Let Teddy Win T-Shirts
Baltimore Orioles star center fielder was warming up before Saturday’s game at Nationals Park, waiting for the Nationals to finish batting practice, and chatting with teammates about the Nationals’ racing presidents.
“Teddy never wins,” Jones asked. “Why doesn’t Teddy ever win?”
Jones, as it turns out, is a Teddy Roosevelt fan. He doesn’t miss the presidents race when the Orioles play the Nationals, knows about Jayson Werth’s attempts to help Teddy Roosevelt last season, and has a problem with the injustice served out nightly to the great president and war hero.
“They need to let him win,” Jones told me.
For Jones, the presidents race is a realization of a childhood misunderstanding.
“When I was like 5 years old, I thought they really held a race to determine who was going to be president,” he said. “I thought ‘that’s crazy,’ but I actually thought that’s how we picked the president.”
Jones’ memory triggered a novel suggestion. “I’d like to see them get some real presidents out there,” he said. “Have George W. race Obama. Who do you think would win that race?”
Jones sported a Let Teddy Win button until it was time to take the field, leading MLB.com to suggest that Jones’ homer Saturday was just following Teddy’s motto: “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”
Photo/MLB.com
Filed under: The Movement | Tagged: Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles, Let Teddy Win | 1 Comment »
With the Baltimore Orioles in town, Teddy Roosevelt 
In the fourth inning, the racing presidents mixed things up, running toward the third base side, but the Bird’s absence was no help for Teddy. George Washington easily passed a tired Roosevelt before doing jumping jacks at the finish line.
A day after 
The race began just moments after Nats centerfielder Nyjer Morgan singlehandedly allowed an inside-the-park home run by 
One pitch and one out later, the crowd of 30,000+ was still on its feet and buzzing about the oddity they had witnessed as the presidents race began. 
Chasing Teddy from behind, Abe dropped him to the ground, then turned to go after the other presidents. 
The annual “Battle of the Beltways” between the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles kicked off Friday afternoon as Nationals mascot Screech took on the creatively-named Orioles mascot “The Bird” in a series of challenges including arm wrestling and free-throw shooting at DC’s ESPN Zone. 
Today at Nationals Park, Teddy spotted the orioles mascot right out of the starting gate, ran after him and promptly slammed The Bird into the outfield wall, taking him down and out of the action. We’ve rarely seen Teddy so motivated.
When the Nationals issued 
In 
Teddy Roosevelt had never won a race at Nationals Park (at least not without being disqualified for cheating); but tonight a packed house got to cheer as our beloved #26 came from behind and crossed the finish line to claim victory in a 1-on-1 grudge match vs. The Bird from Baltimore.
With the outfield scoreboard displaying the two contestants’ vital statistics (Moustache-span: 2.5 ft), the racers were introduced and Teddy appeared from the centerfield gate draped in an American flag. The Bird got a huge jump out of the gate, but Teddy quickly turned on the afterburners. As they raced past the centerfield wall flashing “TED-DY,” Teddy passed The Bird to run away with it in the home stretch.
Tonight is the grudge match — an “unsanctioned” race between Teddy Roosevelt and Baltimore’s Bird in the middle of the 4th inning of tonight’s “Battle of the Beltways” at Nationals Park. The challenge was issued by Teddy after 
The over 35,000 fans who packed Nationals Park for the opening game of the “Battle of the Beltways” series between the Washington Nationals and the Baltimore Orioles were treated to a spectacle of presidential proportions on Friday night.
presidents race kicked off, as Teddy Roosevelt took a commanding lead out of the gate and drew cheers as he rounded the warning track in right field.
One inning later, a “press conference” was shown on the outfield high-definition scoreboard, announcing a grudge match between Teddy and The Bird. Teddy challenged The Bird to an “unsanctioned race” to be held during the 4th inning of Saturday night’s game between the Orioles and Nationals. 
In addition to the special presidents race between Teddy and The Bird (which the announcer described “the race of the century”) on Saturday night the Nationals are kicking off Nationals Park Saturday Night Movies. On select Saturday nights throughout the season, the Nationals will play a feature film after the game on the high-definition scoreboard. Concessions and parking will remain open during the movie, and fans are encouraged to move to any open seat on the 3rd base side of Nationals Park (presidential seats excepted). 
Accompanied by team mascot Screech, the presidents taunted the Orioles Bird at the Inner Harbor, carrying signs that included “Old Bay Stinks!” (Tom), “Honestly, The Nats Will Sweep Baltimore Hun!” (Abe), “I Can Not Tell A Lie–The Nats Will Win!” (George), and of course “I’ll Race the Orioles Bird and Beat Him!” (Teddy) . 
