Honestly, is nostalgia all we have left?

[bap3141]

What to do when your team has become a team you don't like anymore.  It's sad but my fandom has been strerched too far... strained and frayed and I think it's time to let it give way. 

 

I've been a fan since my first Twins game, back in 1988. The '87 team made me a fan of baseball and by '91 I was old enough to really appreciate the World Series.  I've thought this for several years now, but this offseason has solidified it... that was likely the last World Series winning Twins team that I will ever see. 

Sports is cyclical I told myself, but the economics of the game and the Twins penny pinching means that the odds are incredibly stacked against them every season.

And I realize now that I don't like this team. I hate the manager, I don't like how the front office operates and I can't stand the miserly Pohlads. I even hate the new unis, logo and stupid little re-brand.

I have no idea where this leaves me now because I love baseball, but can't stomach the current Twins product. Any of it. 

 

[howeda7]

I pretty much agree. I've never wanted new owners for this team more than I do right now. This organization desperately needs a complete reset from the owner down to the front office to the  manager. And the Pohlads would sincerely be smart to do it. Otherwise they're in for some dark years and a declining asset, IMO. 

[bap3141]

Just now, howeda7 said:

I pretty much agree. I've never wanted new owners for this team more than I do right now. This organization desperately needs a complete reset from the owner down to the front office to the  manager. And the Pohlads would sincerely be smart to do it. Otherwise they're in for some dark years and a declining asset, IMO. 

I remember after some lean years in the 90's, Selig was looking for a team to contract and it was almost the Twins. That nearly gutted me. 

 

This feels worse. 

 

Why would I pay one cent for this product? 

[Irishman]

Free Agency, players, agents and owners are killing the games.   They all are greedy. 

I sure miss the old days in 1960''s and 1970's.  We went to watch those games at the Met Stadium in 1960's and 1970's.  

[Irishman]

6 minutes ago, bap3141 said:

I remember after some lean years in the 90's, Selig was looking for a team to contract and it was almost the Twins. That nearly gutted me. 

 

This feels worse. 

 

Why would I pay one cent for this product? 

Agreed.  I am with you.  

[ashbury]

I remember when nostalgia was actually worth enjoying.  Today's nostalgia just isn't what it used to be.

[Aggies7]

lol cheer up. at least you got to experience the World Series. My most memorable twins moment was game 163. And that was followed promptly by a sweep in NY

[notoriousgod71]

14 minutes ago, bap3141 said:

I remember after some lean years in the 90's, Selig was looking for a team to contract and it was almost the Twins. That nearly gutted me. 

 

This feels worse. 

 

Why would I pay one cent for this product? 

I was enraged when selig tried to contract this organization. Now I'm ready to offer this team up for contraction myself.

[bap3141]

At least I have my fantasy baseball team to get me through. There is that. 

 

Seriously though... have you all ever reached a point where you simply don't like anything about your favorite team?

What do you do? 

[USAFChief]

I am close to being in the same boat. I won't regurgitate the somewhat embarrassing depths of my long time Fandom, unwavering through some deep deep depths of awful Twins teams, but suffice to say I have gone to great lengths to support my Twins habit, but...I have never, since 1963, had less interest in this team.

Like the OP, it's everything. I despise ownership's worship of the bottom line. I can't somach the players greed and self entitlement. I want the union busted and at the same time sensible salary floors and caps. The Dodgers and Yankees are making a mockery of a competitive league.

I don't like the style of play (of most of MLB).

I don't like the front office or the manager of this team. I pretty much hate what "analytics" has done to MLB.

It's ridiculously expensive to go to a game.

And on and on.

 

[Parfigliano]

Born in '61.  Twins fan since first exposed to baseball.  Went to first Twins game in '69 and still have the ticket and a ball autographed by most of the team.  Seen them play in 19 different stadiums.  Plan on seeing them in 2 more next year.

Its barely into the off-season and spring training is 2 months away.  Im not an idiot, its bleak I know.  I know their odds on an ALC are astronomical.  Seen this scenario too  many times to count.  Not ready to count them out let alone burn my fan card.

 

 

[Vanimal46]

I am not there yet with the Twins. This offseason appears to be a dud, and I don’t think it will be salvaged. But once spring rolls around, I won’t be able to help myself watching opening day. 

I’m 32 and have no memory of the Twins winning a WS besides looking back at the grainy footage. Odds are low that I’ll ever see a WS win in my lifetime.

That’s the choice people need to make. If your definition of a successful season is a WS title, and only a WS title, then it might be time to walk away. 

[USAFChief]

2 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

Odds are low that I’ll ever see a WS win in my lifetime.

 

 

[Parfigliano]

23 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

I am not there yet with the Twins. This offseason appears to be a dud, and I don’t think it will be salvaged. But once spring rolls around, I won’t be able to help myself watching opening day. 

I’m 32 and have no memory of the Twins winning a WS besides looking back at the grainy footage. Odds are low that I’ll ever see a WS win in my lifetime.

That’s the choice people need to make. If your definition of a successful season is a WS title, and only a WS title, then it might be time to walk away. 

I said never see them win WS too.  Seen them win two.  Granted econ of game was different then.  Two  things that werent different then...big markets buying players and Twins not.

[Parfigliano]

2 hours ago, USAFChief said:

 

Structure of the game.  Yup.  Game nope

[Irishman]

9 hours ago, USAFChief said:

I am close to being in the same boat. I won't regurgitate the somewhat embarrassing depths of my long time Fandom, unwavering through some deep deep depths of awful Twins teams, but suffice to say I have gone to great lengths to support my Twins habit, but...I have never, since 1963, had less interest in this team.

Like the OP, it's everything. I despise ownership's worship of the bottom line. I can't somach the players greed and self entitlement. I want the union busted and at the same time sensible salary floors and caps. The Dodgers and Yankees are making a mockery of a competitive league.

I don't like the style of play (of most of MLB).

I don't like the front office or the manager of this team. I pretty much hate what "analytics" has done to MLB.

It's ridiculously expensive to go to a game.

And on and on.

 

Exactly!  Great post!

[dgdynasty]

From glory days to brown paper bags.. on the other hand i am repurposing some of my gear to be a LG Twins fan, as they are in second place in the Korean Baseball Organization League. Go Twins!

[Peter]

You need to support our team win or loss!!! Once you dump them your done!!!  Yes it sucks they missed out on cc bit let’s be real they never had a chance of resigning him anyway. My hope is let’s be competitive/not expecting division title they are 2-3 years away. I’ll always support the twins/all the Minnesota teams no matter what!!! You should to

[ChermesZ]

10 hours ago, bap3141 said:

I remember after some lean years in the 90's, Selig was looking for a team to contract and it was almost the Twins. That nearly gutted me. 

 

This feels worse. 

 

Why would I pay one cent for this product? 

I am also here.

 

When we built the stadium, we were promised a product that would be better.   This offseason shows that this was untrue.

I'd rather have $6 tickets and a low payroll than $30 tickets and a mediocre team.  I didn't go to a game last year and I am not planning on going this year.  It is just too expensive for the product that is presented to us.

On top of that, they shortened TwinsFest, which I had always attended with my father.  Same price, less opportunity for player interactions - and it seems right in line with the Twins philosophy.  Thus, we will not be going to TwinFest this year.

It would behoove them to listen to their fans - because they are losing them very quickly.

I think the game is damaged beyond belief, and both the players and owners are going over the cliff of destruction...blind to it and only caring if they beat each other.

[tony&rodney]

The Twins have been a part of my life since 1961; a diehard Twins fan. But, I'm also  a baseball fan. The playoffs last Fall were wonderful to watch. Having played and coached many years, I love the chess match between pitcher and batter along with every play that displays the perfect combination of fundamentals and athleticism. As such, there isn't any team that I loathe or root against. When the Yankees hit and run or complete a perfect relay to nab a runner at the plate, i appreciate those plays. It was sweet to watch the Twins in the World Series in 1965, 1987, and 1991. Those two World Series victories were hard fought lasting legacies for me and many others, but the legacy also includes that those years coincided with MLB's owners colluding illegally against the players. This doesn't diminish my memories any more than the World Series win for the Houston Astros a few years ago does for their fans. The game goes on. Currently the Twins are in a funk with their playing style and management. There is nothing one can do about that  either except to hope that the team catches some luck with the players they have now or that Falvine manages to acquire a few players via trade that vastly improve the team. The disappointment and even some bitterness on the part of Twins fans is understandable really, but it isn't either healthy or productive. I guess one just needs to roll with hope.

[Mike Vendsel]

10 hours ago, USAFChief said:

I am close to being in the same boat. I won't regurgitate the somewhat embarrassing depths of my long time Fandom, unwavering through some deep deep depths of awful Twins teams, but suffice to say I have gone to great lengths to support my Twins habit, but...I have never, since 1963, had less interest in this team.

Like the OP, it's everything. I despise ownership's worship of the bottom line. I can't somach the players greed and self entitlement. I want the union busted and at the same time sensible salary floors and caps. The Dodgers and Yankees are making a mockery of a competitive league.

I don't like the style of play (of most of MLB).

I don't like the front office or the manager of this team. I pretty much hate what "analytics" has done to MLB.

It's ridiculously expensive to go to a game.

And on and on.

 

This is exactly how I feel. Great post

[Jerr]

11 hours ago, USAFChief said:

I am close to being in the same boat. I won't regurgitate the somewhat embarrassing depths of my long time Fandom, unwavering through some deep deep depths of awful Twins teams, but suffice to say I have gone to great lengths to support my Twins habit, but...I have never, since 1963, had less interest in this team.

Like the OP, it's everything. I despise ownership's worship of the bottom line. I can't somach the players greed and self entitlement. I want the union busted and at the same time sensible salary floors and caps. The Dodgers and Yankees are making a mockery of a competitive league.

I don't like the style of play (of most of MLB).

I don't like the front office or the manager of this team. I pretty much hate what "analytics" has done to MLB.

It's ridiculously expensive to go to a game.

And on and on.

 

I've been a Twins fan since 1961 at the age of 8. And you just said, exactly how I feel today.

[Aggies7]

Twins need to emulate the TB Rays of the world. They get 15 fans to every game but have had 4 losing seasons and 2 pennants since 2008. Scouting and development must immediately get better, and that probably means yet another change in FO management.
 

Our minor league system is pretty rough, and guys aren’t coming here skilled in the fundamentals of the game. During the lean years of the later 90s, the farm system was developing players who were at least schooled properly and it led to a solid 10 year run of competitiveness. The organization was so good at it, the ignorant national media still references “the twins way” whenever we’re on national television. Hasn’t been that way in a long time. 
 

If we can’t compete with the money grab that’s going on currently, then we’d better fix up the scouting/development. Maybe we could catch lightning in a bottle and have a young team come out of nowhere to win a pennant. That’s about the only way I can see it happening. 

[GP830]

TBH, This week has felt awful to be a Twins fan. I realize that the signing of one specific player shouldn't be what my fandom rests on, but that's where we are. Gleeman has said that Falvey has had a tendency to pull rabbits out of hats in the past, but I don't really see how it's even possible anymore. You pay for FA's so that you don't have to cut your current team to improve, and well--here we are. 

The 2022 CC signing felt like a huge exciting step for the org, the new uni's and ownership felt like a new era. But I honestly just feel hurt and disappointed that we are where we are. I can't imagine a trade that would have any significant benefit to ML roster that wouldn't involve Lewis, Lee, Kiriloff, Miranda, or any of our other young core. Thus making it lateral regardless. 

I'd love to be somehow proven wrong. But here we sit, once again, feeling like the laughing stock of the league for having the audacity to hope that things had changed. 

 

[howeda7]

15 hours ago, bap3141 said:

I remember after some lean years in the 90's, Selig was looking for a team to contract and it was almost the Twins. That nearly gutted me. 

 

This feels worse. 

 

Why would I pay one cent for this product? 

The 90's were bad. But it felt a bit "out of their control". They were stuck in the Dome without the revenue streams to compete as the payrolls exploded elsewhere. And at least TK's teams played hard and smart most of the time. Also, in the middle of that, that had one season, 1996, where they signed Molitor and a couple others and at least tried to compete. It didn't work out (Kirby going blind etc.) but it at least broke up the run of bad seasons.

The bad run from 2011-2016 was almost this bad. But it felt a bit due to bad luck with Mauer and Morneau. Sure you can say that about Buxton, but his issues were a known issue when we extended him. This front office just feels like it has no clue and no plan. And the owners are as disengaged as ever.

[AussieG]

14 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

I am not there yet with the Twins. This offseason appears to be a dud, and I don’t think it will be salvaged. But once spring rolls around, I won’t be able to help myself watching opening day. 

I’m 32 and have no memory of the Twins winning a WS besides looking back at the grainy footage. Odds are low that I’ll ever see a WS win in my lifetime.

That’s the choice people need to make. If your definition of a successful season is a WS title, and only a WS title, then it might be time to walk away. 

I'm just looking forward to winning a playoff game. Just 1, even that doesn't seem realistic. 20 year drought, sorry 19 years?

[Aggies7]

2 hours ago, AussieG said:

I'm just looking forward to winning a playoff game. Just 1, even that doesn't seem realistic. 20 year drought, sorry 19 years?

I’m almost 40 years old and have experienced a grand total of six playoff wins. 6. This dud of an off-season is merely another drop in the bucket. 

[AussieG]

10 minutes ago, Aggies7 said:

I’m almost 40 years old and have experienced a grand total of six playoff wins. 6. This dud of an off-season is merely another drop in the bucket. 

Yeh mate pretty miserable, somehow I still have hope for 2023

[bap3141]

8 hours ago, Peter said:

You need to support our team win or loss!!! Once you dump them your done!!!  Yes it sucks they missed out on cc bit let’s be real they never had a chance of resigning him anyway. My hope is let’s be competitive/not expecting division title they are 2-3 years away. I’ll always support the twins/all the Minnesota teams no matter what!!! You should to

No offense, but why should I? This is the sort of mentality that enables the Twins ownership and front office to throw out a mediocre or bad product most years.

 

I've been where you're at for too long and I'm done with it. No longer suckered into caring more about the team than the owners do.  I work too hard for my money to be a donor every year.