Baseball: Very Superstitious

Baseball and superstitions seem to go hand in hand. There was the Curse of the Bambino. Unfortunately, I have to say was again, there was the Curse of the Billy Goat. There is the slightly lesser known superstition about the 2010, 2012, and 2014 San Francisco Giants World Series Championships. Something else happened all 3 of those years as well; Taylor Swift released a new album. In 2016, the Giants only made it to the NLDS before losing to those who shall remain unnamed. Also, in 2016, Taylor Swift did not release a new album. My favorite baseball superstition, though, is one very few people have the privilege of knowing. However, to accurately tell it, we have to start in 1982.

Dave and my dad in 1982.

In 1982, my dad was in the Air Force. He and my mom were stationed in England. While hitchhiking to base one day, my dad got a ride from a stranger, Dave. It turned out Dave was from Ozark, MO. (What a small world?!) Dave and his wife, Lisa, and my parents became quick friends. Now, if you’re an avid Cardinals fan, you might already know, in 1982, the St. Louis Cardinals won their 9th World Series Championship. Sadly, technology wasn’t what it is now, so my dad and Dave had to read about each game in the next day's newspapers. Nonetheless, the Cardinals won without them being able to watch and cheer on their beloved Red Birds.

Moving on, 25 seasons later in 2006, the Cardinals made it to the World Series again. At some point during the season, my mom and dad heard from Dave’s wife, Lisa, who let us know Dave was overseas once again. On October 26, 2006, the Cardinals went on to win their 10th World Series Championship becoming the "worst" team to take the title with an 83-78 regular season record.

It's worth mentioning, St. Louis had made it to the World Series in '85, '87, and '04, but had lost all of them. Also, Dave hadn't been stationed overseas since he and my dad were in England. But the Championships in 1982 and 2006, I'm sure those could just be chalked up to a coincidence.

From a game my family attended in 2011.

Which brings us back to 2011. In June, I received a text from my dad, “The Cardinals are going to win the World Series.” Short. Simple. Mind boggling. (If the battery in my Samsung Solstice 2 still worked, I’d prove it to you.) He continued by saying he had heard from Dave. In the next week, he would yet again be overseas. He would be gone for a year, which meant he would be gone in October. Therefore, the Cardinals were going to win the World Series.

Could it really be possible?? The Cardinals were terrible during June; somehow they managed to end the month 5 games over .500 but that itself was a miracle. The rest of the season didn't go much better or show much promise of another ring. Our superstition seemed to be coming to a crashing halt in 2011. However, I never lost hope.

In August when the Cards went 10.5 games back from being the Wild Card team and had a 1.3% chance of making playoffs, I made a bet with a friend that they would win the World Series. When it came down to the Cardinals needing to win the last game of the regular season, and the Braves having to lose their game, I believed. Throughout the playoffs, as the World watched in dismay and astonishment of how this ragged group of baseball players were managing to have the comeback of a lifetime, I continued to believe. That was how much faith I had in my Cardinals or how much I trusted in my family's little baseball superstition...

The Cardinals banner for the 2011 World Series.
If they only knew how perfectly fitting it truly was.