Zach Britton's not so sure about that 'game-used' postseason jersey for sale

In what may be the most unintentionally cruel joke ever perpetrated by MLB Auctions, Zach Britton’s game jersey from the American League wild-card game is now up for bid.

But it’s not just the fact they’re auctioning off the jersey that has people feeling a little awkward, it’s how MLB Auctions describe the item — “game-used.”

Game-used certainly implies that Britton, you know, played. As we all know though, manager Buck Showalter exhausted every option except using his all-world closer in a game the Baltimore Orioles would lose in 11 innings against the Toronto Blue Jays. Britton surely worked up a sweat during the three instances he was spotted warming up, but his name was never called when the bullpen door opened. That would make the appropriate terminology “game-worn” or “bullpen-used,” but certainly not game-used.

The selection of words has not been lost on anyone who’s seen the notice or placed a bid. That’s especially true of Britton, who acknowledged the ordeal with a degree of Twitter trolling.

Probably a good thing Buck Showalter isn’t a social-media maven. He’s getting it from all sides in this one. In all seriousness, Britton was obviously disappointed he wasn’t used in the wild-card game, but this is the first time he’s acknowledged Showalter’s decision on social media.

If you want an odd piece of baseball history, it can be yours for $1,075 at the time of this post. For that price, it would be nice if Britton came to your house and played catch too. Heck, he might still be loose.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813