Anyone who doubted the Nationals’ conspiracy against Teddy Roosevelt need only have witnessed the travesty on display at Nationals Park Tuesday night.
No, it wasn’t the Henry Rodriquez wild pitch, or the back-to-back bases-loaded strikeouts in the tenth, or the excuse for pitching the Mets trotted out in extra innings. It was the blatant double standard on display as Abe Lincoln was handed a presidents race victory he didn’t deserve.
The Nationals moved the presidents race finish line to the third base side Tuesday, but only one president got the memo. George, Tom, and Teddy were first out of the gate, but stopped mid-race when they realized that Abe Lincoln had taken off in the other direction aboard a large tricycle.
As Lincoln approached the finish line, the Nats’ official race judge Screech didn’t hestitate to wave the checkered flag and declare Abe the winner.
Of course, Screech has previously disqualified Teddy Roosevelt for, among other things, riding a motor scooter, a golf cart, and a segway. The hypocrisy was not lost on fans, as Twitter lit up immediately following the race:
@cnichols14: Why wasn’t Abe disqualified? If @Teddy26Nats had pulled that, he would have been!
@WallyHuron: @LetTeddyWin so teddy wins with a segway and is disqualified. But Abe wins with a bike and wins? IT’S A CONSPIRACY I SAY!
@msdavisteacher @LetTeddyWin not fair! They disqualified Teddy for a Segway last year. How can Abe use a bike?
Tuesday’s Let Teddy Win cheering section of 8th-graders from Fort Worth, Texas remained an impressive presence in the Nationals Park Right Field Terrace through the full 12 innings, and even got a visit from the Bull Moose himself after the presidents race was finished.
Video and guest blog report to follow.
Twitter Photo: @NatzfFan