Martin Sheen did in fact throw the first pitch in each of his several takes filming the first pitch scene, and missed the catcher on some of the takes. One of his missed throws struck the Oriole mascot, and the mascot responded by clapping both "wings" to his side, falling over, and sticking both feet in the air, in imitation of a cartoon bird being hit by a rock. This is especially ironic, in light of the fact that a minor subplot revolves around the President being unable to throw and former President Franklin D. Roosevelt accidentally hitting someone when throwing out the first pitch.
Filming the first pitch took place at a real Orioles game in April of that year, against the Toronto Blue Jays. The game had already been delayed over an hour due to rain, and was delayed approximately 20 minutes further by the multiple takes. The spectators were informed of filming minutes before it began, and were asked to cheer in each take as if cheering for the real president. Each take, Martin Sheen was introduced as "the President of the United States."
Josh (Bradley Whitford) is told by the doctor that Donna (Janel Moloney) has a pulmonary embolism. Josh is already familiar with this medical term and knows it's a blood clot because in the episode In the Shadow of Two Gunmen: Part II (2000) it is revealed Josh's father died from the same complication.
Awards and Nominations:Josh Singer and John Sacret Young were nominated at the 2005 WGA Awards in the category of Episodic Drama for the episode.
This is the episode we find out that Bartlet (Martin Sheen) won 303 electoral votes in the 1998 election.