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Welcome to the bandwagon, sit down and stay awhile

As I write this, the Blue Jays hold the best record in the American League and are on the cusp of – with a single win or Yankee’s loss – clinching the American League East division title.
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(The Canadian Press)

As I write this, the Blue Jays hold the best record in the American League and are on the cusp of – with a single win or Yankee’s loss – clinching the American League East division title.

If you’re reading this, I can assume one of three things:

(1) You are a long-time Blue Jays fan and will read anything Jays related
(2) You just jumped on the bandwagon and, like the long-time fan, can’t get enough right now
(3) You meant to click the event centre headline

I want to speak directly to our new fans; the bandwagon fans.

First, I don’t say bandwagon as a derogatory term. While many fans scoff at the lack of misery new fans have gone through (and there’s been a lot of misery) smarter fans understand baseball economics. If team owners enjoy greater profits while the franchise is winning, they’re more likely to invest in that team to ensure long-term success.

So basically, we need you. Thanks, and welcome you to the party.

To ensure your time here is always fun and enjoyable, I’d like to offer new fans the following tips:

Don’t fake it: As I mentioned, some fans may give you a time for showing up when you did. Ignore them. They’re just jerks anyway. Just don’t try and pretend that you’ve been here the whole time. You’ll be found out and that will just feed the trolls.

Ask questions: Whether you’re new to the sport of baseball, or just getting caught up on the Jays for the first time in 20-something years, Jays fans love filling new people in. We aren’t the brightest bunch (I include myself in that) so being able to talk about something we have half a clue about is kind of exciting. With that in mind, please understand that …

Twitter is terrible: There are great baseball minds on Twitter who will enlighten you on some of the game’s finer details. There’s also hundreds of thousands of self-proclaimed sports bloggers who appear legitimate but have the baseball intelligence of mud.

There’s also a last-at-bat attitude on Twitter that will lead to torches and pitchforks during the smallest of slumps.

Don’t believe me? I’m not lying when I say most Twitter fans wanted Brett Cecil released not too many years ago. Despite having control of the now 100-day-without-an-earned-run relief pitcher, a majority of vocal Twits wanted the team to turn him over to the Humane Society. Drew Hutchison’s recent demotion and cringe-worthy bullpen appearance could just be the genesis for that kind of revolt again.

And while we’re on the topic, remember that …

Long-time fans can be terrible too: Kawasaki as an everyday player is actually a thing a lot of people wanted to see. If you don’t know what that means, don’t worry about it.

Finally …

Have fun: Pennant races and an MLB post season are incredibly exciting. Whether you’ve suffered through the last two decades or just jumped on the bandwagon this year, enjoy the ride. We never know when the next one might come around.

 





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