Gymnast Simone Biles literally flips out on first pitch

The ceremonial first pitch is a mainstay of pre-game entertainment in baseball. And it takes all types! Adults, children, veterans, celebrities, rappers, the list goes on and on. But the best first pitches always seem to be thrown by gymnasts. Their acrobatic abilities add a special flair to the festivities.

At the game between the Houston Astros and the Seattle Mariners on Monday, we saw that flair on display when World Champion gymnast Simone Biles threw out the first pitch. She started with a perfectly landed aerial cartwheel — a cartwheel done without putting your hands on the ground — before going right into her pitch. Her pitch even made it to the plate, which is more than a lot of first-pitch-throwers can say (yours truly included).

In an interview she gave during the game, Biles revealed that she did do some planning before her stupendous first pitch. And apparently the flip she did wasn’t just meant to impress; it was also going to be a smokescreen in case her first pitch didn’t go as well as she wanted it to.

Simone Biles is a smart woman. If Snoop Dogg had done that before his first pitch it might have gone better. Actually, since Snoop isn’t a trained gymnast, probably not.

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Biles, a Houston native, is a tremendously talented gymnast. She’s been the World all-around champion three times, the US national all-around champion four times, she’s been on two World Champion gold medal teams, and she’s won awards on both balance beam and floor. So naturally Biles has her sights set on the gold medal platform at the Olympic Games in Rio. But first, she has to win a spot on the US Olympic gymnastics team. The trials are July 8-10, and Biles is already on her way.

Hopefully that amazingly acrobatic first pitch was good practice.

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Liz Roscher is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on twitter! Follow @lizroscher