After tying the National League Championship Series 2-2 on Friday evening, the Arizona Diamondbacks have turned the ball over to the winningest Olympian in history and…well-known Baltimore Orioles fan…Michael Phelps.
Phelps, who owns 28 Olympic medals, more than any athlete in history, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch on Saturday at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix. A native of Baltimore, Phelps is a big baseball fan and roots primarily for his hometown team. The Orioles had their best team in generations this year and led the American League in wins in the regular season, but were unceremoniously swept by the Texas Rangers in the American League Divisional Series last week.
Saturday’s game will be the Diamondbacks’ last home game of the series and, if they don’t win two of the next three games against the Phillies, of the season.
In 2013, Phelps participated in batting practice with the Orioles.
Phelps and his family now live in Tempe, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix.
During his career and beyond it, Phelps has had many opportunities to throw out ceremonial first pitches at Major League Baseball games, including one during the Diamondbacks’ 2017 playoff series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. There, he played it safe with an on target soft-toss just outside of the strike zone.
West coast Men’s NCAA swimming will never recover from this!