The MINNESOTA Vikings are no longer the worst team in the NFC north.
Is that the greatest accomplishment I can claim as a Minnesota sports fan? Is my only goal in sports now to simply hope that my team isn't the worst? There are three major team sports in America that generate viewers and revenue, the NBA, the NFL, and MLB. The NHL is obviously the fourth "major" sport but it just doesn't have enough general interest among the sports populist to be considered anywhere near as popular in terms of viewership or revenue, so I'll once again leave them out of the discussion.
The Bears losing to the Cowboys last night and the Vikings moving out of the cellar of the NFC North, at least temporarily, got me thinking. Do other Minnesota sports fans feel bad when our teams lose all the time? Does it affect them and their viewing habits?
The Timberwolves have taken several steps backward this season. I no longer care about the reasons. I simply know I can watch them no longer. They are MY team and yet I can no longer bear to watch them. They don't provide enough entertainment in exchange for the time I invest in them. Time is the most precious commodity we are given. We should never waste it. We should never mindlessly support our teams no matter what. Waning fan support is a GOOD thing. It forces those in charge to DO something about it. Waning interest means less ratings, less attendance and less revenue for that team. Less support for your team when its performing poorly is the only way you personally can help them get better. Its tough love. And it works.
Teams that consistently make bad business decisions over several seasons have to be held accountable by the local fan base. That's what REAL fans do. It sends a message to ownership that you aren't going to support their half-hearted efforts to put yet another losing team on the field. It shows them that you're not stupid. It shows them that you not going to take it anymore.
It's probably the most important thing a fan can do if you really love your team. Because it is YOUR team. Ownership changes regularly with most pro sports franchises. But you are a fan forever. You have to let ownership know this.
Brad Childress is no longer the coach of the Minnesota Vikings. That's good thing. Leslie Frazier is no longer the coach of the Minnesota Vikings. That's a good thing as well. It was fans in grass roots efforts that got those things accomplished. This year, with a new coach, the Vikings have taken real steps toward getting BETTER. Their defense is way better. Their special teams is unreal. And even though their offense has struggled without their number one quarterback and the number one running back in the league, they are putting on credible performances against some of the league's best teams. Am I disappointed they aren't doing better? Of course. I ALWAYS want them to win, every game. But I give them credit for putting a team on the field that is WORTH supporting far more than past seasons.
They cleared out the dead wood. They went with young, hungry players, and they put real EFFORT in to fixing what was wrong. The contrast between what the Vikings are doing this year and what the Timberwolves are doing can't even be compared.
Which brings us to the Twins. My favorite sports team of all-time. Twins management continues to make the wrong moves that will hurt them in the long run. I can't emphasize this enough. Winning baseball teams are no longer the ones that spend the most money. Winning teams are those that spend their limited funds WISELY. And wisely means teams understanding what STATS are important in your players to patch the holes in your entire team.
For instance, the Twins led the league in scoring for FOUR of the SIX months of the regular season. Think of that, they were THE NUMBER ONE OFFENSIVE POWERHOUSE IN ALL OF BASEBALL FOR THE MAJORITY OF THE SEASON.
That was the one thing the Twins did right. But they STILL had one of the worst records in baseball. That should have told the Twins owners and management that they had problems elsewhere.
Primarily starting pitching and defense. It wasn't Gardy's fault that we signed bad starting pitching, but putting bad gloves on the field was his fault. Our fielding percentage LOOKED good so Gardy didn't see that as a problem. Why? Because he ignored the more precise measurement of defensive metrics, that explained our poor performance in the field. Second to last in the league in that area is going to cause all efforts to fail. And yet when given a choice, this year's management overpaid for an aging legend, that gives us more of the same. A pretty good bat, with the worst ability to play right field IN THE ENTIRE LEAGUE.
We didn't need good offense and even WORSE defense from our next outfielder. We needed much better defense and good offense. Was someone like that available for a similar price? Was someone available like that who was a local fan favorite and YOUNGER? Yes, Michael Cuddyer. And his mentoring skills as an easy-going, club house leader is UNMATCHED. Many think he'll be a manager very quickly after his playing days are done. He also gives us flexibility on defensive positions. His fielding percentage AND metrics are about as good as you can get. AND his offense is far better than an aging Hunter. He is a field general that the Twins have been lacking.
The Twins made the wrong choice. Hunter would have been a fine DH for the Twins this season for $5 million dollars. Even if Torii has an okay season at the plate, the Twins did not get better with him on the roster. They got worse. They overpaid for him.
I was talking to a Twins fan at the local grocery store last night. He told me he can no longer watch the Twins because it's too painful. He said the decisions the Twins have made in the past few seasons in terms of who they decided to pay money for and who they let go make being a Twins fan too difficult.
He's a real fan. Losing hurts. Losing without giving effort is painful.
The Twins are not giving us their best effort. They are making it up as they go along, hoping that the average fan will support them no matter what, despite their ongoing painful, mistakes.
Back to my original question, are there other fans that are bothered when their favorite team loses all the time.
Yes, the REAL fans are bothered. It hurts. Especially with the lack of effort by the team's ownership.
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