Rep. John Lewis, Georgia Democrat representing the state’s 5th Congressional District, will throw out the first pitch Sunday for the Washington Nationals on Jackie Robinson Day, the team announced Friday.
Although Robinson was not the first black baseball player to play in the majors, Major League Baseball celebrates April 15 as the day Robinson broke the sport’s color barrier in 1947. All players across the league wear his jersey number, No. 42, in his honor.
Lewis is known as a civil rights leader who, before running for office, helped organize the March on Washington in 1963 where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Lewis was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 by President Obama.
Lewis is an outspoken critic of President Trump, who has yet to throw out a first pitch at Nationals Park after declining an invitation this year due to a scheduling conflict.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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