What's wrong with the wave?

On Saturday I was attending a very exciting Baltimore Orioles game against the Tampa Bay Rays (whom I still want to add a Devil to). It was the bottom of the eighth of a tie ballgame and had been back and forth for a few innings. The crowd is feeling the tension and trying to will their O's to a victory. I'm down the left field line and notice a small group of fans trying to start The Wave. They struggle at first, but eventually get a fairly decent wave to get around the stadium.

The wave is one of those things in sports that seems to get many talking heads all riled up. I have seen hordes of columns that demean The Wave as one of things wrong with fans who don't understand the sport they are watching. I have a hard time being biased with The Wave. It is often said that it started at the University of Washington and Seattle has long had a tradition of using The Wave as a fan interaction at Hawks and Huskies games. I even recall a Mariner game I went to as a young'n and tried to start the wave with a friend. We did not succeed, but clearly it was something we loved as a kid.

As I watched the attempts in Baltimore, I began to wonder what exactly is the problem? The Wave is a fan-generated, unprompted action that gets nearly the entire stadium loud and a little bit more fun. "Experts" can't explain that fans don't know how to cheer, or that they have to be prompted by a big screen to do so, and then complain when they do The Wave. It can't be both ways. The Wave is harmless. It often gets an entire stadium loud and very excited. There is no need for a scoreboard to tell fans to do it. I won't necessarily be standing up and trying to begin one, but I am not sure why there is so much hate against it.

The fans already have a hard enough time wanting to go to the game. It's costly for a family to go to a game and that money is often spent in better places, at least right now. The advancement in technology allows a person to sit in their own living room, at no cost, get a great experience watching their team play in the comfort of their own homes. The stadium experience needs to be something that offers a unique, and attractive option. I was speaking with an Orioles fan in the airport and he and I each agreed that being at the game is much better than staying at home, but we were feeling in the minority. The Wave is one of those things that fans can't experience at home. If that gets them out to the park, and really excited about the game, then I see no problem with it. I will not hate on people and how they enjoy their sports.

It's time to get off the soapbox about The Wave. It really can provide more fun to the atmosphere of a game.