Tuesday, April 9 is Opening Day for the Padres.
You know who’s on the 25-man Padres’ roster, you know they faced the Mets in the Big Apple last week, and you know it was Edinson Volquez taking the mound for the third straight Opening Day.
But did you know these Opening Day fun facts?
1910: William Howard Taft was the first president to ever throw out a ceremonial pitch. Since that day every president except Jimmy Carter has thrown at least one ceremonial pitch for either Opening Day, the All-Star Game, or the World Series. President Barack Obama has thrown out several ceremonial pitches including at the 2009 All-Star Game.
1912: A game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and rival New York Giants turned into a riot scene. The Dodgers were down and fans stormed the field, delaying the game. Once all that hullabaloo died down, the game had to be called in the sixth inning on account of darkness.
1940: Cleveland pitcher Bob Feller is the only pitcher to throw a no-hitter on Opening Day. The 21-year-old threw it against the Chicago White Sox.
1947: Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play for a Major League team. He debuted playing first base with the Brooklyn Dodgers at 28 years old.
Local
1974: Hank Aaron hit his 714th home run to tie Babe Ruth on the all-time list.
Ken Griffey Jr. shares the record for most career home runs on Opening Day with Hall of Famer Frank Robinson. Each has sent eight balls on a one-way ticket out of the stadium.
Hall of Famer Tom Seaver has started the most Opening Day games in history. He made 11 OD starts for the Mets, three for the Reds and two for the White Sox.
