Elmore Leonard has fulfilled a longtime baseball dream, throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before a Detroit Tigers game against the Seattle Mariners June 15. The Tigers presented Leonard with a personalized jersey, number 21 in honor of his favorite player, Hall of Fame third baseman George Kell.
An avid fan and former high school player, Leonard has been coming to Tiger Stadium since 1935 and will be featured in Tom Stanton's forthcoming book, The Final Season, a literary account of the last year of one of America's oldest ballparks. For his pitch, Leonard delivered a fastball for a strike to catcher, Karim Garcia.

All photos by Tom Stanton.

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