Daily Sports article can be found here / デイリーのコラムから
Spring training is coming to a close, and from what I hear, the fan service at Hanshin’s camps in Okinawa and Kochi is better than ever. Players are signing more autographs, posing for more pictures, and even passing out business cards to zealous supporters.
Just a few towns down Route 58 in Chatan, Chunichi Dragons’ autograph sessions turned ugly when one man reached aggressively for Daisuke Matsuzaka to sign something for him, yanked on the pitcher’s arm, and injured his shoulder in the process. Another fan apparently threw a ball and pen directly at stud rookie Akira Neo, though no harm was done.
Such breeches of etiquette got me to thinking: we fans sure are a strange breed, aren’t we? I mean, these aren’t the only times that celebrities have experienced the dark side of stardom. And as you all probably know, the term “fan” is a short form of “fanatic” which has been defined as “marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion.” The original Latin form means “insanely but divinely inspired.” If the words excessive, intense, and insane don’t jump out at you, read the definitions again more slowly.
Now, I know the vast majority of fans have their acts together and keep their words and manners under reasonable control when in close proximity of famous people, but that doesn’t make you any less weird than those who lose it.
Keep in mind that I am one of you, and I’m preaching to myself just as much as I am to anyone else.
What is up with wanting autographs, anyways? What does that person’s signature add to our lives? It’s one person’s name written on something that some other person (or machine) manufactured. Then the item gets stashed or displayed. That’s it.
If getting the autograph is for the sake of remembering that moment, I’m all for it. We all need reminders of good times we’ve had, and meeting our heroes is definitely worthy of being remembered.
If it’s for bragging rights, I’m not sure what the point is. I guess I just don’t think inspiring jealousy or envy in others is a very virtuous act. But whatever. It’s a pretty harmless act, I suppose.
If we’re doing it so that we can sell the autographed item for a higher price, then we are not true fans of the player. Rather, it could be said that we are fans of ourselves, of getting more money in our bank accounts. It is, in fact, the opposite of true fandom. You don’t want what’s best for the player; you want what’s best for you. You don’t want him to perform better for the sake of a championship or a better future contract; you want to drive up the price of the autographed item. Selfish!
I’m not trying to take anything away from what the Tigers are doing with their fan service, but I also feel like maybe we fans need to take a step back from the situation and start to question our motives for doing the things we do as followers of sports teams and players.