BASEBALL PLAYERS ARE SUPERSTITIOUS AND SO ARE INVESTORS. The sport of baseball is steeped in superstition. Many players, managers and announcers follow routines and unspoken rules. For example, some say that mentioning the possibility of a no-hitter while it is in progress can jinx the outcome.

In 2020, ESPN's Tim Kurkjian reported on the routines of retired pitcher Edward Mujica. "He always has to be in the same spot of the bullpen with two outs in the fourth inning of every game. Then, in the fifth inning, he always digs a hole at the front end of the bullpen mound. Then he spits a half cup of red Gatorade into the hole…"

Mujica is not alone. It was rumored that outfielder Torii Hunter cleaned his spikes at exactly 6:40 p.m. before every 7:05 p.m. game, reliever Sean Burnett had a poker chip in his pocket whenever he pitched, and infielder Ryan Zimmerman always used the same shower stall.

Throughout this year's World Series, we've been hearing about another superstition: When the Philadelphia Phillies win the World Series, the U.S. economy tends to slide into recession or the market falls. The Phillies lost over the weekend, and the Astros took home the pennant. Before you breathe a sigh of relief, thinking the Phillies loss will spare the economy and stock markets, check out the data.

From 20,000 feet, the data made for some great clickbait headlines, but when you look closer the facts don't support the supposition. The Phillies won titles in 1929, 1980 and 2008.

• In 1929, the World Series game was played in early October. The recession had begun two months before, in August 1929. That's when the stock market began to decline, too.

• In 1980, the World Series was played in mid-October. The recession had begun in January 1980, and the stock market decline started in February.

• In 2008, the World Series was played in late October. The recession had begun the previous year, in December. The stock market decline also began in 2007.

Then, of course, there is the fact that there have been many recessions and market downturns during years the Phillies weren't in the World Series. It looks like this superstition will have to be benched alongside the Hemline Indicator (the stock market rises and falls with the women's hemlines), the Pigskin Predictor (when an original NFL team wins the Super Bowl, stocks go up), and the Triple Crown Corollary (when one horse wins the Triple Crown, the Dow drops).

Feel free to reach out to Greg with any questions at (405) 340-1717 or greg@womackadvisers.com.

Best regards,

Womack Investment Advisers, Inc.