The Sunday Read: Inside Morgan Geekie’s First Pitch at Fenway Park

BOSTON –– Morgan Geekie stepped up to the mound at Fenway Park with over 30,000 fans in the stands.

While the Boston Bruins forward has laced it up for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, scored clutch overtime goals and faced the NHL’s toughest competition, throwing the first pitch ahead of the Red Sox’s game against the Kansas City Royals on Saturday was daunting. It was Bruins Day at Fenway, and he was the man for the job.

“It has finally kind of come to fruition,” Geekie said. “I am a lot more nervous than I thought I would be.”

With his teammates lined up behind him, Geekie tossed one to home plate.

“Incredible,” he said with a laugh while walking off the field. “No, it actually felt horrible. She gave [the ball] to me and my hands were so sweaty. I am just glad that it didn’t hit the dirt. That’s it.”

In some respects, it was a dream realized for Geekie, despite the nerves. For most of his childhood, Geekie dreamt of being a baseball star instead of hockey. He and his brothers, Noah and Conor, grew up in Strathclair, Manitoba, playing as many sports as they could, per their dad’s direction.

Hockey was an option from November to February because they only had a natural ice rink. And so, Geekie picked up baseball when he was four years old and competed until he was 19.  His father and grandfather both played baseball – there was an easy connection to the game.​

“I wanted to be a baseball player,” Geekie said. “I tried. I skipped my first junior [hockey] camp to go play baseball…That was my last kind of, ‘Alright, I’ll try this, and if it works out, I’ll go to baseball. And if it doesn’t, I won’t.’ I played really well, I thought, and nothing transpired from that. So I was like, ‘I’ll stick to hockey, I guess. I am a hockey player.’”

Things have worked out pretty well for Geekie, who led the Bruins with 39 goals last season. The 28-year-old credits his baseball career for helping him be at the top of his game on the ice, beyond the hand-eye coordination.

“I think that was probably for me the biggest thing. I wouldn’t say I’m a great skater or have good hockey skills. I just kind of think of it more as an athlete,” Geekie said. “You can tell when guys are good athletes when they play hockey because they’ve played those different sports growing up. Obviously there are a lot of different paths to the NHL, but mine was I played every sport under the sun, and me and my brothers were outside every day doing different things.”

Geekie started as a Toronto Blue Jays fan because of Canadian pride, but switched allegiances to the Tampa Bay Rays when he got to the age “where it was cool not to like the team that everyone else likes.” Evan Longoria, Geekie’s favorite player, was also a third baseman for the Rays at the time. It has been easy for Geekie to root for the Red Sox, too, especially since becoming a Bruin in 2023.

​“I’ve always loved the Red Sox. We used to play the MVP Baseball 2005 – that was the best game of all time. We were always the Red Sox because they had Manny, David Ortiz, all those different guys,” Geekie said. “Especially when you are a part of it in Boston sports, I think it’s tough to describe to people who don’t understand. When you’re part of it, it is awesome. It’s pretty easy to buy in.”

Noah is the only one of the Geekie brothers who stuck to baseball. He played in college and now coaches at Okotoks Dawgs Academy. Conor Geekie, the youngest of the three, is a forward for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Who is the best at baseball?

“That’s an ongoing conversation. My middle brother, Noah, actually played college baseball, so you would think that he’s the best. But he also claims he’s the best hockey player,” Geekie said. “Depends who you ask. He got the baseball genes; he was a lefty pitcher. Obviously he had a little more success than we did, and he’s a great player, so I will say it’s him. If you asked my younger brother Connor, it definitely would be him, too. It’s an ongoing debate.”

Geekie had support on the sidelines as he went out for the first pitch. His wife, Emma, three-year-old daughter, Gabby, and eight-month-old son, Max, were there to watch. It has been a big week for Gabby, who just started her opening year of school.

“It was good. She knows a couple of kids there, and I think it was just one of those things where you kind of have to bite the bullet because when she gets in the door, it’s going to be lots of fun,” Geekie said. “She loved it and is excited to go next week. So we’ll just try to keep the train going.”

Having his family there made the moment even better for Geekie.

“Once they kind of get old enough to figure out what you do and you can kind of make them part of it every single day – it’s super special. As they both grow older, it’s gonna be super cool to share it with both of them,” Geekie said. “Gabby especially, each time you go to the rink or are able to share something with them, it means that much more.”

On top of Geekie’s successful first pitch, he hammered a home run over the Green Monster during batting practice. Noah and Conor will be hearing about Saturday’s events.

“Not a lot of people can say that. Probably because they don’t get the opportunity,” Geekie said. “But I can hold that over a lot of people in my family; that’s for sure.”