Whether he becomes the next Jim Palmer or flops, Kevin Gausman might be baseball's next great character.
Odds are pretty good that you haven't heard of Gausman, the Orioles' first-round pick out of Louisiana State University. The sophomore pitcher has a handful of rituals and superstitions that make him stand out from most of the others picked in Monday's First-Year Player Draft.
Gausman gives Homer Simpson a run for his money when it comes to a love affair with donuts. The LSU pitcher eats one powdered donut before stepping on the mound. The Centennial, Colo., native says his bad eating habit began in the seventh grade and has continued into his college years.
LSU benefits from those poor food tendencies, as he went 11-1 with a 2.72 ERA, 128 strikeouts, 27 walks in just 16 starts (115.2 IP) this season.
In addition to chowing down on a donut before taking the mound, Gausman eats even more of the sweet ring-shaped fried cakes in between innings.
"I've always been a little weird, really," Gausman told the Baltimore Sun. "I like sci-fi movies and I eat four doughnuts in between innings, so that’s a little weird. It's something that started back I think in middle school. So I’ve been doing that for a while now. And I think the way I live my life I like to be a little different than other people."
Since most of us are always in calorie-counting mode, just how bad is this donut obsession to watching one's weight?
If Gausman pitched a complete game (nine innings), he would consume over 2,070 calories. Four delicious Donettes Mini White Powdered Donuts from Hostess pack 230 calories.
-- Follow Ben Maller on Twitter @BenMaller.
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