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President George W. Bush to throw out first pitch at 2011 NCAA Men's College World Series

President George W. Bush will throw out the first pitch for Game 1 of the 2011 NCAA Division I Men’s College World Series on Saturday, June 18.

“President Bush was the first sitting president to attend the College World Series in 2001, and it is our privilege to have the former president return and open the Series by throwing out the first pitch,” said Dennis Poppe, NCAA vice president for Division I football and baseball. “In addition, he will represent his father, George H.W. Bush, who played in the first-ever College World Series in 1947.”

In 2001, President Bush threw out the first pitch of the game at Rosenblatt Stadium between Tulane University and Stanford University. A lifelong baseball fan and former managing partner of the Texas Rangers, President Bush is the eldest son of former President George H.W. Bush (1989 to 1993), who played as first baseman on the Yale baseball team in both the 1947 and 1948 College World Series.

“It’s great to have the former president back in Omaha for the inaugural game of the College World Series in the new TD Ameritrade Park Omaha,” said Jack Diesing, Jr., president of College World Series of Omaha, Inc., (CWS, Inc.). “Ten years ago, he attended the College World Series and we’re honored to have him back to experience the new home of the Series.”

Tanner Lubach, a senior at Lincoln Southwest High School and named as the catcher for the 2011 Nebraska High School All-State team, will catch the first pitch. President Bush will also be greeted on the field by the Memorial Park/Hillside Little League Bluejays, a local youth baseball team in Omaha.