Keyboard Quarterbacks

Back in 2004, I was in Busch Stadium the night the Red Sox won the Series in St. Louis, and have nothing but good memories. (Well, with one exception: Watching Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore cavort on the field in what I presume was fake euphoria - they were filming the lame ending to 'Fever Pitch' - came closest to spoiling a perfect moment).

But the one memory that always comes back to me is how the Cardinal fans behaved during the ninth inning that night. Hyperactive Sox fans were all over the place, jamming the aisles on the third base side of the stadium, and pushing as close to the dugout as possible as the final out approached.

And, God bless them, just about every Cardinal fans obliged them politely. Many gave up their seats, and, over and over, you'd see them turn to the nearest giddy Red Sox fan and extend their hand.

"Congratulations," one kind, older fella said to me. "Good for Boston. You deserve this."

Now, as someone who has been the jerk at Fenway far too often over the years, and endured the Moron Show at Yankee Stadium many times, there was a real lesson here:

Midwesterners are insane.

Every time I've ever visited the Bronx, Yankee fans always perform as advertised - over-the-top obnoxious, even borderline violent. And, as long as I escape physical harm, I always appreciate it. It's part of the show.

The first time I ever sat in the Yankee Stadium bleachers was for a Sox-Yanks game in the late 90s. It was like 110 degrees, they still served beer in the bleachers, and after finally reaching our seats in center field, a buddy of mine observed, 'I've never felt so unsafe in America.'

On Friday night, I took a video camera to the Bronx to capture some of the, um, spirit before the Dice-K/Pettite game. Yankee fans were just as intense as ever, maybe more. Not as confident as they used to be, maybe, but definitely louder.

But then, even Cardinals fans might throw a fit if they had to wait eight days for a win.