Bababooey Pitch
On May 9, 2009 Gary Dell Abate aka "Baba Booey" threw out the first pitch for the New York Mets at the new Citi Field. It ended up being one of the worst first pitches in history. So embarrassing that the pitch will never be forgotten amongst Howard Stern fans and even amongst many mainstream sports fans whom have seen footage of the pitch. The term "Baba Booey" from that point on will now be synonmous with a horrible first pitch.
Gary Dell Abate was asked to throw out the first pitch on behalf of Autism Awareness Day. This was Gary's second First Pitch with the Mets. But for some reason this one was built up much more. So much so that prior to throwing out the ball Gary consulted with a Sports Psychologist to help him prepare for it. Gary had envisioned a worst case scenario in which his pitch went way right and was a disaster, and that's exactly what happened. While Gary was living his nightmare in front of the Mets new Citi Field he kept his attitude positive and didn't hide out. While being interviewed by SNY Sports New York he realized that the First Pitch was so notable that it was being televised, something that is rare for a first pitch. Soon Baba Booey got a flood of text messages from friends and others reaching out to hear how he was doing. It became evident that this wasn't a disaster that flew under the radar.
Two days later the Howard Stern show was back and Howard told the audience that he received a call from his father, Ben Stern, who couldn't stop talking about the horrible first pitch that Gary had thrown out over the weekend. The majority of the show was geared towards breaking Gary's balls about his infamous pitch. This lasted through the week with people such Ron Howard even making commentary like "he threw like a girl." Soon sports shows were re-capping the pitch and coining the phrase "Baba Booey" as a reference to the horrible pitch. Gary's first pitch on May 9, 2009 will always be remembered.
On June 17, 2009 TSS-Radio purchased the Ball and Jersey Gary threw out on that historic day. The items were auctioned off on the Charity Buzz website with all the proceeds going to Gary's Charity Lifebeat. Taylor Mitchell co-owner of TSS-Radio chose to purchase the ball for it's historic value to the Howard Stern Fanbase. He has a strong interest in keeping the memory of the pitch alive and doing so by making the ball accessible to Howard Stern Fans. "I chose to buy the ball for 3 reasons: The proceeds go to a great charity, the ball and jersey provide great publicity towards fellow Stern fans, and we really want to keep this ball alive and viewable to those that wish to see it."
Taylor Mitchell took possession of the Ball and Jersey on June 24 at the Stern Studios in New York. Gary signed the ball "Gary Baba Booey Dell Abate" as requested by Taylor from TSS. TSS-Radio is in the process of getting the ball and jersey a proper display case. They are willing to take the ball and jersey out to events or perhaps lend them to Artie Lange in case he wants to use them for ball busting purposes on the Stern show.
Gary "Baba Booey" Dell Abate's website can be found at www.bababooey.com...and check out the story on MLB.com!
