Level Of Obnoxiousness: Not High

Last night was supposed to be Trivia Night at Professor Thom's, as it is every Tuesday. But there was a big crowd in the bar last night, so we decided to postpone it, out of fear that too many people might be yelling out answers. My friend Deborah brought a number of folks into the place after she screened her fine film, "In-Between," at the Village East Cinemas. But it was also the first game of the ALDS between the Detroit Tigers and the Evil Empire, and it attracted a number of Yankee fans into PT's.

The restaurant above the bar was opened last night, and early during the game, I noticed what looked like a black limo in front of the bar, along with what looked like a number of security people (they looked like the Secret Service). It turns out that New Jersey governor Jon Corzine was dining up there. He was there for a while, as the security guys were around for most of the game.

Since Trivia Night was postponed (there's a good possibility it will be held on Thursday night this week; stay tuned for more info), I watched the game with a number of other Red Sox fan friends, and we were having a good time rooting for the Tigers and goofing on the usual Yankee suspects: Slappy, Captain Drivel, and an assortment of Wang jokes (you can just guess the nature of them). My friends and I were rather taken aback by the presence of many Yankee fans in what is our home for Red Sox baseball.

During the game, my friend Leah told me that she spent a good part of Monday watching NESN's all-day showing of "Papi's Greatest Hits," which were the replays of the games that David Ortiz got those amazing game-winning hits. And right in the middle of it, NESN showed the "Kayreoke" segment that me and my friends appeared in back in September. Sweet.

I hope one day to see that segment myself.

But I will say that when you put so many Yankee fans together in one place, especially with fans of other teams (including their rivals), bad things usually happen next. I was waiting for a "Boston Sucks" chant from them. That would have garnered a response from me, and the rest of my crew for sure. But the fans were rooting for their team, and not doing much else.

Oh yeah, the Yankees won, 8-4. Whatever.

But there was one thing I remember from those fans. During a profile of Sean Casey, it was shown on TV that he likes to read the Bible every day. Someone in that crowd made a smart remark about that, and on cue, Casey doubled in a run. "Heathen Yankee fans!!" I yelled out.

The level of obnoxiousness wasn't too bad in the bar last night, but naturally it was high on the Fox telecast. (And a pox on Fox for always putting the damned Evil Empire on in prime time every year in the ALDS.) The game was done by Joe Buck and Tim McCarver. (What more needs to be said?) Of course they have to show every front-running Yankee fan celebrity at the game, including that noted loudmouth moron and overrated filmmaker Spike Lee, all decked out in his "beloved" Yankee gear. I'm sure he'll be at Shea today in all his "beloved" Mets paraphernalia. (I absolutely abhor front-runners like that schmuck.)

Today's Bill Simmons column at ESPN.com has a great take on last night's game from a fellow Nation member, and it's absolutely worth checking out (thanks to my buddy Steve): http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?
page=simmons/061003&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1

I conclude by saying that a great web site to check out for all your McCarver-bashing needs is "Shut Up Tim McCarver," a site devoted to ripping Ol'Timmy and his Yankee devotion. You can find it at: www.shutuptimmccarver.com.