Buck Showalter’s decision not to use all-star closer Zach Britton in the Baltimore Orioles‘ wild-card game loss to the Toronto Blue Jays will go down in history as a massive managerial blunder.
Now there’s a chance for someone to get their hands on that piece of history.
Major League Baseball is auctioning off a ‘game-used’ Britton jersey from the Orioles’ wild-card defeat. The term ‘game-used’ may be a case of false advertising, though.
Britton and his perfect 47-for-47 save record, along with his 0.54 ERA, remained cooped up in the Orioles’ bullpen while Showalter turned to a number of other relievers. Eventually, Ubaldo Jimenez took the mound in the 11th inning, and we all know what happened next.
The Blue Jays now find themselves in the American League Championship Series, while Britton will need to wait until the spring before another one of his jerseys is deemed ‘game-used.’
