Last night I had a great time announcing this year’s 50th anniversary Congressional Baseball game.
What a thrill to meet Phil Neikro, the great MLB Hall of Famer, who joined us to throw out the first pitch.
This article in the Washington Post, Democrats Claim Victory in Congressional Baseball Game, gives a good accounting of the spirit of the event:
“But perhaps more remarkable than any of the stats in this admittedly not beautifully played game was what good sports the players were and how they seemed to have nothing but admiration for their counterparts across the aisle — or in this case across the diamond. In this age of seemingly nonstop partisan bickering and bashing, we’ve come to expect nothing but, well, bickering and bashing, no matter the venue.”
The Democrat’s Manager, Rep. Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania, had this to say to The Washington Post:
“It’s human nature that once you get to know people you relate to them better,” he said. “When we see these guys outside of the halls of Congress where we’re all doing battle, you realize we’re pretty much the same. The way Congress operates now, everyone leaves for home five minutes after the last vote there’s no time to get to know each other. You need to build relationships to tackle these big issues.”
I couldn’t agree more and told Mike so after the game. That being said it was sweet to hold the trophy awarded to my Democratic colleagues! We won 8 to 2 with freshman Rep. Cedric Johnson of Louisiana pitching a stellar game.
For more, check out Roll Call’s article and snazzy video which makes Members look like big league stars — For Love of the Game: Lawmakers Put Aside Acrimony to Have Fun on the Diamond. Some great photography is found in theslideshow in Talking Points Memo.