Sports Superstitions

Athletes often have superstitions, or they believe that certain things will bring them good or bad luck in a game. The following are just some examples of them. Baseball players believe that stepping on the baselines when leaving or going on the field will bring them bad luck. If a hockey goaltender is working on a shutout or a baseball pitcher is throwing a no-hitter, it is considered bad luck to even mention it, and most players will not even talk to that athlete until after the game. Baseball players often touch their bats with good luck charms or spit on their hand before picking it up for good luck. Some believe that it is bad luck for another player to touch their bat. Athletes in all sports now grow playoff beards, so as long as they are in the playoffs, they will not shave because they consider it good luck. It is considered good luck to have double numbers on a jersey. Changing numbers when you switch teams is considered bad luck. To bring good luck before the game, college football players will often hit their school logo while leaving the tunnel or locker room. Hockey players will hit the goalie’s pads with their sticks before a game for good luck. Basketball players often have a pattern when they are at the free-throw line for good luck. Some athletes wear their uniform a certain way to bring them good luck. For example, some hockey players tuck one side of his jersey into their pants (Wayne Gretzky did this). Michael Jordan would wear his UNC basketball shorts underneath his uniform.

This relates to our class because of the following reasons. Even though these probably do not actually give athletes good luck, they believe that there is a correlation. There is a base rate neglect error, because how many times do these athletes do these things and lose? Or how many times do they not do these things and win?