- Now that you've picked your team, you can't change your mind. You have the same team for your entire life (unless they leave town or something). This is good news for you, having picked a team that has won twenty-seven World Championships, including one in your lifetime (2009). Had I the foresight to pick a team when I was five, I would not have picked the Chicago Cubs. They haven't won the series since they went back-to-back in 1907-08. They haven't even been to a World Series since they lost to the Tigers in 1945, two months after Tojo surrendered to end World War II. I would never encourage a small child to root for the Cubs, but I use them to demonstrate that allegiance to a team is paramount. I've been a Cubs fan since they made the playoffs in 1984, when I was seven-years-old, and came one game away from going to the World Series. They've still never made it to the Series, but I'm still a Cubs fan.
- The Yankees come with a built-in rival, which provides a very convenient narrative for watching baseball. You're going to find that most things in the world are complicated, and that it's often wrought with confusion and contradictions. This is simultaneously what makes the world awesome, as well as frustrating. The good news is that baseball provides one area of life in which things are simple. As a Yankees fan, you hold as self-evident that the Yankees are good and the Boston Red Sox are bad. It's beautiful simplicity in a complicated world. The rivalry goes back to the beginning of the 20th century, but took on a life of its own after the Red Sox traded Babe Ruth (arguably the greatest player in the history of the game) to the Yankees in 1914. The Yankees proceeded to dominate baseball and won 26 world titles between the trade and 2003. The Red Sox sadly did not win any titles over that same span, and the drought was titled "The Curse of the Bambino" (Babe Ruth's nickname). The Red Sox finally won in 2004 and 2007, but the rivalry lives on.
- Because the Yankees have been so successful, fans of other teams are often resentful of the team. The team has been called "The Evil Empire" (an allusion to Reagan's characterization of the Soviets in the 1980s). As a Yankee fan, you'll have to endure this, but you can rest assured that your team is the most successful baseball team of all time and the most famous (non-soccer) team in the world. When the "haters" try to get you down, you can take comfort in the unparallelled success and history of the team. Learn about the storied history of your team: Babe Ruth's home run records (and the famous called home run against my beloved Cubs in the 1932 series); Lou Gehrig's consecutive games streak, and Gary Cooper's iconic portrayal of him; Joe DiMaggio's hits streak and his marriage to Marilyn Monroe. The tragic tale of DiMaggio's jealousy, Micky Mantle's knees, and The Mick's unfulfilled potential; Roger Maris's 61 home runs in 1961, and the decade when a bunch of cheaters sullied that record. Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series; Reggie Jackson's three home runs in three pitches in the1977 series; The tragic story of Thurman Munson, who true Yankee's fan still know as "The Captain." There are many others, but you should learn to know the players, know the culture, learn their numbers, their stats, Defend yourself from the doubters who might assume that you are a fair-weather fan by showing that you are a true historian of the game.
- Remember that baseball is fun, but it brings inevitable heartache. However, it's a great way to understand the highs and the lows of life. The promise of baseball is a yearly rebirth. Every October, all teams but one end their season in disappointment;but, no matter how bad "last year" was, hope springs eternal when pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in February and the season starts anew in April. The Cubs had a particularly atrocious season last year, but I'm already thinking about seeing them in the Spring. There's not a lot in life that you can take for granted, but I have no doubt that when the season starts in April, the Cubs will be tied with everyone else, and so will the Yankees.
