Should I Become a Nationals Fan?

I grew up a Reds fan (in Texas). I devoted quite a bit of energy to that team, especially during my long grad-school stretch in Indiana (said stretch was undoubtedly lengthened precisely because of the proximity to Cincy, but I digress). Upon moving to the DC area, I bought Nats’ season tickets because I’m a big baseball fan, not because I cared too much about the Nats. Watching a team on a daily basis that you don’t care about is a chore. I did things like specifically drafting Nats players in my fantasy leagues so that I could have something to cheer about (Dmitri Young was always available late and paid some pretty good dividends, but I digress again). All the while I was really just biding time ’till the big series, once a season, against the Reds.

Anyway, it took about 2 years, but I finally have gone “all in” for the Nats. The Reds have officially taken a back seat, but they are a “sentimental favorite” still. I could imagine the same sort of thing happening with you. Meanwhile, enjoy your team’s moment in the spotlight!

Who can’t seem to let go, I say climb aboard. Misery loves company!

For me, baseball was born in the early 1980s with Doc and Straw and all of the rest of those guys. I wouldn’t say baseball was my favorite sport at that time, but I definitely cared about the Mets and did my part in the “Hate the Yankees, Braves and other rivals” part of the Mets fandom and was really crushed when they lost the Subway series. I moved down here in ‘99, though and kind of lost touch with baseball when I couldn’t see my team on a regular basis and they started doing things in the front office that were hard to stomach. In general, it’s more fun to root for the hometown teams. You’re part of a rising tide when they win, and you share in the community joy of some of the great times the franchise has had such as the opening season, the opening day of Nats Park with Zim’s walkoff homerun, and the Strasburg start. While next year may be a tough run even if they do sign Cliff Lee on top of Jayson Werth given the youth and offensive questions around the diamond, there’s no question that the Nats are a team that’s not torture to follow and has a core of good people rooting for the team and a sleeping giant of a market that we’ll learn a bit more about next year without Strasburg, but a greater commitment to winning.

One thing that can be tough around here is that ultimately it is a Redskins town and sometimes that can get grating when the day that you sign Jayson Werth is consumed by day 150 of the Albert Haynesworth fiasco or you see the Caps getting marginalized despite being such an A+ organization.

In my case, however, I have pretty much turned against the Mets. While I would prefer that they finish ahead of the Marlins, Braves, and especially the Phillies in our division, I do take great joy in our plucky team beating them at times or a Mets castoff like Livan Hernandez turning it around to have a great season.

Lastly, as I’m sure you know, we’ve got several local minor league teams that can be a great stepping stone for your son to connect to the game in Bowie, Frederick, and Potomac or even farther out in Aberdeen, Hagerstown and DelMarva if you don’t mind a beautiful drive (well maybe not to Aberdeen) along the way. Minor league baseball, scoring the games and the opportunity to build a relationship with the team through the ballpark and the top notch radio crew is what has bound me to the team. Having the opportunity to connect with such a good community of people here and elsewhere has helped me go from serious fan to hardcore.

Hope you join us. On the whole we’re good folks. Especially now that the Mamba has hit the road. (although I kind of miss him. FYI, Mamba was a figure who want taunt and right poems dissing the team, espeically after heartbreaking losses. Kind of a troll with intelligence.)

I am originally from Alabama, and grew up a fan of the Atlanta Braves. Struggled through 2 decades of terrible baseball, interrupted by a season here and there of pretty decent teams….until the 1990’s and through the 2004 season when I enjoyed Atlanta Braves baseball at its absolute best. I have lived in the DC area since 1989, and vowed that if DC ever got a baseball team, I would support it. I am telling you….it was DIFFICULT at first. I hated the Expos, and I didn’t think I would ever be able to support them at first. In fact, I didn’t hold true to my vow until mid-2006. I am now, however, a season ticket holder (4 years now, going on my 5th year) and I very much enjoy watching the Nats kick the snot out of the Atlanta Braves. I have even traveled to Turner Field to watch the Nats, clearly sporting my Curly W jersey and ballcap. Yes, Mike Lempke (now a radio host in Atlanta) hammered me pretty good when he saw me, but eventually autographed my Curly W hat. So, if you decide to make that transition, I say, WELCOME to NatsTown! It really is an exciting time to be a fan, watching the youngsters grow into their MLB positions, and cheering on the team. Sometimes frustrating when the Phillies are in town, but sometimes you have to take the good with the bad. The bottom line….these young players will certainly grow on you, and it becomes easier and easier to cheer them on.

I’ve enjoyed being a Nats fan since moving to DC in 2006. The transition, from Padres fan previously, was made easier, however, since this is the first time I’ve actually lived in a city with a professional team. I grew up a few hours drive from a Dodgers or Padres game, now I live off the Navy Yard Metro, 10 minute walk to Nationals Park.

Funny enough, Will Clark was my favorite player as a kid. A decision I came too after looking through my baseball card collection. I believe some of the deciding factors were his easy to pronounce name, and the cool eye black he wore.

This a great post, Giant Torture and a great way to get used to the conversation here. Thanks for taking the time.

Go with the Nats. You and your kid can grow up loving the same team, and it’s a great time to get involved, you’ve skipped the lean years and hopefully they’re about to start getting it done on the field.

Thanks again, great stuff. Never knew so many people here were waiting for baseball and switched allegiances.

once Cal retired, and they became constantly sucky, and those crab eaters of Baltimore became all annoying with their purple camo, then I just kinda gave up on baseball.

…Started out with a mixture of O’s (closest team) and the cubs (watched games on television after school). The minute the Nats were announced and started selling Terrell Sledge jerseys down by RFK in a trailer, I was there. Can’t say I bought a sledge jersey, but I was hooked. This team may at times be terrible, but I love Washington.

The minute Bowden was fired however, I actually started believing this team could at some time compete. God bless that move.

I’m an Army brat. The one thing I knew for certain was the St. Louis Cardinals. My Dad loved them. No matter where we lived in America he’d drive us to the nearest NL ball park to watch his Cards. He kept a stats sheet on them from the box scores he saved from the papers. My brother and I thought they were holy papers or something. We moved to DC in ‘75. No NL team here. I didn’t follow the O’s … I’ve been hoping for a baseball team for a long time. We’d go up to see the Phillies play the Cards blah blah blah…than the Nats came down from Montreal and I latched on right from the start. I still remember that first Cards vs Nats game. Cards whipped on the Nats. I came away from the game feeling like I’d been kick in the head. That’s when I knew I was a Nats fan. Thus beginning my torturous life since than.

and my second team is the Nationals. I was raised by a mother who loved the Cubs, but she also loved New York City and she adopted the Dodgers as her second team( over the Yankees and the Giants). She was mad when moved to California but ultimately forgave them. When I finally started seriously following baseball, my team was naturally the Cubs, and I didn’t have a second team. Until the Expos turned into the Nationals. I love DC ( was born there and used to visit relatives growing up) and I decided they would be my second team.

I root for the Cubs over the Nationals when they play against each other except when I feel it necessary to invoke the Marquis Exemption. (If I’m a fan of the opposing team or pitcher and they don’t need the win and Jason Marquis does need the win, I will switch sides for that game only).

Life long Eagles fan. For baseball when I was young I loved the O’s because of B.J. Surhoff, but eventually I remember being a fan of the Phillies for a gap of time but then I really did not follow baseball that much. When the Nationals started in 2005, it sorta began as a joke that I liked the Nats. Everyone thought it was funny but as the year went on I got hooked. I became an inactive fan who just pays attention to the scores. As more time went on and the Nationals picked up Soriano, I followed them pretty closely. I as started to hate the Phillies more and more. Today I am a very diehard fan and follow the Nationals almost daily.

But now living in central Virginia much like yourself, and with the Nats being the closest big league baseball team. I can’t say that I share your disconnected feeling with San Francisco or Northern California. I have a ton of family and many personal connections that still exist out there, and I manage to visit at least twice a year and watch games at Pac Bell whenever I can. In spite of my displaced status I love The City and I love California, so I don’t intend on changing my number one fan affiliation with the Giants anytime soon. That’s just out of the question :)

That being said, this Nationals team is not a bad option if you’re looking to go in a different, more local direction. The joy in watching the Nationals is in the potential this team has, and even if things aren’t going so well now, you get a chance to grow with them. Part of being a fan is sticking with them when they’re terrible, marking their progress and living with the ups and downs and hoping for something more in the future. The team has potential, and so does this fanbase; I was lucky enough to attend the Strasburg debut in DC, and let me just say the excitement and electricity I felt was something I never would’ve expected from a baseball game (and this includes an innumerable amount of Giants games I’ve been to in my lifetime). That one seminal event that I was able to experience firsthand proved to me that DC can truly fashion itself a respectable and credible baseball town.

As an aside, I wore my Tim Lincecum player t-shirt to that game. A gentleman who saw me asked if I has room in my heart to root for the Nats whenever I could (with the natural exception of when they were playing the Giants), and I unequivocally said yes. Don’t ever believe anyone who says true fans can only support one team. That’s a very narrow minded and ignorant thing to say.

Take it from this Giants fan. If you make the switch, there’ll be no hard feelings on my part. You’ll be moving on to a worthy successor with a solid foundation and a good place to nurture your newfound loyalties to the local nine. But try not to forget your friends by the bay, even if we are relegated to a secondary role ;)

ive always loved baseball and played competitively but grew up in the DC area and felt almost orphaned by the majors. I went to o’s games as much as I hated the team and the city in general. I watched the cubs on tv but only because that was the team that was on TV.

I know i’ll always be a nats fan after proudly wearing my W’s over the last few years. Be warned, some of us are more acclimated to sustained losing from years of skins or caps than someone from a traditionally winning market.

I can honestly say that I became a Nationals fan from the start. I remember going to an Orioles game once at Camden Yards in 2002 or 2003, but when the Nationals rolled around (when I was 13) I just stepped onto the wee stages of the bandwagon.

It’s good knowing that I’m sort of growing up with the team. Even through all the ups and downs.

Proud to say I’ve been a fan from the start, and always will be.

As I think most people here know :) I never actually lived in New England, but my mom’s side of the family all hails from Boston and I now have a cousin who works for the Sox. While I love the Sox, I decided to follow the Nats last March when I found out my wife was pregnant. I wanted to be able to take my daughter to ball games and figured she would want to root for the hometeam.

 I have fallen in love with the Nats and now follow them daily. I think I enjoy them mainly because I can see the franchise being built and I feel like I am on the groundlfoor. Also, the friends I have made on this site have helped. I have gone to a game with the ever-joyful Souldrummer and had beers with Doghouse and Mrs. Doghouse. The sense of community here on FB has really drawn me in.

I will be at opening day with my daughter this year and hopefully we can meet up and have a a beer with the other DC Faithful.

Being an Australian I wasnt interest in baseball much until the late 80s-early 90s when I started playing the game at high school and social club. Back then I was a fan of the up and coming Braves with their outstanding rotation, Dave Justice and Ron Gant. I threw myself in all things baseball back then and ejoyed supporting it both locally and in the US.

As I moved on to other things I drifted away from baseball in the late 90s – the ridiculous home run chases which were obviously fuelled by more than just a good swing didn’t help in my interest. Eventually I started to take up following baseball closely again when I move to Canberra (Australia’s capital city) and when the team moved in 2005 to the US capital it seemed like a logical choice to the follow the Nats. My interest was also generated by the likes of Frank Robinson who’s story I admired for many years.

From there I’ve also fallen for the Nats despite its ups and downs. Personally I think following a team from its start has been a great ride. From pratically auditioning people from the crowd for its pitching staff in 2007 to the recent highs of Strasburg, Harper and now Werth. While I was initally optismistic about the moves made by Bowden (Kearns and Lopez seemed like such a good deal…), I firmly believe that he set the franchise back years by some of the shortsighted moves… but I wouldnt say the Nats are the only franchise to have suffered this fate.

I was thrilled to be able to visit Washington (and the US more broadly) earlier this year and see the Nats play (even if it was against the Phillies). I was struck by how friendly the people at the game were to us – from the old couple next to us to the Phillies fans to our left (who proceeded to introduce us to the entire row). We also got to meet Patrick, Mr and Mrs Doghouse, Dave NNN and others – who were all, to be frank, breathtakingly friendly and hospitiable. I think if we lived in DC we’d be at every game – at the Red Porch having a beer.

It made a real special night. My partner and I had a great time and I would echo some of the comments above about the great community of this site. It’s strange that people across the globe can have such a connection through sport but we really loved our time in the US.

We’ll be back and following this site daily.

I’ve lived in the D.C. area all my life and I grew up a Senators fan. My Will Clark was Harmon Killebrew, my father’s Will Clark was Goose Goslin, his father’s Will Clark was Walter Johnson and due to circumstances beyond my control my son’s Will Clark was Cal Ripken.

It’s so great to have a home team to root for (especially with your son or daughter), but buyer beware!

When trying to describe what it’s like to be a Nats fan, I think a Buck Owens song I heard tonight puts it best…

"I wasn’t foolin’ around the day I said I do
But many a night I wished that I had been a-foolin’ too
I know it’s foolish taking all this misery
But when it’s the Nats, a fool I’ll always be"

In any case, welcome aboard!

Thanks everyone for your candor and support. The Nats have some very likeable players like Zimmerman, Werth and Strasburg and I’m looking forward to next season. Hopefully you can all put up with a washed out ballplayer turned stat nerd.

But I was too young to remember the Senators, so I had no choice to be an O’s fan. That is, until Angelos took over. I grew increasingly disheartened with every move that old bastard made (Belle contract, refusing to surround himself with “baseball people,” drafting terrible young talent, letting Palmeiro leave, etc…) So from about 2003 onward, I was without a team, until September 29, 2004, when I finally had a team I could really call my own. The very next day, I took cutouts of the proposed Nationals logo, ironed them on a shirt, and was among the first to have “Nationals gear.” I was hooked. The last several years have been trying, with the Bowden years, the Smiley scandal, that 100+ loss seasons, etc., but I can still proudly say that I am just as big a fan, if not a bigger fan, than I was on day one. This team is just so darn likeable. Even Zimmerman, our very own superstar, is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, and when you actually talk to him, one of the funniest. Plus, the games are great, and the Nationals diehards (before I found this site, I thought they were few and far between), are good, decent people. To conclude, you ABSOLUTELY should hop on the Nats bandwagon.

I was born in the Bay Area and my dad took me to A’s games even when I was 3-4. I’m still an A’s fan to this day and when I’ve cared enough to follow sports, they’re the team I follow. My family moved out of the Bay Area and to DC when I was about 8, and since then, I’ve lived in multiple parts of Florida (including Tampa), the Triangle area in NC, Virginia. I moved back to DC after various incidents for family/personal reasons in 2009.

So yeah, the draw of local baseball is very alluring, and thus I now also follow the Nats avidly. And, there’s no conflict of interest (if there is, that’s a GREAT thing, since that means there’s a world series involved). So yeah, I’ve got two teams now. I love local baseball and actually being able to listen to a game on the radio/watch one on TV. So, I’ll be a fan of both. It’s more fun that way anyway.

 I can’t get into actively following any other sports besides MLB—-I hate American football and the NFL and find NBA boring. I follow some college sports but none outside of a small scope.

The Nats were still the Expos last time I lived in DC (we moved out in the late 90s). I’m also part-Canadian from my dad’s side so that’s gotta play in there.

I was never an NL guy – I moved here about two years ago and my son and I jumped on the Nationals. So, it was easy to become a fan (even though they are basement dwellers). I am also a Patriot (former Patsies growing up hard luck loser team). So, with the Sox and Patriots I have cheered for some lousy teams over the years going back to the early 70s when I was in grade school. (However, the Whalers had some good years not to mention the Celtics…but I too digress)

We are learning the team and getting smarter on all things NATS and we are excited about the building up of the organization. I admit I still know more about the Sox at this point; however, I am slowly changing. Who to cheer for when the Sox are in town? As hard as it will be I would have to outwardly cheer for the NATS (while probably inwardly cheering for the Sox)…but, I was abused as a child – you see my family brought me up to be a Red Sox fan and the chords are hard to break after watching the heartbrakers in the 70s, 80’s, and 90’s – I never quit on them…even though the did not give a Rat’s Arse about me – that is the definition of a sport team fanatic – irrational devotion to a team…their team and speaking in terms like ‘we’, etc…

But, going forward I suppose I need to just focus on the NATS and come up with an exit strategy with the Sox. Yet, I find myself already musing about how the Sox will win it all in 2011…thus, you see my dilemma…but, my son and I already belittle the fairweather fans who we talk about showing up when the NATS are winners…even though it has not happened yet. Personally, I like the idea of fringe fans since it gives the team the revenues they will need to be competitive – see the PInk Hats in Boston for instance…but, until that happens I will cheer the team and then watch the Park fill and be happy when the Nats start to hoist Pennants over the Park….

For me as a kid in the sixties, I had followed the Pirates some (because my grandfather introduced me to my love of baseball by taking me to Asheville Tourists games and they were affiliated with the Pirates) and, of course, the Yankees… Mickey Mantle and all. But, at the age of 12 my family moved to the greater D.C. area and for the first time I got to go to some Major League ball games. I became a die-hard Senators fan. And as such, of course, I hated the Orioles. I followed the Senators closely, often listening to the games on radio as I did my homework…cheering for Frank Howard, Paul Casanova, Mike Epstein, Fred Valentine, Camilio Pasquale, and Joe Coleman. It broke my heart when the owners moved the team to Texas, and the seeming ease with which the local media switched their allegiance to Baltimore only made me angry. I would NEVER be an Oriole fan! And I haven’t been. In the years between I eventually went back to my childhood love of the Yankees, I gave my fandom completely over and was, of course rewarded and I still count myself a fan. But, when the Nationals brought baseball back to Washington, it was an easy switch. My home team was back! It was what I had longed for all those years. For me, it was coming home. I wholly recommend becoming a Nationals fan.

I grew up in NY state as a Yankees fan. During their lean years, I didn’t follow baseball too closely. I also spent most of my adult years away from NY state. When I moved back to the DC area (for good?) almost 19 years ago, I was a lukewarm Yankees fan. When the Yankees finally made the playoffs again and won the World Series in 1996, I rooted for them, especially since they were actually the underdogs that year. (The Braves were the dominant team in the mid 1990s, and were favored that year.)

But then they started buying championships, piling on free agents from feeder teams (aka, teams like the KC Royals, Tampa Bay Rays and the old Montreal Expos). By the time the Yankees became the dominant team in MLB in 1998, I was no longer a Yankees fan. But since Washington didn’t have a team at the time, I didn’t find a substitute. I lost interest in baseball somewhat. I tried to follow the Orioles for a while but that was a half-hearted effort. I knew that the Orioles really weren’t the local team, just a cheap substitute.

I followed the attempts to move the Houston Astros here. Apparently the owner had a deal in place to sell and move the team to DC but Bud “The Car Salesman” Selig blocked the deal. In the early 2000s, I read about the troubles of the Expos and how they might move to D.C. and finally return baseball to the nation’s capital. So I started following the Expos from afar sometime around 2002 or 2003. I remember reading a Washington Post travel article where the writer was spending a vacation in Montreal. He took in a baseball game at Olympic Stadium. He wrote that the person in the ticket window suggested that he buy the cheapest seat possible, in the highest section of the stadium. Then he suggested that the writer wait for an innning or two, then move down to the section right behind home plate. There were so few fans at any game, that this was possible. The writer pointed out that stadium officials had to ask some fans to speak quietly. The stadium was so empty during games that everyone could hear every word spoken if a couple people were talking loudly. Strange.

So by the time that the Nats moved here, I was already set up to be a fan. I had been following the Expos for a couple years in the expectation that they would soon become Washington’s team.

And so here I am, a Nats fan. I haven’t followed any out-of-town teams for about 12 or 13 years (not counting the unsuccessful attempt to become an O’s fan).