Is your town a "Baseball Town" or a "Football town"?

[cappital92]

The Redskins are more respected in Washington D.C. than President Bush, the Nats, and Alexander Oveckin combined.

[spyboy1]

Because of the renaissance of the Seahawks and the large numbers of UW alumni here, Seattle is definitely a football town. It's fun now with the Mariners winning, but it's pretty clear that football comes first here.

Seattle was one of the cities I was curious about. I didn't really have a read on that one either way.

I'm still waiting for someone to say Atlanta is neither.

[HedleyLamarr]

Atlanta is a football town.

The South, really, is a football region. Nothing else comes close, not even the Braves and their recent history have closed the gap all that much.

[rams80]

St. Louis is a baseball town.

Peoria, which is where I actually live, though, is a basketball town.

Are there any pro basketball teams in Peoria? All I can think of in terms of basketball is Peoria Central winning a couple state championships a few years ago. I thought Peoria would be more of a baseball town with the Chiefs.

Let's see, Peoria Manual had it's 4-peat from 93-96, Central has two more titles IIRC (including the first one ever), years where a team from the area fails to visit big school state are rare, and they've hosted the Boys State basketball tournament since the mid-90s. Illinois' roster has at least one or two guys from the area always, if not more, and Peorians are recruited by other D-1 programs as well. Before the Macker moved to Washington, downtown shut down for it as well.

Bradley, particularly Bradley basketball, is huge. There is no other way to describe it. Folks still fight about the point shaving scandal in the 1950s, reminise about the 2 trips to the Final Four in said 1950s, and it is indicative of the standard Peorians hold the program to that the 1955 team that played in the Elite 8 only got a banner when they put one up for the Sweet 16 trip in 2006. It is the best drawing sports organization in the city, hands down. I have never seen Peoria get behind a team like they did for the Sweet 16 team in 2006-not for any of the 3 Rivermen championships, not for the Chiefs, and not even when the Pirates were legendary class good. I honestly thought they would build a statue of Jim Les downtown.

Pro wise, we had the ABA's Kings last year, but between Bradley and high school basketball, pro basketball doesn't have enough of a chance to get started. (They also don't play at the Civic Center, which kills the number of people who could go to games.)

In fact, let me rephrase my statement. Peoria is the basketball capital of Illinois.

[RyanMcD29]

New York's both it seems

My town of Levittown is definately a baseball town. My high school's baseball team is one of the most accomplished and respected programs in the state and have consistently done good (though this year they were knocked out first round). I'm pretty sure our town's three schools (Division, Island Trees, and MacArthur) are basically 3 of the very few schools on Long Island that puts more of an emphasis on baseball than lacrosse.

[Roger Clemente]

Sydney....well, we got no football whatsoever, though all the high schools have rugby programs. But no one plays rugby outside of school here.

We are definitely a baseball town...although not your traditional baseball. Here it all consists of T-ball, Little League, and various forms of Softball (or Slopitch). But there has to be at least 200 teams combined around here (with many people playing in multiple leagues), so many that they only print the standings for each league once a week, and it takes up an entire page of tiny print. Almost every single Little League game features someone hauling a barbecue to the field by truck and cooking hot dogs and hamburgers for the crowd who feels like paying. We are one of the two cities (the other being Vancouver) to be the first in Canada to have organized Little League. And, if it weren't for the climate and current lack of an adequate stadium, I'm convinced that Sydney could support a minor-league baseball team.

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[BB61]

Philadelphia. I guess you'd call us either a Football town or a Baseball town with a Football problem.

Life revolves around the Eagles. The day that Richie Ashburn died, what were they talking about on the radio? Who the #3 quarterback for the year would be (Jay Fiedler). It's gotten to the point of annoyance. When Donovan McNabb goes down, it's the top story on the news for two weeks. The TO thing warranted special reports for a week straight. It was insane. The "E-A-G-L-E-S" chant has become a unifying rally cry for the city, though I find it rather annoying when I hear it at baseball games and other sports that, well, aren't football.

The Soul draw well too, but I guess that's because of the Bon Jovi - Jaworski mystique.

It's a good thing that pro football is so popular here -- there is no real college football to speak of. Sure, there's Temple and Penn, but Penn is small potatoes and Temple... sucks. Anyone who follows college football here follows Penn State -- four hours away.

Baseball does really well here too, and it's definitely a good place to be if you're a baseball fan. In addition to the Phillies, there are four other MLB teams and about 15 minor league teams within a two hours drive of the city. The city is passionate about the Phillies, especially over the last few years with the signing of Thome and the emergence of Ryan Howard and the new ballpark. Of course, like I said, you still have people coming to the baseball park checking the score of the Eagles games on their little radios and in the bars. The thing about Phillies fans is that most of them are over 65 -- remnants of the Whiz Kids era. And a lot of older women like them too.

Hockey has always done well in Philly, which is evidenced by the fact that the Flyers were in the top seven or eight in attendance this year despite having the NHL's worst record. A lot of it goes back to their bursts of glory in the 70's, 80's, and 90's.

Basketball has also done really well here, especially college basketball. There are five (or six, if you prefer) major programs in the city alone, and they draw well all the time, for the most part.

[sscrunner06]

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say College Station is a football town.

[maz]

The Redskins are more respected in Washington D.C. than President Bush, the Nats, and Alexander Oveckin combined.

I think that goes for everywhere.

[spyboy1]

Philadelphia. I guess you'd call us either a Football town or a Baseball town with a Football problem.

Life revolves around the Eagles. The day that Richie Ashburn died, what were they talking about on the radio? Who the #3 quarterback for the year would be (Jay Fiedler). It's gotten to the point of annoyance. When Donovan McNabb goes down, it's the top story on the news for two weeks.

I'm going to take this as a vote for a Football Town then.

Any other Philly residents care to weigh in with their thoughts?

I'm thinking of doing a map with colored dots for Baseball or Football. Perhaps there's a pattern that will emerge.

[VitaminD]

Philadelphia. I guess you'd call us either a Football town or a Baseball town with a Football problem.

Life revolves around the Eagles. The day that Richie Ashburn died, what were they talking about on the radio? Who the #3 quarterback for the year would be (Jay Fiedler). It's gotten to the point of annoyance. When Donovan McNabb goes down, it's the top story on the news for two weeks.

I'm going to take this as a vote for a Football Town then.

Any other Philly residents care to weigh in with their thoughts?

I'm thinking of doing a map with colored dots for Baseball or Football. Perhaps there's a pattern that will emerge.

BB's pretty much on the right track. Philadelphia WAS a baseball town, and still is to some degree. Back through the mid-'80s, it was baseball-first, hockey/basketball second, and the Eagles were an afterthought (Marion Campbell years). Buddy Ryan got things going again with the Birds, but I remember many Sunday blackouts due to poor attendance, or some local company would buy out the last 5,000-6,000 seats so the game would air locally.

The ascent of the Eagles coincided with the Phillies' ownership trying to pass themselves off as a "small-market" franchise. In the 4th-biggest city and media market? Don't think so. Years of ineptitude from the top down made baseball fans angry; when the anger went ignored by the front office, it turned to apathy. The Delaware Valley then became Eagles Nation 24/7/365, and has more or less remained that way until the present. The Flyers are always well supported, but the lockout and the terrible play this year, combined with people tired of Bobby Clarke, has caused enthusiasm to wane there. And the Sixers... well, we know they're there, but with 6 D-1 schools and some high-level high school hoops to watch, the Sixers just don't draw that well, even when they are good.

There has been a tiny twitch of the pendulum back toward a baseball/football split of late. The Phillies have rid themselves of a lot of the laconic guys who showed no fire for the game (David Bell, Bobby Abreu, Scott Rolen) and have replaced them with guys the city has really taken to (Rollins, Utley, Howard, Victorino, Rowand) for their passion and energy. There's a great new ballpark (albeit 2 sizes too small for MLB play), and the team contends for the playoffs. Best of all, the guys seem genuinely likable and they feed off the fans as the fans have really taken to them. It's a team you finally want to root for after years of indifference (and 90+ losses).

But the Birds get the majority of air time and press ink. So I'd call it a football town with a deep history of being a baseball town that may see a major resurgence over the next few years. But then again, whichever team delivers us from our 23-year wait for a title will never pay for a meal in this city ever again.

[ZapRowsdower8]

Question for New Yorkers. It seems like NY is clearly baseball over football, but I have heard that basketball is truly king. Any truth to this?

As for Pittsburgh it is clearly football. Hockey is second, not just the Penguins but high school has contributed to this fact. Every season it seems like there are more local kids going in the draft. Also, I find that many Steeler fans are pretty ignorant to the rest of the league and how the game is actually played, but the average Penguin fan to be very knowledgeable of the sport. This may only be because I have had Pens season tickets for 11 seasons and sit by some very hockey savvy people. Maybe the Steeler fans at the games are smarter than the average bar fan.

Maz is correct in stating that baseball was more important than football before the late 70s. It was probably on pretty equal footing through the mid 80s and early 90s. 15 straight losing seasons have made an entire generation of kids not care and the team slip to a distant 3rd.

I have only lived in Indy for a short time but it appears that basketball is number 1, car racing second, with football third. I am not a racing fan by any stretch of the imagination, and was shocked to see Formula One (not even Nascar) getting more coverage than Colts training camp. Somebody that has lived here longer may be able to rightfully challenge my ranking, but thats how I have seen it so far.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

Question for New Yorkers. It seems like NY is clearly baseball over football, but I have heard that basketball is truly king. Any truth to this?

You mean New York City? Well, it's a city of eight million people. It's the largest in the US by a lot (NYC more than doubles up LA). Realistically, each sport can have a fan base and following as large the total fan base for combined sports in other cities. It's pretty incredible if you think about it.

As far as basketball being king, I imagine it depends on what area of the city you're in. Based on my interactions with family members from New York, I always gauged support for the Yankees first, then Giants or Knicks (depending on how good either team is), and then a combination of the rest.

[jkrdevil]

Question for New Yorkers. It seems like NY is clearly baseball over football, but I have heard that basketball is truly king. Any truth to this?

In the entire metropolitan area that is laughable that Basketball in king. New York is baseball, baseball, baseball, then maybe some football, some more baseball, and then Basketball and Hockey. Baseball far in away is the number 1 sport. It's the sport with the most history in the area. A large part of the modern baseball game was developed in the area. More recently has been New York teams dominance of the pro game (especially in the 40's and 50's with all the all-NY World Series). Maybe in the inner-city communities is basketball #1 (as probably in most cities as Basketball has historically been an urban game) but throughout the entire area it's baseball.

[KevinMcD]

Up until last year Buffalo was a Football Town, Now with all of the bandwagon Sabres fans the city is turning twords hockey. The town always followed the Sabres well, but they weren't even close to the Bills, now with the Sabres on the verge of the cup, and the Bills w/o a playoff apperance in ~8 years, it's pretty even.

Right now I would say slightly hockey over Football, but if the Bills go 8-8 or better this year the Bills are back on top.

Oh and the true Hockeytown USA is Buffalo.

[Korkie]

Philadelphia. I guess you'd call us either a Football town or a Baseball town with a Football problem.

Life revolves around the Eagles. The day that Richie Ashburn died, what were they talking about on the radio? Who the #3 quarterback for the year would be (Jay Fiedler). It's gotten to the point of annoyance. When Donovan McNabb goes down, it's the top story on the news for two weeks.

I'm going to take this as a vote for a Football Town then.

Any other Philly residents care to weigh in with their thoughts?

I'm thinking of doing a map with colored dots for Baseball or Football. Perhaps there's a pattern that will emerge.

BB's pretty much on the right track. Philadelphia WAS a baseball town, and still is to some degree. Back through the mid-'80s, it was baseball-first, hockey/basketball second, and the Eagles were an afterthought (Marion Campbell years). Buddy Ryan got things going again with the Birds, but I remember many Sunday blackouts due to poor attendance, or some local company would buy out the last 5,000-6,000 seats so the game would air locally.

The ascent of the Eagles coincided with the Phillies' ownership trying to pass themselves off as a "small-market" franchise. In the 4th-biggest city and media market? Don't think so. Years of ineptitude from the top down made baseball fans angry; when the anger went ignored by the front office, it turned to apathy. The Delaware Valley then became Eagles Nation 24/7/365, and has more or less remained that way until the present. The Flyers are always well supported, but the lockout and the terrible play this year, combined with people tired of Bobby Clarke, has caused enthusiasm to wane there. And the Sixers... well, we know they're there, but with 6 D-1 schools and some high-level high school hoops to watch, the Sixers just don't draw that well, even when they are good.

There has been a tiny twitch of the pendulum back toward a baseball/football split of late. The Phillies have rid themselves of a lot of the laconic guys who showed no fire for the game (David Bell, Bobby Abreu, Scott Rolen) and have replaced them with guys the city has really taken to (Rollins, Utley, Howard, Victorino, Rowand) for their passion and energy. There's a great new ballpark (albeit 2 sizes too small for MLB play), and the team contends for the playoffs. Best of all, the guys seem genuinely likable and they feed off the fans as the fans have really taken to them. It's a team you finally want to root for after years of indifference (and 90+ losses).

But the Birds get the majority of air time and press ink. So I'd call it a football town with a deep history of being a baseball town that may see a major resurgence over the next few years. But then again, whichever team delivers us from our 23-year wait for a title will never pay for a meal in this city ever again.

I agree with both of the above. The Eagles are definitely #1. Hell, Trotter's release was the lead news story yesterday on all local newscasts. It was like someone died or something. They devoted half of the newscasts to it. They always dominate talk radio and the print media

The Phillies draw very well, but it seems alot of the Phans come from the burbs, but if, when, they make the playoffs the city will go nuts. 1993 is a prime example. Philly was a baseball town, without a doubt, the strike combined with terrible teams for the better part of 20 years killed the Phillies in this area, but when they hired Bowa as manager they started to come back on the radar and things have only gone up since the new park.

The Flyers are always among the tops in attendance and Philly is a great basketball town, and the Sixers can create a serious buzz (2001), but right now the fans don't want to come out and watch this team and I cannot blame them.

[BB61]

But then again, whichever team delivers us from our 23-year wait for a title will never pay for a meal in this city ever again.

It's funny, though. With all of the crap that the big four teams are going through, the "minor league teams" -- the Phantoms, KiXX, Barrage, and Wings -- Have all brought home multiple championships over the last ten years.

So at least we're getting there in some respect.

[DarkJourney]

Here in the bay it's the 49ers and then everyone else

[spyboy1]

Here in the bay it's the 49ers and then everyone else

That's another one I'm especially interested in hearing.

I wasn't sure if the hype from Bonds and the new ballpark was enough to pass football, seeing how the days of Joe Montana are in the past now.

I always figured Oakland for a Football Town, but thought San Fran might be one for Baseball.

[MadmanLA]

It's kinda hard to figure out what kind of sports town Los Angeles is. If you listen to the ass-kissers and the propaganda on local sports talk around here, it's a Lakers town. The pecking order right now is usually Lakers, USC football, Dodgers, Angels, UCLA basketball, and there's everything else. There were times in this area where the Dodgers were clearly #1, with the Lakers, Rams, USC football, and UCLA basketball not too far behind. Los Angeles is kinda like Miami and Atlanta, where unless you're the Dodgers or Lakers (to slightly lesser extent), you gotta win and win consistently for people to pay attention. Each of the other franchises have the "flavor of the month" stigna, so to speak, but with Southern California being a larger area, the crowds do come out and have very good attendance between them. For example, with the Angels winning the World Series in 2002, the gap between and the Dodgers in terms of popularity, TV ratings, and attendance is closing. In fact, the Angels make slightly more TV money and draw more people (percentage-wise) than the Dodgers. However, anything north and west of Orange County is Dodger Country.

As far as football is concerned, there is still an abundance of Raiders fans in the area, and prior to the emergence of the Chargers in the last few years, the Silver and Black got priority here locally every Sunday on CBS. Now, especially since Los Angeles is an secondary market to the Chargers, the Bolts get priority on CBS. In fact, Rams, Chargers, and Raiders preseason games are televised locally in the area (and have been for the last several years).

On KCBS (our CBS station in L.A.), the importance is this...

1. Chargers

2. The best match-up available (either Pats, Colts, Steelers, etc.)

3. Raiders

On KTTV (our Fox station), we usually get the early game (10am Pacific) on non-doubleheader Sundays, mostly because the Chargers played in the late game. It's almost always either a NFC East or NFC South match-up, or sometimes even the Rams still get a lot of play. When the 49ers were still good, we used to get a lot of their games down here too. I think last season, we got maybe two Niners games on Fox locally.