WASHINGTON 鈥� I鈥檓 not from here. Unlike most of the sports media folks in this region, I didn鈥檛 grow up living and dying with the local teams. That outside perspective means sometimes I don鈥檛 understand every historical reference or nuance, but it also means I can tell you this with absolute certainty: The teams here are not normal.
Every team in every market frustrates and angers and disappoints its fans from time to time. But in no place I have ever lived, or worked, or visited, are the professional clubs in such a constant state of self-sabotage.
By any measure short of titles, it should be a great time to be a D.C. sports fan. It鈥檚 the only market with a . The Caps are the for the second year in a row. The Nats are favorites to win their fourth division title in six years. The Wizards just broke the . Even the Burgundy and Gold have put together consecutive winning seasons for the first time since the early 鈥�90s.
And yet.
The Nats got it done on the field Monday, but so badly that they鈥檝e been all week. It would be one thing if this was an isolated incident, but this happens every year.
If I could sum up at park in one word what would it be? Lines.
Lines. Lines. Lines. Lines. Lines. Lines.
— Martin Matishak (@martinmatishak)
Love my team but stadium staff gets F- for opening day. Lines were too long all day long and no baseball etiquette
— Crooked Finger Fan (@Crkdfingerfan)
Sure, there are new gameday staffers unaccustomed to their positions. That鈥檚 what training is for.
Yes, the ballpark is packed to capacity for one of the only times all season. But you have all offseason to prepare for this date.
Instead, fans dealt with infuriating lines, some due to broken electronic payment systems. That, in turn, forced people to pay in cash. Which meant the ATMs ran out of money.
totally unprepared for ! Cash only operations; empty ATMs! Sad!
— Tyler Longpine (@tlongpine)
Opening Day is the single most important chance to make a good impression on the casual fans, the ones who haven鈥檛 already committed to ticket packages, but might if they enjoy themselves at the ballpark. Better luck next year.
Meanwhile, the tire fire in Ashburn has been lit once again, with man-baby egos driving out the only competent talent evaluator the team has had in years. In the time in and around when Scot McCloughan was smeared and run out of town, the team has seen its two best wide receivers and best defensive lineman walk, signed no impact free agents, and still hasn鈥檛 resolved the Kirk Cousins situation other than committing to massively overpay him for next season.
winning percentage under Vinny Cerrato was .459
Redskins winning percentage under Bruce Allen is .397
And fans make fun of Vinny
— Chuck Sapienza (@chucksapienza)
?
Not content to sit this one out, the Wizards brought us the latest in unnecessary meddling Thursday, as that television color commentator Phil Chenier would not return to the booth next year.
Chenier is聽the聽only full-time broadcaster聽in the franchise鈥檚 history, working for 33 years following his 10-year NBA career, most of it with the Baltimore and Washington Bullets. This, just as the franchise puts the finishing touches on its best regular season since the 鈥�70s. If the decision itself wasn鈥檛 unpopular enough, the timing is absolutely insane.
Not the Legend !!RT : End of an era: Phil Chenier won't return as CSN's Wizards primary …
— John Wall (@JohnWall)
Yes, that鈥檚 John Wall, the star point guard and face of the franchise, reacting to the news Thursday morning. I could include practically anyone else鈥檚 opinion, but do you really need to know any more than that?
It鈥檚 all enough to almost make me understand the bipolar swings that fans here go through. The Caps just won the Presidents’ Trophy for the second straight season. Maybe they can celebrate by announcing they鈥檙e dumping “Unleash The Fury” just in time for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
