Baseball fans cheer Bush, boo Bonds
President throws first pitch in Cincinnati; slugger doubles in first at-bat
![]() | President Bush throws out the ceremonial first pitch as part of opening-day ceremonies before the start of the Chicago Cubs-Cincinnati Reds game in Cincinnati on Monday. |
Matt Sullivan / Reuters |
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The Major League Baseball season began in full swing Monday with two controversial figures receiving vastly different receptions from fans.
President Bush received a loud standing ovation when he took the mound to throw out the ceremonial first pitch in Cincinnati, a Republican-leaning city. He was accompanied by two injured soldiers and a father who lost his son in Afghanistan.
San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds, who is pursuing two legendary home run figures while embroiled in a scandal for alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs, was booed when he came to the plate for the first time in the second inning of the Giants' season-opener against the San Diego Padres in San Diego, also a Republican-leaning city. Bonds promptly hit Jake Peavy's first pitch for a double and scored on a two-out single.
In the ninth inning, a fan threw a syringe in the direction of the Giants left fielder, who finished 1 for 4.
Also in San Diego, Mike Piazza, who has more career home runs than any other catcher, hit a homer in his first at-bat in the second inning against the Giants. The Padres won 6-1.
The first game of the season was played Sunday night when the World Series champion Chicago White Sox routed the Cleveland Indians 10-4 in a game interrupted by nearly a three-hour rain delay. The game ended at 2:10 a.m. EDT.
In other opening-day developments Monday:
- Albert Pujols hit two home runs and teammate Scott Rolen belted a grand slam to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 13-5 rout of the Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia.
- Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies extended his hitting streak to 37 games with a double in the eighth inning against the Cardinals.
- The Boston Red Sox's Curt Schilling, the hero of the 2004 postseason while pitching injured, threw seven solid innings in helping the Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers 7-3 in Arlington, Texas.
- In New York, Tom Glavine of the New York Mets outpitched Livan Hernandez of the Washington Nationals as the Mets won 3-2.
- In Los Angeles, Adam LaRoche and Andruw Jones hit three-run homers, and the Atlanta Braves spoiled manager Grady Little's debut by beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-10 before a disappointed turnout of 56,000 — the largest single-game regular-season crowd in Dodger Stadium history.
Bush became the first sitting president to throw a ceremonial pitch in Cincinnati as the Reds lost 16-7 to the Chicago Cubs. The ball to catcher Jason LaRue was high and off the plate, but Bush called it “my best pitch, which was kind of a slow ball.”
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