Obama to join Fox broadcast booth for All-Star Game

By Richard Deitsch, SI.com

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President Barack Obama will join Joe Buck and Tim McCarver in the Fox booth during the All-Star Game. Win McNamee/Getty Images

Barack Obama will be adding baseball broadcaster to his résumé. SI.com learned Sunday that the President will join Fox Sports announcers Joe Buck and Tim McCarver during Tuesday's All-Star Game. Obama is expected to be in the booth sometime between the third and fifth inning. SI.com reported earlier that the White House was considering Fox Sports' request to interview the President during the game.

Obama is scheduled to throw out the first pitch Tuesday in St. Louis at Busch Stadium. He will be joined by former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter in a seven-minute video address to be aired during the pregame ceremony. The video will honor 30 Americans whom MLB and People magazine have recognized for service to their communities.

Major League Baseball says the video will mark the first time all of the living U.S. presidents will participate in a ceremony at a sporting event. Following the video, Obama will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. The last sitting president to throw out a first pitch at the All-Star Game was Gerald Ford, in 1976. "We have asked [for Presidents to throw out the first pitch] on a couple of occasions, but I think this year it's so appropriate given the scope of our pregame program," says Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. "It is very consistent with what President Obama has done. I wrote to him and he immediately accepted."

Fox Sports President Ed Goren says Obama's presence will influence the setup of Fox's production in St. Louis. "We went through this during the post-9/11 World Series at Yankee Stadium for Game 3 [where President Bush threw out the first pitch]," Goren says. "The Secret Service will lock down the facility leading up to the game. There may be some limitations of camera movement, and it certainly involves a lot more communication. But it's not a big deal; it will be seamless to the viewer. And trust me, it's well worth it."

ESPN, which will cover the Home Run Derby on Monday, has also put in a request to interview Obama. "We're waiting to hear back on his availability," says ESPN spokesperson Nate Smeltz.