ESPN’s Kaylee Hartung committed one of the cardinal sins of baseball on Tuesday night when she uttered the phrase “no-hitter” on the air in just the sixth inning. As a result, she is being accused of jinxing TCU.
TCU pitcher Alex Young had not given up a hit through six, and Hartung decided to label it a “no-hitter through six” during an in-game interview with Horned Frogs coach Jim Schlossnagle.
@KayleeHartung Have some feel. pic.twitter.com/V93Sl0mxgg
— Dylan Fitzgerald (@DFitz38) June 17, 2015
Hartung’s “knock on wood” wasn’t enough, and Young gave up a solo home run to the first batter he faced in the seventh. That turned out to be the difference in the game, as Vanderbilt punched its ticket to the College World Series final four and TCU must now face LSU for another chance to play the Commodores.
Not surprisingly, Hartung dealt with a lot of this — and much worse — after making her comment:
Hope you feel good about yourself @KayleeHartung that is your fault the no-no is gone. Good luck in your new job because you just lost it.
— Griffin Helms (@G_Helms34) June 17, 2015
Schlossnagle, who was clearly annoyed when Hartung mentioned the no-hitter, was quick to defend the reporter:
@KayleeHartung asking me that question had NOTHING to do with us losing.Valid question at the time. She is outstanding. Treat her kindly.
— Jim Schlossnagle (@TCUSchloss) June 17, 2015
You either believe in jinxes or you don’t. And in baseball, a lot of folks believe in jinxes. Heck, even a player’s wife was accused of jinxing a perfect game a couple of years back. I doubt Hartung will make that mistake again.
Photo via Kaylee Hartung/Twitter
