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Orioles Exec VP John Angelos Wouldn't Want President Trump To Throw A First Pitch

Orioles Exec VP John Angelos said it "wouldn't be my preference" to have President Trump throw a first pitch at Camden Yards this season, according to Dan Steinberg of the WASHINGTON POST. Angelos was asked during an appearance on the B-More Opinionated podcast "about the idea of inviting President Trump for a first pitch." Angelos referenced statements by Trump that are "considered to be problematic from a race, ethnicity, religious, gender [and] disability" standpoint, adding, "It’s really incumbent upon any individual who leads the country to step away from those types of statements, to apologize for those statements and retract them." He continued, "Until that happens, it wouldn’t be my preference to have the president come throw a pitch. But that’s up to the ownership as to what they would like to do there." Steinberg noted Angelos' father, Orioles Owner Peter Angelos, has "long been a major donor to Democratic Party causes; he was a major contributor to the effort" to draft former VP Joe Biden as the party's nominee for president in '16, and "gave financial support to a variety of other Democratic candidates and efforts over the last cycle." Biden in April '09 "threw out the first pitch" at the Orioles' home opener, and then-First Lady Michelle Obama later "threw out a Camden Yards first pitch of her own" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 2/23).

PRESIDENTIAL HONORS: In N.Y., Karen Crouse wrote it is "natural to wonder" how many PGA Tour golfers would "say yes" to playing a round with Trump if invited. Crouse "asked more than one-third of the Genesis Open field that question," and of the 56 players polled, 50 (89.3%) said that they "would play golf with Trump if asked." Only three said that they "would not." Ernie Els, who golfed with Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe earlier this month, said, "Whether you agree or not, I felt it was a duty to play with the president when you get the call." He added, "He is the president at the moment. If it was Barack Obama, I would have played. If it was Hillary Clinton, I would have played." Crouse notes Trump since the election has "played with at least one LPGA player, Lexi Thompson, and three former men’s world No. 1s: Tiger Woods; Els; and Rory McIlroy" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/24). Meanwhile, USA TODAY's Christine Brennan wrote under the header, "Rory McIlroy Takes Penalty Strokes After Golfing With Donald Trump" (USA TODAY, 2/23).

GO YOUR OWN WAY: In N.Y., Stefan Bondy notes the NBA has "gone hard to its left by openly admonishing" Trump, but public records show that Knicks Owner James Dolan less than two months prior to the election "pledged $300,000 to fundraising committee 'Trump Victory.'" It is "not unusual for team owners to financially back candidates on both sides of the aisle, but supporting Trump's campaign has politically put Dolan at odds with the NBA's biggest figures." He "split his donations to 'Trump Victory' for $250,000 on Sept. 27, and $50,000 on Sept. 1." He also "pledged the maximum of $2,700 to Trump's campaign alone" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/24).

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