Obviously the big story yesterday was the Johnny Damon press conference, and this piece John Lowe piece covers that. It seems Tigers owner Mike Illitch exceeded his own budget by giving Damon the $8million contract- something every owner has the right to do.  Apparently, Illitch must actually like Scott Boras, Damon’s agent. Of course, Damon is probably a bargain at $8 million, even if with no one really bidding against the Tigers- and that makes him worth spending a little extra money.  He won’t hit a lot of Home runs in Commerica, but he should hit a lot of doubles- and that should help the Tigers quite a bit.  He will also be able to mentor young players, and help teach a few others how to stretch the single into a double.

But though all this is interesting, its nothing that you can’t find on about a dozen other blogs writing about the Tigers and the Yankees.  The thing I found most interesting about the John Lowe piece were the comments left by Tigers fans.   While I think most folks understand that Damon wouldn’t be a Tiger if the Yankees has wanted him, no matter how much Damon claims to have always wanted to be a Tiger, those leaving comments on the Lowe piece really are excited about what Damon brings to the table.   But in this second piece, also by Lowe, about how Damon spent time reaching out to fans at the Tigers spring home in Lakeland, FL,  fans were not buying it at all.  One fan commented that if Damon wanted to be a Tiger so badly he would have taken less money to come there, and identified with other folks from the Detroit era that have lost their jobs- a valid point.

What is interesting to me about all this is not that there are fans with different ideas about the Damon signing, but that the dividing line falls between the two articles.  The first, about a seemingly generous owner spending money on a certain player creates little to no animosity among the fans.  Even though I think Illitch could have given $8million to the community in a meaningful way and helped the folks a lot more.  But the piece about Damon being a good guy, and by all reports he is a good guy, draws venom.

Sports draw out our strong emotions.  Its hard to know exactly what will spark any particular feeling in advance.  Those happy with the signing see this as a hopeful move, one that could bring some sort of sparkle back to Detroit. Sports can do that, and hope may be the most powerful emotion around.

So why does one piece illicit that hope while the other piece bring out the ire of those writing?  How do such strong emotions get stirred?  How is our view of any one player shaped?  Through the words that are written about him.

I often say that if you think you know what kind of person an athlete is, you are probably right.  I have had few experiences where I find out someone is not what I expected.  Usually in reading the comments about one player or another, you see a lot of different points of view, but there is usually some overriding thread, some consistency in the words.

Damon is a guy who builds loyalty.  I am doubtful that he will take him long to build the same kind of love in Detroit among Tigers fans that he had earned in New York, and Boston before that.  He just is that warm.  The question is will those writing the negative still be doing that 3 months from now.  Or will that depend on John Lowe and others like him?

This post hasn’t gone quite the way I thought it would.  While I had hoped that thinking through this, I might come to understand the baseball fan just a little more clearly, I find perhaps that I am more confused than ever.  What makes someone comment?  Again, how do those feelings get stirred to the point someone wants to share them?  Its the mystery of sports. And yet its the question I spend the most time with.

Sports allow us to connect with others in ways we can’t by talking about work or family.  One can always talk to a stranger about the team they love.  Yet what is it, particularly in writing, that brings out those feelings?

Perhaps when I get that answer, I will stop writing myself.  Until then, I wish Damon good luck.  And I hope on this first week of spring training, that we all find that hope that comes with the early workouts.