The Tampa Bay Rays have become the country’s de facto favorite team, simply by playing against the Boston Red Sox. It’s understandably a thrill to have a nation rooting for you, but I think they’re getting a little greedy. There’s no justification for trying to claim Tampa fans have had it much worse than Cubs fans.

(Cover of the Rays’ 2008 Media Guide)

This is a likable young team with a fan base that has absolutely no idea what to do in this situation. This playoff thing is new to everyone, and it’s clear they’re determined to shoot themselves in the foot. A just God might favor the Rays, but they’re doing themselves no favors in the karma department.

There’s tempting fate, and then there’s tempting fate. Calling an article “Rays’ Fans Know What It’s Like To Suffer,” as Joe Henderson of the TAMPA TRIBUNE did, is just begging for a historically painful series loss. Perhaps a wild pitch to score the winning run, or a blimp disaster à la Black Sunday.

I suppose the argument in the Bay Area (the Tampa Bay area, not the good Bay Area) is that they’ve never had a winning season, while teams like the Cubs have at least played in October before. “‘Tis better to have not sucked then choked than never to have not sucked at all” - the classic Tennyson argument. But untrue. Ask Cubs fans this year if it hurts. Ask Red Sox fans if 2003 or 1986 or 1978 were good seasons because they at least made the playoffs.

Pittsburgh fans haven’t had a winning team since 1992, when the Rays were but a gleam in Bud Selig’s eye. Kansas City hasn’t made the playoffs since 1985. And those are cities that actually like baseball! So don’t ask me for pity for Tampa Bay, which seems to have forgotten that it had NFL and NHL champs within the last 5 years.

If the Rays get knocked out, which their local media seems determined to cause, I don’t think there’ll be tears in Tampa as fans dejectedly shave their Rayhawks. And if you still doubt who has it worse, remember that it was 80 degrees in Tampa at game time last night. We’re about two weeks away from waist-high snow in Chicago. Which city do you think will have the harder winter?