In baseball, almost everything counts, even superstitions. Those who don’t believe it should ask the Cubs or the Red Sox, who went decades without winning a World Series carrying the very heavy and famous curses of “The Goat” and “The Bambino”, respectively.
And in the middle of the Fall Classic between the Dodgers and Blue Jays, new superstitions have been born. For example, Addison Barger slept on a couch before the first game at Rogers Centre and was the hero with a grand slam that annihilated the Angels. That night he repeated the routine, but it didn’t do him much good because Toronto lost the second game.
And Barger has been in the spotlight, not for sleeping on a couch, but for another strange curse that may have been placed on him by David Ortiz, the legendary Dominican slugger who is now a commentator for FOX.
Big Papi has put on a spectacular show alongside Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter, who were his rivals on the diamond. His farewells with tequila shots every time a team is eliminated and his constant taunting of the Yankees have gone viral on social media.
“My Dawg”, T-shirts with Big Papi’s seal
For the World Series, Ortiz decided to make another fun move: at the end of the games, he gives the interviewees on the FOX set a T-shirt with a picture of himself celebrating a home run and underneath the phrase “My Dawg”, an expression of affection that can be translated as “My buddy”.
After the first game last Friday, Big Papi gave the jersey to Addison Barger, who at first took it and showed it on camera, but then gave it back.
I left the shirt. It has the Red Sox on it. I’m not going to wear it. Are you kidding me?
“I left the shirt. It has the Red Sox on it. I’m not going to wear it. Are you kidding me?” Barger said at a press conference. “They’re divisional rivals. Papi is awesome, but no.”
And in less than 24 hours Ortiz did not miss the opportunity to return the favor to the Blue Jays player. “The last time I tried to give away a jersey like this they didn’t want to accept it and now it’s cursed. He went 0-4 today,” said the Dominican commentator with a laugh when talking to Will Smith.
That was a direct message to Barger, who could not decipher Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s deliveries and failed all his at-bats, including a strikeout. Now it remains to be seen whether this episode remains a one-off anecdote or becomes a real curse against the Blue Jays, who are seeking their first World Series after a 32-year drought.
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