Do you like rooting for an underdog? I kind of do

[maybenxtyr]

Just win...I don't really care how they get there. They don't award an extra trophy for doing it home grown or cheaply.

[Fiver6565]

I’m really hoping the Ohtani to the BJs thing is overblown. I do like rooting for the ‘little guy’ but the mountain is hard enough to climb as it is without moving the best player in the league into the division. It continues to annoy me that we have to compete with these teams while organizations like Detroit and Cleveland can build 88 win teams and compete for multiple division titles. 

[Three Run Homer]

The only saving grace is that it's not as easy to buy a contending team as it used to be.  The ban on steroids has tilted the game competitively towards younger players, and the competitive balance draft picks and international signing bonus cap are giving smaller market teams a better chance of getting young talent.  

[wildcard]

I don't care if the O's are underdogs or favorites.   I love rooting for the O's.   Back in 1969-71 when they were the favorites I enjoyed rooting for them.  When they went wire to wire I enjoyed rooting for them. And when they are given almost no chance at all, I enjoy rooting for them.

I'm an O's fan.

Edited December 8, 2023 by wildcard

[SilverRocket]

I sometimes say I like to root for the underdogs but it's more about how the team is built. I root against the Yankees and Red Sox and their enormous payrolls. I don't particularly root against the Rays, even when they're favorites.

If the Orioles turn out to be favorites because Adley, Gunnar, Holliday and Basallo are MVP candidates, I'm not going to mind.

[Satyr3206]

5 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

I think the rest of the AL East is panicking about how good we are and loaded for the future, that's why you see the Sox trying to get Yamamoto, the Yankees giving up more prospects for Soto, etc.  

That's what I think too. It's not just the ML Roster. The O's are loaded in the Minors. Going to be hard for them to compete with the Orioles over the next 5 to 6 years.

[Fan4Life]

22 hours ago, Frobby said:

As I’m reading about the Yankees getting Soto, the Blue Jays chasing Ohtani, the Red Sox possibly being in the running for Yamamoto, it occurs to me…

I kind of enjoy rooting for the underdog.  The team that tries to get it done without spending a ton of money grabbing other team’s players, the team that competes by just being smarter than other teams about how they acquire and develop talent.   

This isn’t a new feeling.  I remember so well when free agency started, and how we lost Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich and Wayne Garland in the very first winter of wholesale free agency.  Everyone assumed that the Orioles were doomed, but the next 7 years were arguably the most satisfying in Orioles’ history, bringing two pennants and a World Series title.   Those 1977-1983 teams weren’t as good as the 1969-71 Orioles, but the fact that they were able to succeed despite the obstacles created by free agency made those seasons really special to me.

So don’t get me wrong, I don’t like seeing the Orioles hamstrung, and the long periods of losing have been very painful.   But when the O’s are having success, I really enjoy the fact that they’re doing it as an underdog.
 

Describes me 100%

[OriolesMagic83]

19 hours ago, Three Run Homer said:

The only saving grace is that it's not as easy to buy a contending team as it used to be.  The ban on steroids has tilted the game competitively towards younger players, and the competitive balance draft picks and international signing bonus cap are giving smaller market teams a better chance of getting young talent.  

The competitive balance tax helps too.  It is very cost prohibitive to sign all the best players like Steinbrenner did back in the early 2000's.  I believe at one point the Yankees payroll was twice what the #2 payroll was.

[NashLumber]

I grew up an NC State sports fan, so in the last 40 years or so, underdog status has been a way of life. I don't follow college sports anywhere near like I did in the 70s. 

So when local teams UNC and Duke play (I live almost exactly between Durham and Chapel Hill), outwardly, I act like I'm neutral to my UNC friends, but at the very last minute, I can't shake that upbringing and pull for UNC to lose.

Whatever causes them pain  

Overall, it's not that big of a deal and I am happy for my friends. I just wish they'd shut up once in awhile. I just would like a slice of the pie the winners eat occasionally. 

Edited December 9, 2023 by NashLumber

[deward]

I'd like to have some variety in my fan experience. Rooting for the plucky underdog is fun, but rooting for a dominant team that everyone fears is also fun. Alternating periods of being David or being Goliath would be ideal for me (as long as they're winning in either scenario). 

[Frobby]

2 hours ago, NashLumber said:

I grew up an NC State sports fan, so in the last 40 years or so, underdog status has been a way of life. I don't follow college sports anywhere near like I did in the 70s. 

So when local teams UNC and Duke play (I live almost exactly between Durham and Chapel Hill), outwardly, I act like I'm neutral to my UNC friends, but at the very last minute, I can't shake that upbringing and pull for UNC to lose.

Whatever causes them pain  

Overall, it's not that big of a deal and I am happy for my friends. I just wish they'd shut up once in awhile. I just would like a slice of the pie the winners eat occasionally. 

I’m old enough to remember when NC State was the league powerhouse and Duke was the ACC doormat.

[SemperFi]

3 hours ago, NashLumber said:

I grew up an NC State sports fan, so in the last 40 years or so, underdog status has been a way of life. I don't follow college sports anywhere near like I did in the 70s. 

So when local teams UNC and Duke play (I live almost exactly between Durham and Chapel Hill), outwardly, I act like I'm neutral to my UNC friends, but at the very last minute, I can't shake that upbringing and pull for UNC to lose.

Whatever causes them pain  

Overall, it's not that big of a deal and I am happy for my friends. I just wish they'd shut up once in awhile. I just would like a slice of the pie the winners eat occasionally. 

I used to buy my Christmas tree from Tommy Burleson on Kildaire Farm Rd in Cary,  Has to be the tallest Christmas tree farmer in the world!!!

[HakunaSakata]

Well, I like this song...but consistently being the underdog not so much. 

 

[fansince1988]

83 Os: Too young to remember
01 Ravens
01 Terps Basketball
13 Ravens
18 Caps

Do I enjoy it? Yes. I'd prob enjoy it more if that list were longer. 

[Big Al]

I much prefer a homegrown team who outworks and outsmarts the opposition to a bunch of store bought overpaid mercenaries.