Shart Demons

Allie Reynolds was a top MLB pitcher for 13-seasons. He was chosen for 6 All-Star games and won 6 World Series with the Yankees (going a stellar 7-2 in 9 starts with a 2.79 ERA). But it's not his prowess on the pitching mound that interests me - it was his battle against the dreaded Shart Demons!

This used to be posted on his Wikipedia page but it has since been removed:

At the age of sixteen Reynolds achieved a degree of regional notoriety when he and fellow high school teammate Odassus McCutcheon began a local tradition of burning household furniture to ward off what local Creek Indians referred to as "shart demons". Reynolds would later incorporate the ritual into his pre-game mound preparations.

The people at Wikipedia are living in denial about Shart Demons. But Hall of Famer George Brett can testify that Shart Demons are very, very real!

Beware the Shart Demons!

Shart Demons

The other night Tim Wakefield won his 182nd game. That puts him in a tie for 153rd all-time on the wins list. Wakefield is tied with Ed Reulbach and Allie Reynolds.

Something on Allie Reynolds' Wikipedia page struck my fancy:

At the age of sixteen Reynolds achieved a degree of regional notoriety when he and fellow high school teammate Odassus McCutcheon began a local tradition of burning household furniture to ward off what local Creek Indians referred to as "shart demons". Reynolds would later incorporate the ritual into his pre-game mound preparations.

Shart demons? That's too funny.

Too bad Allie Reynolds didn't pass on the secrets of warding off shart demons to George Brett. It sounds like he gets attacked by shart demons at least a couple of times a year.