"He couldn’t f***ing hit, that’s pretty clear" - When MLB columnist Keith Law debunked Donald Trump's pro-baseball claims with statistic reality

Since announcing his candidacy in the summer of 2015, former US President Donald Trump has faced recurrent criticism for making headline-grabbing remarks. A formal player, Trump had even made some questionable claims about his baseball career.

From 1959 until 1964, Trump was enrolled at the New York Military Academy in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York. During that time, Trump played on their baseball team.

On several occasions, Donald Trump has bragged about his baseball abilities, claiming that he was one of the top players on the team. However, despite the bold claims, the statistical record seems to suggest otherwise.

However, according to The Athletic's Keith Law, the former president was not as effective as he claimed. Slate Magazine obtained nine box scores from Donald Trump's days at the Military Academy and forwarded them to Law.

The scorecards showed that Trump went 6-for-29 over his junior, senior, and sophomore seasons. In response to whether or not the batting statistics were suggestive of a major league career, Law was very blunt, saying:

"“You don’t hit .138 for some podunk, cold-weather high school playing the worst competition you could possibly imagine. It’s absolutely laughable. He hit .138—he couldn’t f***ng hit, that’s pretty clear.”

Donald Trump's baseball connection and tall claims

Growing up in Queens, the young Trump grew up mere miles from the home of the New York Mets. Known as an avid fan, Trump even published a poem about the game that appeared in the school's yearbook when he was in sixth grade.

Over his career, Trump remained an avid spectator of the game. In 2021, the former president was criticized for performing the "Tomahawk Chop" while in attendance at an Atlanta Braves game.

In 2004, Donald Trump suggested that he could have gone pro if he decided to keep focused on baseball. However, the numbers suggested that he wasn't one of the best out there.