 In 1963, he pitched in 37 games for Washington and led the AL in fielding percentage as a pitcher with a 1.000 fielding average.He also was the starting pitcher for Washington's traditional "Presidential Opener" on April 8 that season.After John F. Kennedy threw out the ceremonial first pitch, Rudolph went five innings against the Baltimore Orioles, allowing home runs to left-handed hitters Jim Gentile and Boog Powell and taking the 3–1 loss.