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Any other Guards fans dealing with Tiger Trolls right now or is that just me?

A very odd things has started happening over the last few days: Tigers fans suddenly have a lot to say in my Twitter mentions. I will say pretty standardly that I really don’t interact much with fans of other teams. I just don’t see the point. If they’ve got something constructive or funny or reasonable to add to the conversation, then ok. But if they are just showing up to harass or belittle or act like an asshole, I have zero minutes of my day for them.

I know some folks on twitter live for these name-calling battles with rival team fans but I think it’s demeaning to both of us and therefore I have no interest in such tomfoolery.

As such, I never reply to posts from other team’s fans (unless I know the original poster -- and 99.9% of the time my comment is positive and supporting my friend...actually can’t think of an example of time that wasn’t the case but let’s assume it’s happened at least 0.1% of the time). Mostly I just post my own thoughts and if people reply to me, I reply to them. Keeps it streamlined.

But since Detroit bested Cleveland in the Wild Card round, Tigers fans have become emboldened to talk a lot of shit to Guards fans. The theme is the same across the board: Guards fans “can’t handle” that the Tigers are still playing and the Guardians are not. I have actually not said unkind words about the Tigers really at any point. I actually like their team and have gone on the record saying so countless times over the years. It’s easy to root for a team like the Tigers, frankly -- Tiger fans seems so insecure about this.

For example.... today, I replied to a Big Account (ie not a fan account) who posted a meme that essentially said that the Guardians couldn’t beat Tigers ace Tarik Skubal (who the Mariners just beat in their Division Series last night). What I said was that over the last three weeks, the Guardians faced Skubal three times and won two of the three games.

That, by the way, is just factual.

Then some random Tigers fan replied to me:

Lost the most important one and now you’re watching the better team play in the ALDS and cannot stop talking about them. You live a very pathetic and sad life. But, we can’t blame you the Guardians are out and Browns blow. Feel bad for you, honestly. Seek help.

Then another Tigers fan (who has harassed me enough at this point that I have since blocked him) replied to this guy that he hoped I’d see his urging me to get help and linked the mental health counseling service Better Help.

What a wild proposal after I posted something pretty benign and not directed at either of them.

Since this wasn’t the first time he’d acted out of pocket, I blocked the Better Help guy but replied to the other one:

“Seek help” is a condescending way to speak to a stranger. I don’t know you, you don’t know me, but kindness is free and you don’t get that. I like Skubal and the Tigers. I was making a factual comment. You don’t like it, fine. But no need to act like you know me ✌🏼

He replied:

You should seek some help, it’s not condescension it’s caring. Your team lost and all you can do is talk about the team that beat them, or your hate for a player on their team. Life gets better, I hope you get the mental health help you are showing signs of needing.

So, yeah, I reported and blocked this wildcat, too. Because, huh? I have barely had a word to say about the Tigers -- a team I just told him I liked -- and have made one post about “hate for a player on their team,” who has acted pretty arrogantly. I didn’t even use the player’s name in the post -- everyone just knew who I was talking about, that is how arrogant he is.

The bigger point is that these individuals choose to spend their time in hate-speech, trolling, mocking or intentionally misunderstanding mental health issues, acting fully out of pocket instead of just cheering on their own team who is still in the playoffs. Why do people choose to devalue themselves in this way? How can people be so blind?

I’m also half-convinced some of these accounts are bots -- a few of them only have 1 or 0 followers and are targeted at one activity: trolling Guardians fans. Or maybe it’s just really lonely, miserable people with nothing better to do than live in their feelings about how the Guardians won the division that their Detroit Tigers let slip away.

In a moment of perfect timing, look what showed up on my doorstep just now:

Heck yeah I bought this t-shirt that will forever commemorate the historic comeback -- once down by 15.5 games and fourth in the division, the Guards came back and won it. It’s never been done before -- and for the sanity of fans across the league, I hope no other fan base has to go through this again. It was a rough path to get there, but this past month of September was absolutely insane. It took both a Tigers collapse and a Guardians surge to get there.

And the Guardians did it.

Maybe Tigers fans are really in their feels about that. I imagine it could be pretty humiliating to see your team lose such a big lead -- but, again, your team is still in the playoffs and the Guardians aren’t. So (assuming you couldn’t have both) what would you rather: the division title or to be playing in the ALDS? I think most fans would rather see their team continue in the postseason.

For me, though, I had to buy this Division Champs shirt because it represents more than almost anything the Cleveland Baseball Mentality. No one gets to tell this squad they’re not good enough. They will play their hearts out every single day until someone makes them go home. This 2025 team defied all the odds -- and even though I hoped they could play deeper into October, I also full resonate with what Hammy said after that last out was called: this team had no business even making the postseason let alone winning the division. But look at what they accomplished. No one can ever take that away from them.

Goonies Never Say Die.

The story of this 2025 season is inspiring -- it infuses hope -- it shows that even what seems like unmovable obstacles can be overcome. There’s something really beautiful in that. And if all you can think to yourself as you read this is “but it’s just a stupid baseball team,” than you’re missing out on the many metaphors and case studies this specific sport can provide us in “real life.”

Namely: don’t ever give up. Until that final out is called, anything can happen.

Baseball has been a great teacher for me in this regard -- this 2025 season exemplifies what it means to be resilient and nurture hope. It takes courage and commitment. And maybe you don’t achieve the “ultimate goal” of, say, winning the World Series. But isn’t it still better to believe in the possibilities, even when everyone is betting against you?

I’d say so.

It’s part of why I can’t quite comprehend Tiger Fans being so malicious and gross towards Guardians fans -- maybe just tip your cap to Cleveland for the division win and focus on your own team going forward. Certainly no need to launch personal attacks or act like you understand mental health needs.

I guess in some ways, their presumptive attacks are emblematic of what we’re seeing across the country -- intentionally ignorant attacks for no reason besides you feel like it, not really caring about dialogue or humanity, just being an asshole. That’s frightening. Even if they are just weirdos on Twitter -- if they exist there, they exist everywhere. And those of us who recognize that should do more than shrug when we see it.

Maybe that’s my ultimate point in this one.

If baseball is a metaphor for life, then so is its fandom. How you do anything is how you do everything.

Something to think about the next time you’re challenged to react.

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @1CLEbaseballfan