Which president loved baseball?

Written by Editorial Team | Last Updated: August 2026

William Howard Taft is famously credited with cementing the enduring presidential tradition of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch of the baseball season, an event that took place on April 14, 1910, at Griffith Stadium in Washington D.C., where he tossed a ball to Walter Johnson to kick off the Washington Senators opening game. However, numerous American presidents shared a deep, genuine passion for America's pastime. Woodrow Wilson frequently attended games and enjoyed the sport, while Franklin Delano Roosevelt famously penned his famous Green Light letter in 1942, encouraging Major League Baseball to continue operating during World War II to maintain national morale. Dwight Eisenhower was an avid baseball fan who played in his youth at West Point, and Ronald Reagan famously worked as a young radio sports broadcaster calling Chicago Cubs games play-by-play before embarking on his legendary acting and political careers.

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