Mariners lose the most fans in professional sports

This is a rather dubious distinction, but the Seattle Mariners - yes, our very own hometown ballclub - has seen the worst drop in attendance for a professional sports team in the past ten years. I don't think you have to do much digging to see why that's the case, the Mariners were contenders in the early 2000s, and are completely irrelevant nowadays.

(Although, they are showing some promise. Anyone want a Felix Hernandez jersey?)

In 2002, the Mariners were 93-69 and finished third in the AL West. They were also coming off the 116-win 2001 season which had everyone in the state of Washington in a big tizzy (Here's a DVD to remember when Seattle had a good baseball team). Remember, you couldn't turn the TV on, talk to a buddy or go to Home Depot without somebody talking about the Mariners.

Since then, there's been a whopping 51.4 percent decrease in attendance at Safeco Field - which is still one of the coolest ballparks in all of baseball, no question about it. They had a 75-87 record this season, but any sports fan will tell you that the team is coming around if they can get some offense going... oh wait, they're bringing in the fences?

The Mariners have seen a 61 percent drop in season tickets and remember that snafu earlier this fall when they raised season ticket prices without telling fans? Ick.

Here's the list for the 13 teams with the biggest attendance declines:

1. Seattle Mariners; MLB; -51.4 percent
2. Cleveland Indians; MLB -38.7 percent
3. Houston Astros; MLB; -36.1 percent
4. Arizona Diamondbacks; MLB; -32.0 percent
5. Dallas Stars; NHL; -23.2 percent
6. Oakland Athletics; MLB; -22.6 percent
7. Detroit Pistons; NBA; -22.3 percent
8. New York Mets; MLB; -22 percent
9. Baltimore Orioles; MLB; -19.7 percent
10. Columbus Blue Jackets; NHL; -19.2 percent
11. Washington Wizards; NBA; - 19.1 percent
12. Milwaukee Bucks; NBA; -19.0 percent
13. Miami Dolphins; NFL; -17.1 percent

Seven out of 13 are MLB teams, meaning that fewer and fewer people are going out to the ballpark. That could have something to do with (a) TV and internet options allowing you to watch games for comfortably and (b) a terrible economy for a team that plays everyday. There's two NHL teams on the list, although I'm not sure how they count that since the league is currently not having a season. The Detroit Pistons live in an urban zombie-land so that should be expected, and the Miami Dolphins just plain suck.

(Sorry Piston fans, but we still love EWU's Rodney Stuckey)

But you know what, the Mariners beat them in attendance drop by a very, very large margin. The team should probably take a long look at itself, and why I feel that the Mariners have made steps to get better, they waited much too long to turnaround a plodding squad in the AL West.

I mean it has gotten so bad that people in Spokane now root for the Texas Rangers.

With the fences coming in, and a pitching staff that is one of the better ones in the AL, fans might be wise to snatch up a few tickets during this next summer.

Things you'll find in my fridge

I was looking through my fridge the other day and found these items.

• Three eggs, not sure of their age. I will have my roommate eat them.

• Roughly 20 full bottles of Bud Light. That along with a keg out on the balcony of my apartment means that if society ends tomorrow, I'll have enough beer to last me until 2040.

• A large growth of mold that resembles this guy...

• An Ice Cream flavor that has every type of candy shoved into its mixing. I'm pretty sure it's like 80 percent Snickers, Reese's Cups, Twix Bars, Milky Ways and like 5 percent ice cream. In fact... wait no... that's marshmallows. There is no ice cream in this ice cream.
  

• That 2001 World Series Trophy that the Seattle Mariners were suppose to win.

• Ryan Leaf's football career.
• I think I found the state of Rhode Island in my fridge. Considering how small that state is, and how much it smells like fish - that seems about right.
• Fruit and Vegatables, haven't been touched in three months.
• The cold, beatless heart of Clay Bennett.

Hope you enjoyed this trip through my fridge. What did you find in your fridge?

Things that bug me about Seattle sports fans...

1. Winning is not life or death - There's a general "gee whiz, we're glad to be here" feeling from Seattle fans with their major professional teams (Mariners, Seahawks, Sonics... oh, oh wait). In Boston or New York, any sign of weakness is treated with a general outcry and an increase in the suicide rate. Seattle fans are just happy to have teams and talk about things like "how much they just love coming out to the ballpark" and "it's just great to root on the team."

In other words, it's a cheap owner's dream.

2. Fans are not critical of their teams - Now granted fans of Boston and New York can go way overboard with this, and I would dare say that the intense media pressure put on the Red Sox went a long way in the so-called curse. But in Seattle you can't say anything negative about the hometown teams unless they're in last place of their division. Take the Griffey signing... it hasn't exactly panned out, but you wont hear a peep about it. Now if you switch the tables and look at David Ortiz in Boston and fans are wondering when they're going to move him down in the lineup or out of it altogether. Nothing personal, Ortiz did a lot for the Red Sox, but you can't have the third batter in the lineup be hitting .220 with no home runs.

3. Fans expect bad things to happen, but dont complain about them - Fans knew the 2001 Seattle Mariners weren't winning the World Series. They won 116 games and yet everyone was reserved to the fact that they wouldn't make it through the post-season. And it wasn't as if they were dreading it either, they were just grateful the team had won 116 games. That's great loyalty, but what does it say for your franchise when a team finishes a season with the most wins in the history of baseball and their fans still can't get excited for the postseason?

And it's different from Boston pre-2004 - when fans sat shell-shocked in Fenway Park, expecting the world to come crashing down. It weighed above them emotionally.

Meanwhile in Seattle, everyone just shrugged their shoulders and went hiking.

So what bugs you about Seattle fans?