A Toast to the 2013 Yankees

The 2013 Yankees… I can guarantee that many different things come to mind when you hear that phrase. Some may think of a team that has been haunted by the DL, others may think of a team that is struggling because players are getting older, and some might just think about A-Rod… 

For me, it’s a mixture of everything. The Yankees season has been nothing short of a 3 (or 27)-ring circus. Players are getting injured, Mariano Rivera (the greatest closer of all time) has blown 7 saves – the most he has blown since 2001, Derek Jeter has been on and off the DL more times that I would like to count, Yankee fans seem to constantly be wondering who’s playing 3^rd, and at some point during the season, fans started to turn against each other. It seems like there is no longer one Yankees fan base, but 2; Team Alex and Team Not Alex.

TEAM ALEX

TEAM NOT ALEX

I can understand why Red Sox fans, Orioles fans, Mets fans, any other teams’ fans, could hate Alex Rodriguez but I still do not understand why Yankee fans have turned into haters that continue to hate. If we have learned anything from this season it is that players will come and go… they will be successful and then they will also have their off days/weeks/months/years (Look at CC Sabathia) but remember that baseball is a team sport. When the Yankees are playing, I root for the logo on the front of their Jersey – the number on the back is just an added bonus. People complain that A-Rod is getting too much media attention, that he needs to shut up and go away, that his career should be over…  I say you are all bluffing. Let’s be honest, we love his shit. 

In fact, the 2013 Yankee fans need the shit. The A-Rod and Cashman dispute, the fact that Jeter has been on and off the DL 3 times, Chris Stewart got dehydrated… twice, Curtis Granderson Hurtis Handerson, D-Rob entered a charity competition and it happened to be against the Red Sox pitcher that purposely hit A-Rod… each one of these small events have helped the Yankee fan base get through this season. 

And what have the Yankees done to make sure we don’t lose hope or interest? Gatorade showers, twitter accounts, HOPE week… Derek Jeter has finally cursed along with all of us! Fans want to feel like they are a part of something that they care about so deeply and the 2013 Yankees have given us so many chances to play a crucial role throughout the season. One may say that the Yankees have the most fair-weathered fans but I would have to disagree.

  

Yankee fans are so emotionally invested in the team even though each season is never guaranteed to end happily. We, as fans, feel happiness and joy or sadness and pain depending on the outcome of games – but in reality, these games do not effect our every day lives. The emotional roller coaster we put ourselves on as fans helps us deal with other heartbreaks we experience in life. This is another reason why Yankee fans cannot stand bandwagon fans! They have not suffered with us, or endured all of the painful losses. The Yankees have managed to keep their fan base because The Yankees have never bored us. Especially not this season. And whether or not the Yankees win or lose, this will be a season to remember (just like every one that came before it). So I know the season isn’t over but here’s to the 2013 Yankees… thanks for letting us all continue to bleed pinstripes.