Presidential Pitches
President Richard Nixon throws out the first pitch in Washington D.C. on Opening Day in 1969. Ted Williams, and Major League Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn flank the 37th President of the United States (Photo: Bleacher Report)
Today, voters will elect the 47th President of the United States. Whoever is elected faces challenges Day 1 of uniting the country and moving us forward together.
Voting is a privilege in this country and it gives us the opportunity for our voices to be heard. When our new Commander-In-Chief is sworn in January 20, 2025, there will be a lot of things we’ll see them do after they take on the big job. That includes walking in the processional parade immediately after being sworn in, State of the Union speeches, and being the face for the American people.
One tradition I’d like to see brought back is for sitting Presidents to throw ceremonial Presidential First Pitches on Opening Day. We used to see a lot of President’s do this, something that started 100+ years ago.
The tradition began in 1910 with William Howard Taft, the 27th President of the United States, who threw out a pitch at the Washington Senators Opening Day at Griffith Stadium. Taft threw the first ever Presidential Pitch to future hall-of-famer Walter Johnson, who would later throw a one-hit shutout during the game.
Taft would throw out the first pitch at the Senators Opening Day the following season, and before everyone knew it, a tradition was born.
Every President after Taft - From Woodrow Wilson, all the way to Richard Nixon - Carried on this tradition while Washington D.C. still had a Major League Baseball (MLB) team.
With the new annual tradition being built before baseball fan’s eyes, Griffith Stadium built a Presidential Box near the field. It was good press for the Presidents - Especially being involved with America’s pastime.
President Harry Truman, who was the first President to throw a ceremonial first pitch left-handed, had the honor on Opening Day seven-times. Truman, who assumed office in April 1945 after President Franklin D. Roosevelt passed away, also had the honor of throwing out a Presidential First Pitch for the 1945 World Series between the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago Cubs. On Opening Day 1951, Truman was greeted with “boos” from the fans in attendance. Two weeks earlier, Truman had fired Gen. Douglas MacArthur, and the day before the game, the popular military man gave a speech before a joint session of Congress, including his famous line, “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.”
The U.S. Air Force Band played “Ruffles and Flourishes” and “Hail to the Chief” to try to drown out the boos. The Washington Evening Star called the fan reaction “The coldest reception ever given a Chief Executive at an opening baseball game.”
President Franklin D. Roosevelt before he tosses the Presidential First Pitch before Game 3 of the 1933 World Series between the New York Giants and the Washington Senators. Roosevelt had the most Presidential First Pitches with 11 (Eight Opening Day’s, two World Series’, one All-Star Game). (Photo: Reddit)
Nixon, and his Vice President Spiro Agnew, would be the last top-two in charge to throw a ceremonial first pitch in D.C. in 1969, as the Senators would eventually move to Dallas and become the Texas Rangers in 1971. Nixon threw out the first pitch at RFK stadium in 1969, which succeeded Griffith Stadium, and his right-hand man did the honor at the All-Star Game, which was held at RFK during the same season.
For his first pitch, Nixon requested the Presidential Seal be mounted on his box. After numerous pictures were taken of Nixon, many pointed out that “President” was misspelled.
With MLB no longer in our nation’s capital after 1970, President’s took their first pitches on the road, and still made appearances at Opening Day, All-Star Games, and World Series’.
Nixon continued to show his love for baseball in 1973 as he threw the first ever Presidential pitch outside of D.C. on Opening Day in Anaheim, California. His successor, President Gerald Ford, would throw two Presidential Pitches in 1976 - Opening Day in Dallas for the Texas Rangers, and later that summer at the All-Star Game in Philadelphia at Veterans Stadium. At the All-Star Game, Ford threw two pitches - One with his right hand, the other with his left, to representatives of National and American Leagues.
After Ford, we didn’t see a President throw a ceremonial first pitch until 1984 when President Ronald Reagan did so at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Reagan made the trip unannounced, and watched the game from the third-base dugout. He would later throw a ceremonial first pitch in 1989 during regular season game at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois and always showed his love for the Cubs.
Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush carried on the baseball tradition with the Oval Office. Bush 41 tossed three Opening Day first pitches, as well as at the 1992 All-Star Game during his time as President.
Clinton was the first President to successfully throw out a Presidential Pitch from the mound when he did it on Opening Day at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore in 1993. He threw out the first-ever first pitch a Jacobs Field in Cleveland on Opening Day 1994, and would later do three more Presidential pitches - One more in Baltimore, and Shea Stadium in ‘96 and ‘97 respectively, and at Pacific Bell Park in San Francisco in 2000 after he left office.
Bush 43, who was the Managing General Partner of the Texas Rangers from 1989 to 1994, has thrown many first pitches, both during his presidency and post.
He christened Miller Park in Milwaukee on Opening Day 2001, and would later do it in 2004 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, and when baseball came back to D.C. in 2005 with the Nationals. Bush tossed one in 2006 in Cincinnati, and in 2008 at the new Nationals Park in D.C. Bush would later participate in the TV broadcast, and called the park’s first home run hit by the Atlanta Braves Chipper Jones in the 4th inning.
Bush would throw many other first pitches after he left office, primarily for the Rangers, and at a few World Series games (2011 - Rangers, 2017 - Astros, 2023 - Rangers).
His most famous first pitch was at Game 3 of the 2001 World Series. The game, which was held in New York, was a month after the September 11 Terrorist Attacks. Bush wore a bulletproof vest and that didn’t stop him from throwing a strike.
“Derek Jeter told me I better throw from the mound and not to short-hop the catcher - especially if I wanted to win re-election in three years,” Bush said in a 9/11 Memorial Museum article.
President George W. Bush gives a “thumbs up” to the crowd before Game 3 of the 2001 World Series (Photo: X)
Since Bush 43, the tradition has diminished. President Barack Obama threw out the Opening Day Presidential Pitch at Nationals Park in 2010, which commemorated the 100th anniversary of the annual tradition.
No President has done it since.
No matter where you stand politically, we can all come together as baseball fans. This tradition is something I think all fans would welcome should MLB decide to pursue it. We are a country built on traditions and pastimes, and no greater pastime has stood stronger than baseball.