In last Sunday’s Boston Globe Magazine, Amalie Benjamin presented a great piece on Papelbon and his pre-game rituals. The story also touched on a few other Sox players’ pre-game habits, including Tim Wakefield’s love of crossword puzzles — something that comes a surprise to absolutely no one.
We suspect, however, that Amalie might have missed a few. So we conducted our own research to uncover even more pre-game rituals of your favorite Sox players and coaches:
Terry Francona:
— Brew fresh pot of Bigelow tea.
— Send e-mail to the Bigelow people expressing concerns that new “Boysenberry Blend” seems more “Raspberry” than “Boysenberry.”
— Spend 10 minutes of “quality time” naked under a Snuggie on office couch.
— Pretend to be asleep when DeMarlo comes in, asking me to check him for suspicious moles.
Adrian Beltre:
— Drink two Red Bulls
— Ten minutes of yoga
— Ten minutes of flexibility exercises
— Twenty minutes praying to Androphones, the patron saint of testicles.
Manny Delcarmen:
— Continue working through Guitar Hero: Van Halen.
— Preparing for impending National League career.
John Henry:
— Check to make sure wife hasn’t run off with young gardener.
— Check to make sure wife hasn’t run off with young mailman.
— Check stocks, Viagra stores.
— Check to make sure wife hasn’t run off with Daniel Bard.
Josh Beckett:
— Assemble stack of 8×10 glossy photos of that day’s opposing batters, cover in fresh-drawn yak’s blood, set afire.
— Check locker ammo supply in case rebel insurgents launch coup mid-game.
— Watch Oprah.
If we missed any, put ’em in the comments.
