For once, it's nice to see a writer take the time to examine our history before labeling us a horrible sports city because we are little impatient and quick on the booing trigger finger. I wish the Michael Wilbons and Skip Baylesses of the world would check out this one.Last week's column about fans who keep attending games of terrible teams brought e-mail from readers all over the country who took offense at my suggestion that Cubs fans have had to suffer through the most hopeless seasons.
So how do you determine which city has treated its sports fans worse than every other?
You know those lists that come out every year that tell you the best cities to live in? The selections are typically based on some formula that weighs climate, employment, cost of living, crime rate, attractiveness of the Real World cast that lived there, or any of the other things a normal person would take into account when choosing a place to live. But what if the rankings were based purely on the aggregated historic success of the local pro sports teams? Which cities would be at the very bottom of that list?
I'll give you a hint: not Chicago. Thanks to the success of the Bulls, Blackhawks, and, more recently, White Sox, the Cubs could lose every single game for the next 10 years and Chicago would still be one of the best sports towns. From bad to worse, here are my choices for the cities with the most unfortunate fans:
6. Tampa (check the link for these reasoning behind their place in the standings)5. San Diego
4. Seattle
3. Milwaukee
2. Cleveland
1. Philadelphia: None of the city's four major pro teams has won a championship since 1983. Philly has had its share of embarrassingly bad teams while at the same time suffering painful postseason losses by good teams. It's that unique Extra Value Meal of exasperating playoff losses mixed with unparalleled putrescence that earns Philadelphia the top...er...bottom spot. It's no wonder the city's fans have a reputation for being the nation's crankiest.
Two NFL championships in the '40s and one in 1960 are hardly memories that most Eagles fans can recall. Especially since 18 years passed before they even made it back to the playoffs. The team boasts two Super Bowl appearances; both were losses, and one was a heartbreaker that ended on a last-second field goal. (PSP NOTE: OK, THIS GUY LOSES A TON OF CREDIBILITY THERE...MUST HAVE the 2005 SUPER BOWL MIXED UP WITH 2004 CAROLINA VS. PATS?)
The Flyers, meanwhile, have been solid if incredibly frustrating through most of their existence. They've had strings of 11 and 17 straight playoff appearances but have won only two Stanley Cups and none since 1975. Similar things could be said for the 76ers, who had a magical 1966-67 season and some great players from Dr. J to Moses Malone to Charles Barkley to Allen Iverson, but won only one other championship despite nearly annual trips to the playoffs.
What really sinks the City of Brotherly Love on this list, though, is the Phillies. The Phils are the longest running sports team in the country to play continuously in one city under one name, and yet they have won only a single World Series -- 27 years ago. The Cubs may get all the press as losers, but the Phillies are far and away the most futile ballclub in the majors. In fact, they've lost more games (9,956) than any team in any sport. They've had so many dozens of losing seasons that they make three-card monte look like a good bet.
The Philadelphia A's fared much better before running off to Kansas City, but also set some of their own records for losing. I have yet to meet anyone who remembers celebrating the team's back-to-back 1929-30 World Series titles. Well, except maybe Orlando Hernandez.
Even though he made a major faux pas on the Super Bowl comment, I still give major props to Mr. Hofstetter. Nicely done.
5 comments:
Finally, a national sports media article that doesn't bring up Rocky, the Snowball/Santa incident, or cheese steaks.
At least one media outlet is trying to understand us.
sjn
Screw Mr. Hoefstetter or whatever the hell his name his. This just bonds us tighther. If you can still look yourself in the mirror and call yourself a 4 for 4 fan you've earned it.
Our time is coming, Phils have a core of youngsters bordering on greatness, some pitching to trade to fill in the cracks, a manager on a tight leash. Good times a coming.
Birds, back from the dead this year, and the class of the NFC LEAST for the next few years. Early predictions, Bears won't make the playoffs next year (SB Loser always struggle) Saints are the golden team for '07, but how long is Reggie Bush willing to carry Deuce's bag and their D is still susceptible.
Mrs. Nascar will tote out the same rotten up and coming teams to challenge the NFC, ala the Cards, Niners, Rams. Call me when one of those teams makes a wild card game.
Sixers, were a few picks and Coaches away, but have started the rebuilding process. The new AI shows signs of being a building block.
Kixx, hear they have some young guys and a coach who will revolutionize the game, more to come from those guys.
Yeah...real funny leaving out the Flyers and inserting the Kixx. Pretty original. DOn't kid yourself, the Flyers are closer to turning it around than the Sixers simply due to the NBA's salary cap constraints and the presence of Billy King
Hey, I heard yesterday on Preston and Steve, a couple of guys did a documentary on Philly sports teams and all of their loses. It is called the "Curse of William Penn" or something like and is supposed to be out in February. Preston and Steve toted the movie as being pretty good and really makes you think about in 1984 the gentleman's agreement to start building buildings higher than Billy Penn. One of the guys on the radio suggested moving Billy Penn to the tallest building and maybe that would solve the problem of all of our teams losing. The are having a screening of the movie at Chickie and Petes coming up soon. Check out the Preston and Steve show for more info.
I am totally not buying the Tampa inclusion. I do not feel sorry for anyone with 2 championships within the last several years.
Some guys started a website related to our losing and are selling T-Shirts now.
disgruntledfans.com
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