Astros rookie’s unorthodox pre-game routine has helped him adapt to unfamiliar role

AJ Blubaugh's major league debut with the Houston Astros back in April did not go exactly as planned when he gave up seven runs in a loss to the Tigers. Only two of the runs were earned to be fair, but Blubaugh would have to wait until August to get his next shot in the majors after that outing. After some mixed results in Houston's rotation, Blubaugh has settled in nicely as multi-inning weapon thanks to...an unorthodox pre-game routine.

Baseball has a long history of players using less-than-conventional pre-game routines to get themselves in the right mindset before games. Bo Jackson used to shoot targets with a bow and arrow for some reason, Larry Walker would only do things in sets of three (including his pre-game alarm), and Wade Boggs only ate chicken before games. Clearly, whatever those guys were doing helped them, because that is two Hall of Famers and one of the best athletes the sports world has ever seen.

Blubaugh's pre-game routine isn't as extreme as those other guys, but it is still unusual. According to a report from The Athletic's Chandler Rome, Blubaugh walks around the stadium barefoot before every game.

AJ Blubaugh's pre-game barefoot walks are helping him adjust to his bullpen role in a number of ways

A chunk of Rome's piece is dedicated to explaining this routine. Called "grounding", it is something that first baseman Christian Walker also seems to be a fan of as well. Walker talked about how walking around barefoot is relaxing and, for him, it allows people to "dump our energy back into" the Earth. Apparently, other players have been doing this for a while, including Adam Ottavino and Nick Ahmed, but not much was really known about it publicly.

For Blubaugh, his walks seem to have a more holistic impact. When asked to explain why he walks around barefoot, he simply said, "It makes me feel good. It makes me feel like I’m just relaxed. It’s such a game (with a) roller coaster of emotions, tons of adrenaline, and trying to calm down. Take a little time, some peace and quiet, be on the grass, it’s nice.”

Sometimes something is just as simple as it works and helps a guy remain calm before what is a truly stressful job. Some guys listen to a playlist of their favorite songs, and others take the same number of batting practice swings or throw the same number of each pitch during warm-ups. While Blubaugh's pre-game may seem odd to some, it is a lot more relatable than he is given credit for. With a 1.71 ERA over his last eight appearances in the big leagues, it also appears to be working.

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