#Anthony Fauci to throw opening pitch at Yankees-Nationals game

White House coronavirus task force member Dr. Anthony Fauci will throw out the first pitch on Thursday as baseball returns amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The infectious disease expert will throw the Opening Day pitch in DC as the New York Yankees take on the World Series champion Nationals.

“Dr. Fauci has been a true champion for our country during the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout his distinguished career, so it is only fitting that we honor him as we kick off the 2020 season and defend our World Series Championship title,” the Nationals said in a statement.

Fauci, 79, has been director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infections Diseases since 1984. His willingness to criticize the US coronavirus response has made him a hero to critics of President Trump and a target of some Republicans.

Trump distanced himself last week from White House trade adviser Peter Navarro’s op-ed saying Fauci “has been wrong about everything.”

“That’s Peter Navarro, but I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

Fauci said last week that COVID-19 cases are surging in the South and Southwest because “we did not shut down entirely.”

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany last week denied a Washington Post report that said reporters were given “opposition research” to discredit Fauci, including his past remarks that the public didn’t need to wear masks.

“There is no opposition research being dumped to reporters,” McEnany said. “We were asked a very specific question by the Washington Post, and that question was President Trump noted that Dr. Fauci had made some mistakes, and we provided a direct answer to what was a direct question.”