Friday 13th: Is it bad luck or just a bad rap?

[icymist]

Friday marks the 56th anniversary of an omen that would soon make Ralph Branca infamous.
A pitcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branca was one of the few players to wear the No. 13 on his jersey. Scoffing at superstition, he posed with a black cat for a Brooklyn Eagle photo on Friday, April 13, 1951.

Six months later, Branca's No. 13 was still blazing as he delivered the final pitch of a three-game playoff against the New York Giants. Hitter Bobby Thompson smacked that pitch into the left-field stands.

The home run would go down in baseball annals as "The Shot Heard Round the World." It sent the Giants to the World Series and Branca to infamy.

The next season, he temporarily replaced No. 13 with his old No. 12. He would later recount how the team insisted he change his number.

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[Ilsa]

1. My best friend has a birthday tomorrow, and I didn't know what I could do

treat it as a special day for her, other than how I would for any other birthday. So I sent several funny cards. I would have liked to send her some special Friday the 13th greeting, but was clueless.

Thanks for the article.