Sports

   There’s a number to consider when thinking of Boston’s success in sports: six. That number represents how many titles in the four major sports (baseball, football, basketball and hockey) Boston’s sports teams have won… this decade.

   Six titles, in 10 years, so what? Well, that not only ties for the most in the decade (with LA), it crushes the likes of Chicago and Philly and, of course, Washington with a lowly goose egg. But why isn’t LA the top sports city? To refute that notion, I present another number: 32. That’s right, 32 titles in the past century. There’s a reason behind the name "City of Champions."

   So all this success in sports, you say? What about New York? The Yankees have a few dozen rings to bring to the table. And the Giants? Didn’t they win a championship a few years back?

   And then there’s that old steel town in Pennsylvania that has a bunch of teams with yellow and black as their colors. Sure, those guys with a logo on only one side of their helmet have a few trophies in their case, but what makes Pittsburgh an inferior sports city is their lack of teams, a basketball team to be exact.

   The principal difference between Bean Town and the likes of the Big Apple and the Steel City lies within the backbone of any great sports town, the fans. These fanatics not only flock to games by the thousands, they are more passionate about their home teams than any city on the planet, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is what makes a town, the support.

   I got to experience Boston firsthand this summer as I made my way to Fenway Park. I arrived at the game three hours early, I got lost in a sea of red, I sat in a rickety seat that faced centerfield rather than home plate, I had my view obstructed by the infamous "Pesky’s Pole," and I enjoyed every minute of it. As hard as it is to admit it, as a lifelong Orioles fan (sad, I know), I loved my trip to Fenway. It served as a prime example of what it is like to visit a city that truly cares about their teams.

   And 32 titles in the past 100 years? I would classify that as not too shabby.