THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Watching M's shouldn't be as painful as having a tooth pulled

Apologies for the fact that I am really, really grumpy.

I know, it’s the Fireworks Fourth, and everyone is out celebrating.

No matter the holiday, however, I am still grumpy.

The issue is my jaw, which feels like it just took a right hook from Mike Tyson.

In his prime.

What actually happened was that a dentist wrestled out my last remaining wisdom tooth.

Do I have to tell you that the process hurt?

Or that it still hurts?

I do believe that staying relaxed (doctor’s orders) and a course of antibiotics will ultimately ease the discomfort, but for a time there…

Well, the phrase “dry socket” was introduced at one point, and those are NOT the two most pleasant words in the English language.

Anyhow, the jaw is slowly returning to the way jaws are supposed to feel.

Meanwhile …

Tyson’s right hook isn’t the only reason I feel grumpy.

I’m upset with sports fans in general, baseball fans in particular, and Mariners “supposed” loyalists most specifically.

Take a look at social media, and you’ll get an idea how people can take out the misery in their own lives on baseball players they don’t even know.

OH, AND it’s not just the players but everyone else in the organization.

I noticed a Twitter post that suggested Mariners VP of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto should be taken to a deserted island and left there — without food or water, but tied to Kolten Wong.

That sounds funny in a sad sort of way, but …

This person TRULY blames Dipoto for the Mariners’ slightly underwhelming season (never mind that Jerry acquired the players that won 90 games each of the past two years), and somehow suggests that the franchise needs a new face at the top.

Moment of honestly: Yep, I could go for leaving Wong on the island, but without Dipoto.

Just kidding.

Really.

There are people who are NOT kidding, unfortunately.

And then you have …

Manager Scott Servais, who has been a finalist for American League manager of the year twice in a row, but now has somehow forgotten how to do the job – and should be put on the next train out of town.

I’m even getting emails asking that I do something to get Servais fired, and these are from readers I know and consider pretty darn intelligent.

They don’t even offer a specific reason – other than disappointment.

HERE WE find one of the true unpleasant ironies of sport — that there always must be someone to blame.

Never mind that other teams are all trying to win, too.

It’s like when the Nationals put Seattle to sleep in a 4-1 game that caused some folks at T-Mobile Park to do some booing.

They were frustrated because they felt the Mariners were AWFUL, and never mind that the Nats got some pitching that was pretty darn GOOD.

What about them?

Remember …

A truly bad major league team is going to win 60 or 70 games.

These are professionals, which brings up the next point.

No, they’re not dogging it out there.

Yes, they care … desperately.

Believe me, the players hurt more than you do when they can’t get the winning run across with the bases loaded and no outs in the 10th inning.

In fact, with a team like the Mariners, who have known recent success and expect even more, sometimes they struggle because they’re trying TOO hard — and begin to “press.”

In hockey, they call it “squeezing the stick until you get sawdust.”

Back to the Mariners, that’s how you see players swinging at some absurdly bad pitches.

It becomes a vicious cycle.

NOW WE get to the most important part of this sermon, and it has nothing to do with my aching jaw.

When you go out to a sports event — any type of game, any level of competition — you’re almost always headed there for entertainment.

Maybe you know a player or two (especially in high school), or somebody at the office gave you tickets for landing that big account, or whatever.

But mostly …

The point is that you attend the game or match to spend a few hours of ENJOYMENT.

It’s supposed to be fun.

My partner Melissa wouldn’t go to a football game because she doesn’t like to see young people hitting each other.

However …

She roots for the University of Kansas (in all sports), plus the Royals and Chiefs, because her son Matthew is a KU grad and diehard fan of those Kansas City pro teams.

In fact, Melissa has come around to watching KU basketball, and enjoying it.

Mostly.

MEANTIME, Matthew makes a good case study here.

He lives near Kansas City, and attends a few Royals games each season — not because he expects them to be in a pennant race this year (lol), but simply because he likes baseball.

Plus, it’s a nice day or evening at the ballpark, an outing with pals, an all-around good time.

Matthew knows the game inside and out, enough to criticize a bad play — but also while keeping it in context.

Those Royals aren’t striking out to make HIM miserable.

And that’s the whole point right there.

Have a hoot if your team wins a title, and celebrate with your friends.

But most of the time, another team is going to be champion, and that’s OK.

Because …

Most of all …

It’s not personal.

It’s just a game.

Email: [email protected]

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”