(11-03-2016 08:34 PM)Big_Man Wrote: Sox fans, are you worried that this World Series creates a dark ages for the White Sox? In all reality the Sox should find a new market to play baseball in? They weren't able to compete for fans when the Cubs had a 108 year drought. How will they gain any fans now? It's kind of like Michigan and EMU.....to a lesser extent.
Sox fans, are you worried that this World Series creates a dark ages for the White Sox?
NO. The as long as the white sox continues to put mediocre teams on the field, the attendance will largely reflect the product. A 'dark ages' is self-inflicted, not externally imposed.
In all reality the Sox should find a new market to play baseball in?
NO. They truly serve a lot of the chicagoland area south of madison st. (even south suburbs) and NW indiana. The goal was never truly to "dominate" the chicago market. Think Mets. Very similar situation. They largely are a neighborhood team that serves Queens and the surrounding areas. The yankees are more of a national team.
They weren't able to compete for fans when the Cubs had a 108 year drought.
It was never about competing for fans. The core of the two fanbases are distinctly different based on geography and won't budge.
How will they gain any fans now? It's kind of like Michigan and EMU.....to a lesser extent.
You gain fans by winning. Unlike NIU (to which many have grown cynical), the marketing dept. of the Sox is very strong. If the product on the field is strong, then the marketing dept will be able to leverage the product better. However, I never expected the team to pull in diehard Cub fans. Mich/EMU is an extreme comparison. The resource discrepancy there is more akin to comparing a pro team to a minor league team. Yankees/Mets are more reasonable comparison.
That said - if you think it was always about "pulling away" cub fans or sox fans, you don't have a true understanding of the dynamic in Chicago. They are just two almost different populations. There is no doubt that a lot of people are recently bandwagoned fans. It happens when teams wins.