Just call it the “Curse of the Colonel” or maybe, better yet, a ‘finger lickin’ good’ mystery.
Whatever you want to call it, for Kentucky Fried Chicken, having the avatar of Col. Harland Sanders behind home plate at the Rogers Centre for Game 2 of the World Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers was a grand slam.
You couldn’t miss the legendary white Kentucky suit, framed glasses, white hair, goatee, and iconic Western-style tie.
But what he was doing there is as secret as the 11 herbs and spices in the recipe that made his chicken famous.
No one, so far, is quite sure just what this was? And no one, it seems, is talking.
Colonel Sanders behind the plate pic.twitter.com/ioIAhxA4gh
— Joe Warmington (@joe_warmington) October 26, 2025
Was this a smart piece of product placement by KFC? Was this in reference to the Curse of the Colonel folklore that is famous in Japanese baseball circles? Or was this just a guy ahead of Halloween fulfilling his bucket-list dream of attending The Fall Classic?
Whatever it was, it sure has social media buzzing.
The most popular theory, shared to me first during the game by the Breaker Publisher — former Sun Media reporter Bob Mackin — is the possibility it had something to do with a supposed curse put on the Hanshin Tigers after someone threw a statue of the Colonel in the Dotonbori River in 1985. That, according to the curse, led to an almost 40-year drought of winning a championship until 2023 when they finally lifted the hex.
KFC HAS HAD FUN SPOOFS AROUND SPORTS BEFORE
The Blue Jays or Major League Baseball have not yet responded to questions about this.
Nor has KFC, which I suspect may be behind this spectacular idea. They have done innovative media campaigns before — including rebranding a store in Winnipeg after Jets star Kyle Connor.
And there was a Col. Sanders likeness at that hockey game with a sign that said, “Hey Kyle, a hockey stick for a drum stick.”
Genius 😂#HockeyX pic.twitter.com/nNA5j51zxh
— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) April 21, 2025
Also, if you look on KFC Canada’s Instagram, they have a World Series ad campaign underway to rename their famous Zinger sandwich to Dinger. They have in the past done some pretty cool retro TV spots featuring the Colonel, played by North Bay and Sudbury-area actor Rob Willis.
THE COLONEL WAS A MISSISSAUGA RESIDENT
It’s unknown who this was playing the colonel at the Jays game, but what is known is this was a home game of sorts for the legendary figure since he actually lived in Mississauga on Melton Dr., from 1965 until his death in 1980. Having sold his American KFC business, he was still involved with partners at Scott’s Chicken Villa in Canada.
KFC meets KFC 🏒 🍗 @NHLJets #whiteout #gojetsgo pic.twitter.com/SJpOhlF5uG
— KFC Canada (@kfc_canada) May 10, 2025
Another clue came during the game when one shot showed the colonel in the stands holding up a placard that said “Springer Dinger.”
However, you never know what you are seeing online anymore. Is it real or is it AI? What you do know is that product placement in game advertising is plentiful and effective. That’s why businesses, ranging from casinos to sports betting to fast food, pay to be there.
SUPERFAN ALSO BEHIND THE PLATE
Of course, the Colonel is not the only famous face that has been seen in these coveted seats.
Rush’s Geddy Lee is a regular in that section, and there has been a lot of attention paid to a muscular Blue Jays fan sometimes there and the guy wearing the red Miami Marlins jersey. And for Game 2, another legend was also spotted there in Nav Bhatia .
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Now internationally as the Raptors Superfan, you could not miss him wearing his red turban and sporting a Raptor’s 95 jersey under his Blue Jays sweater.
Nav was not selling Hyundai’s with his placement there. He’s a massive Toronto sportsfan who’s always at games — and not just Raptors.
But for now, the riddle still exists on just what was going on with the Colonel who certainly got more hits for being at Game 2 in the stands than the whole Blue Jays managed to do on the field.
In fact, from behind home plate, they hit this Zinger, Dinger out of the park.
