At 7:06 P.M., on April 14, 2005, EDT, in Washington, D.C. (Game Horoscope), portly Piscean (2/20/75) Livan Hernandez threw the first pitch of Major League Baseball in the nation’s Capitol since September 30, 1971. Thirty-four years or so after the last pitch in Washington, a strike crossed the plate to Craig Counsell of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The strike was a perfect start. Even more perfect, the Washington Nationals won their first home game over Arizona 5 to 3.
The Moon dallied in its home team sign of Cancer that night, generally favoring the home team. That day, in eight games played, home teams won six of the games. Actually, the fourth house cusp indicates the outcome a game, as does the ruler of the fourth house cusp, not quite as simplistically as a Cancer Moon, which did help. In this chart, Capricorn anchored the event on the fourth cusp. Cap’s ruler Saturn at game start occupied the most elevated position in the chart strongly supporting a home team victory. (To be honest, I have not looked at the two visiting team victories, but considering the 4th, its ruler and all aspects to it, the picture will accurately unfold for each game.)
Could you feel the tension at the start of the game? Certainly, the Cancer Moon would close the gap on its orb to the square of Jupiter in Libra, retrograde in the 12th house of stored reactions, subconscious matters and more. The last game played in Washington, D.C. in 1974 between the then Senators and the New York Yankees, dang near ended in a riot. (And up the road in Boston, this very night, Yankee right fielder, Gary Sheffield, and a Boston fan got into a bit of a fuss - but don’t get me started on that - the basebrawl article is yet to come.). Fortunately, the Washington fans displayed who they are. They’re a smart baseball crowd, full of enthusiasm and completely enthralled with their new team, as they should be. These guys are quite good out of the gate.
Baseball is baseball. It’s the American pastime (first documented in the U.S. in my hometown - need I say more?). The chart had Moon and Saturn in Cancer. What could be more perfect than restoring Saturn’s yearning for tradition in the nation’s nucleus? The President threw out the first pitch, but he’s lost a little of his zip since the 2001 World Series when he threw a strike in Yankee Stadium. Regardless, this night institution upon institution set the stage.
It can be argued that the pitcher’s mound would be seen as the midheaven, or top of the horoscope. The mound and the pitcher on it, control the pace of the game. Here, with Saturn precisely cadent (just west of this angle in the 9th house), both Livan Hernandez and Arizona pitchers complained about the quality of the mound. Saturn in the mundane rules foundation, sand, rocks, dirt and such. Seems the foundation felt weak. There was not enough clay in the composition of the mound. Evidently all the clay had been taken over to the Capitol so that politicians would have ample mud to sling.
Finally, late in the game, Cancerian Vinny Castillo came to the plate. He needed a single to hit for the cycle: a single, double, triple and home run all in the same game. This phenom is rarer than a no hitter. He wanted it, no doubt. In what would certainly be his last at bat, the Arizona pitcher beaned him. Lost was the cycle. Intentional? Hard to know, but had Vinny lost it, a donnybrook destined to dwarf the incident in Boston that night would have ensued. Castillo, with Saturn near his Sun’s placement, and despite the certain inflammation of the rising tide of emotion brought in by the Moon, demonstrated Saturn’s restraint and respect for the institution of baseball. He trotted down to first, avoiding a riotous controversy in Washington (politicians take heed - that’s how you step up to the plate). To Vinny Castillo, I tip my batting helmet. And I’m glad baseball is back in D.C.
And if only my team would start winning again.