Trot Nixon to throw out first pitch in ALCS game

An astonished Trot Nixon will throw out the ceremonial first pitch tonight when his former team, the Boston Red Sox, face the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series at Fenway Park.

Nixon, who played with the New York Mets this season, admits being nervous, saying it is a different uneasiness than he is accustomed to.

“My good friend, David McCallum, told me not to throw it over the catcher’s head,’’ Nixon said by telephone Tuesday, while having a late lunch in Boston, where he helped the Red Sox break the curse in 2004 while winning the World Series.

McCallum played baseball at Laney High School, while Nixon starred at New Hanover. They have remained friends since being teammates for Wilmington Post 10 in American Legion baseball.

Nixon says he doesn’t know what to think about throwing out the first pitch.

“It is exciting for me that they’d think of me,’’ he said. “It never dawned on me they’d ask.’’

A Boston television reporter text messaged Nixon on Monday, informing him the Red Sox wanted him to throw out the first pitch.

“I thought he was joking,’’ Nixon said. “I told him I was not going to fall for that one.’’

He suggested Nixon contact Sarah McKenna, the Red Sox’s vice president/fan services and entertainment. Nixon did and McKenna confirmed it and the team flew him to Boston on Tuesday.

Nixon implied it is a surreal feeling selected to toss the first pitch.

His most previous appearance at Fenway Park was with the Cleveland Indians last year in the ALCS, where the Red Sox rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win the series in seven games.

In games six and seven, he watched former teammates, Kevin Millar and Bill Mueller, throw out the first pitches.

Nixon, an outfielder, spent 10 seasons with the Red Sox before signing with the Indians in 2007. He played with the New York Mets briefly this summer before an injury ended his season. He is a free agent this off-season and hopes to play somewhere next year.

When asked if he will always be a Red Sox at heart, especially since he came through their farm system after Boston drafted him in the first round out of New Hanover in 1993, Nixon wasn’t ready to go there.

“When my playing days are over in the major leagues, and I look back on my career in that uniform, my body of work mostly will be in a Red Sox’s uniform,’’ he said.

As for Tuesday at Fenway, he doesn’t plan to go into the clubhouse because he doesn’t want to be a distraction. When asked if he would receive a standing ovation since he was known as the original dirt bag with the Red Sox and a fan favorite, he dismissed the notion.

“I am downplaying this,’’ he said.

He will do a pre-game interview on NESN – the television home of the Red Sox.

He also plans to say hello to Theo Epstein, the team’s executive vice president and general manager.

Chuck Carree: 343-2262

chuck.carree@starnewsonline.com