WASHINGTON — Baseball is a game rife with superstition. No ritual is too crazy, so long as it helps the team win. But could there be a cosmic connection between a player’s giveaway item and his performance on the field?

Behold, the Jayson Werth Chia Pet. The giveaway item was handed out on Wednesday, August 5 prior to the Nationals’ game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, in which Werth went 0-for-3 with a sacrifice fly. As WTOP began to nurture the chia to life, slowly but surely, Werth put together fairly pedestrian games, but scored or drove in a run each of the next three days.

Then on Sunday, Werth launched his first home run since returning from the disabled list, reaching base three times and scoring two runs. Simultaneously, the Chia Pet sprouted its first green buds, finally coming to life.

The beard continued blooming as Werth notched a double and two RBI on Monday night in Washington’s 8-3 win in Los Angeles. But then, following an 0-for-4 effort last night, fungus started to appear.

Is the slugger’s performance affecting his Chia Pet’s growth? Are the two inexorably linked through the time space continuum? Or are we probably not fostering the best horticultural experiment by trying to create life atop our program director’s air conditioner?

You be the judge. We’ll see how Werth fares against the Dodgers tonight, and update you with what condition our Chia is in when we arrive back at the office tomorrow morning.

View Chia Werth’s full growth here.