So, here's the situation. I'll set the scene for you just in case you weren't there. Rowan is playing at Lexington in American Legion Baseball and of course myself and Brent are there like we always are. It's a close game at Holt-Moffitt field, a place that is not easy to win at.
Rowan's hitters have finally gotten to the pitcher, Beaker, who had kept the Rowan bats a bit off-balanced. A pitching change is eminent.
If you've ever been to a Rowan Legion baseball game, you know when the opposing team makes a pitching change in the middle of an inning, the traditional 'whooooop wooooo' chant ensues. As the pitcher delivers his pitch to the catcher as he warms up, the Rowan crowd goes, whooooop, and as the catcher throws it back, we all go woooooooo, until the ball finds the pitcher's mitt.
Most of the time, it is not a big deal and most people usually laugh like it's a comedy routine. And that's exactly how it should be viewed.
Is it goofy? Well, yeah.
Is it malicious? Absolutely not.
A handful of times, from Sumter to Lexington, we've had people ask us if it was necessary? We respond by promptly saying yes it is, and that is not the response some folks want to hear.
The problem with most team's fans these days, is they are too soft and they often come straight from their church service and pretend we are in still in church.
Rowan has fans. We may not be the most popular bunch, but believe me, we love our Legion baseball like no other. We take every pitch and every terrible call made by the umpires seriously.
Most people don't understand it, and we don't expect them to.
The whoooop woooo chant was definitely not started by Brent and I, we merely just kept the Rowan tradition alive. Neither of us EVER bad mouth or single out opposing players. We simply cheer for our team a little differently than everyone else.
Another item that seems to get under opposing team's fans' skin is the rally clap. The rally clap is pretty self-explanatory. When Rowan is trailing in the late innings, we start clapping in unison to ignite a fire under our team to let them know we want them to rally and win. If you watch college baseball, the rally clap is a very regular thing. Well, much to my surprise, some folks don't like this. We've heard things like, it's rude or disrespectful, and it messes with the pitcher's concentration.
I'm sorry, I didn't know we were at a golf or tennis match.
If you let it bother you, it will. In this case, we know we are doing our job as fans. Fans are not just supposed to be spectators at games. Fans make the games what they are. They bring a certain atmosphere to an otherwise boring athletic event. I guarantee you, if you go to a game at Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium, you will hear much worse at a much higher rate.
My final point I am going to make is that we are going to cheer for our team the way we want to. We are the most devoted fans there are. We have no direct connection to the team. We just know that we are going to cheer on our boys no matter what somebody's mom thinks of us.
And you can take that whoooop wooooo to the bank.
