Why Dodger Fans Don’t Sit It Out

Sadly, L.A.’s early crowd departure syndrome isn’t related solely to baseball. Last fall I attended a football game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Dallas Cowboys at Anaheim Stadium. With just a few minutes remaining, behind by 4 or 5 points, deep in their own territory, the Rams’ offense gamely trotted onto the field. Thus the stage was set for what very well could have been a memorable and exciting finish. (It matters not that it wasn’t).

By this time, of course, nearly a quarter of the crowd had already departed, having started their pilgrimage way back in the third quarter. Typical. Yet despite what was about to unfold below, many more were now unbelievably on their way.

Three of them included a man and--I presumed--his two boys. As they shuffled past, boys in front, I helpfully reminded the man of the situation down on the field, and asked him point-blank why he was leaving. Hearing this the older boy, perhaps 12, a Rams cap pulled down neatly over his brown hair, turned and looked up at his father sadly, obviously wanting to know himself. The man, embarrassed (rightly so), looked away from me, muttered something about traffic, and continued pushing for the aisle.

PAUL SIMON, Whittier