Republicans extended their winning streak to five consecutive years at the annual Congressional Baseball Game, held at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., drawing 32,000 fans to the stadium.
The charity event raised more than $3.2 million for Washington D.C. nonprofits, cementing its reputation as one of the most unique fundraising traditions in American civic life.
The game, a custom dating back to 1909, carries one particularly baffling quirk: players on the same team are permitted to wear identical uniform numbers.
On the Republican side alone, there were duplicate 1s, three players wearing number 3, multiple versions of 4, 6, 7, and 9, and three separate players donning number 12.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Rep. Brad Finstad both wore number one, while Reps. Chuck Fleischmann, Greg Murphy, and Marlin Stutzman all chose number three.
The Democrats presented a similar challenge, with Reps. Morgan McGarvey and Tom Suozzi sharing number three, and Sen. Ruben Gallego and Rep. Frank Mrvan both requesting number 11.
Fox News Congressional Correspondent Chad Pergram, who has called the game on FS1 for five years alongside play-by-play announcer and former ESPN broadcaster Kevin Corke, described the uniform situation as the most professionally challenging assignment he faces each year.
The same Fox Sports production crew that covers playoff games and the World Series, led by producer Aaron Stojkov, handles the broadcast, having recently covered Cardinals/Cubs and Phillies/Brewers games before turning their attention to Capitol Hill’s version of the national pastime.
Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, who carries the highest OPS in Congressional baseball history, delivered one of the game’s most memorable moments when he made a diving catch in foul territory, scraping his forearms and drawing blood after crashing into the warning track.
“I’m not as sore as I thought I would be,” Schmitt said the following day, acknowledging the impact of the play.
Rep. Roger Williams, the GOP manager, spent three seasons as an Atlanta Braves farmhand, hitting .318 for Wytheville, VA in the Appalachian League in 1971 before injuries derailed his professional career.
Rep. Linda Sanchez, who manages the Democratic squad and is still searching for her first win as skipper after five seasons, pointed to a recurring offensive problem for her team.
“We don’t get our hits together then and strand people on the bases,” said Sanchez.
The game carries genuine historical weight, with past congressional connections to baseball including Rep. Jacob Ruppert, who purchased the New York Yankees after a deal for the New York Giants collapsed, later acquiring Babe Ruth from the Boston Red Sox and building one of sport’s most storied franchises.
Pergram was caught off guard late in the game when freshman Rep. Christian Menefee appeared as a pinch runner at first base without appearing on any official roster, having only recently joined Congress after winning a special election.
