The 2024 World Series is missing something. It might not be something most fans even realized before New York Yankees third baseman Jazz Chisholm stole second base in the top of the sixth inning. No. Free. Tacos.
For the last nine years, Taco Bell has run their "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" promotional campaign. If a player stole a base in the World Series, fans could get a free taco at Taco Bell the next day.
Sadly, there will be no free tacos in 2024. Taco Bell is no longer an official sponsor of MLB, so it seems their annual campaign is on the shelf for the time being.
That means Jazz Chisholm's stolen base in Game 1 against the Los Angeles Dodgers doesn't make him a Taco Hero.
History of Taco Bell's 'Steal a Base, Steal a Taco' campaign
Maybe Taco Bell saw the writing on the wall. Between Chisholm, Mookie Betts, and Shohei Ohtani, stolen bases were a certainty this year.
The first "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" campaign was in 2007. Taco Bell ran it again in 2008 but the promotion went away from 2009 to 2011. It returned in 2012 briefly before going dormant until 2015. We've been living in a stolen taco golden age since then. Every year from 2015 to 2023, free tacos were handed out.
Past Taco Heroes include Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox in 2007, the first, and Ketel Marte of the Diamondbacks in 2023, the last for now. Mookie Betts is the only player to earn double honors in 2018 and 2020. He didn't get a chance to earn the title a third time.
Here's the full list:
- 2007: Jacoby Ellsbury, Boston Red Sox
- 2008: Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay Rays
- 2012: Angel Pagan, San Francisco Giants
- 2015: Lorenzo Cain, Kansas City Royals
- 2016: Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Guardians
- 2017: Cameron Maybin, Houston Astros
- 2018: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
- 2019: Trea Turner, Washington Nationals
- 2020: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
- 2021: Ozzie Albies, Atlanta Braves
- 2022: Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies
- 2023: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks
The "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" promotion may be gone, but we can always dream of its return. It's come back twice before. Hold fast hope, my friends.