year I'm really struggling to get excited about baseball like I usually do.

I have yet to watch a full ST game (although I partially blame my dislike for Jose Mota's PbP for that), and I just don't feel that sense of "excitement" that I always do. It has nothing to do with the on field product, I actually think the Angels will be better this year, and I've been really excited about seasons where i knew we'd suck.

I think last season really messed with me, it was the first season in almost 20 years where I didn't attend a single game. I also hated the short schedule, and the pandemic in general. I am not struggling with depression as this issue only seems to be affecting baseball for me. Also I put a lot of energy into the Trevor Bauer social media recruitment thing and that really soured me as well.

Also I struggle with change, and looking forward to hearing @VictorRojas and Gubi in the booth was something I would look forward to yearly, like being visited by old friends, so I think Victor leaving affected me more than I realized, although I am very excited about Matt Vasgersion. (If they stuck with Jose Mota this season I would have legit cancelled MLB.tv)

I don't think I've posted in the AW Twitter account since Jan (All posts are @Chuckster70 right now I believe) and I've barely visited AW.com

 

Is there anyone else struggling with getting as excited about this season as previous seasons?

 

I think I need to go to an actual game and to borrow a quote from Shawn Michaels "Get my smile back" lol

[ten ocho recon scout]

That was me last year.

Covid made me lose all interest. Then when the games actually started, I didnt even realize they did for a week or 2. About then the riots kicked off, and I was working 7 days a week.

By the time i had a minute to pay any attention, I really didnt care at all. Baseball, especially when it was a 2 month season, with goofy new protocols and rules, just didnt seem to matter at all, so I skipped it. Maybe caught 5 innings spread out over the year, when the game was on at work in our gym.

Was kind of sort of in the same boat going into this year. After a year of no interest, was just mildly interested in this year.

Still nowhere near as excited as I used to get. I realized some time back I get more interest from AW than i do the angels winning (or losing). 

But, the team looks to be improved this year. And as take it or leave it as I am to this point about the year starting, once I get to my first game, Im sure Ill be back to normal.

[Justin]

24 minutes ago, John Taylor said:

Also I put a lot of energy into the Trevor Bauer social media recruitment thing and that really soured me as well.

First off, it sucks that you're not excited about baseball and I feel for you. This last year has sucked for a lot of people, for many different reasons. All I can say is that I hope you start to get into it as the season gets underway for real. There is a lot of optimism about this team and, though any Angels fan knows the dangers of unrealistic expectations, there is a chance that this team could be MUCH better than anything we have seen in the last half-decade. There is a real chance that this could be one of those seasons people mention in a decade when the question is posed on AW "What are some of your favorite non-2002 seasons?".

Second, I highlighted the above line from your post because it jumped out at me. I would recommend that, unless you are doing something for someone you truly love, you NEVER put "a lot of energy" into anything social-media related. It is not real life. It is a collection of bored and/or lonely people looking for reactions, not interactions. 

In your last days on this earth, are you going to say "I'm glad I spent so much time on Twitter!"? I suspect not. Again, if it's someone you love, if you're checking in on family and friends during the pandemic, by all means, enjoy yourself. But engaging a jackass like Trevor Bauer, arguing with that stranger who said something political with which you disagree, getting pissed off that people think Shake Shack is better than In-n-Out... very few things in life are a bigger waste of time. 

I hope things get better for you when you hear the crack of the bat on opening day. I suspect they will. 

[John Taylor]

24 minutes ago, Justin said:

I would recommend that, unless you are doing something for someone you truly love, you NEVER put "a lot of energy" into anything social-media related

I guess I should have expanded on this. I am one of a few people who help manage the AngelsWin Twitter account (Chuck and Geoff are the other primary ones), the Trevor Bauer recruitment stuff was done in that capacity to help generate offseason buzz and excitement and in an overall scope, and help drive traffic to AngelsWin. I put a lot of work and creative effort into it in more of a work capacity, and knowing that there was a good chance we wouldn't land him. Once it was all said and done I was pretty wiped out. So I was already burned out on baseball before Spring Training even began.

 

Even if we had signed him, I probably would have been just as wiped out. From December to mid Jan,  the Hot Stove season, the Angels and the AW twitter account made up the majority of my time on Social media.

[tdawg87]

I've been apathetic about the Angels for the last 4-5 years. I still follow the games but my passion just isn't there anymore.

You could say I'm a fairweather fan, that's fine. I'm just tired of the mediocrity from top to bottom. 

As for this year, I'm definitely feeling a tinge of reluctant excitement. The Angels are like a brother who just got out of rehab for the 4th time.

[Jay]

@John Taylor I felt bad for you on the Trevor Bauer thing. I know you were really into it.

Anyway it's ok not to be super-excited about the start of baseball.

If the team does well everybody will have a good time watching the games.

 

 

[Justin]

43 minutes ago, tdawg87 said:

The Angels are like a brother who just got out of rehab for the 4th time.

A savvy analogy. 

You want so badly to believe, but deep down you're thinking 'Please don't go back to rehab for the fifth time'

And 'Please don't have a losing record for the sixth year in a row.' 

[Taylor]

I felt this way last year, but feel a little more excited this year. I think a lot of us need to see the Angels have a successful season (i.e., making the playoffs and not sucking in the playoffs) before we get fully invested again. Heck, I'd even settle for a legit playoff hunt with games in September that matter, even if it leads to heartbreak.

[Pancake Bear]

It's always tough for me when the team is doing badly. I just have a hard time summoning interest when they're losing 2/3 of the time. But I'm usually semi-excited in Spring. Hope springs eternal, right? This year is probably the most excited I've been since 2018 with Ohtani. I feel like this team could be at least minor contenders. Legit shot to make the playoffs, IMO. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

No one's fandom is ever static. We all have ups and downs. When this team is in first place two months into the season I think you might come around. There are plenty of things to get excited about, especially Ohtani, and should we get a glimpse of what this team is capable of I'm sure you'll feel it again.

[AngelsLakersFan]

1 minute ago, Pancake Bear said:

It's always tough for me when the team is doing badly. I just have a hard time summoning interest when they're losing 2/3 of the time. But I'm usually semi-excited in Spring. Hope springs eternal, right? This year is probably the most excited I've been since 2018 with Ohtani. I feel like this team could be at least minor contenders. Legit shot to make the playoffs, IMO. 

Exactly, when this team loses 5 out of 6 and chances of finishing over .500 are slipping following the team starts becoming a chore.

[ten ocho recon scout]

1 hour ago, tdawg87 said:

I've been apathetic about the Angels for the last 4-5 years. I still follow the games but my passion just isn't there anymore.

You could say I'm a fairweather fan, that's fine. I'm just tired of the mediocrity from top to bottom. 

As for this year, I'm definitely feeling a tinge of reluctant excitement. The Angels are like a brother who just got out of rehab for the 4th time.

Beat way to put it. And Ive wondered the same about myself, am i a "fairweather fan".

The reality is, theres a difference between "i only care when they are winning", and "its more fun when they win"

I think anybody who posts on here or even just reads regularly, and cares at all about the budget, the farm, etc etc... youre a fan. 

Just because youre realistic and not as excited as the good years doesnt make you any less. Just makes you normal

 

[Taylor]

1 hour ago, ten ocho recon scout said:

Beat way to put it. And Ive wondered the same about myself, am i a "fairweather fan".

The reality is, theres a difference between "i only care when they are winning", and "its more fun when they win"

I think anybody who posts on here or even just reads regularly, and cares at all about the budget, the farm, etc etc... youre a fan. 

Just because youre realistic and not as excited as the good years doesnt make you any less. Just makes you normal

 

I agree with this. I think a fairweather fan is someone who becomes a fan of a different team when their original team sucks, not a lifetime fan who gets bored with their team but still calls themself a fan.

[Second Base]

The world is a weird place right now. Maskers and free-breathers, Republicans and democrats, lock down vs no lock down, vaccines vs non-vaxxers, rural and urban, BLM/Antifa vs supporting law enforcement, believers vs non-believers, this science vs that science, constitution vs socialism, education vs indoctrination, freedom vs safety and security, stimulus vs non-stimulus.

It used to be confined to it's own space and now it's all leaked over into baseball. Everyone disagrees with each other and there's this tangible cloud of opposition and confusion in the air that is destroying the society from the inside out.

I'm not saying this to take any side or the other, I'm just pointing out where we are at.

There's a lot of people out there that aren't depressed, but have definitely lost that luster for life and the things they once held so dear.

For me, a key has been putting in intentional quiet time, preferably in nature of you have it near you, and throwing yourself head long into something you're passionate about.

[John Taylor]

With that being said, I'm excited about todays game and getting to see Ohtani pitch and leadoff, also the second I heard Mota on the FSPT feed I switched over to the Padres feed on MLB.tv. I have never personally liked someone that I so absolutely despise their on-screen work, sorry Jose, you a good dude but a terrible broadcaster.

[Second Base]

37 minutes ago, John Taylor said:

With that being said, I'm excited about todays game and getting to see Ohtani pitch and leadoff, also the second I heard Mota on the FSPT feed I switched over to the Padres feed on MLB.tv. I have never personally liked someone that I so absolutely despise their on-screen work, sorry Jose, you a good dude but a terrible broadcaster.

Yup. I was fully prepared to listen to 2021 games on mute for the entire season, or the away game feed. 

The Angels hiring Matty V saved my ear drums for the 2021 season.

[Lou]

There was no way in hell Mota was ever going to be the full-time announcer. 

[Dave Saltzer]

5 hours ago, John Taylor said:

Every season since I was a kid I would literally be counting down the days until Spring Training, and then would try and watch every ST game as I counted down until Opening Day. This year I'm really struggling to get excited about baseball like I usually do.

I have yet to watch a full ST game (although I partially blame my dislike for Jose Mota's PbP for that), and I just don't feel that sense of "excitement" that I always do. It has nothing to do with the on field product, I actually think the Angels will be better this year, and I've been really excited about seasons where i knew we'd suck.

I think last season really messed with me, it was the first season in almost 20 years where I didn't attend a single game. I also hated the short schedule, and the pandemic in general. I am not struggling with depression as this issue only seems to be affecting baseball for me. Also I put a lot of energy into the Trevor Bauer social media recruitment thing and that really soured me as well.

Also I struggle with change, and looking forward to hearing @VictorRojas and Gubi in the booth was something I would look forward to yearly, like being visited by old friends, so I think Victor leaving affected me more than I realized, although I am very excited about Matt Vasgersion. (If they stuck with Jose Mota this season I would have legit cancelled MLB.tv)

I don't think I've posted in the AW Twitter account since Jan (All posts are @Chuckster70 right now I believe) and I've barely visited AW.com

 

Is there anyone else struggling with getting as excited about this season as previous seasons?

 

I think I need to go to an actual game and to borrow a quote from Shawn Michaels "Get my smile back" lol

John,

 

I appreciate your honesty and respect your feelings. As others have pointed out, this past year, with all the strife and division has really sucked the enjoyment out of a lot of things. Even baseball.

 

But, I'd ask you to listen to my interview with Daron Sutton. While I will very much miss Victor Rojas (hearing him on TV, especially at the start of a season, was like talking with an old friend and catching up). Daron Sutton will be similar, but a bit different. My impression will be that listening to Sutton will be like running into that old friend from high school and retelling all the great old stories, reliving some glory days and enjoying the new times too. 

 

In almost every way, 2020 tried to suck the life out of all of us. But, we just have to get back out there and start doing things again, and we will find our enjoyment and passions are still there.

[Taylor]

4 hours ago, Second Base said:

The world is a weird place right now. Maskers and free-breathers, Republicans and democrats, lock down vs no lock down, vaccines vs non-vaxxers, rural and urban, BLM/Antifa vs supporting law enforcement, believers vs non-believers, this science vs that science, constitution vs socialism, education vs indoctrination, freedom vs safety and security, stimulus vs non-stimulus.

It used to be confined to it's own space and now it's all leaked over into baseball. Everyone disagrees with each other and there's this tangible cloud of opposition and confusion in the air that is destroying the society from the inside out.

I'm not saying this to take any side or the other, I'm just pointing out where we are at.

There's a lot of people out there that aren't depressed, but have definitely lost that luster for life and the things they once held so dear.

For me, a key has been putting in intentional quiet time, preferably in nature of you have it near you, and throwing yourself head long into something you're passionate about.

People who make false dichotomies vs. people who don't.

[DMVol]

I think we’re all struggling with the evolving post-COVID world.  Last season was weird.... COVID has messed with relationships, family life, mental health, work and, though it obviously isn’t as important in the grand scheme of things, our sports fandom.  Hang in there.

[Angels Fan Forever]

9 hours ago, John Taylor said:

This year I'm really struggling to get excited about baseball like I usually do.

 

Five straight losing seasons for a GM who went five years refusing to draft a pitcher in the first round will do that...

To better days in ‘21. 

[Lou]

I'm excited about the season.

[Chuck]

30 minutes ago, Lou said:

I'm excited about the season.

I am too, but to be fair I'm pretty excited & hopeful every spring for the new season. 

That said, I feel there's a little something extra special in the air this spring. 

[Angelsjunky]

Did Shohei change your mind at all, @John Taylor?

p.s. I loved your work with Duran Duran.

p.p.s. I'm sure you've never heard that before.

[Second Base]

3 hours ago, TaylorBot said:

People who make false dichotomies vs. people who don't.

Complete idiots that think using a buzz word from humanities 101 in their freshman year makes them intelligent vs slightly less idiotic idiots that don't concern themselves with trying and failing to sound smart. 

Indeed.