"Well, it's not how you start, it's how you finish," Adam Jones said afterward. "That's the last impression the fans are getting. You can clearly see, the fans are leaving in the fifth and sixth inning, and that's not a good feeling as a player."
Yet he knew he and his teammates had brought it on themselves, and he made it clear he wasn't angry at the paying customers.
It wouldn't be out of line for fans to reward the Orioles for showing signs of reversing the trends of the previous 10 years. On the other hand, don't let anyone tell you that you aren't justified in withholding your presence, money and affection for a while longer. "They weren't as bad as usual," or "At least they didn't lose 110 like we thought they might" isn't good enough.
This is still a broken franchise, and now we know just how broken it is. When they fix it, when they bring wins back, the crowds and the love will come back, too. It's up to the fans to make sure of that.
Listen to David Steele on Fridays on WNST (1570 AM).
david steele's points after
* The Nationals entered yesterday with 100 losses, fans are furious, the city and club owners are feuding ... and they still outdrew the Orioles. That's a beautiful new ballpark, but come on.
* Oregon State 27, No. 1 USC 21. At least Maryland can feel better about losing to the Beavers in last year's Emerald Bowl.
* Oddly enough, Isiah Thomas didn't get eight seasons to utterly reduce his franchise to ashes, the way Matt Millen did with his. Just pointing it out, that's all.
* The last time we had a Great Depression, the Yankees kept on winning World Series. Now that we're in another one, they can't even make the playoffs.
* If Plaxico Burress gets a two-week suspension for blowing off an appointment without a good excuse, how long a ban will Letterman give John McCain?
