My love for baseball began when I was barely taller than a baseball bat. Aside from music, it was a major thing in my household. I grew up watching it on television, playing at the park with friends, and listening to stories from my parents about the games they attended (and I couldn't wait for my first game so I could experience what they described). And as I got older, there were two teams that always stuck out to me. Two teams that I would watch on television. Two teams that I would listen to on the radio. Two teams that I've always cheered for.
The San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A's.
Aside from them being the two local teams, they were the two teams represented in my family. The first games my parents ever attended were A's games. I would hear stories about players that were before my time such as Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley and Rickey Henderson. And as I got older, I'd watch A's games in the living room. I was introduced to players such as Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Jason Giambi, and Miguel Tejada. I remember despising the St. Louis Cardinals for "stealing" McGwire. But I got over it.
And there was the San Francisco Giants. The first baseball game I ever watched (and could remember) was the Giants against the Pittsburgh Pirates. They lost, but I didn't care. I still wore my Giants hat proudly. I learned about the greats such as Willie Mays and Bobby Thomson, as well as Joe Morgan and Will Clark. As I started following the Giants, I was introduced to Barry Bonds, Rich Aurilia, J.T. Snow, and Darryl Hamilton. I still remember how upset I was watching the Giants fall 3-1 to the New York Mets in the 2000 NLDS.
Years, later they're still my teams. Now the Giants have players like Buster Posey, Tim Lincecum, Pablo Sandoval, and Brian WIlson (he's still a Giant to me) and the A's have players Josh Reddick, Yoenis Céspedes, Coco Crisp, and Eric Sogard. And to this day, I still cheer for both teams. Of course when it comes down to it, the San Francisco Giants will always be first in my heart. But I see no problem in rooting for both teams. Heck, it's not like I'm cheering for the Giants and Dodgers. However, despite being a fan of the Giants and the A's, you will never see me wear that ridiculous split-cap. That thing and the wave need to be banned from the sport of baseball.
Of course, Giants and A's fans like to engage in friendly trash-talk and unfortunately both teams have those "fans" that loyal fans probably wish they could trade to another team or just choose not to acknowledge. And even though I'm a bigger Giants fan than I am an A's fan, I've met really awesome A's fans that are accepting of the fact that I also root for a team they don't particularly like. For instance, my good friend Chris (@MrChris80) is one of the most die-hard A's fans I know, as well as recent friends I've made (via Twitter) Ben (@Shakabrodie) and Vanessa (@VDemske). They accept the fact that I cheer for both teams. Heck, Ben wrote one of the best pieces I've read about the Giants. Just as I accept the fact that they don't root for the Giants, they accept the fact that I do and that I root for the A's as well. And I look forward to attending a game or two with them.
Whenever there's a "Battle of the Bay", I'm always going to pick the Giants over the A's. But when they aren't playing against each other, they've got my support.
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