Blue Jays fan Rachel Lauren Clark stepped onto the mound and into the spotlight

By Brent Jolly

On Thursday night, Rachel Lauren Clark stepped into the spotlight on one of the grandest stages in Canadian sports.

As she reared back and uncorked a fastball, she became the first openly transgendered person to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before a Blue Jays game.

“It felt really good,” Clark said in an interview with Yahoo Canada Sports. “People in my community have fought very hard to get the public’s attention on [transgender] issues; it was an honour to represent all of them.”

But for Clark, who is a board secretary for Pride Toronto, the moment was also heavy with personal meaning.

“There’s something amazing about being at the ballpark, out in the sunshine,” she said. “It’s a social game where people have the chance to discuss things in between pitches and innings that they just can’t do in other sports.”

Clark, an IT professional, admits she has been an enthusiastic fan of the club since the days of George Bell and Lloyd Moseby. Before that, she says she was an avid follower of the Philadelphia Phillies – mostly, she suspects, because of Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt.

She says, however, her allegiance to the Blue Jays was forever cemented during the club’s 1993 World Series victory over those same Phillies.

"I’m not a bandwagon kind of person,” she says. “I’ve stayed loyal throughout the highs and lows.”

Continuing her fondness for third basemen, it should come as no surprise, then, that her favourite Blue Jay is reigning American League MVP Josh Donaldson.

That said, after last night, she admits Blue Jays starting pitcher Marco Estrada is gaining ground in her good graces.

After being on the receiving end of her historic pitch, she was impressed by the right-hander’s demeanor.

“He was really sweet,” she says. “He treated me like a human being and I appreciate that. It felt really good.”

The Blue Jays became the first MLB team to host a ‘Pride Night’. First held in 2004, the club has continued the tradition, for example, by offering discounted tickets. This year, the evening coincides with Toronto's first ever Pride Month, which kicked off last week.

Much like the game of baseball, Clark admits that progress on transgender issues can be deliberate - and highly nuanced.

“It’s a shame that it took until 2016 to get a trans person to come out and make the first pitch,” Clark says. “That said, this moment is sweet and one I will savour for a long time.”