Marvel actor Simu Liu was given the honor of throwing out the pitch at the San Francisco Giants game this weekend. Such a task always comes with some nervous moments as plenty of celebrities have gone viral for less than stellar efforts. Let the record show the newest MCU superhero not only didn’t embarrass himself, he performed very well. He threw a strike into the catcher and then did a backflip for good measure.
I mean seriously, how much better could a first pitch go? The crowd loved it. The mascot, who was standing in an umpire-like position, did a strike three call and then Simu Liu backflipped as a final ta-da moment. Amazing. Check out this video…
Always quick with a little bit of self-deprecation, Liu commented on the video later and said he thought he threw the pitch a lot faster. I mean... maybe compared to major league pitchers firing it in the high 90s, but for a ceremonial first pitch, that’s a damn good effort and way way better than at least 95% of them I’ve seen. It didn’t have quite as much zip on it as President George W Bush’s amazing post 9/11 pitch, but once you throw in the backflip, it’s among the best I’ve ever seen.
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised either, as Simu Liu has proven really, really good at basically everything he’s tried. The breakout MCU star, who was best known early in his career for the wonderful family comedy Kim’s Convenience, pulled off the actual sequences so well in Shang-Chi, which was a bit of a question mark when he was first cast, at least until he got jacked. He’s also proven to be a really engaging interview and tireless promoter of the film. Now seeing his baseball skills, it’s hard to imagine he won’t be highly sought after for Hollywood charity softball games.
Despite Covid-related issues and it featuring a character casual MCU fans may have been less familiar with, Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings crushed at the box office this Labor Day Weekend. If you count Monday, the film should easily bring in more than $75M in just its domestic opening and will gross far more worldwide. That should be more than enough for additional movies and will also serve as a clear indication to Hollywood that stories featuring diverse characters will sell and can attract viewers from all four quadrants.
Now, I don’t have any decision making power in the San Francisco Giants’ front office, but with the best record in baseball, the team is going to need to make some decisions on who will throw out first pitches during the playoffs. After this performance, it’s hard not to think Simu Liu should be a contender for one of those honors. That atmosphere would be electric, and you know he would rise to the occasion.
