The Most Impressive First Pitches in Recent History

I'm not sure about you, but one of my all-time biggest bucket list items happens to be throwing out the first pitch at a baseball game.

No joke, it doesn't matter if it's a D-III college game or a Class-A minor league affair, walking up to the mound and hoping to toss a perfect strike in front of even just a few hundred fans would be a total rush.

And while it's a dream of mine, that doesn't mean it couldn't possibly turn into a nightmare, as more than just a few celebrities have shown with their attempts.

For all of those who failed to execute the perfect first pitch, though, taking notes from these guest hurlers might be a good recommendation, because they seemed to really know what they were doing—as these are the best first pitches in recent history.

Honorary Hall of Fame Member: George W. Bush

Regardless of your political views or what you thought of former U.S. president George W. Bush, if you're a true American, Dubya's first-pitch strike during the 2001 World Series between the New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks is a proud moment.

Just six weeks after the devastating attacks on September 11 and knowing the entire country needed something to lift its spirit, Bush had the entire nation tuned in for his toss before Game 3 of the Fall Classic.

Somehow able to keep his nerves in check, the commander in chief confidently hurled a strike right over home plate, proving to have quite the arm.

Colin Kaepernick

Although he has shown to have some skill on the gridiron, don't downplay the talent that San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has on the baseball field, either.

Drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2009 after playing hardball during his high school days, Kaep showed why the Cubbies were interested in adding him to their organization.

Asked to throw out the first pitch before a San Francisco Giants-Miami Marlins game in 2013, the right-hander didn't just take the mound in hopes of making it over the plate, but instead went up there with a purpose.

Winding up and firing his pitch, the ball may have sailed out of the strike zone, but it was clocked at a ridiculous 87 miles per hour, meaning he had a harder toss than former Giants pitcher Barry Zito.

Kaepernick also appeared to have freaked out the catcher a little bit, too. He probably wasn't expecting such fire from the Niners signal-caller.

Japanese Boy Band, World Order

While the majority of these first pitches make the list because of the throw itself, this effort from Japanese music group World Order garnered my attention because it's one of the coolest tosses I've ever seen.

As hideous as the end result was—and believe me, it wasn't too pretty—the group put together a choreographed performance that was awesome.

Known for their robotic dance moves, the guys incorporated them into their walk to the mound and the throw, ending with a 14-arm first pitch that was unlike any other before.

The pitch was a definite ball, but the windup and delivery was one that would have fooled—and mesmerized—any batter.

Jim Harbaugh

A former NFL quarterback and currently one of the most animated head coaches on the sideline of any football game, plenty of people out there would describe Jim Harbaugh as overly intense.

It turns out that it's not just when coaching, though.

Marching out to the middle of the infield a few weeks ago before a Detroit Tigers game, Harbaugh came prepared like a dad looking to no-hit a group of middle schoolers, wearing cleats, donning his own glove, and rocking an old-school Mark Fidrych jersey—which, of course, was tucked into his signature khaki pants.

Rather than just lob one up there, Harbaugh did what you probably expected, heaving the ball as hard as he could across home plate.

Russell Wilson

With two straight Super Bowl appearances after entering the league in 2012, Seattle Seahawks signal-caller Russell Wilson sure has proved himself as a franchise quarterback.

That doesn't mean he still doesn't have a bit of interest in the sport of baseball, though.

A former draftee of the Texas Rangers just a couple of years ago, DangerRuss hasn't been shy about his love for the diamond.

Rumored to have been quite the stud with the leather, should we really be all that surprised that Wilson was spotted tossing quite the heater during a Seattle Mariners-New York Yankees game in 2013?

Even with a questionable reading on the speed gun, Wilson's first pitch was one of the most impressive fans have seen in a long time.

Random Los Angeles Dodgers Fan

How many times have we seen it before?

An athletic-looking actor, politician or other well-known figure marches confidently out to the pitcher's mound in hopes of impressing the entire stadium with the perfect first pitch—only to fall flat with something embarrassing.

It seriously happens way too frequently.

This Los Angeles Dodgers fan, though, held true to her high expectations, delivering one hell of a pitch across home plate and showing that her arm might be worthy of a top-of-the-rotation spot or as a pretty nasty reliever.

Tae-Mi

There have been some ridiculous deliveries in baseball history, but I'll go ahead and say that this is, by far, the strangest.

South Korean actress and acrobat Tae-Mi, who won the 2007 World Taekwondo Poomsae Championship, showed just how flexible her body was, making an athletic first pitch before a 2013 game between the Doosan Bears and the SK Wyverns.

Cartwheeling through the air after launching herself like a torpedo, it's totally OK if Tae-Mi left you with your jaw on the ground—because this is absolutely insane.

Not to be outdone, other acrobatic ladies have pulled off similar body-twisting tosses, too.

Obligatory Honorable Mention: Odell Beckham Jr.

After seeing all of the athletic skills that New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has flashed, is it time for us to wonder if the guy is human or just a robot?

I mean, good lord, the guy can honestly make the impossible look simple, nonchalantly catching balls with one hand and tearing up the league in just 12 games to win the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

Something else OBJ can do is heave a baseball, as he showed during his first-pitch attempt before a charity softball game a few weeks ago, which, hilariously, caught the attention of a minor league team and eventually lead to a contract offer.

With speed that, allegedly, hit 90 miles per hour, it might be time to do some special DNA testing on the guy to see what kind of genes he was given, because he's a freak of nature!

Cirque Du Soleil Performer

This might be embarrassing to admit, but when I was younger, my mom signed me up for this Tiny Tumblers class, which I lasted about 25 minutes in before realizing that crap wasn't for me.

Turning my attention to what I believed to be "real" sports, I quickly picked up soccer, baseball and basketball at a young age, figuring out early on that I was a pretty darn good pitcher.

After seeing this dude perform a backflip and throw a perfect strike prior to a San Diego Padres-Kansas City Royals game in 2011, though, it makes me wonder if I could have done something like that had I just stuck with that tumbling class.

The answer is obvious—no—but it makes me jealous to see a guy with such pinpoint accuracy fire a damn strike down the middle of the plate with such ease.

Impressive, sir.

McKayla Maroney

Although U.S. Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney has a gold and silver medal hanging on her wall at home from her performances at the 2012 Games in London, she's probably best known as the girl who wasn't too impressed after missing out on an individual gold medal.

Of course, some may have forgotten all about that after seeing what Maroney did while throwing out the first pitch at a Chicago White Sox game last season.

Like the aforementioned Tae-Mi from South Korea, the American gymnast reminded us all why she's an Olympian, cartwheeling and flipping her way to a perfect strike from the mound.

Sticking the landing with ideal form, I'll just go ahead and give her a perfect 10 for her efforts.

101-Year-Old Kitty Cohen

I don't give a hoot about where she stood or how the pitch ended up, when a lady is 101 years old—as Kitty Cohen was during a Toronto Blue Jays game in 2014—the fact that she's even walking out there to toss a first pitch is impressive enough.

Given the fact that she absolutely milked the entire moment by performing a throwback windup in her delivery makes this that much cooler.

It also makes me wonder how a guy like 50 Cent, who is clearly in good shape and looks athletic, can be so much worse at throwing a baseball than Kitty? Yes, life's big mysteries.

Tom Willis

You know what's really impressive? When someone without arms can do extraordinary things.

A guy who proved to be quite talented is a fellow by the name of Tom Willis, who was born without arms, yet was still capable of throwing out the first pitch at a San Francisco Giants-Seattle Mariners game earlier this season.

So how did he do it?

Well, without any limbs hanging off of his torso, Willis used his right foot to get the ball from the mound to beyond home plate, showing that he might have better foot skills than a professional soccer player.