The Next League Of Their Own: Hundreds Of Women’s Baseball Players Try Out For The Pros

WASHINGTON — More than a decade ago, Mo’ne Davis took nan shot world by large wind arsenic a Little League World Series icon who donned nan screen of Sports Illustrated. She’s since earned an Ivy League postgraduate grade and happily ended her competitory sports profession to dive headfirst into adulthood.

That was until this past weekend.

Davis’ way to nan area agency took a chaotic near move arsenic she spent a muggy play successful Washington, D.C., taking cuts successful a batting cage, prepping for her unexpected return to nan gem via nan recently formed Women’s Professional Baseball League.

The WPBL intends to make nan astir important effect connected women’s shot since nan All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which operated from 1943 to 1954 and inspired nan deed movie “A League of Their Own.”

“When I recovered retired astir nan convention (family and friends) conscionable encouraged maine to spell retired there,” Davis, 24, told reporters Monday astatine Nationals Park. “Why not springiness it a chance? I conscionable ne'er wanted to person a regret of not trying.”

Davis, nan 2014 Associated Press Female Athlete of nan Year, who earned a master’s grade successful sports guidance from Columbia University past year, had happily turned nan page connected sports earlier deciding to springiness America’s pastime different shot.

“I had a mindset, I’m not doing it (playing competitory sports) anymore,” Davis told NBC News. “The group astir me, they gave maine nan assurance and nan courageousness to travel retired here.”

Davis was among hundreds of women who shuttled astir nan diamonds and batting cages over nan weekend astatine nan Washington Nationals' younker academy earlier they staged games connected Monday astatine Nationals Park.

Davis captured nan nation's attraction 11 summers ago, starring her Taney Dragons to nan Little League World Series successful Williamsport. She became nan first woman to ever gain a LLWS win, throwing a complete crippled shutout successful Taney’s 4-0 triumph complete South Nashville.

The 13-year-old was abruptly among nan world's astir celebrated female athletes, earning nan AP grant that's gone to specified humanities figures arsenic Serena Williams, Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky and Caitlin Clark.

"I had a bully support strategy astir maine that helped maine retired truthful I didn't person to woody excessively overmuch by myself," Davis said, recalling nan monolithic attraction that abruptly fell connected her successful 2014. "It was a blessing because I've gotten truthful galore opportunities but a curse I had truthful galore eyes watching me."

That clip successful Williamsport could've been nan apex of Davis' on-the-field career. She went connected to play softball astatine Hampton University, wherever she had a solid freshman run successful 2020 before losing 2021 to Covid, slumping successful 2022, and not playing successful 2023.

So by nan clip Davis puts connected cleats successful May adjacent year, it will person been 4 years since she past played competitory sports. Davis gave up her on-the-field retirement, saying she couldn't walk up this uncommon chance.

"It's really cool conscionable to person support from nan women retired here," Davis said. "It's been really cool conscionable to beryllium capable to play pinch women and for each these women to perchance beryllium nan first successful this league, I deliberation that's really special."

The hundreds of women trying retired donned accepted hardball duds pinch achromatic numbers connected pieces of achromatic insubstantial pinned to their torsos. It made for an “American Idol” look to this shot casting call.

Girls person a assortment of squad athletics options to take from erstwhile entering precocious school, pinch indoor volleyball (492,799 girls played successful 2024-25), shot (393,048), hoops (356,240), and fast-pitch softball (338,315) starring nan way, according to nan National Federation of State High School Associations.

There were 1,381 girls who played shot past world twelvemonth — a amazingly precocious number that still pales successful comparison to nan 472,598 boys successful caps and cleats.

Kelsie Whitmore, erstwhile an elite Division I softball player, has spent years hustling for immoderate of nan fewer hardball opportunities disposable to women.

The Cal State Fullerton alum has logged clip pinch nan Staten Island FerryHawks, Oakland Ballers and Savanah Bananas earlier showing up to Washington, D.C. this past weekend.

Whitmore said she was thankful a shot convention was created because she "did not want to play softball."

"I'll beryllium consecutive up astir that. I didn't want to spell play assemblage softball," said Whitmore, who showed nary sick will toward softball while connected her measurement to becoming nan 2021 Big West Conference Player of nan Year. "There were nary opportunities for women successful baseball, truthful I had nary choice. But I did it. I wouldn't return it back, it's portion of my journey."

Lauren Boden, 33, and her sister Susanne Boden, 30, dropped everything successful their engaged lives arsenic doctors to train for these tryouts.

Even though they didn't make nan cut, some women said they were overjoyed conscionable to compete successful nan athletics they enjoyed playing arsenic girls earlier transitioning to softball astatine Division III Pomona-Pitzer.

"It was conscionable awesome to beryllium backmost successful a ace competitory atmosphere," said nan younger Boden, who on pinch her sister hopes to effort retired again adjacent year. "And honestly, each clip you're told 'no,' it lights a small spark nether you. I'm leaving present moreover much motivated."

League co-founder Justine Siegal said each female who has ever picked up a shot now has nan chance to play without being nan only female successful a dugout filled pinch men.

“I consciousness for illustration now I’m portion of my family now," she said. "I’m portion of it pinch my peers.”

Just precisely really heavy nan talent excavation of female shot players is simply a mystery, arsenic location are nary sanctioned girls' precocious schoolhouse aliases assemblage shot programs.

The WNBA launched successful 1996, and NWSL forerunners nan Women’s United Soccer Association and Women’s Professional Soccer kicked disconnected successful 2001 and 2009, respectively. All of those women's leagues had nan use of their sports gaining fame done years of assemblage and world play.

However, there’s nary specified formal, bottom-up structure successful spot for women's baseball.

Leslie Heaphy, a history professor astatine Kent State astatine Stark and chair of nan Women successful Baseball Committee for nan Society for American Baseball Research (SABR), said starting a pro convention without a broader amateur instauration mightiness look unorthodox. But it mightiness beryllium nan only measurement for this athletics to return hold.

“So there’s tons of women’s shot being played retired there, it conscionable isn’t successful that much accepted setting,” said Heaphy, a WPBL advisor. “This is nan measurement it was expected to happen. But if we proceed to hold for that, past it’s ne'er going to happen.”

Backers of women's shot will ever person to reside the big, yellowish elephant successful nan room: The increasing fame of precocious schoolhouse and assemblage softball.

Major League Baseball appeared to formed its batch pinch softball, not women's baseball, earlier this twelvemonth erstwhile it announced a business pinch nan Athletes Unlimited Softball League.

WPBL co-founder Stein insists softball isn't a rival.

"I deliberation it's rising tides," he said. "The much they rise, nan much we will each beryllium elevated."

The WPBL didn't moreover inquire MLB for support, Stein said, assuming nan convention wouldn't person liking successful his startup.

And pinch nary MLB involvement, Stein said nan WPBL has much state to see rules changes that could ne'er get to first guidelines successful a bequest setting.

A big of unorthodox rules is nether information for nan WPBL, including a two-hour clip limit, a “golden at-bat,” limitless pinch runners, inning-by-inning people competitions, a home tally title to break ties, and outfield assists astatine location sheet that besides consequence successful way runners being wiped out.

"It's a really competitory sports scenery and we've sewage to travel retired of nan gross pinch immoderate innovation, thing fresh," Stein said. "I'd beryllium shocked if there's not much than 1 of those (possible rules changes are utilized successful 2026)."

The league's statement is simply a long-overdue dream for Maybelle Blair, 1 of nan past surviving members of nan AAGPBL.

"Baseball (for women) is going to return disconnected and we're going to do it and person that convention of our own," Blair said.