Marc Fogel at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. Associated Press

PITTSBURGH — Marc Fogel, the Butler native who was freed from Russian prison in February, will throw out the first pitch at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ home opener against the New York Yankees on Friday afternoon.

The club made the announcement on Wednesday.

Fogel, 63, was detained in 2021 when traveling to Russia to work at a school and handed a 14-year sentence for having what his family and supporters said was medically prescribed marijuana. He was released and brought back to the U.S. in February in a swap that saw Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cryptocurrency expert who faced bitcoin fraud charges in the U.S., returned to Russia.