Fauci explains why his pitch was off the mark

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Dr. Anthony Fauci was the butt of a lot of jokes Thursday, when his first pitch to start the 2020 season was wide left.

But the following day, the White House Coronavirus Task Force member explained to The Wall Street Journal that his pitch was way off the mark because he had played catch the night before to warm up — and it left him hurting.

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“My arm was hanging down around my shoes,” he said.

He said he was just going to wing it and see what happened.

“Instead of doing my normal motion of just lobbing the ball, which would’ve been the best thing to do, I thought: 'Oh, baby, I better put a lot of different oomph into it,'” Fauci told the Journal. “And I did. And you saw what happened.”

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Fauci is a big Nationals fan, and it was only fitting that he delivered the ceremonial pitch, as he continues to lead the United States during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The Washington Nationals are thrilled to announce that Nats super-fan Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has accepted our invitation to throw out the ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day, Thursday, July 23,” the Nationals said in a statement last week.

The statement continued: “Dr. Fauci has been a true champion for our country during the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout his distinguished career, so it is only fitting that we honor him as we kick off the 2020 season and defend our World Series Championship title.”

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Fox News’ Dan Canova contributed to this report.