WASHINGTON • About 11:30 a.m. a man in a radiant red sports jacket appeared in the distance, his wheelchair rolling speedily down the sidewalk along Pennsylvania Avenue, rounding a corner and headed for home.

It was Stan Musial's Day at the White House.

"This is the greatest day I had in my life," Musial would say later, as this most magical and meaningful day began to wind down.

And from the beginning you could tell that The Man was ready to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He was fired up, sharp, mentally locked in. Smiling at President Barack Obama. Applauding the 14 other recipients. And not missing a beat.

And as a natural-born crowd-pleaser, Musial was also ready for the big show. A clutch hitter, you just knew he'd come through in a way that matched the magnitude of the occasion.

And he would come through just by being Stan Musial.

"Stan remains, to this day, an icon, untarnished; a beloved pillar of the community; a gentleman you'd want your kids to emulate," Obama said at Tuesday's ceremony.

Musial has always been about providing joy for others. For reminding us that there's something to be said for going to sleep happy, and waking up happy, and spreading happiness throughout the day. It's probably the secret to Musial's longevity.

So did you really expect Musial to make a solemn pose at the White House? There wasn't a chance of him striking out in this one.

And so at the most famous address in America — 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue — Musial would step up and offer two harmonica concerts.

Somehow, fellow Medal of Freedom winner Yo-Yo Ma, the acclaimed cellist, resisted the temptation to join in for a White House jam session.

See what happens when you invite The Man to the White House?

At age 90, he performs two shows daily. Back by popular demand. No cover, no minimum.

As soon as he was wheeled into the White House, Musial pulled out his trusty harmonica to entertain welcoming members of Obama's staff with some favorite ditties, including that most precious of Stan the Man's chestnuts, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

Given the circumstances, this was rather stunning.

"It was pretty amazing," said Stephen Beck, a documentary moviemaker who accompanied President George Bush, also a medal recipient, to the White House. "Stan comes into the place and immediately takes out the harmonica and gets going. He had the White House staff smiling and laughing."

And then after the ceremony, at a reception for medal winners and their guests, Musial set up for an encore.

"Stan was really on his game today," Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said. "It was something else, at the end of the reception, with everyone milling around, Stan took out his harmonica and played a few tunes. Everyone came up and stood around him. It was really terrific."

And for Musial to declare that this was the best day of his life ... wow. Can we even contemplate — let alone count — the number of extraordinary days Musial has enjoyed in his long, illustrious time on earth? The three World Series, the seven batting titles, the three MVPs, the 24 All-Star Games, the 3,630 hits, the 475 homers, the first-ballot Hall of Fame selection.

Lots of happy days in there. And this was No. 1 on his list. Which is marvelous. Because this is what we all wanted for Musial. We wanted this to be a glorious day for him. Because Musial deserved all of it: the medal, the acclaim, the attention, the affection.

"And he said it several times," said Brian Schwarze, Musial's devoted grandson. "He's a humble man. He usually doesn't show you how excited he is. But today, you could see it in his eyes. This really meant the world to him."

Family and friends were quietly concerned about Musial's health and endurance as he made the journey to Washington. A nurse accompanied the Musials from St. Louis, just to look after him.

As it turned out, there was no reason to worry.

The White House could honor Musial — but it could not hope to contain him.

Lillian Musial, who has been married to The Man for only 70 years, smiled and spoke for Cardinals fans everywhere when she said, "Wonders never cease with my husband."

Musial was still proudly wearing the medal as he paused to speak to reporters for a few minutes late Tuesday afternoon outside the White House. He sat in his wheelchair, wearing leather gloves to ward off the chill, with two of his daughters gently rubbing his shoulders to generate additional warmth.

To Stan's immediate left was his beloved Lil, also seated in a wheelchair. They were surrounded by their four children, son Dick and daughters Gerry, Janet and Jean.

It was a poignant moment, just seeing Stan and Lil and all of the Musials standing outside the White House, brimming with such obvious and warranted pride.

The Musials have been sweethearts since age 16 back in Donora, Pa. They were married on May 25, 1940. This was one of the most endearing aspects to this grand occasion: that Stan and Lil could share this blessed, once-in-a-lifetime experience with each other.

"I've always been proud of Stan from the very first day we met at 16 years old," Lil said. "It's been a long life and it's been really wonderful."

Musial's appearance at the medal ceremony livened up the East Room. Obama offered tributes to each of the 15 recipients. Much of the tone was correctly somber, respectful. But when Obama got to Musial, even the president sensed that it was time to have a little fun and loosen things up. As soon as Obama made first mention of the "Stan the Man" nickname, guests in the East Room stirred with appreciative laughter and even a shout-out or two.

It was as if Stan had taken them all out to the ballgame.

Obama turned to Musial and said, "My grandfather was Stan, by the way, so I used to call him 'The Man' too, Stan."

Obama marveled at how Musial actually volunteered to take a cut in salary after having a subpar season.

"You can imagine that happening today," Obama said.

Baseball Hall of Famer Joe Morgan was there, watching with fondness and hoping that the medal would elevate Musial to an even higher level of fame.

"Stan has always been underappreciated," Morgan said. "But maybe this will help people understand what a great person he really is. We should always look to guys like Stan Musial. He did everything right. He's the perfect gentleman."

And then Morgan turned serious for a few moments. He doesn't believe Musial has received enough recognition for being a peacemaker during baseball's uneasy period of racial integration in the late 1940s and early 1950s after Jackie Robinson became the first African-American to play in the majors.

"Stan helped in the civil rights movement," Morgan said. "He helped Jackie Robinson when Jackie came along. Stan never gets credit for that, but I know personally, from the Robinson family, that Musial was involved."

As usual, Musial declined to pat himself on the back. For decades Musial has been extremely generous in his support of charities and other community-related endeavors. But The Man knows what made all of this possible for him. And he gave thanks to baseball.

"What this reminded me is that I was a good baseball player," Musial said.

Musial was more than that, of course. And if being a truly great guy who has made millions of people happy is worthy of a medal, then the right person received it Tuesday.

The Medal of Freedom is the closest thing our nation has to bestowing knighthood on an individual. And this medal fits Musial.

After all Musial is, in the famous words of former baseball Commissioner Ford Frick, "baseball's perfect warrior, baseball's perfect knight."

And he can still play a sweet harmonica.