With all the attention that major American sports championships receive, its easy to forget about the local minor leaguers playing in our own backyard. The NBA Finals series may be tied 2-2 going into Game 5, but for a MicroShiner, that is only scratching the surface.
Certainly, there is nothing wrong with being one of 110 million people who watched the Super Bowl. But how many people in New Hampshire know that the Manchester Monarchs won the franchise's first ever Calder Cup championship with a 2-1 win over the Comets at the Utica Memorial Auditorium on Saturday night? Hopefully more than one might think.
All across America, while people sit glued to televisions watching competitions between teams they have no reason to care a whit about, there are minor league teams playing their hearts out in half-filled stadiums. Are these games any less important, meaningful, or exciting than the majors? Doubtful, and certainly not to those who have invested the energy in playing or following them.
And this disparity isn’t confined only to traditional North American sports such as baseball and hockey. Take, for example, the bastard stepchild of athletics in America, football. No, not that football. The one we call soccer. 2 million people viewed the MLS Championship, yet there are over 4 million registered U.S. Soccer players. So perhaps that isn’t the best example, because there are likely 8 million soccer parents screaming on the sidelines somewhere. Tough to sneak a cocktail in past them though.
But consider minor league baseball, once the national pastime. While major league interest has flagged, attendance in the lower tiers has been growing in strength for many years. Season attendance for the MiLB was over 41 million, more than half of what the MLB saw. Its another sign that more and more often people are turning to their own surroundings to provide what they need and desire.
So dig up a local sports league to support (the Osprey, the Maulers, and the Hellgate Roller girls are some around here) and enjoy some honest competition. You may have to drink beer at the game, but afterwards you can talk about how much fun you had over a cocktail of your favorite craft spirits.
