Nats pitcher Miguel Batista may have ticked off a stadium of people. But at least a beauty queen still likes him.
Batista took the mound Tuesday night to a barrage of boos. Fans were expecting to see beloved rookie Stephen Strasburg -- who'd been pulled from the lineup at the last minute. Instead, they saw the journeyman pitcher start the game.
While the boos may not have been directed at Batista, he definitely heard them.
"Imagine if you go to see Miss Universe, then you end up having Miss Iowa, you might get those kind of boos," Batista said after the game, despite the Nats' win against the Atlanta Braves.
One jab led to another, but it turns out that the real Miss Iowa USA, Katherine Connors, thought it was funny. Oh, you Midwesterners. So friendly, so level-headed.
Now Connors is coming to town to throw out the first pitch at Friday night's game -- after she attends the grand opening of a Sephora location in Iowa, anyway.
"I know I can throw a pitch or two," Connors said. "The question is, can Miguel Batista walk the runway in a swimsuit?"
Meanwhile, Batista's been invited to serve on the judging panel at the Miss Iowa USA Pageant this fall. It's unclear whether he'll have to wear the swimsuit the entire time.
