Turns out Mario throws a baseball like he throws a fireball.

Nintendo’s Super Mario may be a plumber by trade and adventurer by necessity, but you could make a pretty convincing argument that his true passion is sports. When his schedule isn’t filled up saving the Mushroom Kingdom, we’ve seen Mario appear in a variety of sports video games, such as Mario Tennis and Mario Strikers, and this season he’s showing up at real-world baseball games in Japan too!

As part of a partnership with Nippon Professional Baseball, on May 6 Mario showed up at Yokohama Stadium in the city of Yokohama, where the home team Baystars were set to take on the visiting Hiroshima Carp. Mario wasn’t here just to watch from the stands, though, as he also took the mound to throw out the opening pitch, as seen in the video below.

▼ Mario makes his appearance at the 40-second mark, but there’s a treat for the ears of Nintendo fans even before that.

Technically, as per Japanese baseball jargon, Mario threw the game’s “ceremonial pitch.” He didn’t exactly put the ball right in the center of the strike zone, but really, his delivery is faithful to Nintendo lore. Since the very first Super Mario Bros. game, when Mario throws a fireball, it travels just a short distance before bouncing, so it makes sense that when he throws a baseball, it follows the same sort of trajectory.

Mario’s opening pitch wasn’t the only Nintendo flare at the game, as the first, second, and third bases were all given Question Block makeovers…

…and the Baystars’ cheerleading squad, collectively called Diana, donned special Toad caps.

Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach also stopped by the newly opened Basegate entertainment complex, across the street from the stadium, for a fan meet-and-greet.

Unfortunately for the home crowd, the Baystars ended up getting absolutely wrecked by the Carp, losing the game by a score of 10-0. But while Mario’s appearance didn’t put a notch in the win column for the home team, it did put smiles on a lot of game fans’ faces.

Source: Twitter/@ydb_yokohama, Baystars official website
Top image: Baystars official website
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