Discussion: Why do people hate 'Hype'?

Every so often, someone comes along that just wow's the sports world. Tiger Woods, LeBron James, Kobe Byrant, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper. Even before their professional career starts, the hype machine gets into high gear and people start to clamour. But along with the all the hype, a different group of people come out of the woodworks. The Haters and Naysayers.

So what I don't get is, why do people expect or wish for these young athletes to fail??? I can understand if the budding athlete comes off as a arrogant jerk and is unlikeable as a person, but why hate talent? Is it the attention, the jealousy? What?

I got into this hobby last year because of a friend of mine telling me about Strasburg and Harper. Sure, I'm a bandwagon collector. I do have teams I follow outside of the hobby, but I'm really facinated by this dynamic between the players and the hobby. I'm not chasing profits, but just to get a piece of the action is something that speaks to the collector in me. But I'm always amazed by all these people that anticipate failure for players that haven't had a chance to show what they are capable of. Most young players have a slow start, but they also demonstrate their dazzle and potential for greatness...showing they are worthy of the hype.

Right now, it's all about Harper and I know people sick of hearing about him, but he's the next great thing. Last year when Strasburg got hurt, you could almost hear people cheering his injury. That just seems backwards.

Don't we want players to be great? Like a Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle...etc. Isn't that what the sport needs? Someone to "ooh" and "ahh"? So why all the negative energy?

Thoughts?

It has to do with what people collect or buy/sell. Some people aren't into prospects and/or young talent, so they act like they are above it. Some people are always into the next best thing and love to talk about it. It's just a conflict of interests. I enjoy all aspects of the hobby. I collect graded vintage Hall of Fame rookie cards and buy and sell prospects and young stars. Some people like proven players, some like players who have yet to prove that they will last and some enjoy both. There are a LOT of people on the internet and not all of them enjoy the same things. That's just the way it is.

sportscardfanatic said:

So what I don't get is, why do people expect or wish for these young athletes to fail??? I can understand if the budding athlete comes off as a arrogant jerk and is unlikeable as a person, but why hate talent? Is it the attention, the jealousy? What?

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They weren't lucky enough to pull said player's cards from packs, or weren't savvy enough to buy them at affordable prices. Or both.

I LOVE HYPE and am a major sucker for it!!!

There are certain people with a character trait that makes them dislike and downplay success. You see the same ****** out argument every time: overrated, he's on roids, he's lying about his age, etc etc.

There are also certain people who have to be right all the time because it somehow validates their existence. People will say Bryce Harper is overrated so they can later claim "SEE, I TOLD YOU SO!" when he fails to live up to expectations 5 years later

I have a feeling neither of these groups gets laid a lot

Well, I'm not just talking hobby-wise. I'm speaking in general. Rewind a little to last year when Strasburg got hurt. Do you remember how many people said "I told you so" or "See, I knew he would be a bust". From what I could tell, Strasburg seems like a decent person. He was very impressive on a few of his outings and in my opinion, was living up to the hype. He was filling up the stadiums and garnering praise from players and coaches. So why the negative remarks when he goes down with a season ending injury. Look at Buster Posey. Proven to be a stud during his rookie season. Didn't get as much attention as Strasburg. He goes down with an injury and people only have good things to say about him. How critical he was to the Giants organization and how difficult it's going to be to replace him this year.

It's such a stark contrast. Switching gears back to the hobby, isn't it a good thing when players like this come along? It generates buzz and makes chasing down these cards more interesting. It brings more people into the hobby, which become potential buyers of our cards...even raises the values. Win-Win, no?

I also think back to the dude that bought the Strasburg Super last year. His reason for selling it to Leaf was he was being harasses for spending that much money on the card. I just think that's ridiculous. Why would people harass him. It's his money, he can do whatever he wants with it. Anyway, I only bring this up because leading up to 2011 Bowman and after release, I see all these Harper threads and I just don't understand why everyone is starting to turn against the dude. I hope he does well.

My kids are at that age where they are just starting to get interested in sports. I want them to know what it's like to have these superstars like Harper, Strasburg, Machado in the DC area where they are growing up. I want them to want to go to ball games and dream big. Maybe push them to play sports and so forth. I don't want these athletes to fail. That just makes no sense.

JoshHamilton said:

There are certain people with a character trait that makes them dislike and downplay success. You see the same fracked out argument every time: overrated, he's on roids, he's lying about his age, etc etc.

There are also certain people who have to be right all the time because it somehow validates their existence. People will say Bryce Harper is overrated so they can later claim "SEE, I TOLD YOU SO!" when he fails to live up to expectations 5 years later

I have a feeling neither of these groups gets laid a lot

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+1

sportscardfanatic said:

Anyway, I only bring this up because leading up to 2011 Bowman and after release, I see all these Harper threads and I just don't understand why everyone is starting to turn against the dude. I hope he does well.

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This began right around the time he decided to get his GED, actually. Someone on here actually wished Harper would get run down by a car. I won't stoop so low to mention his name, but that's how bad it got.

I have no problem with hype. It's the reason I make a profit.

Now whether or not I think a guy deserves hype is another story. We can use Harper as an example. I think the deserves a lot of hype... maybe not as much as he gets though. I've always said the when it's all said and done I think Manny Machado will have a better career. It's all personal preference.

I prefer to have young athletes prove that they are great and earn their fame, rather than having it bestowed upon them. When the media is suggesting that LeBron James is the greatest player ever because he made the NBA Finals, it's irritating to have to listen to such drivel. Hobby hype irritates me because it is often nothing more than a "sales job" hoping to influence people to pay more for cards than they should. When a kid like Jesus Montero who has yet to prove anything at the MLB level gets 10 times the publicity and credit as a stud catcher like Brian McCann, I think it's unfair and stupid.

Hype is one of the most entertaining parts about being a sports fan.

To be fair, I don't think a lot of people were shocked when they found out Strasburg needed Tommy John surgury.

Hype by definition simply creates an artificial environment good for business. Who'd want to invest in an environment otherwise not good for business?

Collectors prefer accuracy/reality for the most part not only because it leads to lower, more stable prices, but because their primary focus isn't going to be the business end of things. Its hard to think why collectors would want to pay more for something because of artificial hype.

From a collecting standpoint its more difficult trying to improve an artificial, hyped hobby/environment instead of a real, non-hyped one.

From a collector's standpoint it isn't about 'hating the hype' but rather loving the reality.

hype 1 (hp) Slang
n.
1. Excessive publicity and the ensuing commotion: the hype surrounding the murder trial.
2. Exaggerated or extravagant claims made especially in advertising or promotional material: "It is pure hype, a gigantic PR job" (Saturday Review).
3. An advertising or promotional ploy: "Some restaurant owners in town are cooking up a $75,000 hype to promote New York as 'Restaurant City, U.S.A.'" (New York).
4. Something deliberately misleading; a deception: "[He] says that there isn't any energy crisis at all, that it's all a hype, to maintain outrageous profits for the oil companies" (Joel Oppenheimer).
tr.v. hyped, hyp·ing, hypes
To publicize or promote, especially by extravagant, inflated, or misleading claims

shayscards79 said:

To be fair, I don't think a lot of people were shocked when they found out Strasburg needed Tommy John surgury.

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Yeah, I never knew there were so many people so knowledgeable in pitching mechanics until Strasburg came along. :benson:

James52411 said:

I prefer to have young athletes prove that they are great and earn their fame, rather than having it bestowed upon them. When the media is suggesting that LeBron James is the greatest player ever because he made the NBA Finals, it's irritating to have to listen to such drivel. Hobby hype irritates me because it is often nothing more than a "sales job" hoping to influence people to pay more for cards than they should. When a kid like Jesus Montero who has yet to prove anything at the MLB level gets 10 times the publicity and credit as a stud catcher like Brian McCann, I think it's unfair and stupid.

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Okay, I agree with this, but still. I think people take things to far when they wish for bad things to happen. Or better yet, for someone not to live up to expectation. Although someone might not be as big as the hype surrounding them, I still think it's okay to hope for good things to come. That's what prospecting is all about, right? Hoping some young athlete's career takes off.

The business and merchandising side of sports is another beast. I agree that the big contracts, media attention, and so forth can be unfair. But it's not the players fault. So why take it out on the player? Take it out on the industry.

uniquebaseballcards said:

Hype by definition simply creates an artificial environment good for business. Who'd want to invest in an environment otherwise not good for business?

Collectors prefer accuracy/reality for the most part not only because it leads to lower, more stable prices, but because their primary focus isn't going to be the business end of things. Its hard to think why collectors would want to pay more for something because of artificial hype.

From a collecting standpoint its more difficult trying to improve an artificial, hyped hobby/environment instead of a real, non-hyped one.

From a collector's standpoint it isn't about 'hating the hype' but rather loving the reality.

hype 1 (hp) Slang
n.
1. Excessive publicity and the ensuing commotion: the hype surrounding the murder trial.
2. Exaggerated or extravagant claims made especially in advertising or promotional material: "It is pure hype, a gigantic PR job" (Saturday Review).
3. An advertising or promotional ploy: "Some restaurant owners in town are cooking up a $75,000 hype to promote New York as 'Restaurant City, U.S.A.'" (New York).
4. Something deliberately misleading; a deception: "[He] says that there isn't any energy crisis at all, that it's all a hype, to maintain outrageous profits for the oil companies" (Joel Oppenheimer).
tr.v. hyped, hyp·ing, hypes
To publicize or promote, especially by extravagant, inflated, or misleading claims

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Okay, so maybe the hype is not the best term for this thread. But you know what I'm talking about. I realize there is a "reality" to things, but it is what it is. Yes, I agree most of it is artificial, but not without good reason. But when you peel away all the BS, players like Strasburg, Harper, Machado, etc...all have a lot to like in terms of what they bring to the sport.

We have at least 4 different kinds of collectors/people on this site:


Prospectors
Vintage/HOF/Star Collectors
Team or player collectors
People like me who do all of it


Prospectors make the most noise on this board and therefore attract the most venom. Not really sure why but it has something to do with how difficult it is to just ignore threads about prospects. I have always been the kind who if i dont like a subject, I simply ignore it and move on.

To simply say its because "they didnt pull that player" isnt right either.

jlecates said:

shayscards79 said:

To be fair, I don't think a lot of people were shocked when they found out Strasburg needed Tommy John surgury.

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Yeah, I never knew there were so many people so knowledgeable in pitching mechanics until Strasburg came along. :benson:

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I guess that's what years of watching Mark Prior and Kerry Wood will do for you. Talk about leading by example.

sportscardfanatic said:

James52411 said:

I prefer to have young athletes prove that they are great and earn their fame, rather than having it bestowed upon them. When the media is suggesting that LeBron James is the greatest player ever because he made the NBA Finals, it's irritating to have to listen to such drivel. Hobby hype irritates me because it is often nothing more than a "sales job" hoping to influence people to pay more for cards than they should. When a kid like Jesus Montero who has yet to prove anything at the MLB level gets 10 times the publicity and credit as a stud catcher like Brian McCann, I think it's unfair and stupid.

Click to expand...

Okay, I agree with this, but still. I think people take things to far when they wish for bad things to happen. Or better yet, for someone not to live up to expectation. Although someone might not be as big as the hype surrounding them, I still think it's okay to hope for good things to come. That's what prospecting is all about, right? Hoping some young athlete's career takes off.

The business and merchandising side of sports is another beast. I agree that the big contracts, media attention, and so forth can be unfair. But it's not the players fault. So why take it out on the player? Take it out on the industry.

Click to expand...

I agree and certainly don't hope Harper, Strasburg, or any young player fails. It's also fine to hope for great things. I hope Starlin Castro has a Hall of Fame career and am excited that a 21 year old can hit .300+ at the MLB level. I recognize, however, that he has a very long way to go and could end up being the next Edgar Renteria (which would be a perfectly fine outcome for him).

Modern card collecting is too much like a game of hot potato...whoever ends up holding the card loses. This didn't begin with Bowman Chrome, it's been happening for 30+ years. If more people realized this and wouldn't fall for "hype" we'd have a better, more poplular hobby.

PS: I agree wholeheartedly with what Uniquebaseballcards has to say on the matter. The word "hype" is the perfect term for this thread since most of the prospector threads here meet the very definition of hype: exaggerated or extravagant claims designed to advertise or promote higher prices for the prospector's inventory of that player.

sportscardfanatic said:

Okay, so maybe the hype is not the best term for this thread. But you know what I'm talking about. I realize there is a "reality" to things, but it is what it is. Yes, I agree most of it is artificial, but not without good reason. But when you peel away all the BS, players like Strasburg, Harper, Machado, etc...all have a lot to like in terms of what they bring to the sport.

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That's just it, somebody's always being hyped and separating hype from reality isn't going to be possible.

Hype is a great word to use in Harper's case, simply because he hasn't accomplished anything yet. People have, with good reason, not to trust hype given hype's history in the hobby or in sports. Starting out with the premise that hype is a positive thing isn't particularly smart if you're a knowledgeable buyer in the hobby, however its definitely an easy sell to hobby novices.

The only thing we really know about Harper now is that he's hitting .329 for the Hagerstown Suns in the Sally League, and that there's been other players who have played as well as he has in the Sally League.