Sports fans- Is it ever OK to root for a rival?

milarso

I was just posting on the Tiger vs. White Sox thread, and I was thinking about the other teams in our division (AL Central).
And I got to thinking, is it ever OK to root for a rival team?
For example, I love the Tigers and hate the White Sox and the Twins (sorry Arctic Angel) with a passion, but if my team is out come playoff time, I find myself pulling for whatever team comes out of the Central. I don't know if it is division pride or even some kind of validation for the Tigers if the team from their division wins it all, but I do pull for the other ALC teams.
Anyone else like this?
Or do you pray your rival gets swept?

MA209067

I think it's fair game to root for division rivals in the playoffs. There are exceptions of course. I'm a huge San Francisco Giants fan. If the Rockies, Dbacks, or Padres were in the playoffs I might pull for them. But I will NEVER root for the Dodgers under any circumstances. Hardcore rivals are a no go.

pjfan31

I go for the underdog in most games, unless it's a team I absolutely despise.

eddies in my tree

i was at the philly's- cardinals game yesterday and jimmy rollins hit that grand slam 4 rows in front of me. i stood, clapped and cheered for him. i bleed cardinal red, but you have to give credit where credit is due. so i think it is ok. im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

milarso

eddies in my tree wrote:

im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

That's another interesting thing I was thinking about- if you're a baseball fan and watching a team that isn't yours do something special ie- a guy throwing a perfecto or a no hitter late in the game, you almost have to root for him (as long as it doesn't have any ramifications against your team).

I guess if the Cubs ever made it to the Series, I'd cheer for them. I rooted for Boston back when they one their first recent Series. And I'm not a Red Sox fan at all, but their whole playoff run was special.

Indifference71

milarso wrote:

eddies in my tree wrote:

im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

That's another interesting thing I was thinking about- if you're a baseball fan and watching a team that isn't yours do something special ie- a guy throwing a perfecto or a no hitter late in the game, you almost have to root for him (as long as it doesn't have any ramifications against your team).

I agree with that. If someone is about to do something special, I'd root for him or that team. As for rooting for a rival in the playoffs....I'm not sure. I think it would be on a team by team basis. I don't despise the Tigers like I do the Twins, so I might root for the Tigers if the Sox were out of it.

PRL1JAM

I never really root for a rival, but there are occasions where I have rooted for other teams/players other than my favorite. I visited Boston a few years ago and had the honor of visiting beautiful Fenway Park. Obviously I was going to cheer for the Red Sox that day, even though I am a Dodger fan. Even went as far as to buy Red Sox gear just to add to the excitement of rooting for them in that historic ballpark

soulsinging

Indifference71 wrote:

milarso wrote:

eddies in my tree wrote:

im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

That's another interesting thing I was thinking about- if you're a baseball fan and watching a team that isn't yours do something special ie- a guy throwing a perfecto or a no hitter late in the game, you almost have to root for him (as long as it doesn't have any ramifications against your team).

I agree with that. If someone is about to do something special, I'd root for him or that team. As for rooting for a rival in the playoffs....I'm not sure. I think it would be on a team by team basis. I don't despise the Tigers like I do the Twins, so I might root for the Tigers if the Sox were out of it.

I'm the opposite. I don't despise the Twins like I do the Sox, so I'd root for the Twins. I have a soft spot for them from back in the days when Jack Morris played for them after the Tigers... that 91(?) world series is the best I've ever seen.

I also tend to pull for Big Ten football, hard as it is these days. Mainly because the stronger it is, the better the Buckeyes look. But I root hard against Purdue.

Arcticangel

milarso wrote:

eddies in my tree wrote:

im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

That's another interesting thing I was thinking about- if you're a baseball fan and watching a team that isn't yours do something special ie- a guy throwing a perfecto or a no hitter late in the game, you almost have to root for him (as long as it doesn't have any ramifications against your team).

I guess if the Cubs ever made it to the Series, I'd cheer for them. I rooted for Boston back when they one their first recent Series. And I'm not a Red Sox fan at all, but their whole playoff run was special.

I hear you on that one. Gotta give credit where credit is due. Good for Buehrle and his perfect game. I'll give him that. But God, I hate the Chi Sox. Maybe it's mostly that I hate AJ Pierzynski..haha Thanks for Joe Crede though, he's been AMAZING for us this year.

But yeah, once your team is eliminated, I think it's all fair game. I would love to see the Cubs win it, I cheered for the Bo Sox... I'm a sucker for a feel good sports story.

But even then, I will NEVER cheer for the Yankees or the White Sox (sorry!)

Gary Carter

its gonna be really hard for me to pick the phils or yankees if they both make it to the world series. i hate both teams with a passion. the only rival i'll root for to win a championship is the ny giants. tut bthats if the cowboys are outta the playoffs.

g under p

Well let's see if the Red Sox needed the Yankees to win for the Sox get in the playoffs well I most certainly can root for the Yankees to win. That was easy but aside from that there's no way on earth could I root for the Yankees to win. In fact IF the Red Sox are eliminated it's ABTY (anybody but the Yankees). Along with the Redskins, Steelers, Canadians, Lakers and DUKE.

I'd like to see the Indians win one along with the CUBS especially the CUBS they're way overdue.

Peace

norm

worst case scenario....if the giants needed to beat whomever they're playing to put the dodgers in the playoffs, well let's just say i'll be rooting for the giants not to lose, not necessarily to win

Wobbie

g under p wrote:

I'd like to see the Indians win one along with the CUBS especially the CUBS they're way overdue.

Peace

Don't forget my Giants!!! 55 years and counting....

I actually pulled for the Dodgers vs. the Cubs last year, because misery loves company.

mookeywrench

when securing a spot in the playoffs is dependent on your rival team beating another rival team

pineapplesandwaves.

I don't know how anyone can cheer for a rival. I hate when the Yanks and BoSox play each other in the playoffs. I'm being forced to choose the lesser of two evils, and I'm not sure that's possible.

Admittedly, in hockey, there was one playoff series that I cheered for the Habs over the Bruins, simply because they were the underdog and had become so pathetic in recent years that you couldn't help but cheer for them. Routinely, however, I never cheer for a rival. I just can't bring myself to do it.

Having said that, you definitely have to give a player or team dues, regardless of where or who they play for. Jeter's "play" was freakin' amazing! He deserves all the props in the world for that. I'm still not cheering for the Yanks, though.

Kilgore_Trout

mookeywrench wrote:

when securing a spot in the playoffs is dependent on your rival team beating another rival team

that... or if it means making $ on a march madness bracket... only time for exceptions

keeponrockin

Kilgore_Trout wrote:

mookeywrench wrote:

when securing a spot in the playoffs is dependent on your rival team beating another rival team

that... or if it means making $ on a march madness bracket... only time for exceptions

Or a Bowl game = money for conference.

intodeep

In professional sports i would rather eat a pound of shellfish and suffer the consequences then root for my rival (i'm highly allergic to shell fish).

I hate everyone in the AL East & AFC East (yankee/jet fan) I would rather poke myself in the eye with a rusty nail then watch tom brady win another fucking thing in my lifetime. Don't get me started about the dolphins, and i remember when the bills were good and i rather like them sucking.

As for the red sox think of the worse thing you can imagine.... and then think of the worse thing you can't even imagine and i woudl rather that happen to me then watch them win again. As for the others in the AL east i don't like seeing them win much either.

Oddly though as an SEC fan once my gamecocks are out of it which is usually quite quickly. I do find myself rooting for the conference. More money for alll the teams and it seems there is a sense of conference pride in college football.

pjhawks

i've only ever done it once - Giants vs. Patriots because I hated that Pats team and those cheating bastards so much. I still feel a little dirty cheering for the Giants but am so glad those Pats loss.

Horos

I will only root for a rival when they are playing a bigger rival.

Flagg

If my team is out, which is most of the time, I do not root for rivals to continue on.

One exception though. As much as I hate the NY Giants, watching them derail the Patriots perfect season was fun and I was kinda pulling for them to do it.


And I do root for rivals when it directly benefits my team.

Someone mentioned perfect games or other historic accomplishments. Sure, in that case I pull for whoever it is because you are really rooting for individual accomplishment rather than the team. If Jared Weaver is going for a perfect game, I'll hope he gets it and still hate the Angels.

81

If Michigan went 0-13 i would throw a party.

pretext

Horos wrote:

I will only root for a rival when they are playing a bigger rival.

Yes. I have a ranking system for the NHL. For example, I will root for anyone playing the Fucking Devils. And the last two Cup Finals I've had to pull for Detroit, as they're #3 on the list and Pittsburgh is #2. I never pull for a team in our division. We fight them all year, so how could I? I don't have East/West-AL/NL allegiances though. Once the championship series/game arrives, assuming no Philly team is in, it's all about which team I dislike less.

However, in the end, I love watching great sports. It was a joy to watch Nadal win Wimbledon last year, even though I'm a big Federer fan. I got excited when the Sox won the World Series because it had been so long. I wish I'd gotten to see Mark Buehrle the other day. And I've even cried when Scott Stevens and Sidney Crosby have raised the Cup. Can't help it.

pearljgirl2010

eddies in my tree wrote:

i was at the philly's- cardinals game yesterday and jimmy rollins hit that grand slam 4 rows in front of me. i stood, clapped and cheered for him. i bleed cardinal red, but you have to give credit where credit is due. so i think it is ok. im a baseball fan so i celebrate baseball and when something special happens i will recognize it.

I'm with you on this...I'm a die hard Eagles fan, but will still cheer for good plays by my rivals, even if it's--gulp--Dallas. I'm LOVE exceptional, athletic plays and you gotta give credit where it's due.

pearljgirl2010

pretext wrote:

However, in the end, I love watching great sports. It was a joy to watch Nadal win Wimbledon last year, even though I'm a big Federer fan. I got excited when the Sox won the World Series because it had been so long. I wish I'd gotten to see Mark Buehrle the other day. And I've even cried when Scott Stevens and Sidney Crosby have raised the Cup. Can't help it.

absolutely....I always get choked up/cry when any team wins a championship, especially when it's overdue or if someone never won before. oh man.

LikeAnOpeningBandForTheSun

i generallyroot for SEC teams not matter how much i hate them. except maybe FLorida.

GO VOLS!

South of Seattle

I don't ever root for a rival.

I sometimes root for Kobe Bryant to break his ankles, but that's about it.

The only time it is ever appropriate to root for a rival is in the case that it helps your team in someway. For example playoff seedings and matchups.

brother123

I cheer for anyone who plays against the yankees.

I cheer for the team who beats the team that knocks out the Devils for the last 6 years, unless it's the Rangers in which case I cheer for the the opposing team to cream the Rangers

Arcticangel

Seeing the White Sox play the Yankees this last week was one of the most painful experiences of my summer. *shudder*

milarso

Arcticangel wrote:

Seeing the White Sox play the Yankees this last week was one of the most painful experiences of my summer. *shudder*

Wouldn't it be great if there was some way both teams could lose?

Arcticangel

milarso wrote:

Arcticangel wrote:

Seeing the White Sox play the Yankees this last week was one of the most painful experiences of my summer. *shudder*

Wouldn't it be great if there was some way both teams could lose?

Oh god, if only.