I posted this a long time ago on the mlb board (How did you become a Nationals fan?) I have taken some heat for my stance on other boards, but I stand by my convictions. To be fair, Nats fans have not killed me for this, but anyway, here's my story in a nutshell.
I'm 35 and an ex-yankee fan. NOT because of their '05 woes. I grew up in the Bronx, 20 minutes from Yankee Stadium. I loved them going back to the Bronx Zoo days and remained fiercely loyal thru my College years in Philly (Villanova) and since moving to Wilmington in '91.
In March of '04 I made my first (and last) trip to their Spring Training complex in Tampa for 3 games. Everywhere you turned somone on the Gestapo staff was trying to handle you or threaten you and made the experience miserable. Some felt it necessary to berate women trying to get autographs near the dugout. I worked in customer service for 12 years and if I treated people like that I wouldn't have lasted 12 hours.
I wrote them 2x and received no reply. I boycotted them for the summer and since there was no reply I divorced them. I could no longer support an organazation that treats its hard-working, paying fans like garbage.I thoroughly enjoyed the Red Sox victory in October.
Anyway, when they announced that the Expos were moving to DC, I decided to adopt them and get a fresh start the same way the organization was. What a ride it's been! Not only by the way the team has played, but also the very fan-friendly atmosphere created in RFK have won me over permanently. I will still acknowledge my roots since there are many great childhood memories of the Yanks, but otherwise the divorce is final.
