It was a Sunday morning, and the Bacon’s play-by-play announcer was heading back to Macon from Florence when he realized he was missing something; his favorite shoes.

Little did the Macon Bacon know what effect this would have on the team and their performance. It all started on May 29. Skye Gillespie was leaving South Caroline without his shoes and did not even realize it.

“I have never forgotten a single item at a hotel in my life. I take my time making sure I have everything; but for some reason I lost my lucky gameday shoes. I have no idea how I think the Flamingos stole them,” he stated.

By the time June 2 hit and the Bacon were set to play the Bananas, that’s when he realized what truly happened.

“At that moment, we were 5-1 on the year and life was good, the Bacon was cooking. I went to go put my gameday shoes on, and they were not in my closet. I panicked next thing you know, we are on a seven-game losing streak, and it’s all because of those shoes,” Gillespie said.

While wearing the shoes, the Bacon had an intense momentum. They scored 34 runs in their first six games and beat every team they faced except for the Bananas.  Gillespie was determined to get his shoes back and for the Bacon to get back on track. While he waited for his shoes to arrive in the mail he tried a variety of different options to help Macon.

“I tried braiding my hair, I wore pink Crocs, I wore white Crocs, I cried a lot, I ate a lot of bacon, I did a lot, and nothing worked.”

In the Bacon’s recent matchup against the Bananas on June 10, — hope was diminishing after a 13-inning 9-7 loss. What he didn’t know is that his savior was waiting at his doorstep.

“I was lost; I was helpless. I thought this was all my fault until I went home. I saw a package at the door, the shoes were here, and the pain was over.”

As the shoes made their first debut back in the pan, the Macon Bacon crushed the Catawba Valley Stars in a 15-2 mercy rule followed by a 16-1 win against Forest City.

by: Lanie De La Milera