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February 21, 2011

Justine Siegal Becomes First Woman To Throw BP

Justine Siegal has wanted to throw batting practice to major league hitters since she was a teenager going to games at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium.

Siegal, now 36, got her wish today, becoming the first woman to throw BP to a major league team.

Wearing #15 -- the February birthday of her 13-year-old daughter Jasmine, who watched the session this morning -- Siegal pitched to five Cleveland minor leaguers, and a group of three big league catchers.

Siegal, one of only two women who have coached college baseball and the first woman to coach in professional baseball, pitched her idea to various managers and general managers at the winter meetings in December. No one paid much attention to her, but in January, Cleveland said yes. When asked if she was nervously anticipating the session last night, she laughed:
I've been thinking about this almost every hour for the past month.
Siegal founded and runs Baseball For All, a non-profit organization which helps girls participate in baseball. (BP Q&A from 2009 here.)

On Wednesday, Siegal will pitch batting practice to the Oakland A's.
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10 comments:

  1. BradFebruary 21, 2011 at 10:28 PM

    if she can throw good bp - then i am happy for her and the indians.

    ReplyDelete
  2. laura kFebruary 22, 2011 at 3:33 AM

    Yay! This is great.

    No "IF" qualifiers needed. (Does anyone ever question if men can throw good BP?)

    ReplyDelete
  3. BenjaminFebruary 22, 2011 at 5:58 AM

    Good for her!

    Too bad we haven't come farther yet.

    Let it not go unnoticed that Allan avoided naming Cleveland's team except by geographical designation. We definitely have further to go, on many fronts.

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  4. johngoldfineFebruary 22, 2011 at 6:17 AM

    Somewhere out there is a pitcher, --maybe a knuckleballer, maybe a submariner, someone with baffling offspeed stuff--just waiting for her Branch Rickey.

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  5. allanFebruary 22, 2011 at 7:10 AM

    Let it not go unnoticed

    I also like her "C" cap, though it has made a bit of a comeback in recent years. (Cleveland wore them when they played MLB's first Civil Rights Game in 2007.)

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  6. UnknownFebruary 22, 2011 at 11:37 AM

    Congratulations to Justine! Philip Wrigley was the founder of AAGPBL, not Branch Rickey.

    ReplyDelete
  7. ZenslingerFebruary 22, 2011 at 12:07 PM

    Is it off topic to say Prince was great in Oakland last night? Carlos Santana, Shelia E., and the strong guitar tune "Bambi" (not played in years).

    All right. That's off topic.

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  8. laura kFebruary 22, 2011 at 12:31 PM

    Philip Wrigley was the founder of AAGPBL, not Branch Rickey.

    But Branch Rickey opened MLB to African Americans. The reference was not to women's baseball but Major League baseball.

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  9. laura kFebruary 22, 2011 at 12:32 PM

    Too bad we haven't come farther yet.

    Let it not go unnoticed that Allan avoided naming Cleveland's team except by geographical designation. We definitely have further to go, on many fronts.

    Hear, hear.

    ReplyDelete
  10. laura kFebruary 22, 2011 at 12:34 PM

    Santana! Wow, what a treat. Sounds great.

    ReplyDelete