The Home Team

Sometimes your team wins, sometimes it loses. But either way, you have fun cheering. Sometimes your team's rival is playing, and that's almost as much fun. It doesn't matter who the rival is playing, any opponent of your rival is your friend. I think General Patton said that. Okay, maybe not. My point is that as along as there is some sort of connection to your team, you can get emotionally invested in it. But what if no connection exists?

Tonight, the St. Louis Cardinals played the Texas Rangers for the 2011 World Series. I'd tell you how exciting it was for me, but the truth is, I didn't really care who won. The connection between either team and my chosen one (the Toronto Blue Jays) was too distant to be of interest. But sports (particularly baseball...sorry, I had to say it) can be very boring if you don't choose a side and get into it. So who did I choose? The home team.

It's always more exciting to root for the home team. The crowd gets into the game and your emotions are played like puppet strings by all their mood swings. When the visiting team scores, it's so quiet you'd think the game was on a temporary rain delay. But when the home team scores...it's ELECTRIC!

Tonight, in game 7 of the World Series, the St. Louis Cardinals gave their fans something to cheer about...a World Series victory. Confetti flew. People screamed (and probably looted some stores and overturned some police cars downtown). It was exciting. No, my team didn't win, they weren't even playing, but at least the team that made the game exciting did.

It's always more fun when the home team wins the championship. Congratulations to the fans of St. Louis. Now how about some finals hockey games in Montreal, please.

   Don