Throughout my life, I have been a person of habit. Some call me superstitious, but I prefer to be called “a creature of habit.” I did it (and still do) while I was teaching, as I prepared my day, as I managed my classroom, and as I continued to prepare students to become the best person they could be, their top priority, even before they were the best student, or eventually become the best (get into any job, career or profession), athlete, musician, singer or whatever else they could become.
I truly believed, and always will, yes, as I did and still do what I did/do, that twenty years ahead of my time in school, or sport, or activity, no one will remember, that much, what kind of student they were are, but they would know what kind of person they have become. I tried to stick to that philosophy and use a methodology that I thought would instill that in them throughout their lives.
I have been fortunate to be able to officiate for many years and have tried to officiate in ways that would instill the feeling that officials, authority figures, adults, teachers or parents, could never cost an athlete/student/child a game, a job or an unintended consequence that could to come These were things that were within their own control, as with everything we do in life, “If it’s going to be like that, it’s up to me.”
I was privileged to be able to coach the sports I love (baseball, softball, soccer), which presented challenges to the players, opportunities that sometimes delighted, frustrated, disappointed, but the philosophy stayed the course for me. The methods could be adjusted from situation to situation, but I always wanted them to know that they should control what they can control (attitude, give maximum effort) and get others to talk about those things for years from their playing/school days, not grades, statistics, wins/losses and/or championships.
While doing these things, we tried to be as consistent as possible. We tried to make the practices as similar as possible, we talked about what was not done as much as what could have been done, how to make adjustments, then focus on what was done well and build on it. Coaching/teaching presented some, what some might call, strange things that could be misconstrued as superstitious.
As a baseball and softball coach, there have been times when I have met with the players in the middle of the diamond/circle to discuss strategy, remind the players which bunt defense to use, or who is covering which base, etc. In all my years of coaching In situations, I avoided stepping on the foul lines while making those visits.
I also had something to do to make sure that, after the win, things stayed the way they were during that game. This included not washing my uniform, remembering which sock was on which leg, how I dressed in terms of the order in which things were put on, things like that. I also tried to wear exactly what I wore in the last game, regardless of the weather for the upcoming game.
As said, I am a creature of habit. If something worked, I tried to keep things the same. I also do this by watching my favorite sports teams, and this brings us to the Peanut Playoffs.
In 1997 I attended the MLB ALCS Championship game in Cleveland where the then Indians were playing Baltimore. Before the game, I bought a bag of peanuts. Hating holding the bag, I emptied it into my right jacket pocket and started hitting them as the game progressed.
Mike Mussina pitched the O’s and had the Indians count. The excitement (nervousness) made me eat my peanuts faster and by the 3rd inning my pocket was empty. In the 7th inning the Indians were still not doing much, my hands were getting cold, so I put them in my pocket where I felt something in my right. It was the lone peanut I missed as I nibbled. I found the peanut useful to ease the jitters as I just kept it spinning in my fingers as the game progressed. The Indians tied the game, it went into extra innings where Cleveland won on a botched squeeze bunt. That peanut was then given a name and the Playoff peanut was born. The Indians won the ALCS and went to the World Series where I was accompanied by a peanut, placed in my right pocket. They lost the series in the 10th inning of Game 7, but I kept the peanut as a memento of the experience. It was tagged and displayed in our sports museum in the living room where it remains today, except when the Indians, now the Rangers, make the playoffs. In those moments, it takes its rightful place in my right pocket and helps me spend all my nervous energy on what’s going on in the game/series. He was especially useful on his 25th birthday during this year’s AL Wild Card Series, when the “Guardiac Kids” won the series in the 15th inning of a walk-off home run by Oscar, aka “SpongeBob SquarePants” Gonzalez.
Peanut is not a sure thing, but there have been many exciting sports moments that he and I have enjoyed together. No, I’m not superstitious, I just believe if something good happens while you’re doing something, why not keep doing it? Oh yeah, it’s fun too. So if you ever stop by the house, be sure to ask to see the Playoff Peanut Display.
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