Former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson recently had an opportunity to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field, prior to a Chicago Cubs game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Johnson showcased relative accuracy, as the pitch made it over the plate with a heavy amount of sinking action.
Lions fans joked online the Chicago Bears new head coach was actually a better pitcher than Detroit Tigers reliever Kenta Maeda, who has had a rough start to the 2025 baseball season.
“I’ve been struggling mightily since the last two years,” Maeda recently told reporters, via the Detroit News. “I’ve never struggled this bad in my entire baseball career. It’s no secret that at times I’ve felt very negative about pitching. But I can’t let that eat me up. I can’t give in. I have to find a way to come out of it and stay strong, stay positive.”
Maeda was recently pulled from the ninth inning after struggling to get outs with the Tigers leading comfortably against the Kansas City Royals.
“We’ve got to be able to get through that ninth inning,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Kenta can do it. It just looks like things are off with him and he’s not executing at all. When you’re doing that, no matter what type of game you’re pitching in or how often you pitch, it’s a bad feeling.”
Detroit is on the verge of sweeping the Royals at Comerica Park, but face an important series upcoming against the San Diego Padres.
Hinch noted, “When he gets in trouble is when he doesn’t get first-pitch strikes and he chases bad counts and it seems to pile up on him. The strike zone is usually the answer for everything. ..."
