Akbar Gbaja-Biamila threw out the first pitch before the Phillies game and it was ... interesting to say the least
Look, throwing out the ceremonial first pitch is not that easy. Think about it. You're throwing in front of a sea of people who are accustomed to seeing 95-plus mph strikes on a regular basis. Just ask 50 Cent: it's a lot of pressure. And when it was Akbar Gbaja-Biamila's turn to try it out, he figured out just how difficult it can be.
During the pregame ceremonies before the Phillies' 6-3 win over the Giants on Thursday, the former NFL player and current co-host of "American Ninja Warrior," tossed the first pitch of the day. At first glance, his form seemed promising. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned:
He was well aware the two-seamer he was attempting to throw following some instructions from Gabe Kapler wasn't pretty.
"What came out wasn't what I thought it was going to be," Gbaja-Biamila told MLB Network's Alexa Datt afterward.
.@Phillies, I think somebody deflated my baseball ?? pic.twitter.com/Gj6nkU2ShN
— Akbar Gbajabiamila (@Akbar_Gbaja) May 10, 2018
Gbaja-Biamila was confident in his setup, and a good sport about it, but did say he assumed it would be easy -- "like throwing a football."
"Clearly my NFL experience doesn't help me in baseball," he added.
It's harder than it looks, people.