Nomar Garciaparra had the ritual of fixing his batting gloves a couple dozen times before stepping into the batters box. Mark McGwire donned the same protective cup in the pros that he started wearing in high school. Even the famous Joe DiMaggio had his own traditions, making sure to touch second base on every trip from the outfield back to the dugout.
Almost all major-league pitchers, hitters and coaches seem to have their own unique quirks while in uniform. But there are some that continue to permeate the game on a daily basis, throughout any given season.
The most well-known superstition may be for teammates not to mention a no-hitter to their team's pitcher during the game. It seems that at least a few times every year, you can find a pitcher sitting all alone inside the dugout as fellow teammates avoid him like the plague in order to not jinx the potential feat.
Another big-time pitcher's ritual is to avoid stepping on the foul line when entering or exiting the field. Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett is a known user of this superstition, as he can often be seen taking a nice, long step over the white chalk in hopes of keeping his form in tact.
Many hitters have their common routines when stepping into the batter's box, maybe not quite as quirky as Garciaparra but unique nonetheless. Kevin Youkilis waving his bat over head or David Ortiz spitting into his hands before an at-bat certainly comes to mind.
Then, of course, there's the unusually dirty superstitions that some players enact in hopes of continuing a hitting streak or stellar play in the field. Players often times won't wash their helmets, which tend to be painted with smears of pine tar — just check out a picture of Vladimir Guerrero, or they even refuse to have their jerseys washed in-between games to keep their streaks in tact.
Whatever the superstition, baseball players seem to be more intent on maintaining their rituals than players in almost any other sport. This then begs the obvious question: which baseball superstition is your favorite?
