Brittney Griner throwing baseballBrittney Griner (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)


Brittney Griner was one of three Phoenix Mercury players to throw first pitches at Friday’s Arizona Diamondbacks pride night.

The star center joined Kahleah Copper and Natasha Cloud on the night, and they all made impressive throws, putting the likes of Stephen A. Smith and Travis Kelce in the shade following their awful first pitches ahead of other games.

“We kicked off our Pride Night celebrations with first pitches from Brittney Griner, Kahleah Copper, and Natasha Cloud from the Phoenix Mercury,” the team announced via X, sharing a video.

“Feels great,” she said following her debut earlier this month. “Just sitting back and watching my team hold it down and play and compete, I was just chomping at the bit to get out there. So it just feels good being back with my team and being able to contribute and be a part of it.”

She also praised her teammates for their work in her absence.

“We put in a lot of hard work in training camp and the offseason, everything, and then seasons just go how they go sometimes and sometimes you’re a little delayed,” she added. “Credit to the team. They held it down. They didn’t crumble. They were like, ‘We got this, we’re going to hold it down for you.’ And I’m just proud of them.”

The Mercury star was recently the subject of criticism from Presidential hopeful Donald Trump, who slammed Joe Biden’s decision to facilitate the prisoner swap that brought her back home.