Girls in the World of Sports
In today’s world, stereotypes are as
common as books in a library. Whether they relate to race or gender, they are
well known. Being a female, I find myself being cast into the shadows of
stereotypes by the male population. To add insult to injury, I am also a
die-hard baseball fan. Males have created quite a few stereotypes for female
fans that I would like to prove wrong. Those stereotypes include being afraid
of the ball, having no knowledge of the sport, and the idea that all female
fans are cleat chasers.
The first stereotype I plan to debunk is a classic. There
is always a guy who is quick to say something like, “ She can’t be on our team!
She’d run away from the ball!” or my personal “favorite”, “She wouldn’t want to
get her outfit dirty.” I found myself in the first situation just recently. A
male student claimed, after reading “Automatic walk… Easy out” (Kingston 42),
that all girls were afraid of the ball. In all honesty, I wanted to give him a
piece of my mind then and there, but I could not. Little does he know, that I
have been playing catch with my dad for longer than I can even remember. I have
been swinging a bat and running after fly balls for almost as long. I also do
not have the fear of dirt guys always seem to mention. I love hiking in the
forest, riding horses around the mountains, and diving for a ground ball. The
dirt and grass stains show how hard you are willing to work to do what you
love.
The second stereotype I would like to take on is the belief
that girls do not understand the sport, nor do they know what they are talking
about. When I am keeping score at a game and I hear someone wonder aloud who is
playing left field, I want to turn around in my seat and tell him. About 90% of
the time, they ask another male fan even though they can clearly see the
scorebook in my lap. It also bothers me when I mention a team fact or a player
stat and I am ignored. One day, I was helping a teacher by putting papers into
an envelope and I found myself working with two baseball players. One was describing
and miming what he did after wining a game. I had seen the same move before, so
I mentioned it by saying, “Doesn’t Fernando Rodney do that?” I judged by his
silence and quick subject change that I was correct in my assumption. Being an
unofficial statistician, who is female, helps me shatter that stereotype.
A third stereotype, that I find highly offensive, is the
belief that all female fans are cleat chasers, or girls who only wish to sleep
with the players. It is a common misconception that both the fans and some
players buy into. I find this very offensive due to the fact that I love the
sport as much as I do and do not wish to be portrayed as someone who is “easy”.
I will admit, I do sometimes take a second look at a player, but my love of the
sport easily outweighs that extra look. I follow several baseball related
accounts on Twitter that prove my theory that says men believe women do not
know the sport and only wish to chase after the players. One person said “If
your not a cleat chaser what r u?”, to which I replied, “A girl who loves the
sport of baseball and isn’t in it just for the guys.” I proved my point and
showed him the other side of the female fan base. It gave me a great feeling of
satisfaction.
The group of fans I belong to is vaguely similar to the
male fan base, although the amount of
female fans with as much passion for the sport as I have comes nowhere
near the amount of male fans who are the same way. We are a rare breed who can
talk the talk. We know the terms and the shorthand, and enjoy keeping score
from time to time. A conversation with a baseball player would be fairly simple for us. Our style of
dress consists of blue jeans, or shorts depending on the weather, and
conservative shirts we wear to show our allegiance to a favorite player or team.
We wear fitted hats with pride and our hair pulled back. Our focus stays on the
field and we try to limit bathroom and food breaks. I personally try to only
leave my seat after the game has ended, or if worse comes to worst, I will get
up immediately after the third out of an inning. In a way, it is like we are
showing respect for the game.
I am happy that I have been able to clear up the
stereotypes associated with the female fan. I hope, one day, that the male fans
will see things through the eyes of the female die-hard fan. I hope it will
give our group more respect over time and show that females know how to step up
to the plate just as well as the next man.
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