The Arizona Diamondbacks are in the midst of one of the best postseason runs in MLB history.
After grabbing the final NL wildcard spot with only one game to go in the regular season, the Snakes have been nothing short of magical, sweeping the Brewers and the Dodgers before clinching a spot in the World Series over my Phillies in one of the best NLCS series in recent history.
They’re currently down 2-1 against the Texas Rangers, but if they’ve proven anything over the past couple weeks, it’s never to count them out.
Obviously, you can’t just point to one thing that’s lead to this success, but General Manager Mike Hazen gives a lot of credit to one album that he’s exclusively played on game days since August: Morgan Wallen’s One Thing At A Time.
Wallen’s record-setting third album held the number one spot on the Billboard 200 for 11 straight weeks, joining Whitney Houston’s Whitney and Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life as the only to reach that mark.
Hazen recently spoke to the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast about some of his game day rituals.
“I work out in the gym the same way… I do the same workout, I listen to the same music every time. Same music, same album, same everything. And then I come to the ballpark on the first bus with the staff. I change my jacket for every series but I’ve washed all the same shirts. I’ve worn the same pair of pants for every game. I have the same pair of shoes for every game. I wear the same pair of socks every game.”
When asked what the album is, he responded:
“Morgan Wallen, his album that came out. Over and over and over again, I started that in the regular season. This all started a long time ago. It’s a continuation of that. Why am I going to change it now?”
Baseball is a game of superstition, where players and coaches really do believe that doing the exact same thing day in and day out will lead to wins, so you can’t blame the guy for sticking with what’s working.
Would it have been cooler if it was Charles Wesley Godwin, Treaty Oak Revival, or at least Zach Bryan? Sure it would, but hey, it’s always good when country music gets some shine.
Even though they beat my Phillies, I’m rooting for Arizona, they’re just too fun to watch and not cheer for.
The Baseball Is Not Boring podcast is an Audacy exclusive, which you can listen to in the player below.
And might as well join in on the fun with Morgan’s latest single, “Everything I Love”
