In the midst of a five-game losing streak, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon dipped into his bag of tricks to try to create some magic for his team.
Before Tuesday night’s game against the New York Mets at Citi Field, Maddon brought a magician into the clubhouse to try to loosen his team up.
“We’re trying to lighten things up a little bit,” Maddon said before the game, per Howie Rumberg of the Associated Press. “We’re always trying to create some magic around here, so why not bring a magician in?”
Throughout a 162-game season, Major League Baseball managers have to find ways to change things up and keep their teams loose. Maddon has always been known to be a little bit unconventional, as he does some things that not many managers would think of.
Bringing in a magician is just the latest unusual move Maddon has made.
From the sound of things, the magician appeared to be an overwhelming success for the Cubs. His tricks had the players captivated. Here’s a sample of the magician’s act, per Rumberg:
First baseman Anthony Rizzo might’ve been the foil for the best illusion of the day.
Simon asked Rizzo to write down the name of an actor on a piece of paper. Then the magician typed into Google on the clubhouse computer, “What is Anthony Rizzo thinking of right now?”
Up came photographs of John Travolta. Written by Rizzo on the paper: “John Travolta.”
Cubs second baseman Addison Russell appeared to be pretty amazed by the magician.
Maddon’s strange tactic saw immediate results. The Cubs beat the Mets on Tuesday, 1-0. Naturally, the postgame music selection in the clubhouse was magic-themed, according to the Chicago Tribune’s Mark Gonzales:
Tricks like this are among the reasons the Cubs hired Maddon this past offseason.
[Associated Press, Chicago Tribune]
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