TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — On Sunday afternoon (Aug. 28) in New York City’s Citi Field, the New York Mets hosted the 17th annual Taiwan Day to show solidarity with Taiwan and Taiwanese people.

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) spoke to the crowd on the jumbotron before the game, expressing gratitude for all the support Taiwan has received from the U.S to fight the pandemic and commenting on the love of baseball shared by people in both Taiwan and the U.S.

Tsai then introduced Taiwanese baseball legend Peng Cheng-min (彭政閔), who took to the field and threw out the first pitch to start the game as the Mets took on the Colorado Rockies.

As part of a promotional campaign for the event, the Mets offered attendees the option of purchasing a limited edition jersey with “Taiwan” and the number “1” printed on the back.

Before the game began, revelers sporting traditional Taiwanese costumes were spotted dancing outside the Citi Field stadium.

Taiwan’s Economic and Cultural Office in New York shared photos of the event on its official Twitter. The tweet stated that the event was all about “celebrating and spreading the free and fearless Taiwan spirit!”

.@Mets #TaiwanDay was a huge success! President @iingwen greeted fans on big screen while #CaptainTaiwan, legendary baseball player Peng Cheng-min, threw out the perfect first pitch. Today is all about celebrating and spreading the free and fearless #Taiwan 〔錯誤字元無法儲存〕〔錯誤字元無法儲存〕 spirit! pic.twitter.com/LBM5SJvZAI

— Taiwan in New York (@TaiwanInNewYork) August 29, 2022

The Mets have hosted Taiwan Day every year since 2005. Although the Mets went on to lose to the Rockies 1-0, the crowd was full of enthusiastic supporters attending the game to show support for Taiwan.

President Tsai’s remarks at the event can be found at the official website for the Office of the President.