J-Roll's Explanation Based on Semantics of "Front-Runner"

In the choppy wake left after he casually uttered the comments that sent many Philadelphians into an uproar, Jimmy Rollins again appeared on the Best Damn Sports Show Period via phone tonight to clarify his assertion that Phillies fans are "front-runners." One of my initial reactions (okay, secondary, after I'd calmed down a bit) when I begin to formulate my thoughts on what he said last night was that he possibly had a different idea of what it means to be a front-runner than I do. There are a few accepted uses of the term, one of which is actually positive (Team X is the front-runner to land Player Y in free agency). Clearly, that wouldn't make sense in this context, but the other going definitions are essentially variations of a fair-weather fan, something that could never be considered favorable.

The definitions I'm used to range from the shameful extreme of that kid down the street who started rooting for the Cowboys when the Triplets were winning titles or the Bulls when Jordan couldn't be stopped, to the the ignorable guy who stopped rooting for the Phillies altogether when they hadn't sniffed the playoffs in years, coming back to them only when a World Series was possible or likely (whenever that might be). Sure, these people exist in Philly, possibly in greater numbers than we'd like, but they hardly define the fanbase, nor are they in any way unique to the region's sports teams.

So maybe he meant something else entirely, possibly even using the frequent rhetorical device among athletes of completely misusing the key word in his sentence. But growing up entrenched in a sporting world, wouldn't he have to know that when you call a fan (or an entire fanbase) a front-runner, no matter what specifically you mean, it has a negative connotation? And that's what I was sure of. He certainly didn't mean it as a compliment. Far from it. He made that clear enough when he said he expected flak for the statement, and his omission of any real positive sentiment about the fans in Philly. Maybe that was just because he was responding to a framed question about how tough it can be here, but that could have just been

In his explanation, J-Roll did not apologize, but he did indeed say that he didn't mean it in the way most people think. Take a listen:

Click To Play

There's quite a bit to digest there, and it doesn't all follow one particular logical course, but it seems he's mostly unhappy with the booing, which, incidentally, he says is okay when "[the Phillies] need to get booed because [they're] not doing well."  He later oddly pulls Carlos Ruiz into the mix, as if he has been doing well and being booed for no good reason. But he did make it clear that this has "nothing to do" with Phillies fans abandoning the team, which he indicated was not what he meant. Rollins acknowledged the sellouts, and used the word "passionate," which would have helped him a lot had he used it during the first appearance.

The best I can surmise from this, and possibly it's just me inserting my own beliefs into his words, is that he's saying you shouldn't boo a player just because he stinks, or a team hits a brief rough patch. Ruiz won't benefit from hearing how much he sucks, because he's playing at the limit of his ability. But when a player isn't playing to his ability, maybe it's best to let them ride out their slump, like Ryan Howard has this year to put together a great overall season. Then the third type of player, who deserves the boos, is the guy whose dedication and motivation can reasonably be questioned and linked to a lack of production. Only one player really fits that description this year in Philly. And yeah, distinguishing between these things to judiciously decide who and what to boo is not our particular strong suit.

Clearly we boo a lot here, more than most places and maybe less than some others. (The remaining fans at the Linc just rained them down after a terrible special teams play resulted in a pick 6.) But in the aftermath of these quotes, regardless of how he says he meant them, I think Jimmy will unfortunately (but deservedly) get booed before he even has the chance to play poorly.

In any case, it's really a sad thing when a player goes from hero to goat in just one season.

Comments

[Brotherly Scrote]

He didn't apologize so I'm not forgiving him. Sorry J-Roll. You've broken the two rules Philly fans have:

1. Play hard
2. Don't whine or complain about the team, money, or the fans.

[DCGreg]

I'll breathe, and say everyone got a little bit too upset with his comments. I get what he was sayin'.

With that being said, I'm not going to cheer for you with the season you are having, Jimmy. You aren't playing well, and when that happens, especially when you should be producing great numbers, you are going to get booed in this town. Get used to it.

[Loqiel]

This man cannot possibly dig his figurative grave fast enough.

[Hummer]

so....jimmy proves that hes as big of a jackass as i thought

[phruntrunner]

so in the clip, he first says that fans booing at home games makes it hard for them.

then he says he doesn't care if the fans boo him on Tuesday, that it won't affect him.

Which one is it J-Off?

[Liam]

And the offense is blowing it again. What is wrong with it lately? Jimmy wonders why people are so tough on the players. He should watch 4 games like they have played this series and then try not to boo the effort from this team. And jesus brett is pitching well again and this offense does absolutely nothing

[j13]

If I spend $40 on a ticket, and a player does not run out a play, I will boo. If I spent $2 on the ticket, perhaps it would bother me less.

Players who play hard in philly are loved, win or lose. Players who loaf it - ever - are not. Players who loaf it and then whine about being booed can go to hell.

There is NOTHING front runner about a fan base that sells out ANY of its teams' games when NONE of those teams have won a championship in 25 motherfucking years.

I think the MVP may be the worst thing ever to happen to Jimmy. His head seems bigger than his drive now, but it was his drive that got him that award.

[Liam]

Anyone else notice that the majority of Kuroda (or however his name is spelled) strike out pitches is putting something off speed away that moves further outside? And the phillies keep swinging at those pitches

[bert]

Jimmy, just shut the fuck up and play baseball.

[Saul]

It's also worth reading the blog post on the subject over at Philly.com, which has the transcript of a separate interview as well as his second appearance on Best Damn Sports Show. His main point, which was clearer in other interview, is that players are human too, and being told you suck isn't likely to make you confident that you can do better. I actually do understand what he's saying about "negative energy" and how there can be a trickle-down. But on the other hand, it's the fan mentality: we want to see the best product from our team, and we're going to let you know when we think we;re not seeing it. So I see his point, but you can't escape that "Fan mentality."

[Liam]

The thing I hate about all this is that he is getting paid 8 million this year. You pay me that much and you can say anything you want to me.

On another note this series is just plain depressing. Watching this makes me understand what the mets fans must have been feeling last year. I just feel like this team has absolutely no heart at all. They lose games they should've won and look like they couldn't care less. Hopefully all the phillies can rememmber they're all getting p aid at least 6 figures so they should probably start earning that pay

[Brotherly Scrote]

I'm sorry, but when you make millions of dollars PLAYING A GAME, you have no room for hurt feelings. We get yelled at and ridiculed by our bosses too for making 35000 a year, some of which we put towards watching these people play sports! Jimmy needs to grow a skin and get over it already.

You know what creates more negative energy than Sal from South Philly booing? When this team that's supposed to be really good goes through a 23 inning scoreless drought at home, then goes to the west coast, shits the bed and loses their lead in the NL East while the "leader" of the team is being a media whore on a lousy sports show and criticizing the very people who spend their hard earned money to watch this lousy team play. Jimmy, your awful leadership and big mouth is creating negative energy, not the fans.

On a semi-related note, can we please fire Milt Thompson or something?

[Liam]

Yea the guy needs to go. No team with this much potential in their lineup should go this cold consistently. Everyone knows this team can kill the ball, but if they aren't hitting home runs they can't seem to get it done. SOmething really needs to be done about this lineup. I wish jimmy was worried more about his htitting instead of calling into the tv show. What a horrendous series. If they don't go ahead and sweep the padres then this team better not come back home. What a fucking let down

[Brotherly Scrote]

There's been a lot of references to when Mike Schmidt wore a wig upon returning home from Montreal. Some people today suggested Jimmy do the same. At this rate, the whole team better get wigs because they are absolutely repulsive right now. It's a good thing the Eagles won tonight (even if it's pre-season) otherwise I'd be even more miserable.

[pilgrim]

I am ashamed to be a fan of Philadelphia sports. Not because of anything Jimmy Rollins has said, but because of how this fan base has responded to it. You people act as if the athletes in this town are our slaves, and that if they react to our criticisms we are allowed to kill them for it.

Go ahead and tell me that because they get paid so much they should be able to handle being booed. That's a cop-out and you all know it. Sports is a billion dollar industry, athletes are going to get paid a lot because they are good at what they do. Don't be bitter because your and my particular skill or calling in life doesn't award us with as much money. Money isn't everything in life.

Would you prefer that he had no reaction to fans booing the team, that he didn't care that we care? If he was content with just collecting a pay check than he wouldn't have brought this up in the first place.

This whole "pity me, my teams haven't won a championship in 25 years" attitude is not only annoying, but it's self-destructive if it's going to run guys like Jimmy Rollins out of town.

[goawayfavre]

i just have one fundamental question? why does poor performance from a guy with a track record like rollins' deserve a boo?

adam eaton, boo to your heart's content. todd pinkston, boo so hard that he blows over.

but the idea that you boo the reigning MVP because his season is not up to par is ignorant to me. the idea that you boo the MVP from the season prior, simply because his start was awful (when his track record is Rookie of the Year and MVP and 40-plus HR's) is silly.

I think booing is played out. I think it's beer muscles.

Thoughts?

[Mike]

To start off, I've always refrained from using the "they make millions" excuse because I recognize that sports is a business and that athletes are paid the going rate. It makes no difference to me that a bean counter gets $50K a year and a baseball/football/hockey/basketball/what have you player makes multiples of that. If I cared that much I would have stopped caring about sports years ago.

Having said that, yes, Rollins won the MVP last year and was the catalyst on one of my favorite Philly teams in history. I'll always appreciate that. This is where I struggle though, because he has had several instances this season where he has not played up to par. If he had the year he is having and played his hardest all the time, he would not be getting the heat that he is. Statistically, Rollins is having a year similar to (albeit slightly below) his career averages. I can't recall a time in those other years where he didn't hustle out grounders or show occassional malaise on the field. For all of Howard's faults on the field, he seems to show frustration when he doesn't perform. I only bring him up because I see the two mentioned in the same breath in light of Rollins' comments.

Other than boo, what are the alternatives? People say don't go to games, buy jerseys/shirts, etc., but I can't do that. I was born and raised in Philadelphia and having moved away, I take pride in wearing my gear out in public. Painful as it may be sometimes, I can't not support the local teams. It's a part of my upbringing and I won't give it up. I'm not going to throw a pity party because our teams haven't won a title since I was a toddler, but it sure would be nice to have bragging rights at least once before I'm relegated to Just For Men status.

[Brotherly Scrote]

Mike hit the nail on the head. Other than boo, what are we supposed to do when one of our own disappoints us? Rollins isn't going to get stuff thrown at him and probably won't receive any threats, but I think the fans do need to tell him that it's not right to insult the million of people who used to like him for no reason. Athletes are loved in this town, sometimes to an insane level, and when the reigning MVP who captured our hearts last year rips them out, cuts them open, and then pours salt in the wound for good measure, I'd like to know what you expect us to do, Pilgrim.

I don't think anyone is asking for pity about the championship thing, and the money issue is certainly not a copout. Is it so much to ask that a guy who is a role model in the community because he's good looking, makes millions of dollars, and plays a game that lots of little kids play take a little time out to shake the hands of fans, play the game to the best of his ability, and not be a jerk? Pilgrim, that's not asking a lot. That's asking someone to put their ego on hold for a brief period and be a human.

Maybe we do have an unrealistically high expectation of our athletes in Philadelphia and maybe the reaction to J-Roll's comments is a little over the top, but shit Pilgrim, look at the context:

1. The team is in a free-fall.
2. Rollins has been dogging it all year.
3. The guy put down his own city while praising another one.
4. He had a chance to apologize and didn't.

I don't really care that he's the reigning MVP anymore. It sure as hell didn't help us last year when we got swept by the Rockies. All it did was give Rollins the idea that he's invincable. With any job comes respect, regardless of the money variable. Once you disrespect people, especially those who pay your salary, they'll be upset.

Drop the holier than thou stuff already Pilgrim. I'm sorry that you're ashamed to be a Philadelphia sports fan right now. I am too, but that's just because my beloved teams are going nowhere.

[Brotherly Scrote]

Real quick, look at the players on the Phillies who get the most respect: Chase Utley and Jamie Moyer.

Chase always hustles, and even when he struggles, no one ridicules him for it because we know he's trying his best.

Jamie is a stand-up guy who is active in charities, plays the game hard, and is always out there signing autographs, shaking hands, and talking to the fans.

Then you look at Jimmy:
Arriving late to practice, blowing off fans at team events, disrespecting the manager, and humiliating the fans on national TV.

Some players get it, some don't.

[Pete D]

@goawayfavre,

Occasionally, booing is absolutely beer muscles. Or done just for the hell of it. I can say I've probably occaisionally booed for both reasons.

However, being reigning MVP doesn't give you license to not leg out ground/fly balls, show up late for games against the mets, and pop up to an infielder on the first pitch in 30% of your at bats.

Jimmy's performance this year, as subpar as it has been, has not genrated one boo. We knew that we needed him to succeed and continued to cheer him. HOWEVER, now that he has gone on this awful show and made these first insulting, and now whining comments about his fans, there is license to boo.

It shouldn't happen every game, but Tuesday night when he is announced, he should be booed with gusto.

On the broadcast last night, there was a quote from Larry Bowa from the 1980 season - "The fans used to boo me here, so I just went out, played hard and got two hits every night."

Jimmy hasn't been playing hard. Now he questioned our fandom. So he will be booed. Not played out, or beer muscles, just good old-fashioned well deserved boos. We're dissapointed in him, and we have the right to express that.

[johndewar]

Definitely not a backpedal. Whatever.

I'm not going to waste time justifying fan behavior to Jimmy Rollins. I pay to watch him play; he doesn't pay to watch me cheer and overpay for beer at the ballpark.

[Stock]

John Salley sucks.

[tb]

Basically, he's saying Philly fans are fickle. Which is absolutely, undeniably true.

The insane level of outrage about it makes Philly look even more insecure than usual.

[pilgrim]

@ Brotherly Scrote

You asked what I expect Philadelphia fans to do. Well, first of all, I would expect that they be mature enough not to view Rollins' behavior as "the reigning MVP who captured our hearts last year rips them out, cuts them open, and then pours salt in the wound for good measure." Jesus, you don't think that's a little melodramatic? He just bemoaned Philly's skittishness, he didn't rape and murder an orphanage or something.

I would also expect that people maybe listen to what Rollins said, because if they do and they are honest with themselves, they'll realize that what he said is an accurate portrayal of Philly fans, and that it's not really an insult. Clearly "front runner fans" is not how Jimmy sees Philly, he misused that term or didn't quite understand what it means. Essentially, he's complained that fans here love you when you're on top, and boo the bejesus out of you when you suck. Can anyone here argue that's not the case?

This bellicose response, and preference to run Rollins out of town rather than understand what he meant just reaffirms the stereotype that Philadelphia would rather boo and hate their own players than actually win.

[Jonn]

It kinda reminds me of high school basketball. After we played our hearts out, lost the game, the cheer leaders would do a cheer that went "We love our team." Those were the words, but all I heard was "our team sucks but let's stay positive."

All of that to say this: if you give a crap about the sport you're playing, it is insulting to have someone pat you on the back and say "great game" when you lost. As an athlete, I'm my worst critic. If these Phillies actually got on themselves for the way they play, maybe we wouldn't have to.

[mattTHEbat]

@pilgrim
"You people act as if the athletes in this town are our slaves, and that if they react to our criticisms we are allowed to kill them for it.

Go ahead and tell me that because they get paid so much they should be able to handle being booed. That's a cop-out and you all know it. Sports is a billion dollar industry, athletes are going to get paid a lot because they are good at what they do."

Being a professional athlete comes with some baggage. Athletes need to be role models for our society, especially the young. The fact is they are good at what they do, but they are also responsible to be honest, show commitment to their sport, hustle, and entertain the fans. That is part of their job description. We do things in our jobs that we don't like to do - we suck it up and do it because we need to make a living. These guys are humans too - they should be held to the same standards. Showing up late for a game and criticizing people who pay your salary is low. Fans are an external factor to professional athletes that directly influence how much money they make. Jimmy is not fulfilling his job description; arriving to work on time, hustling/producing on the field (which is considered entertainment to us), and mingle with fans, whether they like them or not. Without us, athletes would be nothing and you know it.

[Sanganoski]

I am a fan of all of our teams, what can I tell you, I like sports, but, and I myself am guilty of this too, because a sports personality "calls" and wants to see our cards, BIG FRIGGIN DEAL!!! The fans in this area do wear their feelings on their sleeve, and I wear the same shirt too, but if we looked at the "wardrobe" that we once had in the closet just to not wear because a thread was hanging and ended up giving it to "charity", with Jimmy Rollins getting a little "snag" it shouldn't surprise anyone. He is just another garment that "fit" the year before but just doesn't now. Some "fashion statements" that this area did have only to be discarded because of their "designer quality", Allen Iverson, Eric Lindros, Terrell Owens and I bet if we did a little "inventory", there'd be a few more that we "still would have looked good in" but because of their "loudness" we decided to just send them out to be "pleasing to the eye" for another team.

[mattTHEbat]

And I'm not saying I know exactly what the job description is, but if you ask any coaches of professional sports, those are the characteristics he/she would describe. They don't put the word professional in professional athlete for nothing. Guys like Jamie Moyer he's professional.

My point is that athletes should not be put on a pedestal because they were given great talents/abilities. No one should complain about how much money they make, they should complain about the attitude. This is what I think infuriates most Philly fans - JRoll's attitude.

[mattTHEbat]

@pilgrim

"I would also expect that people maybe listen to what Rollins said, because if they do and they are honest with themselves, they'll realize that what he said is an accurate portrayal of Philly fans, and that it's not really an insult. Clearly "front runner fans" is not how Jimmy sees Philly, he misused that term or didn't quite understand what it means. Essentially, he's complained that fans here love you when you're on top, and boo the bejesus out of you when you suck. Can anyone here argue that's not the case?"

I think we do mostly agree with it. Like I said it's his attitude and the timing of this comment. I think we would all argue that Jimmy needs to worry about his performance on the baseball field...this is just icing on the cake for all the mishaps this season. That comment wasn't even necessary. The team needs to focus on getting their offense together, not about the fans. Plus, being in Philly for eight years, why bring a comment like that up. He could of just said, it's difficult to play there but I enjoy it..or something like that. Talk about "negative energy" -HE KNEW WHEN HE WAS ANSWERING THE QUESTION that "HE WAS GOING TO GET SOME FLAK" = meaning negative energy - he brought this upon himself. He's bringing the team down. If you ask me, he made matters worse.

[Brotherly Scrote]

@ Pilgrim

If he is saying that the fans are fickle, then yes I agree with him 100% because that is absolutely true. Philly is probably the only city where you can be given a standing ovation one at bat and then be booed off the field the next.

However that's not what he said. He said the fans are frontrunners which implies that Phillies fans will abandon the team as soon it starts to suck. That's just not true, since the team has set a new standard of phutility (like that use of the ph- there?)

The thing is, Jimmy's timing of this whole mess is awful. He's having a bad year, and the team is in a free fall. Instead of going on there and saying he needs to perform better and start getting on base to be the spark plug, he blames the fans! I don't give a crap about negative energy, there's plenty of positive energy at the ballpark every night but Jimmy would rather focus on the fans giving Carlos Ruiz a hard time when he grounds into a double play or Ryan Howard when he strikes out for the 3rd time in the game with men on base.

Jimmy is trying to be a leader and stand up for his guys which is commendable and I admit that we as a fanbase are insecure and blowing this out of proportion (myself included). However I think what most of the fans are upset about is the fact that the team is doing so lousy and it comes off as Jimmy just trying to defuse the blame on himself as a leader by putting it on the fans.

[mattTHEbat]

@ Brotherly Scrote

Last two paragraphs, couldn't of said it better myself. It's all about his attitude this season and frankly, it's been awful.

[tb]

I have no idea what sanganoski's post is supposed to say, but I do know that it's a painfully stretched metaphor.

[Pete D]

"Jimmy is trying to be a leader and stand up for his guys which is commendable and I admit that we as a fanbase are insecure and blowing this out of proportion (myself included). However I think what most of the fans are upset about is the fact that the team is doing so lousy and it comes off as Jimmy just trying to defuse the blame on himself as a leader by putting it on the fans."

Thank you. Thats exactly it. Hell yeah we're a bit neurotic and quick to jump on people when they suck. But the timing and tone are very much unappreciated. We prefer he speak with his play.

He went out and put up an 0fer last night. We hear you loud and clear Jimmy.

[Mick O]

Wow this is blown so far out of proportion to be comical. I know I'll never convince any of the angry mob to chill out, but I will say this:

One commenter said: "I'm sorry, but when you make millions of dollars PLAYING A GAME, you have no room for hurt feelings."

My response is, when you -voluntarily- pay hundreds of dollars to FOLLOW A GAME, you also have no room for hurt feelings.

If anything, I identify more with Rollins now than before. Some people have more fun whining than cheering. Bottom line: fans were booing a first-place team. I am not surprised Rollins might take issue with that.

[mattTHEbat]

@Mick O

Obviously, you don't understand what we were booing. We are booing the performance of specific players on the team, that aren't producing. - NOT the fact that they are in first place. Shouldn't the best players be on the field at the professional level? Then why does Charlie play Ruiz who has not brought up his average past .220 yet this year. Why did he consistently put in Tom Gordon who gave up run after run. WE ARE BOOING Rollin's attitude, his swagger, his ego. His UNPROFESSIONALISM. Rollins THINKS we are booing a first place team because as Gary Matthews Sr. says "if you don't come from Philadelphia, you don't understand the fans" - you think after 8 years, Rollins would know the difference between booing because they aren't playing well and booing because they are in first place, he doesn't - BECAUSE THE PHILLIES WERE NEVER IN FIRST PLACE until this year. We've been like this all the time, so there is no excuse, they (the players) just can't handle the fact that it is happening because they are in first now, but I bet if they were in third or fourth, Rollins wouldn't of said that...and BY THE WAY they are in second place now.

[mattTHEbat]

@Mick O

Your comment about no room for hurt feelings is ridiculous. We voluntarily pay hundreds of dollars because we enjoy being entertained. If we aren't getting entertained, we have the right to be upset. That is how pro sports work. Are we supposed to show no emotion or happiness if people we PAY to see don't do what they are supposed to do? WE PAY THEIR SALARIES. If it wasn't for us, they wouldn't have the millions. There is some connection between fans and pro players, so so say that we can't be hurt is bull. That's like saying a parent can't have hurt feelings if a teacher criticizes their parenting skills. In some way, parents help pay for teacher salaries right with taxes...same comparison with pro athletes and fans.

[Brotherly Scrote]

@ Mick O

How would you feel if you paid hundreds of dollars to see a play that you heard was really good. You take the wife/girlfriend out to dinner, she wears her best dress, you wear a tux, you get to the Forrest Theater and it turns out the cast is so drunk they can't get through their lines? Wouldn't you be upset and feel like you wasted your money and your time if you were at that play?

Now, use that same scenario except apply it to a father and his kids. Dad takes kids to the ball park. Pays ten dollars for parking, buys them food and merchandise to see the first place Phillies and what happens...the team, like the actors of the play don't show up and aren't even competitive. Now throw in the fact that these people are getting paid millions of dollars to do this and I think we as a fan base have every right to be at least a little bitter when an athlete complains about their contract or about the people who come to see them play.

Players are allowed to have feelings but for crying out loud, we all get yelled at by people for something or other at our jobs. Grow a skin, improve upon your work, and get over it!

[GE]

So to recount the situation, Jimmy Rollins is 0-9 in games played on the same day that he makes a j@ck@ss of himself on national TV.

[matttheBat]

Recap:

Last year the team was in third place. We booed and gave "NEGATIVE ENERGY" and they won the division.

Let's boo them now because they are in second, I guess they'll win the division.

Explain that one Jimmy. I guess when your in first place and fans boo, something called ego gets your way.

[pilgrim]

@ Brotherly Scrote

Your theatre/baseball analogy doesn't hold up. The Phillies aren't showing up drunk to these games. It's not like they aren't trying or that the don't care. Clearly guys like Jimmy do care or else he wouldn't have spoken out in any way.

It's childish to assume that because the Phils are struggling they aren't trying or don't care. You can try your hardest at something and still fail. That's what is happening right now. (I know people will counter this point by bringing up the not running out flyballs issue, but anyone who has ever been completely frustrated by something can relate to that.) And if you are trying your hardest to do something and you keep failing at it, and thousands of people are booing you in the process, can't you see how you might not appreciate that or understand why it's happening? Hell, you might even want to tell those people that rather than booing you, maybe they should try encouraging you. That's all Rollins has done.

I've developed a theory today after reading about this whole issue on the internet and listening to too much sports talk radio: the majority of Philadelphia fans are miserable slobs who are unsatisfied with their lives and the people that they are, and are burdened by their own failures in life. This being the case, they have latched onto sports and their local athletes (men who have accomplished things in their lives and have harnessed a level of success that the Philly fan will never know) and in some warped way they associate the triumphs of those men as triumphs of their own. When these athletes experience difficulty or go through a bad stretch, the twisted mind of a Philadelphia fan sees, to his horror, his own failures in those of the athlete, and thinks to himself "Oh God no, I'm failing at this too!" Since he has now manifested his own personal failures and shortcomings in another human being, he is able to lash out against himself and boo the side of him that he despises and blames for all of his troubles. Not only that, but he is able to build himself up and feel better about himself by invoking a "tough love" mentality by cursing the player and saying he should be able to handle it, and to quit being such a cry baby. When one of the athletes responds negatively to the booing, the Philadelphia fan sees this as his bad side, the side that he has isolated all of his failures in, not willing to accept the blame and thus his own failures are in danger of being thrust back into his face. When this happens, the brain of Philadelphia fan explodes, and you get what we've seen around here the past couple of days.

[Liam]

Its not just Philadelphia fans that do this. You go to just about any city which people would associate as caring a lot about their teams react the same ways when their teams are messing up. Yes there are some fans who don't act this way and I can understand why a player would rather that happen, but at a certain point you gotta be used to fans booing you and being upset with your performance.

Sure it sucks for the athletes that the fans here can change their opinion any second, but the main reason people are outraged about this are because of how Jimmy has changed since winning the MVP. Just think why did him and Utley become such fan favorites from the start? It was cause these guys went out their and played their hearts out, especially defensively. The problem is now that he has gotten that MVP his demeanor has changed. All the people want to see is that he cares like he did before. That when the team is in a tight race and losing tight games that he is more upset about not getting a clutch RBI or win than the way fans are treating him. The fans here know we are hard on our players, but all he needs to do to make them fall in love is just go out there hustle and do what he did every year before this one.

[Brotherly Scrote]

I'm sorry that we're all such miserable slobs that you can't relate to us Pilgrim. I guess my college degree and relatively happy lifestyle were a figment of my imagination since I'm a Philadelphia sports fan who happens to think Jimmy acted inappropriately here. Perhaps I should just drink my 40 ouncer of Hurricane and call into WIP?

Do I think some players are treated unfairly here? Absolutely. I've already said that the fans were unfair towards Howard at the beginning of the season. My theater/baseball analogy is that you plan out an activity that you invest time and hard earned money in to, and the actors/athletes aren't taking it seriously so you feel cheated and ripped off in the process.

All I've ever asked out of athletes is that they try hard to perform for us as a city and give back a little bit since they get paid so much. Jamie Moyer gets it. Chase Utley gets it. Donovan McNabb and Mike Richards get it. Jimmy, not so much.

Okay, time to get back to being a miserable slob. What kind of Ramen should I have for dinner tonight?

[Brotherly Scrote]

Liam's right by the way. Look at how A-Rod is treated in New York. Philadelphia's treatment of Jimmy is mild compared to the hell the New York fans have put A-Rod through. Go to Pittsburgh. Terry Bradshaw was booed in his rookie season and Dave Parker was treated so badly he had to wear a helmet in the outfield because people threw stuff at him.

Philadelphia's not the only city where this kind of stuff happens. I hate to disappoint you Pilgrim. You can climb back up on your pedestal now while the rest of us miserable slobs interact.

[pilgrim]

How do you know the athletes don't take it seriously? It seems to me that they do. Like I said before, you can try very hard to do something but still fail.

And, just to clarify: Moyer and Utley get it, Rollins and Howard don't. God, if only there were some easy way to keep track of that. Like a color-coded chart or something. That's it! I'll put Utley and Moyer on the white side (the "gets its"), and now I'll put Rollins and Howard on the black side (the "don't gets its"). It's so much clearer now.

[J.P.(the drunk)]

@ pilgrim
ok so if it is just a race thing please explain how we boo Pat Burrell but love BWest and Brian Dawkins you are the one trying to take a cop out with the race card

[Brotherly Scrote]

@Pilgrim

Are you stupid or something? I'm pretty sure I mentioned McNabb as someone who gets it. Last time I checked, McNabb is a different skin color than Utley and Moyer. But you know what? Skin color doesn't matter because Rollins doesn't get it. He could be purple for all I care and I still wouldn't like him right now. As for Howard, I never said he didn't get it. In fact, I said he got a bum rap from the fans for his slow start.

If you're going to indirectly accuse me of being a racist, at least read what I write first.

[mattTHEbat]

@pilgrim

did you read my response to your earlier post? why didn't you respond? probably because I'm right.

[mattTHEbat]

@ Pilgrim

To respond to your most recent post
"When one of the athletes responds negatively to the booing, the Philadelphia fan sees this as his bad side, the side that he has isolated all of his failures in, not willing to accept the blame and thus his own failures are in danger of being thrust back into his face."

If you saw Daily News Live yesterday and today, most people are not upset that Jimmy criticized the 'boos' - we are upset because of the mishaps he has had this season and then he tops it off with a comment about fans, which after 8 years in Philadelphia, is odd to bring up now. I don't take offense to what he said. I agree with most of it. I take offense that it wasn't necessary for him to bring up that comment now when the team is having difficulty this season...and by difficulty I mean scoring runs, not being in first or second or anything like that. Like I said before, Rollins and others don't know how to react because they've never been booed while being in first place. I mean to play the devil's advocate, we booed players all eight years he was here and according to him, have given "negative energy" but somehow that negative energy has led to a division title last year. C'mon pilgrim, you know he is just taking out his personal frustrations on fans and he just needs to shut his mouth and play.

[Brotherly Scrote]

@mattTHEbat

Don't hold your breath. Pilgrim is too busy labeling us all racists and miserable slobs from the top of his pedestal to listen to any real logic, no matter how right you are.

[Liam]

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/baseball/wires/story/643806.html

The miami herald is chipping into this topic. Kind of ironic that they would have anything to say considering they don't understand what its like to have more that 100 fans at a game