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| Ready for the Postseason: Chicago Cubs fans turned out for a rally Monday. Charles Rex Arbogast/AP |
Baseball's ardent fans bring on the antics
As the postseason gets into full swing this week, some sports enthusiasts will take their passion to the limit.
By Ron Scherer | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitorfrom the October 4, 2007 edition
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New York - In baseball there are fastballs, curveballs, and … oddballs – fans so involved with their teams that they become part of the lore.
At Wrigley Field in Chicago, Ronnie "Woo Woo" Wickers hopes to unleash one of his famous hair-raising "woos" while wearing his Cubs uniform – as he has for at least 3,000 games.
At Yankee Stadium, Freddy Schuman, aka Freddy Sez, will be walking around with his frying pan and a spoon letting fans bang away, in hopes of inspiring the Bronx Bombers.
And in Boston, heckler Charlie Gifford will try to get under the skin of opposing players with well-timed volleys about their hair, their physiques, or gossip he turns up.
Yes, as baseball's postseason gets into full swing this week, fans with a capital F will fill up ballparks from Boston to Los Angeles, New York to Phoenix, and Denver to Chicago. And before the commissioner of baseball hands out any trophies, the fans
will have their say. It is a reminder that baseball is still the national pastime attracting the passionate – and the extraordinarily passionate.
"We concentrate on the performers, but the fans are the game just as much as the players," says Ed Randall, host of the "Talking Baseball" radio show.
The phenomenon has roots in the early 20th century. When the Brooklyn Dodgers romped around Ebbets Field, Hilda Chester banged a frying pan with a ladle, starting in 1930s. Eventually, she used a cowbell and became a favorite of manager Leo Durocher. Today, baseball historians refer to her as possibly the most famous fan of all time.
She could be charming in a Brooklyn sort of way. "You know me. Hilda wit da bell," she would say from her bleacher seat.
The bleachers – usually the cheapest seats – seem to be a breeding ground for the most passionate. This week, in Cleveland, John Adams will be in the back row at Jacobs Field with his bass drum and mallets, trying to stir up the fans and players. He's been there since 1973 and even met his wife in the stands.
The Indians even created a "bobble arm" toy in his honor, and he'll throw out the first pitch today.
"You get to meet people. At a baseball game, you get to solve half the world's problems, and you get to solve the other half the next day," he says.
Some fans don't need much to get pumped up. That's the case for Boston's Mr. Gifford. In Fenway, he can be found near the opposing team's on-deck circle. By the sixth inning, he says, his creative juices are flowing, and he likes to think he can affect the game. For example, he was harassing Yankee Alex Rodriguez about dyeing his hair blond. "A-Rod, what's up with the frosted tips?" he yelled. At the plate, he saw Derek Jeter giggling. "Jeter then hit into a double play, and I was quite pleased with myself," he says.
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