CLUELESS

I am a talk show host at heart.  I've always enjoyed doing it and I've had some good opportunities over the years. I've worked at Sporting News Radio in Chicago and after a while, you become trained to turn almost any topic into a talk show issue.  Well, this morning in the Providence Journal I saw one of the most ridiculous polls, ever. TSN ranked the best sports cities in America.  Pittsburgh, home of the World Champion Steelers and Penguins, ranked number one.  The previous number one, Boston had fallen to third in the rankings.  I've got no problem with a top 10 or even a top 25, but these guys went 399 deep.  Are you kidding me?  Now I'm no expert on places like Eugene, Oregon (#68) or Natchitoches, La. (#256) but I do know a thing or two about the Ocean State.  TSN ranked four different Rhode Island cities in its' top 399.  They apparently, did not do much, if any research.  Kingston was rated #117, ahead of Providence (#182), Smithfield (#269) and, oh yeah, Pawtucket, way down at #315.  Are you serious??  I'd be willing to bet that more people click the turnstiles at McCoy than all the URI, P.C. and Bryant games combined.  And you can throw in Brown and the Providence Bruins, for good measure.  PawSox fans are the most loyal minor league fans in the country.  Perennially, the PawSox rank at or near the top of the standings for attendance, not only for the International League, but for all of minor league baseball.  This season alone, more than 600,000 again turned out to watch the Pawtucket Red Sox.  Now, I'm not writing this to rip other towns in the state.  Kingston and Smithfield are lovely communities, but not exactly sports meccas. Providence is one of Pawtuckets' nicer suburbs and has some merit, but let's face it- until Keno Davis turns around the Friars, Federal Hill is clearly the best thing the city has to offer.  To me, the city of Pawtucket was the Rodney Dangerfield of the poll..."No respect, I tell ya!"  Amazingly, Pawtucket was last among I.L. cities ranked in the poll.  Only Gwinnett, Georgia did not appear, but I'm guessing they lumped Gwinnett in with Atlanta (#13).  Some of these cities offer other sports like #20 Indianapolis (Colts, Pacers, Indy 500) #23 Charlotte  (Panthers, Bobcats)  #34 Columbus (Blue Jackets and Ohio State) and  #40 Buffalo (Bills, Sabres).  But believe me when I tell you, I've been to all these other places and although you can find something redeeming about each of them, there is no way they all rank ahead of Pawtucket.  #67- Louisville, #90- Syracuse, #136- Toledo, #164- Norfolk, #261- Scranton, #267- Rochester, and #297- Allentown all finished ahead of us.  Even Durham had to be combined with Raleigh and Chapel Hill to finish seventeenth.  Ask any I.L. player, manager, coach or broadcaster, which ballpark has the best atmosphere in the league and I guarantee you, if they're telling the truth, they will say Pawtucket.  Pawtucket isn't some punch line to a bad joke, it's not a punching bag for the rest of the sports world, it's not a whipping boy for The Sporting News.  Pawtucket R.I. is our home.  The home of the PawSox.