So Your Team Is Terrible. Now What?

As a way to cope with the fact that the Detroit Tigers are going to be terrible for the next few years, I have been looking for reasons to be excited about the team.  This is something that the fan base hasn't had to deal with in over a decade, and I'm sure that other fans have dealt with this.  When we lived in Kansas, Royals fans were desperate for something resembling a winning team.  That didn't happen until we moved, but I remember some co-workers being excited about the minor leaguers that they had in the farm system.  Those minor leaguers are the ones that led the team to the World Series.  So that was cool.  

• Find a different team to watch for a couple of years.  Here in Minnesota, the Twins are starting to become relevant.  At least within the division and in the Wild Card.  They won't go much further than that, but at the very least they'll be playing meaningful games throughout most of the season.  It is difficult to deal with the fact this team is within the same division as the Tigers, but they're going to be on my television.  

• Dive into the farm system.  The farm system is the future.  There is still a ways to go for the fans to be excited about the players in the system, but it's the future.

• Relive the glory days.  This is a dangerous practice because when you actually see the record that the Tigers are going to have this year, it'll cause brain hemorrhages.  If you want to live in a nice little bubble, go nuts.  Only for those who are not ready for the fact that your favorite team is going to be struggling through the year.  

• Just suck it up and deal with it.  Embrace the pain and self hate you will deal with when watching a team struggle.  It'll make you bitter and angry, but you'd come out just fine.  It'll make the future, when they win more than seventy games, that much brighter.  

• Go watch a game in person.  Whether it is at the major league level, AAA, or some random independent league go to the ballpark.  Embrace the experience.  Get outside and enjoy the weather.  The sounds of the game, the smell of the ballpark, the warmth of the sun on your face can make you forget about how your favorite team is sitting in the basement of the division.