I went to two White Sox games this year and even though the Sox won both, that didn't really thrill me.

And it's not because I'm a Cubs fan.

I went to one game because I'm a Pirates fan - yes, the Pittsburgh Pirates who haven't had a winning season in a decade and a half, those Pirates.

One of my sons has even been infected with the Pirates fan disease though he has a mild case.

My affinity for the Pirates comes from family roots in western Pennsylvania. We even went to Pittsburgh twice to see them play, but that's another story.

I've pretty much been a fan for as long as I can remember, but I don't go to many major league games. The two this year are average for me, maybe a little above average. For one thing, it's an expensive proposition, even without availing oneself of the outrageously priced amenities, which I don't.

Though I must be honest, I had to learn if a margarita served at a ballpark makes the grade. The results - not at the price and not without the salt. (I do this research only as a service to my readers.)

But the prices aren't the only thing. As a Pirates fan I cheered the team through three World Series victories in my lifetime. Sorry Sox and Cub fans; especially Cub fans. My heroes were players like Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell and Bill Mazeroski, players who were Pirates for their whole careers. Nowadays you certainly can't tell the players without a scorecard. Few players seem to last long with a team, let alone spend their entire careers with the same one.

Being a fan is being loyal to your team, even to the point of near insanity. When my father was coming out of anesthesia from serious surgery some years ago, his first words were, "What did the Cubs do?"

That kind of loyalty seems odd as player loyalty seems to last only until another team offers a few more dollars. That doesn't mean I think players should be made to stay with one team as in the past - the old reserve clause. That was done away with a long time ago by Cardinal outfielder Curt Flood, who is still vilified by some fans, and the courts.

Players, like other workers, should be allowed to work for whomever they please or for whomever offers them a better salary. But it sure takes away from being a fan, at least for me.

But baseball seems to be as popular and profitable as ever. The second game I attended this year as part of Dennis Keilman's renowned "Safety Team" annual trip had an attendance of more than 35,000; almost as many people as in all of Cal City. And it was mind boggling to me to see how many $6.50 beers seem to have been bought (not by our group, of course).

I attribute a lot of the success of baseball nowadays to good marketing and getting people to believe the Cell and Wrigley are the places to be. There are a lot of people who don't pay much attention to the actual game. There's also the entertainment besides the game though I'm not much entertained by an animated pizza topping race. But the fireworks are great.

And in the end, baseball is still a cool game.

The opinions are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at gjgrenchik@aol.com.