Trump 'invited himself' to throw 1st pitch at Yankees game as he was jealous of Fauci being given the honor
President Donald Trump reportedly "invited himself" to throw out the first pitch at Yankees Stadium because "he was envious of the nation's top immunologist, Dr. Anthony Fauci", being given the honor, according to reports. The Republican later canceled the schedule because he could not make it happen. Sources reportedly told The New York Times how the president came to the surprising announcement that he would throw out a ceremonial first pitch for the Yanks on August 15.
According to the report, Trump was bothered by the attention Fauci was garnering in the leadup to his first pitch at Nationals Park on Opening Day. Dr. Fauci, threw out the first pitch last week, upstaging Trump's intentions to do the same in August. The Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the first game of Major League Baseball's regular season, which was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The Washington Nationals, on July 20, had announced that Dr. Fauci had accepted the team's invitation of the pregame honor on Thursday night, July 23.
The Times reported that Trump, after Fauci's invitation to the fame, had told his staffers to call the Yanks to get him on the mound. Both the Yankees and White House personnel were reportedly surprised by Trump's wishes and never confirmed a date despite the president saying that they had.
The Republican, over the weekend, had claimed that he was canceling his scheduled throw out because he was too busy focusing on the current coronavirus crisis in the country. Trump made the announcement in a tweet on Sunday, July 26, stating: "Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th." Despite the widespread backlash, the president continues to use his offensive nickname for Covid-19.
Trump, despite the cancelation, vowed to make an appearance at the baseball field, saying: "We will make it later in the season!" The Republican, whose handling of the coronavirus crisis in the country has received criticism, spent his Sunday greeting nearly 50 supporters who had gathered near his golf club in New Jersey, all of them were notably without masks. The novel coronavirus has now infected over 4.1 million people in the country and has claimed more than 146,000 lives. Trump's minute-long campaign stop to greet supporters was the first time he left his Trump National Golf Club Bedminster all weekend, according to reports.
Trump had been praised last week for accepting the Yankee's invitation to throw the ceremonial first pitch after refusing to do so for the past three years. The honor to throw the ceremonial first pitch is generally given to US presidents. Before Trump's turn, every president since William Howard Taft in 1910 has thrown their own first pitch. Trump is the first president since then to skip the tradition.
It was reported last week that Trump planned to throw out the first pitch at a Yankees match next month despite the New York baseball players kneeling on Opening Day game in Washington DC. The report came days after the president had tweeted, saying if he witnessed a played kneeling it would be "game over" for him. President Trump, however, is against the kneeling while the American flag is presented or the Star-Spangled Banner being played. The Republican, previously, has stated that he would not support sports if players continued to take a knee in protest.
It was reported during the 2019 World Series, that Trump might take to the pitcher's mound, however, the Republican leader shirked the suggestion, saying he would be required to wear "a lot of heavy armor." Trump, at the time, had reportedly said: "I'll look too heavy. I don't like that."