Chicago Cubs: Former Chicago Bears long snapper relives his Wrigley Field moment

Opening Day at Wrigley Field isn’t until Monday, Apr. 11 and will surely be jammed packed with excited Chicago Cubs fans as usual. We’ve seen so many celebrities throw out the first pitch, some great, most not too great. But one former Chicago Bear reflects on the day he had the honor of doing so.

When looking back at some of the worst first pitches in baseball history, you can’t help but think of rapper 50 Cent. Which wasn’t too long ago.

The rapper who formed the group G-Unit was attending a New York Mets game with the N.L. Central Pittsburgh Pirates in town. Thankfully, he’s not interested in pursuing a career in professional baseball.

For awhile, that moment was talked about and is still brought up to this day. There are some moments that will always stand out while his will go down as one of the most embarrassing appearances. Ever. But he isn’t the only one.

Olympic Gold Medalist Shawn Johnson first stood on the mound for the Iowa Cubs back in May of 2010 and sent it straight into the grass.

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She received her second shot at redemption five years later, last July with the Philadelphia Phillies in town. What stood out that day is her boyfriend proposing to her shortly after.

And then you have the ever-lovely Mariah Carey. Carey, as we all know, dominated the charts with song after song and somehow, for some reason, found herself in Japan with the opportunity of throwing the first pitch.

Those who don’t know, she stood on the mound in heels, a pink jacket, and tight blue jean shorts. She, like so many others, spiked the ball straight into the turf.

Which brings us to former Chicago Bears long snapper, Patrick Mannelly. Mannelly spent his entire 16-year career in Chicago making him the longest-tenured Bear in franchise history. With the help of former defensive tackle Anthony Adams, Mannelly spoke about his first pitch on the Chicago Bears official YouTube page.

In this case, he wasn’t the only member of the team who participated. Punter Brad Maynard and kicker Robbie Gould stood next to him across three individual catchers standing next to home plate.

Instead of Gronk spiking the baseball into the grass like almost everybody else, he sent it over the head of a catcher, hitting the brick wall. This lead up to Adams doing an impression of the great Harry Caray.

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I had the honor of interviewing Adams the year he announced his retirement. How he doesn’t have his own television show is beyond me because the guy is hilarious.

Now if you’re interested in hearing more about Patrick’s ‘wild pitch’ feel free to watch the video below courtesy of Chicago Bears’ YouTube channel.