"SEATTLE -- It had been 24 years and five days since this city experienced its last division title, a wait that turned its baseball fans into one of this country's most tortured. Babies were born, grew up, went to college, got a job, and their beloved Seattle Mariners still had not finished atop the American League West. Maybe this is how it was supposed to happen."
"Three weeks ago, when the team was struggling and hope seemed lost, Steven Blackburn, a 26-year-old lifelong Mariners fan, found a witch. An Etsy witch, to be exact, which is precisely what you might think it is: a self-proclaimed sorcerer providing services through the popular e-commerce website. Blackburn and one of his best friends had often joked about using an Etsy witch to fix"
"The Mariners weren't playing quite bad enough then -- but by Sept. 5, after a stretch of 15 losses in 21 games, they were. Blackburn searched for witches willing to cast generic spells, found a user going by the name of SpellByLuna and asked for an incantation that would turn around the Mariners' once-promising season. Said Blackburn: "Best $16 I've ever spent.""
Seattle endured a 24-year, five-day gap without a division title before finally winning the American League West. A core group of players righted itself late in the season and delivered a dominant, soul-cleansing late-season series sweep of the franchise's greatest nemesis. Cal Raleigh punctuated the division-clinching victory with his 60th home run. During a severe slump that included 15 losses in 21 games, a 26-year-old lifelong fan purchased a $16 spell from an Etsy seller named SpellByLuna. The fan received confirmation the next morning, and later that night All-Star center fielder Julio RodrÃguez took over a game.
Read at ESPN.com
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