For the last act of his whirlwind tour of Asia, Steph Curry threw a first pitch. Ceremonial, of course.
If you blinked you missed the tour, sponsored by Under Armour. On Sept. 7 Curry visited Manila in the Philippines. Next stop was Wuhan, China, where he engaged in a man-vs.-machine 3-point shooting contest. Curry short-circuited the robot, 22-16.
Finally, Curry was invited to throw out the first ball before a Tokyo Giants-Yakult Swallows game.
Big deal? It is in this context — in a highly selective, poorly documented and wholly unscientific survey by this reporter, witness to dozens of cringe-worthy ceremonial first pitches, 9 out of 10 ceremonial pitchers embarrass themselves so completely that they are invited into the witness relocation program. (More on that later.)
Not a worry for Curry, who tossed a strike with late-stage sink. About what you’d expect from a guy whose father was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles.
For comparison purposes only: Here are first pitches tossed by some of Curry’s teammates. Leading off, Kevin Durant. Juuuuuuust a little outside.
Next up, Klay Thompson, whose brother has played 51 games for the A’s and White Sox this season, backing up his boast: “I’m gonna gun this thing.”
Up next, Draymond Green. Don’t quit your day job, @Money23Green.
Last and definitely least, the top 10 first-pitch flubs. Personal aside to Nolan Ryan: Really?