Are Philadelphia Phillies fans too hard on their team?

I couldn't believe this question was being asked at a community site of opinions, articles, etc... (http://Helium.com)


Some people said yes... so I had to respond. Here is what I wrote:

The Philadelphia fan is informed. The Philadelphia fan knows the game. The
Philadelphia fan is passionate about his/her team. Period. If you are truly a
faithful fan, no matter the sport or the situation, you become upset when your
team does not meet their potential. This gives you, the fan, the right to
express your feelings in whatever way you deam neccessary. If it is a 'boo', so
be it. The Philadelphia athletes understand what they are up against. There is a
certain kind of athlete who we Philadlelphia fans embrace. We embrace hard
workers. We embrace Jeff Garcia, after he showed us some heart. (And a side not
about Garcia. When he took over, we weren't booing him, were booing the decision
by the coaches not to choose AJ Feeley) We embrace Brian Dawkins. To name a few
Phillies Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Aaron Rowand, Jimmy Rollins. These are
Philadelphia type of players.

As good as Bobby Abreu was, the informed Philadelphia fan understood that
his numbers were hollow. He would steal bases down 4 runs with Jim Thome at bat.
All that does is then allow the pitcher to walk Jim Thome. A hollow stolen base.
It also took Abreu years before he achieved his first game winning hit. And this
is a guy who started almost every game for many years. It was as if Abreu was
invisible after the 7th inning. And we PHiladelphia fans noticed.

So are we too hard on the Phillies? No. Until Pat Gillick came to town, we
had a general manager who was satisfied with the status quo. We had a general
manager who was satisfied with a winning record. This attitude of not being
committed to winning drove the likes of Curt Schilling and Scott Rolen out of
town. This same general manager fired our beloved Larry Bowa, a man who bleeds
Phillies' red, because some of the players beleived he was asked too much. All
he asked is that they play hard. We now have a manager who doesn't understand
the double switch. And when we get the chance, we'll boo him.
So to ask the
question again.

Is the PHiladelphia fan too hard on the Phillies. NO.