Robert Redford threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Friday for the Cubs' Opening Day game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Redford, who starred as fictional Cub Roy Hobbs in "The Natural" — one of the greatest baseball films ever made — was in town to promote "The Conspirator," a movie starring Robin Wright and James McAvoy (directed by Redford) about the female co-conspirator in the assassination of President Lincoln. The film was co-financed by Cubs owner Tom Ricketts and the Ricketts family.
Before the pitch, Redford, who had not been to Wrigley Field in about 40 years, said he wanted to shoot "The Natural" at Wrigley but couldn't because the stadium did not yet have lights. "We were about five years too early," he said.
Redford, a lefty, stood in front of the mound and lobbed the pitch to Cubs' reliever Kerry Wood. “If I throw a smoker, my arm’s gonna go with it,” Redford said before the pitch. “I just try to get it to the plate.”
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