San Francisco Giants Teammates Madison Bumgarner and Jake Peavy Started Dipping "In Fifth Grade"

The pair of Giants starters got on the chaw train early.

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I haven't been a kid in awhile, but back when I was it wasn't uncommon to hear that one of my classmates wanted to be a baseball player when he grew up. Eventually many all of them gave up on that dream in favor of other, more realistic dreams, like teaching driver's ed or selling vacuums over the phone. None of them possessed the raw talent you'd expect to see in a future big leaguer, and none had the type of dedication to one of the most essential components of the game: Chewing tobacco.

Two young men who did have that type of dedication at an entirely ridiculous age were San Francisco Giants starting pitchers Madison Bumgarner (a.k.a. the reigning World Series MVP) and Jake Peavy (a.k.a. the 2007 National League Cy Young winner). The duo revealed to theNew York Times that you were likely to find them with a spitter on the playground, as they stated that they began dipping in the fifth freaking grade!The subject came up as San Francisco preps for a ban of chaw from athletic fields, starting June 1 of next year.

Of course that means future generations of fans who attend AT&T Park will be missing one of the most timeless and beautiful traditions of America's pastime:

What a damn shame.

[via Sports Illustrated]

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