January 24, 2005 [LINK]
"W" to toss first pitch at RFK (?)
According to Washington Nationals president Tony Tavares, President George W. Bush will throw out the ceremonial first pitch when the Nats play their first regulation game at RFK Stadium on April 14. See mlb.com. The White House has not confirmed this, however. Given the ongoing threat of terrorist attacks, presidential appearances these days are often kept under wraps until the last minute. Presumably, he will wear a bullet-proof vest as he did when he threw out the first pitch in Yankee Stadium for the memorable 2001 World Series. In his honor, all Washington baseball players will wear caps emblazoned with the initial "W." Several players in the Nationals organization are currently playing in Latin American winter leagues: Jose Guillen and Cristian Guzman in the Dominican Winter League, and Luis Ayala, Matt Cepicky, Antonio Osuna, and Claudio Vargas in the Mexican Winter League. See mlb.com. Veteran Vinny Castilla is also from Mexico, the southeastern city of Oaxaca, to be exact.
The Memorial Stadium page has been revised, with new diagrams for the year when the Orioles first played there (1954), and the football configuration. Thanks to new visitor Don Singleton for providing a first-hand tip regarding the location of one of the bullpens in Municipal Stadium in the mid-1960s. (Originally it was behind the center field fence.) Duly corrected.
UPDATE:
The fruits of my recent (obsessive?) graphical labors can be seen at a glance on the newly-revised Stadiums by class page. I think those dynamic effects are pretty cool, frankly, but the question is, What's it worth to you?