Fastball

Chicago Cubs Have Henry Rowengartner Throw Out First Pitch on Wednesday, Which is Cool

Thomas Ian Nicholas, who became famous for his portrayal of Henry Rowengartner in the famed 1990s movie "Rookie of the Year" threw out the first pitch on Wednesday at Wrigley Field.

Brady Farkas

"Rookie of the Year" actor Thomas Ian Nicholas prepares to throw out a ceremonial first pitch prior to a game with the Chicago Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field in 2017.
"Rookie of the Year" actor Thomas Ian Nicholas prepares to throw out a ceremonial first pitch prior to a game with the Chicago Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field in 2017. / Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports
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Thomas Ian Nicholas, who became famous at a young age for starring in the baseball movie "Rookie of the Year" threw out the first pitch on Wednesday afternoon as the Chicago Cubs hosted the Minnesota Twins at Wrigley Field.

Dan Hayes, who covers the Twins, made a funny joke about the whole thing on social media:

Rivalry on. #Cubs had HenryRowengartner throw out the first pitch knowing a ton of #Twins fans are in the crowd who clearly prefer 'Little Big League.'

If you're a 1990s baseball movie fanatic, then you get the reference! "Rookie of the Year" centers around a 12-year-old named Henry Rowengartner, who hurts his arm while playing for his youth league team. Because of that injury, his arm is given super-human strength and he becomes a pitcher for the down-trodden Cubs. He helps lead them to the playoffs and relevance again before returning to normal life as a kid.

As for "Little Big League," this one is about a kid who inherits the Minnesota Twins from his grandfather, who owns the team. He becomes the manager, navigating the big egoes of major leaugers to help lead the Twins back to prominence as well.

Along with 'The Sandlot," these three movies make up the trilogy of kid's baseball movies of the 1990s and are favorites for baseball fans who grew up in that time.

When the Cubs go to Minnesota next, I guess we'll have to see if the Twins can bring out the actor who played Bill Heywood.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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