Charleston Shoe Thieves/History
COMMUNITY REPORTSThe remainder of this article contains lore created collaboratively by the Blaseball community.
Hometown
The Charleston Shoe Thieves are from Charleston, not Sunken Charleston. When asked, players often respond "Why do you keep asking 'which Charleston'? Are you a cop?"
Formation
The Heist
The Shoe Thieves began not as a blaseball team, but as a band of footwear larcenists lead by legendary master thief Cornelius Games. After attending a game of Blaseball to support his husband Richardson Games of the New York Millennials, Games began to formulate a plan to pose as a blaseball team as a cover for stealing rare and expensive blaseball shoes. In addition to his existing crew, he won over his old rival Workman Gloom and recruited local cryptid Ren Hunter to play on the false team.
"Shoe Thieves" was used as a placeholder name for the team while they debated on what the least suspicious name for their false front would be. However, Forrest Bookbaby, then working as Games' intern, was eager to impress his idol and submitted the paperwork with the placeholder a show of initiative. Thus, the Charleston Shoe Thieves were born.
Going Pro
Despite the team originally being created solely as a front, they proved to be quite competent at the splort. Much to their own amazement they won several games and attracted the attention of free agent Esme Ramsey, whose addition as a reliable hitter helped them compete toe to toe with the rest of the league. While there was some initial tension within the team about whether to finish the heist or abandon it in favor of "going straight", they soon discovered they could continue to steal shoes while competing as a legitimate blaseball team by passing the thefts off as a beloved gimmick.
Strategy
The Shoe Thieves will hold up shoes to signal plays to their teammates or to proudly display their latest successful theft. It's a common misconception that the type of shoe itself is important to the play the athlete is signalling. In truth, it is the way the laces have been tied themselves that relay the important information to their teammates. The colour, arrangement, knot and even how frayed the laces are can be crucial information. This is not the only method of communication the Shoe Thieves use while playing. Esme Ramsey, Stu Trololol and Blood Hamburger make use of their psychic blood to talk in a group chat over Pskype, although Stu has stated that the group chat is mainly unrelated to their game strategy. Velasquez Alstott also makes use of light-up sneakers, using a mix of tap dance and Irish dancing to communicate in morse code with her teammates.
Gayest Team in Blaseball?
For several seasons the Shoe Thieves disputed the New York Millennials claim to be "the gayest team in blaseball". They were ultimately forced to cede their rival claim after losing a pivotal game of Rlock Plaper Sclissors with the Shoe Thieves represented by Esme Ramsey and the Millennials by Theodore Cervantes. According the to terms of the game, the Shoe Thieves technically maintain the right to call themselves "the second gayest team in blaseball", but this title is not popularly used.
Grand Unslam
For more information on this event, see The Grand Unslam.
In the 15th inning of a record-breaking game against the Los Angeles Tacos, Shoe Thieves player Morrow Doyle hit a grand slam that shook the very foundations of Blaseball itself. Both the Shoe Thieves and Tacos ended Day 74 of Season 3 with a record of 75 games, potentially a reflection of a disruption of spacetime.
