TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — American actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt on Sunday (Aug. 11) threw out the first pitch for a Fubon Guardians game.
Gordon-Levitt went to Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium on Sunday to throw the opening pitch for the game between the Wei Chuan Dragons and the Fubon Guardians. The actor reminisced how his father first got him into baseball by taking him to watch Dodgers games and how he now goes with his children to Dodger Stadium.
When he was introduced to the crowd, he said in Mandarin, “Ni hao! Xiexie!” (Hello! Thank you!). Having produced the film "Faces of Taiwan" in 2020, the actor was asked about his impressions of the country once he visited in person.
Gordon-Levitt said, “Taiwan is even more beautiful in person than it was when we were making that short film.” He lauded the Taiwanese for being “so kind and honest” and said he is “really inspired to be here.”
Having acted at 12 in the 1994 baseball film “Angels in the Outfield," Gordon-Levitt, now 43, was asked about his feelings about the day's event. He responded, “This is a dream come true getting to throw a first pitch at a baseball game.”
He said he had been a baseball fan from a young age and pointed out that his father was in the crowd. He reminisced that his father frequently took him to Dodger's Stadium and “I love baseball.”
When asked about the significance of the No. 11 on his jersey, he said it is a lucky number for him and his brother. He said that every time it is 11:11 on the clock, “we have a special moment together.”
Gordon-Levitt then took the mound and threw what the announcer declared was a “strike” to Fubon Guardians catcher Lin Che-hsuan (林哲瑄). He then posed for photos with Lin and the team's mascots.
