He didn’t pick his hometown team the Chicago White Sox nor his new home’s team the Washington Nationals. President Barack Obama has opted to head to St. Louis to throw his first ever opening pitch as president.
Obama will take to the Cardinals’ mound July 14 to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.
With his dedication to community service it’s not completely random for him to pick this game as his first throw. MLB, along with People Magazine, has implemented an “All-Stars Among Us” program that “recognizes individuals serving their communities in extraordinary ways.”
Obama will be the fourth president to make the first hurl at the All-Star Game. The last president to do so was President Gerald Ford in 1976, preceded by Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy in 1970 and 1962, respectively.
Even though he threw his last pitch as a U.S. Senator in 2005, seeing him sink press secretary Robert Gibbs and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in the dunk tank at last week’s White House luau proves he’s got a good arm.
