How far did sports teams fan bases stretch in the past

[Big John]

^^ One small correction:  The brewers moved to the NL in 1998.

[1995hoo]

^^ One small correction:  The brewers moved to the NL in 1998.

That's what I thought I had typed, but I see I didn't. Thanks.

[ce929wax]

I think the Brewers actually switched to the NL in 1998 when Arizona and Tampa Bay entered MLB.

[NWI_Irish96]

My dad grew up in Logansport, IN.  He remembers being able to get White Sox, Cubs, Reds and Cardinals games on the radio.  He ended up becoming a fan of the White Sox, because they were the only AL team of the group and thus the only ones who played the Yankees, back when they had Mantle, Maris, Berra, etc.

[jon daly]

I don't know Indiana geography well, but I'm surprised he could pick up Cincy and not pickup Cleveland or Detroit. That said, the Go Go White Sox made it to the World Series in 1959. Cleveland was strong, too, but that was earlier in the 1950s.

[Flint1979]

My dad grew up in Logansport, IN.  He remembers being able to get White Sox, Cubs, Reds and Cardinals games on the radio.  He ended up becoming a fan of the White Sox, because they were the only AL team of the group and thus the only ones who played the Yankees, back when they had Mantle, Maris, Berra, etc.

He couldn't get WJR in Logansport?

[Takumi]

I think the Brewers actually switched to the NL in 1998 when Arizona and Tampa Bay entered MLB.

They did. It was to keep an even number of teams in each league, to minimize the number of interleague games (which had just started the year prior). Kind of amusing to look at it in that light now since the Astros moving to the AL caused that to happen.

[jon daly]

I cannot exaggerate how much I dislike interleague play.

[jeffandnicole]

I cannot exaggerate how much I dislike interleague play.

A lot of people don't.

Yet, not a single thing is said about the NFL, NBA and NHL interleague play.

[jon daly]

Wrt the NFL, I wasn't following it before the merger. So interconference play doesn't bug me. But something doesn't feel right when (e.g.) the Red Sox finish their season series against the Twins in May just so they can play more games against the NL.

[Takumi]

I cannot exaggerate how much I dislike interleague play.

A lot of people don't.

Yet, not a single thing is said about the NFL, NBA and NHL interleague play.

I assume it’s because in MLB’s case it’s because the two leagues differ on DH usage. In the other leagues the rules are the same between the conferences.

[Flint1979]

I can't stand Interleague play either. MLB went 97 years with both leagues playing only the teams in that league and not no Interleague. Now with 15 teams in each league you have to have it or one team will always have a day off every day. The All-Star Game use to be a lot more fun when the teams in each league only played each other rather than Interleague, as an American League fan in an American League city (Detroit) it was fun seeing the players from the National League in the All-Star Game. Now it's not as much fun since they play each other during the regular season. The World Series was kind of fun that way too but not anymore. I loved how the pennant was won during the regular season before 1969 but those days are gone forever it really put the two best teams from each league in the World Series rather than having like a Wild Card winner making it to the World Series. I didn't mind the East and West divisions prior to 1994 and it seems as if the AL Central is a rather weak division with this season anyway two of the worst teams in baseball the White Sox and Royals in it but I guess the AL East has the Orioles who believe it or not are right on pace with the 2003 Tigers who lost 119 games. I looked the other day and through 95 games the Orioles had the same exact record the 2003 Tigers did. I can't believe that Buck Showalter still has a job.

[jon daly]

97 years is a long time. The only major sports I can think of with a that long a history of prominence are horse racing, boxing, and college football.

I wonder what boxing purists thought when the alphabet soup of title belts started. I know that I'm thrown off by NCAA conference realignment.

Good point about the All-Star Game being diluted by interleague play, but I think some dilution might be due to the availability of out of market games via cable and, now, streaming.

[1995hoo]

Part of what I dislike about the current interleague format is that it results in there not being a balanced schedule even within the same division. For example, the Nationals play Baltimore every year, while the Mets play the Yankees. Most years, that's a potential advantage for the Nats. Strength of schedule was historically not an issue in baseball.

[jon daly]

^^ Agree. I suppose interleague play is great if you live in Boston and want to see Clayton Kershaw or Bryce Harper play live and in person. But that doesn't help us ordinary slobs who rarely get to an MLB game.

[Flint1979]

Detroit is my local city of course and whenever I go to Tigers games I want to see an American League team playing the Tigers not some random National League team. I'd much rather see them play the Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles and so on more than once a year at each ballpark. When I was watching baseball growing up the Tigers would make two trips to each American League city and each American League team would make two trips to Detroit, it was a lot more fun that way because you played the teams you are battling for the division. The Tigers historically are an average team IMO, they've had some dominate years but have also had a lot of down years too.

[texaskdog]

I can't stand Interleague play either. MLB went 97 years with both leagues playing only the teams in that league and not no Interleague. Now with 15 teams in each league you have to have it or one team will always have a day off every day. The All-Star Game use to be a lot more fun when the teams in each league only played each other rather than Interleague, as an American League fan in an American League city (Detroit) it was fun seeing the players from the National League in the All-Star Game. Now it's not as much fun since they play each other during the regular season. The World Series was kind of fun that way too but not anymore. I loved how the pennant was won during the regular season before 1969 but those days are gone forever it really put the two best teams from each league in the World Series rather than having like a Wild Card winner making it to the World Series. I didn't mind the East and West divisions prior to 1994 and it seems as if the AL Central is a rather weak division with this season anyway two of the worst teams in baseball the White Sox and Royals in it but I guess the AL East has the Orioles who believe it or not are right on pace with the 2003 Tigers who lost 119 games. I looked the other day and through 95 games the Orioles had the same exact record the 2003 Tigers did. I can't believe that Buck Showalter still has a job.

I'd just have them play divisional teams 14-15 times (57 games) conference 6 times (60 games), non conference/league 3 times (45 games)

Or just get rid of leagues and conferences altogether so everyone can play everyone

[hotdogPi]

Or just get rid of leagues and conferences altogether so everyone can play everyone

In general, teams in the same division are closer than other teams, which means traveling is less of an issue.

[briantroutman]

I've always been intrigued and puzzled by the factors that make someone a fan of a particular team. (Disclaimer: I grew up in a home totally devoid of professional sports, so really, everything about sports fandom is alien to me.)

Living in (or near) a city and being a fan of the home team would seem fairly understandable. Although to be honest, the concept of a "home team"  seems like a bit of a stretch anyway. We're talking about a team of athletic mercenaries who come from all parts of the country: They may have grown up as die hard fans of their current team's arch nemesis and played college ball at a rival state university. And they likely spend the offseason at a mansion a thousand miles removed from their fans. I'd be more interested in following the Phillies, for example, if they all grew up in Roxborough and Ambler, spent their summers getting wooder ice and going downashore, and were Phillies fans themselves.

For people living out of a major metro area, picking "your"  team becomes more complicated and convoluted. Obviously the availability of broadcasts is an important factor for people who aren't regularly attending games. My late grandmother, who grew up in Williamsport and spent most of her adult life either there or in greater Philadelphia, later became a Braves fan in her retirement in Florida because of the broadcasts on WTBS. And she kept that affiliation even after she moved back to Williamsport in the '90s.

Growing up in Williamsport, the majority of people were Philadelphia fans. A minority were either Pittsburgh fans or retained a favorite team from somewhere they had lived in the past. Or at least this was the case in my parents' generation (Baby Boomers). For many of their children (my generation), it seemed that the process of selecting a team became subject to odd and abstract criteria. Some became fans of a team because of a star player on the roster–like Michael Jordan or Joe Montana. And others seemed to pick a team based on some sense of "attitude" –like the Raiders being rowdy or the Yankees being the team for life's winners. Still others would follow a team based somewhere they dreamed of moving to, a team with colors or a logo they liked, etc. And some people I've questioned had no explanation whatsoever for their devotion to a team.

I'm sure it would make a good topic for a doctoral dissertation.

[ce929wax]

I'm not really bothered by interleague play.  I never really followed baseball as much as I do now until I was in high school, so by that time interleague play had been established.  When I was a younger kid, I was more into football, basketball, and hockey.