For professional athletes — especially those who use their arms for a living — throwing out the first pitch at a baseball game becomes a no-win proposition. Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis became the latest to learn that undeniable lesson last night before the Phillies-Marlins game in Miami.
If he had climbed the mound (which changes everything about the process) and grooved an effortless George W. Bush post-9/11 semi-fastball down the middle of the plate, no one would have known. For NFL quarterbacks, the effort only becomes newsy if it goes awry.
For Willis, it did.
He exuded plenty of confidence. Windup. Leg kick. It looked great. Until the ball soared very high, and very outside.
This wasn’t 50 Cent. It was a $50 million (over two years) starting NFL quarterback. A man who throws balls for a living, presumably with some degree of accuracy.
It ultimately means nothing, other than to create a small stir on a slow Saturday. Willis has shown that he can play. The Dolphins’ decisive pursuit of the man who is well known by new G.M. Jon-Eric Sullivan and new coach Jeff Hafley shows that they know he’ll perform at a high level.
Still, the experience proves yet again that there’s very little to gain when a professional athlete in a different sport (especially a quarterback) accepts an invitation to throw a first pitch.
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