The Nationals had an exciting game last night, tying the Phillies in the bottom of the ninth and again in the tenth, then falling just short in the 14th. However, you wouldn’t know it from the Nats fans. We wrote about fairweather fans before, but this game was just sad – for one, a lot of people hit the exits as the 9th inning ended. So the Nats aren’t in the playoff hunt and the Phils are, but why not watch your team in a great game with a good team? Ryan Zimmerman tied the game for the Nationals with a bases-loaded, bottom of the ninth walk – how often does that happen?

Throughout the game, Philly fans were far louder and seemed to vastly outnumber any Washington fans in attendance – they cheered and chanted for the entire game with nary a response, no boos or “Let’s Go Nats!” to drown out the loud and incessant “Let’s Go Phil-lies” chants. The game might as well have been played at Citizens Bank Park. And it’s not like there weren’t other reasons for Nats fans to get excited – a Zimmerman homer, a Felipe Lopez triple, some great defensive plays (again by Zimmerman), plus clutch hitting and aggressive base-running. Or fans could have even booed Phillies superstars-in-the-making Ryan Howard (and his 58 homers) and Chase Utley. Instead, the chants were “MVP! MVP!” as the two came up to bat. As the game went on, glances down into the lower section revealed far more Phillies jerseys and hats than Nats.

So why are Nats fans apathetic? Are they too busy checking their Blackberries and talking on their cell phones? Do the pricey concessions make them dour? Maybe it’s cavernous RFK? Or is it just because the team is new and bad? Badness doesn’t seem to explain it, as Wizards and Caps fans can get pretty rowdy, and the Redskins aren’t exactly the 1972 Dolphins either. Marc Fisher even tried using Google to look into it. Whatever it is, seeing 20 Phillies jerseys versus 3 Nats hats on the Metro car home did not inspire confidence. It seemed more like a SEPTA train to Norristown than the Orange Line to Vienna.

Photo by Flickr user KimTheWolf

Filed Under: As, Bank Park, cell phones, Chase Utley, Citizens Bank, Citizens Bank Park, Felipe Lopez, flickr, football, google, lies, marc fisher, metro, nationals, orange line, orangeline, people, phillies, Philly, photos, redskins, running, Ryan Howard, Ryan Zimmerman, ryanzimmerman, SEPTA, sports, the game, the nationals, train, washington, wizards,