To honor Dr. Anthony Fauci for all of his hard work during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Washington Nationals asked him to throw out the first pitch at their season opener in Washington D.C. on Thursday.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has accepted the offer and will toss the first official pitch of 2020 when the reigning World Series champs host the New York Yankees.
“Dr. Fauci has been a true champion for our country during the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout his distinguished career, so it is only fitting that we honor him as we kick off the 2020 season and defend our World Series Championship title,” the team said.
A Nationals fan, 79-year-old Fauci has regularly offered medical advice about the return of sports over the past four months and has previously suggested MLB try to finish its season by October.
“If the question is time, I would try to keep it in the core summer months and end it not with the way we play the World Series, until the end of October when it’s cold,” Fauci said. “I would avoid that.”
Though presidents have been invited to throw out MLB’s opening pitch in the past, it makes sense the Nationals did not ask President Trump to begin MLB’s 2020 season. President Trump made an appearance at Game 5 of the World Series at Nationals Park in October, and it did not go well.
Full on “LOCK HIM UP! LOCK HIM UP!” chants heard throughout the crowd at Nats Park after President Trump was announced and shown on screen here #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/1ktVXkHYFy
— Monica Alba (@albamonica) October 28, 2019
Trump is the only president since 1910 to not throw out the first pitch at either Opening Day, the All-Star Game or the World Series.
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