Column: Dealing with the enemy at home

Adam MacDonald

The pro ballclub in Atlanta has its hands full with the Boston Red Sox this weekend. But it’s not just dealing with the players between the lines. The Braves have to deal with the fans too.

Since the Red Sox lost to the Yankees in the playoffs in 2003, the Boston bandwagon has gone from bandwagon to bandtank. Red Sox fans have come out of the wood work to support the once cursed team. The Red Sox are the new Yankees, a team that’s revered because they win. The result has been an invasion of visiting ballparks by Boston fans, especially in cities with northern transplants like Atlanta.

I should know, I’m one of them. Since interleague play started, I’ve made it a habit to try and see the Sox play when they visit the Braves. After moving from Massachusetts at age 10 and living 30 minutes from Atlanta, it was a big deal to be able to see the Red Sox.

I wasn’t alone.

I’d been to plenty of Braves games at Turner Field where empty seats were abundant and announced attendance was 23,000. Not when the Red Sox are in town. One game I went to in 2004 was standing room only. Attendance was over 45,000, the biggest crowd in the history of Turner Field at the time. Tickets for the upper deck in right field which normally sold for $10 were going for $30.

The attendance spike wasn’t because of curious Braves fans. It was a Red Sox Nation invasion, with the loudest cheers coming when the visitors scored and people screaming “root, root, root for the RED SOX” during “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”

This irritated the living day lights out of hardcore Braves fans, who are few and far between. Most Braves fans are mild mannered. They seem to favor wearing boat shoes, button up shirts or sundresses as opposed to a team jersey. Unlike Boston fans that have the reputation of sitting on the edge of their seats on every pitch, Braves fans seem more intrigued by getting on the kiss cam or making their kids dance to get on the JumboTron.

It’s a difference in philosophy, culture and lifestyle. That’s OK. But you better believe the players notice.

Red Sox players have said it’s an advantage to have such support, while Braves players have admitted its frustrating and disappointing when the home folks get drowned out by the Boston wackos.

“Very irritating,” Jeff Francoeur told the AJC a few years ago in a series against Boston at Turner Field. “You never expect anything like that at home. When David Ortiz hit a home run and got a standing ovation, that kills you in the outfield. When the Red Sox get louder cheers than you do, it’s frustrating. There’s no other way to put it.”

The best thing for the Braves is to just get through the weekend. The Yankees, who also travel well, just took 2-of-3 from them and it probably won’t get any better with the best team in the American League coming to town. It’s going to be loud, unpleasant and the Braves have to deal with it in their own backyard.

Or, the Braves can take a page out of Tampa Bay’s book. For years the Rays were the Red Sox whipping boy and Red Sox fans would turn Tropicana Field into Fenway Park, Florida edition. That came to a crashing halt last year. The Red Sox went 1-8 in the regular season at Tropicana Field and lost Game 7 of the ALCS there. Sure the Rays were better than they had been in the past, but the Rays also played with a chip on their shoulder. They were sick of being shown up in their own home.

Maybe the Braves can do the same thing. While not as potent as the Rays were last year, the Braves have pitched well enough to be in first place and that doesn’t seem to be an aberration. If they can find some power in the lineup this weekend they can hang with Red Sox and their fans.

A little heart couldn’t hurt either.