July 11, 2002: Rolen, Fans in Hate/Hate Relationship

July 11, 2002: Rolen, Fans in Hate/Hate Relationship
After six years of steadily-deteriorating relations, the city’s baseball fans have become deeply entrenched in a hate/hate relationship with Phillies third baseman Scott Rolen. “Y’know, sometimes when I see what that guy has to say, I think, ‘Man, I fuckin’ hate this asshole’,” admitted Fairmount resident Gene McCaskill, 42. “But then, other times, I think, ‘Well, maybe he’s not so bad. Maybe I just fuckin’ hate him’.”

Rolen, Fans in Hate/Hate Relationship

Many fans seemed to share McCaskill’s painfully conflicted view of the standoffish slugger. “What, you too good to talk to reporters, you fuckin’ shit?” spat Kensington’s Juan Ramos, 28, addressing Rolen personally. “I hate your guts, you little bitch! I’d rather have Todd Zeile than you, you fuckin’ fuck!” Port Richmond’s Edward Walla, 51, offered a similarly nuanced analysis. “When he makes a great play, or gets a clutch hit, I think, ‘Hey, this guy’s not such a cocksucker’. Then his teammates call him a ‘cancer’, and I say, ‘Oh, yeah. He’s a fucking dick.”

Rolen, while acknowledging the wide spectrum of opinion, merely hoped that more came down on the “hate” side than the “hate” side. “If some people hate me, there’s really not a whole lot I can do about it,” he said at his locker, visibly annoyed to be distracted from his Atlantic Monthly. “I just hope that people consider my sourness, aloofness, and overall unlikability before passing judgment. Then, who knows? Maybe they’ll wind up hating me.” McCaskill, at least, seemed willing to reconsider his stance. “The guy’s an all-star, a gold-glover, and a rookie of the year,” he said, ticking off the prickly star’s career accomplishments. “So, yeah, there might be a little room in there for some hate—next to all that hate.”