Fauci throws out first pitch as MLB officially starts season

Anthony Fauci, the U.S.’s top virologist and key member of the White House coronavirus task force, threw out the first pitch Thursday night at Nationals Park, as the Washington Nationals and the New York Yankees kicked off Major League Baseball’s abbreviated season.

Washington, the defending World Series champions, announced Monday on Twitter that Fauci — a native New Yorker living in D.C. who has said he’s a fan of both the Yankees and Nationals — would be throwing out the first pitch of the season.

A statement from the Washington Nationals regarding Opening Day. pic.twitter.com/iejxXeAA4V

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) July 20, 2020

While Fauci is one the country’s foremost doctors, his pitch was anything but elite, falling well short and to the right of home plate.

Anthony Fauci, First Pitch Mechanics. pic.twitter.com/QxszDQJDuu

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 23, 2020

The MLB season was delayed five months from its usual March start because of the coronavirus pandemic. Each big league team will play a shortened 60-game schedule, with the top 16 teams competing in an expanded postseason format.

Late Thursday afternoon, the Nationals announced that Juan Soto, the team’s star left fielder, had tested positive for COVID-19 and would not play in Thursday’s game.