As a huge sports fan, I think it’s obvious that I should be superstitious. If an athlete can be superstitious, why can’t the fans? It seems strange, I know. I’m one person of millions and my actions probably have nothing to do with the outcome of a game. That’s all they are really-a game. Why should it matter to these players, players I look up to and imagine as my heroes, whether I keep a routine on game day? In the end, all that matters is how they perform, what they do, and their wins. I mean nothing to them, yet they mean everything to me.


I blame myself for the Heat winning the NBA championship and the Spurs losing. I base this on facts and observations, not the fact that the players messed up. There is no way that LeBron James is better than Tim Duncan. Dwyane Wade is nothing compared to Tim Duncan. I didn’t watch Games 1, 3, and 5 of the series. My beloved Spurs won without me. I watched a little of Game 2, almost all of Games 4 and 6, and the closing minutes of Game 7. Guess who won those games.


In baseball, my first love as I call it, things get a little more intense. If I’m watching a game and a Yankee gets out, I stop watching in fear that I’m the reason why. But if they hit, I feel like I’m the reason why. If our pitcher is having a good game and I’m watching, it’s because of me. It’s a narcissistic view, but it’s all I have. I get very involved in the games and invest a lot of emotion, a lot of time and a lot of pride into the team. The least they could do for me is win.


As I write this, I realize I may sound crazy. Science and just purely common sense leads people to believe that one single person has no effect on an outcome. I believe in destiny and a predetermined outcome for everything. But I also believe the path that we take can alter the journey to the destination. For example, if fate has it that the Yankees will win the World Series, they will win regardless of me. But, if I watch and they lose, the games may turn into a Best of 7, instead of a sweep. My superstition has led me to believe that the journey one of my favorite teams take is in my hands.


All throughout the NBA Finals, I kept telling people that I couldn’t watch the games, I couldn’t jeopardize their game for my own selfishness. In the end, people thought I was crazy and foolish. They’re probably right. But will I change? No. Because in my mind in my fantasy land, everything goes according to plan. It works and I won’t take the chance to see what happens if I were to change. If I stopped watching baseball or basketball or soccer, what if my favorite team drops to below .500?


I’m definitely more of a reserved fan who doesn’t climb on top of buildings to profess my love or get a tattoo of the logo. I prefer to sit behind a screen, a computer or TV or phone, and dictate the outcomes. This way I get the satisfaction of knowing that I mattered, and I get to do the things I love-watch sports and root for the winning team (my team). All I want is to feel important and for a lot of people to remember me when I’m gone. The fact that I stay so superstitious and stick to my actions make me feel as though one day I might. In the 1980s, gangsters fixed the World Series and got famous over that. My crazy, illogical mind forces me to believe that I can too. Only no one will believe me. I don’t have any sort of credibility. I’m the average fan rooting for my team. Their wins are my wins and their losses are my losses.


With great power comes great responsibility. I’m not saving Gotham City from Joker. I’m saving my team, whether it be the Yankees, the Spurs or a national team. by helping them win. I follow my routine because it’s the only thing that can calm me down. There is no Popovich or Girardi telling me to take it easy. I have to be my own coach, lost without my team. I’m the ref, I’m the player, I’m the coach, I’m the fan.