First Pitch of World Series to be Thrown From Outer Space
When Chief Umpire Jerry Crawford calls for the
traditional ceremonial first pitch in the first game of the
World Series Saturday, the ball will “virtually” travel more
than 240 miles, all the way from the International Space
Station (ISS) to Anaheim, Calif.
NASA astronaut Dr. Peggy Whitson, following a tradition
started by President William Howard Taft in 1910, will throw
out the ceremonial first pitch to her battery-mate and ISS
Expedition Five Commander, Russian cosmonaut Valeri Korzun.
The fans at Anaheim’s Edison Field and millions of television
viewers will watch the virtual video courtesy of Fox Network
Sports.
The ceremonial first pitch of Major League Baseball’s 98th
World Series undoubtedly will be the fastest due to a 17,500-
mile-an-hour head start provided by the International Space
Station.
Whitson, Expedition Five flight engineer and NASA’s
International Space Station science officer, squared up on a
pitcher’s mound more than 240 miles above the surface of the
Earth to throw the first pitch. At the opposite end of the
Destiny Laboratory, “catcher” Korzun called for the “high
hard one.” Flight Engineer Sergei Treschev recorded the
events on videotape for downlink to Mission Control at NASA’s
Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Floating in microgravity made the wind-up and pitch somewhat
challenging for the Iowa right-hander, who has been
conducting scientific research aboard the space station since
June. Nevertheless, Korzun called Whitson’s pitch a strike.
The Expedition Five crew gave a Space Age “go” for the
Anaheim Angels and San Francisco Giants to begin play, with a
rousing “Play Ball!”
Whitson and her crewmates are scheduled to return to Earth in
November. A new crew, led by Commander Ken Bowersox, will
replace the Expedition Five crew after more than five months
in space. Bowersox threw out the first pitch for Game 5 of
the 1995 World Series aboard Space Shuttle Columbia.
The baseball used for the first pitch aboard the ISS was
autographed by the participants in the 2002 All-Star Game in
Milwaukee. Astronauts Bob Cabana and Jim Voss accepted the
baseball, which went through certification testing at Johnson
Space Center before being carried to the space station aboard
a Russian Progress resupply vehicle.
“Linking America’s historic pastime with the future, through
NASA, is a great opportunity to encourage young people to
exercise their bodies and inspire their minds. NASA and the
ISS proudly join the long list of Presidents, heroes,
celebrities and others chosen to participate in a truly great
American tradition,” Whitson said.
Source: NASA
