It’s Not Always the Fans

Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports

So let me get this straight.

After the Reds laid an egg in dropping a 1-0 decision to the New York Mets, Ryan Ludwick “called out” the fans. More on that in a couple. What immediately proceeded was a firestorm among the fanbase. Actually, it’s still happening.

Yesterday, Ludwick took the opportunity to drive home what he meant. You can make your own assessment as to whether or not you accept his apology. That’s not exactly where I’m going with this.

The key word Ludwick used: “intensity”. And with that, we will now continue.

Not too long ago, our own John Rentz reflected on a visit he took to Comerica Park in Detroit. His post could serve as a bit of a backdrop here.

Last evening the now-hated Pittsburgh Pirates are in town. Seems like the appropriate opponent for the home crowd to get going, right? Let your voice be heard, right? Cheer on the Reds, right?

Maybe not…

Saw a re-tweet from a BRM follower. The original tweet came from a Reds fan attending last night’s game. This fan stated he went to random sections and attempted to start about 20 cheers. On four occasions, he was either asked to leave or escorted out of the section.

Simple math tells me that’s 20%, which is great in some areas, but with the significance this series carries, shouldn’t that be more like, um, 0%? How about a little leeway here? Now that I think about it, any reason it can’t be that way 100% of the time anyway? Sure, the ushers have a job to do. I completely get that. As long as anyone isn’t being disrespectful, what’s the harm here?

Intensity, eh?

At least one in the crowd – and I will assume more than just this one – attempts to get the masses cheering, only to be told to move it along, tone it down or be quiet. I personally observed a similar situation when the Good Guys were at Riverfront…during a playoff game. Yes, other occasions at the old stadium as well. This isn’t some new revelation.

Side note. I would much rather have the fan next to me yelling in my ear cheering for the Reds or someone from another section leading a cheer than constantly having to shift in my seat to watch the game due to movement from others. Not even referring to vendors here. You know what I mean and you know who you are.

Read many a tweet and comment made about how lackluster the crowd at GABP can be. Well, when you’re prevented from voicing your enthusiasm or showing your intensity, you almost feel deflated. Why bother? If the atmosphere at GABP is to change to the point where players can feed off the excitement of the crowd, that crowd should be permitted to create that buzz.

The ol’ Catch-22. Players want you to cheer and be loud, some members of the staff want you to shush.

So the next time anyone reads or hears of a player “calling out” the fans for not being into the game, remember this post. Hopefully, someone, somewhere will read this and make those on the field aware of these happenings.

And remember this, too. It’s not always on the fans.