Taylor Swift’s connections to sports go back to her early days performing the national anthem

By DAN GELSTON
AP Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Taylor Swift got her singing career started by performing the national anthem at sporting events as a young child and teenager. She sang the anthem before 45,900 fans at Game 3 of the 2008 World Series. The U.S. Open. NASCAR. The World Series. Yes, even the Double-A Reading Phillies. Swift was an unsigned artist who looked for any kind of break by belting out the song about the land of the free and the home of the brave in front of as many packed crowds as she could find.