Collectively, as a sports culture, we love to hate. From the deeply-held Red Sox-Yankees rivalry to the obscenities shouted at the television set when a wide receiver drops a big pass, disdain comes naturally and it comes far more easily than love does. Especially in a society as technologically advanced as ours, anger is instantaneous.
Josh Hamilton slips up and has a few drinks? Whip out the cell phone camera.
Chicago failed to earn the right to host the Olympic Games? Let's blog about our feelings.
Al Davis overdosed on baby-eating? Omg tweetz!
But why do we react so swiftly when we are angered, and yet rarely jump at the chance to praise something lovable? Why not post about how hard a certain team tried, how a certain player spent two postgame hours signing autographs, or how cute Jacoby Ellsbury looked on Saturday?
Instead of jumping aboard the anger train, maybe we should linger at the station, searching for happier things to react to. These are just short snippets of three stories that we should have heard more about, and sometimes they come from the least expected sources.
The Yankees, who are owned by a man who rivals Davis for the record of "Most Innocent Children Punched in 20 Minutes" and are perhaps the most universally-despised sports franchise, have a soft side that some might not know about.
At 3 a.m. one night this summer, New York welcomed young kids from Camp Sundown to the field. All of the campers have a rare disease known as XP, or xeroderma pigmentosum. Basically, if the kids catch a UV ray, they can develop cancerous tumors.
But the Yankees brought the campers onto the field beneath the stars one night, welcoming them into a darkened suite for the night's game. Afterward, they ran around the bases, slugged pitches from A.J. Burnett, and listened while General Manager Brian Cashman sang a Police song.
Still hate the Yankees? Fine.
Last week, I wrote about how Alex Ovechkin might have saved a failing sport in Washington D.C. In fact, these athletes we all love to hate are generally more philanthropic than the devil's offspring we make them out to be. For example, earlier this year, the Columbus Blue Jackets raised the spirits of a 19-year-old with a terminal disease. Though the cancer eventually proved too much for his body to handle, Ryan Salmons' is an inspirational story featuring an equally inspirational act by his favorite team.
General Manager Scott Howson surprised Salmons at his home one day, signing the teenager to a one-day contract, giving him a team jersey and a $3 signing bonus.
In his final year of life, Salmons developed close ties with the Blue Jackets, and defenseman Marc Methot even agreed to turn over his No. 3 jersey to Salmons. Manny Malhotra and Jason Chimera were especially drawn to Salmons and served as pallbearers at his funeral. Columbus went on to earn the franchise's first playoff bid that year, carrying the memory of Salmons in their hearts.
Another example of altruism came from Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young, a man who once sued for exclusive rights to the term "Invinceable" and who is known throughout the league for complaining about playing time.
On Sept. 16, more than two months after former Titans quarterback Steve McNair was shot and killed, Young surprised Trenton and Tyler McNair at their house and took them to the Pancake Pantry as part of a "Dear Dads Breakfast" hosted by St. Paul Christian Academy.
For two kids worried about who would take them to the breakfast, Young gave the best gift in the world.
I may not know how to obtain a "Boom boom pow," nor do I know how to be "2,000 and late," but the Black Eyed Peas definitely got it right when they asked "Where is the Love?"
Perhaps, sometimes, it's where we least expect it.
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Alex Prewitt is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. He can be reached at Alexander.Prewitt@tufts.edu.
