Casey, Toomey teams take field with increased security
WASHINGTON — Bob Casey’s team was no match for Pat Toomey’s in the annual game that pits the two U.S. senators’ staffs against each other for a little bit of softball and a lot of spirited rivalry.
Hit It Toomey beat Penn Is Mighter, 23-11, before a larger than usual crowd, thanks to the presence of at least eight Capitol police officers who watched for the duration. Half positioned themselves about 100 yards from first base and the rest were directly behind home plate on the National Mall, where one officer caught a foul ball that otherwise might have hit his cruiser.
Although police are a regular presence on the National Mall, security was noticeably tighter for the softball game because of last month’s shooting that critically wounded U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., during the Republican team’s practice for the annual congressional baseball game.
“We let the Capitol Hill police know when we’re doing events like this where I’m not sure we would have called them in the past. Now they recommend that we let them know when we’re doing these sorts of things, so we do,” said Mr. Toomey, R-Pa.
He and Mr. Casey, D-Pa., both said they’ve had no increased concerns for their own safety after the incident.
“I don’t [worry about it] but obviously what happened this year makes you think about it more,” Mr. Casey said.
Wednesday’s win increases Hit It Toomey’s lead in the seven-year series to 4-2, with last year’s game ending in a tie after it was cut short because of rain. Mr. Casey and Mr. Toomey each had two at bats and both reached base before benching themselves to allow their staffs to battle it out to the finish.