And they say they don't try to buy championships

[The Brain]

How does wanting to see new teams every year equate to pulling names out of a hat to play for the championship? I'll answer that for you, it doesn't.

I'll re-answer it for you... it does.

What you basically ask for is for every year to be its own little microcosm-- no continuity from one season to the next. So that, let's say in 2000, the Yanks and Mets play for the title. Then 2001 is completely different, and two other teams play... is that what you're getting at? Well if that's the case, the Yanks and Mets might as well take the year 2001 off, since under your system they (as league champions) wouldn't be allowed to compete for the title again, having been eligible for it the year prior. A sort of "previous contest winners need not apply" rule.

Therefore, it would be perfectly simple to adopt a "pick a team" from the hat, where the prior winner's name would be eliminated from contention. That way, every year someone new wins.

That's what you want, right?

But that's not how the essence of sports works.

*Actually, I realized there is a system that emulates what you want. It's called the BCS. The previous year's champion is not always guaranteed of returning to the championship bowl game-- hell, they're not always preseason #1 the following year, either.

In baseball, I sure as hell don't expect the Mets to do anything each year. It would be nice, but I don't expect it. Yankees fans on the other hand expect to win every damn year.
In football I don't expect the Giants to win every year, but they may surprise me game to game. That's why they play full seasons, not draw names out of a hat.
In hockey, for as dominant as they have been the past 5 years, I don't expect the Devils to win every season. Call this sacrilege or whatever, but even as a fan of the team I would not want to see them win every year. Two years in a row maybe, but not every damn season.

Why not, exactly? You are a <i>fan</i>, a <i>supporter</i> of the team you chose to root for. You are supposed to have faith that your team can win it all until standings or playoff elimination dictates otherwise. To do anything other than that is inconsistent with the nature of team allegiance.

Your stance honestly confuses the shit out of me. As a Devils fan, why on earth would you want to see any team other than the Devils win? I could understand if you wanted another team to be nearly equal in stature to the Devils, to provide a foil for them to struggle against... but for that team (or any other) to win out <i>over the team you support</i>?

Oh yeah, just for the record... I'm sure every Devils player goes into every year thinking their team will win it all. Wonder how they would feel if their fans didn't share the same faith they do?

In any case, you harped on it earlier-- I'm a Yankee fan (much to your apparent chagrin). I like when their rivals are almost as good-- the Red Sox, Mets, Braves, Cubs, whoever-- so long as the Yanks manage to come out on top. It means that the team I love rises to the challenge, and proves itself the best of the bunch against marvelous competition.

<i>That</i>, my friend, is the essence of sports.

Then again that's typical of a Yankee fan. They go into every season expecting to win so why would they want to see diversity around the league. Sorry I dared try to tarnish the great legacy of Steinbrenner and the Yankees, it will never happen again sir.

Now what the heck is that all about?

You know, we may make fun of Cubs fans and their "Wait 'til next year" slogan, but they're the most diehard loyal fans in the business. Every year they believe that the Cubs will finally get off the snide and win it all. We don't fault them for this; because they support that team through thick and thin. Their belief in their team is perceived as noble and true.

Oh, but a Yankee fan says every year, "This will be the year we win a title", and suddenly it becomes arrogance. A "stubborn" (to use your word) sense of entitlement. Why am I, as a Yankee fan, not allowed to display the same faith in my team that a Cubs fan can in his? Just because mine has won in the past decade? Why should I be told that it would be best if the Red Sox, or Mariners, or Twins won this year, just to help compensate for my team winning so frequently? If I wanted to see the Twins win so much... I'd become a Twins fan. But I'm not a fan of any of those teams; my loyalty is not to them. Frankly, if the other team wants it that bad, let them go through the necessary channels to earn it.

By beating on the field whoever currently holds the title.

Just one last point:

Didn't one of my previous posts list a bunch of dynasties from <i>all</i> major sports? I thought I had conveyed a point that parity is bad for a league (any league), and that it is often better to have one or two teams (or in boxing, one man) at the top of the pyramid, so that everyone else has something to prove themselves against-- a litmus test, if you will.