Will Wes Helms Get A Better Reception in 2009?

[Fatter than Joey]

I'm going to buy Wes some doughnuts.

[phxMILWfan]

Count me as someone who is surprised that Wes was asked about his return to Milwaukee. I understand it's the writers job to produce an article or section of the paper but still. I had almost forgotten about Wes. I liked it that way. His numbers may not support my opinion but I couldn't stand watching him play. He was one of my least favorite Brewers.

[zurch1818]

They didn't make jersies for him while he was here, nor should they have.

I'll agree with all of what you said but this comment. I know they probably weren't too popular, but my dad does have an autographed Helms jersey. We got it signed in 2004 before a game in Florida when Wes was still a Brewer.

[JoeHova]

These kind of threads always devolve into, "I don't care about the logic, it's my right to boo." Really, there's nothing to debate.

 

Where did somebody say that? Booing is the counterpart to cheering, why do some people get so unnerved by it? Wes Helms was a hindrance to the Brewers, so he gets booed. Where is the crime in that? How else are people supposed to express their dissatisfaction? By writing letters? Protesting outside the stadium? Don't say by not going to or watching games, because that isn't a real option for people who follow the team as closely as we do, at least not in response to the presence of one unsavory player.

 

If you're talking about me and accusing me of a lack of logic, you should read what I said more carefully. I said that in a certain sense, most unpopular people are not really at fault for their unpopularity, they've usually just been placed in a position that they are incapable of performing adequately in. For example, if I boo Lauryn Hill when she opens for OutKast, I'm not booing her per se, I'm booing the decision making process that led to her being there in the first place. It's not her fault that her music is unpleasant and execrable, she's likely doing the best she can. That doesn't mean that I can't let my displeasure be known in the hopes that the same mistake won't be made in the future. Perhaps that hope is unlikely to come to fruition, but it's all anybody can really do in the moment.

[PeaveyFury]

Wes Helms was a hindrance to the Brewers, so he gets booed. Where is the crime in that?

 

Because he hasn't been on the team in nearly 5 years? At that point, it just seems absurd.

 

Though I guess the Helms hatred always was pretty over-the-top, to the point where it was almost a little creepy. When some fans are thrilled when a player goes on the DL after taking a bad fall down some wet stairs, it's time to take a step back.

[Bring Back the Stein]

They didn't make jersies for him while he was here, nor should they have.

I'll agree with all of what you said but this comment. I know they probably weren't too popular, but my dad does have an autographed Helms jersey. We got it signed in 2004 before a game in Florida when Wes was still a Brewer.

I won a bet where the prize was, ironically, a Wes Helms jersey. The loser looked and looked for one all that year (2004), when we both had season tickets. I stand corrected, then: As it turns out, he was so popular, his jersey was perennially sold out. And so valuable did the jersies become, that fans knew not to wear them, anticipating their future worth. Maybe tonight, now that Milwaukee is all abuzz about the Return of Wes Helms, the stands will fill up with demonstrations for Wes Helms.

 

Anyway, Helms is a villain to me in two morality plays, one involving Bill Hall and another involving a guy I know who was once his biggest, if only, fan.

 

And I'll agree that the poor Marlins beat writer needs to fill space, but given the really compelling stories going on with that club, him relaying an image of Wes Helms eating dairy products at will is merely disappetizing. Boo.

[berniebrewer4life]

I'll be there tonight, i won't boo or really applaud him. I have some positive memories of him(a walk off homer in an extra inning game vs the expos comes to mind). But i don't really think enough of him to go one way or the other.

[mls4]

If you're talking about me and accusing me of a lack of logic, you should read what I said more carefully. I said that in a certain sense, most unpopular people are not really at fault for their unpopularity, they've usually just been placed in a position that they are incapable of performing adequately in. For example, if I boo Lauryn Hill when she opens for OutKast, I'm not booing her per se, I'm booing the decision making process that led to her being there in the first place. It's not her fault that her music is unpleasant and execrable, she's likely doing the best she can. That doesn't mean that I can't let my displeasure be known in the hopes that the same mistake won't be made in the future. Perhaps that hope is unlikely to come to fruition, but it's all anybody can really do in the moment.

You would boo a performer on stage? I know I don't go to enough concerts, but is this done normally? The idea of booing someone onstage is bothersome, there would have to be a real good reason before I'd go along with that.

 

I apologize for stirring the pot, but this logic confuses me. If you are displeased with the situation, let the person know who can change the situation. Booing the player/performer because you don't like their style of play/music is not logical to me. Booing someone for their cheating, lack of hustle, etc. at least makes some sense.

[giffted1]

Where did somebody say that? Booing is the counterpart to cheering, why do some people get so unnerved by it? Wes Helms was a hindrance to the Brewers, so he gets booed. Where is the crime in that? How else are people supposed to express their dissatisfaction? By writing letters? Protesting outside the stadium? Don't say by not going to or watching games, because that isn't a real option for people who follow the team as closely as we do, at least not in response to the presence of one unsavory player.

You can't honestly believe that Melvin and Co. are gonna make changes because of a bunch of boo birds. If fans want changes, their only realistic option is to stop buying tickets and merchandise. When Attanasio sees ticket and merchandise sales nosedive, he'll make changes.

[phxMILWfan]

Where did somebody say that? Booing is the counterpart to cheering, why do some people get so unnerved by it? Wes Helms was a hindrance to the Brewers, so he gets booed. Where is the crime in that? How else are people supposed to express their dissatisfaction? By writing letters? Protesting outside the stadium? Don't say by not going to or watching games, because that isn't a real option for people who follow the team as closely as we do, at least not in response to the presence of one unsavory player.

You can't honestly believe that Melvin and Co. are gonna make changes because of a bunch of boo birds. If fans want changes, their only realistic option is to stop buying tickets and merchandise. When Attanasio sees ticket and merchandise sales nosedive, he'll make changes.

Attanasio is going to see ticket and merchandise sales nosedive and know that the problem is one particular player that a lot of fans dislike? Just because I can't stand a particular player doesn't mean I'm not a fan of the rest of the team. I don't see why I should stay away from the stadium because of Wes Helms... It's like getting a bad haircut. The barber or hairsylist would rather you say "hey I don't like this, please fix it" than you not coming back.

[JoeHova]

No, I'm not saying the team should make changes because of booing, what I'm saying is that booing makes it clear that fans are displeased. I'm not even a person who boos much (except for Lauryn Hill) but I think that it adds a lot to the game.

[giffted1]

Melvin isn't going to make personnel moves based on the reaction of fans. It's as simple as that.

[JoeHova]

Melvin isn't going to make personnel moves based on the reaction of fans. It's as simple as that.

 

Nobody is saying he is, or should.

[dhoffman19]

"For example, if I boo Lauryn Hill when she opens for OutKast, I'm not booing her per se, I'm booing the decision making process that led to her being there in the first place. It's not her fault that her music is unpleasant and execrable, she's likely doing the best she can. That doesn't mean that I can't let my displeasure be known in the hopes that the same mistake won't be made in the future. Perhaps that hope is unlikely to come to fruition, but it's all anybody can really do in the moment. "

 

This is a pretty stunning example of rationalizing boorish behavior. Congratulations!