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Sports
Katie must be thrashed
By Andy Rennecke
Published:
Monday, October 21, 2002
Andy Rennecke -- Sports Editor
“I’ll see you next October, because I know you won’t be here in May.”
-Doug Mientkiewicz responding to heckling Angel fans during Game 5 of ALCS.
Every major league baseball team has a mascot or some type of animal they are associated with.
For instance, the Philadelphia Phillies have the Philly Fanatic. The Seattle Mariners have a very large Mariner Moose. And who can forget our own T.C. Bear who makes sure all of the Twins fans are always bored to a drooling stupor while watching his mundane antics.
That brings me to the most famous mascot of the moment: Katie the Rally Monkey. Katie promotes good vibes for the American League champion Anaheim Angels. The bandwagon-hopping Angel fans have fallen in love with this cute little tree-jumping squirrel. Not only do they bring their Thunder Sticks to Edison Field, they also bring stuffed monkeys to more thoroughly irritate the rest of America.
Parents even dress their kids up in monkey costumes and let them run up and down the aisles of the Big Ed. There was one particular child that caught my ire during the ALCS against the Twins. The FOX network cameras kept showing this kid bouncing happily in the stands right behind home plate. Instead of showing what was going on during a critical moment of the game, they showed a clueless kid hopping around like a midget promoting a bad carnival. Why does anyone want to see a little carnie, dressed like a primate, when such a huge game is taking place?
The only reasoning I can think of is because FOX thought it was cute. If you’re a real baseball fan, you don’t want to be seeing crap like this while your watching the game. In addition, you don’t want to hear the announcers (in this case Thom Brenneman and Steve “Psycho” Lyons) keep talking about the mascot. Fans want to hear what’s going on with the game, not how Katie the Rally Monkey is supposedly putting a curse on the Angels’ opponent.
Katie and the rest of her brood of mascots need to be outlawed all together in professional sports. I don’t care if they help hype up the crowd or not, they distract you from the game. Not only do they distract fans, they now appear to even be menacing with the media. Katie is receiving more attention than the Anaheim players. That’s when you know there’s a real problem with the coverage of the playoffs.
I’m not just picking on the Angel fans here, I despise all mascots. Next season when I go to a Twins game I might just jump T.C. Bear from behind and maul him. A bear has nothing to do with the Twins, just like a damn monkey has nothing to do with the Angels. If Anaheim did have a mascot, they should take a cue from “Angels in the Outfield” (starring the wonderfully talented Tony Danza) and actually have a halo as their inspiration. I mean what’s next, a duckbill platypus representing the Tampa Bay Devil Rays?
In Game 1 of the World Series the San Francisco Giants disposed of Anaheim, 4-3. Hopefully the Giants can also rid baseball fans of Katie in quick fashion. Even if the Angels were to win the Series, their fans won’t be likely to show up again until their next trip to the postseason. The bandwagon-hurdling Angel fans have had their 15 minutes in the sunlight, now it’s time they faded into the past, out of our memories forever.
