The bullpen cart, one of Major League Baseball’s weirdest traditions, made a comeback this season after taking a 23-year hiatus. At first, only the Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks made the cart available. Nationals closer Sean Doolittle jumped at the opportunity to get a free ride. During a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in May, Doolittle became the second MLB player to ride the cart since its comeback.
Doo’s relationship with the cart has grown from there and now the Nationals are getting him his very own starting tomorrow. He created a custom shirt to celebrate the occasion.
Doolittle rode the funny baseball-hat-looking cart in to close a 2-1 game in the 11th inning on May 10. Because he was warming up from the 8th inning on, he decided to take the cart after standing for so long. His first ride was one to write home about.
“I was like, maybe it’s like Lyft, so I asked the guy, ‘Where do guys sit?’ He was like ‘well only one guy’s ridden so far, and he sat in the back,’” Doolittle said to the Washington Post’s Chelsea Janes.
Doo ended up sitting in the front seat and came to a screeching halt when he asked the driver to stop before the dugout.
“I’ve been advocating for bullpen carts for years. I think there’s a practical application for that,” Doolittle, now growing philosophical, continued. “So I had the opportunity to try it out, and I think it was great.”
He liked it so much he took it the next night when he came in to close a 3-1 game.
Doolittle took the bullpen cart again pic.twitter.com/K1YEQAdS1s
— Danny (@recordsANDradio) May 12, 2018
“I forgot my AUX cord last night, I but I brought it tonight,” Doolittle joked to MASN’s Dan Kolko after the game. “We’re getting used to it, but it was smooth sailing. Five stars, would ride again.”
The Houston Astros’ Collin McHugh was the first to ride to the mount this season. On Twitter, Doolitte’s wife Eireann Dolan asked the important questions.
Be honest with me does Collin talk as much about the time he rode in the Diamondbacks bullpen cart as Sean does?
— Eireann Dolan (@EireannDolan) July 20, 2018
She also shared that if he could take a bullpen cart TO the bullpen cart, he would.
If there was a bullpen cart to the bullpen cart he would use it
— Eireann Dolan (@EireannDolan) May 11, 2018
After the announcement that the Nationals have partnered with WGL energy to create their own cart, an enthusiastic Doolittle wore a custom t-shirt.
Sean Doolittle is wearing a shirt that says “Cart Blanche”
— Chelsea Janes (@chelsea_janes) August 16, 2018
.@whatwouldDOOdo is #CartBlanche. Tomorrow morning on @LiveSaintLouis, hear me go 1-on-1 with the Nationals closer as we discuss the growing bullpen cart movement in #MLB. pic.twitter.com/TUEXYk8MUF
— C. William Gardner (@cwg18) August 16, 2018
Ah, what a perfect play on words.
Now Doolittle will be arriving back to DC to his very own cart and can talk about it forever.
Header GIF: MLB
