‘Cat superstitions

    Perhaps one of the most puzzling features of sports is the amount of superstitious activity that takes place.  Different sports have different superstitions, and different players have different rituals.  Superstitious players and coaches both believe that even the slightest action off the field can change the luck in a game.
    Baseball is well-known for its superstition. The sport has universal superstitions and many players and teams have their own rituals and beliefs that they think will increase their chances for success. 
    The GCSU baseball team is a great example of this. 
    “Yeah, we keep an animal skull in the dugout,” said senior pitcher Shaun Monica, pointing to a skull that his teammate held.  “We found it on the road in Greenwood, S.C.  We found it in the woods.  The first week we kept it in
(the dugout) we got three wins. So we decided to keep it around.”
    Junior pitcher Ryan Tabor tells of another popular superstition in baseball.
    “I’ve seen players not wash their socks until they lose,” Tabor said. “I guess they thought flies were good luck.”
    There are other superstitions in baseball that do not involve dirty laundry or animal remains.  For example, if a pitcher is working on a no-hitter, nobody in the dugout says a word about it. It is believed that saying something will keep it from happening.  Another belief is that it is bad luck to step on the foul lines. 
    And if you think that the players are joking, think again. 
    When asked if he stepped on the foul lines, senior catcher Pete Paris quickly and seriously replied, “Hell no.”
    The GCSU men’s basketball team also has superstitions.
     “Some of the guys dribble the ball a certain number of times before they shoot free throws,” said senior forward LeVert Carter. “Or they like to take the same number of warm-up shots before each half.”
    Even those who have reached the pinnacle of success in their respective sport are slaves to superstition. 
    Future Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux always avoids the foul lines. Braves pitcher Tom Glavine eats pasta before each start. And Michael Jordan always wore his blue University of North Carolina shorts under his game shorts for good luck.
    But not all involved with sports get lost in the superstitious aspects. GCSU head baseball coach Tom Carty does not believe in superstition.
    “There’s not a superstitious bone in my body,” he said with a grin. “I think the outcome is determined by how you practice and how you execute.  I think that focus determines what happens.”
    But that does not mean that the coaching staff is immune to superstition. 
    “This past weekend at Lander, Coach (McDonald) filled out the lineup card for the first game, and we won,” Carty said. “So before the second game, he grabbed the marker and lineup card from me and filled it out again.  Then by the third game, he was begging to fill it out.”
    Whether they involve the cleanliness of a uniform, a pregame ritual or an animal skull, sports superstitions can give a player or team one valuable advantage before each game: the belief that everything is in their favor to win.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 4 2008. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry